>> FREEISSUE 6YO U T H M I S S I O N S M A G A Z I N E

HistoryMakers is a ministry of AsiaLink. Registered Charity No. 327165

C O N T E N T SP E R S E C U T E D C H U R C H 0 2

N E PA L C O U N T RY P R O F I L E 0 3

FA Q S 0 4

R O S E A L L E N M U N T 0 4

R AY C O M F O R T I N T E RV I E W 0 5

F R O N T L I N E N E W S 0 6

INTRODUCTION

RReessccuuee tthhoossee bbeeiinngg lleedd aawwaayy ttoo ddeeaatthh;; hhoolldd bbaacckk tthhoossee ssttaaggggeerriinngg

ttoowwaarrdd ssllaauugghhtteerr..P R OV E R B S 2 4 : 1 1

FFoorr tthhoouugghh wwee lliivvee iinn tthhee wwoorrlldd,, wwee ddoo nnoott wwaaggee wwaarr aass tthhee wwoorrllddddooeess.. TThhee wweeaappoonnss wwee ffiigghhtt wwiitthh aarree nnoott tthhee wweeaappoonnss ooff tthhee wwoorrlldd..OOnn tthhee ccoonnttrraarryy,, tthheeyy hhaavvee ddiivviinnee ppoowweerr ttoo ddeemmoolliisshh ssttrroonngghhoollddss..2 C O R I N T H I A N S 1 0 : 2 - 4

Dear friends,There’s a rule in the Armed Forces, “Always obey the last

order you got until you get new orders from command

headquarters.” The last command Jesus gave is: “Go,

make disciples of all nations”. This should be first priorityfor Christ’s followers.

The world is a spiritual battle-field in a cosmic war for soulsin which we are all called to serve as soldiers. The task? Toplease our Commanding Officer, Jesus. Across the planet thereare areas where the enemy defences have held for centuries– places where entire people groups, tribes and languagesare without any Christian influence. Travel around Asia andyou’ll soon see that most people have never ever heard ofJesus. Sometimes we think its bad where we live but try fora moment and imagine what society would look like if itwere completely devoid of churches, the Bible or Christians!

E Q U I P P E D & W I L L I N GPaul the Missionary recognizes we are all in a battle. If it iswar we are in then we should firstly prepare. That means everysoldier will need to be trained and equipped. Read Ephesians 6.It’s not good looks, intellect or a great personality that Godis asking of us. The prophet Isaiah reminds us that all Godrequires is our willingness to serve and our obedience to gowhere he tells us to (Is. 1:19).

E N D U R A N C EWe will at some point face hardships and sufferings that arenot always in the guise of persecution or imprisonment.They come in other forms to – being a disciple also meanssimplifying our lifestyles. We are also challenged topersevere, endure hardships like a good soldier and to becontent whatever the circumstances.

F R O N T L I N E SThere are different roles in a wartime scenario. There arethose, for example, who send supplies to keep the soldiersequipped on the front-lines. For us, that simply meansencouraging, praying and giving. Many indigenous workerslive on next to nothing and are inexpensive to support.Most of all they need your prayers!

S E A R C H & R E S C U EBy staying informed we are able to search out areas of theworld that need our prayer and intercession the most. Ourobedience in sending others or going to the nations ourselvesis how we rescue those who are in the clutches of death.

WA R FA R ESatan sets up strongholds in many cultures, ethnic groupsand religions that gain strength with every passing generation.People are killed or mistreated, children go hungry, injusticereigns. The key to unlocking these principalities and powersbegins with our obedience to Jesus’ commands. Prior, duringand after this, we are to engage in bold, aggressive anddetermined spiritual warfare. It doesn’t matter how hard wetry to persuade people to believe in Jesus, unless we are seriousabout prayer and intercession, then the lost will remain lost.God has to work.

This issue, we take a look at some of the countries wherethe war for souls is raging the most. Why not pick one or twonations mentioned and start praying for them. There areother ways to get involved like telling your friends about theunreached people groups, supporting the ministry or even ashort-term trip in the summer.

2RReemmeemmbbeerr tthhoossee iinn pprriissoonn aass iiff yyoouu wweerree tthheeiirr ffeellllooww pprriissoonneerrss,, aanndd tthhoossee

wwhhoo aarree mmiissttrreeaatteedd aass iiff yyoouu yyoouurrsseellvveess wweerree ssuuffffeerriinngg.. H E B R E W S 1 3 : 3

PERSECUTEDChurch

We regularly receive requests for prayer from ourpartners in Asia. The plea from workers is not that we pray for the persecution to stop, but rather that they would have the strength to endure.

IIrraaqqThe non-Muslim population has largely

been decimated in the last 10 years.Kidnapping and murder in broad

daylight are commonplace.Believers are few and far between.

Converting from Islam is a huge risk.Pray for fearless Christian living.

NN..KKoorreeaaFor the 6th year in a row, North Korea

heads the list of most severe andconsistent persecutors of Christians

in the world. State-imposed oppositionhas purged the land of believers

for over half a century. Pray for resolute perseverance.

LLaaoossOne of the world’s most persecutedcountries, especially among minoritygroups. Murder, forced registration,abduction, torture and prison are areality for Christians. Pastors have

disappeared. Still the Lord builds Hiswork. Pray for unwavering disciples.

CChhiinnaaWhile over half of China’s believers

belong to unregistered house churches,they suffer from acute shortages of

Bibles, teaching materials and trainedleaders. Persecution is intense,

especially among recognised churchleaders. Pray for strength.

BBuurrmmaaChristians among Burma’s hill

tribes face persistent harassment.Restrictions on movement,

public gatherings and publicevangelism are commonplace. The Church continues to grow!

Pray for faithfulness.

MMaallddiivveessLeaving Islamis a frightening step

for many. Believers in these islands dare not even meet together

for fear of reprisal. No churches and no Bibles allowed here.

Pray for wisdom.

KKaasshhmmiirr Historical, political and cultural

tensions only accentuate dangers for those choosing to be different and express faith in Jesus Christ.

This is a Muslim-populated, Hindu-controlled hot-bed of violence.

Pray for safety.

IInnddiiaaViolent Hindu opposition to

believers has led to deaths anddisplacement. The state of Orissa

has taken the lives of many of God’s people over the years, Indians

and foreign missionaries alike. Pray for the Living Light to shine.

NEPALP O P U L AT I O N 28 Million

C A P I TA L C I T Y Kathmandu

R E L I G I O N S Hindu 75%; Buddhist 16%;

Muslim 5%; Christian 1.9%; Other 2.3%

L A N G U A G E S 124

P E O P L E G R O U P S 332, of which 308

are unreached

The Himalayan region includes a number of independentcountries as well as provinces of India. Some areas haveexperienced remarkable revival for over fifty years and havebeen sending out their own missionaries around the world.Other places remain tightly closed, satanically bound anddeeply persecuted.

Nepal has never been colonised in the way many of herneighbours have been. On the contrary, the country remainedtightly closed to outside influence until 1951. Since 1990 therehave been a series of destabilising influences, ranging fromcivil unrest to the murders of the royal family in 1999. Nepalremains heavily dependent on foreign aid and especially ongood relations with India.

C H U R C H / M I S S I O N A C T I V I T Y

Nepal is a Hindu kingdom which allows people to choosetheir religion but prohibits the conversion of others. Hindu extremists are often violent in the opposition to theChurch. Hindu extremists, Maoist guerrillas and even familymembers are sometimes violent in their persecution ofbelievers. Nevertheless, the Church has grown and there maybe around 500,000 believers today.

M A I N U N R E A C H E D G R O U P S

Tibetan refugees and Tibetan-related Nepalese living in the mountains have just a few congregations springing up.Most of these peoples are Lamaistic Buddhists. Muslims withKashmiri, Bengali or Urdu backgrounds are increasing butwith only a dozen or so known believers among them. TheAwadhi (0.5 million) and the Maithili (3 million) from thelowlands Indian border region have been generally unresponsiveto any Gospel approaches. The Tharu (1.3 million) have ananimistic rather than Hindi background and churches havebeen appearing among them.

W H AT Y O U C A N D O

Prayer: Pray for this country, one of the poorest in theworld. Pray for the government. Pray for Christian leadersto emerge and assume positions of responsibility. Prayfor national believers and churches within the country tobe strengthened.

Short-term: Please prayerfully consider your partnershipwith us as we travel to Nepal in the summer. You couldalso financially support those who are going orcontribute towards the cost of sending our Youth Officer.

£25 buys 500 copies of John or 1000 copies of the ‘Lifeof Jesus’ tract to be distributed by our Nepalese partnersand short-term teams.

BBee ssttiillll aanndd kknnooww tthhaatt II aamm GGoodd;; II wwiillll bbee eexxaalltteedd aammoonngg tthhee nnaattiioonnss,, II wwiillll bbee eexxaalltteedd iinn tthhee eeaarrtthh.. P S A L M 4 6 : 1 0

CHINA

INDIA

BURMA

BHUTAN

BANGLADESH

THAILAND

CAMBOD

LAOS

?R O S E A L L E N M U N T , E N G L A N D 1 5 5 7

Rose Allen jumped from her bed and peeked out the window.There in front of her door stood a sheriff, two police officersand a crowd of people carrying torches. They were talkingwith her father on the doorstep. She looked at the clock onthe mantel. It was two in the morning. Rose’s mother, AliceMunt, had also been awakened by the loud pounding on thedoor. “What is it, Rose?” she whispered. “They’ve come to

get us, Mother,” Rose whispered back. Rose could hear herFather, William, letting the men in below. Then she heardfootsteps coming up the stairs. Friends had warned them ofthe danger of not attending the official church, but their senseof duty to the truth was stronger than their fears. They continuedto worship in secret places with few men and women of likefaith. Now the authorities had come to take them away...

T O F I N D O U T O U T W H AT H A P P E N E D T O R O S E

go to www.historymakers.info/martyr

MARTYR

““II tteellll yyoouu,, mmyy ffrriieennddss,, ddoo nnoott ffeeaarr tthhoossee wwhhoo kkiillll tthhee bbooddyy,, aanndd aafftteerr tthhaatt hhaavvee nnootthhiinngg mmoorree tthhaatt tthheeyy ccaann ddoo.. BBuutt II wwiillll wwaarrnn yyoouu wwhhoomm ttoo ffeeaarr:: ffeeaarr hhiimm wwhhoo,, aafftteerr hhee hhaass kkiilllleedd,, hhaass aauutthhoorriittyy ttoo ccaasstt iinnttoo hheellll.. YYeess,, II tteellll yyoouu,, ffeeaarr hhiimm!!”” L U K E 1 2 : 4 - 5

INFORM

INSPIRE

So I can stay at home, live a comfortable life and just show up

at my local church every week, great!

No! This is a misunderstanding for many believers today. Go, means go!

It might not be your calling to go and plant a church among an

unreached people group but it doesn't mean you can't get involved in

numerous other ways.

Like what?

Frontline missionaries and agencies need our prayers. It’s this type of

intercession that breaks demonic strongholds in some of the darkest

places on the planet. Jesus also told us to pray for more workers because

the labourers are few.

Is that all?

Missionaries and mission agencies need our financial support.

You can give directly to missionaries or to ministries like AsiaLink and

HistoryMakers as well as to many others.

Anything else?

Yes! Short term trips can be life-changing. Ask anyone who's been and

you’ll get the same response. “Amazing!”. Often, seeing God at work in

some of the remotest corners of the earth is an unforgettable experience.

Plus, indigenous believers get the benefit from our hard work. Whether its

carrying literature into Communist countries or distribution among tribal

groups, national believers value our short term support.

Surely that’s it!?

If God has called you to stay at home, then you can mobilize others

to go to the nations!

What if I feel God calling me to go to the ends of the earth?

Great! Email us at historymakers@asialink.org.uk and we’ll do our

best to advise you on ways you can be trained and equipped to

move into full time missionary work.

What is Missions?

Missions is calling the world to do what it was created to do,

namely, to enjoy making much of God forever.

I can’t see the word used much in the Bible, where did it come from?

The word ‘mission’ derives from a Latin word meaning ‘send’. It is

also a modern term for the Great Commission – Jesus’ final

command to his followers.

Is the Great Commission for all Christians?

Yes. The Command that Jesus gave us is imperative. That means it’s

of vital importance that we respond to the authority of the One who

gave the command and we will be judged on how we obeyed it.

Surely it can’t be that important? I don't see any mention

of it in other parts of the Bible.

A missionary in Asia once said “if you take missions out of the Bible, all

you'll have left is the covers”. From front to back we see one overriding

theme, God redeeming all peoples. Check out Genesis 12:3, Psalm 87,

Isaiah 49:6, Luke 24:44 and Revelation 7:9 and you’ll notice a lot of

talk of peoples and nations. This is the promise that the Church of

Jesus Christ will be established among every people group on earth!

So the job’s nearly done?

It’s a common misconception that the task of missions is almost finished.

We're closer than we’ve ever been, but there’s still lots to do.

What’s left to do?

Thousands of tribes, tongues and peoples are without a single Christian

witness and over 2000 languages are without a single portion of

Scripture. Approximately 2 billion people have never even heard of Jesus.

Do I have to go to the ends of the earth to obey the

Great Commission?

Not everyone will leave their homes to go to some far off place.

4

FAQS

INSPIRE

Way of the Master season 3 is now

available. What is the main difference from

the previous episodes?

It’s the same theme running throughout theseries (reaching the lost). However, it hasjumped up much higher in production value,thanks to some very talented people.

How would you encourage people who don’t

feel bold enough to witness to their own friends

and family, let alone complete strangers?

The issue isn’t really one of ‘boldness,’ but oneof love and compassion. If you saw a womanand her children trapped on the third story of a burning building, it is love and concern thatdrives you to reach out to rescue her. The Biblesays “And on some have compassion, making a distinction; but others save with fear, pullingthem out of the fire . . .” (Jude 22-23). If you arenot concerned for the salvation of others, I’m very concerned for yours.

How effective do you think street preaching

is in this fast-paced generation?

A good street preacher can reach more sinners in30 minutes than the average church does in 30weeks. Sinners don’t go to church, they go wheresin is. They hate the light, and they won’t cometo the light in case their sin is exposed. We haveto go to them, as we have been commanded todo (see Mark 16:15). If I didn’t believe in open-air preaching, I wouldn’t have stood on a box5,000 times and done it. It works. Jesus did it,Paul did it, Stephen did it, and Spurgeon did it. So did Wesley, Whitefield and Billy Graham. Thisfast-paced generation won’t hear the gospel ifwe don’t take it to them: “And how shall theyhear without a preacher? And how shall theypreach unless they are sent? As it is written:

‘How beautiful arethe feet of those whopreach the gospel of peace, who bring gladtidings of good things!’” (Romans 10:14-14).

Why is The Way of the Master method of

evangelism so relevant and contemporary?

It is relevant because it’s biblical. It speaks tothe conscience. Every generation has aconscience that can be awakened by the Law ofGod (the Ten Commandments). This generationis no different in that respect than any other.Remember, every generation thinks that it’s“modern.” In 20 years time we will look backand laugh at today’s “advanced” technology–like we laugh at “dial-up” connecting for theInternet, audio cassettes and typewriters.

What would you say to Christians who think

that The Way of the Master method of

evangelism is the only correct method to use?

The question should never be, “Is it the onlycorrect method,” but “Is it biblical?” If it is, then we should use it. If it’s not, itshould be discarded, as should every otherman-made method.

In your book, God Does Not Believe in

Atheists, you discuss the analogy of

a painting as evidence of a painter

(and thus the creation as evidence

of a Creator) as an axiom of reason.

Has this proved to be successful?

The building, builder; painting, painter doeswork. I have watched lights go on in the eyes,where there has been nothing but darkness. Ihave seen atheists backslide when they hearthat. This is because it is biblical: “For everyhouse is built by some man; but He that builtall things is God” (Hebrews 3:4), “For since thecreation of the world His invisible attributesare clearly seen, being understood by thethings that are made, even His eternal powerand Godhead, so that they are withoutexcuse…” (Romans 1:20).

What are the most effective facts you use to

prove that evolution is nonsense?

The fact that there are no species-to-speciestransitional forms in the fossil record, the factthat evolution has no explanation for what was“in the beginning” (the initial cause) and howwe have ended up with male and femalethroughout all of creation. Did both male andfemale of every species evolve together? I haveexpounded these thoughts in The CharlesDarwin Bible (Holman Bible Publishers), due outon Feb. 12th 2009 (Darwin’s 200th birthday).

How essential is prayer in the ministry to

which God has called you? Do you have any

tips for youngsters on how to improve their

prayer lives?

Make sure that you don’t substitute prayer forobedience. Prayer is the oxygen of Christianity, but if we pray without preaching the gospel as wehave been commanded to, we are drawing near toGod with our lips, but our hearts are far from Him.Make sure you put legs to your prayers and reachout to those who are going to Hell. A.W. Tozerwarned, “Have you noticed how much praying forrevival has been going on of late-and how littlerevival has resulted? Considering the volume ofprayer that is ascending these days, rivers ofrevival should be flowing in blessing throughoutthe land. That no such results are in evidenceshould not discourage us; rather it should stir us to find out why our prayers are not answered.... I believe our problem is that we have been tryingto substitute praying for obeying; and it simply willnot work.... Prayer is never an acceptable substitutefor obedience. The sovereign Lord accepts no offering from His creatures that is notaccompanied by obedience. To pray for revivalwhile ignoring or actually flouting the plainprecept laid down in the Scriptures is to waste a lot of words and get nothing for our trouble.”

What has been the most memorable

answer to prayer you have experienced

since becoming a Christian?

It has been God answering my prayer to raise uplabourers. I cried out to God during the early1980’s for Him to use me to stir up the Churchto its moral responsibility to reach the lost. I amoverjoyed that our TV program now goes to 70countries and is on 31 networks. An amazing 22million of our tracts are sold each year. Morethan 14,000 sets of our Basic Training Course isbeing used to train up Christians, and thousandscome to our Transformed conferences. It is agreat encouragement never to give up praying,and never doubt the faithfulness of God.

Ray Comfort has been equipping Christians across the world for more than 30 years. His literature is used by the Moody Bible Institute, Campus

Crusade For Christ and the Institute for Scientific & Biblical Research. He has also written more than 60 books and is a regular platform speaker.

HistoryMakers interviewed Ray who has recently pioneered the fantastic ‘Way of The Master’ course alongside Kirk Cameron.

EVANGELIST

TThhee iissssuuee iissnn’’tt rreeaallllyy oonnee ooff ‘‘bboollddnneessss,,’’ bbuutt oonnee ooff lloovvee aanndd ccoommppaassssiioonn

IIff II ddiiddnn’’tt bbeelliieevvee iinn ooppeenn--aaiirr pprreeaacchhiinngg,, II wwoouullddnn’’tt hhaavvee ssttoooodd oonn aa

bbooxx 55 ,,000000 ttiimmeess aanndd ddoonnee iitt

II hhaavvee sseeeenn aatthheeiissttss bbaacckksslliiddee wwhheenn tthheeyy hheeaarr tthhaatt

ppuutt lleeggss ttoo yyoouurr pprraayyeerrss aanndd rreeaacchh oouutt ttoo tthhoossee wwhhoo aarree ggooiinngg ttoo HHeellll”“

”“

“”

“ ”

DEVELOPPROJECTSIRAQ’S DISAPPEARING CHRISTIANS

The Lord has always clearly directed

AsiaLink and brought us into

partnership with like minded people.

A staff member recently travelled to

Iraq to help us discern whether this

was a place where God was inviting

us to work with Him.

Iraqi Christians have been texting aMiddle-East Christian TV stationrequesting urgent prayer: “In the nameof Jesus, pray for Christians in Ninevehprovince. We’re under the weight ofkillings and displacement.”

‘Christians’ is an all-encompassing termhere. It includes Assyrians and Chaldeans,Syrics and even Yezidis. They are non-Arabsbut among them are also found many ofIraq’s believers.

Their fears are justified. Many have losttheir lives in recent months. Some 3,000Iraqi Christians have fled the northern cityof Mosul. Other reports have stated thatChristian homes have been bombed,leaflets circulated and text messages sentthreatening Christians with death unlessthey convert to Islam.

As security tightens in Baghdad, so Al Quedamoves northwards. One believer I met hadjust lost his brother in law, shot dead the daybefore in his own shop.

Not long ago there were over a millionChristians in Iraq from various backgrounds.Now, there are possibly only 80,000. Somehave been kidnapped. Others killed. Afterlast year’s August bombings of four churches,Iraq’s own Minister for Migration estimatedthat some 40,000 Iraqi Christians fled thecountry within a space of two weeks. Here,the Christian Church is barely surviving.

Praying for Iraqi pastors is a humblingexperience. They stood together in a row andone by one we went down the line beseechingthe Lord’s help for them. Some were youngmen, passionate and zealous for God. All hadwitnessed firsthand what it means to followChrist. There is no cheap discipleship here.

CHINA BIBLESThe simple goal here is to help equipChina's Christians with God's Word.The church in China is estimated tonumber 100 million (some say 30,000new believers each day). AsiaLink hasfor many years been servingChristians inside China who areprinting Bibles.

Cost: £1.50 covers the cost of

printing and distributing one Bible.

£150 provides enough for 100

Bibles. 100% of funds designated

for printing goes to this Bible

production.

The economy of many places like ruralNepal, Kashmir or Burma is so poor thatthere is little or nothing left in the localchurch for “big” expenses such as sendingan evangelist or a missionary to anunreached area. In China, some housechurch evangelists have even sold their

own blood at the hospital, receiving just a few pence as payment. Theythen buy a few meals with this money, giving them enough strength tocontinue to preach the Gospel for another week or two.

The Asian Workers’ Fund assists many of those workers who are

doing strategic work in Asia .Please pray about whether you, your

family, home fellowship or church could help support one or more of

these workers with £25 per month each. 100% of your gifts go to the

workers in need.

Poor use of pesticides and thelegacy of the massive abuse ofherbicides during the Vietnam Warhave resulted in the birth ofthousands of Vietnamese childrenwith severe medical difficulties.

Project Smile helps children frompoor families in Vietnam who wereborn with disabilities such as cleftpalates, cleft lips and club feet.

Cost: A gift of £40 will help one child

to have a better life, and an opportunity

for his or her family to hear about

Jesus Christ for the first time.

Our youth ministry endeavours to work

alongside young people and help them

discover a passion for missions.

The goal is to awaken the next generationin the Church to realize their potential inChrist and in reaching the nations. We believe that God has a history-making

role for every young person in His purposes. This missionary perspectivecan only continue if we keep informing and inspiring young people. It’s a vital role of the ministry to partner with youth and church leadersin order to help them assume responsibility for the Great Commission.Invest in the next generation of world-changing young people!

Cost: £1 – £100. Please pray about your partnership with us.

There are multiple ways in which you can financially support the work. Go to www.asialink.org.uk/giving to find out more.

HISTORYMAKERS

ASIAN WORKERS

6

PROJECT SMILE

for the unreached people of Asia

HistoryMakers is a ministry of AsiaLink. Registered Charity No. 327165

This summer, invest yourself in something completely life-changing.

Take a missions trip to the rooftop of the world!

From the sanctuary of Annapurna to the famed hills of Mustang, Nepal is one of the truly great must-see-before-you-die places.

It’s also home to 23 million Hindus, 3 million Buddhists and 310 of the world’s least-reached people groups. And that’s why we’re going!

This August, join AsiaLink’s youth department, HistoryMakers and our Nepalese partners in sharing Jesus Christ with people who have never ever heard the Good News.

For more details, contact historymakers@asialink.org.uk