Drew is teaching guitar to four local believers. Leon is one of them learning basic Central Asian worship guitar. Leon was a guerrilla fighter, who found a local pastor through Facebook, and over time he came to believe in the gospel through many talks and prayers. Three out of the four students came to faith after difficult seasons of serving as soldiers, waging guerrilla warfare for the rights of their oppressed people group. But the suffering and disillusionment they experienced while part of a political cause are part of what eventually led them to Jesus. Now, they regularly meet with Drew so that they can serve as the first local worship leaders for the churches.
Developing worship leaders and songs is one area of ministry focus. Another would be history and culture research, focusing on the ancient Christian history of this area as well as the history and culture of the people group. Though at the beginning of this research work, they are encouraged to see how eager the local believers are to see it take place.
Holy City Church was Immanuel’s second intentional church plant started in 2016. After a season of saying goodbye to numerous members, they are now in a season of saying hello to new members as many have joined the church recently. This was something that was lifted up to God in prayer last time Immanuel prayed, and praise God for the work He has done!
A great joy is that Holy City has families with children running around; the church longs to see these unbelieving children among the membership converted. The pastors are thankful that the ministry of the Word is motivating saints to pursue pastoral counseling in their lives.
Holy City is praying for the Lord to open a door for ministry for one of their elders, Pastor Jake, as he continues to work toward planting a church in the North Charleston area. It will be bittersweet to let one of the pastors go, but there is a need in Charleston for more healthy churches.
Re:Center Ministries is an organization dedicated to the Christian belief that we have a duty to help the less fortunate. Their aim is to rely on the gospel to help prevent homelessness, provide relief to the homeless, and rehabilitate the homeless population by introducing them to a relationship with Christ. One way Re:Center does this is through the 6-9 month residential LifeChange Program. As participants, men participate in training designed to bring about holistic change in their lives.
Location:
Malaysia
Population:
13,951,000
Ev. Christian:
.08%
Main Language:
Malay
Spiritual Beliefs:
99.2% Islam
Bible in Heart Language:
Yes
Islam was brought to Malaysia by Arabic and Indian traders centuries ago. Since then, the Malay people have come to embrace and ardently follow the Islamic faith. All Malay people are considered Islamic, though levels of devotion to the religion are varied. The Malay find much pride in their cultural heritage and place great emphasis on family and community dependence.