100 People Network

[from The Gospel Coalition]

Earlier this week, William Carey’s 250th birthday arrived. Born on August 17, 1761, he was the son of a poor school teacher in the tiny village of Paulersbury. Taught to patch shoes in a cobbler’s shop, he was converted to Christ as a teenager. Soon he was gripped with a passion for sharing the gospel with those who had never heard the name of Christ.

In those days, missions was a naughty word, something obsolescent, restricted to the days of the apostles long ago. But Carey read the Great Commission differently. “Go ye,” he said, “means you and me, here and now.” He challenged his fellow Baptists to respond to this call, to “expect great things from God, and attempt great things for God.” The result was the first missionary society organized by evangelical Christians with the aim of carrying the Good News of Christ to all parts of the world.

So on June 13, 1793, William Carey, his wife, Dorothy, and their four children—including a nursing infant—sailed from England on a Danish ship headed for India. Carey never saw his homeland again. He spent the rest of his life in India as a pastor, teacher, linguist, agriculturalist, journalist, botanist, social activist, and statesman of the world Christian movement. He died in India in 1834 with the words of a hymn by Isaac Watts on his lips: “A wretched, poor, and helpless worm, on thy kind arms I fall.”

Carey Today

Now, two and one-half centuries after his birth, what can we learn from Carey today? There are many lessons to be gleaned from the life of the father of modern missions, but I place these seven principles at the top of the list:

1. The sovereignty of God. Carey knew that true missionary work is rooted in the gracious, eternal purpose of the triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Today, more than a new program of missionary training or another strategy for world evangelization, the church of Jesus Christ needs a fresh vision of a full-size God—eternal, transcendent, holy, filled with compassion, sovereignly working by his Holy Spirit to call unto himself a people out of every nation, kindred, tribe, and language group on earth. Only such a vision, born of repentance, prayer, and self-denial, can inspire a Carey-like faith in a new generation of Christian heralds.

2. The finality of Jesus Christ. Sadly the message Carey preached—Jesus Christ and him crucified, risen, coming again—has become marginalized even within large sectors of the Christian community. The uniquely divine nature of Jesus Christ and the cruciality of Christian conversion have both been called into question. Carey’s life and witness encourage us to resist the seductive power of cynicism, relativism, and syncretism, and to remain faithful to the only gospel that can deliver lost men and women from the power of sin and death.

3. The authority of Holy Scripture. Like Wycliffe, Luther, and Tyndale before him, Carey believed that everyone should be able to read the Scriptures in their own native language. He poured his life into mastering the difficult languages of India and the East until he had either translated or personally supervised the translation of the Bible into some 40 distinct tongues. Carey’s plan to evangelize India included a three-pronged approach: preach the gospel, translate the Bible, and establish schools. Proclamation, translation, education. Carey knew that, as the letter to the Hebrews (4:12) puts it, the Word of God is “alive and powerful.” He knew firsthand the transformative effect the Bible had on those who read, cherished, and obeyed it. Today Carey’s legacy goes forward through the work of the Wycliffe Bible Translators and many others committed to sharing the life-giving Scriptures with all peoples everywhere.

4. Contextualization. Contextualization refers to the need to communicate the gospel in such a way that it speaks to the total context of the people to whom it is addressed. Carey knew the countercultural pull of biblical faith. He had great respect for the antiquity and beauty of the cultural legacy he encountered in India. Indeed, his translations and critical editions of the ancient Hindu classics contributed to what has been called an “Indian Renaissance.” At the same time, he was quite sure that devotion to those writings and the religions they had spawned could never lead to eternal life anymore than being born in England or America automatically made one a Christian. Carey’s ability to contextualize the gospel without compromising the nonnegotiable essentials of biblical faith provides a balanced model for a truly evangelical missiology in our own age of social upheaval and cultural disillusion.

5. Holistic missions. Carey knew that the gospel had both a propositional and an incarnational dimension. He refused to divorce conversion from discipleship. He knew that Jesus had given food to hungry people on the same occasion that he presented himself to them as the Bread of Life. Undoubtedly, he would have been in hearty agreement with the great Methodist missionary E. Stanley Jones: “A soul without a body is a ghost; a body without a soul is a corpse.” The gospel is addressed to living persons, soul and body, in all of their broken humanity and need for wholeness.

6. Christian unity. The modern quest for Christian unity was born on the mission field. Carey pointed the way by working closely with believers of many denominations in India and by calling for an international conference of missionaries to develop a common strategy for evangelism and witness. What would Carey think of contemporary ecumenical efforts today? He would likely be wary of an uncritical ecumenism which would sacrifice the distinctiveness of the Gospel in the interests of a bland togetherness. But he would surely rejoice in the coming together of Great Commission believers throughout the body of Christ in the task of world evangelization. Carey is a model for this kind of cooperation among Christian believers, one rooted in Richard Baxter’s great maxim: In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity.

7. Faithfulness. Carey’s work in India was a catalyst for a great missionary awakening throughout the church. Today, 250 years after the birth of William Carey, the mandate for world evangelization still looms before us. The best lesson we can learn from Carey is the principle by which he lived and died: “You should think of us as Christ’s servants, who have been put in charge of God’s secret truths. The one thing required of such a servant is that he be faithful to his Master” (1 Cor. 4:1-2).

Timothy George is founding dean of Beeson Divinity School and general editor of the Reformation Commentary on Scripture. He was a consultant to the dramatic filmCandle in the Dark about Carey’s life and work. He is also the author of the full-length biography Faithful Witness: The Life and Mission of William Carey.

[from 30-days.net]

World-wide Celebrations End Ramadan with a Feast

From Abu Dhabi to Zanzibar, Muslims end their 29 or 30 days of fasting with a celebration called Eid al-Fitr. This feast comes at the end of Ramadan and in many places begins a three-day holiday.

In Jakarta, businesses and shops are closed and the usually gridlocked streets are nearly empty as about half the capital’s 12 million people leave the city for their hometowns.

The word Eid means recurring happiness or festivity in Arabic and Al-Fitr literally means the breaking the fast. Muslims celebrate the end of the month of Ramadan, when Muslims are required to abstain from food, drink and sex during daylight hours. Eid also ushers in the beginning of Shawwal or the tenth month in the Muslim calendar.

In the USA many Muslim organizations are asking the American Muslims to tone down their celebrations which will continue into 9/11, the 9th anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon in Washington. Indeed, tensions are high around the world after a small church in Florida called for a “Burn the Qur’an Day” on the 11th. There is concern across the Christian world that a significant backlash could occur against Christians, especially in Muslim majority countries. Most Christians are calling this action by Dove Church dangerous, outrageous and foolish. We at 30-Days are very concerned about the possible consequences of this.

Another US-based issue has caught global attention, that of a proposed mosque near Ground Zero in New York City. As one Christian organization says, “We’d prefer to share the good news that Jesus is the Christ than to focus on Islam or mosques. Muslims in New York City need to hear this truth so that they might worship Him. For us, this is the primary issue.”

Muslims are encouraged to dress in their best clothes (new if possible) and to attend a special Eid prayer that is performed in congregation at mosques or open areas like fields, squares etc. When Muslims finish their fast at the last day (29th or 30th Ramadan), they recite Takbir.

Both Jews and Muslims will be celebrating on Thursday when Jews mark Rosh Hashanah and Muslims celebrate Eid ul-Fitr.

There is a fair bit of disagreement on the day Eid is celebrated due to moon sighting difficulties and interpretation. Confusion can come for individuals living in the western world, who, for example, may need to request vacation days in advance.

Many Christians have taken the opportunity to greet Muslims in friendship. Instead of focusing on differences, they have been telling their Muslim neighbors how they too as Christians fast and pray because they are “people of the book”. In some cases, this time of celebration among Muslims is used as an opportunity to witness to them. One young person said, “Muslims are so open right now and in a good mood, I can explain my faith to them without stirring tempers.” But the focus needs to be on building relationships. From these relationships God can open doors to speaking about the Good News.

Although Ramadan is over, the necessity for prayer and action towards Muslim’s continues.

Pray for Muslims that you know personally during this holiday. If Muslims invite you to participate in the festivities it is actually a great honour and usually a sure sign of their esteem, respect and friendship. Pray for wisdom and for the door to open so that relationships can be built. While it is easy to get into discussions about political and cultural issues, being a good neighbour is what you are called to be.

Recipe

Here is a recipe for Vermicelli Payasam, which is the name for a dessert often served at Eid ul-Fitr in India. Perhaps you can make a dessert for your Muslim neighbours.

• 250 gms vermicelli (very thin pasta), broken into smaller piece)

• 1 Cup of sugar

• 6 Cups of milk

• 2 Tablespoons broken cashews

• 2 Tablespoons of raisins

• ¼ Teaspoon of nutmeg

• ¼ Teaspoon of vanilla

• 5 Tablespoons of ghee or melted butter

Heat 3 tablespoons of ghee or butter in a frying pan to melt. Add the vermicelli and fry until golden. Add the milk and heat for 5 minutes. Add sugar, vanilla and nutmeg. Stir well and cook until the vermicelli is soft, but do not allow to boil. Heat remaining ghee or butter in another pan and fry the cashew nuts for 1 minute until golden. Add the raisins and sprinkle onto the payasam. Serve warm in small bowls.

[from 30-days.net]

Pray the Night of Power. Suggestions and ideas for personal and group prayer.

These are some creative prayer ideas and tips on how to use the 30-Days Muslim World Prayer Guide materials in a group or for your personal prayer time.

Organizing group prayers

You can use these materials to pray creatively by yourself in your own prayer times, and also to join with groups of others to pray together. We would encourage you to find creative ways to involve as many people as possible with you in this prayer focus. Jesus gave some special promises of blessing for Christians who come together to pray and agree as a group.

You could organise some weekly or twice weekly meetings over the 30 day Ramadan period with your church, your youth group, your committee or leaders’ meetings, your women’s meetings, home Bible studies, cell groups, children’s groups; in fact, any occasion when your Christian friends and associates meet together.

A Social Occasion

Take a social occasion and turn it into a prayer event as well. Have others join with you in a special meal using the prayer topic for that day. Find out all you can about that particular culture – including food and dress, music, sports, etc.

Facilitator

It is helpful if one person is chosen as the leader/facilitator of the group for that time of prayer. This person can give direction and cohesion to the prayer time, and assist the group in using the following guidelines.

Focus

As you pray through the Prayer Guide that are suggested for each day, ask and expect the Holy Spirit to lead you in prayer, revealing certain areas of detail and specific focus for you to pay particular attention to (Romans 8:26).

Take notes and keep a journal of your prayer times. Particularly note any Scriptures that God may prompt you to read concerning that day’s topic.

It is helpful if the group focuses its prayers for one subject area at a time, rather than chopping and changing all over the place. Each person should wait before moving on to a different topic, until every person has been able to pray out their prayers over the current subject area (1Corinthians 14:40). Make sure that all have an opportunity to pray for that area or need if they want to.

Be Creative

Look for ways to make your times of prayer varied and interesting. God is infinitely creative, and has made us in His image, so we can expect creative ideas and prayers to flow as we seek Him. For example, using a map or reading out a short article on a particular country or need related to the day’s prayer theme can add interest and spark new ideas of needs to pray for. Photographs and pictures, maps or even radio, television and video documentaries can do the same.

Day 27

“The Night of Power” on Day 27 is a strategic night of prayer. Consider setting aside this night for an all night prayer time with your church or mission group. ["Day 27" can be confusing. The reason is night precedes day in the Islamic Calendar so the 27th night occurs in the evening of the 26th Day. We stick with "Day 27" since it is easier and technically correct.]

Believe

Let us believe God for an outpouring of His Spirit on our Muslim neighbours worldwide. Let us pray and believe for the fulfilment of Revelation 7:9, that every group, including the peoples of Islam, will be represented before the throne of God on that final day.

A Different Prayer Meeting – Specific for “The Night of Power” or Day 27

During Ramadan our mission committee floated the idea of holding a prayer night on the Muslim “night of power” when God often works in miraculous ways throughout the Muslim world. (‘Night of Power’ prayer nights can be used throughout the year!)

Profile by Sarah Vanhoose
Photo by Todd White

Grant and Brandi Duncan enjoy playing obscure European board games and are particularly fond of one in which the object of the game is to build railroads that connect faraway places.  As self-described planners, they delight in working together to develop a strategy to solve the problem and win the game.  In a twist of beautifully divine irony, the Duncans will soon be serving as the real-life pieces that connect the unreached people groups of Southeast Asia to Christ and his message of love. There they will have the opportunity to help translate the Bible into many native languages. 

Coming from Christian families, Brandi’s grandfather, aunt, uncle and sister were long-term missionaries, and Grant had participated in several short-term mission trips in college.  The two had foreseen short-term missions as a definite part of their married future, but it wasn’t until a year ago when they moved to Austin and took a Perspectives course that they began to consider the idea of long-term service abroad.  Their introduction to the 100 People Network also served as a means for God to reveal to them his heart for the nations and the reason they were called to go.

“What we’ve realized is that there is an obligation, a responsibility, for us as believers to share the gospel and we are gladly accepting that responsibility.” 

Reflecting on their history, they see God’s careful detail in bringing them together to ultimately glorify him in their lives and in their marriage. They met while serving together at a Christian organization on campus at a college in California and, as it turned out, Grant lived only one floor beneath Brandi.  He pursued a career in pharmaceuticals and Brandi completed her Master’s Degree in Speech Language Pathology. They spent the first two years of married life in California and learned about the Austin Stone before their move last year; they listened to sermons online and were convinced even before their arrival to Austin that this was to be their new home church. 

As missionaries, they’re constantly confronted with the ever-popular question, “When did you feel called to go?”  They candidly struggle with an emotionally impacting response as their personal decision never involved an earth-shattering sign from above, but rather a steadily strengthening confirmation of where they were supposed to be and what they were supposed to be doing. 

“We’re very logical people, and we believe God gave us logic to make this decision.  This makes sense for us.” 

The blessing and calling that God has personalized for the Duncans is his undeniable creation of their availability and a freedom to make such a sizeable change. This has manifested itself in a number of ways: Grant’s contract with his employer just expired, their apartment lease is up, and Brandi has just completed school. 

Just having returned from training with their sending organization, God has magnified their passion for the mission at hand according to his impeccable timing. They have learned about the dire need for Bible translation in an area of the world in which Islam, fear and darkness permeate the culture. Grant and Brandi have seen the potential for their willingness to submit to the call stirring in the hearts of others, like the couple in their missional community that have prayed with them step in their process and are now making initial preparations for long-term service as well. 

Their fear of learning new languages is far outweighed by their conviction that they’d have much more to fear if they abstained from this calling of God on their lives. Brandi takes comfort in her mother’s old adage that proclaims, “The safest place for anyone is always where God wants them to be.” 

There is no doubt they’ll miss many things about life in Austin, but they radiate with excitement when considering what a blessing it will be for their full-time jobs to be so directly glorifying to God. The Duncans are uncertain about how long they’ll stay, only knowing it will be until God is properly introduced and his power is demonstrated to a people that need to know him. They plan to stay until the message of his unending love and complete omniscience is communicated to the people in this region in a language that they can understand. 

All the while, Grant and Brandi will make it clear that none of the victory in this real-life quest is of their own effort. They long to live in such a way that it’s said of them, “God must be with them, because there’s no way they could do any of that on their own.” 

Profile by Allicia Garza
Photo by Jen Crane

It was their hearts for the nations that first brought Scott and Shelly together at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor.

“It’s kind of neat when you meet somebody and they have that same unique interest as you do,” Shelly recounted. “It’s not every day when you can talk to somebody about your love for Africa.”

This love for Africa eventually led the two to Kenya. “It was on that trip that the Lord solidified that this was the person I was going to be serving with. This was the person I was going to marry,” Scott said.

They planned to adjust to married life here in the States for a year before embarking on the mission field, but God had other plans. “We were never on the same page about going,” Scott explained. “We prayed for God to [give us direction], and about a week later, The Austin Stone announced the launch of the 100 People Network.”

Though both Scott and Shelly had a heart for Africa, they had never thought about the possibility of serving in the Muslim cultures of North Africa. However, after learning more about the unreached people groups in the region, they began to pray seriously about serving there. Not long after they started praying, a friend asked them to consider taking a vision trip to a country in that area. “I didn’t even know where it was! I had to look it up!” Shelly confessed. “We didn’t have a clue about the lack of Christ’s presence in the Muslim world. God very much showed us while we were there that what we had always assumed about our lives wasn’t necessarily his plan.”

After that trip, the two knew the place they would be serving. They quickly connected with a team of families that were interested in going to the same region and started learning everything they could about the culture. Despite the peace that they’ve experienced about their move across the world, the two admitted they will have to make some difficult adjustments.

“In Muslim culture, it is unheard of for the man to be seen cooking, and I love to cook,” Scott acknowledged. “Maybe I’ll try to take up fishing instead!”

Along with Scott’s cooking, the couple said they would miss simple things such as Austin restaurants, air conditioning, and the constant love and support they receive from friends and family.

“The support we’ve had from our friends and community here is amazing. I can’t imagine taking a huge step like this without that [support],” Shelly said.

The couple believes the support they’ve received is evidence of the entire body of Christ at work. “You don’t have to be a goer to be a part of the 100 People Network. There are 100 people going, but there are hundreds more people supporting [them]. The goers aren’t any more important than the senders or mobilizers. You have to have every part working in cohesion.”

With the support of their loved ones and with a baby on the way, the couple is confident that the Lord has big things in store for their family and for North Africa. “He doesn’t have us going there for no purpose,” Shelly said. “We have to believe that what we’re doing is making an eternal investment.”

“I’m excited to see God fulfill his promises in my own life and on a global scale,” Scott added. “To uproot my family and move to the desert—there’s no hope in that unless you believe God’s promise to bring all nations to himself. If I didn’t believe that, there would be no hope in going.” 

[from Desiring God]

[from 30-days.net]

Muslims do not think of communion with God, knowing God or hearing from God, as being part of their normal prayer experience. In Islam normal daily prayer is a focused ritual exercise which is an expression of worship and honour toward Allah. Personal requests are possible in Islam but the formal ritual prayers are definitely the most important prayer activity for Muslims.

One Way Communication

Prayer in Islam is generally not meant to bring one’s self into direct personal contact or communion with Allah. Even when Muslims speak of prayer as communication with Allah they are never thinking that Allah will actually speak back to them. The communication is always one way. In the very small Sufi Muslim minority one can speak of meeting God. However, beliefs and practices among Sufis place the emphasis more on being submerged in the divine than knowing God in a communication oriented and relational sense. Among believers in the Messiah, knowing God in a relational sense is a key aspect of the faith (John 17:3). According to orthodox Islam God never speaks to humans directly and actually he has not even spoken to anyone indirectly (through angels) since the time of Mohammed. Muslims universally believe that Mohammed was the last and the greatest of the prophets. According to them Mohammed brought the final spoken revelation from God which eventually became the book we know as the Qur’an.

Prayer is encouraged as a means of restraining Muslims from social wrongs and moral deviancy. According to a traditional saying, Mohammed when asked, “What is the best deed?” He replied, “To offer prayers at their fixed times.” When asked again, “What is next in goodness?” He replied, “To be good and dutiful to your parents.” When asked again, “What is next in goodness?” He replied, “To participate in Jihad in Allah’s Cause.” Prayer is often seen as a meritorious activity in Islam.

The Kho People

Toward noon today thousands of Kho in the high mountainous region of Northern Pakistan will be praying in their local mosques. Almost none of them will have even ever asked the question “Does God ever speak to man today?” Many will think that their prayer will earn them merit before God.

This people group numbers about 320,000 people. There are no known believers in this people group. No one is seeking specifically to reach them at the present time. The Kho appear to be very resistant to the Gospel. Most of them live in the upper valleys, where farming is very difficult due to the dry, rugged mountain terrain.

The heart language of the Kho is Khowar. It is spoken in homes and villages, and through it, children receive their informal education about the customs, traditions, values and beliefs of Kho society. Khowar’s oral tradition is full of well-loved poems and songs, passed down from generation to generation.

See The Kho people of Pakistan on YouTube.com

Prayer Starters:

• Prayer is seen as a meritorious activity in Islam. As Muslims gather today and pray “show us the straight” path, may their prayers be answered. (Jer 29:13)

• Ask the Lord specifically for breakthroughs among the Kho people, and that they will ponder questions like ‘Does God still speak today?’

• Ask the Lord to soften the hearts of these people who are very resistant to the Gospel.

• Pray that the Lord will raise up believers who are willing to invest long-term service for the tribes of northern Pakistan.

• Pray that the Kho people will receive dreams and visions of Jesus.

• Remember that Pakistan is going through a VERY difficult time just now, our prayers will make a difference.

[from Desiring God]

[from The Gospel Coalition]

This fall, the Desiring God national conference will call on the church to “Finish the Mission: For the Joy of All Peoples” by bringing the Good News of Jesus Christ to the unreached and unengaged. Plenary speakers for the event—September 23 to 25 at the Minneapolis Convention Center—include Louie Giglio, David Platt, Michael Ramsden, Michael Oh, and Ed Stetzer. Space is limited - if you register today, you can attend for the price of $170.

Previewing this important event, John Piper and I corresponded about the progress and problems of an ever-changing global church. Jesus Christ’s commitment to build his church gives us utmost confidence that he will finish the mission. Yet he grants us the privilege of carrying out this high calling to introduce him to all people for their eternal joy.

What’s the most encouraging development you see today as Christians trust God to “finish the mission”?

Today, and every day, the most encouraging development is the never-ending endurance of God’s sovereign will and promise: “This gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations and then the end will come” (Matt. 24:14). The mission will be finished. We should be encouraged no matter what is happening in the world. God is always doing 10,000 things we can’t see.

But if we look to the world through the lens of the word, even there the evidences of God’s faithfulness to finish the mission are many. The Global Network of Missionary Structures reports that “there are over 4,000 known evangelical mission agencies sending out 250,000 missionaries from over 200 countries. This is up from 1,800 known mission agencies and 70,000 missionaries in 1980.”

In many places the fruit of this growth is remarkable. Just to give a few examples, theGNMS points out:

• The last 40 years have seen more Muslims, Buddhists and Hindus come to know Christ than in all previous centuries combined.
• In Cambodia the church exploded from just a handful of believers 20 years ago to more than 400,000 today.
• In Mongolia, the church grew from a few isolated believers, to more than 50,000 in 200 established fellowships in the same period.
• The Koreans alone, who are becoming increasingly frontier mission focused, have a plan to send out 100,000 missionaries in the next 20 years. The Philippine church and the Chinese church both have similar goals.

The ongoing strategic efforts of mission agencies and churches is another hope-filled sign. According to the GNMS:

The Finishing the Task network, which was launched in the year 2003, is focusing on those unreached groups over 100,000 in population which are unengaged. At the time the network was launched, there were 639 groups in this category. By the year 2010, all but 95 had been engaged. The network is now expanding its efforts to those unengaged peoples which are 50,000 in population or greater.

The sharing of information today via the internet means that no one has to work in the dark about what is happening. Strategies of closure (finishing the mission) are increasingly feasible. But in the end the sovereignty of God and the power of the gospel of Jesus, not the feasibility of our human plans, is the rock of hope and encouragement.

With the growth of the church in the Majority World, what’s the most strategic way Western churches can serve these spiritual brothers and sisters?

The Christian church is undergoing dramatic demographic shifts that will increasingly marginalize people who are not eager to be a part of something more diverse and less white.

Philip Jenkins, professor of history and religious studies at Pennsylvania State University, has clarified this development perhaps more than anyone else. The new terminology that has been introduced into our vocabulary is the term Global South, a reference to the astonishing growth of the Christian church in Africa, Latin America, and Asia while the formerly dominant centers of Christian influence in Europe are weakening. For example:

• At the beginning of the 20th century, Europeans dominated the world church, with approximately 70.6 percent of the world’s Christian population. By the end of the 20th century, the European percentage of world Christianity had shrunk to 28 percent of the total; Latin America and Africa combined provided 43 percent of the world’s Christians.
• In 1900, Africa had 10 million Christians representing about 10 percent of the population; by 2000, this figure had grown to 360 million, representing about half the population. Quantitatively, this may well be the largest shift in religious affiliation that had ever occurred, anywhere.

Since we are talking about finishing the mission, I would tweak the question: Not: How can we serve the exploding church of the Global South? But: How can we be faithful, fruitful partners in serving the global mission of Jesus to proclaim the gospel of salvation to all the unreached peoples of the world?

Among the many answers to that question would be:

1. wake up to the existence of the global church;
2. don’t think that sending them money to do the mission can replace God’s call on Western Christians to go;
3. don’t assume we can do the mission better or alone, and don’t assume they can either;
4. listen to each other for the distinctive strengths each brings;
5. be informed of the work of others among any group or area you feel called to go;
6. pray for biblically faithful fruitfulness of all missions;
7. be humble and ready to be last—who will one day be first.

In your extensive global travels to speak in venues such as Lausanne last year, what most concerns you about the global church’s commitment to finishing the mission?

My travels are not very extensive, and so my answers always bear some measure of parochialism. The main concerns I feel are:

1. that many younger churches (both globally and in America) feel so focused on their local challenges that global, cross-cultural outreach to unreached peoples (missions) seems impossible;
2. that churches and missions sometimes stray from the purity of the gospel and thus undermine the very aim of the mission: biblically faithful, Christ-exalting, multiplying churches;
3. that worldliness choke the Word and the passion for missions;
4. that the belief in eternal suffering for those without Christ will be lost, and with it zeal to reach them;
5. and that the name of Christ will continue to be unknown and unhallowed for decades to come.

May the Lord of the harvest be manifestly jealous for his name today, and merciful toward the perishing, and may he send millions of workers into field, which is the world.

Collin Hansen serves as editorial director for The Gospel Coalition. He is the co-author of A God-Sized Vision: Revival Stories That Stretch and Stir. You can follow him on Twitter.

[from 30-days.net]

Muslims are supposed to pray five times a day at specific times while facing the direction of Mecca in Saudi Arabia. Muslim prayer is formal and ritualistic yet many Muslims do make every effort to be sincere and upright in performing their prayers. Muslim prayer is characterised by rules of respect and attitudes of politeness toward Allah. (Please note that all Arab speakers use this word for God – whether Christian or Muslim, though their ideas of God are significantly different.

“Praying correctly and at the appropriate time is one of the greatest indications of (Muslim) faith and a great sign of true religion”. Prayer is to be done with heart and body cleanliness, with cleanness of clothing and in a ceremonially clean place. The washing of the hands, nose, face, forearms, ears, and feet in preparation for Muslim prayer is important.

The Words

Muslims place very strong emphasis on the exact postures and the words of their prayers (which are always in Arabic). Almost all Muslim prayer is concerned with reciting specific phrases from memory. In the course of the five regular prayer times a Muslim will prostrate himself before Allah a total of 34 times and he will repeat the following phrases:

“Allah is greater”

“Praised be my mighty Lord”

“Allah hears the one who praises him”

He will also recite the “Al-Fatiha” or another text from the Qur’an 17 times, the “Shadada” (Islamic creed), and the greeting of peace to all Muslims.

Answered Prayer

Muslims can make requests to God privately after they finish their ritual prayers. However, this is not done as often as Christians typically make requests. Muslims do not believe that God binds himself to his people through covenants. This is a key concept for understanding their attitudes toward answers to prayer and their lack assurance of God’s steadfast love towards them. In addition, because of the fatalism of Islam, Muslims generally have little faith that their requests will alter their circumstances. They generally believe that Allah’s desires (for good or ill) will always be done despite their activities or requests. Trusting in God for specific responses to prayer in the Christian sense is not practised among Muslims. This is a huge difference between Muslim and Christian religious experience.

When Christians speak of prayer they mean direct two-way communication with God. Muslims never expect God to speak back to them directly at any moment and certainly not during prayer. The vast majority of Muslims will say that God only speaks through the Qur’an. Even Mohammed is said only to have heard from God indirectly through an angel. Christian prayer, on the other hand, is a combination of requests, thanksgiving and praise. The Bible says that we should “Enter His gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and bless (praise) his name” (Psalm 100:4).

Let us Pray…

* Muslims need to come to know the Christ of Christian prayer. Pray that Muslims would come to believe that God Himself wants to communicate directly with them. Pray this specifically for any Muslims that you may know personally. Pray for the Muslims in your city, region and nation.

* Pray for newly-converted Muslims, that they may develop real confidence in God as one who keeps His covenants, makes promises and who hears and answers prayer.

* Christians need to share their prayer experience with Muslims in humility. Pray that God will give us wisdom when describing our Christian prayer experience so that God would be glorified and Muslims could understand Him better.

Prayer Intro from DanStevers.com on Vimeo.