Photo: Some of the thousands of hungry people who flock to receive food and essential supplies from our co-workers in India. Each person is not only helped physically, but are presented with the Gospel of salvation.

 
A Plea from Asia: 'Please Help us Stay Alive'

Last year, as it became increasingly clear that the Covid pandemic was a major disaster, we wrote a newsletter to highlight all the ways we were helping God's people across Asia during the first lockdowns. We hoped the pandemic would peak and then pass, but obviously the opposite has occurred, and more people are dying and suffering more intensely than at any other time during the crisis.

Some parts of Asia have experienced continual, rolling lockdowns for over a year. A few countries have had ten or more different lockdowns, which has created great stress and anxiety among the population, including the Body of Christ.

Although the pandemic itself has brought terrible destruction, it is now clear that the never-ending lockdowns are causing even greater damage to people throughout Asia. Starvation, despair, mental health issues, and anxiety are believed to be rampant.

Long-term, the biggest challenges in Asia will be economic. Nations that were already poor with few resources are struggling to survive. One leader we support explained that in his church the believers have only recently been allowed to meet again in small numbers, but few people have a job, and therefore there is little money, food, or essential items necessary to live. Almost all employment has been wiped out, and the situation may not improve for many years.

When we first mentioned the needs last year, many believers responded by praying and giving generously. We were able to help tens of thousands of poor Christians survive the first round of lockdowns. Not only did we send every cent of donations that came in at the time, but we have continued helping by sending on gifts given to our general fund and to the Persecution & Relief Fund.

Now, more than a year later, the situation in most parts of Asia is far more dire. As the virus wreaks havoc on the most vulnerable communities, we again ask for your prayers and support for our brothers and sisters in Asia.

You may have seen on the news how India has been decimated in recent months, with thousands of corpses being piled up and burned each day. As terrible as it has been in India, however, we think the neighboring countries of Nepal, Pakistan and Bangladesh have been even worse affected. Their health systems were poor to nonexistent in normal times, and death has dragged millions of people down into the grave in those countries.

In these pages we share photos of some of the recent help we have given to believers throughout Asia. Please pray for our projects, as we continue providing essential relief in more than a dozen countries, from Pakistan to Indonesia, and across the vast continent of Asia.

An evangelist in a remote part of Southeast Asia found himself completely cut off after the government imposed a severe crackdown. He was confined to his makeshift hut in the jungle, and his food soon ran out. Our colleagues tried to get money to him so he could survive, but in that area there are no banks or ATM machines. The only way he could receive help was by having funds hand-carried to him, but military roadblocks manned by soldiers with machine guns were stationed to prevent anyone getting in or out of his area.

We last heard from this brother about three months ago. He was struggling at the point of starvation, with zero government assistance because he is a Christian. We do not know if he is now dead or alive.

You probably haven't heard this before, but something else has been going on behind the scenes in many Asian countries. Thousands of foreign Christians who live in places like Thailand and Malaysia have found themselves stripped of their legal status. In some cases, the entire visa category that allowed them to stay has been unilaterally revoked by the government. Many of these foreigners were involved with support ministries to closed countries.

One of the best things to come from the lockdowns is how the Body of Christ in many locations has adapted to the situation. Believers have grown closer together than ever before, and have shared their possessions and food with one another, and with others in their communities when the opportunity arises. Often, for the first time, fellowships of believers have experienced unity like the early Church: "All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need" (Acts 2:44-45).

Despite the severe challenges, the Gospel has continued to go forth, and many people have entered God's kingdom for the first time. Indeed, at the end of 2020 we were shocked to find that the evangelists we support through the Asian Workers' Fund reported 117,509 conversions to Christ throughout the year, despite all the restrictions to their movement and untold difficulties.

In many areas, those we support have continued to plant new churches, and a constant stream of people have come to learn about Jesus Christ. Before the pandemic they showed little or no interest in the Gospel, but after seeing the instability of the world, coupled with the genuine love of the Christians, the two factors have combined to produce a great harvest of salvation.

We are currently helping about 10,000 poor families (including more than 2,000 Christian widows) survive through the Covid ordeal. For $20, we can buy and deliver relief packages of food and essential supplies to poor families for one month. A gift of $100 will therefore help five families for a month, or $500 will help 25 families. Please pray for them and all our coworkers who are overseeing the projects. If you would like to help, please fill out and return the yellow Response Form, or you can give to the Persecution & Relief Fund via our website . Every dollar received is sent directly to the frontlines in Asia. Nothing is deducted for any other expense. The contents of each relief package are:

Thank you and God bless you. Let's pray the kingdom of God will grow during this long struggle, and the Body of Christ will come out stronger than ever, with multitudes of new members as people hear the Gospel for the first time.



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