The Challenge The Challenge Bhama peoples Southeast Asian peoples Pray Pray

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2 1 day one We invite you to join us on a journey as you pray through the Southeast Asian peoples. You will be introduced specifically to the unengaged peoples that live there. The Mission:, asking that the unengaged people groups of Southeast Asian Peoples will have an opportunity to hear and respond to the Gospel. Southeast Asian peoples Southeast Asian peoples live throughout the world, perhaps even in your community! Most, however, live in the exotic lands of Southeast Asia and Oceania. This affinity of half-a-billion people can be roughly divided into a few major groups. The upper half of Southeast Asia is primarily Buddhist and includes Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos and part of the far southwest of China. Pagodas and temples dot the landscapes, mountains and rice fields. The lower half is primarily Muslim and includes the largest Muslim nation Indonesia along with Malaysia. Mosques are dominant through-out these island regions located along the Ring of Fire, so called due to the historic and ongoing volcanic and earthquake activity. The Philippines, to the east, are highly Catholic and Christian along with many south Pacific islands. Other minority populations are Hindu and animist (spiritworshippers). A rich variety of ethnic races inhabit the lands of SE Asia. In fact, nearly 3,000 races comprise Southeast Asian peoples. Nearly 800 of these are unreached (less than 2 percent evangelical Christian). And nearly 400 of these are unengaged, meaning no church or organization has an intentional, reproducible evangelistic and church-planting strategy or effort among them. Bhama peoples The greatest concentration of Bhama people live in Southeast Asia, particularly in countries like Burma and Thailand. They also have significant numbers in East Asia and South Asia. The Bhama people migrated from Tibet and settled primarily in the area now known as Myanmar. While the large majority of Bhama peoples are Buddhist, there are those who adher to other religions. One such group is the Bhama Muslims who at this writing are considered unengaged. Christians among the Bhama peoples typically use a Christian vocabulary and materials that answer Buddhist terminology and issues. Thus, these terms are often offensive and unacceptable to most Muslims. Likewise, most Christians there do not know how to witness to their Muslim neighbors nor do they have access to evangelistic materials designed to reach Muslims. The few Muslims who accept Jesus face persecution and are often removed from their community. The Bhama Muslims need the opportunity to hear the Gospel presented in a culturally appropriate manner. 2 day two Ask the Lord of the Harvest to send out laborers into the harvest (Matthew 9:38). that Southern Baptists will resolve to do whatever it takes to facilitate churchplanting efforts in the mega-cities, the rural villages and among all the unengaged peoples of Southeast Asia. for God s will to be done among Southeast Asian peoples as it is in heaven (Matthew 6:10). Ask that believers will be willing to share with the unengaged around them, even those who are not from Buddhist backgrounds. Ask that believers will be trained in how to share in contextual and meaningful ways with those from all religious backgrounds. Ask that the unengaged will hear the Gospel with Spirit-prepared hearts and minds.

3 3 4 day three day four The 10/40 Window is the rectangular area of North Africa, the Middle East and Asia approximately between 10 degrees north and 40 degrees north latitude. The 10/40 Window is often called The Resistant Belt and includes the majority of the world s Muslims, Hindus, and Buddhists. The revised 10/40 Window includes most of the SE Asian peoples who have a high concentration of unreached and unengaged peoples. Mon-Khmer peoples Mon-Khmer peoples are considered to be among the oldest people groups in Southeast Asia. As with many Asian peoples, family is primary, with the family unit being a close knit group including extended relatives. Among the Mon-Khmer peoples the Kui are one of the unengaged peoples. They are poor people, often looked down upon by majority peoples. The Kui have little access to good health care, and could benefit from health and hygiene education, better access to clean water and improved agricultural methods. Many have never heard of Jesus and few have heard the Gospel presented in a way that makes sense to them. What contributes to a people being unengaged? It may be language, culture, or status in society. It may be access, physically due to distance; spiritually, due to strongholds and religious practices; or culturally, due to ethnic distinctives which are passed down from generation to generation. Filipino-Malayan peoples Filipino and Malayan peoples are very different today due to the vast influences of the west on their home countries. Most of the Filipino people groups originally came from the mainland of Malaysia and migrated to the Philippine Islands. These groups also spill over into southern Thailand and Singapore. The history of the peoples however is quite different. For those living in the Philipines, their history is full of Spanish influence, including Catholicism and cultural Christianity. For those from Malaysia and Brunei, Islam influences their way of life. In reaching out to the unengaged, Khmer believers living in the country would be the best ambassadors. that the Father would call out Khmer believers as ambassadors to share the Good News and be trained to plant reproducing churches. Ask that opportunites to reach the unengaged among the Mon-Khmer peoples with health education and improved agricultural methods will result in open doors to share the Gospel. Ask that the seed of the Gospel would fall on good soil, bearing the fruit of salvation. Ask that false perceptions of Christians which have been created by outside influences will be broken down by the truth of God s Word and the genuine testimony of His children living among these peoples. Because it is illegal to share the gospel with a Muslim many believers walk in fear. Ask that they would instead walk in boldness as the Spirit prepares the hearts of the unengaged to hear and receive salvation. for near-culture believers to be called into the harvest fields where the unengaged dwell. Ask that they would see with spiritual eyes where the Father is at work.

4 5 day five 6 day six The lands of SE Asia are also home to spiritual strongholds. Large numbers of people who live here have suffered not only the ravages of poverty and disease, they have also been kept from the transforming power of the Gospel. They are examples of 2 Corinthians 4:4, which states that the god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. Viet Muong peoples In years past many of the people among the Viet-Muong peoples migrated south from China, settling in countries which are part of the Indo-China peninsula. Today most of the Viet-Muong people live in countries adhering to socialism. This makes their access to the gospel difficult. Spiritual strongholds also seek to keep the eyes of the Viet-Muong blinded. Though influenced by Buddhism, ethnic religions are practiced. These practices may include ancestor worship in which the spirits of the deceased are sought for help and guidance. These spirits are believed to influence every aspect of life and death. When a child is born a shaman may be present to prevent disaster from the hands of the spirits. When someone dies a shaman may perform a ritual to ensure the safe arrival of the deceased in the afterlife. In spite of this darkness spiritual eyes can be opened by the transforming power of the gospel. Ask that the many unengaged Viet-Muong will have opportunity to see the light of the gospel and be transformed by it s power. Ask that their fear of the spirit world will be replaced by fear of the All Powerful One, Jesus. Ask that those who have experienced His saving grace will be willing to share their testimonies with the unengaged of this SE Asia people. Just as many barriers keep SE Asia s unengaged people groups from hearing the Good News there are also many ways these barriers can be overcome. One of these occur when people leave their homes in search of new life opportunites. This may be education, the hope of new jobs, and sometimes even conflict in their homeland or in their famlies.the Lord uses these means of moving people to new places and with this, new oppprtunties to hear and respond to His love. Thai-Lao peoples The Thai-Lao peoples migrated from China and settled in what is now Thailand and Laos. The peoples of Laos have a war-torn history. Laos has the unfortunate distinction of being the most bombed country in the world. In Thailand, border disputes continue in several locations. Recently a migrant worker who crossed his country s border had an opportunity to hear and respond to the Gospel. The Thai-Lao peoples are predominantly Buddhist, with small pockets of Muslims scattered throughout. Religion is one of the main aspects of their identity. When Thai-Lao peoples become Christians, many face persecution. Their families believe that they have angered the spirits and pressure them to revert to their former religion. The migrant worker mentioned above now faces intimidation from those he works among. Ask that as the unengaged of the Thai-Lao peoples search for education, jobs, and peace that they will sense the void in their hearts and hunger instead for righteousness. Ask that those who have suffered because of conflict will be drawn to the healing love of the Father. Ask that believers will be obedient as they are called to share with the unengaged among the Thai-Lao peoples as the Father leads.

5 7 day seven What do you do when the color of your skin keeps you from going to the areas where the the unengaged live? First you pray and then you encourage and train local believers from near-ethnic groups to go. These barriers are sometimes bigger than those of high mountains and swift flowing water but they are being overcome. Sumatran peoples Sumatran peoples are found primarily on the Indonesian island of Sumatra, which is part of the Indonesian archipelago located in the Indian Ocean. Sumatra straddles the equator and is the 6th largest island in the world larger than the U.S. state of California. There are 52 unreached people groups on the island of Sumatra many of them unengaged. The northwestern coast of Sumatra was devastated by a tsunami that hit on December 26th, As many as 128,000 people died in Indonesia alone. Recently near-ethnic Christian students have been challenged to use their summer break to go into unreached areas and serve unengaged people with the love of Christ. It is a new effort, exciting because it is led by local leadership, funded by local churches, and manned by local college students. There are many linguistic differences that one encounters with each unengaged people group that create barriers for communicating the Good News. Then there are barriers such as communicating Christ with oral learners, the elderly or uneducated, the educated, those from urban settings and those from remote areas. East Indo and Beyond peoples This people grouping has the most unengaged unreached people groups of any Southeast Asian peoples. East Indonesia is comprised of all the islands scattered across Indonesia, except the large island of Sumatra and the most heavily populated island of Java. The Beyond part includes the Aborigines of Australia and the many islands scattered across the South Pacific. These islands are home to thousands of people groups, speaking a multitude of languages. Many tribal groups are part of this grouping, many with no written language. This area is challenging to travel, because the people groups are scattered over more than 10,000 islands and speak more than 600 languages. The peoples are incredibly diverse, with some people groups living in jungles, and others in larger cities. However, most have limited contact with the outside world. As many of the young people grow up, they often leave their tribal groups and travel to major cities to obtain education and work and do not easily return to their home villages. 8 day eight Ask that through these teams many unengaged peoples will hear and experience the Gospel through these students. As believers go into new areas with the Gospel, ask that their faith would increase as they face difficulties and challenges. Ask that these teams will help bring awareness about unengaged people groups to the local churches of Sumatra. Ask that churches will respond in love. Ask that creative stategies will become effective means of opening doors among the unengaged of East Indo and Beyond peoples. Ask that linguistic barriers will be overcome as believers are sent into His harvest field throughout this vast area. Ask that the Father will give dreams and visions to many among the unengaged, revealing Himself as the only way of salvation.

6 day nine 9 Unengaged is a term developed about designated people groups that do not have any active church planting occurring. According to the IMB Global Research Office, a people group is engaged when a church planting strategy, consistent with Evangelical faith and practice, is under implementation. In this respect, a people group is not yet engaged when it has been adopted, is the object of focused prayer, or is part of an advocacy strategy. Javanese peoples Java is one of the most densely populated areas of the world and is one of the most populated islands in the world. Roughly the size and shape of Tennessee it is home to 20 times the number of people. People from almost every people group in Indonesia live on the island of Java because of it s medical care, education, and job opportunities. As a result Java is the migrant center for Indonesia. Java is home to 45 active volcanos, the cultural center of Indonesia, Yogyakarta, and one of the oldest and most well-preserved Buddhist temples in the world, Borobudur. There are no unengaged peoples that are beyond the reach of our Heavenly Father. The barriers of language, poverty, education, and religion can and will be overcome. May it begin with one. One person hearing the call to go and tell. One person responding to the Gospel. One family coming to know His saving grace. One village being touched by His power and presence. He is able to move mountains. Tai-Kadai peoples Most of the unengaged among the Tai-Kadai peoples are surrounded by the beauty of God s mountains. Dotted among those mountains are temples and shrines which remind us that religion ties these people together. The Tai-Kadai peoples are spread throughout a number of SE Asian countries which furthers the challenge and need for strategies to engage them with the Gospel. The Red Tai are one such unengaged peoples. Centuries ago, the Red Tai lived in China. Relentless pressure by the Chinese gradually forced them southward into Northern Vietnam. Eventually they settled along the Red and Black Rivers. The vast majority of Red Tai practice animism mixed with Buddhist teachings. They often seek help through supernatural spirits and objects. Ancestor worship is also a common practice. Guardian spirits and locality spirits are revered. If the people wish to avoid being cursed and receive blessing, the spirits must be appeased. 10 day ten Ask that the unengaged that live on Java will have the opportunity to interact with bold believers living on this populous island. Ask that believers living on Java will embrace the vision of reaching the unengaged of their country and be compelled by the Spirit to go into its harvest. Ask that believers will make commitments to long-term ministry lifestyles and sow seed with the goal of seeing church planting movements occur among the unenaged. Ask the Father to clearly reveal lostness and the need of a Savior in the hearts of the Red Tai and other unengaged peoples among the Tai-Kadai. Ask that the unengaged will grasp the truth that the Lord of the Universe is not a God far away and distant but a God that desires a relationship with them through the person of Christ. that believers will be sent to live as salt and light in front of the the Tai-Kadai peoples so that their good works may be seen.

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