A Pattern in Scripture

David Bogosian with the Alliance for the Unreached says this truth is especially forefront in the story of the Magi in Matthew 2. He says, “These are people that are following a star they know so little, and yet God is reaching them where they are to take them where they need to go. What I love about that story is God is shining light through what we call general revelation, and this is the smallest light that they have. Yet God uses it to bring them from a very far away place to where Jesus is being born, and the Magi become the first group of people to worship Jesus… You’ll see this as a theme throughout the Gospel story, that the most unlikely people – the people that aren’t supposed to get it – are being drawn to this light that God is bringing into the world.”

Photo is a representative stock image courtesy of Pixabay.

Bogosian says Jesus’s move to Egypt as a young child further pictures God’s plan to draw in the nations. He provides some redemption for Egypt as it protects the Messiah amid Herod’s murderous decree.

A Call to Learn About Christ

These portions of the Christmas story give a larger context to Jesus’s mission. Christmas Day commemorates the longed-for arrival of the Messiah, not just for Israel, but for the world. Bogosian says Christmas provides an opportunity to expand our mission. It’s a time to ask God to use the celebration to bring people to know Him.

“And here’s the other awesome thing about Christmas is that this is an opportunity for us to invite people into the story. And this is what happens all over the world. In many of these contexts that are hostile to the Gospel, they’re actually open during times like this to learning, ‘What is this thing called Christmas?’. Because we make a big deal about it, right? And people are curious, ‘What is this?’. It’s a great opportunity, one of the best opportunities we have throughout the year, to tell people about who Jesus is and why He came into the world.”

Reaching the Unreached

The Alliance for the Unreached motivates the Church to continue the task of sharing the Good News, at Christmas and every day.

(Photo is a representative stock image courtesy of Andreas Böhm via Pixabay.)

“There are still billions of people who have never heard. There are still 7000 unreached people groups where the Gospel has never gone,” Bogosian says. “They can’t celebrate Christmas with us, but one day, they will. And we believe that could actually happen in our lifetime, in our generation, if Christians all work together. If we join hands with God’s people who are nearest to these people groups, we can see the Gospel accelerate in our generation.”

Please pray for Christians in persecuted and hard to reach places as they share the good news of Emmanuel, God with us. Pray also that God’s people around the world would use the Christmas season as an opportunity the hope that they have because of Christ.

If you want to learn how you can help support the Alliance for the Unreached, click here.

Header photo is a representative stock image courtesy of Bejamin Alanis Ibarra via Pexels.

Sarani grew up battling serious heart problems that made her very weak and sapped her energy. Life was difficult for Sarani and her parents.

Sarani and her manger coloring scene. (Photo courtesy of Mission India)

Raina Miller with Mission India says, “The family spent every rupee they had on her treatments, and nothing was working. Her mom tried going to temples and praying to their gods, desperate for help — and of course, none of it worked.”

Then Sarani was invited to a Children’s Bible Club run by Mission India. There, she heard stories about Jesus, and especially how He healed the sick. Those stories stayed with her.

“So her Bible Club leader…encouraged her to pray, and Sarani prayed her very first prayer,” says Miller. “It was just the simple words, ‘Please, heal me.’ This time she was praying to the God who hears, not to idols and visiting temples and doing rituals.”

What happened next surprised everyone.

“Within two months, her strength returned — after a lifetime of these heart problems! Her physical heart got stronger, and her heart was also changed by the love of Christ.

“She had joy again, and she was so grateful to Jesus for healing her that she received Him as her Savior.”

Today, Sarani’s faith is spilling over in creative ways. She recently drew a Christmas manger scene — and Mission India turned her artwork into something families around the world can enjoy.

(Photo courtesy of Mission India)

Miller says, “We actually turned it into a coloring page so that kids here in the US and their families can color it together. You can download a copy, print it off, make as many copies as you’d like, and you can color along with Sarani to celebrate with her!”

Download Sarani’s Christmas manger coloring page here!

While Sarani’s story is joyful, it’s also a reminder of the spiritual need in India.

“There are millions more children like Sarani who have never heard of Jesus, and they’re still waiting for hope.”

Mission India is inviting believers to respond through prayer and giving during a year-end matching challenge.

Miller explains, “If you’d like to give toward the matching challenge, you can go to missionindia.org/double, and every gift you give toward 10-Day Bible Clubs will be matched dollar-for-dollar up to December 31.”

Please pray that more children in India would hear the Gospel and experience the hope Sarani found in Christ.

Header photo courtesy of Mission India.

FMI’s Patrick Anthony says this Christian leader has made several trips into various Muslim-majority communities still recovering from a devastating earthquake two years ago. On one recent visit, he distributed clothing to children in a remote village.

“They said they were doing this in the spirit of Christmas, that it’s because of really Christmas that they were giving these gifts to the kids,” Anthony says. “It was fascinating because the kids didn’t know what Christmas is.”

Children in Morocco. (Photo courtesy of Andrea Nieblas/Unsplash)

The local families in these villages are Muslim “by ritual.” However, they are unfamiliar with Islamic teachings, much less the Christian message of the Gospel.

The ministry leader told them, “God commands us to love all people. It doesn’t matter where we come from. He wants all to receive salvation.”

When he shared the Christmas message of Jesus with kids and their families, they asked him to come back.

Anthony says, “They want to know more about this Jesus. The children asked him, ‘Well, who is this Messiah? Is he Santa Claus?’

“He explained a little bit. But he also has to be careful, especially on his first visit, because there are spies for security forces and things. That’s common in Morocco.”

Even so, interest is growing — and so is opportunity. Trust is forming. Conversations are beginning. The ministry leader hopes to return soon, continuing both aid distribution and deeper discussions about who Jesus is.

An alleyway in Morocco. (Photo courtesy of Mathieu Gauzy/Unsplash)

Anthony urges prayer “for the villagers, people who have never really heard about Jesus. They know nothing about Christmas. Pray for their eyes and ears to be open to the Gospel.”

You can also bless FMI’s ministry with tangible support. “Morocco is one of our partner countries,” Anthony adds. “So funds can be given for Morocco to cover tangible resources, and we can help those ministry leaders purchase some of those relief needs.”

Pray for boldness, protection, and wisdom as ministry leaders reenter these communities. Ask God to use simple Christmas gifts to spark eternal transformation.

Header photo: Mountains in Morocco. (Photo courtesy of Imane/Unsplash)

*Editor’s note: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated the Christian ministry partner is supported by FMI. He is not an FMI partner, simply a friend of the ministry.

November is Native American Heritage Month, and you may not realize that Native Americans were the first mission field in North America. However, “as far as missions are concerned, we’re doing better all over the world than right here with the First People of our land,” Ron Hutchcraft of Hutchcraft Ministries says.

“After 400 years of missions, only four percent are estimated to have a relationship with Christ.”

(Photo courtesy of On Eagles’ Wings)

Native communities don’t connect with Jesus

Many Native people see Jesus as “the white man’s God,” especially when so much loss – land, language, culture, and lives – was carried out in the name of Christianity. Yet Jesus is deeply relevant to the Native experience. “Jesus was not a blonde-haired, blue-eyed guy like we see in some paintings. He was a tribal man,” Hutchcraft says.

“If you asked Him, He’d say, ‘I’m from the tribe of Judah.’ Our Native Americans would say, ‘I’m Apache, I’m Sioux, I’m Cherokee, I’m Choctaw,’ or ‘I’m Seneca.”

Along with tribal heritage, “He lived on land occupied by others – the Romans. He was from a place that people thought, ‘Nothing good comes from there.’ Some people may say that about Native communities,” Hutchcraft says.

“Jesus was also a victim of gross injustice, as many Native Americans have been.”

A rising movement

These connections are transforming Native young people through Hutchcraft Ministries’ On Eagles’ Wings outreach. More about that here.

Summer of Hope 2025
(Photo courtesy of On Eagles’ Wings)

“I have had the privilege of watching Native young people who are not only survivors, but more than conquerors, as they have told their hope story on that reservation basketball court. They have shown a boldness that would shame many of us,” Hutchcraft says.

“With a deep spirituality that the Creator has built into them, an understanding of suffering and injustice and abuse, and with the warrior spirit – when all of that comes under the Lordship of Christ, fasten your seat belt. They are a force,” he adds.

“They are hope with skin on.”

Hutchcraft Ministries’ Warrior Leadership Summit and On Eagles’ Wings Leadership Center focus on discipling Native young people to become pastors, missionaries, and youth leaders for their own communities. Here’s how you can help.

Header image depicts a painting by Jean Leon Gerome Ferris, c.1912-1915, titled The First Thanksgiving, 1621. (Wikimedia Commons)

The nearly two-year war is only one of many current events dividing people across the world. 

“We are so polarized. ‘If you are not 100% with me, then you are 200% against me,’” says Fadi Sharaiha with the MENA Leadership Center. “This is not right. We need to talk. We need to discuss.”

How should the global Church respond to events in Gaza? Sharaiha first acknowledges the evil in this war. Neither side is innocent. People are dying on both sides, and Hamas still holds 48 hostages.

“In the midst of the whole evil that is around us, I believe that God is still worthy of all the blessings and all the glory,” he says. 

“I [also] want to acknowledge the need for us to go back to the basics and remember what Jesus said about peacemakers: ‘Blessed are the peacemakers for they will be called children of God.’ We are called to love our enemies.”

(Photo courtesy of Nathan Dumlao via Unsplash)

Sharaiha says believers don’t have to understand every aspect of the war in order to respond the right way. He studied the history of the conflict between Israel and Palestine at the United Nations University. Even after receiving lectures from different leaders, not everything was clear to him. 

“But you need to get the Bible. You need to get ‘Who are we? What is our identity?’ We are called to be peacemakers. We are called to love our enemies,” he says. 

Talking about peace is premature in the midst of active war. But one day, people with great wisdom will have to begin that restorative work.

“The governments right now are really calling on both Israel to stop, and Hamas to surrender the hostages and surrender their weapons,” he says.

Even when the fighting ends, a different battle will continue in people’s hearts.

“I am very concerned about people dying today, but also I’m concerned about the one who did not die, next year,” Sharaiha says. “They will be filled with so much hatred, agony, trauma. That’s why we need to make sure that we are preaching Jesus to those people.” 

In the complexities of the Israel-Hamas war, please pray that the Church will be a peacemaker. Pray that the gospel of peace in Christ will reach more people in Gaza and Israel. Pray for the MENA Leadership Center, as it plans training courses that will one day equip leaders for trauma healing and refugee ministry. 

Header image is a stock photo courtesy of Marek Studzinski via Unsplash.

Kurt Rovenstine with Bibles for China explains, “Proselytizing kids in China is against regulations and policies, and it’s pretty closely monitored.” 

Whether you’re a Christian or a Chinese Communist Party member, it’s clear why kids are so important: “You affect kids, you change a generation,” says Rovenstine. 

Christians want the next generation to know Jesus personally. The Chinese government has different goals. This summer, officials in Shanghai trained kids to reject the religious groups the government has deemed illegal or xie jiao (“evil cults”).

(Photo courtesy of Jerry Wang via Unsplash)

Bibles for China works legally in China, without opposing the government. But Rovenstine says the situation calls for prayer and action. 

“Anytime there’s a challenge, God equips His people with creativity, opens doors and creates avenues for the gospel to move forward in spite of what is inhibiting it,” Rovenstine says. 

Today, Bibles for China is printing children’s Bibles in Mandarin outside the country, plus other resources. These can be carried into China by hand.

“I had an email [recently] from the gentleman that took some of our children’s Bibles. He’s been sharing them with people that are headed back to China, and they’re taking them back two and three at a time,” Rovenstine says. This method isn’t a problem because the Chinese government “is just trying to make sure they’re not being printed and distributed in mass.”

Pray that every Bible and resource reaches the right family and child at the right time with the good news of Christ!

Pray that God will open the eyes of kids being taught false things about God. Pray that they will look for truth and find it in Scripture. 

Header photo is a representative stock image courtesy of Note Thanun/Unsplash. 

What she found there changed her life.

Aneliya at summer camp. (Photo courtesy of Valentin Lupashko/Slavic Gospel Association)

One evening during worship, Aneliya came forward in tears. She prayed, and believed in Jesus as Lord and Savior. Later, she shared her story with a pastor — a story marked by pain and abandonment.

Aneliya’s father was drafted to the front lines of Ukraine. Not long after, her mother found another man and left the family, walking away from her two children. Aneliya and her younger brother now live with their elderly grandmother, trying to process trauma far too heavy for their young shoulders.

“She told me that this camp saved her,” the pastor reported. “She experienced spiritual renewal and found hope again.”

According to Eric Mock with Slavic Gospel Association (SGA), Aneliya’s story represents the hope many young people found in Christ this summer.

“These stories are of young kids saying they did not know of the love of God. They did not know they could go to heaven. They did not know of the grace of God. They were angry and confused, and now they walk away with hope,” Mock says.

But this ministry took place against a backdrop of war. “The war zone of Ukraine is getting more violent…. The nights are getting worse, the missiles and the drones are constantly coming in and harassing families,” Mock says. “In fact, we were told by one family that when they go to bed at night, they know that they’ll be awakened at 1:30, at 2:00 in the morning, often for four to five hours, and the sirens are blaring [while] they’re in shelters.”

For churches in Ukraine, the response may seem surprising. “What would you do if missiles and rockets were raining down every night?” Mock asks. “And their answer is this: ‘Well, what we’re going to do right now is we’re going to hold a summer camp.’”

(Photo courtesy of Slavic Gospel Association)

That commitment to Gospel service and encouragement is exactly what SGA exists to support. “The joy that we have is to serve the churches in these embattled countries who are faithfully ministering in their community.”

As summer camps wind down, local congregations are already preparing for the next outreach.

“We might think we’re done with summer camp. We can relax,” Mock says. “They’re already thinking of Christmas outreach. They never stop planning and prepping and ministering to the people in their communities.”

Pray for Aneliya as she begins attending church, and for many more young people across Ukraine who need the peace only Jesus can bring. Ask God to strengthen local churches as they continue year-round discipleship in the face of exhaustion, loss, and war.

Header photo courtesy of Valentin Lupashko/Slavic Gospel Association.

Doyle’s friendship with Amir first began when Amir reached out to him online. 

“I started sharing the gospel with him, and gloriously over the internet, he came to faith in Christ. It was beautiful,” says Doyle. “And he was reading some of the books that I’ve been privileged to write, and asking questions, and grew up Muslim, but just so drawn to Jesus.”

While about to go on stage and preach at a Jewish Messianic church in Tel Aviv, Israel, Doyle received a text from Amir.

“He’s calling me from Iran,” says Doyle, “and I said, ‘Amir, I have to go up and preach right now. But would you like to say something to the people in Israel?’ I’m going up to a live microphone. ‘What do you think?’ I’m whispering it to him. He said, ‘I would love to.’ I went up and said to the congregation, ‘We don’t normally start this way, but I have on the phone Amir from Iran. He loves Jesus, and he has a message for you.’”

Amir proceeded to remind Doyle, and the congregation he was preaching to, of an important truth—that no matter where we’re from, all Christ followers are united as brothers and sisters in the family of God.

“He said, ‘Brothers and sisters, we want you to know the majority of Iranians don’t hate you. It’s exactly the opposite. We love you. And for me, as a believer in Jesus, I want you to know I’m praying for you. Please pray for us here. And one day we’re going to get together, Iranian believers in Jesus and Jewish believers in Jesus, and we’re going to worship together. Maybe it’ll be in Jerusalem, maybe it’ll be in Tehran together, but we look forward to that because we both love Jesus, and that’s what keeps us together.’” 

According to Doyle, “The people were stunned—and then, it just broke into this standing ovation. I mean, where are you going to hear that message?

“It just reinforces that’s the answer to all this,” continues Doyle. “Jesus has no boundaries. Jesus has no borders. Jesus’ family is of all nations. He’s the one that brings peace and reconciliation between people. War won’t do it. United Nations won’t do it. Government won’t. Only Jesus can.”

Header photo courtesy of Uncharted Ministries.

“Yes” meant three years of preparing and recording more than 600 episodes of Mission 66 Bible studies. Today, Mission 66 is being adapted into new languages — including English. 

Sayão says that especially within that busy season of teaching, he prayed God would touch his own heart first. 

“What I understood [was] that if I do not preach to myself in the way that I will be challenged by the Word of God, I can’t say anything to anybody else. I must really understand, not only to teach, but to be taught by the words,” he says. 

The need for Bible teaching in Brazil

“I would say that I have a dream, because there are some areas of the world that people are so hung[ry] for God. They are thirsty for something deep in their hearts,” Sayão says.

Brazil is among those places. Sayão explains that although there’s been tremendous growth in the Church (think 60 to 70 million people today, he says), not everything is as it could be. 

“We have some churches with a lot of syncretism with some other [beliefs from] the mystical society. We have some church[es] that need more biblical and theological training,” he says.

“My prayer is that through this way (Mission 66’s relational, narrative focus), we can really reach people. How many people will come to Jesus and will grow in their relationship with God? So hallelujah, praise the Lord.”

Where true life is

It all comes back to God and His Word. Sayão doesn’t see himself as a theologian but as someone blessed by God to know His love and purposes for us in Jesus.

Luiz Sayão is the creator of Mission 66, originally broadcast in Portuguese (Photo courtesy of TWR)

“I am telling you that what happens when you find God — the Word of God — you find Jesus. I’m like a beggar that found bread,” he says. “I found bread for my soul, my life.”

Those same riches in God’s Word are available for all of us, by God’s grace. Sayão urges readers to set aside the concept of “religion” in their thinking. 

“But remember that we have a God [who] created the universe, that brought us salvation in a very profound way through Jesus. He wants to bless your heart, to forgive your sins and to bring you close to His heart,” he says. 

“So pay attention to that, and I hope that the same grace of God that touched my soul one day will touch you and change your life forever.”

To learn more about God’s Word with Mission 66, visit its webpage on TWR 360 or follow along on your favorite podcast player.

Header photo courtesy of Aaron Burden on Unsplash.

The ministry journey you share can change lives — if it carries two powerful ingredients: the story and the number.

Dr. Jenn Murff from MENA Leadership Center says, “When you share stories, it allows relationships to be restored. It allows discipleship to take place because people can relate to those stories.”

The power of a story lies in its ability to connect a person to their own experiences — both good and bad — to the emotional side of life, and to an example they can apply to their own journey. Jesus knew people needed that bridge in order to accept the Gospel.

He was a master storyteller: “Jesus uses stories to make the kingdom relatable. He uses stories to make the kingdom approachable. He uses stories to be able to connect the hearts and the minds of His people to His kingdom.”

A simple story can guide a person to their Creator (photo courtesy of Eduardo Braga via Pexels)

Numbers are equally important. They help measure the expansion of God’s kingdom — whether through miracles, healings, souls saved, or symbolic figures. Moreover, they help us grasp the power of the Gospel in a practical way!

The apostles ensured that future generations would have this tool. Jesus spoke to the multitudes; the twelve disciples caught one hundred fifty-three fish; five thousand people were fed with five loaves of bread and two fish, and so on. Yet, separated from the story, a number can steal the spark from the testimony of God’s work.

Zacchaeus, the Samaritan woman, Bartolomew, Philip — just a few of the lives He transformed through His personal, one-on-one attention.

“He sees the one, he sees the multitude. And so it’s important that we don’t lean so heavily just in one area, but we remember both, because Jesus remembered both,” says Murff.

This principle is vital both in personal evangelism and in the work of ministry. “You have to be able to share those stories in such a way that it connects with the human heart,” Murff adds.

Visit MENA Leadership Center to discover how the Gospel is transforming lives through ministry stories in the Middle East, North Africa, and beyond.

The Gospel is a tapestry of stories woven into one grand narrative. Find your place in it!

Header photo courtesy of Matheus Bertelli via Pexels