God’s Word Spreads in Syria
We must work the works of Him who sent Me as long as it is day; night is coming when no one can work. While I am in the world, I am the Light of the World. - John 9:4-5
In Syria, a bloody internal conflict has raged since the Syrian government began suppressing an opposition uprising in March of 2011. Violence has been widespread with casualties on both sides of the struggle soaring into the thousands. UN reports have placed the total death toll, which has proved difficult to quantify, at more than 10,000. Meanwhile, followers of Jesus Christ in Syria are finding themselves caught in the midst of the intense fighting between Syrian president Bashar al-Assad’s forces and opposition groups. Many Christians have felt led to flee their homes and seek refuge in areas of the country further from the fighting, or in neighboring nations such as Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey, or Iraq. However, other followers of Christ have felt led to remain in Syria and share the love of Jesus with their neighbors. With your help, The Joshua Fund has been able to step in and provide funding to a ministry partner on the ground in Syria for supplying thousands of Bibles to the believers who have decided to remain there and share God’s word. These men and women are witnessing in the midst of wartime conditions, but are being strengthened by the Lord to carry out the work. Further, they have been reporting great openness and hunger for God’s word amongst the people that they are reaching out to! The Lord is at work in the midst of the Syrian conflict to save those who will receive the free gift of eternal life that is found in Jesus Christ alone. The workers have also reported some remarkable and unexpected opportunities to share the Bibles.
The following is an amazing account from a ministry worker distributing Bibles in Syria. The grammar has been edited slightly for readability.
“We have many boxes and move from place to place. One time we were moving many boxes to a new storage [facility] and suddenly a covered pickup stopped and we saw 9 people inside the car with guns and 2 from them got off and asked, ‘What are these boxes? And what do they have inside?’ The people around me said, ‘Ask the pastor, he is responsible for them.’ So quickly I walked towards them and said, ‘Ahlan ya shabab.’ This means, ‘welcome the youth who are strong,’ and I explained what the boxes have and distributed to them Bibles and Jesus film for all of them and [also] some of them took for their friends copies. We distributed 25 bibles and 25 Jesus Films [to them].”
- Please pray for the believers in Syria who have been called by the Lord to remain despite the continued turmoil.
- Please pray for the believers that have felt led to leave their homes and seek refuge.
I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. I do not ask You to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one. - John 17:14-15
- Please also pray for the Lord to save those in Syria who do not yet know Him, in His mercy.
But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ… - Ephesians 2:4-5
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