Training workers for the gospel–starved lands of Central Asia.
Central Asia is a region often overlooked in our world. Home to nations we often struggle even to name, let alone spell, this part of the world may well feel incredibly unfamiliar to us. Perhaps that is why we so often resort to collating the nations found here into one group known as ‘the Stans’!
It is a simple way of referring to nations such as Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, and is certainly easier than trying to pronounce them all! But did you know that the Persian suffix ‘–stan’ means ‘land of…’? For example, Kazakhstan means “land of wanderers.”
But a suffix is not the only thing these lands share. Each is a former Soviet state adept at operating in the Russian language, making it a unifying common tongue. Each of these nations is vast and has a Muslim–majority population. And as such, each has an enormous need for the gospel.
It is our great privilege to partner with a university who are preparing the next generation of pastors and evangelists in Central Asia. Our hope is to see these overlooked, gospel–starved lands transformed by the power of God’s Word as it is taught faithfully to millions who have little to no knowledge of it. The five nations mentioned above are collectively home to approximately 72 million people, around 98% of whom are considered unreached.
With so many waiting to hear the good news of Christ, and our partners eager to train and send workers for this harvest, the ‘Stans’ are surely lands of great opportunity for the Kingdom. Though we in the West may at times overlook this region, even forgetting the names of the nations, the Lord does not. We invite you to join us, playing a small part in God’s great rescue plan for Central Asia.
Could you support training of gospel workers for Central Asia?