May 2010
Our resource missionaries to Panama, Einer and Girlesa Zuluaga, were recently reporting on the growth of our churches in the rainforest region of Panama. Many of these remote indigenous communities are accessed only by riverboat and are increasingly vulnerable to drug traffickers and Spanish farmers who claim their land. Many of these communities are still controlled by “shamans” and the fear of spirits.
The Zuluaga’s, who both grew up in Colombia, have experienced God’s transforming and healing power in their own lives. Prayer is an essential part of their ministry. They expect God to save, heal and deliver those they are reaching in Panama. The Zuluaga’s have also been teaching the Bible chronologically from creation to Christ. This chronological approach is filling in the gaps for church members who come from an indigenous culture where story telling is the preferred way to pass on meaning and values.
For the first time in many years, the Panama MB conference is now planting new churches and sending outreach teams to remote indigenous communities who have no gospel witness.
As our global MB family celebrates our 150th anniversary this year, we’ve been meditating on Paul’s mission message to the leaders of Athens in Acts 17. Paul also begins with creation in explaining to the Athenians the identity of their “unknown god”. “The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands.” (Acts 17:24) Paul modeled a contextual approach to reaching people, by beginning with the questions found in their culture. That approach is still effective in least reached cultures today.
Ministry Highlight
The opening and dedication of the new East Berlin church building will be happening on May 30th. Pray that many people in this neighborhood will come to the open house and will be interested in knowing more about Jesus. Praise God for the baptism class that has just begun in this church with four people who want to be baptized. www.mbmission.org/germany
Einer & Girlesa Zuluaga have served as missionaries in Panama for seven years. They are moving to a different town to establish a church among the large indigenous population of Embera and Wounaan people that are living there. They also plan to start a ministry development centre and a small radio station to spread the gospel to the surrounding villages. Pray that God will open doors for these ministries and open the hearts of many people to trust in Jesus. www.mbmission.org/panama
Items for Prayer
Pray for a missionary couple that is serving in a restricted access country where there was recently an earthquake. This couple had the opportunity to join together with others in distributing love kits to earthquake victims in hospitals. Pray that God would reveal Himself to the people who received these kits and that He would heal and comfort them.
MB Mission partners with over 50 churches in Angola. These churches are eager for greater contact with each other and with Christians in other countries. Praise God that a new mission field has opened up in the eastern province of Lunda-Sul. Pray for these Angolan churches as they connect with each other and reach out to people who don’t yet know Jesus.
Randy Friesen
Vision for Mission