Dear Friend of Insight for Living:
For centuries, the Middle East has been the stage for dramatic events that have changed the course of individuals, communities, and even nations. Today, more than eight hundred million people traverse the lands where Jacob wrestled with God . . . where Moses led the Israelites to freedom . . . where Jesus died and rose again . . . where the early church set out to reach the world for Christ.
Over the last ten years, Insight for Living’s Arabic-language broadcast, Nafitha Ala l’Hayat, has brought the message of the gospel to this region. Pastor Charlie Costa currently broadcasts our messages, translates our books and resources, and mentors pastors in several countries.
In partnership with us, Charlie and his team use the broadcast as a tool for planting churches in the Middle East. I will never forget how animated Charlie was when he recounted one such event:
After broadcasting the sermon one morning, I felt led to reach out with an invitation to trust Christ. I taught the gospel in simple terms, and then I asked the listeners to pray with me. A few days later, we received a letter from a young man who trusted Jesus as Savior during that prayer.
Months afterward, I visited that area, preaching and teaching. In an incredible moment that can only be God’s very hand, I entered that young man’s home. The minute he heard my name, he ran to his bedroom and came back with a thick stack of letters.
He held out one of them, and I saw the words “The Most Important Letter of All” written on the front. I read the description it contained about the assurance of his salvation. With tears in his eyes, this man told me that he had received it just after choosing to trust Jesus.
He said, “I was saved, but I didn’t really understand all that meant. When I read the letter, I jumped up and down, shouting ‘It happened! It happened! Jesus saved me!’”
That young man’s conversion led to the conversion of many in his village. Eventually, he and his brother started a church. Seven years later, it is still going strong. We are now working with them to plant a church in another village!
I cannot hold in the excitement that fills my heart when I hear Charlie’s stories. This is only one of thousands of changed lives . . . many of whom we cannot reveal because the people involved are under persecution for their commitment to Christ.
Through Charlie’s work, we support conferences for women, affirming their value and offering healing to those who have suffered abuse. Our Counseling Insights manual is utilized with patients in medical clinics. Charlie is also hosting conferences for pastors, teaching them to preach and minister with passion and excellence.
The list goes on and on. . . .
God is moving mightily through Insight for Living’s ministry in the Middle East . . . and beyond. I hope you feel the same sense of joy and excitement that I do when I have the chance to be involved in the work of the kingdom. When you support this ministry with your finances and your prayers, you are involved in every part of what we do. You help to make Charlie’s ministry—and many others—possible!
In my almost fifty years of ministry, I have never been more passionate or hopeful for the impact of the church around the world. I believe it is time for an awakening, a time to begin doing what the church is called to do, a time to engage the culture for Jesus Christ.
My newest book is all about that. I would love to send it to you as my way of thanking you for your gift to Insight for Living this month. It is my hope that God will use The Church Awakening: An Urgent Call for Renewal in a powerful way to renew your passion for what Jesus is building. In Matthew 16:18, He promised: “I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.”
I pray that Charlie’s story moved your heart. We must band together to make a difference in the church—in millions of lives—around the world. I encourage you to become more deeply involved with this ministry as we work together to fulfill this God-given calling.
Charles R. Swindoll
