Equipping the Saints in Persecuted and Dangerous Areas

For many who follow Jesus in the 10/40 Window (the western rim of North Africa to Japan, China to Indonesia), persecution is a reality of life. Over half of the world’s population (4 billion) live in the 10/40 Window, with 95% being unevangelized. In countries with the predominant religions of Hinduism, Buddhism, and Islam, very little Gospel witnessing is allowed, and true Christ-followers face varying forms of persecution and discrimination.

While some have faced violent and physical persecution, most Christ-followers seeking to live out their faith have faced more insidious forms of persecution – pressure by their families and neighbors, demotion in their jobs, shunning by society, and even rejection by their families.

CCI’s primary focus is on reaching those in the 10/40 Window. Most CCI classes are in India, Nepal, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines, where most unreached Muslims live in Mindanao. 

The mission of CCI is to effectively equip national pastors and church leaders with comprehensive biblical training for local church ministry. The culture remains unaltered by equipping and training national pastors and church leaders, as sound biblical knowledge is imparted through a discipleship relationship. Nationals already know the language and culture and are less vulnerable to kidnapping.

Rey (real name withheld to protect individual), a business leader and CCI trainer, embodies CCI’s mission of equipping and multiplying leaders from their own nations. In 2016, he completed CCI’s comprehensive ministry training (520 hours—comparable to a quality U.S. education).

Today, Rey and a team of CCI-equipped leaders plant churches in one of the most dangerous parts of the world – the southern island of Mindanao in the Philippines. Danger has not deterred Rey or his team, despite terrorists coming from other nations to carry out destructive activities. A few years ago, terrorists from Malaysia and Indonesia invaded Marawi City, just 25 miles away from him. For six months, there was an all-out war between the Filipino military and these terrorists, leaving Marawi City nearly destroyed.

By the grace of God, Rey and his team have planted 25 local, Bible-believing churches and baptized more than 600 people. Further, Rey gave this challenge to pastors and business leaders in the CCI network, “I encourage you to maximize the remaining years of our lives and to become fruitful and productive in the original purpose of ministry – to evangelize, to make disciples, to train using CCI materials and to empower leaders to plant churches.”

Rey is not an isolated story. Men and women across the globe are stepping up to become equipped multipliers through CCI. By God's grace and provision, CCI has equipped more than 20,000 leaders on six continents in 37 nations while reaching more than 160 people groups. We have a comprehensive curriculum translated into most nations' languages that is affordable, accessible, and reproducible.

It is estimated that more than 50,000 come to Christ daily, leaving too many sheep without trained shepherds. Would you prayerfully consider helping CCI reach the more than 3 million pastors worldwide who are without training to lead their congregations?

Our goal at CCI is to equip national pastors and church leaders with the biblical knowledge and ministry skills to become participants in the Great Commission. There are few places where your spiritual return on investment will be higher or more impactful – now and for eternity.

You can give to help church leaders like Rey, who make disciples who will then make more disciples, and so on. To give, visit cciequip.org.

Crossing Cultures International (CCI) equips national pastors and church leaders with comprehensive training, consisting of 520 in-class hours, under the guidance of a Christlike, mature leader who guides the student through acquiring ministry skills, Bible knowledge, and a Christlike character to serve effectively. As classes grow in each area or country, we wait for the Lord to point us to a faithful man to whom we entrust the ministry and the resources to oversee this ministry. As leaders are equipped, they train others who train others. As a result, the training is multiplied.

To learn more about CCI’s mission, visit cciequip.org. Sign up for our monthly newsletter and receive a copy of the CCI Ministry President’s eBook on Philippians by clicking here.

Images courtesy: CCI

Crossing Cultures International (CCI) equips national pastors and church leaders with comprehensive training, consisting of 520 in-class hours, under the guidance of a Christlike, mature leader who guides the student through acquiring ministry skills, Bible knowledge, and a Christlike character to serve effectively. As classes grow in each area or country, we wait for the Lord to point us to a faithful man to whom we entrust the ministry and the resources to oversee this ministry. As leaders are equipped, they train others who train others. As a result, the training is multiplied.

To learn more about CCI’s mission, visit cciequip.org. Sign up for our monthly newsletter and receive a copy of the CCI Ministry President’s eBook on Philippians by clicking here.