Adversity Producing Fruit in Middle-East
IT’S WORTH CONSIDERING
Juergen Buehler, Executive Director of International Christian Embassy in Jerusalem, recently wrote an article that speaks of some of the light shining through the darkness of the Arab world:

“Some 70,000 Egyptian Christians gathered recently for a joyous outdoor worship

Middle East from Space

service… Iran’s underground churches are currently experiencing an annual growth of 20% – the highest rate worldwide, followed by Afghanistan at 16%… An Algerian pastor… reports that today the Evangelical churches in his country can claim more than 200,000 members… Libya also holds surprises… the spiritual climate in Libya has changed significantly since Ghadaffi’s fall… not enough Bibles for those seeking them… A Moroccan Church is emerging and accelerating in growth and maturity… New believers [in Tunisia] have increased and new church groups have come into being over the past few years… In Jordan, the evangelical Church is experiencing encouraging growth, doubling from 1995 to 2010… Similar reports are emerging from Syria and Lebanon… One of the most sustained revivals is taking place in Indonesia which has the world’s largest Muslim population but is now, according to some estimates, around 30% Christian…”

AS I SEE IT
Think about these amazing statistics. They run counter to human wisdom, but align perfectly with what the Bible teaches. In all arenas of life, the absence of adversity produces laziness and apathy. When survival becomes the name of the game, priorities suddenly get shifted. We realize how much we need God and we go through a period of paradigm shifting. Eventually, we come face to face with the reason we were place here-to have sweet fellowship with our heavenly Father through His Son Jesus. As our fellowship grows sweeter and more and more of our Savior rubs off on us, we start thinking like He does. As Jesus could do only what He saw the Father doing, we realize that to be a responsible follower of Jesus Christ, we are to be doing only what we see Him doing.

And what is He busy doing? He is building His Church. It’s a shame that it usually takes a good case of persecution to get us to the place where we finally have eyes to see and ears to hear. This is what has happened in nearly every area where phenomenal church growth has occurred. Believers are placing first things first and are displaying the fruit of genuine abiding in Christ. People are attracted to the “real thing.” The world is hungry for something that transcends cultures and meets the deepest needs of the human heart. It is impressed with changed lives that are willing to risk their lives for a certain eternal reward.

Major Change for my Blog/Newsletter
With this blog, I go from three to just one post per week. It may be an original article, or a news story with my comments. I have had to make the change because I have accepted an offer as a regular blogger for Covenant Keepers of America. Check it out. It was formed as a resource for ministries seeking information relating to Israel, Islam and America (the focus of my ministry, too). We are happy to have found each other. I will be posting two articles per week, both focused on Israel. Islam is being covered by others. Check out our new website. It’s still under construction, but already has some great information and some “heavy hitters” as contributors. My blog will continue (1/week) covering similar topics as before, but much less regarding Israel so as not to duplicate material. I will be including a link in each blog to the new site. If you have any comments or suggestions, I’d love to hear from you.

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