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Missionary News

Missionary's and Christians' Homes Burned in Bangladesh

March 3, 2010

Anti-Christian extremists burned down several homes of Christians in Bangladesh earlier this week.
Most people in Bangladesh live in simple structures like the one shown here.

A Gospel for Asia–supported missionary and several Christian families are homeless after anti-Christian extremists burned down their homes earlier this week. The attacks occurred in Bangladesh near the border with India. Missionary Iqbal Hasan is the pastor of a church in this area. The homes were completely destroyed, and the Christians could not salvage any of their belongings. Gospel for Asia ministry leaders are providing for the immediate needs of the affected Christians, and they will help them rebuild once it becomes safe to do so.

In the meantime, they request prayer for comfort and for God's provision. Also pray for those who are persecuting these believers to come to know Him.

The birth of Bangladesh came at a tumultuous time. Bangladesh was carved out as a Muslim homeland after India's independence from British rule in 1949, becoming East Pakistan. In 1971, civil war separated East Pakistan and it became Bangladesh.

Once among the wealthiest areas of the Indian Subcontinent, Bangladesh has been ranked among the world's most corrupt countries and is now one of the poorest—55 percent of the population lives below the poverty line. The average life expectancy is only 61 years.

Bullock carts, boats and bicycles are widely depended upon for transportation. Bangladesh sits on the delta of large rivers flowing from the Himalayas into the Bay of Bengal. Flooding submerges a third of the country during the June-October monsoon season, leaving death and destruction in its path.

Muslims, mostly Sunnis, make up 90 percent of the 152 million people. Officially there is religious freedom, but it is gradually slipping away through the influence of extremist groups. Discrimination against ethnic and religious minorities, including Christians, is on the rise. Yet God is moving in Bangladesh and many are coming to salvation.

A Love Song For Bangladesh

My Bengal of gold, I love you . . .

Ah, what a beauty . . . What an affection, and what tenderness! . . .
Words from your lips are like nectar to my ears . . .

Who would expect such intimate musings to be penned for a nation founded on conflict, battered by natural disasters and strained by religious tension? These 100-year-old words, written by a poet devoted to his native land, are sung today as part of the Bangladesh national anthem. And they ring true in the hearts of the 86 Gospel for Asia native missionaries here, who share God's heart for reaching their own people. They live out this love song every day in a variety of ways, working to extend His kingdom in the face of unique challenges.

Carrying the Gospel

Singh Tarang easily walks the steep trails, crossing ridge after ridge in this hilly region of Bangladesh. He once traveled them as a sadhu, or Hindu holy man, with more than 1,500 followers devoted to his every word and deed. Today he visits villagers who have come to Jesus Christ as a result of his tireless witness.

He used to spend hours in meditation, emptying his mind and offering himself to his deities. Now, during the morning stillness of every day, he opens his heart to the Lord.

Before he knew Christ, Singh's disciples would expectantly wait for any messages he might bring back after communing with his gods in the temple. Today Singh takes the message of Jesus' love to the villages on his mission field. He encourages and mentors 10 native missionaries under his supervision, travels to 10 communities where mission stations have sprung up, and teaches God's Word to four congregations he has planted.

Singh sees the power of the Gospel to transform each individual—and his nation as well.

"I have a burden for the lost, because I was saved from among the lost," says Singh. "All these unreached people are also looking for salvation, but they are not happy in their lives. Those who find the Lord have peace in their hearts and love in their families, and they desire the same thing for their own people and their own country.

"And that's why I have a burden to carry the Gospel."

Tailoring Their Outreach

In the heart of Bangladesh's smoggy, muggy cities, the Gospel goes out on a daily, even hourly, basis.

Several young men stand together near the entrance to a building, heads bowed, while their teacher prays for God's hand on their outreach efforts. They have heard His call to bring the message of salvation to their own people, and they have enrolled at this Gospel for Asia Bible college to receive the training they need. Their weekend outreach is a regular event and part of the curriculum.

With about 90 percent of the population professing to follow Islam in some form, these missionaries-in-training know that overt evangelism, especially in the urban areas, is not an option. Some of them have personally experienced the resistance, anger and violence that so often come in reaction to the message of Jesus. Tract distribution is prohibited in some places, open-air preaching is out of the question and the threat of arrest is always very real.

"We cannot freely preach among the Muslims," says the team leader. "Two years back, one of our missionaries was caught by the police."

But these challenges do not hinder them from obeying the Great Commission; they have simply adapted their methods to the culture in which they live.

The young men thread their way through busy streets packed with people, cars and bicycle rickshaws. They arrive at a bus stop. Just before one bus departs, the students walk up and hand Gospel tracts through the windows to the surprised passengers, who are whisked away just as they begin to realize what they have received.

The outreach team members move steadily from one bus stop to another. No fanfare accompanies their spreading the salvation message, and no crowds gather—but that's the way they want it.

After a while, the students and their teachers walk to a middle-class neighborhood where the homes are fenced or walled. They begin to drop Gospel literature into the mailboxes along the front of each property. This specific tract supplies an address for anyone who wants to know more. And residents do respond, says the leader.

"They are writing us sometimes," he explains. "We send them a book and put their name on it, and they will be so interested and read it."

These students and their leaders are thinking of new ways to tailor their outreach strategies.

"Sometimes when I travel by bus, I will just leave a tract on my seat when I get off," one comments.

'Something Better'

"I found the Bible when I was very depressed; and when I read it, I found something better than the Quran."

Ismail Karukar remembers when his father died in a plane crash. He was just 4 years old and barely had time to absorb the shock of his father's death when his mother also passed away. He was sent to live with an uncle who pilfered the inheritance intended for Ismail. By the time Ismail was in high school, there was no money left.

But in the midst of such loss, Ismail found refuge in a copy of God's Word that once belonged to his Muslim father.

"I had read the Quran and believed in Mohammed only. But I was also interested in this Bible, so I read it all the way through."

Ismail first read through the Old Testament and then the New Testament, but he was confused.

"I read that Jesus is our Savior and He is coming, but I still believed the Quran and so I had some questions about this.

"Then I listened to a GFA Radio broadcast. I wanted to learn more about Jesus, so I wrote to them," he remembers.

As a result of that broadcast, the follow-up literature he received and personal discussions with a local pastor, Ismail came to know Jesus personally as Savior and Lord.

So it's no surprise that today, Ismail is a firm believer in the power of radio to spread the Good News, especially to a Muslim audience whose world is so tightly shut to traditional methods of evangelism that they might not ever hear the clear Gospel otherwise. This young man, while still completing his university-level studies, is already pouring his energies into assisting with the GFA Radio program in Muslimi Bengali.

"I want to work for Jesus all the time," Ismail states.

Challenges . . .

When God called him to Gospel for Asia, Salil Balwant was a quiet, unpretentious schoolteacher and principal who cared deeply about the souls of his students. He tried to teach the Gospel to the boys who attended, but the nominal church leaders who ran the school were not interested.

"Lord, help me," he prayed. "I want to do evangelistic work, but I don't know where to go. Please open the doors for me and help me."

Little did he know that God was preparing him to "do evangelistic work" that would impact his entire nation.

At the same time Salil was seeking the Lord's direction for his life, GFA leaders were praying for godly leaders for the work in Bangladesh. God soon led the two together, and Salil helped establish the first Gospel for Asia Bible school in 1998.

The first few years of ministry were extremely difficult. But through it all, Salil's understanding of the opportunities for ministry within his nation deepened. His burden for the lost increased, and his responsibilities grew.

Today, as GFA's country director for Bangladesh, Salil faces some challenges unique to this nation.

There is the widespread yet inaccurate perception of Christianity. Over the years, much foreign aid has poured into Bangladesh as it struggles to deal with poverty and annual catastrophic events. However, many nonprofit organizations, both secular and Christian, have succumbed to the nation's pervasive corruption. GFA native missionaries often encounter a welfare mentality: If they convert to Christianity and are baptized, people assume, financial benefits will follow.

"Most Christian workers in Bangladesh, about 90 percent, are working for the money," estimates Salil, who says they often demand high salaries. "Very few people are serving the Lord without the desire for money."

Another significant challenge to the work of ministry is the rise of Islamic fundamentalism in Bangladesh, which currently claims the world's fourth-largest Muslim population. The land has had a Muslim majority for hundreds of years, but recent history has seen an increasing intolerance toward other faiths. In 1988, Islam became the national religion. Several banned extremist groups are agitating for the country to become an Islamic state, and one political party has threatened to kill all Christian leaders if it ever comes to power.

"They want to make Bangladesh like Afghanistan," Salil comments. "The situation is very difficult. So before they close down the doors of Bangladesh, we need to work in a huge way."

Salil has stood firm in the face of these potential hindrances. He is intensely focused on the task before him but is patient as well, doing all he can within his sphere of influence and redeeming the time.

. . . and Steady Growth

Those who serve with him share his attitude. They have learned what works. Radio broadcasts and Gospel literature are both powerful tools. But their primary aim, says Salil, is instilling a vision among wholehearted young Christians to reach the lost and equip them to be church planters.

"Training and sending missionaries is the main key," he comments.

As a result, the work of Gospel for Asia in Bangladesh is slowly but steadily expanding. Already known for a clean financial record and moderate standard of living, the ministry has a solid foundation in two Bible colleges, where a total of 52 students currently prepare for full-time ministry. When their three-year training is complete, most will join the 86 native missionaries on the field, who have already planted 27 churches and more than 100 mission stations.

The very fact that Salil, who is ethnically from his nation's tribal minority, serves alongside his Bengali co-workers, who themselves come from both Hindu and Muslim backgrounds, is a testimony to the strong unity amid diversity that only the grace of God can accomplish.

Together—native missionaries, pastors, Bible college teachers and leaders, students, radio program speakers and producers—they all share the passionate heart of God for their nation. Their goal? One day, to see their own people worshipping around His throne. "Surely we need to gain salvation for Bangladesh," says Salil. "This is our burden."