IRAN — Give thanks for the conclusion of another successful discipleship conference held at a safe location outside the country of Iran. Iranian Christians had the opportunity to be baptized and share communion together. All participants were able to return safely to their homes afterwards, built up in their faith and with a better understanding of the Bible so they can help teach other Iranian believers inside the country.
INDONESIA — Exciting updates have come from our partners in Indonesia! The team there now has a lot of content available on YouTube, including music videos and songs. There are 20 listener community coordinators in Indonesia leading a total of 600 members in discipleship. These ministry efforts are ongoing in twenty-one different languages! Pray that many hearts would turn to Jesus as a result of hearing the good news in their own language!
UGANDA — Leaders from Words of Hope Uganda recently conducted a training with believers in Tanzania who are beginning a similar model of ministry. The partnership with the Tanzanians began a few years back, and the Ugandans have offered ongoing support. While the Tanzanian team is not directly receiving funding from Words of Hope, they are inspired enough by the training they have received that they named their own nonprofit “Words of Hope Tanzania.”
SOUTH SUDAN — Continue in prayer for the people of South Sudan. The transitional government in the country has decided to stay in power for an additional two years. Elections had been scheduled for December of this year. This change is raising concerns among Western nations that were supporting the peace process of the young country. Pray for peace and a stable and democratic system of government.
ALBANIA — The “Discipleship Essentials” curriculum will soon be produced in Albanian by Words of Hope Albania. This resource will be available on the Words of Hope Albania smartphone app. It will also be distributed to churches throughout the region, including neighboring Macedonia and Kosovo. “Discipleship Essentials” trains people how to study the Bible and articulate their faith in their own words.
BHUTAN — Give thanks that 54 people gave their lives to Christ at a recent Bhutanese outreach event! Praise the Lord for these new brothers and sisters! It has been two years since this team was able to conduct such large, in-person gatherings, and we are so thankful for this outcome. Seminars are now ongoing on topics of evangelism, church planting, parenting, and discipleship.
NEPAL — Pray for efforts to produce the Words of Hope daily devotional booklet in Nepali. Initial attempts to translate the devotional proved too time-consuming. The new plan is to have Nepali pastors reference the text and topics of the original Words of Hope devotionals, and then write their own simplified meditations that will be more relevant to the Nepali context. Pray that this plan will be successful.
INDIA — Words of Hope’s director in South Asia writes, “The Bible clearly tells us that the primary factor of all human crises is sin. All religions and religious rituals are insufficient to address the problem of sin, and therefore God had to incarnate as the Son of God and Son of Man. Jesus Christ became the penalty of sin so that God could provide deliverance from the penalty, power, and presence of sin for all humanity.” Thanks be to God!
INDONESIA — Words of Hope’s ministry partners in Indonesia are making every effort to reach their audiences through the media their listeners are most comfortable with. That now includes TikTok for outreach to young people! The team also has a devotional for kids, complete with hand-drawn illustrations to bring the stories to life. A devotional resource for seniors, as well as a general devotional, are available as well.
TURKEY — Pray for Nadir, a young, single man who lives with his mother in Turkey. He grew up in a devout, Muslim home, but became disillusioned with Islam and decided to follow Jesus eight years ago. He belongs to a small house church and works a full time job, but feels a strong calling toward becoming a pastor. Pray that God would open doors for Nadir as our director in Turkey explores opportunities with him.
ENGLISH — Words of Hope has a new, abbreviated radio spot that is currently being pitched to radio stations across the US. So far the response has been good, and our number of partner radio stations is growing! Pray that these radio shorts would help more people to learn about the work of Words of Hope and encourage them in their walk of faith as they take time to meditate on Scripture throughout the day.
NIGER — Pray for the team in Niger as they lead groups of young people in the spiritual discipline of fasting and prayer. The team is also going through the steps of creating a WhatsApp group for listeners. This will provide a convenient platform for listeners to ask questions about the Bible and the Christian faith. This will also streamline how producers can respond to such questions.