Gospel for Asia

World Toilet Day , established for November 19th by the UN in 2013, coincides with the 2001 creation of the World Toilet Organization , an organization aimed at raising awareness about and addressing the need for toilets all around the world. Since Gospel for Asia’s field partners started constructing toilets in 2012 , we have helped provide more than 28,000 of these facilities across many Asian nations, including Nepal and India— 10,512 of which were constructed in 2016 alone . It’s an exciting thing to be able to come alongside impoverished families and give them a little dignity. On Oct. 2, 2014, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched Swachh Bharat (Clean India), an initiative to clean India in multiple ways, including the goal of eliminating open defecation in the nation by Oct. 2, 2019—the 150th anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi’s birthday. We are proud to be a small part of impacting families, transforming communities and enabling education (more on that later) through toilets. Gosp...

Do you know what is the single most effective method in cutting down the contraction and spreading of diseases? You do this every day. Hopefully more than once a day. It’s the simple, life-saving method of washing your hands! And you know what’s right around the corner? Global Handwashing Day . Oct. 15 is the day to raise awareness of how tremendously important washing hands is to saving lives. Many of us probably grew up in homes where our parents taught us to wash our hands before we ate or after playing outside. Maybe as kids we didn’t know exactly why we had to wash our hands, but it was still a lesson engrained in us, right? In some parts of Asia, many children don’t grow up with this common knowledge, because it isn’t so common.Children in a Believers Church Sunday School class participate in a Global Handwashing Day program on October 15, 2016. Children in a Believers Church Sunday School class participate in a Global Handwashing Day program on October 15, 2016. A report from...

GFA World’s national missionaries make a profound difference in the lives of the people across Asia and more recently, Africa. Not only are these national missionaries in Asia and Africa providing spiritual hope for countless individuals, they also provide practical help demonstrating God’s tangible love, being His agents in transforming communities. [1] Provision of Essential Items and Construction of Jesus Wells GFA World’s national missionaries who serve these communities are from the very region they are reaching. They speak the same language, and they know the nuances of the local culture and dialect. It is as if they were ordained to be able to effectively meet the practical needs of their neighbors’ lives. [2] Every day, they are reminded of the difference they make in the lives of those they serve as national missionaries. The items they provide include household basics like blankets, practical gifts of food and medical supplies. These are everyday resources that are often take...

Surveying the myriad weaving of Asian society, with many millions of people enmeshed in poverty and illiteracy, [1] GFA World looks for solutions. We reach out to the “least of these”—women and children marginalized in Asia, through vocational training and education. This provides opportunities fitting for each community to provide hope for a better future for those who are currently on society’s back fringes. The goal and purpose of this training, done in the name of Christ, is to help them break from the tragic grip of poverty. The Scope of The Problem GFA World’s literacy classes are more than just for people to learn reading and writing; they are gateways to a new life. Gaining this knowledge enables people to live daily lives with mature understanding, from interpreting health information to managing money to assessing job opportunities. For countless women, these literacy classes are the first steps out of complete dependence on others and the first opportunity to influence even...

In the lands where the sun rises over the vast landscapes of Asia, leading lives of quiet despair are many people of unmeasured impact who are simply overlooked and neglected. However, among the ignored and neglected, a group of devoted women called Sisters of Compassion are effecting real change in measurable ways. Bearing the burdens of those with profound needs, these local missionaries within Asia and Africa have been raised up and trained by GFA World to offer practical compassion―hand care, touch care and extending the respect and attention that every individual deserves. Geeta is a Sister of Compassion in a leper colony where 30 families, consisting of a minimum of 10 persons in each family, reside. Many members of each family cannot work due to their disease, and some are permanently disabled. Providing them with much-needed personal care, the Sisters of Compassion will trim their hair and give them baths, cleaning the scabies and foul-smelling wounds that the colony residents ...

In the heart of Asia, amidst the bustling cities and remote villages, there is a world where the marginalized and neglected endure lives of silent desperation. Leprosy colonies, a vestige of ancient times, still house those whose afflictions have ostracized them from society. [1] Slums, teeming with life, are also rife with the struggles of survival. Here reside the elderly, the widowed, the disabled, often left to their own devices and largely forgotten by the mainstream world. And yet, in these places full of such profound need, the comforting presence of the Sisters of Compassion, a specifically trained group of GFA World’s national missionaries in Asia and Africa, conveys hope and refreshment. Trained to serve with empathy and practical skills like wound care, these women function as God’s hands and feet, putting His love into action as they reach out to minister where ministry is devoid and touch lives with the dignity and care every that human being deserves. The Touch of Compa...

In the last decade there has been an uptick of studies and research done regarding period poverty and other women’s issues. From that research, we have a good amount of period poverty statistics to study. Here are some highlights from the research: Approximately 500 million women worldwide find themselves without access to menstrual supplies. [1] They are unable to manage their menstrual cycle in a safe and hygienic way. 1.25 billion women and girls lack access to a safe, private toilet, and 526 million don’t even have a toilet. [2] This creates a difficult and often unsafe environment for women. In the United States, 16.9 million women who menstruate are living in poverty. [3] Studies from Kenya find that, in order for some schoolgirls to get menstrual products, they must engage in transactional sex to pay for the products. [4] A 2021 survey of college students in the United States found that 10 percent of female students skip classes because they can’t afford menstrual products eac...

There are numerous period poverty definitions, but they all have similar components. For example, one definition according to the American Medical Women’s Association is: “inadequate access to menstrual hygiene tools and education.” [1] Most period poverty definitions and explanations have similar key elements, such as: Lack of sanitary supplies – Period poverty has a lot to do with a lack of supplies. Women who don’t have supplies often resort to unsanitary measures that can lead to infection. Due to lack of supplies, women have little option other than to stay home from work or school. Misunderstandings about menstruation – In many cultures, a woman’s period is considered dirty or even cursed. She is thought to be unclean, making the things she touches to be unclean as well. [2] Education is key to correcting these misunderstandings and myths. Unavailability of sanitation facilities for women – Access to sanitation facilities is important to combat this issue. Women need a privat...

There are numerous answers to the question “what is period poverty?”. The International Medical Corps defines it as, “‘Period poverty’ refers to the inability of women and girls to access resources⁠—such as sanitary pads, water, soaps, medicines and sanitation facilities⁠—during their monthly menstrual cycle in a safe and dignified way.” [1] Economic poverty plays a large role in this issue since needy women do not live in areas where the elements included in this definition are readily available: Sanitary pads – Lack of sanitary supplies cause women to resort to newspapers, plastic, leaves, clothes, rags, feathers, cow dung, corn cobs and so on. When women have access to sanitary supplies, it provides safer solutions and more dignity too. Many organizations are teaching women how to make reusable cloth napkins and this is making a tremendous difference. Clean water and soap – Safe water is crucial to good healthcare, and women need reliable access to water and soap in order to stay ...

What is period poverty ? According to the American Medical Women’s Association, a common definition is, “inadequate access to menstrual hygiene tools and educations, including but not limited to sanitary products, washing facilities, and waste management. Education and advocacy can greatly improve access to hygiene facilities and products, reduce stigma and shame, and encourage education about menstruation.” [1] It is estimated that 500 million women worldwide find themselves included in these period poverty statistics and many of those can’t participate in daily life during their cycle. [2] They don’t have the items they need to manage their periods safely and hygienically and be free from embarrassment and shame. In fighting this type of poverty, there are many things to consider as solutions. Here are a few: Sanitary Products – In many areas of the developing world (and in some developed countries too), the poor are not able to afford sanitary products. A United Nations Educatio...

There is a major need for international medical missions. For many people in the poorest parts of Asia and Africa, whenever illness strikes, they can only suffer and wait for it to pass. For people trapped in this level of poverty, they often choose to endure the pain rather than to whittle away limited finances trying to access healthcare. Worldwide, 1 billion people are at risk of falling into poverty due to health spending. [1] And because so many are prevented from visiting the doctor, 2.9 million people die every year from a lack of access to health care. [2] This situation is heartbreaking, and many organizations, including GFA World, are working to bring health care to the poorest places. Nealy is one such person helped through our medical missions. He is a 55-year-old farmer, and struggled to do his work and keep his family afloat because of leg pain and acid reflux. He had endured this for six months since he didn’t have any extra income to spend on treatment. A fellow villag...

Lack of quality medical care around the world is a major problem, and many organizations are seeking to address it, both secular and Christian. Medical missions are a signifianct way that GFA missionaries can show people Christ’s love in a very practical way. One life that has been impacted by GFA’s medical ministry is Curren’s. The 40-year-old father worked in someone’s field and ran a shop in the village, earning enough to put food on the table for his wife, three children and elderly mother, but not much else. That all changed when Curren suddenly fell ill. Severe pain in his head and stomach began, and he had no idea what was causing it. Standing up made him dizzy, and the nearly unbearable pain made working in the field—his main source of income—impossible. Curren needed medical attention, but the closest quality hospital was 50 miles away, and he had no transportation. Even if the hospital had been next door, Curren would not have been able to pay for treatment since he hadn’t be...

One of GFA World’s medical missions outreach programs is medical camps. Rural and remote villages can be miles away from medical centers, impossible distances for the sick to travel. Even if a medical center is close enough to reach, many people in South Asia and Africa can’t afford to pay for medical treatment. Because of this, at least half of the world’s population cannot obtain necessary health services. [1] GFA’s medical camps seek to change this. Globally, as many as 70 percent of diseases are preventable and curable, but many people succumb needlessly because they lack access to care or knowledge of basic first aid and hygiene. [2] Workers from a tea estate in South Asia suffered from anemia and vitamin deficiencies since their income was insufficient to pay for healthy diets or vitamins. GFA World missionaries found out about these struggles and conducted a medical camp. Experienced doctors ministered to the needs of the tea estate by providing the vitamins, supplements and me...

People in developed countries may take it for granted that we can see a doctor when we get sick, but for many people worldwide, that is nearly impossible, which is why medical missions are so vital. According to a World Bank and World Health Organization report, half of the world’s population cannot obtain health services. Of those who can get care, about 800 million people spend at least 10 percent of their household budgets on health expenses for themselves, a sick child or other family member. For almost 100 million of those people, the medical expenses are high enough to push them into extreme poverty, forcing them to live on $1.90 or less per day. [1] Families in poverty are left vulnerable to simple diseases. They are too poor to afford vitamins, nutritious food, and many have never been taught basic health and hygiene principles. This means countless people are suffering and dying from preventable diseases and are unable to afford the treatment that would cure them. Burns remain...

If people groups are distinct in their language, culture and ethnicity, then what are frontier people groups? Here is how the Joshua Project defines them [1] : an Unengaged People Group (UPG) with virtually no followers of Jesus and no known movements to Jesus still needing pioneer cross-cultural workers Frontier people groups don’t know what prayer to God looks like, they’ve never heard the name of Jesus and they have the most barriers between them and the Good News. Joshua Project estimates that half of these groups (nearly 5,000 of them) are actually concentrated in just 35 groups. [2] Pray 10/40 says this: “Frontier people groups are significant because there is very little church foundation within the people group for outside missionaries to build on, so FPGs still require pioneer cross-cultural missionaries. People groups that are more than 0.1% evangelical Christian have churches that outside workers can work with to help the gospel spread within that people group.” [3] With all...

The world is a big place full of God’s incredible diversity and creative expression. Even within one country there might be hundreds of different groups of people. Christians seeking to fulfill the Great Commission must understand not only that these different groups exist, but also know where and who are the unengaged people groups. For example, the 100 largest, least-reached people groups are spread across the northern continent of Africa, the Middle East and Asia. Just these groups alone have a population of almost 1.864 billion people, making up over 23% of the world’s population. [1] Each of those groups is distinct in its makeup, often with a combination of language, ethnic and cultural identifiers that make them unique. The reasons for never before being reached include physical barriers in the geography of where these people live―it is often physically difficult to get to them. There may be religious reasons, where an ancient tradition or eastern religion is deeply ingrained i...

Jesus asked His followers to go and make disciples all over the world following His ascension into heaven. But with shifting borders and politics, how do we define that today? We must instead define this question: What are people groups? At the 1982 Lausanne Committee Meeting in Chicago, the worldwide evangelical session defined a people group this way: “For evangelization purposes, a people group is the largest group within which the Gospel can spread as a church planting movement without encountering barriers of understanding or acceptance.” [1] Anthropologically, a people group centers around language, ethnicity, culture and other distinct markers that separate them from others in a country. One country often has multiple groups of people within it that see themselves as different than others for one or more of these characteristics. It’s how they identify themselves, not how we identify them. When seeking to serve the non-believers, understanding these different groups of people is...

Making disciples of all nations was the point of Jesus’s last command before He ascended into heaven. Nations look different today than they did when Jesus walked the Earth, but His command remains. In order to reach as many people as possible, Christians now ask the question: Who are the unengaged people groups ? Instead of focusing on a political or geographical nation or state, Christians now recognize that within any given country there many be several people groups. What are people groups ? The evangelical organization People Groups defines them as, “an ethnolinguistic group with a common self-identity that is shared by the various members. There are two parts to that word: ethno and linguistic. Language is a primary and dominant identifying factor of a people group. But there are other factors that determine or are associated with ethnicity.” [1] Likewise, we need to ask, “ What are frontier groups ?” This is even more narrow. The Joshua Project defines a frontier group as “an Un...

It is harder to answer the question “how many children are in poverty” than you might think. For example, UNICEF estimates that 356 million children live in extreme poverty while over 1 billion children are multidimensionally poor, meaning they lack necessities like nutrition or clean water. [1] According to the World Bank, 1 in 6 children live in extreme poverty. [2] Sub-Saharan Africa accounts for two-thirds of children in poverty. A fifth of these children live in South Asia. [3] This is why GFA World is working diligently in South Asia and now parts of Africa. We have a proven track record of working with children and their families, helping them break free from the cycle of poverty that may have been happening for generations. GFA World helps children in poverty in a variety of ways. First, we have a child sponsorship program that has been an effective solution for many years. Children are helped with key needs such as nutritious food, tuition assistance, tutoring, clean water, ...

Children living in poverty can be a regular topic in our prayers. God says in His Word, “Open your mouth for the speechless, In the cause of all who are appointed to die. Open your mouth, judge righteously, And plead the cause of the poor and needy.” (Proverbs 31:8-9). God loves the poor. Here are some ways you can pray for children who live in extreme poverty. Pray for: Tangible needs – People living in poverty need help with tangible resources. Pray for God to meet their needs for food and supplies. Pray for God to give them consistent income and employment. Emotional needs – Poverty is difficult on a person’s mental health, including children. A hopelessness and a feeling of worthlessness often come with poverty. Pray that GFA missionaries would be able to share encouragement and hope in Christ. Environmental needs – When drought occurs, water is scarce and sometimes impossible to find. Pray for God to bring water to areas with drought. Pray for God to bring clean water wells to ...