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Hope In Devastation (829.0 KiB)

Sitting in the room drinking our extremely strong coffee, we are updated on the latest occurrences in Syria by a first-hand witness, hearing about her family that was slaughtered. In Arabic that is a word only used for Eid-Al-Adha, when the lambs are slaughtered—very rarely used for murders. So to be termed as the family being slaughtered implies unfathomable brutality.

Eden Nelson is a writer for the International Mission Board based out of the Middle East. In this You Report, she reflects on her feelings after hearing the testimonies of Syrian refugees.

The slaughter is discussed with downcast eyes and other people across the room tell of other stories they have heard. After talking about Syria for most of the visit, eventually the room grows quiet. A burden that heavily weighted upon each person seems to fill the room. This tragedy is not something people know how to deal with.

Hope for Syrian refugees

How do you live when all you once had is gone? Your home country is completely torn to pieces and you are left in a land that will never be your home. You will always be an outsider with a passport from a country from which you can’t return. Many Syrians who have fled are terrified of returning. The fact that they have fled their homeland is a perceived death warrant, so the potential of one day returning seems hopeless.

They have lost their homes, their families, their status and their work, all laid in the rubble of a seemingly never-ending, malicious war. After the long pause, one of the men asks, “Until when?” How long will this last? The people of Lebanon and Syria have seen so much devastation over the past four years.

How does one bear the burden of such destruction and hurt? How do they walk around Lebanon normally knowing that their family is locked inside of their house in Syria afraid of leaving their home?

They wait for a phone call, willing to answer their phones at all hours of the day in case it is a friend letting them know their family is ok. Always waiting, always wondering if today could be the day their family disappears.

Putting pen to paper even to begin to express the details of this war is difficult. Interviewing Syrian refugees who have been deeply affected and hurt by the war evokes an ache in my heart that I do not fully know how to explain.

Stories of women being raped, brothers being killed, nephews being kidnapped, villages being utterly destroyed, livelihoods being shattered and children being shot. Those are only a few of the horrendous stories I have heard as I journey to learn more about what is happening in this two-year civil war.

To describe in words the pain that is written on these people’s faces is not possible.

I try to relate to the best of my ability, but I am unable. I have never been forced to leave my homeland, knowing that leaving may mean I never get to return. Leaving behind all of my childhood memories, work, friends, neighbors and the peace of knowing where you belong.

How does one cope with such a loss? How is one able to continue waking up each day when he or she has lost everything?

Zulema* said to me, “The Lord is with me, I have no fear.”

Wow.

Zulema is a woman I wish all Christians could encounter. Her love for the Lord is contagious and as she sits in what I view as such an awful situation. She says this is the happiest she has ever been. Why? Because Christ is within her.

She leaves me speechless.

The perspective of a Syrian is already difficult to imagine, then to meet a woman so captivated by her God that she has no fear.

I think I could learn a thing or two from my Syrian brothers and sisters, what it means to be content in all circumstances, what it means to look upon tragedy and see the Lord’s mercy and love.

Please remember the Syrian crisis. Each time you view an update on the news, pray for God’s protection and provision. Pray that the many refugees who have fled their homeland will find home in Christ. Pray they will encounter His peace, His love, His mercy and His salvation in the midst of devastation.

*Names changed for security reasons.

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Eden Nelson is a writer for the International Mission Board based out of the Middle East.

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Grief Stricken Father (944.7 KiB)

AMMAN, Jordan—“I’m scared that if I go into the kitchen, I’ll grab a knife and kill myself.”

Khalid* spoke many times of suicide during the 90 minutes I spent with him on a recent visit. His story, like those of many other refugees who have fled the ongoing civil war in Syria, is one of deep loss and desperation.

Joseph Rose serves in the Middle East as a photographer and videographer. In this first-person account, he shares a glimpse into his heart as he interacts with the father of one of the casualties of the civil war in Syria.

One of his children, a 2 ½-year-old twin son, was killed January 2013 when high winds knocked down the family’s tent in the refugee camp in Jordan where they were staying. A tent pole penetrated the boy’s chest in the middle of the night.

26-year-old Khalid* sits outside his rented home in Jordan with his two children, Fahad,* 5, and Malik,* 2. Khalid lost a son last month when high winds knocked down their tent in the Syrian refugee camp where the family was staying. The boy, who died after a tent pole penetrated his chest, was Malik’s twin brother. (*Name changed)

Friends sneaked the child’s body back into Syria in a water cooler so he could be buried beside his grandmother on a hillside near the border.

“Dying by a bullet or a bomb would have been easier,” said the 26-year-old father. “We came from Syria to protect our women and children, to give them a chance to live. And there’s nothing here. No food. No water … It’s cold. It’s wet … There’s nothing. … Nobody listens to us. Nobody cares … We don’t have anyone but Allah.”

My heart broke for this young man and his family. I wanted to tell Khalid not to give up. But before I could get the words out, he told me our visit had returned a glimmer of hope to his heart and soul.

My eyes began to fill with tears. I told him I would not forget him, and that I would continue to pray for him and his family.

I pray that this young Syrian refugee family — and the hundreds of thousands like them — will come to be held snugly in the Father’s arms as they gain access to God’s Word and embrace Christ, their eternal Hope.

*Name changed

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Joseph Rose serves in the Middle East as a photographer and videographer.

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Syrians Desperate To Hear (1.0 MiB)

MIDDLE EAST — Zulema* left horrors behind when she fled from Syria two years ago, with family members left behind to languish in prison.

But she ran straight into the arms of people she says God put in her path.

“I started to hear from them, the most magnificent thing I’ve heard in my whole life: How to know God,” Zulema said. “As I slept this night I heard a voice telling me, ‘I sent you those people so you will get to know God more.’”

As the news shares horrific accounts of the war in Syria and many people have left their homes to escape the tragedy, an untold story remains. The tragedy has opened doors for the Gospel to be shared in ways that have never been seen, according to Christian workers in the region. Syrians who have never heard the Gospel before are finding Christians waiting to tell them in Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey.

“It is awesome to be on the edge of what God is doing,” said Catherine Steel*, a Christian worker in the Middle East.

Arabic-language Bibles and Christian books occupy a place of honor on the bookshelf of an influential Muslim community leader among Syrian refugees.

Women now meet weekly to hear stories of the Bible, stories completely new to them. They are having visions, reading the Word and coming to Christ, Steel said. “For so long, only 1 percent of Muslim women were turning to Christ.”

A movement of this kind is “unheard of,” she said.

Families are encountering Christ and turning to him, while Syrian Christians who have fled the war are experiencing God’s mercy in ways they have never seen.

Salman* and Basimah* are one such Christian couple. They fled after Salman’s brothers were killed and his life was in danger.

Eight years after the couple accepted Christ, “the war started in Syria, then we came to Lebanon and again the door opened for us to have fellowship and be close to Jesus,” Basimah said. “[The church] embraced us as a family as one of them, and they showed us true love and acceptance.

“My faith was renewed and I started to know more and have a deeper knowledge about the Bible and my Savior,” she said. “Our only refuge is the Lord. He is the one who is helping us to adapt with this new situation and the difficult times that we are facing.”

Christian workers are hearing stories and watching a movement they say is miraculous. “Many are gathering together, sometimes more than once a week, to study the scripture together and fellowship,” said Ruth James*, a Christian worker in the region.

Zulema is one of those who met Christ this way. After she fled Syria and was embraced by Christians, she began to read the Bible and ask questions. Two months later, she decided to follow Christ.

“The word of God is becoming very close to my heart as I read the Bible,” She said. “I am memorizing what’s in there and it is becoming part of me. I was drowning in a deep sea and someone came and rescued me. My hope is that many would experience that rescue as I did.”

James said many are experiencing just that.

“They are so cut off from the outside, and many feel they have been completely abandoned by the world and may be wondering if they have been abandoned by God as well,” James said. “In that moment, in that place of desperation when the things they have been taught about God are being eroded by the reality of the suffering that they have endured at the hands of their ‘brothers’ in Syria as well as in their host countries, they are desperate to hear about Jesus.”

Syria was once a country where Jesus was not openly spoken about and faith questions were not brought to the light. Now everything has changed, James said.

Steel looks upon the situation in Syria and sees it as the story of God’s redemption in history — brokenness to hope. “We know what caused it and we know what can fix it. And we have a hope,” she said. “No matter how bad and how complicated things get, we have hope.”

She asked for Christians around the world to advocate for the Syrian people, knowing there is more to the story.  “Please pray, ‘God, Syria’s broken, come make it right — whatever it takes, that they may see your Gospel,” she said.

*Names changed for security reasons

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Eden Nelson is a writer for the International Mission Board based in the Middle East.

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Istanbul Protests 1 (12.3 MiB)

ISTANBUL — Taksim Square in the heart of Istanbul seems like ground zero of the biggest party in Turkey. Groups of students dance hand-in-hand. Local musicians gather for impromptu open-air performances. Women hand out sesame-covered biscuits to anyone in arm’s reach.

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Istanbul Protests 2 (14.5 MiB)

On May 31, a peaceful protest over the destruction of a city park turned violent as riot police attempted to drive protesters from the area. The air in Taksim, recently saturated with pepper spray and tear gas, is now charged with hope and energy, but there is an undercurrent of danger.

Street vendors sell a bizarre mix of Turkish flags, surgical masks and swim goggles. The flags signal nationalistic pride, while the masks and goggles are intended to deflect gas used by riot police to disperse crowds.  One vendor darkly quips, “The tear gas is coming to Taksim; you’ll need these.”

DAMAGED BUS – A city bus damaged by protesters near Gezi Park, the site where anti-government demonstrations began last week in Istanbul, Turkey.

Some protesters wear badges, sarcastically claiming they are looters. Others more ominously don Guy Fawkes masks, often the symbols of political activism.  Spontaneous chants for the resignation of Prime Minister Recep Tayip Erdogan erupt from every corner of the square.

But a question lingers, “What happens after the party is over?”

When asked what they hope the protests will achieve, Turkish demonstrators provide a range of responses.

A well-educated elderly couple — a university professor and a doctor — replied simply, “We want freedom and peace.”

A young woman who was in the park when police confronted the protesters enthusiastically stated, “Erdogan should publicly apologize.” She then admitted an apology is unlikely and darker days are probably coming to Turkey.

The exuberance on display in Taksim seems to mask a deeper uncertainty about the future of a country with a staunchly secular political system and a deeply religious Muslim majority population.

The size and scope of the protests have surprised many, but they have not shaken the faith of Turkish believers.

Amir*, a Turkish pastor, said he had never seen anything like the recent demonstrations. He is confident that even if things turn out badly, God will prevail. He said he prays human rights will be protected and that democracy will lead to an acceptance of others — specifically believers so they can share their reason for hope.

PROTEST DAMAGE – A damaged police car leaves evidence of the angry sentiment of many secular Turks in Istanbul, Turkey.

Mehmet*, a Turkish believer, said, “Jesus had similar experiences. He lived under oppressive leadership, but He walked among the citizens of Israel and addressed the real issue. The real issue isn’t about the government — it’s about salvation.”

He said he hopes discussions about freedom will open doors to share about the freedom that can only be found in Jesus Christ.  Mehmet said he recognizes it is easy to get caught up in the frenzy of protests. He prays Turkish believers will have wisdom to discern the spiritual needs of their fellow citizens.

Join with Turkish Christians as they pray for the future of their country. Pray for Turkey Cities is a prayer guide that encourages in-depth prayer for the cities and peoples of Turkey. Order online from the Resource Center of the International Mission Board here: http://imbresources.org/index.cfm/product/detail/prodID/4100/page/1

*Names changed for security reasons.

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PHOTO CUTLINES:

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GRAFFITI PROTEST — Graffiti painted by anti-government protesters on Istiklal Avenue near Gezi Park in Istanbul.

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ISTANBUL DEMONSTRATORS – Another crowd of anti-government demonstrators gather in the main square of Taksim in Istanbul, Turkey.

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PROTEST DAMAGE – A damaged police car leaves evidence of the angry sentiment of many secular Turks in Istanbul, Turkey.

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SYMBOLS OF PROTEST – A protester dons the now symbolic protest mask and goggles and situates himself in the driver’s seat of a bus damaged during anti-government demonstrations in Istanbul, Turkey.

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DAMAGED BUS – A city bus damaged by protesters near Gezi Park, the site where anti-government demonstrations began last week in Istanbul, Turkey.

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PROTEST MASK – A protester wearing the now symbolic protest mask sits in the window sill of a damaged bus in Istanbul, Turkey.

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Syrians Open (1.1 MiB)

SYRIA — The Arab Spring has left people in many countries hoping for opportunities elsewhere. But Syria is a different story.

Syrians are fleeing, not for opportunities or success, but leaving everything behind to spare their lives and the lives of those they love.

Many Syrians, inspired by the Arab Spring’s message of freedom, rallied together to have demonstrations in March 2011. These peaceful protests became deadly the following month in an attempt to end these demonstrations.

Civil war broke out between the Syrian Army and the Syrian National Coalition and continues today.

A Syrian woman makes her way between seemingly endless rows of tents at the Zaatari refugee camp in northern Jordan. The camp, run by the U.N. High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), is now home to more than 150,000 Syrian refugees. Many thousands more crowd into towns and villages along the border. Hundreds of them have been aided by Christians, who also have shared the Gospel with many Muslim families.

Recently, the United Nations reported that nearly 7 million Syrians need humanitarian aid, more than 1 million Syrians, and counting, have run from Syria, and the death toll is increasing, already surpassing 60,000.

Many Syrians are fleeing to unwelcoming arms in Lebanon because of Syria’s unwanted occupation of Lebanon for 29 years before Syria withdrew in 2005. As deprivation and oppression continue for Syrians in Lebanon and other surrounding countries, “free” Syrians are confined by worry, longing for peace for those they know in Syria.

“The Syrians who have been able to leave Syria are often still consumed with fear over what their families back in Syria are experiencing,” said Ruth James, a Christian who works among Syrians in Lebanon. “I’ve watched Syrian refugees in Lebanon receive text messages with lists of names of people from their community who have been killed.”

Paul Matheson*, a Christian worker in Jordan, shares a similar story of being shown pictures of the remnants of Syrians’ destroyed homes and Syrians who have been tortured.

“People send those things to them just to be able to show the world the atrocity,” Matheson said.

Before the Arab Spring, when Ruth James was in Syria, Syrians were reluctant to question their faith, thinking it disloyal to their Muslim beliefs, she said.

“That is no longer the case. Access to people who were once seemingly impossible to reach with the Gospel is now as simple as walking down most major streets in countless cities in Lebanon or Jordan,”

The number of evangelical Syrians is still very small, James said, but believers they know have been “heroic” through the turmoil, she said.

“Though they have lived in Lebanon for many years, they have continued to make regular trips into Syria, in order to distribute funding coming from outside, through food, hygiene products, and [meeting] other needs they encounter, James said. “They continue to come and go at great risk to themselves,” James continued “and are finding Syrians, both Christian background and Muslim background, desperate for the hope that they offer in the name of Jesus.

Many Syrians are gathering together weekly to study the Bible, and most of them were not believers before the conflict, she said.

Matheson said a Syrian woman, after hearing a local pastor speak in her home, began asking questions. “Most people say in the name of a prophet, ‘Peace be upon him,’ so she asked about that and why we don’t say ‘Peace be upon him.’ [about Jesus].

“The local pastor told her because our Lord is the Prince of Peace, we don’t say ‘Peace be upon Him’ because He’s the one who gives peace to people,” Matheson recalled.

At this house church meeting, the woman gave her life to the Prince of Peace and continues to tell others, as well as host weekly Bible studies.

Syrian’s have opened up their hearts to the Gospel, yet the task is great. Are you willing to share the story of Jesus Christ alongside your Arab brothers and sisters in Lebanon?

*Names changed for security reasons.

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Egypt (1.3 MiB)

EGYPT — The Arab Spring shouldn’t make American Christians afraid of getting on a plane and going to the Middle East to share the Gospel, said Peter Nolan*, a Christian worker in Egypt.

“Egypt is reachable,” Nolan said, even thought the country has gone through the wringer in the past couple of years.

On Feb. 11, 2011, Egypt overthrew its government, President Hosni Mubarak and the National Democratic Party, as part of the Arab Spring that swept northern Africa and the Middle East. The Egyptian revolution started Jan. 25, 2011 as nonviolent demonstrations in Tahrir Square. The protests drew more than a 100,000 people.

Taking issues to the streets was effective for Egyptians, but not without cost. More than 800 died in the uprising in 2011 and about 6,000 were injured.

Egyptian flags fly in Tahrir Square in downtown Cairo, Egypt, months after President Mubarak relinquished his presidency to the control of the Egyptian army.

Today, Egyptians are still fighting for all that the Arab Spring stands for, supporting human rights and standing against political corruption and dictatorships.

The words of a young Coptic Christian in Cairo last year still ring true. “I’m angry, but not because the revolution failed,” he said. “What makes me unhappy is that people put too many dreams on this revolution.”

Unemployment has gone up and many Egyptians are seeking a way out. Misplaced hope has brought disappointment and, as a result, an exalted view of the world beyond Egypt’s borders.

“Egypt’s not getting better, Egypt’s getting worse,” Peter Nolan said, noting that the people facing increasing financial problems. New restrictions on subsidies may make “the one thing people have enough of” — bread — harder to get, he said..

“That mentality of ‘you need to get out’ is increasing, and very few Egyptian [Christians] struggle to capture the mindset of ‘hey, let’s stay and reach our country and be willing to suffer for the sake of the name of Jesus.’”

Peter Nolan sees a different reality.

“The Islamic world is not unreachable and the Middle East is not ground so hard that the whole of the Gospel can’t turn it over very easily,” he said. “God is reaching Muslims and Egyptians faster than ever before in history and we need to respond and join God in what He is doing in that.”

Church-to-Church is providing this opportunity, Nolan explained. It is connecting churches in the US with churches in Egypt.

“Your job as an American church is to come in here and just support this church; love them, get to know them, undergird them,” Nolan said. “And your job description is figure out how to help them be better at being church. You may not know what it means to be Egyptian, you’ll learn a little bit, but you know what it means to be church.”

*Names changed for security reasons.

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Christians In Tunisia (1.7 MiB)

TUNISIA — Carthage, Tunisia, was once one of the most influential cities for Christianity, and where the canon of the New Testament was accepted. But various wars and conquests eventually pushed Christianity aside in Tunisia and throughout northern Africa and the Middle East.

The people pushed leader Ben Ali out of the country in January 2011, bringing a revived hope and excitement for the country. Two years later, civil unrest continues and hopes are increasingly dimming.

Ryan Bergman*, a Christian worker in Tunisia, said, “People want to leave because they do not see hope here and have unrealistic ideas of what life would look like in the outside world.”

Unemployment has yet to improve in Tunisia, and as inflation continues to rise, Tunisian’s newfound freedom provides less contentment than desired.

Local artists erected this monument in Sidi Bouzid, Tunisia, in memory of Mohamed Bouazizi. The self-immolation of Bouazizi, a local fruit seller, in protest of corruption set off demands for change in Tunisia and sparked subsequent revolutions there and beyond.

Henry Wolfe*, another Christian worker in Tunisia, said, “The problems in Tunisia are that the best and brightest do everything they can to leave and go somewhere else, most planning never to return.”

As despondency continues to spread in Tunisia, opportunities have presented themselves to spread a different message of freedom and hope. The story that was once accepted as divinely inspired in Carthage has reawakened in the uncertainty of the Arab Spring.

In Tunisia, Ryan Bergman said, he and his wife have been able to share more openly with neighbors.

“This is a great time to be in Tunisia,” he said. “It is still easy to meet new people and some of them want to talk about topics of importance — how to find a job, how to have a better marriage, how to know God in a personal way.”

Wolfe, elsewhere in Tunisia, said, “There are not very many believers here. I may be the only person who has the ability to share the good news with them.”

The struggle for new believers is that they live in isolation, he said.

“Believers need a lot of encouragement and aren’t getting that,” Wolfe said. “I’m praying that the religious fervor that once was would sweep over Tunisia.”

Are you willing to share this story alongside your Arab brothers and sisters?

*Names changed for security reasons.

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Movements Of Muslims (402.2 KiB)

NORTHERN AFRICA AND THE MIDDLE EAST – Omar Aziz walked all the way from one country to the other — across minefields and mountains and deserts — for the funeral of a friend’s teenage son.

At the funeral he sat between the parents, Nik and Ruth Ripken.

And what he saw was shocking.

“People were singing. People were crying. But everyone there seemed to know that Tim was in paradise,” said Aziz, a devout Muslim. “Why can’t we Muslims know that our loved ones are in paradise when they die? Why is it that only these followers of Jesus know exactly where they are going after death?”

It’s thoughts like these that are getting Muslims to ask the right questions, said Nik Ripken, the world’s leading expert on the persecuted church in Muslim contexts.

And David Garrison said those questions are leading to a revival in the Muslim world like never seen before.

“Movements to Christ are occurring in virtually every corner of the Muslim world,” said Garrison, the International Mission Board’s global strategist for evangelical advance.

This is coming from the work of the Holy Spirit and the spread of the gospel alongside the dissatisfaction Muslims say they have from their own religion, Garrison said.

“They speak of feeling lost, empty inside, without assurance of salvation. Many are weary of terrorism, fundamentalism and discrimination against women and non-Muslims,” he said. “It is also striking how many cultural Muslims, those whose faith was nothing more than a nominal identity, are finding in Christ a living Lord who hears and answers their prayers.”

It’s remarkable, said Garrison, who is currently writing a book called “A Wind in the House of Islam” set to be published later in 2013. “We have researched this and can say with confidence that no generation in history has ever seen so many Muslim movements to Christ.”

It’s a unique event across 1,400 years of Christians and Muslims interacting, Garrison said. “The sad truth is that over the past 14 centuries, Christianity has lost tens of millions to Islamic advance.”

But during that time, the Christian response was often avoidance or conflict, Garrison said. In the past couple of decades, the strategy has moved to prayerful, intentional witnessing, he explained.

“The results should not surprise us. After 13 centuries without a single uncoerced Muslim movement to Christ, we are now witnessing scores of movements with thousands of born-again, baptized, Bible-believing, Muslim-background followers of Christ to show for it,” Garrison said.

Exactly how many there are, no one knows, he said. Security issues don’t allow for thorough counts.

“Certainly there are hundreds of thousands, perhaps even a few million,” Garrison said.

In his research, Garrison has limited his surveys to movements of at least 1,000 baptisms or 100 new church starts over the past decade or two. At present, he said he is tracking 73 movements that fit this description.

“Several of these movements have tens of thousands of baptized believers from Muslim backgrounds,” he said.

What is causing these Muslims to turn to Christ?

“God is using many things,” Garrison said. “Answered prayers, dreams, massive seed sowing through New Testament distribution, one-on-one evangelism, gospel satellite TV and the Jesus Film have all been reported in Muslim encounters with Christ.”

Garrison asked Christians to pray that believers in Jesus “will take advantage of this great turning of Muslims to Christ” by praying for Muslims, sharing with them more frequently and “resisting the temptation to repay evil for evil when we are mistreated by them.”

He asked for prayers for Muslims who turn to Jesus, that they would be protected from the persecution “that inevitably follows” and that they will be bold in sharing their faith despite that persecution.

“Pray for an increased harvest of Muslims into the kingdom of God,” Garrison said. “This is truly their day of salvation.”

For more information about how you can pray for and reach Muslims for Christ, including a group study guide, visit lovingmuslims.com. To read more of Nik Ripken’s stories of the persecuted church in Muslim contexts, visit nikripken.com.

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Story Of Hope From Arab Spring (1.5 MiB)

By William Bagsby

NORTHERN AFRICA AND THE MIDDLE EAST — As Arab Spring persists, a story of hope recaptures the Arab world.

“The Islamic world is not unreachable and the Middle East is not ground so hard that the whole of the Gospel can’t turn it over very easily,” said Peter Nolan*, a Christian worker. “God is reaching Muslims…faster than ever before in history and we need to respond and join God in what He is doing in that.”

The movement of the Gospel comes on the heels of more than two years of turmoil.

A Syrian refugee in Lebanon, hands clasped as if in prayer, hopes for better days. Many Syrians are fleeing to unwelcome arms in Lebanon because of SyriaÕs unwanted occupation of Lebanon for 29 years, until finally withdrawing in 2005.

In late 2010, Tunisians ignited a flame that resonated with many surrounding Arab nations in their transition from dictatorship to democracy.  This flame — the Arab Spring — spread throughout many Arab nations whose people desired a change of leadership and hope.

Two years later, resolution is still waiting to happen. Taking concerns to the streets is common in Egypt, and Tunisians believe leaving the country is necessary for opportunities. In Syria, civil war claims the life of thousands, as many continue to flee.

War in Syria makes it hard to access, but Egypt is reachable, Nolan said.

“One of the things that Christians in America need to do is stop responding to Arab Springs by being afraid and not going,” Nolan said. “Yes we need to pray, we need to give, but we need to get back on planes and go share the Gospel and prayer walk.”

One way to do that is through Church to Church, which connects churches in the U.S. with churches in Egypt, Nolan said.

In Tunisia, opportunity to share is also ripe, said Ryan Bergman*, a Christian worker. Discouragement flows from unemployment, increasing prices and decreasing income, he said.

But as for sharing Christ, “this is a great time to be in Tunisia,” he said. “It is still easy to meet new people and some of them want to talk about topics of importance: how to find a job, how to have a better marriage, how to know God in a personal way.”

The story that was once accepted as divinely inspired in Carthage has reawakened in the uncertainty of Arab Spring.

Syrians in Lebanon and Jordan are also open to receive help in the face of heavy need, allowing people to provide shelter and nutrition, both physically and spiritually.

Paul Matheson*, who works with Syrians in Jordan said, “We would actually get into the homes, share the good news, open the Word and we would just sit there and just talk about the Lord among Syrian families.”

Ruth James*, who works with Syrians in Lebanon, said, “God can redeem this [situation], and is looking for Christ followers who would shift from a chronic posture of defensiveness to a posture of radical obedience.”

Syrians who once ignored and rejected the Gospel are embracing it, James said.

“I’m praying that the Bride of Jesus Christ, the Church, whether she be Lebanese or American or Iraqi, would take up the call in Hebrews 13, [just as] ‘Jesus also suffered outside the city gate to make the people holy through His own blood. Let us, then, go to Him outside the camp, bearing the disgrace He bore.’

*Names changed for security reasons.