November 4, 2013
By Esther Schaeffer, serving in Burkina Faso
A few weeks ago I was reading some statistics on the country where my husband and I serve. I was struck again by the fact that the second largest people group in this West African nation remains largely unreached.
Several who belong to this group are Christians and attend Alliance churches here. One of them, Sita, has become a good friend, and I’ve made several visits to her village.
Specific Prayer
Realizing that I’d not had an occasion to share the plan of salvation with members of this people group, I began to ask the Lord for opportunities to do so. Right after I began praying about this, I attended a funeral for one of Sita’s family members with several people from my church.
After the ceremony, when the courtyard was crowded with grieving relatives, someone made a comment about heaven.
Sensitivity to the Spirit
I sensed that it was the perfect opportunity to explain how God sent His Son so that we could be forgiven for our sins and live forever with Him.
One of the Christian women who had accompanied me picked up on the conversation thread. She shared how her father had accepted Christ after following another religion for many years. Our pastor’s wife then testified to the difference that knowing Jesus has made in her life.
“Until All Have Heard”
Maybe the Lord has laid on your heart some people in your community who don’t know Jesus. Pray that He would prepare their hearts to accept the good news of salvation in Christ and give you an opportunity to share it with them.
Finally, if you haven’t already done so, begin researching some of the world’s people groups that remain unreached. Ask the Lord to use you to reach them by going—or by standing with those who are already there. He will continue to answer that prayer until all have heard (see Matthew 24:14).
What You Can Do
Pray
The prayers of God’s people empower Alliance workers to boldly take the good news to the whole world. Using the weekly Alliance Prayer Requests, join other Alliance family members to pray for our workers around the world who are pouring themselves out to ensure that “all have heard.”
Give
- Give to the Great Commission Fund (GCF) and partner with Alliance workers, who lay everything on the line to fulfill one of Jesus’ last directives: “‘go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you’” (Matthew 28:19–20a).
- Give now
Learn More
Read “To Seek and to Save,” an alife article about how the light of the gospel is entering a strong Buddhist country because of those who partner with Alliance workers through supporting the Great Commission Fund.