In one of the most persecuted countries in the world—a country that is often featured on the World Watch List (opendoors.org)— war, poverty, devastation, and persecution plague the region, and many people are searching for hope. A growing number of them are finding it in Christ. In 2024, our partner reported that 197 new disciples came to faith and have been meeting with local church leaders.
These new disciples who are learning what it means to follow Christ, be the Church, and reach out to friends and family with the Gospel. That may sound like normal Christian discipleship in our context, but in this country, these local believers could be jailed or murdered—even by their own families—for speaking of Jesus and choosing to follow Him.
The Church is growing despite the risk.
Amir was encouraged by a local pastor to start sharing stories about Jesus and from the Bible with his friends and family. He started texting his father stories about Jesus, and his father loved them.
The next time Amir visited home, he revealed that these stories were from the Bible and his dad exclaimed,
“Wow, I had no idea! Can I have that Bible? I want to read more!”
Six of Amir’s family have now placed their faith in Christ and he has the beginnings of a family house church!
The Church is growing despite the risk.
Amir’s story isn’t an accident—the Jaffray offering has been funding strategic partnership in the region. Our partners are collaborating with local churches to develop strategies that enhance their ability to provide consistent follow-up to isolated seekers, disciple them, develop leaders, form and shepherd new churches, and offer comprehensive care to their congregations.
The local church leaders, in turn, have been focusing on encouraging believers to share the Gospel with their family members, worship together regularly as a household, and meet with other believing families for discipleship and outreach to the community around them.
In 2026, our partners plan to:
- Host six discipleship intensives to train 42 local believers
- Mentor 15 church leaders
- Assist local churches face-to-face to support the influx of new believers
- Host three trainings to equip local Christians with skills to engage their community
- Baptize 40 new believers
- Identify and coach new leaders to shepherd the churches
- Assist 3 believers who are in post-secondary studies or skills training.
Be part of the story
Every disciple, every baptism, every new house church begins with believers who refuse to stay silent because Jesus is worth the risk. Your generosity through the Jaffray Offering is building a resilient and courageous movement of underground churches in some of the hardest and darkest places on Earth. Your donation helps train disciples, mentor leaders, support new believers, and equip local churches to grow faithfully even where following Jesus is costly.
Give to the Jaffray Offering today