One of e3’s Strategy Coordinators in South Asia, Jim, recently traveled with his team to an eastern district of the state he works in that is highly unreached. The state has more than 1.2 million people and is made up of 1,021 villages. Only 0.05% of the population is Christian, and most of the villages don’t have a single church.
“Out of burden for this lost place, we spent two days training believers in basic evangelism and pushing people into the harvest,” Jim said. “These were village areas full of many poor, uneducated farmers and laborers. It was amazing to see many uneducated people learn how to share the Gospel for the first time!”
On the first day of training, Jim traveled with Simeon* on his motorcycle into a remote jungle where he lived.
“He had decided to devote his life to full-time ministry a year ago and suffered lots of persecution but held onto the Lord,” Jim said. “And the Lord sustained him! He has a big vision to see every single village around him have Gospel witness. In zeal, he brought us from house to house until late at night to a total of six families, where I helped set him up to share the Gospel. It was amazing to see him preach boldly and urge everyone to repent and believe.”
On the second day of training, Jim traveled with Mateo* and Narin*, two locals who cannot read, to encourage them as they shared the Gospel.
“They ended up sharing with three homes,” Jim said. “They preached so powerfully despite being uneducated. They were able to connect and explain the Gospel well. They were so happy, and you could see the pride they got from being used by God. They said they love doing God’s work but need encouragement and vision, which is exactly what we came to give!”
Along with field time, prayer, and vision casting, Jim and his team were able to teach a group of about 60 believers how to share their testimony and the Gospel. They were even able to record the Gospel in their local dialect!
“This small group of believers may be the only hope for this largely unreached area,” Jim said. “Please pray that these pastors and believers would have courage and continue to go to empty places to share the Gospel and start gatherings!”
*Names have been changed to ensure safety and anonymity.