Navigators Nations Within - The Navigators https://www.navigators.org To Know Christ, Make Him Known, and Help Others Do the Same® Tue, 16 Dec 2025 16:32:56 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9 https://www.navigators.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/cropped-Navigators-Favicon-150x150.png Navigators Nations Within - The Navigators https://www.navigators.org 32 32 What is the One Thing Necessary for Raising Disciples of Jesus? https://www.navigators.org/blog/what-is-the-one-thing-necessary-for-raising-disciples-of-jesus/ https://www.navigators.org/blog/what-is-the-one-thing-necessary-for-raising-disciples-of-jesus/#comments Mon, 15 Dec 2025 19:00:00 +0000 https://www.navigators.org/?p=268319 When I was a child, a couple of times a year, my family would journey from our home in central Illinois to visit my grandmother in southern Minnesota. Because we traveled that path so frequently, I knew the six-hour route very well. I knew when we would cross the Mississippi River and pass the Quaker Oats sign — which was important when you were searching for that illusive Q in the alphabet game. I knew how many hours in the car were left when we passed through certain towns or that our trip would be extended when we turned down a road that led to my aunt and uncle’s farm. Even today, I can point out the location where our family van exceeded the speed limit early one Thanksgiving morning, and my dad received his first traffic ticket.

A family walks through a forest trail together, with the father carrying a child on his shoulders and the mother and daughter walking beside them.

During those trips I learned how to read a state road map. I still carry an old-school atlas with me in the car, just in case. But today we can open an app on our phones or on the car dashboard to provide us with cues for our travels. The GPS tells us when to exit, merge with traffic, and change lanes. It can provide alternate routes based on traffic, suggest the closest coffee shop, or exclaim “Recalculating route!” when you miss your turn.

But what’s the one thing necessary for a GPS system to function as it has been designed?

A Destination.

When it comes to raising disciples, we should set our eyes on the destination.

I believe that one of the reasons parents and caregivers struggle to disciple children well is that we haven’t clearly identified the destination for their discipleship and the directions that guide them toward that goal.

How would you describe a child who is entering adolescence as an active disciple? Would you choose words that describe their character: loving, joyful, obedient, self-controlled? Or would you choose words that describe behaviors: reads the Bible daily, asks spiritual questions, worships God? Perhaps you would choose words that describe their depth of knowledge and understanding about God and His Word.

Public and private education systems have stated objectives when it comes to student expectations. Lists of student learning outcomes articulate the goals for students at the conclusion of each grade level. Each child is unique and develops at their own rate, so there are those who will exceed the expectations and others who will struggle. But teachers begin each year knowing the goals and guiding students along the path toward achievement. Like a GPS, they might have to find alternate paths for some or help others get turned back around, but with a clear goal and markers on the way, teachers are able to guide their young disciples.

This is what we’ve been missing in our homes and churches — a discipleship map that states the goal for raising disciples and provides directions toward that goal.

In some Christian traditions, the goal for children has been a public confession of Christ; in others, submission through the act of baptism. In yet other traditions, it has been the completion of confirmation classes. Regardless of our tradition, our goal for raising disciples should be the same as the goal for all disciples: to become more and more like Christ every day.

For three years, Jesus taught the crowds, His enemies, and political leaders, but most often, He was teaching twelve ordinary men from various backgrounds, vocations, and experiences. When He chose the Twelve, He had a goal in mind. Jesus knew that at the conclusion of His earthly ministry He would redeem the world through His death, return to God the Father, and equip His followers with the Holy Spirit to disciple others. He needed a core group of leaders who would follow Him daily (Luke 9:23), continuing His mission “to seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10) and to “make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19).

As Jesus prepared to leave the Twelve to continue His mission, He met with them to give them some final encouragements and admonitions. Woven through Jesus’ conversation in the upper room (John 13–17), we find descriptions of what it means to become like Christ:

These descriptors provide some direction toward the goal for all disciples.

With the destination of becoming like Christ as our goal, we can utilize childhood development information from the fields of social science, learning theory, and psychology to create a map for discipleship from infancy to adolescence.* Beginning at birth, there are seven directional discipleship markers — approximately one for every two years of life — that parallel the biological, cognitive, social, and moral development of children. Just as Jesus discipled the Twelve from spiritual infancy to spiritual maturity, we can use this map to raise disciples who become increasingly more like Christ.

Did you like this article? Check out Teresa Roberts’ full book, Raising Disciples, as well as the accompanying free 8-week parenting curriculum today!

Discipleship Tip:

When discipling someone, consider verbally setting discipleship goals. With a destination in mind, you can orchestrate milestones and implement accountability, making sure that you both are progressing forward in their discipleship journey.


4 Truths for Becoming Like Jesus

According to Scripture, becoming like Jesus is not only possible, but is God’s intended purpose for His adopted children. This Bible study includes four truths to guide you toward becoming like Jesus in your day-to-day life. Reflect on these truths and discover what God reveals about His divine plan for your life by checking out The Navigators resource, “4 Truths for Becoming Like Jesus.”

LEARN MORE

*The faith research of James W. Fowler (Stages of Faith: The Psychology of Human Development and the Quest for Meaning, San Francisco: Harper and Row, 1981) and insights of spiritual development from John H. Westerhoff III (Will Our Children Have Faith?, 3rd. ed., Harrisburg, PA: Morehouse, 2012) has also informed this discipleship map.

Meet the Author

Teresa Roberts is Professor of Ministry and Christian Formation, Program Director of Children’s Ministry, and a vice president at Ozark Christian College. She is an expert in children’s spiritual formation training with more than 25 years of ministry experience.

Dr. Roberts holds a Master of Arts in Family and Youth Ministry, a Master of Divinity, and a Doctor of Ministry. She serves in children’s ministry at Carterville Christian Church where she attends with her husband and step-daughter. Learn more at discipleshipguides.com/.

]]> When I was a child, a couple of times a year, my family would journey from our home in central Illinois to visit my grandmother in southern Minnesota. Because we traveled that path so frequently, I knew the six-hour route very well. I knew when we would cross the Mississippi River and pass the Quaker Oats sign — which was important when you were searching for that illusive Q in the alphabet game. I knew how many hours in the car were left when we passed through certain towns or that our trip would be extended when we turned down a road that led to my aunt and uncle’s farm. Even today, I can point out the location where our family van exceeded the speed limit early one Thanksgiving morning, and my dad received his first traffic ticket.

A family walks through a forest trail together, with the father carrying a child on his shoulders and the mother and daughter walking beside them.

During those trips I learned how to read a state road map. I still carry an old-school atlas with me in the car, just in case. But today we can open an app on our phones or on the car dashboard to provide us with cues for our travels. The GPS tells us when to exit, merge with traffic, and change lanes. It can provide alternate routes based on traffic, suggest the closest coffee shop, or exclaim “Recalculating route!” when you miss your turn.

But what’s the one thing necessary for a GPS system to function as it has been designed?

A Destination.

When it comes to raising disciples, we should set our eyes on the destination.

I believe that one of the reasons parents and caregivers struggle to disciple children well is that we haven’t clearly identified the destination for their discipleship and the directions that guide them toward that goal.

How would you describe a child who is entering adolescence as an active disciple? Would you choose words that describe their character: loving, joyful, obedient, self-controlled? Or would you choose words that describe behaviors: reads the Bible daily, asks spiritual questions, worships God? Perhaps you would choose words that describe their depth of knowledge and understanding about God and His Word.

Public and private education systems have stated objectives when it comes to student expectations. Lists of student learning outcomes articulate the goals for students at the conclusion of each grade level. Each child is unique and develops at their own rate, so there are those who will exceed the expectations and others who will struggle. But teachers begin each year knowing the goals and guiding students along the path toward achievement. Like a GPS, they might have to find alternate paths for some or help others get turned back around, but with a clear goal and markers on the way, teachers are able to guide their young disciples.

This is what we’ve been missing in our homes and churches — a discipleship map that states the goal for raising disciples and provides directions toward that goal.

In some Christian traditions, the goal for children has been a public confession of Christ; in others, submission through the act of baptism. In yet other traditions, it has been the completion of confirmation classes. Regardless of our tradition, our goal for raising disciples should be the same as the goal for all disciples: to become more and more like Christ every day.

For three years, Jesus taught the crowds, His enemies, and political leaders, but most often, He was teaching twelve ordinary men from various backgrounds, vocations, and experiences. When He chose the Twelve, He had a goal in mind. Jesus knew that at the conclusion of His earthly ministry He would redeem the world through His death, return to God the Father, and equip His followers with the Holy Spirit to disciple others. He needed a core group of leaders who would follow Him daily (Luke 9:23), continuing His mission “to seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10) and to “make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19).

As Jesus prepared to leave the Twelve to continue His mission, He met with them to give them some final encouragements and admonitions. Woven through Jesus’ conversation in the upper room (John 13–17), we find descriptions of what it means to become like Christ:

These descriptors provide some direction toward the goal for all disciples.

With the destination of becoming like Christ as our goal, we can utilize childhood development information from the fields of social science, learning theory, and psychology to create a map for discipleship from infancy to adolescence.* Beginning at birth, there are seven directional discipleship markers — approximately one for every two years of life — that parallel the biological, cognitive, social, and moral development of children. Just as Jesus discipled the Twelve from spiritual infancy to spiritual maturity, we can use this map to raise disciples who become increasingly more like Christ.

Did you like this article? Check out Teresa Roberts’ full book, Raising Disciples, as well as the accompanying free 8-week parenting curriculum today!

Discipleship Tip:

When discipling someone, consider verbally setting discipleship goals. With a destination in mind, you can orchestrate milestones and implement accountability, making sure that you both are progressing forward in their discipleship journey.


4 Truths for Becoming Like Jesus

According to Scripture, becoming like Jesus is not only possible, but is God’s intended purpose for His adopted children. This Bible study includes four truths to guide you toward becoming like Jesus in your day-to-day life. Reflect on these truths and discover what God reveals about His divine plan for your life by checking out The Navigators resource, “4 Truths for Becoming Like Jesus.”

LEARN MORE

*The faith research of James W. Fowler (Stages of Faith: The Psychology of Human Development and the Quest for Meaning, San Francisco: Harper and Row, 1981) and insights of spiritual development from John H. Westerhoff III (Will Our Children Have Faith?, 3rd. ed., Harrisburg, PA: Morehouse, 2012) has also informed this discipleship map.

Meet the Author

Teresa Roberts is Professor of Ministry and Christian Formation, Program Director of Children’s Ministry, and a vice president at Ozark Christian College. She is an expert in children’s spiritual formation training with more than 25 years of ministry experience.

Dr. Roberts holds a Master of Arts in Family and Youth Ministry, a Master of Divinity, and a Doctor of Ministry. She serves in children’s ministry at Carterville Christian Church where she attends with her husband and step-daughter. Learn more at discipleshipguides.com/.

]]> https://www.navigators.org/blog/what-is-the-one-thing-necessary-for-raising-disciples-of-jesus/feed/ 1 Inspiration for Practicing Hospitality https://www.navigators.org/blog/inspiration-for-practicing-hospitality/ https://www.navigators.org/blog/inspiration-for-practicing-hospitality/#comments Mon, 17 Nov 2025 19:00:00 +0000 https://www.navigators.org/?p=268166 Hospitality is holiness lived out in practicality. It is the pillow, the food and drink, and the hot shower of our practical love. The spiritual is practical. The practical is spiritual.

Older couple joyfully greeting family at the door.

The Holy Trinity is a mystery to me, with its three in oneness and its oneness in three, and I can just barely grasp the deep relational nature of how the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit touch and spin and dance off each other and with each other. Hospitality — that generous making room for others and giving and receiving to and from each other from our plenty and sometimes from our scarcity but we do it anyway — seems to flow out of that communal and relational and so generous nature of God. Being holy as God is holy, if we can believe it, catapults us into relationship with others and the practice of hospitality. Holiness is relational, and that is why hospitality fits holiness like a soft leather glove.

Hospitality is holiness lived out in practicality.

Hospitality involves the holy practice of gratitude.

All of this is made easier alongside the holy practice of gratitude. I have this place, this food, this book; please take it and enjoy it as well. We try to believe that everything we have comes from God, and so it is ours not to own but to share. So hospitality is almost always best when it is gratitude adjacent. However, the discipline of hospitality can happen also while you are still a grouchy, miserly mess. Disciplines take discipline. Not everything is easy or feels good right away, but that might mean it’s even more worth doing, and not less.

Hospitality invites humility.

In Luke 14:12-14, Jesus tells us how to throw a dinner party. Dinner parties are, after all, what most of us think of first when we think about hospitality: “‘When you put on a luncheon or a banquet,’ he said, ‘don’t invite your friends, brothers, relatives, and rich neighbors. For they will invite you back, and that will be your only reward. Instead, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind. Then at the resurrection of the righteous, God will reward you for inviting those who could not repay you’” (NLT). In Luke 14:8-10, He even discusses seating plans: “When you are invited to a wedding feast, don’t sit in the seat of honor … Instead, take the lowest place at the foot of the table” (NLT).

Holiness is relational, and that is why hospitality fits holiness like a soft leather glove.

Jesus knows me so well. He predicts my thirst for status. When we practice hospitality as part of our holiness, we will come face-to-face with our desire to invite first our friends, the people we especially like or those whom we want to especially like us, along with the relatives we are most comfortable with, and, of course, our rich neighbors. We might strut around like a peacock in our own dining room and not even realize we are doing it. Again, our intentional moves toward holiness will show us how far we have yet to travel. Our efforts to do good on the outside will show us how far we are from good on the inside, and in that gap, we learn again of our need for the forgiving, restoring love of God in our own lives and hearts, and how much we need him, even when we are serving macaroni to friends.

We learn something about ourselves — and therefore move deeper into our holiness journeys — when we pay attention to whom we want to welcome in and how we want to welcome them to our homes, our tables, and our lives.

Hospitality helps us to examine our hidden motivations.

As we consider ourselves, we can confess ourselves to God and ask for help. Why am I making this so fancy? we can ask our inner hostess, in an examination of motivation that is a daily part of pushing into our holiness. What is my motivation? Also, Why am I talking about myself so much? And why can’t I stop?

Our honest answers do not bring the dinner party, the coffee date, or the open house to a screeching halt, but instead provide us another opportunity to be honest with ourselves and with God — who is the ultimate and gracious host of heaven and earth now and the new earth that is to come. Make me holy in my hospitality, we might pray. Kill off my show-off-ness, we might ask. Help me listen more than I speak, as my blunt spouse has said I need to work on.

Help me not to be so needy, I can pray as I juice blood oranges for udon noodles with fried tofu and orange nam jim from my expensive hardcover Ottolenghi Flavour cookbook propped open on the counter. Perhaps for a little while, as part of our own healing, we will make a simple spaghetti Bolognese, accept the offer of our guest to bring store-bought garlic bread and let Maureen help with the cleanup, like she always wants to do. We will resist the temptation to offer our guests a tour of our new barbeque and satisfy our thirst for thanks by turning it outward to gratitude to God. What if whenever we yearn for someone to say, “Thank you, you are marvelous for all you have done,” we accept that as a prompt to whisper, “Thank You. You are marvelous for all You have done.”

Hospitality exercises a variety of spiritual disciplines.

Food is just one expression of hospitality. Conversation is another. When we practice holiness through hospitality, we create a space in which other pursuits of holiness can be practiced, such as listening well and not interrupting, putting others first, and offering encouragement and companionship to the person God has placed and we have invited in front of us. From the way Jesus tells us to invite, and the humility presumed in His recommended seating plan, we can assume that we don’t invite people to our table so we can imprison them to hear all and only about us. We don’t tie them to their chairs with our story and our glory.

We can stretch our ability to put others first, and to forgive.

We can practice patience, a fruit of the Spirit we get to work with, toward friends who arrive late (or even worse, early) and those who stay too long. We practice not biting off the heads of those with whom we disagree. If we do bite their heads off at dinner, we can practice the art of unequivocal apology. Apologizing is a holy act. I’m sorry are holy, healing words. Through hospitality’s gift of space opened up and time slowed down, we can “be happy with those who are happy, and weep with those who weep,” which Paul told us to do only two verses after he reminded us to “always be eager to practice hospitality” in Romans 12:13-15.


Discipleship Tip:

Hospitality isn’t about impressing others — it’s about making space for them. This week, invite someone into your home or life with gratitude and humility, focusing on listening and encouraging rather than showcasing. Ask the Lord for opportunities to be hospitable in your community in order to point others to Jesus.


Opening Doors to the Gospel Through Generosity

By showing the love of God to meet people’s practical needs, the Holy Spirit can open new and unexpected opportunities to share the gospel. Through this free resource, discover how living a life of generosity could lead to meeting someone’s practical need and their deep spiritual need as well.

LEARN MORE

About the Author

Karen Stiller is a senior editor of Faith Today magazine and writes frequently for magazines like Reader’s Digest, Ekstasis, In Trust, and other publications across North America. Stiller is a three-time winner of the prestigious A.C. Forrest Memorial Award from the Canadian Church Press for excellence in socially conscious religious journalism. She is author of The Minister’s Wife (2020, Tyndale Momentum); co-author of Craft, Cost & Call (2019), Shifting Stats Shaking the Church (2015) and Going Missional (2010); editor of The Lord’s Prayer (2015) and coeditor of Evangelicals Around the World (2015). She lives in Ottawa and has a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Non-Fiction from University of King’s College, Dalhousie.

This article was originally published on the DiscipleMaker Blog by NavPress. You can also hear more from Karen Stiller through her book Holiness Here and NavPress’ new podcast, “Good Books, Big Questions,” where Karen hosts bold, loving, and sensible conversations about faith.

]]> Hospitality is holiness lived out in practicality. It is the pillow, the food and drink, and the hot shower of our practical love. The spiritual is practical. The practical is spiritual.

Older couple joyfully greeting family at the door.

The Holy Trinity is a mystery to me, with its three in oneness and its oneness in three, and I can just barely grasp the deep relational nature of how the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit touch and spin and dance off each other and with each other. Hospitality — that generous making room for others and giving and receiving to and from each other from our plenty and sometimes from our scarcity but we do it anyway — seems to flow out of that communal and relational and so generous nature of God. Being holy as God is holy, if we can believe it, catapults us into relationship with others and the practice of hospitality. Holiness is relational, and that is why hospitality fits holiness like a soft leather glove.

Hospitality is holiness lived out in practicality.

Hospitality involves the holy practice of gratitude.

All of this is made easier alongside the holy practice of gratitude. I have this place, this food, this book; please take it and enjoy it as well. We try to believe that everything we have comes from God, and so it is ours not to own but to share. So hospitality is almost always best when it is gratitude adjacent. However, the discipline of hospitality can happen also while you are still a grouchy, miserly mess. Disciplines take discipline. Not everything is easy or feels good right away, but that might mean it’s even more worth doing, and not less.

Hospitality invites humility.

In Luke 14:12-14, Jesus tells us how to throw a dinner party. Dinner parties are, after all, what most of us think of first when we think about hospitality: “‘When you put on a luncheon or a banquet,’ he said, ‘don’t invite your friends, brothers, relatives, and rich neighbors. For they will invite you back, and that will be your only reward. Instead, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind. Then at the resurrection of the righteous, God will reward you for inviting those who could not repay you’” (NLT). In Luke 14:8-10, He even discusses seating plans: “When you are invited to a wedding feast, don’t sit in the seat of honor … Instead, take the lowest place at the foot of the table” (NLT).

Holiness is relational, and that is why hospitality fits holiness like a soft leather glove.

Jesus knows me so well. He predicts my thirst for status. When we practice hospitality as part of our holiness, we will come face-to-face with our desire to invite first our friends, the people we especially like or those whom we want to especially like us, along with the relatives we are most comfortable with, and, of course, our rich neighbors. We might strut around like a peacock in our own dining room and not even realize we are doing it. Again, our intentional moves toward holiness will show us how far we have yet to travel. Our efforts to do good on the outside will show us how far we are from good on the inside, and in that gap, we learn again of our need for the forgiving, restoring love of God in our own lives and hearts, and how much we need him, even when we are serving macaroni to friends.

We learn something about ourselves — and therefore move deeper into our holiness journeys — when we pay attention to whom we want to welcome in and how we want to welcome them to our homes, our tables, and our lives.

Hospitality helps us to examine our hidden motivations.

As we consider ourselves, we can confess ourselves to God and ask for help. Why am I making this so fancy? we can ask our inner hostess, in an examination of motivation that is a daily part of pushing into our holiness. What is my motivation? Also, Why am I talking about myself so much? And why can’t I stop?

Our honest answers do not bring the dinner party, the coffee date, or the open house to a screeching halt, but instead provide us another opportunity to be honest with ourselves and with God — who is the ultimate and gracious host of heaven and earth now and the new earth that is to come. Make me holy in my hospitality, we might pray. Kill off my show-off-ness, we might ask. Help me listen more than I speak, as my blunt spouse has said I need to work on.

Help me not to be so needy, I can pray as I juice blood oranges for udon noodles with fried tofu and orange nam jim from my expensive hardcover Ottolenghi Flavour cookbook propped open on the counter. Perhaps for a little while, as part of our own healing, we will make a simple spaghetti Bolognese, accept the offer of our guest to bring store-bought garlic bread and let Maureen help with the cleanup, like she always wants to do. We will resist the temptation to offer our guests a tour of our new barbeque and satisfy our thirst for thanks by turning it outward to gratitude to God. What if whenever we yearn for someone to say, “Thank you, you are marvelous for all you have done,” we accept that as a prompt to whisper, “Thank You. You are marvelous for all You have done.”

Hospitality exercises a variety of spiritual disciplines.

Food is just one expression of hospitality. Conversation is another. When we practice holiness through hospitality, we create a space in which other pursuits of holiness can be practiced, such as listening well and not interrupting, putting others first, and offering encouragement and companionship to the person God has placed and we have invited in front of us. From the way Jesus tells us to invite, and the humility presumed in His recommended seating plan, we can assume that we don’t invite people to our table so we can imprison them to hear all and only about us. We don’t tie them to their chairs with our story and our glory.

We can stretch our ability to put others first, and to forgive.

We can practice patience, a fruit of the Spirit we get to work with, toward friends who arrive late (or even worse, early) and those who stay too long. We practice not biting off the heads of those with whom we disagree. If we do bite their heads off at dinner, we can practice the art of unequivocal apology. Apologizing is a holy act. I’m sorry are holy, healing words. Through hospitality’s gift of space opened up and time slowed down, we can “be happy with those who are happy, and weep with those who weep,” which Paul told us to do only two verses after he reminded us to “always be eager to practice hospitality” in Romans 12:13-15.


Discipleship Tip:

Hospitality isn’t about impressing others — it’s about making space for them. This week, invite someone into your home or life with gratitude and humility, focusing on listening and encouraging rather than showcasing. Ask the Lord for opportunities to be hospitable in your community in order to point others to Jesus.


Opening Doors to the Gospel Through Generosity

By showing the love of God to meet people’s practical needs, the Holy Spirit can open new and unexpected opportunities to share the gospel. Through this free resource, discover how living a life of generosity could lead to meeting someone’s practical need and their deep spiritual need as well.

LEARN MORE

About the Author

Karen Stiller is a senior editor of Faith Today magazine and writes frequently for magazines like Reader’s Digest, Ekstasis, In Trust, and other publications across North America. Stiller is a three-time winner of the prestigious A.C. Forrest Memorial Award from the Canadian Church Press for excellence in socially conscious religious journalism. She is author of The Minister’s Wife (2020, Tyndale Momentum); co-author of Craft, Cost & Call (2019), Shifting Stats Shaking the Church (2015) and Going Missional (2010); editor of The Lord’s Prayer (2015) and coeditor of Evangelicals Around the World (2015). She lives in Ottawa and has a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Non-Fiction from University of King’s College, Dalhousie.

This article was originally published on the DiscipleMaker Blog by NavPress. You can also hear more from Karen Stiller through her book Holiness Here and NavPress’ new podcast, “Good Books, Big Questions,” where Karen hosts bold, loving, and sensible conversations about faith.

]]> https://www.navigators.org/blog/inspiration-for-practicing-hospitality/feed/ 5 Prayer that Crosses Borders: Creating a Refuge for the Nations https://www.navigators.org/blog/prayer-that-crosses-borders-creating-a-refuge-for-the-nations/ https://www.navigators.org/blog/prayer-that-crosses-borders-creating-a-refuge-for-the-nations/#comments Sun, 15 Jun 2025 18:00:00 +0000 https://www.navigators.org/?p=266736 When Omar* and Amira* left their homeland of North Africa in 2011, they had no idea that God was preparing them for a mission far beyond what they had imagined.

Growing up in North Africa, Omar and Amira were raised in the same church and were both discipled by The Navigators, giving their lives to Christ when they were 14. Observing Navigators around them — including Omar’s uncle — they learned from a young age how to practice a God-centered life and how to live out everyday ministry.

Two people gently hold hands in a comforting gesture. One pair of hands appears older and weathered, while the other pair is younger.

Omar and Amira got married in 2005, and they continued to share the gospel by volunteering and training with The Navigators in nearby countries. Developing a heart for the nations, they went on short-term mission trips, and felt the Lord calling them to people from a particular Middle Eastern country.

“Our long-term plan was to live and do ministry there, but it didn’t work out because of the war taking place there,” Omar says. “But the Lord opened an opportunity for us to immigrate to the U.S. in 2011, and we started to do independent ministry among refugees from that country.”

In 2015, Omar and Amira got connected with The Navigator city leader in Raleigh, North Carolina, where they had moved. At the time, around 10,000 refugees from that country had entered the city, and The Navigators were praying for someone to lead a refugee ministry.

“I shared with him my heart for them,” Omar says. “I was surprised how the Lord had led us to be here, specifically for the people to come. I joined The Navigators Nations Within ministry in 2016, and we’ve been working with refugees from that country since then.”

The Power of Relationships and Prayer

Omar and Amira’s ministry in Raleigh is centered around two key ingredients: relationships and prayer.

At the beginning of their ministry, Omar and Amira started a prayer group in their apartment every Wednesday night, where they would come together with believing neighbors and pray for opportunities in their community. Week after week, the Lord sent them new people to connect with — most of which had backgrounds from a different world religion — and they would share the gospel and invite them into their home for prayer and a meal.

As their community grew, Omar and Amira began investing in their new connections through Life-to-Life® discipleship and meeting practical needs — taking them to doctor’s appointments or grocery stores, teaching English, and helping them apply for jobs. “That was our focus: how to help them and become their friends,” Omar says.

Over time, they saw the Lord work powerfully in the lives of their friends. From casting out demonic presences through prayer to simply being an example of how to joyfully and lovingly live a life for Christ, they witnessed as, one by one, families started to know and accept Christ for the first time.

“Things started to happen in their lives, and we felt that the Lord had something greater planned than we ever thought through our simple weekly prayer meeting,” Omar says.

Aisha’s Story

For a woman named Aisha*, Omar and Amira’s ministry was truly life saving.

A couple from another Middle Eastern country, Aisha and her husband, Hassan*, had met Omar and Amira a decade earlier when they had first moved to the U.S. After two years of not being in contact, Hassan reached out to Omar one day, desperate. “He told me that his wife was under attack,” Omar remembers.

Aisha had been plagued by demonic attacks, and after being hospitalized twice with no physical conditions confirmed by doctors, she had hit a point where she was no longer able to eat or drink for 10 days. Scared his wife was near death, Hassan asked if Omar would be able to pray over her.

Omar and Amira came over to their place and shared the gospel with them for three hours, and then invited Aisha and Hassan to come to their church to be prayed over. A couple nights later at church, they worshipped and shared the gospel again. Omar invited Aisha and Hassan to pray to receive Christ. They prayed together, sitting and crying, as they committed their lives to the Lord. Then, Amira prayed over Aisha for healing and for her to be free from the demonic presence that had been burdening her.

“We asked her how she felt, and she said she felt joy and peace and was so happy for what she received from the Lord,” Omar says. “We asked if she was able to drink, and she finished two bottles of water. The next day, she woke up feeling comforted and peaceful, and she had her first meal in 10 days.”

With her spirit lifted, Aisha shared with her family about how the Lord saved her. After months of losing hope and preparing for death, they felt free! In their joy, Aisha and Hassan prepared a feast, praising the Lord and giving Him glory. Since then, Omar and Amira have continued to disciple them, encouraging them to read the Bible on their own and continue growing in their faith.

“For the first time, Aisha understood that God was her father and that He was for her, not against her,” Omar explains. “Where before, she was terrified and scared, she knew she couldn’t go back to the life she had been living before. The old creation was no longer dragging her back.”

Crossing Barriers for Christ

Through Omar and Amira’s ministry, the nations are being reached powerfully here in the U.S. They’ve seen families praise the Lord for the first time, and have witnessed the Lord build a community centered on the hope of Christ and loving each other as He first loved us. The impact has been generational and transformative: one relationship and prayer at a time.

“When we pray, we allow the presence of God to come to people, and they will experience His presence and the freedom He provides,” Omar says. “We don’t have to go through apologetics. It’s prayers that have crossed barriers because we have given them an encounter with God himself.”

*Names changed for privacy

Discipleship Tip:

One way that Omar and Amira built community and shared the gospel is by meeting the needs of those around them. Look around you — are there any practical needs that you can meet? Think about people in your community that might need resources or help, and consider how you can step in to serve, using that as a building block for relationship to flourish.


Practicing God’s Presence in Prayer

Omar and Amira have seen the Lord work powerfully through prayer, growing their ministry and leading their friends to Christ. Prayer is powerful — and you can also see the Lord work through prayer in your own life. Learn how to seek Christ and a relationship with Him through prayer by checking out The Navigators resource, “Practicing God’s Presence in Prayer.”

LEARN MORE
]]> When Omar* and Amira* left their homeland of North Africa in 2011, they had no idea that God was preparing them for a mission far beyond what they had imagined.

Growing up in North Africa, Omar and Amira were raised in the same church and were both discipled by The Navigators, giving their lives to Christ when they were 14. Observing Navigators around them — including Omar’s uncle — they learned from a young age how to practice a God-centered life and how to live out everyday ministry.

Two people gently hold hands in a comforting gesture. One pair of hands appears older and weathered, while the other pair is younger.

Omar and Amira got married in 2005, and they continued to share the gospel by volunteering and training with The Navigators in nearby countries. Developing a heart for the nations, they went on short-term mission trips, and felt the Lord calling them to people from a particular Middle Eastern country.

“Our long-term plan was to live and do ministry there, but it didn’t work out because of the war taking place there,” Omar says. “But the Lord opened an opportunity for us to immigrate to the U.S. in 2011, and we started to do independent ministry among refugees from that country.”

In 2015, Omar and Amira got connected with The Navigator city leader in Raleigh, North Carolina, where they had moved. At the time, around 10,000 refugees from that country had entered the city, and The Navigators were praying for someone to lead a refugee ministry.

“I shared with him my heart for them,” Omar says. “I was surprised how the Lord had led us to be here, specifically for the people to come. I joined The Navigators Nations Within ministry in 2016, and we’ve been working with refugees from that country since then.”

The Power of Relationships and Prayer

Omar and Amira’s ministry in Raleigh is centered around two key ingredients: relationships and prayer.

At the beginning of their ministry, Omar and Amira started a prayer group in their apartment every Wednesday night, where they would come together with believing neighbors and pray for opportunities in their community. Week after week, the Lord sent them new people to connect with — most of which had backgrounds from a different world religion — and they would share the gospel and invite them into their home for prayer and a meal.

As their community grew, Omar and Amira began investing in their new connections through Life-to-Life® discipleship and meeting practical needs — taking them to doctor’s appointments or grocery stores, teaching English, and helping them apply for jobs. “That was our focus: how to help them and become their friends,” Omar says.

Over time, they saw the Lord work powerfully in the lives of their friends. From casting out demonic presences through prayer to simply being an example of how to joyfully and lovingly live a life for Christ, they witnessed as, one by one, families started to know and accept Christ for the first time.

“Things started to happen in their lives, and we felt that the Lord had something greater planned than we ever thought through our simple weekly prayer meeting,” Omar says.

Aisha’s Story

For a woman named Aisha*, Omar and Amira’s ministry was truly life saving.

A couple from another Middle Eastern country, Aisha and her husband, Hassan*, had met Omar and Amira a decade earlier when they had first moved to the U.S. After two years of not being in contact, Hassan reached out to Omar one day, desperate. “He told me that his wife was under attack,” Omar remembers.

Aisha had been plagued by demonic attacks, and after being hospitalized twice with no physical conditions confirmed by doctors, she had hit a point where she was no longer able to eat or drink for 10 days. Scared his wife was near death, Hassan asked if Omar would be able to pray over her.

Omar and Amira came over to their place and shared the gospel with them for three hours, and then invited Aisha and Hassan to come to their church to be prayed over. A couple nights later at church, they worshipped and shared the gospel again. Omar invited Aisha and Hassan to pray to receive Christ. They prayed together, sitting and crying, as they committed their lives to the Lord. Then, Amira prayed over Aisha for healing and for her to be free from the demonic presence that had been burdening her.

“We asked her how she felt, and she said she felt joy and peace and was so happy for what she received from the Lord,” Omar says. “We asked if she was able to drink, and she finished two bottles of water. The next day, she woke up feeling comforted and peaceful, and she had her first meal in 10 days.”

With her spirit lifted, Aisha shared with her family about how the Lord saved her. After months of losing hope and preparing for death, they felt free! In their joy, Aisha and Hassan prepared a feast, praising the Lord and giving Him glory. Since then, Omar and Amira have continued to disciple them, encouraging them to read the Bible on their own and continue growing in their faith.

“For the first time, Aisha understood that God was her father and that He was for her, not against her,” Omar explains. “Where before, she was terrified and scared, she knew she couldn’t go back to the life she had been living before. The old creation was no longer dragging her back.”

Crossing Barriers for Christ

Through Omar and Amira’s ministry, the nations are being reached powerfully here in the U.S. They’ve seen families praise the Lord for the first time, and have witnessed the Lord build a community centered on the hope of Christ and loving each other as He first loved us. The impact has been generational and transformative: one relationship and prayer at a time.

“When we pray, we allow the presence of God to come to people, and they will experience His presence and the freedom He provides,” Omar says. “We don’t have to go through apologetics. It’s prayers that have crossed barriers because we have given them an encounter with God himself.”

*Names changed for privacy

Discipleship Tip:

One way that Omar and Amira built community and shared the gospel is by meeting the needs of those around them. Look around you — are there any practical needs that you can meet? Think about people in your community that might need resources or help, and consider how you can step in to serve, using that as a building block for relationship to flourish.


Practicing God’s Presence in Prayer

Omar and Amira have seen the Lord work powerfully through prayer, growing their ministry and leading their friends to Christ. Prayer is powerful — and you can also see the Lord work through prayer in your own life. Learn how to seek Christ and a relationship with Him through prayer by checking out The Navigators resource, “Practicing God’s Presence in Prayer.”

LEARN MORE
]]> https://www.navigators.org/blog/prayer-that-crosses-borders-creating-a-refuge-for-the-nations/feed/ 3 Reaching the Nations at Home: ESL Outreach in Houston https://www.navigators.org/blog/reaching-the-nations-at-home-esl-outreach-in-houston/ https://www.navigators.org/blog/reaching-the-nations-at-home-esl-outreach-in-houston/#comments Mon, 24 Mar 2025 18:00:00 +0000 https://www.navigators.org/?p=265927 Sometimes the mission field to reach the nations isn’t across an ocean — it’s in our own backyard.

At least, this is the case for Navigator Bill Voisin and his wife, LesLee. After two decades of being missionaries in Latin America, the Voisins are now reaching a new international community — in Houston, Texas. Working with The Navigators through The La Vida Network and Nations Within ministries, Bill and LesLee are using ESL (English as a Second Language) classes to meet needs and shine the light of Jesus to a global audience.

Life as Missionaries in Venezuela

Growing up, Bill split his time between Mexico and Texas, attending two years of high school in Mexico. Because of his bicultural and bilingual upbringing, he developed a heart for Latin America and a desire to return one day.

Bill and LesLee’s family while they were living in Venezuela.

Moving back to Texas for college, Bill was introduced to The Navigators as a freshman — kicking off a decades-long journey with Navigators ministries. After he graduated, Bill started to work for the Navigators Collegiate ministry in Texas, and during his summers, he would help with summer programs in Mexico.

When Bill and LesLee got married, there was a new Navigators ministry in Venezuela being started. Because of Bill’s Latin American background, they were chosen to be part of the launching team. In 1975, they packed their bags and trusted the Lord as they entered into full-time missions.

“I had originally planned to go back to Mexico and work in agriculture — what I got my degree in,” Bill says. “But God changed my course. We went back to Latin America to plant a different kind of seed.”

In Venezuela, Bill and LesLee started working with university students in Caracas. Many of their students came to know Christ, and as they graduated and moved to the other side of the country to work in the oil industry, the Voisins realized that they wanted to follow them to continue doing Life-to-Life® discipleship with the relationships they cultivated. Heading to Maracaibo, they got involved with a local college ministry and continued to help their young disciples grow.

“Many of them got married, and the only examples they had were their fathers who came home drunk and beat up on their family,” Bill recalls. “So we helped them walk through different phases of their lives, guiding them through life and discipleship and biblical principles.”

Bill and LesLee spent over 20 years in Venezuela before the government announced that foreign missionaries were being expelled from the country. Unable to return to their home, the Voisins had to step into a new chapter of their international ministry: teaching ESL in Houston.

“God was gracious,” Bill says. “We have over 55,000 Venezuelans living here in the Houston area, and right now, some of our key connections are Venezuelans. God brought the mission field to us.”

Using ESL to Create Cross-Cultural Bridges

In Houston, the Voisins have made it their mission to reach the nations through their diverse neighborhood community.

Houston is known for being one of the most multicultural cities in the United States, with the tagline: “Visit Houston and you’ll see the world.” 44 percent of Houston’s population is Hispanic, and almost 30 percent is foreign born — making the city a prime location for forging intercultural relationships.

Upon arriving in Texas, Bill and LesLee kicked off their new ESL outreach ministry. Though their focus is the Hispanic community, they’ve also been able to reach ethnic groups and immigrants from across the globe.

The ESL outreach ministry celebrates Christmas together.

“ESL opens the door to reaching distinct populations regardless of religious backgrounds,” Bill says. “Currently, I am involved with members of several other major world religions, and even secular folks from Russia.”

Leading groups twice a week on Tuesdays and Thursdays with a team of six volunteers from their local church, Bill and LesLee use teaching ESL as a pathway to sharing the gospel and building holistic relationships. Bill uses a program — material published by NavPress called English in Action — that goes through the Bible, while his wife leads a group of international women to read through portions of the Bible.

“We go through the Bible, and we teach them the story of God,” Bill says. “Many of them have become Christians and are now attending local churches.”

Beyond teaching English, the Voisins have been able to show God’s character and love by meeting the present needs of their community and building friendships. From helping with legal problems to assisting couples with finding jobs or inviting families over for dinner, their ministry is personal and relational as they are actively involved in each other’s lives.

“We want to find out where they have a need and show them how God can meet that,” Bill explains. “Many people don’t understand the gospel immediately, but they do understand someone helping them. So we minister through real life situations, and that opens the door to present the gospel.”

A Global Impact

For Bill and LesLee, reaching their neighbors in Houston is reaching the world. As they watch their friends’ lives being transformed for Christ, they’ve seen the impact of spiritual multiplication as these new disciples spread light to their networks, sharing the gospel with their families and homes around the globe.

“God has brought the mission field to us — it’s on our back door,” Bill says. “You could work with any people group here; there’s all kinds of opportunities to reach out. So we’re going to the nations right here in our home.”

Discipleship Tip:

Whether you feel called to go overseas or be present in your home community, you can reach the nations wherever you are. Consider your neighbors and the city you live in — are there unreached people groups in your backyard? Pray about how you can expand your circles and get involved in your community, inviting others to know Christ, make HIm known, and help others do the same®.


Invite Friends to Read the Bible

Bill and LesLee use the Bible as a tool to help people in their ESL classes understand the gospel. Like them, you can invite those in your life to read the Bible with you, creating a space to answer questions and help them know Jesus. To get tips on how to start a Bible conversation with your friend, check out this resource, “Invite Friends to Read the Bible.”

LEARN MORE
]]> Sometimes the mission field to reach the nations isn’t across an ocean — it’s in our own backyard.

At least, this is the case for Navigator Bill Voisin and his wife, LesLee. After two decades of being missionaries in Latin America, the Voisins are now reaching a new international community — in Houston, Texas. Working with The Navigators through The La Vida Network and Nations Within ministries, Bill and LesLee are using ESL (English as a Second Language) classes to meet needs and shine the light of Jesus to a global audience.

Life as Missionaries in Venezuela

Growing up, Bill split his time between Mexico and Texas, attending two years of high school in Mexico. Because of his bicultural and bilingual upbringing, he developed a heart for Latin America and a desire to return one day.

Bill and LesLee’s family while they were living in Venezuela.

Moving back to Texas for college, Bill was introduced to The Navigators as a freshman — kicking off a decades-long journey with Navigators ministries. After he graduated, Bill started to work for the Navigators Collegiate ministry in Texas, and during his summers, he would help with summer programs in Mexico.

When Bill and LesLee got married, there was a new Navigators ministry in Venezuela being started. Because of Bill’s Latin American background, they were chosen to be part of the launching team. In 1975, they packed their bags and trusted the Lord as they entered into full-time missions.

“I had originally planned to go back to Mexico and work in agriculture — what I got my degree in,” Bill says. “But God changed my course. We went back to Latin America to plant a different kind of seed.”

In Venezuela, Bill and LesLee started working with university students in Caracas. Many of their students came to know Christ, and as they graduated and moved to the other side of the country to work in the oil industry, the Voisins realized that they wanted to follow them to continue doing Life-to-Life® discipleship with the relationships they cultivated. Heading to Maracaibo, they got involved with a local college ministry and continued to help their young disciples grow.

“Many of them got married, and the only examples they had were their fathers who came home drunk and beat up on their family,” Bill recalls. “So we helped them walk through different phases of their lives, guiding them through life and discipleship and biblical principles.”

Bill and LesLee spent over 20 years in Venezuela before the government announced that foreign missionaries were being expelled from the country. Unable to return to their home, the Voisins had to step into a new chapter of their international ministry: teaching ESL in Houston.

“God was gracious,” Bill says. “We have over 55,000 Venezuelans living here in the Houston area, and right now, some of our key connections are Venezuelans. God brought the mission field to us.”

Using ESL to Create Cross-Cultural Bridges

In Houston, the Voisins have made it their mission to reach the nations through their diverse neighborhood community.

Houston is known for being one of the most multicultural cities in the United States, with the tagline: “Visit Houston and you’ll see the world.” 44 percent of Houston’s population is Hispanic, and almost 30 percent is foreign born — making the city a prime location for forging intercultural relationships.

Upon arriving in Texas, Bill and LesLee kicked off their new ESL outreach ministry. Though their focus is the Hispanic community, they’ve also been able to reach ethnic groups and immigrants from across the globe.

The ESL outreach ministry celebrates Christmas together.

“ESL opens the door to reaching distinct populations regardless of religious backgrounds,” Bill says. “Currently, I am involved with members of several other major world religions, and even secular folks from Russia.”

Leading groups twice a week on Tuesdays and Thursdays with a team of six volunteers from their local church, Bill and LesLee use teaching ESL as a pathway to sharing the gospel and building holistic relationships. Bill uses a program — material published by NavPress called English in Action — that goes through the Bible, while his wife leads a group of international women to read through portions of the Bible.

“We go through the Bible, and we teach them the story of God,” Bill says. “Many of them have become Christians and are now attending local churches.”

Beyond teaching English, the Voisins have been able to show God’s character and love by meeting the present needs of their community and building friendships. From helping with legal problems to assisting couples with finding jobs or inviting families over for dinner, their ministry is personal and relational as they are actively involved in each other’s lives.

“We want to find out where they have a need and show them how God can meet that,” Bill explains. “Many people don’t understand the gospel immediately, but they do understand someone helping them. So we minister through real life situations, and that opens the door to present the gospel.”

A Global Impact

For Bill and LesLee, reaching their neighbors in Houston is reaching the world. As they watch their friends’ lives being transformed for Christ, they’ve seen the impact of spiritual multiplication as these new disciples spread light to their networks, sharing the gospel with their families and homes around the globe.

“God has brought the mission field to us — it’s on our back door,” Bill says. “You could work with any people group here; there’s all kinds of opportunities to reach out. So we’re going to the nations right here in our home.”

Discipleship Tip:

Whether you feel called to go overseas or be present in your home community, you can reach the nations wherever you are. Consider your neighbors and the city you live in — are there unreached people groups in your backyard? Pray about how you can expand your circles and get involved in your community, inviting others to know Christ, make HIm known, and help others do the same®.


Invite Friends to Read the Bible

Bill and LesLee use the Bible as a tool to help people in their ESL classes understand the gospel. Like them, you can invite those in your life to read the Bible with you, creating a space to answer questions and help them know Jesus. To get tips on how to start a Bible conversation with your friend, check out this resource, “Invite Friends to Read the Bible.”

LEARN MORE
]]> https://www.navigators.org/blog/reaching-the-nations-at-home-esl-outreach-in-houston/feed/ 5 Nations Within: How God is Moving in Middle Eastern Communities https://www.navigators.org/blog/nations-within-how-god-is-moving-in-middle-eastern-communities/ https://www.navigators.org/blog/nations-within-how-god-is-moving-in-middle-eastern-communities/#comments Mon, 17 Jun 2024 18:00:00 +0000 https://www.navigators.org/?p=263937 It took Ali over five years to discover a Bible.

Raised in the Middle East, Ali grew up in a family with no access to Christianity. Though he had heard of Jesus as a prophet who is a healer and a miracle worker, Bibles were strictly forbidden, especially after a military movement swept into the country. However, Ali was curious about Christianity, having called upon Jesus for healing in the past, and he had a deep desire in his heart to know more about Him. 

Two sets of hands that are wrapped around each other in prayer. One set of hands has Indian style henna designs.

At the time, the military movement had cut off TV and radio programs, so there was no way to hear from the outside world. One day, though, Ali climbed to the top of a mountain so that he could seek a signal for his radio. He was having trouble finding a station, when all of a sudden, he picked one up — a Christian radio show playing worship music and sharing Bible stories.

“God directed me to one channel that I connected with — it was a Christian channel, and as I listened, it was interesting and beautiful,” Ali recalls. “All I loved was the music and the story, but it was so clear that God provided this opportunity for me when I was desperately looking for something.”

Ali went searching for a Bible, but he couldn’t find one in his country. Knowing he wouldn’t be able to learn more in his home country, he decided to look elsewhere. He left his home in 2005, and it took him five years of traveling and walking from country to country to discover a small Christian community, where he finally gave his life to Christ. “I found the Bible and started studying and learning, and I discovered things that I always felt like I wanted, needed,” Ali says. “I fell in love with Jesus.”

While he was away from his home country, Ali applied for refugee asylum, and he eventually made his way to the United States in 2009. After moving to Colorado Springs in 2017, he met The Navigators at a Nations Within collaborative ministry event in the city.

After a year of spending time with the Navigators, Ali said, “I want to be a Navigator.”  At first, Navigators staff tried to talk him out of it, since he’d have to fundraise. But he replied, “I can trust God, who got me out of the Middle East. I can trust Him again to do this job.”

Ali joined The Navigators Nations Within staff in 2020 to start a ministry reaching other refugees in Seattle with his wife, Sierra. While there, Ali connected with another Christian refugee from his homeland named Latif, who soon after also joined the staff of Nations Within to reach the refugee community in Memphis. 

The fruit of both of their ministries has been abundant and multiplying disciples, reaching far beyond Seattle and Memphis to bring Jesus to those who have little to no access — men and women back in the Middle East.

Uplifting Middle Eastern Communities in the United States

In Ali and Latif’s different ministries, there is a specific way they build community and reach people for Jesus — meeting needs, hearing stories, and healing past hurts.

“You are working with people who have been used, tortured, manipulated, or hurt physically, mentally, or spiritually,” Ali says. “Some have never experienced love or compassion from others, even their parents, because of where they grew up. They may have different perspectives that require you to love them, serve them, be patient, and see where God is leading.”

In Seattle, Ali serves Middle Eastern refugees and families by helping them find jobs, communities, housing, schools, and more. By meeting physical needs, he creates a starting point for relationships and trust to grow, eventually leading others to Christ. 

Just one of the many stories of this occurring was several months ago, when a couple from the Middle East came into Washington with no place to stay. Ali connected with them and found a family from his church to take the couple into their home. Eventually, they learned the couple’s story — they had run from their home country and desperately needed community. Ali and the church continued to share the gospel and love the couple by serving and providing for them, and after a few months, the Lord opened their hearts. The husband and wife accepted Christ and were baptized!

“You are working with a minority group coming from harsh places here in the United States,” Ali says. “But by continuing to help them, talk, and work with them, they will reach a point where they get healed. They will receive love and become more and more comfortable. They will love you, hold you, count on you. And God can do some significant things through them.”

Similarly, Latif creates a safe space for Middle Eastern refugees in Memphis to connect and create community. Whether it’s Saturday night soccer games or inviting women into his family’s home for tea, Latif will welcome others in and create relationships where he can share the gospel. 

“We love them and serve them, and now we have a very good friendship with them,” Latif says. “It’s not easy, but we see the word of God work in our ministry. We started with three people here in our church, but now we have about 40 Middle Eastern believers meeting every Sunday.”

How God is Moving Across the World

The beauty of Ali and Latif’s ministry is that they have extended their work to not only reach those in the United States, but their families and communities back in their home country. 

Ali currently splits his time by creating schools and work for Middle Eastern women who are not allowed to be educated or have public jobs. Currently, he and his team have provided education for over 1,000 girls and job opportunities for 300 women, employing them to make beautiful lamb’s wool rugs that are hand-dyed with berries. 

Latif is also reaching people across the Middle East through media channels, much like the radio station that Ali found when he was young. Twice a week for an hour, he broadcasts the gospel, and they often get calls and messages from people around the world with questions or who are praising God. This has led to over 20 virtual Bible studies, led by Latif and his team, that are currently happening in home churches in the Middle East. 

“We are building a community of believers inside the Middle East, providing an opportunity to answer their questions, share the gospel with them, and send them whatever they need,” Ali says. “For me, 20 years ago, I was desperately looking for a Bible or a Christian to tell me who Jesus is. We want that to be available for other people, too, whether in the Middle East or the United States.”

A Light in Dark Places

The work that Ali and Latif are doing with the Middle Eastern community has inspired others to step up and do similar ministries across the country, from Louisville, Kentucky to Dallas, Texas. The work has grown to four locations and almost 10 staff working with those from the Middle East, and they have seen over 200 people come to Christ that Nations Within can count, both in the States and across the world. 

For Ali, the spread of the gospel makes sense. After all, light shines brightest in the darkest of places. 

“It’s been a very unfortunate time inside of the Middle East — people are grieving, and it is dark there,” he says. “But because it is dark, people are desperate for light. Christ’s light is shining brighter and brighter, and when they see it, they have questions and want to be around it.” 
If you feel called to support Ali and Latif’s ministry, you can both come alongside them in prayer and become a partner monetarily by offering a gift to our Nations Within ministry.


Discipleship Tip:

Ali and Latif excel at building trust in relationships, listening to people’s stories and meeting their tangible needs. Think about how you can build trust with non-believers in your circles. Are you listening well to where they are coming from, learning about their past experiences and what they might need? Getting to know people well — and letting them know you — can be the best first step to sharing the gospel and introducing them to Jesus.

How to Impact Your Community

Ali and Latif have made a significant impact in their communities by serving others, loving them well, and sharing the gospel. How can you be a good neighbor in your communities? Learn how you can make meaningful discipleship relationships in our resource, “Share God’s Love With Your Neighbors.”

DOWNLOAD NOW
]]> It took Ali over five years to discover a Bible.

Raised in the Middle East, Ali grew up in a family with no access to Christianity. Though he had heard of Jesus as a prophet who is a healer and a miracle worker, Bibles were strictly forbidden, especially after a military movement swept into the country. However, Ali was curious about Christianity, having called upon Jesus for healing in the past, and he had a deep desire in his heart to know more about Him. 

Two sets of hands that are wrapped around each other in prayer. One set of hands has Indian style henna designs.

At the time, the military movement had cut off TV and radio programs, so there was no way to hear from the outside world. One day, though, Ali climbed to the top of a mountain so that he could seek a signal for his radio. He was having trouble finding a station, when all of a sudden, he picked one up — a Christian radio show playing worship music and sharing Bible stories.

“God directed me to one channel that I connected with — it was a Christian channel, and as I listened, it was interesting and beautiful,” Ali recalls. “All I loved was the music and the story, but it was so clear that God provided this opportunity for me when I was desperately looking for something.”

Ali went searching for a Bible, but he couldn’t find one in his country. Knowing he wouldn’t be able to learn more in his home country, he decided to look elsewhere. He left his home in 2005, and it took him five years of traveling and walking from country to country to discover a small Christian community, where he finally gave his life to Christ. “I found the Bible and started studying and learning, and I discovered things that I always felt like I wanted, needed,” Ali says. “I fell in love with Jesus.”

While he was away from his home country, Ali applied for refugee asylum, and he eventually made his way to the United States in 2009. After moving to Colorado Springs in 2017, he met The Navigators at a Nations Within collaborative ministry event in the city.

After a year of spending time with the Navigators, Ali said, “I want to be a Navigator.”  At first, Navigators staff tried to talk him out of it, since he’d have to fundraise. But he replied, “I can trust God, who got me out of the Middle East. I can trust Him again to do this job.”

Ali joined The Navigators Nations Within staff in 2020 to start a ministry reaching other refugees in Seattle with his wife, Sierra. While there, Ali connected with another Christian refugee from his homeland named Latif, who soon after also joined the staff of Nations Within to reach the refugee community in Memphis. 

The fruit of both of their ministries has been abundant and multiplying disciples, reaching far beyond Seattle and Memphis to bring Jesus to those who have little to no access — men and women back in the Middle East.

Uplifting Middle Eastern Communities in the United States

In Ali and Latif’s different ministries, there is a specific way they build community and reach people for Jesus — meeting needs, hearing stories, and healing past hurts.

“You are working with people who have been used, tortured, manipulated, or hurt physically, mentally, or spiritually,” Ali says. “Some have never experienced love or compassion from others, even their parents, because of where they grew up. They may have different perspectives that require you to love them, serve them, be patient, and see where God is leading.”

In Seattle, Ali serves Middle Eastern refugees and families by helping them find jobs, communities, housing, schools, and more. By meeting physical needs, he creates a starting point for relationships and trust to grow, eventually leading others to Christ. 

Just one of the many stories of this occurring was several months ago, when a couple from the Middle East came into Washington with no place to stay. Ali connected with them and found a family from his church to take the couple into their home. Eventually, they learned the couple’s story — they had run from their home country and desperately needed community. Ali and the church continued to share the gospel and love the couple by serving and providing for them, and after a few months, the Lord opened their hearts. The husband and wife accepted Christ and were baptized!

“You are working with a minority group coming from harsh places here in the United States,” Ali says. “But by continuing to help them, talk, and work with them, they will reach a point where they get healed. They will receive love and become more and more comfortable. They will love you, hold you, count on you. And God can do some significant things through them.”

Similarly, Latif creates a safe space for Middle Eastern refugees in Memphis to connect and create community. Whether it’s Saturday night soccer games or inviting women into his family’s home for tea, Latif will welcome others in and create relationships where he can share the gospel. 

“We love them and serve them, and now we have a very good friendship with them,” Latif says. “It’s not easy, but we see the word of God work in our ministry. We started with three people here in our church, but now we have about 40 Middle Eastern believers meeting every Sunday.”

How God is Moving Across the World

The beauty of Ali and Latif’s ministry is that they have extended their work to not only reach those in the United States, but their families and communities back in their home country. 

Ali currently splits his time by creating schools and work for Middle Eastern women who are not allowed to be educated or have public jobs. Currently, he and his team have provided education for over 1,000 girls and job opportunities for 300 women, employing them to make beautiful lamb’s wool rugs that are hand-dyed with berries. 

Latif is also reaching people across the Middle East through media channels, much like the radio station that Ali found when he was young. Twice a week for an hour, he broadcasts the gospel, and they often get calls and messages from people around the world with questions or who are praising God. This has led to over 20 virtual Bible studies, led by Latif and his team, that are currently happening in home churches in the Middle East. 

“We are building a community of believers inside the Middle East, providing an opportunity to answer their questions, share the gospel with them, and send them whatever they need,” Ali says. “For me, 20 years ago, I was desperately looking for a Bible or a Christian to tell me who Jesus is. We want that to be available for other people, too, whether in the Middle East or the United States.”

A Light in Dark Places

The work that Ali and Latif are doing with the Middle Eastern community has inspired others to step up and do similar ministries across the country, from Louisville, Kentucky to Dallas, Texas. The work has grown to four locations and almost 10 staff working with those from the Middle East, and they have seen over 200 people come to Christ that Nations Within can count, both in the States and across the world. 

For Ali, the spread of the gospel makes sense. After all, light shines brightest in the darkest of places. 

“It’s been a very unfortunate time inside of the Middle East — people are grieving, and it is dark there,” he says. “But because it is dark, people are desperate for light. Christ’s light is shining brighter and brighter, and when they see it, they have questions and want to be around it.” 
If you feel called to support Ali and Latif’s ministry, you can both come alongside them in prayer and become a partner monetarily by offering a gift to our Nations Within ministry.


Discipleship Tip:

Ali and Latif excel at building trust in relationships, listening to people’s stories and meeting their tangible needs. Think about how you can build trust with non-believers in your circles. Are you listening well to where they are coming from, learning about their past experiences and what they might need? Getting to know people well — and letting them know you — can be the best first step to sharing the gospel and introducing them to Jesus.

How to Impact Your Community

Ali and Latif have made a significant impact in their communities by serving others, loving them well, and sharing the gospel. How can you be a good neighbor in your communities? Learn how you can make meaningful discipleship relationships in our resource, “Share God’s Love With Your Neighbors.”

DOWNLOAD NOW
]]> https://www.navigators.org/blog/nations-within-how-god-is-moving-in-middle-eastern-communities/feed/ 4 Life-to-Life Discipleship: From a Google Search to the Ends of the Earth https://www.navigators.org/blog/life-to-life-discipleship-from-a-google-search-to-the-ends-of-the-earth/ https://www.navigators.org/blog/life-to-life-discipleship-from-a-google-search-to-the-ends-of-the-earth/#comments Mon, 08 Apr 2024 06:00:00 +0000 https://www.navigators.org/?p=263318 Jesus’ Great Commission gives all believers the responsibility to spread the good news of the gospel to the ends of the earth (Matthew 28:19-20). For centuries, we’ve seen the world powerfully reached through missionaries and church planting. However, in recent years, with the rise of technological advancements, a new and unexpected way to reach the nations has emerged — through digital networks.

A man on a web call engaging in a discipleship learning community online.

Yusuf* is a pastor living with his family in a country in Southeast Asia. Though it is not illegal to be a Christian in his homeland, he is forbidden from openly evangelizing, and Christianity is certainly not valued or affirmed in the culture.

Despite the opposition of his surroundings, Yusuf was seeking new ways to teach and disciple young believers in his community. Many of the young adults around him were feeling discouraged and worn down, wondering what’s the point of being a Christian when everyone else is involved in a different religion. He wanted to spur on the next generation, building them up to live out their faith even when it is challenging.

One day, Yusuf got on the internet and put in a Google search for “discipleship.” A resource from The Navigators popped up in the results, and he discovered The Navigators Digital Discipleship Journey® (DDJ) course, a series of eight to 13 emails designed to inspire and equip believers to grow spiritually and help others do the same. Yusuf signed up for the DDJ, completed the course over a number of weeks, and then requested to connect with a Navigator at the end of the journey.

A Digital Connection for Discipleship

This connected Yusuf with Navigator John Hess, the director of Nations Within (a Navigators ministry that focuses on people within the United States whose primary, national identity is distinct from majority culture), whom Yusuf began connecting with over video. After a couple virtual meetings, John and his wife Liz decided to visit Yusuf’s family in person in Southeast Asia for five days. The timing couldn’t have been better, as they were returning from The Navigators International Staff Conference overseas, where they met other disciplemakers from Yusuf’s part of the world. During his visit, John learned more about Yusuf’s family, culture, and passion to know Christ and make Him known.

“Yusuf moved out of his neighborhood to live in a community that is more hostile to Christianity, which is very unheard of for Christians there,” John explains. “So they’re learning how to live in that community and love them well. It’s the cost of true discipleship.”

Reaching the Ends of the Earth

John has continued to follow up with Yusuf in the months since his visit, and he’s been encouraged to see how — through one simple Google search — the Lord has instilled a heart of discipleship for new places and people.

“When The Navigators launched the Digital Discipleship Journey email course, I don’t know if we had the ends of the earth in mind,” John says. “But He put it on a believer’s heart to research us, and we are in a place where the ends of the earth are coming true. Not because we are perfectly getting into these lost places, but because God is already working there.”

*Names changed for privacy

Start Your Digital Discipleship Journey

To date, over 45,000 everyday people around the world have completed The Navigators Digital Discipleship Journey, connecting believers like Yusuf with Navigators like John in amazing ways. The rise of new digital networks has opened creative pathways and opportunities for discipleship to happen on a global scale that’s never been done before. 

With the Digital Discipleship Journey, you have access to:

  • A series of eight to 13 weekly emails designed to help you grow spiritually, curated based on your answers to some brief questions about your walk with God
  • Newly designed versions of our most popular discipleship resources and some brand new ones!
  • Advice on how to use these easy-to-use resources to help friends become gripped by the gospel and begin their own adventure with God
  • Power-packed biblical truth that will boost your faith and help you bring others on the journey
SIGN UP TODAY
]]> Jesus’ Great Commission gives all believers the responsibility to spread the good news of the gospel to the ends of the earth (Matthew 28:19-20). For centuries, we’ve seen the world powerfully reached through missionaries and church planting. However, in recent years, with the rise of technological advancements, a new and unexpected way to reach the nations has emerged — through digital networks.

A man on a web call engaging in a discipleship learning community online.

Yusuf* is a pastor living with his family in a country in Southeast Asia. Though it is not illegal to be a Christian in his homeland, he is forbidden from openly evangelizing, and Christianity is certainly not valued or affirmed in the culture.

Despite the opposition of his surroundings, Yusuf was seeking new ways to teach and disciple young believers in his community. Many of the young adults around him were feeling discouraged and worn down, wondering what’s the point of being a Christian when everyone else is involved in a different religion. He wanted to spur on the next generation, building them up to live out their faith even when it is challenging.

One day, Yusuf got on the internet and put in a Google search for “discipleship.” A resource from The Navigators popped up in the results, and he discovered The Navigators Digital Discipleship Journey® (DDJ) course, a series of eight to 13 emails designed to inspire and equip believers to grow spiritually and help others do the same. Yusuf signed up for the DDJ, completed the course over a number of weeks, and then requested to connect with a Navigator at the end of the journey.

A Digital Connection for Discipleship

This connected Yusuf with Navigator John Hess, the director of Nations Within (a Navigators ministry that focuses on people within the United States whose primary, national identity is distinct from majority culture), whom Yusuf began connecting with over video. After a couple virtual meetings, John and his wife Liz decided to visit Yusuf’s family in person in Southeast Asia for five days. The timing couldn’t have been better, as they were returning from The Navigators International Staff Conference overseas, where they met other disciplemakers from Yusuf’s part of the world. During his visit, John learned more about Yusuf’s family, culture, and passion to know Christ and make Him known.

“Yusuf moved out of his neighborhood to live in a community that is more hostile to Christianity, which is very unheard of for Christians there,” John explains. “So they’re learning how to live in that community and love them well. It’s the cost of true discipleship.”

Reaching the Ends of the Earth

John has continued to follow up with Yusuf in the months since his visit, and he’s been encouraged to see how — through one simple Google search — the Lord has instilled a heart of discipleship for new places and people.

“When The Navigators launched the Digital Discipleship Journey email course, I don’t know if we had the ends of the earth in mind,” John says. “But He put it on a believer’s heart to research us, and we are in a place where the ends of the earth are coming true. Not because we are perfectly getting into these lost places, but because God is already working there.”

*Names changed for privacy

Start Your Digital Discipleship Journey

To date, over 45,000 everyday people around the world have completed The Navigators Digital Discipleship Journey, connecting believers like Yusuf with Navigators like John in amazing ways. The rise of new digital networks has opened creative pathways and opportunities for discipleship to happen on a global scale that’s never been done before. 

With the Digital Discipleship Journey, you have access to:

  • A series of eight to 13 weekly emails designed to help you grow spiritually, curated based on your answers to some brief questions about your walk with God
  • Newly designed versions of our most popular discipleship resources and some brand new ones!
  • Advice on how to use these easy-to-use resources to help friends become gripped by the gospel and begin their own adventure with God
  • Power-packed biblical truth that will boost your faith and help you bring others on the journey
SIGN UP TODAY
]]> https://www.navigators.org/blog/life-to-life-discipleship-from-a-google-search-to-the-ends-of-the-earth/feed/ 1 A Weekend of Inspiration at the 2023 National Staff Gathering https://www.navigators.org/blog/a-weekend-of-inspiration-at-the-2023-national-staff-gathering/ https://www.navigators.org/blog/a-weekend-of-inspiration-at-the-2023-national-staff-gathering/#comments Mon, 18 Dec 2023 19:00:00 +0000 https://www.navigators.org/?p=262117 Imagine this — you’re in a large room filled with people. A speaker asks everyone to pull out their phones to find a photo of someone they’ve discipled or are discipling. You look around and every person in the room is holding up their devices, pictures of those they’ve led to Christ showcased on their screens. 

The glow of thousands of faces lights up the room, a powerful testament to the spread of the gospel from generation to generation. 

Many Navigators staff hold up their phones, showing people who they have discipled in the past.
A team leads worship on stage at The Navigators National Staff Gathering.
Two women embrace each other and smile at the camera.
Navigators staff sit around a table at the National Staff Gathering.
A group of men sit together at The Navigators National Staff Gathering.

This was one of the many special moments from The Navigators 2023 National Staff Gathering.

Last month, over 1,300 Navigator staff came together in Irving, Texas. The theme of the weekend was Heartbeat: A Vital Movement of the Gospel, focusing on 2 Timothy 2:1-2: “Be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others” (NIV).

The gathering held five plenary sessions, which were designed to inspire, uplift, and challenge staff attendees to continue the work to which they’ve been called. Staff heard insights on the Lord’s vision for grace, necessary aspects of prayer, and how He works through each and every one of us to reach the nations and spread His mission.  

Staff members also enjoyed times of fun and laughter, along with encouraging ministry stories from new and old friends, breakouts to equip and multiply disciplemakers, precious times of prayer and worship, and motivational messages from fellow Navigators and international leaders. 

For many, the National Staff Gathering was a reminder of why they became Navigators — to be a part of a vital movement of the gospel by connecting, resourcing, and developing everyday disciplemakers. 

Though this conference looked back over the past four years since our last National Staff Gathering, we also took time to look forward to the work that is ahead of us as a ministry. You can partner with us as we continue this work for years to come! 

Pray that the Lord works through The Navigators to reach the unreached and create new disciplemakers. Come alongside us to spread the gospel and disciple those in your circles, from family members to coworkers to neighbors and beyond.

Whether you serve on staff or through your everyday life, we are excited to see how the Lord moves through this next season of ministry!

“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” Matthew 5:14-16 (NIV).

Discipleship Tip:  

Pull out your phone and find a photo of someone you’re discipling or have discipled. Pray for that person and reach out to offer them encouragement.

3 Ways To Help Someone Grow Spiritually

Would you like to invite someone to follow Jesus with you, but aren’t quite sure where to begin? Depending on where they are on their faith journey, here are three ways you can encourage someone in their faith. Click the link below to download your copy of “3 Ways To Help Someone Grow Spiritually” resource and be encouraged and equipped to take your next step as a disciplemaker.

DOWNLOAD NOW

]]> Imagine this — you’re in a large room filled with people. A speaker asks everyone to pull out their phones to find a photo of someone they’ve discipled or are discipling. You look around and every person in the room is holding up their devices, pictures of those they’ve led to Christ showcased on their screens. 

The glow of thousands of faces lights up the room, a powerful testament to the spread of the gospel from generation to generation. 

Many Navigators staff hold up their phones, showing people who they have discipled in the past.
A team leads worship on stage at The Navigators National Staff Gathering.
Two women embrace each other and smile at the camera.
Navigators staff sit around a table at the National Staff Gathering.
A group of men sit together at The Navigators National Staff Gathering.

This was one of the many special moments from The Navigators 2023 National Staff Gathering.

Last month, over 1,300 Navigator staff came together in Irving, Texas. The theme of the weekend was Heartbeat: A Vital Movement of the Gospel, focusing on 2 Timothy 2:1-2: “Be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable people who will also be qualified to teach others” (NIV).

The gathering held five plenary sessions, which were designed to inspire, uplift, and challenge staff attendees to continue the work to which they’ve been called. Staff heard insights on the Lord’s vision for grace, necessary aspects of prayer, and how He works through each and every one of us to reach the nations and spread His mission.  

Staff members also enjoyed times of fun and laughter, along with encouraging ministry stories from new and old friends, breakouts to equip and multiply disciplemakers, precious times of prayer and worship, and motivational messages from fellow Navigators and international leaders. 

For many, the National Staff Gathering was a reminder of why they became Navigators — to be a part of a vital movement of the gospel by connecting, resourcing, and developing everyday disciplemakers. 

Though this conference looked back over the past four years since our last National Staff Gathering, we also took time to look forward to the work that is ahead of us as a ministry. You can partner with us as we continue this work for years to come! 

Pray that the Lord works through The Navigators to reach the unreached and create new disciplemakers. Come alongside us to spread the gospel and disciple those in your circles, from family members to coworkers to neighbors and beyond.

Whether you serve on staff or through your everyday life, we are excited to see how the Lord moves through this next season of ministry!

“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” Matthew 5:14-16 (NIV).

Discipleship Tip:  

Pull out your phone and find a photo of someone you’re discipling or have discipled. Pray for that person and reach out to offer them encouragement.

3 Ways To Help Someone Grow Spiritually

Would you like to invite someone to follow Jesus with you, but aren’t quite sure where to begin? Depending on where they are on their faith journey, here are three ways you can encourage someone in their faith. Click the link below to download your copy of “3 Ways To Help Someone Grow Spiritually” resource and be encouraged and equipped to take your next step as a disciplemaker.

DOWNLOAD NOW

]]> https://www.navigators.org/blog/a-weekend-of-inspiration-at-the-2023-national-staff-gathering/feed/ 2 Invest In A Few https://www.navigators.org/blog/invest-in-a-few/ https://www.navigators.org/blog/invest-in-a-few/#comments Fri, 22 Apr 2022 22:13:25 +0000 https://www.navigators.org/?p=257093 By Kyle Hooper, Navigators Military

When we read the gospels and observe Jesus’ life and ministry we most often notice what he did for the crowds.

He taught them, fed them, healed them, and even John noted that if every work Jesus did while on this earth was written down, the world could not contain the books that would be written (John 21:25). There’s no question that Jesus had and still has a heart for the world! 

Because of that, it comes as a surprise to many that amidst all that Jesus did for the masses He spent approximately 85% of His time with just 12 men.

It wasn’t because of a lack of care for the masses that Jesus focused on the few…but rather quite the opposite!

Jesus focused on the few for the sake of the many! His method for reaching the world was through building deeply into a select few and teaching them to do the same.

Jesus loved everyone, helped many, but invested in just a few. If we hope to take the gospel to the ends of the earth His method must also become our method.

“Ask God to give you one.” The same challenge that Dawson Trotman gave to Les Spencer in 1933 that started The Navigators can be our starting point today.

]]> By Kyle Hooper, Navigators Military

When we read the gospels and observe Jesus’ life and ministry we most often notice what he did for the crowds.

He taught them, fed them, healed them, and even John noted that if every work Jesus did while on this earth was written down, the world could not contain the books that would be written (John 21:25). There’s no question that Jesus had and still has a heart for the world! 

Because of that, it comes as a surprise to many that amidst all that Jesus did for the masses He spent approximately 85% of His time with just 12 men.

It wasn’t because of a lack of care for the masses that Jesus focused on the few…but rather quite the opposite!

Jesus focused on the few for the sake of the many! His method for reaching the world was through building deeply into a select few and teaching them to do the same.

Jesus loved everyone, helped many, but invested in just a few. If we hope to take the gospel to the ends of the earth His method must also become our method.

“Ask God to give you one.” The same challenge that Dawson Trotman gave to Les Spencer in 1933 that started The Navigators can be our starting point today.

]]> https://www.navigators.org/blog/invest-in-a-few/feed/ 3 The Punch that Re-directed Abdul’s Life https://www.navigators.org/blog/punch-redirected-abdul/ https://www.navigators.org/blog/punch-redirected-abdul/#comments Mon, 29 Nov 2021 19:00:45 +0000 https://www.navigators.org/?p=255387 One night Abdul* was at a party with a group of friends. Even though he had decided as a teenager to follow Jesus, and went to church on Sundays, the rest of the week he wasn’t living out his faith. It was about 3 a.m. when he started talking to a girl at the party. He didn’t know that she had a boyfriend who was a football player. Her boyfriend came in from another room and saw Abdul talking to his girlfriend and punched Abdul so hard he broke his jaw and fell to the ground.

As he was falling to the ground it felt like time slowed down. He heard the voice of God, “I’ve brought you out from a war-torn country and an abusive father and put amazing people in your life. You are not pursuing me like I have pursued you.”

His friends took him to the emergency room where he had an x-ray to see the extent of his injury. While Abdul was waiting to see the doctor, he and his friends were laughing in the waiting room. The doctor came to talk to Abdul with the x-ray in her hand and waved it in his face and said, “Do you know how lucky you are to be alive? If he had hit you two centimeters higher he would have pushed into your brain and you would be dead.”

The Punch that Re-directed Abdul’s Life | The Navigators Nations Within | Job interview of male apprentice with businessman at office

After this radical experience, Abdul decided he wanted to know more about God. Abdul says, “I had been so stubborn, I wanted to have my Christian life and my party and gang life. But after I almost died, I wanted to learn more about God and to hear His voice. Also, even though my party friends took me to the hospital, during my long recovery from my broken jaw, they didn’t come around more. But my Christian mentors and friends did come to me and encourage me.” 

Abdul had first met Christians when he was 9 years old, in 2009, when he and his mom and siblings came as refugees to the United States from a war-torn country in the Middle East. The other refugees they met in Syracuse, New York told them that there was a church that would give them furniture and blankets for their apartment. Since they didn’t have anything, they decided to go to the church for a few things.

Abdul described how it felt there, “Once we went into the church, I felt an overwhelming sense of peace and calm. Coming from a war zone and growing up with abuse and neglect, I had never felt that kind of peace before. Everyone was so happy to see us and made us feel welcome. Originally, we just wanted to go to the church to get their help, but they were so kind, we kept going back. There was one older couple who would come visit us regularly and it felt like they became part of our family. They didn’t push their faith on us, but after several years I asked them why they were helping us and why they seemed peaceful and happy. They told me about Jesus. I had already decided that I wanted to have whatever they had in their life, and I realized that what I was missing was Jesus.”

Eventually Abdul and his mom and siblings moved to Detroit. There he met John Kirby (Navigators Nations Within) through a local soccer league. “Most of the other players practiced the religion I had known growing up, but I told John that I was a Christian. We became friends and I went to his church and started learning more about Jesus. But I still wasn’t wholehearted in my commitment, and I spent time with my partying friends, which got me into trouble. Yet John and other Christian mentors were there for me.

“As I was recovering from my broken jaw, I decided to follow God with my whole life, I attended a discipleship and evangelism training program another mentor had suggested. Now that I am back from that training, I am living in a house which is a home for refugees, some of whom practice other religions. Now I have a purpose in my life, to model Christ in the same way my mentors did for me when I was younger. I want to point people toward Jesus as the only hope for life.” 

*Name changed.

]]> One night Abdul* was at a party with a group of friends. Even though he had decided as a teenager to follow Jesus, and went to church on Sundays, the rest of the week he wasn’t living out his faith. It was about 3 a.m. when he started talking to a girl at the party. He didn’t know that she had a boyfriend who was a football player. Her boyfriend came in from another room and saw Abdul talking to his girlfriend and punched Abdul so hard he broke his jaw and fell to the ground.

As he was falling to the ground it felt like time slowed down. He heard the voice of God, “I’ve brought you out from a war-torn country and an abusive father and put amazing people in your life. You are not pursuing me like I have pursued you.”

His friends took him to the emergency room where he had an x-ray to see the extent of his injury. While Abdul was waiting to see the doctor, he and his friends were laughing in the waiting room. The doctor came to talk to Abdul with the x-ray in her hand and waved it in his face and said, “Do you know how lucky you are to be alive? If he had hit you two centimeters higher he would have pushed into your brain and you would be dead.”

The Punch that Re-directed Abdul’s Life | The Navigators Nations Within | Job interview of male apprentice with businessman at office

After this radical experience, Abdul decided he wanted to know more about God. Abdul says, “I had been so stubborn, I wanted to have my Christian life and my party and gang life. But after I almost died, I wanted to learn more about God and to hear His voice. Also, even though my party friends took me to the hospital, during my long recovery from my broken jaw, they didn’t come around more. But my Christian mentors and friends did come to me and encourage me.” 

Abdul had first met Christians when he was 9 years old, in 2009, when he and his mom and siblings came as refugees to the United States from a war-torn country in the Middle East. The other refugees they met in Syracuse, New York told them that there was a church that would give them furniture and blankets for their apartment. Since they didn’t have anything, they decided to go to the church for a few things.

Abdul described how it felt there, “Once we went into the church, I felt an overwhelming sense of peace and calm. Coming from a war zone and growing up with abuse and neglect, I had never felt that kind of peace before. Everyone was so happy to see us and made us feel welcome. Originally, we just wanted to go to the church to get their help, but they were so kind, we kept going back. There was one older couple who would come visit us regularly and it felt like they became part of our family. They didn’t push their faith on us, but after several years I asked them why they were helping us and why they seemed peaceful and happy. They told me about Jesus. I had already decided that I wanted to have whatever they had in their life, and I realized that what I was missing was Jesus.”

Eventually Abdul and his mom and siblings moved to Detroit. There he met John Kirby (Navigators Nations Within) through a local soccer league. “Most of the other players practiced the religion I had known growing up, but I told John that I was a Christian. We became friends and I went to his church and started learning more about Jesus. But I still wasn’t wholehearted in my commitment, and I spent time with my partying friends, which got me into trouble. Yet John and other Christian mentors were there for me.

“As I was recovering from my broken jaw, I decided to follow God with my whole life, I attended a discipleship and evangelism training program another mentor had suggested. Now that I am back from that training, I am living in a house which is a home for refugees, some of whom practice other religions. Now I have a purpose in my life, to model Christ in the same way my mentors did for me when I was younger. I want to point people toward Jesus as the only hope for life.” 

*Name changed.

]]> https://www.navigators.org/blog/punch-redirected-abdul/feed/ 1 A Life Transformed Over 20 Years https://www.navigators.org/blog/a-life-transformed-over-20-years/ https://www.navigators.org/blog/a-life-transformed-over-20-years/#comments Mon, 26 Oct 2020 18:01:03 +0000 https://www.navigators.org/?p=71688 By Pedro Cuadro

About 20 years ago I met Armando and Liset Diaz (Navigators Nations Within and Director of Navigators LaVida Network). I was married at that time and I remember having conversations with Armando about spiritual topics. I always told him that I was a good person and did not feel a need for God in my life. Then I went through two broken relationships and was left without a connection to my daughter, whom I love so much. I felt like my world fell apart.

Armando, Pedro, and Juanel

As my friendship with Armando grew, I was open to receive what God had to tell me. We started to meet for Life-to-Life® disci­pleship. I started reading the Bible, praying, and attending church. My life began to be healed and transformed. God opened the door for me to travel from my home in Havana, Cuba, to Mexico for an exhibition of my paintings. A few weeks later, I traveled to Texas and asked for political asylum. Armando and I continued having long distance discipleship conversations through those years.

I learned how to be a man of God and, when I was ready, I met a wonderful and godly woman. Juanel and I started dating and got married a year later. It was hard in the beginning because we were from different cultures and had to make adjustments, but Armando was again a great help during this process. I was able to learn how to be a loving husband and servant leader to my wife.

I am so thankful that I met Jesus and that I have such a wonderful friend in Armando who not only led me to the Lord, but also took time to disciple, mentor, and coach me through all of these years!

Pray that God will continue to use Navigators around the world to offer the hope of Jesus!

]]> By Pedro Cuadro

About 20 years ago I met Armando and Liset Diaz (Navigators Nations Within and Director of Navigators LaVida Network). I was married at that time and I remember having conversations with Armando about spiritual topics. I always told him that I was a good person and did not feel a need for God in my life. Then I went through two broken relationships and was left without a connection to my daughter, whom I love so much. I felt like my world fell apart.

Armando, Pedro, and Juanel

As my friendship with Armando grew, I was open to receive what God had to tell me. We started to meet for Life-to-Life® disci­pleship. I started reading the Bible, praying, and attending church. My life began to be healed and transformed. God opened the door for me to travel from my home in Havana, Cuba, to Mexico for an exhibition of my paintings. A few weeks later, I traveled to Texas and asked for political asylum. Armando and I continued having long distance discipleship conversations through those years.

I learned how to be a man of God and, when I was ready, I met a wonderful and godly woman. Juanel and I started dating and got married a year later. It was hard in the beginning because we were from different cultures and had to make adjustments, but Armando was again a great help during this process. I was able to learn how to be a loving husband and servant leader to my wife.

I am so thankful that I met Jesus and that I have such a wonderful friend in Armando who not only led me to the Lord, but also took time to disciple, mentor, and coach me through all of these years!

Pray that God will continue to use Navigators around the world to offer the hope of Jesus!

]]> https://www.navigators.org/blog/a-life-transformed-over-20-years/feed/ 4