“For you have been my partners in spreading the Good News about Christ from the time you first heard it until now.” Philippians 1:5
As a child, did you want to take a magic carpet ride? Where did you want to go? We love watching travel shows and seeing places around the globe that we may never get to see in person. More than that, we cherish the times we traveled and taught God’s Word and met brothers and sisters in Christ in distant lands. We miss being able to do that these days. Yet God is unstoppable, isn’t He? Read on to learn about the doors He opened for us right from our sofa!
South Asia
In the last month, God opened doors for us to travel virtually to ten different countries! In January we shared about a South Asian country we ‘visited’ and have been continuing to visit every week. We completed six weeks of Bible story training so far and will finish the first segment of church planting sessions this month. Each time we meet, we rejoice to hear their stories about sharing God’s Story with others. The leader of the group shared one of the stories 15 times with individuals on Facebook. (picture above is a stock photo)
Central Asia
God provided a unique opportunity to ‘travel’ to another restricted country in Central Asia. These believers are connected with Cru’s university student ministry. We completed two late-night sessions with them (9:00-11:00 pm our time, yawn) and struggled through the internet interruptions and the challenge of using translators. Despite that, we all enjoyed meeting one another. One person shared a story to 100 women at a conference using the format we taught. Others are sharing the stories with family and friends. (picture below was taken from Joshuaproject.com)
And one day we were able to visit eight countries simultaneously, to give an introduction to Oral Bible storying. These Christian workers support persecuted believers. Soon we’ll conduct ongoing training with some of those from that group – two hours a week for eight weeks. We wish we could share their pictures but we don’t want to endanger anyone.
Praises and Prayers
Filipino Small Group Facilitators
On top of that, ten Filipino storytellers assisted us and gained exposure to international missions. We love sharing this blessing with them and giving them experience as small group facilitators.
In Gratitude!
And YOU are right there with us, by our side, in your prayers and support! Thank you for making this all possible so that Christian leaders from TEN countries were further equipped to share God’s stories in their heart languages.
Pray that these Oral Bible Stories will be passed on from one person to the next, one story at a time, developing into Story Fellowship Groups and house churches.
Please pray for us to be able to travel to the U.S. in June 2021
We would love to talk with you online. We also pray for you. Any special requests?
Until the whole world hears,
Al/Panz and Nancy Alvarez