Prayer update - Feb 20, 2013

Dear prayer partners,

Please join us in praying for salvation for the PB peoples and for a great movement to spread. Just in the last week, I heard national partners speaking of sharing the Gospel with those from several different people groups. From the Paycall, the Ruhjohn, the Lembox, the Ben people, the Trans people, and more. It was so exciting to hear how the Lord continues to embolden His believers to share the Good News of Jesus Christ to those who have not believed! Praise the Lord!

But please join us in praying that the Holy Spirit will go before us and penetrate hearts, taking blinds off the blinded, hardened hearts of our PB peoples. The Holy Spirit must go before us. Please join us as we and our nationals are praying for the Lord God to save our PB peoples. We cannot fulfill this task, only He can.

But for now, let me tell you an interesting story:

Mr. Alfred has been a Christ-follower for several years. Alfred and his wife felt the Lord leading them to move to our area of this country.  They moved into a remote village and began working as farmers, as is the occupation for most others in their village.  Their hearts desire was and is to see people become followers of Jesus Christ. They began sharing the Gospel and talking with neighbors about what the Lord had done in their own hearts.  Over a period of a year or two, one family went from persecuting and publicly speaking out, very negatively, against Christians to slowly over time becoming open to Christians.  Last Sunday, Mr. Alfred and his wife brought Mr. Ben and his wife (the family that publicly denounced Christians) to CHURCH. I noticed them as I walked in the church, the wife more noticeable, wearing a Muslim head scarf and the man, having a longer beard as some Muslim men have.  During the service, Mr. Alfred shared how Mr. Ben and his wife were mean people but that God saved them and gave them a new heart and they are now Christ-followers.  It was beautiful. The Gospel is beautiful. Christ takes our wretched, sinful hearts and gives us His pure, sinless beautiful standing before God.  It is an unfair exchange - our nasty, sinful, wicked hearts for his spotless, sinless, beautiful heart. However that is EXACTLY what Jesus did on the Cross.

It is amazing, the PB team tries to reach people from all angles: house churches AND the traditional church.  Here it is plainly seen, the Lord is using whomever and whatever has a heart to make Him known and to call others to repentance and belief upon the Lord Jesus Christ.

Please pray for these new believers, that they would continue following Christ. Please pray for those that disciple them, that they would be consistently following-up and discipling Mr. and Mrs. Ben.

Lastly, please pray for this village, that the Lord will continue to call out people to believe upon His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.  Pray for Mr. and Mrs. Alfred, Mr. and Mrs. Ben, and another couple Mr. and Mrs. G as they continue to put their lamp on the stand for all to see, and as they call others to repent and believe upon the Lord Jesus Christ.

And may God get all the glory!

great read on "how much is left to do in the Great Commission"

Here is a great article on what is left to do in the Great Commission. Take a minute and read it.  And then pray for the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into the field. And be a "radical, sacrificial goer, or a radical, sacrficial sender."

Here is a blurp from the article:

"But if God would grant the passion and courage and wisdom, the remaining task is neither vague, nor enormous, nor unattainable. Would you join me in obeying Matthew 9:38, “Pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest”?

And then be a radical, sacrificial goer, or a radical, sacrificial sender. Jesus has all authority to accomplish this. He promises to be with us to the end of the age as we mobilize for this. What a thrilling prospect! What a cause to live for! What a holy ambition.

http://www.desiringgod.org/blog/posts/how-much-is-left-to-do-in-the-great-commission

the persecuted

Dear prayer partners,

Please pray for a people group not too far from us that the Lord is working among right now.  That people has seen a few hundred people profess belief in Jesus Christ.  Praise the Lord for how HE is moving in the hearts of peoples not too different from our PB peoples.

Not surprisingly,  with this wonderful news of new brothers and sisters in Christ has come persecution from the local community (government, police, religious leaders, etc).  PLEASE take time now to pray for these new brothers and sisters in Christ. Please pray that the Lord will strengthen the believers in their faith in Him. Please ask that the new believers will have boldness, love, and compassion to continue sharing the good news of Jesus Christ with those around them... even in the face of persecution. Pray that the gospel will spread like wild fire during this time and that LOTS of people will come to faith in Jesus Christ because of this!

Ultimately, let's praise the Father for His mercy and grace in drawing sinners to Himself.  Praise Him that He is mighty and amazing to turn cold, hardened hearts into new creations.  God is mighty to save!!

Pray for our PB peoples, that this would have happen here. That many of our own PB people will come to faith in Jesus Christ, whatever that may bring.

For His Glory,
the PB team

PR for this week

Dear prayer partners,

      Thanks for stopping by. I wanted to ask you to pray specifically for an agricultural training that has started today and has drawn some 21 people from all over our PB peoples. Please pray for the Christ followers that eagerly await these trainings and look for opportunities to share the Hope that we have through Jesus Christ.
       Please pray that The Lord will move ahead and penetrate the hearts and souls of those here at the training and lead His followers to those whom He is working in their hearts.

Thanks friends,
PB team

update

Hello prayer partners!

Here are a few names of people that we would love to have you join with us in bringing before the Father:

* Mr. Dar - please pray for Mr. Dar as months ago he said he wanted to be a follower of Jesus but since then he has been difficult to follow-up with in discipleship.  Please pray for those that are trying to meet with Mr. Dar and continue teaching him about Jesus and His teachings.

* The 2 local partner training - This training ended today.  The last information I received was from this a.m. From this event, the 2 partners trained 6 college students about God's heart for all peoples, evangelism methods, being obedient to the Scriptures, and discipling new believers.  The very FIRST day one of the trainees (who is from a known Christian people group in another part of the country) stated that she had never truly followed Jesus for herself... she was riding on traditions from her parents beliefs. That very day, she became a follower of Jesus and was baptized.  Two other attendees confessed that they had never been baptized and desired to follow Jesus' teaching about baptism and they also were baptized the first day of training.  Since that time, two of the six attendees have shared with their families (who are supposedly Christians) of their new desire to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with others and their new beliefs about Jesus, salvation, baptism, and evangelism and have met great difficulty. Please pray for these two young ladies (D & L). Please pray that through this training, these trainees will continue their passion for the Lord and sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ with those around them. Praying that the Lord will save many and all this for His Glory!

* The training for several of our national partners was said to be very good.  Please continue to pray for our local partners that they will continue to boldly share the Gospel with others and be faithful to follow-up those they have shared with.

Please pray that the Holy Spirit will move in mighty ways here in PB land.  Without the Holy Spirit's movement, our Gospel presentation going forth are just words. We need God to do a mighty work here. Please pray that He will draw TONS of people to Himself, and that as we open our mouths to share the Good News of Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit is going forth convicting hearts.

Thank you friends for your prayers. We need your prayers and appreciate them so much!

With love,
PB team