Exloring Life Eternal

Please pardon the lengthy testimony, but glorify God for the Way He saves, even in Arabia!

Praise:

We give thanks to God for bringing new members into our team that will be in country in August and September. Our team in the capital city has had several families leave the country recently due to family situations.


Petition:

Pray for the pastor of the evangelical church. Pray that he would know God's vision and way forward. Pray for God's strengthening in the face of difficulties. Ask for God to send others to encourage him and uphold him.

Pray for the schooling needs of the Arab National worker in our region. His oldest son has an excellent opportunity to study medicine in North America, but they need additional funding for him to attend the university. This young man loves the Lord and wants to use his medical skills as an open door for the Gospel in the Arabian Peninsula.

Pray for the tent makers with teaching positions. Ask God to rejuvenate them during the summer weeks off of term time. Pray for the new students – particularly the National Muslim students - they will have in their classes starting in August and September.

Pray for the effectiveness of the outreach teams in London to share the Good News with Gulf Arabs – particularly in light of the recent bombings. Pray for divine appointments.

Pray for the security of 2 MBB young men that are in hiding in their country due to family pressure for them to return to Islam. Pray that they would grow strong in their faith in Jesus during this tremendous time of testing.


Testimony:

Living in a rural part of his country, Abdullah and his family struggled to make ends meet. He was good with his hands and even had a mechanics certificate. But there was very little work in the southern part of the country where they lived. He traveled to the big city to find work. He knocked on many doors and finally got a job with a small repair shop. The workplace was poorly lit, untidy with many safety hazards. Many of the workers were National Muslims like him, but many of them chewed a drug that numbed them to the dull and mundane existence they shared.

Abdullah knew that he couldn’t stay in this place long. He traveled to a more prosperous country in the Arabian Peninsula. He found better paying work in the new country. The cost of living was much higher in this country but he thought his chances of providing for his family would be better. He managed to scrape together enough money to have his wife come to the new country so they could both work and try to get ahead. They both worked long hours. They lived in a small, run down, 1 room apartment. The money that came in only seemed to cover their immediate needs. They weren’t able to save money so they could start a family. They became frustrated with their lives and small arguments often became big fights. He would shout and scream and blame her for their problems. Abdullah often hit his wife. During this stressful time his wife became pregnant and was sent back home because she couldn’t keep her job.

Abdullah plodded on in his struggle. He was hoping for a boy – a son to make him more respected in his community – both at home and in his working country. After a few months his wife had a miscarriage at a hospital not too far from their rural home. Some Christian doctors and nurses had tried to help her but the baby boy did not survive. Abdullah was crushed and angry. He was angry with those Christian medical people who were responsible for the loss of his child. On his next trip home, he went to the hospital with a gun. He wanted to get even with the Christian medical staff. When he went into the hospital with his gun under his kondura, he was met by a female Christian doctor who expressed real sorrow over the loss of their baby. She was so kind and sensitive. She gave him a Bible. Then she was called away to care for some emergency. Abdullah was alone, with his gun and his new Bible. He decided to leave the hospital. He returned to his work in the other country without telling his wife what had happened in the hospital.

One day after work he met an Arab Christian man from another country. He asked this man many questions and told him he even had a Bible. Over many weeks and months, Abdullah began to study the Bible with this Christian man. He began to see how bad he was, how poorly he had treated his wife and that his anger was a big problem. After more weeks of soul searching and discussions with his new friend, he placed his faith in Jesus. He began to change. He budgeted his money so that he could call his wife once a week. He grew in his walk with Jesus. He read his Bible. He was rarely angry. He had a good attitude even though his low paying work was below his skill level.

He went to his home country for a short holiday and asked his wife for forgiveness. She was shocked and amazed at the changes in her husband. His wife asked what had happened to him. He told her about Jesus and his Arab Christian friend in the other country. She called this man to find out what he could tell her about Abdullah’s change. After a short while she too came to faith in Jesus.

Today they are living in their home country working in whatever jobs they can to make ends meet for them and their children. They are active in the lives of the people in their region, sharing the Good News of Jesus with whoever will listen. They have been hassled by the police, they have been detained when traveling, but they can’t stop telling of the great things Jesus has done in their lives.

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Praying Thru the Arabian Peninsula
ptap@srginc.org
www.pray-ap.info
USA #: 800-376-5876
Encouraging & equipping believers & churches around the world to pray through the heart of the Muslim world so that church planting movements will spread throughout the Arabian Peninsula, to the ends of the earth & the islands ... to the glory of God in Christ.

====
To learn how you can support this & other ministry for the Middle East, visit:
http://www.srginc.org

Or write:
PTAP
c/o Strategic Resource Group
P.O. Box 1809
Easton, MD 21601
USA

N. American Coordinator & family is now a legal resident in the Great Lakes State. The Lord is renewing his work in various places & ways. To see God's people awakened to His presence & power is very encouraging!! The sweetness of our Savior is the savor in the midst of suffering. Please pray for our daily needs & let us know how we might pray for you. May the Lord be our Guard. - MJH ptap@srginc.org

There is an old phrase about, from Kalamazoo to Timbuktoo ...
M.Q. said, "Today, we are correcting human history from here, in
Timbuktu." (cf. http://www.memritv.org/# )

Sounds like the Gospel Mission of Kalamazoo needs to send some saints
to Timbuktu in order to help Qadhafi get a few facts straight in the Q.
document. http://www.kzoogospel.org/what_we_believe.php

They clothe the naked, feed the hungry, shelter the cold, comfort the
weary, strengthen the broken hearted ... & give a correct account of
the Life of Jesus by doing the ministry of a bar-nabas: Encouraging!!

I personally never found the Quran or Muhammed's other stuff in line
with Barnabas' gift of encouragement. If you wish to get the Word of God to the folks in Timbuktu & help Qadhafi find the true Word of Encouragement:
http://www.worldshare.org.uk/pages/timbuktu.html


Peace In Christ,
Mert H.
ptap@srginc.org
www.pray-ap.info

(This news flash is best read / heard outloud.)

Nowadays you can get eggs from vegetarian fed hens, free-range chickens, or regular old hot-house hens.

Q. Do you know what the difference is between a vegetarian chicken and a real chicken, a free chicken?

=. The vegetarian chicken is made of tofu? No, I don't know.

A. Nope. The vegetarian chicken doesn't prey. But the free chicken, the real kind, does.

....

It is kind of like the old saying, "There are no atheists in fox-holes." Which brings us to the next question:

Q. Do you know what happens when a fox gets into a hen-house?

A. It eats chicken.

Q. Ah, yes, but do you know why?

=. No, why?

A. Because despite their noise, the fox preys better than the chickens in this case.

==> The lesson then is: Pray while you can!

"Seek the Lord while He can be found. For the night is coming when no-one can work!" - See Isaiah 55

Here are some reminders to pray for the saints in Somalia & for the discipling of all peoples there:

- 15 years of no cohesive government in the land (i.e. no law & no order.)
- Famine could possibly worsen if there are no rains before May. (April Showers would really be considered a blessing.)
- The land has a history of persecution of Christians.
- There are more people with wounds from arms than anywhere else.
- Children in East Africa looking for water @ wells / watering holes are threatened by predatory animals who are lurk at some places.

==> PRAY FOR THE LEADERS IN SOMALIA & THAT CHRISTIANS WHO ARE THERE OR WHO COULD HAVE A POSITIVE IMPACT WOULD SPEAK UP & INTERCEDE BEFORE THE GREAT KING OVER ALL THE EARTH. THE LORD IS ALIVE!!

(The whole context of Somalia reminds me of Elijah & Ahab.)

Please visit the '30 Days of Prayer Website' to download a copy of their guide, or subscribe to their e-mail guide:

http://www.30-days.net

One man was visiting with three of his cousins who are all believers. The evening started as many such evenings would - they sat on mattresses on the floor and drank coffee together. Later, following the reading of a passage from the Bible and some discussion they had a time of prayer. He prayed: "God, if you're real then show me!" Pray for seekers like this man, that God would answer the deep prayers of their hearts – both uttered and silent.

Monday, September 19, 2005

"Labor while there is still light. The night is coming when no one can work." - Jesus

PRAISE:
Praise for the growing work amongst the Chinese. Praise for the successful Moon Festival outreaches in several countries of the AP. Thousands of Chinese heard the Good News at these celebrations. Pray for continued growth of the believers. Pray that God would raise up leaders and those able to teach, as well as gifting the Chinese church with all His gifts.

PETITION:
Pray for the work outside the capital area in our country. A number of workers are having to leave for personal reasons - pray with us that God will raise up new workers to take their places and that God will continue to bear witness to the truth through His people - and other means such as satellite TV, dreams, His Word, etc in these places.

Pray for the distribution of the 30-days Ramadan prayer guide within the Arabian Peninsula and world-wide as God’s people are raised up to pray for the heart of the Muslim world.

For the last few weeks we have been lifting up a key tentmaking leader who is fighting cancer. Pray for two more influential tentmakers also fighting cancer.

Pray for new outreach being planned for a city on our east coast. It has a very high density of National Muslims and no known Christians. Pray for the resources to start this new ministry – key people and finances. We are asking God for a great harvest in this strategic “gateway city” to our country.

Pray for the new tentmaking students at the Arabic language institutes in the region. Many are families with small children. Pray that they would be able to learn the language. Pray for protection for their marriages and children during the stressful 1.5 year program.

Please pray for work among the young people in this country. There are some great conversations going on over coffees. Pray the right people will be drawn to these special times. This is a great initiative using the internet to co-ordinate coffee house meetings. Great things are happening there!