Mission Partners: The Bukharis*
(I'm starting a weekly "Missions Study & Prayer Group" (future catchy title to follow), and includes orienting them with the church's current missions partners. Hence the "Missions Partners" series.)
"Pastor James & Mari Bukhari" (I don't use their real names for security reasons) are a missionary family reaching out to the least-reached tribes of Pakistan. They attended HRCC for a number of years, and HRCC has been supporting their ministry for several years now.
Ptr. James's Conversion & Ministry
Here is Ptr. James's own testimony:
And then he began to sense the immensity of the work in Pakistan. Through a missions conference, the Lord alerted him to the fact that Pakistan is the biggest mission field in the world, with more than 457 unreached people groups! Unfortunately, most of the pastors and church leaders in the country are poorly trained, and have a very shallow and often erroneous understanding of the Bible. As a result, preaching was in a poor state, and underneath the emotional fervency was very weak theology.
He wanted to equip people for ministry and missions, but he needed equipping himself. That's why he and his family enrolled in a seminary in the Philippines with God's enabling.
I am the second generation from my family, my father was Hindu converted. I was badly beaten in the school by the Muslim teacher because my father became Christian. I didn’t like to become Christian. My father always convinced even once forced me to go to church. But I never liked it. I was so disappointed because I was badly beaten and given bad names, like “black demon” by my own school teachers, I accused everything to Christ. I asked my father this what we gain since you converted. I asked my father I will not go to Church until Christ himself not bring me. Gradually I decided to leave my home and school, it was quite like Prodigal Son. More than one year I remained out of home started to enjoy the company of bad friends. But my father kept praying for me. So, one day in a small group I happen to go there where some young people were praying, my intention was not to pray. But God intended to transform my life, he powerfully touched my heart, I cried and confused my sins. I went back home and shared my experience to my father, he replied it it was true experience go back to the school. I excitedly said great. So went back to school teachers were the same, situation was the same, their jealousy was the same, But I was not same, I was transformed by his grace.Ptr. James started a church plant in a remote area in 1999. At the same time, he was studying in a small Bible school. He reports that under his ministry, many young people were saved and began serving the Lord. There was so much to do, he confesses, that he began to neglect his own family.
And then he began to sense the immensity of the work in Pakistan. Through a missions conference, the Lord alerted him to the fact that Pakistan is the biggest mission field in the world, with more than 457 unreached people groups! Unfortunately, most of the pastors and church leaders in the country are poorly trained, and have a very shallow and often erroneous understanding of the Bible. As a result, preaching was in a poor state, and underneath the emotional fervency was very weak theology.
He wanted to equip people for ministry and missions, but he needed equipping himself. That's why he and his family enrolled in a seminary in the Philippines with God's enabling.
Time with Higher Rock
Muslim Extremism
Several years ago, while the Bukharis were in the Philippines, Mari's brother, was severely beaten for trying to put up a school in a Muslim village. There were many tense moments in 2017 and 2018 because of extremist Muslims in Pakistan. "These days," said James, "religious extremism is getting harder. Pray that Pakistani brethren stand firm in the faith in the midst of persecution!"
In mid-December 2017, Higher Rock brethren received shocking news from James:
Today one of our church in Pakistan during Sunday meeting while children were having their Christmas Program, two terrorists entered in the church and blasted one at the front gate and one inside. Please pray Taliban threatens the churches to more blasts on Christmas. Many children and adults has died and so many are deadly injured.At this time, James and a number of teams were conducting outreaches, and we were concerned for their safety. Thankfully none of them were harmed, and the outreaches were a success!
In April 2018, another incident occurred in which four pastors were killed on their way to church on a Sunday morning. Two weeks later, certain Christians were on their way home from service when ISIS and Taliban terrorists shouted at them. James wrote,
Present situation of Pakistani Christians is very critical, they all so afraid and stuck in their homes. Every Sunday bringing new threats and discouragement.
Short-Term Missions
Since 2016, James has been using the Christmas season to conduct outreaches in Lahore.
In 2017 his team got permission from the authorities to hold a Christmas program to over 300 prisoners on death row. In a second program, they ministered to 150 military officers and gave each one a Bible.
A short-term trip was undertaken to Hindu and Taliban tribes in the southern part of the country.
One of the Taliban tribes was located in Baluchistan, the largest of the country's four provinces. Baluchistan is bordered by Afghanistan to the northwest and Iran to the southwest and has a strong Taliban presence.
(James) "This province is full of unreached Afghani tribes... This is the province where several times churches have been attacked by the terrorists, last year on Christmas two churches were attacked by the suicide bombers. This is the most persecuted province. But we believe that God loves the people there, and power of the Gospel can bring salvation and transformation."It was a difficult endeavor, however. They faced "some very serious challenges" and were forced to move back because of a lack of funds. Nevertheless, they made some valuable contacts for future ministry to the area.
Preparing to Go
As the date of James' graduation from seminary drew near, the Bukharis began making final preparations to return to Pakistan. Many HRCC members will recall the delicious Chicken Biryani and Chicken Shawarma they sold to raise funds!
On April 3, just days before their graduation, Elynne and I had the privilege of being treated to a spicy lunch (which was, James and Mari assured us, a very mild version of regular Pakistani food). We were delighted to get to know them and their kids more personally, listen to ptr. James' vision for Pakistan, and to learn more about the church's situation in their country.
Ptr. James' Mission
James' mission is to establish a missions center in Pakistan that would train and send field workers to various areas of the country.
Back in Pakistan
Re-Adjusting
The climate in Pakistan is extreme compared to that in the Philippines. It took the Bukharis a while to adjust to conditions in Manila, but re-acclimatizing to Pakistan was much more difficult. The village where they first stayed was hit by a dust storm and the entire family developed severe coughs. Moreover the soaring high temperatures made the children sick.
Thankfully, with God's care and provision, the family gradually got settled. Their health slowly returned. They found a house in Lahore and were able to get basic furniture. It was so hot (48 degrees C) that James wrote, "Please keep praying we need to buy Air condition and ceiling fans. This is our urgent need." Throughout May, the couple continued to ask for intercession that the Lord would provide for their kids' tuition. Mercifully, He provided for all these needs.
Back to Work
A Brick-Making Village
By May 2018, pastor James was able to start outreaches again. He and Mari started Bible studies among women working in a brick-making village and evangelized Muslim and Christian teachers and children in ____'s school.
Equipping Women, Evangelizing "Christians"
The following month, James focused on encouraging and equipping marginalized Christians. He conducted a three-day women's meeting. 90 ladies from 40 different churches attended. For many or all of them, it was the first time to every be equipped for ministry. He also traveled to a remote village where Christians experienced frequent persecution, even attacks, from Muslims. Thankfully, they secured government permission and security for conducting an evangelistic meeting. "People," reported James, "are excited to worship together and listen the word of God." After ministering there, he realized that the "Christians" there were only nominal, since they had never heard the gospel. After preaching the gospel, 22 people repented, believed, and were baptized. These were the first baptisms to ever occur in the fifty years of that village.
(James) "Now we properly have started church there. I promised to visit that village on monthly basis. We will also going to arrange a discipleship training to equip local people."
From North to South
From July to September 2018 were very busy for James and his co-workers. They traveled to the northern ends of the country (Kashmir and Chitral) and then to the far south (Mithi Tharparker and Sindh). Altogether they visited at least 14 unreached tribes, conducted five trainings and evangelized hundreds of people. Organizing ministries to these far-flung areas was costly, tiring, and not without its dangers, but the Lord's favor was upon them.One village they visited was a "big Christian village" called Shantinagar. A few years ago it had been burned down by extremist Muslim mobs. What a relief it must have been for them to be ministered to by these brethren from Lahore! The team conducted at least three evangelistic meetings and a women's meeting. At the end of it, ptr. James reported:
Hi, Friends It was really wonderful and great short evangelistic trip to the remote village, many people gather to listen the gospel of Christ and they were so encouraged and many people accepted the Lord Jesus as their personal savior!
Lastly, they went to the Hindus of Sindh. James described them as "the most unreached and neglected tribes and peoples in the most deprived province of Pakistan." Sindh, as it turns out is the region in Pakistan with the most unreached ethnic minority groups. The people there were so poor that they ate only one meal a day. Within a 175,000 area, there was not a single school. When James and his team visited a certain village, the chieftain was converted. He cried and begged them to open a school. "We were so touched," mused James, "[and] passionately prayed and remembered Acts 16:9." Later, James wrote to his praying partners in the Philippines, "Please pray for the [establishment of a] small school building in the desert, it will [be] the first school and the foundational stone for the kingdom of God in the future."
In another village, they preached and taught verses to children. But they saw an unusually sinister demonic influence there. Most of the villagers always wore magical amulets and "mascots". They prayed for the sick and cast out demonic spirits. One local priest was even converted.
Yesterday morning we were persecuted by the Hindu priest who sent some people with snakes to throw upon us, and even to the people those were listing us. God rescued us and then we turned to another tribe, where God healed their priest who was sick and had continued pain in his body for the last three years. He believed and accepted Jesus and all the people welcomed us and hear the gospel, God is doing great and amazing things.The ministry to Sindh turned out to be very fruitful. James reported that more than 3,000 were evangelized, many were healed and others were delivered from demonic powers.
Follow-Up
Return to Sindh
When James and his team ministered to the villages in Sindh in September 2018, ten people were converted. The team kept in touch with them and planned to arrange a gathering in Lahore for a few days of training. In December that same year, James and his team returned to Sindh and conducted medical camps in four different places. They brought Christmas presents to the children in the villages they had visited three months before.Back to Baluchistan
They also returned to Baluchistan in November 2018. Since their previous visit, they had been continually visiting their contacts there. Now they returned to train local believers in evangelism and to target some new tribes.This province is a land full of challenges, risks, and opportunities for the Gospel, because there are so many, tribes, nations and ethnic groups like, Tajikistani, Afghanistan, Turkish, Iranian, Indian, and Taliban. [They] are living on the borders, no local church there, So, we prayed, trusted God, and moved in the power and wisdom of the Holy spirit.
Right before they scheduled departure, riots broke out across Pakistan over the Supreme Court acquittal and release of the Christian lady Asia Bibi. Roads were blocked, and vehicles were burned in the streets. The mullahs (Islamic teachers) called for the deaths of the high officials concerned in the case. It was a tense period, but thankfully the Bukharis and their church were unharmed, despite some harassment. Christian colonies were also protected by the military.
I wondered silently whether the team should cancel their mission, but their spirit was undaunted, and they proceeded to Baluchistan as planned. They made the most of their 28-hour trip to share the gospel and pray more than fifty people. They were also able to conduct "very effective ministry work" among the Taliban tribes.
Many of the people there had never even heard about Christ before. One chief thought that "Christian" must be the name of a tribe. Later on, after hearing about the love and forgiveness of the Lord, he was so impressed that he wished that his people could have the Bible in their language.
At one point, the team was confronted by two "extremists", who threw their mobile phones and Bible into the river, warning them not to come back. Despite this, James reported,
I wondered silently whether the team should cancel their mission, but their spirit was undaunted, and they proceeded to Baluchistan as planned. They made the most of their 28-hour trip to share the gospel and pray more than fifty people. They were also able to conduct "very effective ministry work" among the Taliban tribes.
Many of the people there had never even heard about Christ before. One chief thought that "Christian" must be the name of a tribe. Later on, after hearing about the love and forgiveness of the Lord, he was so impressed that he wished that his people could have the Bible in their language.
At one point, the team was confronted by two "extremists", who threw their mobile phones and Bible into the river, warning them not to come back. Despite this, James reported,
God did great things and the people were so excited [to receive God's word].... By God's Grace we were not discouraged [but were] even overjoyed in His power and grace.
Revisiting Tharparker
For Christmas 2018, they decided to share Christ's love to the people in Tharparker, where many people were dying from a famine and very cold weather. They bought second-hand clothes, which Mari and the other women washed, dried, and packed. They also prepared food packages and medicines. Transporting all of this to such a remote area was challenging, but the Lord provided their logistical needs.
