The Lord has done great things for us; We are glad!
Psalm 126:3 AMP
The end of a year brings with it all sorts of review lists: the best movies, the biggest issues, the top trends, etc. In the World Mission Prayer League we prefer to end our year celebrating the birth of our Savior Jesus! However, as we begin a new year, a review of 2022 seems to me entirely worthwhile. Looking back, we are glad! Why? Because in 2022 the Lord did some wonderful things in and through WMPL. I want to share a few of those with you, and ask you to join us in thanking God for what has been accomplished and seeking him for what remains to be done until that day when all nations know him.
The Prayer League’s overarching vision is that “God is glorified and all people participate in His Kingdom.” To that end, we commit ourselves to three objectives, the first of which is that “believers and communities of believers in the Americas and elsewhere live out their roles in the great commission.”
Because praying is a primary mission role for all of us, we are indeed glad that in 2022 we were able to return to in-person “Ask for the Nations” meetings in the Minneapolis WMPL “Mission Home.” By God’s grace, we have enjoyed wonderfully diverse and multigenerational gatherings, with greater attendance than pre-pandemic numbers. Come for dinner at 5:30 PM and prayer at 7:00 PM on the 1st Tuesday of the month, or join us online at 7:00 PM on the 3rd Tuesday of the month! (email: mobilize@wmpl.org) We also rejoice that the “Discipleship House” young adult residential community we had envisioned for some years is now a reality. Together with veteran Prayer League workers, they grow in “Commissioned Living,” discerning and preparing for their mission callings.
Another of our primary goals is that “populations with limited or no access to the Gospel experience the love of Christ.” Admittedly, we still have much to do for this, our God’s greatest desire, but we are glad to report good work done in 2022. Although our global worker numbers have diminished, over 65% of our 40 current workers serve among the unreached. People in Nepal, India, Bangladesh, Philippines, East Asia, and elsewhere are hearing of Jesus for the first time, or are being discipled through relationships with our workers. As refugees continued to flee Central Asia, some of our global workers found opportunities to minister to them outside of their country, and we are actively pursuing new fields for workers in that part of the world. Elsewhere, like in Kenya, Congo, and parts of Latin America, our workers help equip established believers to serve God’s mission among their own people. We also contributed to Bible translation and literacy work in at least five languages.
Appropriately, we pursue our goal of sharing the Gospel with the unreached alongside our commitment that “Majority World partner churches and ministries are equal and respected collaborators in mission.” In this regard we had exceptional reasons to be very glad in 2022! The revitalization of our partnership with Christian Hospital Tank, influenced by our spring visit to Pakistan, came at a very opportune time. God blessed us to see that he was very much present with the now fully Pakistani medical staff. They are passionately committed to a Gospelsharing medical ministry in the midst of people who know little to nothing of God’s mercy. Additionally, we saw their critical infrastructure needs prior to the disastrous flooding that occurred in mid-August. We are so very glad that the WMPL Board of Directors approved sizable financial grants to construct much needed employee housing and to assist in the reconstruction of security walls. We look forward to this ongoing partnership in Pakistan, hoping to send new workers to that country in the new year.
We are ever so glad, too, for our partnership with a large Lutheran church body in India! I recently returned from visits with leaders, seminary faculty, and young adults there. Our yearning to see them mobilized for prayer and mission for unreached people groups of India are being realized. Small fellowships meet regularly to pray for specific ethnic groups and some national believers have begun to labor among them. Additionally, a prayer and discipleship house is being built that will provide impetus to mobilize prayer the same way as that of our fellowship.
I could have packed my 2022 review list with still more things that make us glad, but as we begin a new year, I ask that you join us in thanking God for these, and in committing to him our hopes for 2023.
Not to us, Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness.
Psalm 115:1 NIV