Displaying items by tag: Mission

Church leaders are being encouraged to join their peers for an overnight conference that seeks to help ministers of the gospel release and channel the power within their congregations. As the body of Christ in a country that is presently trying to break through a whole host of challenges, including those around uncertainty and division, Evangelical Alliance member Share Jesus International (SJI) has sensed that it is the right time to hold the Ekklesia conference. It is SJI’s first event of this kind, and it will bring together interdenominational leaders and speakers from many different churches for a programme of prayer, worship, teaching, storytelling, and more.

The World Bank reported that after sanctions were removed in 2016 there were many positive economic developments in Iran. In November 2018 the US reimposed sanctions and requested India, China and EU countries, to stop working with Iran. Sanctions are major causes of food insecurity, mass suffering, and eventual high poverty rates. Oil is the largest source of income. When there is no oil coming, there are no US dollars. Everything purchased in Iran is with US dollars. ‘No dollars’ causes the value of the Iranian rial to fall drastically, causing many companies to go bankrupt and having to let a lot of employees go. Sanctions increase the gap between the rich and poor. However there are a number of Christian business and mission initiatives established in Iran, including church-planting via small businesses. See

The Message Trust in Manchester have a wonderful passion for young people to be saved and discipled. They recognise that in many ways our 11 – 18 year olds are the key spiritual battleground.

Research by Care for the Family shows that this is the most vulnerable time for young people to lose their faith. Key factors are peer pressure and parents face increased difficulties in engaging and teaching their children. The spiritual issues extend to the battle for young minds, pastoral and mental health issues are rising year on year at an alarming rate. This current generation is fighting insecurity, sexual confusion on transgender issues and the push to have under age sex, a huge political and values divide between the younger and older generations and the constant social media messaging and the drive to be liked, watched, and commented on.

The Message Trust are launching what they describe as the ‘largest youth mission in the UK for a generation’. They have been building relationships with schools so that teams can go in and encourage thousands to come to well-presented high-octane Gospel events. This is called the Higher Tour and it starts in the West Midlands from 26 February – 17th March, then Cambridgeshire 1 – 12th October and South Wales from 5th – 23rd November.

The Higher Tour seeks to boldly proclaim the Gospel to young people and see them supported and encouraged as they start their journey of faith.
Higher Midlands 2018 will see six mission teams deliver 75 school days across the region. Over three weeks of mission, will reach 55,000 young people, give away 4,000 Bibles and they train more than 100 new young evangelists.

Let us pray for our young people:

• For doors to open into the schools
• For 55,000 young people to go to the Midlands events
• For this generation to turn away from the troubles of the present day to the freedom, security and love of Jesus.
  Prayer for Higher Tour at Elim Kingstanding, 120 Warren Rd, Birmingham B44 8QD – 7.30pm 4th February

Find out more information about Higher Tour location at www.highertour.com

Jason and Nisae Williamson are planting a church among the Iski people group in Papua New Guinea. Anka, an elderly man, was sent to their village so that he could hear the good news, as the believers in his family were concerned about his age and declining health. Anka is at least 80 with a palpable fear of death. Local religious leaders said he had to earn his way to heaven, and he needed to worship and appease the spirits. The Williamsons prayed that Anka would receive Jesus before he died. After four months of morning Bible study, Anka was overflowing with joy: ‘Now I know that Jesus paid for my sins and I’m a child of God. I do not fear death any more, I will die and be with God!’ He had been born again and was filled with the Spirit.

On 11 September the UN human rights chief called the military operation targeting Rohingya Muslims ‘a textbook example of ethnic cleansing’, and urged the government to end its current cruel ‘security’ operations. High-profile individuals have publicly criticised Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi for doing virtually nothing to stop the killings and destruction in her country, and 400,000+ people have signed an online petition calling for her to be stripped of her award. Myanmar has a history of violence against minorities, including Christians. Many people are held captive by widespread drug use, spiritism, occult beliefs, and astrology. 84% of the population, including the Rohingya, have still not heard the name of Jesus. Even so, in recent years, there has been a growing openness to Jesus, especially among Buddhist monks. Prayers can change their physical and eternal reality. See

Health care for our brothers and sisters in South Kordofan, Sudan, faces a crisis. Voice of the Martyrs (VOM) reports that after hospitals were bombed and aid organisations chased from the country, only two doctors are treating 1.1 million people. Even if people weren’t being maimed in government bombings, medical aid would be desperately lacking for everyday needs such as delivering babies, treating malaria, and helping people injured in accidents. Last year, VOM delivered 44.5 tons of medicine to the South Kordofan region, and it is supporting the few medical workers still in the region by helping to build a clinic and providing badly needed mosquito nets for its patients. See also article 7 in this section.

The Church of England has recognised that pioneers are vital for the future of the Church. The Church Mission Society’s pioneer mission leadership training programme provides a designated pathway for ordination as an ordained pioneer minister - alongside the more traditional routes for teachers and pastors. This year there has been a further growth in numbers; an eclectic mix of missionaries will graduate this week after completing their studies in theology, ministry and mission. The pioneers included some being ordained into the Church of England as deacons or admitted to the order of Lay Pioneers. Mission pioneers are giving the Church a glimpse of the future, where mission will not be delivered solely by large para-church organisations, but increasingly through agile, innovative and creative pioneers, witnessing to love in action.

Paul Eshleman

Herrnhut Consultation

May 2017

During the wonderful Prayer Conference in Herrnhut, we introduced several lists of unreached people groups to give us all an introduction to the work of prayer and missions that still remains throughout the world. Our thesis was that when we pray specifically, we can see specific answers to our prayers. And, when we concentrate our prayers toward the unreached peoples and nations we see remarkable results.

We finished the conference with the following suggestions for carrying out our desires to work together more closely toward the fulfillment of the Great Commission. We suggested some objectives for each of us involved in the consultation, and we acknowledge that each of our groups had much to learn from the other. Here are some of our suggestions:

1. The Prayer movement could:
   1. Consider sending prayer warriors to every remaining unengaged, unreached people group in the world. They could team up with indigenous intercessors whose churches might eventually send workers to the group(s) they are praying for.
   2. Send similar type of intercessors to the 150 people groups that currently need the most workers.
   3. Pray specifically for each of the global networks that are currently launching initiatives toward their part in the Great Commission. This would include 20-30 global networks and 100 geographic networks.
   4. Help prepare prayer intercessors for all network meetings scheduled for the next 3-5 years.
   5. Help mission leaders to set up a prayer plan for their ministry, their workers, and the people they are trying to reach.
   6. Disseminate very specific requests to all of its prayer leaders that outline:
      1. Peoples, places and leaders where the cause of the Gospel is being blocked.
      2. Praise reports from each of the five strategic elements involved in the fulfillment of the Great Commission.
   7. Develop a prayer calendar where people will pray each day for a different Christian leader or Christian organization, much like the Master Media Prayer Guide. Much like the Master Media Prayer Guide, prepared to help us pray for leaders in the entertainment industry
   8. Be a continual encouragement to mission leaders to live lives of holiness and dependence on the Holy Spirit.
2. The Missions Movement could:
   1. Provide a speaker/reporter for every major prayer conference. Jesus said, “My house shall be a house of prayer, for the NATIONS”. We should have a report on the Nations at each prayer meeting.
   2. Provide a listing of all major evangelistic outreaches planned for each six-month time period.
   3. Make sure intercessors are invited to every strategic meeting being planned.
   4. Bring in leaders from the Prayer Movement to help church planters teach their new church leaders to pray more effectively, specifically, and scripturally.
   5. Provide contacts of mission and church leaders that intercessors could contact with when they go to a country to pray for the unreached, and unengaged people groups.
   6. Provide 2-4 reports annually on:
      1. The number and list of people groups still without a missionary.
      2. The number of workers still needed in the people groups with large populations.
   7. Provide reports twice per year on:
      1. Progress in reaching Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs, etc.
      2. Language groups still without any scripture translation.
      3. Progress on scripture distribution efforts.
3. Ideas for both groups in combining prayer and “connection work” to hasten the fulfillment of the Great Commission:
   1. Begin by praying for the people groups you received in the materials packet at Herrnhut. If you want profiles on additional groups, write to Lara Heneveld Finishing the Task at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.)
   2. Send copies of the groups profiles to all of the members of your network.
   3. Ask if any of the people in your network have contacts in the country of your UUPG, or if any are planning a visit to the country in the next year or so.
   4. Become an international “Connector” for an unengaged people group.
      1. Definition – Connecting with Believers in the country of the Unengaged, Unreached people group (UUPG) to tell them you are praying that someone will take the gospel to your people group.
      2. Tell your contact that:
         1. Your prayer group or church is praying for this people group and might want to partner with them.
         2. Ask them if they know of a Christian National that could find this group and do a 3-day survey trip to find their needs.
         3. Suggest that you might help with the transportation expenses for someone to go and survey the people group.
         4. Pray for their current ministry and their personal needs.
         5. Set a time to call them, Skype, email, etc.to get a report on the people group.
   5. Call Dr. David Pope at the Finishing the Task office for help on the next steps in encouraging your church to commit to a partnership with a local church or ministry (760)260-5070.
4. Along the way, there are practical things you can do to encourage your local church.
   1. Talk to your pastor about Prayer for the Nations
   2. Find out what countries your church is already sponsoring missionaries
   3. Talk to your church about praying and giving toward a people group in one of those countries.
5. The Prayer Resources: During this conference, you were given several resources to use during times of prayer. If you do not have these, write to the Finishing the Task office, and ask for the prayer conference materials.
   1. You have the PRAISE REPORT capsule on page 8 from the first day’s handout which lists what has been happening to engage unreached people groups since November 2005.
   2. Secondly, you have the chart of the Elements of the Great Commission showing WHAT God wants us to do regarding the Great Commission and how we should go about it. These are 17 passages of scripture that are the essence of our Lord’s message to us relating to the Great Commission.
   3. Thirdly, you have a short listing of WHO the leaders and networks are that are contributing to the completion of each of the elements involved in the Great Commission. You will add your contacts from many other Christian ministries as you pray for each part of the Great Commission task.
   4. Finally, you have two lists of WHERE we need to pray that the Lord will send workers.
      1. List #1 shows all the people groups that have no known workers.
      2. List #2 shows all the people groups that with not enough workers to reach that portion of the population.
6. Summary:

In summary, if we in the body of Christ can work together off the same Biblical priorities and objectives, then we can think about what our specific prayers should be for the elements of the Great Commission that are still not being addressed.

As we look at scripture translation, or church planting, or evangelism, we can see the people that are being neglected or the languages that are not funded, or the geographic areas for which there are no workers. When we know who the people and organizations are that are attempting to play a significant role in any of these areas, we can pray for them specifically by name.

Finally, we can look at the geographic areas of greatest need and pray specifically for workers to go to those places.

Thousands of children from India and Indonesia along with others prayed for the Consultation that happened in the little town of Herrnhut (the Lord’s watch), May 8-12. Thank you if you were part of that intercession. The Lord did far more abundantly than we could have asked or imagined! It was such a joy and blessing to be with 120 key leaders from across the world, who are on the cutting-edge of His Kingdom’s work. YWAM younger missionaries in training and members of the Jesus Haus community in the town also took part. Powerful, heart-stirring presentations from the most conflicted, challenging countries brought tears to our eyes and a strong response in united, fervent prayer.

We focused on three main themes:

1. Reaching the Unreached- focusing on those unreached people groups that are still without a witness to Christ or those larger groups that are underserviced due to lack of mission workers. There are over 1500 unengaged people groups that are on the “Finishing the Task” list which you can get from their office plus prayer profiles to help you and others “adopt” them for prayer until they are reached. Please write to Lara Heneveld,This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to get connected. A fuller article by Paul Eshleman, the leader of the Finishing the Task initiative with valuable suggestions on how you, your organization, church or prayer group can get involved in this Matthew 24:14 challenge that is so much on the Lord’s heart-- enabling a witness to go to the remaining unreached peoples before the end shall come-- is attached below.

2. Another important emphasis was on empowering not the Next Generation but the “Now Generation”, the youth and children, each of whom has a special, unique calling from the Lord that they will discover as we encourage them. They need and want to be included them in the prayer and mission force for the transformation of our world NOW!

3. The third major theme was on authoritative prayer for breakthroughs in territorial deliverance. We heard from Christian leaders who have led authoritative prayer initiatives that God has used to liberate places and people from demonic influence and broken through spiritual enslavement and deception so they can come to Christ.

Valuable connections were made among the participants and they engaged in productive times of deliberation and strategic planning according to the three foci just mentioned. All in all, it was an outstanding time that we believe will impact our world significantly.

Part of the success of the event was the venue. Indeed that is why we chose to have the gathering there. It was here that the Holy Spirit was poured out on the Moravians almost three centuries ago. As a small community of praying people, God used them way beyond their insignificant number to impact our world. After the revival in 1727, they continued in prayer with a 24/7 chain that lasted over 100 years and sent out the first Protestant missionaries to the ends of the earth, affecting whole nations for Christ and His Kingdom. There is still a sense of hallowedness about the town and the nearby graveyard where 6000 of these dear saints, very ordinary people with an extraordinary love for Jesus, are buried.

Here is the Accord that came out of the consultation and that we commend to your continued prayers that the mission and prayer movements will fully converge, working closely together around the world until every people group and person is reached with the Good News of the Gospel:

Herrnhut Accord

International Prayer and Mission Leaders Consultation

at Herrnhut Germany, 8-12 May, 2017

In this historic place where, 290 years ago, an outpouring of the Holy Spirit gave birth to 24 hours of continuous prayer by both children and adults for 100 years, and which also launched what became known as the era of modern mission movements to the world,

We, as representative leaders of both prayer and mission movements from many nations on all continents of the world, now commit ourselves to this historic agreement and join forces and partner as the Lord leads and connects us to

Encourage, nurture and develop prayer and mission movements in the nations, with prime focus on the children and youth, preparing them to be warriors of faith, to be listening constantly to the voice of God, to be bold and courageous in the face of increasing challenges, and to reach out with the Gospel of the Kingdom, to plant churches and be agents for God´s kingdom.

Out of a place of unity with all true members of the body of Christ, regardless of denominational distinction, we commit ourselves to the unfinished task so that

Every nation, people, tribe and language group will have a sustainable and growing church,

Every enterprise in all walks of life will be served by representatives of the kingdom, with the biblical goal that "the whole earth be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord and that all nations be transformed by the Gospel and become servants of the Kingdom of God".

We commit ourselves to pray, plan and prepare for the coming of the Lord and to gather in a global harvest, that He might receive the reward of His sufferings.

We commit ourselves not to speak ill of one another but in a spirit of Christ-like love to welcome, respect and affirm the gifts and callings of each other.

We commit ourselves to help one another across the world and between the generations, to fulfil God's unique call through all means available to us, particularly where prophetic and timely calls to go to the nations are being obeyed, aiming to complete the Great Commission of our Lord.

In this context, we recognize and want to honour our older brother Israel, the first recipient of the Word and the promise. As Gentiles and first fruits of the Gospel, we are committed to love and serve Israel until we are reconciled as one new man, sharing the covenental promises.

We, from the North to the South and the East to the West, who are all "One in Christ Jesus", invite the Lord of Glory to help us fulfil all that is on His heart, through all the resources of heaven, the empowering of the Holy Spirit, and the unique gifts and callings He gives to His church, His bride.

Our Lamb has conquered. Let us follow Him, around the throne, around the clock, around the globe!

Herrnhut/Germany, 12 May, 2017

Global Mapping International (GMI) will close on 30 June - three decades after it began as a two-year global mapping project. ‘We thought we’d get it done in two years,’ GMI president and CEO Jon Hirst said. ‘Then we realised that the nature of gathering information for the Great Commission was never-ending. That led to us becoming an independent research organisation supporting the global Church.’ Its publication Operation World and other resources have helped foreign missionaries become more effective, with custom maps, infographics, etc. Hirst said that a changing approach to mission and funding structure has forced GMI to close. The need for independent mission research hasn’t disappeared, and he hopes a new group will step forward to take it up. He said, ‘God blesses causes and people, He doesn’t bless organisations. The structures of the 20th century won’t always be able to withstand the changes of the 21st.’ Before closing, GMI will give away all its research.