50 Million in 10 Years
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Tagged: unreached
Banished
From an East-West missionary
In October, my family was deported from a region in the Caucasus that we had been ministering in. After eight years of being in the trenches with over fifty unreached Muslim people groups, the Lord had called us onward. After so many years we had sown both deep and wide to thousands … only to see about 20 new disciples for Christ.
When leaving under such circumstances, we were unsure if the work of the home church would grow or start on a downward spiral to irrelevancy. People in our line of work have a healthy fear of such things because of the extreme cultural pressure that is common in Islam. Shallow roots do not last in the heat of societal pressures.
We have continued relationships with the leaders of our home church and those who are passionate in following Christ and taking Him to all peoples—from the neighbors to the world. And God is still moving in tremendous ways in this mountainous region we called home for eight years.
The ministry continues to thrive. A new generation of followers of Jesus is multiplying. Recently, one of our leaders baptized 12 new believers!
Though we may be banished, our Savior will never be bound! And as we move on to the next place that God has called us, we will continue to share the hope and grace found only our matchless Savior.
Igniting a Movement
East-West has always been passionate about mobilizing believers into unreached areas because we believe the united Body of Christ is the most powerful tool for impacting the world with the gospel.
Through our short-term mission trips, we have seen tens of thousands of individuals come to faith. These new believers then begin to spark a movement of the gospel through their own families and communities—igniting a chain of impact throughout spiritually dark nations.
But the lives of the unreached are not the only ones transformed. The ordinary individuals—like you—who dare to go and share the Good News are finding their own faith reignited as they work to multiply God’s Kingdom …
“I began to see God as a universal God and not an American.” –David
“I was reminded of just how powerful the gospel message is … I saw women transformed from being full of despair to full of hope. I saw children dance with delight at the freedom offered through Christ. I saw hard-looking men soften as they heard the message of God’s grace.” –Michelle
“More than ever in my life, I could see a clear example of God’s spirit moving in another region of the world … Now I’ve seen firsthand masses of new believers worshipping the living God.” –Jessica
“It deepened my faith and ability to trust God in a multitude of situations.” –Joni
“It was amazing to feel the Holy Spirit active in me and to see His impact on others.” –Jeff
“It reminded me of the power of love … though I may not be a highly skilled person, I most certainly have the love of Christ to lavish on the people.” –Kacie
“It was the single most exciting and exhilarating trip I have ever been on … It helped me see the world in a whole different light.” –Todd
The Urgent Task
An Exclusive Message from Kurt Nelson
The Urgent Task: An Exclusive Message from Kurt Nelson from East-West Ministries on Vimeo.
What if you had never heard the name of Jesus Christ?
One-third of the world’s population—that is 2.3 billion people—still live in deep spiritual darkness … with no understanding of Jesus and no hope of escape.
You can help us change that.
Any gift made to the general ministry of East-West by December 31 will be doubled up to $361,500 by a special matching grant—touching twice as many lives in the world’s spiritually darkest places.
Purposeful Obedience
Megan knew that God had been calling her to India for the past two years. It’s the one place on earth that she told God she wouldn’t go. But God kept putting India in her life and it was all around her.
When Megan learned that her church was going on a short-term mission trip through East-West, she finally relented to God’s leading. Nervous but eager, she was willing to understand God’s purpose for her in India.
The first day in India had not gone well. Megan shared the gospel many times but didn’t see anyone respond to the message of God’s grace through Jesus Christ. And the second day of her trip was not shaping up to be much better.
She and her translator talked to nearly an entire village without seeing much response. Discouraged, Megan began to wonder why God brought her there.
As they were on the way to meet the rest of their short-term mission trip team, she got the strong sense that she needed to stop at this one last house in the village. Trusting her leading, the translator walked with her to the front door.
They were instantly welcomed into the home by an older man and his family. As soon as she shared that she had come to tell them about the One True God, the older man stopped her and said …
“You’re the one I’ve been waiting for!”
Completely amazed at his words, she continued with the message she had come so far to share. Before she could finish, the man exclaimed, “I want this! How can I give my life to Jesus?”
That day, the older man and four of his family members surrendered their lives to Christ.
Megan came to understand the result of her obedience as she said: “I was exactly where God wanted me to be to fulfill His purpose. I simply had to follow His leading.”
Spark a Movement: Your Passions + Unreached Nations
It’s no secret that East-West is dedicated to reaching the unreached and those in restricted-access nations. But what you may not know is the variety of ways that we are doing so.
Every person at East-West, whether overseas or in our home office, are using their God-given passions and skills to spread the gospel across the globe. Here are just a few of the passions and skills being put to use worldwide:
- Teachers sharing their love for people and the English language in Asia
- Business men helping national leaders establish viable businesses that support their ministries
- Doctors using their skills and passion for healing others in Asia
- Adventure-loving outdoorsmen sharing the gospel on nature trips in Russia
- Break dancers building relationships and discipling young people in Mexico
- Accountants using their love of numbers and order to keep East-West afloat in the U.S.
- Creatives using their gifts to share the vision and mission of East-West
- Administrative people supporting East-West leaders
Every gift can be used to build God’s Kingdom. Any passion can spark a movement.
So we’ll be sharing with you some of the East-West staff who are using their passions in unique ways at home and overseas … but we also want to hear from you.
What is your passion? How are you using it for the sake of God’s Kingdom?
Missions Focus: Unreached
An unreached people group is a society among which there is no established local community of believers. This small to nonexistent Church often also lacks the resources to evangelize their people group.
“When we say unreached, we’re not just talking about lostness, we’re talking about access. Unreached means that they don’t even have access to hear the gospel. There’s no church, no Christian, no Bible available … God has not just commanded us to make the gospel known among as many people as possible. He has commanded us to make the gospel known among all the peoples.” —David Platt
A people group is considered unreached based on the following criteria:
- Less than 2% Evangelical Christian
- Less than 5% Christian adherent (on who claims any form of the Christian religion)
While these exact percentages can be somewhat subjective, unreached people group resources suggest that at least 2% of a population is needed for an entire group to be reached.
Of the 6.7 billion people on planet Earth, 2.74 billion are considered unreached or least reached. 4,029 people groups are classified as unreached. That’s a staggering 40.9% of the total population.
Because of the great number of people who have yet to hear the name of Jesus, East-West has made reaching the unreached a priority in our ministry. By targeting areas with unreached people groups and penetrating countries with limited access to the gospel, we are seeing the Kingdom of God multiplied.
In the last decade, we’ve penetrated 103 people groups in pursuit of our 1% Factor vision. As we move forward with our new vision in the fall, we will continue to dedicate ourselves to reaching the unreached. Our goal is to plant at least 25,000 churches among unreached people groups in the next 5 years.
For more information about unreached people groups and how to pray for the nations, visit:
Learn more about where East-West ministers and how we’re spreading the gospel among the unreached here.
