Focus

Multiplication is one of the kingdom principles we are all called to live out. We multiply ourselves by making disciples of Christ, and then equipping those disciples to step out in their areas of gifting. As a pastor, Darrel* is called to raise up leaders who will not only work alongside him but will one day step into his role.

In his 2015 book, “Animists to Anabaptists,” the late Beryl Forrester wrote, “I have offered my life … to Jesus for the sake of God’s kingdom. That is the model I desire to see replicated in the lives of those our mission reaches with the Gospel.” 

Every week, Andrew* takes time to talk with a Buddhist temple monk. At the onset of one of Andrew’s weekly discussions with the monk, the monk asked Andrew, “Do you want to see the spirit?” Andrew could not understand why the monk would be talking to him about a spirit in the temple.

Jonathan Bornman provides leadership to EMM’s Christian-Muslim Relations Teams. Jonathan recently told three vignettes of God at work. What did each of these stories have in common? God keeps connecting Jonathan with people and events that lead to meaningful interactions. 

Change: it’s inevitable. We’re told that change is the only thing that will remain constant in our lives. This past year seems like it was really living into this truth as there was almost nothing that remained unchanged in our lives. The words of the prophet Isaiah remind us that even God is always moving, doing something new. The winds of change are ever-blowing, and so perhaps, are the winds of...

For Jeremy’s* first birthday in Thailand, he received a gift from his brother in Canada. It was a black and white photo of his grandfather on stage at an evangelistic crusade when he was about Jeremy’s age. He was a very spiritual person, and Jeremy remembers his deep laugh and voice that sounded like Pavarotti when he sang.

Since December 20th, Alan and Carol have been doing a lot of walking through green fields and beside small streams once again as human interaction is limited by another lockdown in Wales, which is in the United Kingdom. In this simple act of observing nature, listening to music, or talking and laughing with a family member as they walk, they find the refreshment their souls desperately need.

A few weeks ago, while John* was preparing to leave the village for the city, a woman told him that her older sister had developed a new health problem. An hour later, John left to join his wife, Debbie, in the city and they traveled to northwestern Cambodia. A few days later as they were completing their trip, they received a call that Sokaa’s older sister had become much sicker.

Every Christmas season, Eric is reminded of the beauty of the song “Lo, How a Rose e'er Blooming”. Eric was practicing this song on the piano, and being an amateur pianist, was having a terrible time with the last two measures of the first two lines. He felt like maybe he should just stick with playing the treble clef notes alone so that it has a semblance of cohesive sound. But the full sound is...

Abby and Owen* had a very full and blessed season celebrating the birth of Jesus! It was a lovely time of sharing His love with their friends and neighbors. They had the opportunity to host a party for their neighbors on the weekend after Christmas. They weren't quite sure how to do it but they ended up inviting guests at 3 different time slots. 

David and Grace Shenk describe the past 18 years of serving as EMM global consultants as a remarkable journey. What has been especially surprising to them has been the interest of Muslim communities in hearing about the peace of Jesus. All of these open doors have surprised them again and again.

It hasn’t been an easy last several months for anyone. It has been especially challenging for EMM worker Imogene. There have continued to be more disappointments and frustrations with COVID-19. Imogene had gone back and forth, between online and in-person language classes, had many events be cancelled, and had been in and out of quarantining.

Christians may ask, “Why should I care about Christian-Muslim relations?” You may think that you live in an area where there simply are no Muslims. If you live in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, as many of you do, you may be surprised to find out that Lancaster City resettles 20 times more refugees per capita than the rest of the United States, many of whom are Muslim.

Christ’s incarnation — that is what John is referring to when he says that the Word became flesh — that incarnation sets an example of what “mission” means. God chose not to remain distant and detached from humanity. Instead, He chose to make His home among us!

Once again, EMM is experiencing a change as we are in the process of moving to Lancaster City — yet while EMM has been transformed over the years and is still being transformed, the mission remains the same.

At the heart of a movement of the Spirit in the Middle East is the new reality of two peoples learning to become brothers and sisters in the Lord. In the midst of a global pandemic, Michael and Laura* have sought to creatively connect these people through the wonders of modern technology.

On November 3, a category four hurricane named Eta reached the shores of Nicaragua. Continuing on its path, the storm wreaked havoc on Honduras and Guatemala. With the torrential downpours of the hurricane’s rain, the region has seen devastating flooding, landslides, and the displacement of people.

When Amaris and Stuart Allan first decided to serve with EMM, they didn’t expect to spend time in two very different contexts in the course of their three-year term. Partway into their second year in Zanzibar, they were asked to consider a transition to Nairobi, Kenya. Almost 10 months later, the Allans unexpectedly returned from Nairobi to the U.S. a few months early due to the coronavirus pandem...

As Christians, transformation is what we all seek. EMM’s mission statement clearly states that transformation, which comes from Christ, is the foundation upon which all of our work is built. It sounds so simple: “Christ’s transforming love.” But change is not easy. So what leads to transformation? What can we do to be transformed in our hearts and minds?

Elizabeth* recently celebrated a joyous breakthrough: She can pray in her new language! Elizabeth has only been wanting and trying to do this for about five years, back from when she first spent a year in Central Asia and studied the local language at a university. By the end of that year, she found that she could talk to people in the language, albeit clumsily, but not to God.

Over the past 20 plus years, EMM has occasionally considered the idea that EMM should move its Central Administrative Office to Lancaster City, Pennsylvania. EMM’s previous efforts at exploring this possibility resulted in no action taken, and EMM continued its operations in Salunga.

We are excited to announce that the EMM Board of Directors has appointed Dr. Marvin Lorenzana as our ninth president. Dr. Lorenzana brings extensive multicultural leadership, discipleship, and mission experience to his new role as EMM president.

Jeremy and Jennifer* realize that the greater the suffering, the greater the potential for hope. And most importantly, they realize that looking beyond themselves to others is a choice they can always make.

As COVID-19 became a worldwide pandemic, Costa Rica was no exception. EMM worker Austin Zuercher was given the opportunity to return to his home in Ohio, but he decided not to. The Costa Rican government put out a restriction for driving, social distancing was in place, grocery stores had limited entrance, and soap could be found everywhere. Obviously, this also affected ministry — Austin did not...

Foleza is a small program with an ambitious vision: to see each student succeed in school and life. Translated “little nest” from the Albanian language, Foleza was started in 2013 when the Ersekë Evangelical Church saw first-hand the need for children to have extra support in order to thrive in school.