Your gift will send 50,000 copies of God's Word to Bengali believers, who are already of fire for Christ and desperate to share their faith with their neighbours!
Last month, I received some heartbreaking news. One of our dear brothers in Bangladesh lost his life for believing in Jesus and sharing his faith. He went missing; only two days later, his body was discovered with his tongue cut out. He died with Jesus on his lips, having only recently responded to the gospel message.
For four years, his wife had prayed earnestly every day that he, too, would know the truth that Jesus is God. She had refused to give up. Through the Holy Spirit’s convicting power, her prayers were answered! Her husband accepted Christ this past December.
Would you pray for this brother’s wife? She’s grieving so much over her husband’s death and yet is remaining strong in her faith.
This couple lives in Bangladesh, a country where 90% of people are Muslim and less than .4% are Christian. Since Islam is the state religion, the entire culture is based on an Islamic way of life and practice. Sadly, many believers face considerable opposition when choosing to become Christians. The same can be said when they share their faith with their families, neighbours, and co-workers.
And yet, so many Bengali believers share their faith boldly. How do they do this? They often ask a co-worker or friend, “Do you know Jesus?” In the Qur’an (the teachings of Islam), Jesus is considered to be a prophet, so many will respond, “Yes.” The believer then follows up with, “Do you want to know more about Jesus?” If the person shows interest, the believer will then hand them a Bible translated into Bengali.
Oftentimes, the person will then compare the Bible (considered a holy book by Muslims) to the Qur’an and come back with questions. For some, this means they will no longer see Jesus as merely a prophet but instead as their Saviour and God. They will be invited to join a house church—usually a small gathering of just four to nine people.
It’s a risk to have these conversations. However, as one Bengali pastor passionately shared:
“Once you surrender your life fully to Christ, your fear of what’s to come disappears because of the power of the Holy Spirit!”
It reminds me of Jesus’ words: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it” (Matt. 16:24-25 NIV).
Bengali believers want more Bibles to keep sharing their faith with their communities. Would you help make this possible through our campaign Bibles for Bangladesh?
We want to send 50,000 Bibles, so more people can read the life-changing Word of God. Moreover, our ministry partner, ShareWord Global, has agreed to match dollar for dollar—or, should I say, Bible for Bible—up to $100,000. That means if you give five Bibles toward Bibles for Bangladesh, ShareWord will match that number of copies. Five Bibles really means ten!
It costs only $6 to send one copy of the Bible to Bangladesh. And just think how many people you can reach by sending multiple copies of the Scriptures to those longing to hear the gospel message! You will play a major role in seeing lives transformed for all of eternity.
Although 50,000 copies of God’s Word may seem like a lofty goal, I am confident we can do it! The Bengali believers are on fire. They are so eager to share the Scriptures with as many people as they can. Plus, the vision of the church leaders in Bangladesh is to plant 3,000 house churches over the next five years.
They are willing to risk it all for Jesus. This includes our dear brother’s wife who has lost her husband. She will continue to share her faith without fear, so more of her community can hear the gospel. Will you help her, and the other Bengali believers, reach more people for Jesus?
Pray for seekers to find Jesus.
At the end of March, Ramadan, a month-long event, begins. This is a time when Muslims fast from dawn to dusk, pray, read the Qu’ran, and do good works. Many are open and longing for something more.
Pray for believers to boldly witness.
God tells us numerous times in His Word not to fear. We are constantly reminded that He is with us! Bangladesh believers face tremendous risk as they share Jesus with their families, friends, and neighbours.;
Pray for house churches to grow.
Acts 2:47 shares, “And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.” With the vision to plant 3,000 churches over the next five years, the Bangladesh church is believing for explosive growth like the Early Church experienced.