Week of February 13, 2017

"Faith is not primarily a function of how you feel. Faith is living out, trusting and believing what truth is despite what you feel." - Tim Keller

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FROM THE DESK OF: the Director of Communications

From all of us in the Uttermost office... we hope you have a sweet Valentine's Day!

For the Win[dow],

Bubby Bryan, DOC

VERSE OF THE WEEK: Matthew 17:20

He said to them, because of your little faith, for truly I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, move from here to there and it will move and nothing will be impossible for you.

COUNTRY OF THE WEEK: Chad

Chad, part of France's African holdings until 1960, endured three decades of civil warfare, as well as invasions by Libya, before peace was restored in 1990. The government eventually drafted a democratic constitution and held flawed presidential elections in 1996 and 2001. In 1998, a rebellion broke out in northern Chad, which has sporadically flared up despite several peace agreements between the government and insurgents. In June 2005, President Idriss DEBY held a referendum successfully removing constitutional term limits and won another controversial election in 2006. Sporadic rebel campaigns continued throughout 2006 and 2007. The capital experienced a significant insurrection in early 2008, but has had no significant rebel threats since then, in part due to Chad's 2010 rapprochement with Sudan, which previously used Chadian rebels as proxies. In late 2015, the government imposed a state of emergency in the Lake Chad region following multiple attacks by the terrorist group Boko Haram throughout the year; Boko Haram also launched several bombings in N'Djamena in mid-2015. DEBY in 2011 was reelected to his fourth term in an election that international observers described as proceeding without incident. In January 2014, Chad began a two-year rotation on the UN Security Council.

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PRAYER REQUESTS:

• Pray for the Church to be both burdened and equipped for evangelism among an increasing Muslim majority.
• Pray for pioneer missionaries to persevere in difficult places in order to reach the unreached.
• Pray for integrity and honesty to rule the nation and displace government corruption.
• Pray for the Uttermost workers on the field.
• Pray for the US office.

Week of February 6, 2017

"You contribute nothing to your salvation except the sin that made it necessary" - Jonathan Edwards

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FROM THE DESK OF: the Director of Communications

Last night we witnessed the greatest comeback in the history of the Super Bowl. We also saw Tom Brady win his 5th Super Bowl and cement his legacy as the greatest quarterback of all time. What a game! There's nothing better than live sports!

For the Win[dow]

Bubby Bryan, DOC

VERSE OF THE WEEK: Micah 6:8

He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?

COUNTRY OF THE WEEK: Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia is the birthplace of Islam and home to Islam's two holiest shrines in Mecca and Medina. The king's official title is the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques. The modern Saudi state was founded in 1932 by ABD AL-AZIZ bin Abd al-Rahman Al SAUD (Ibn Saud) after a 30-year campaign to unify most of the Arabian Peninsula. One of his male descendants rules the country today, as required by the country's 1992 Basic Law. Following Iraq's invasion of Kuwait in 1990, Saudi Arabia accepted the Kuwaiti royal family and 400,000 refugees while allowing Western and Arab troops to deploy on its soil for the liberation of Kuwait the following year. The continuing presence of foreign troops on Saudi soil after the liberation of Kuwait became a source of tension between the royal family and the public until all operational US troops left the country in 2003. Major terrorist attacks in May and November 2003 spurred a strong ongoing campaign against domestic terrorism and extremism.

From 2005 to 2015, King ABDALLAH incrementally modernized the Kingdom. Driven by personal ideology and political pragmatism, he introduced a series of social and economic initiatives, including expanding employment and social opportunities for women, attracting foreign investment, increasing the role of the private sector in the economy, and discouraging businesses from hiring foreign workers. Saudi Arabia saw protests during the 2011 Arab Spring among Shia Muslims in the Eastern Province, who protested primarily against the detention of political prisoners, endemic discrimination, and Bahraini and Saudi Government actions in Bahrain. Riyadh took a cautious but firm approach by arresting some protesters but releasing most of them quickly and by using its state-sponsored clerics to counter political and Islamist activism. In addition, protests were met by a strong police presence, with some arrests, but not the level of bloodshed seen in protests elsewhere in the region.

The government held its first-ever elections in 2005 and 2011, when Saudis went to the polls to elect municipal councilors. In December 2015, women were allowed to vote and stand as candidates for the first time in municipal council elections, with 21 women winning seats. King SALMAN bin Abd al-Aziz Al Saud ascended to the throne in 2015 and placed the first next-generation prince, MUHAMMAD BIN NAIF bin Abd al-Aziz Al Saud, in the line of succession as Crown Prince. He designated his son, MUHAMMAD BIN SALMAN bin Abd al-Aziz Al Saud, as the Deputy Crown Prince. In March 2015, Saudi Arabia led a coalition of 10 countries in a military campaign to restore the government of Yemen, which had been ousted by Huthi forces allied with former president ALI ABDULLAH al-Salih. The war in Yemen has led to civilian casualties and shortages of basic supplies, which has drawn considerable international criticism. In December 2015, Deputy Crown Prince MUHAMMAD BIN SALMAN announced Saudi Arabia would lead a 34-nation Islamic Coalition to fight terrorism. In January 2016, Saudi Arabia executed 47 people on charges of terrorism, including Shia Muslim cleric NIMR al-Nimr. Iranian protesters overran Saudi diplomatic facilities in Iran to protest al-NIMR’s execution and the Saudi government responded by cutting off diplomatic ties with Iran.

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PRAYER REQUESTS:

• Pray for the Lord Jesus to miraculously demolish the stronghold of Islam in this nation.
• Pray for massive Islamic missionary efforts to be thwarted.
• Pray for true religious freedom and the curbing of heinous human rights abuses.
• Pray for the Uttermost workers on the field.
• Pray for the US office.

Week of January 30, 2017

"In the Church, we're all refugees, outsiders from foreign lands, seeking safety. And the King's executive order says: welcome." - Andrew Wilson

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FROM THE DESK OF: the Director of Communications

President Trump signed an executive order Friday that keeps refugees from entering the US via Iran, Iraq, Syria, Sudan, Libya, Yemen and Somalia. We will monitor how this effects our people from entering these countries for sports projects. While I can't speak for the United States government, the Kingdom of Heaven is always welcoming of aliens, refugees and outcasts... because that's all there are.

For the Win[dow],

Bubby Bryan, DOC

VERSE OF THE WEEK: Ephesians 2: 12-13

Remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now, in Christ Jesus, you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.

COUNTRY OF THE WEEK: Syria

Following World War I, France acquired a mandate over the northern portion of the former Ottoman Empire province of Syria. The French administered the area as Syria until granting it independence in 1946. The new country lacked political stability and experienced a series of military coups. Syria united with Egypt in February 1958 to form the United Arab Republic. In September 1961, the two entities separated, and the Syrian Arab Republic was reestablished. In the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, Syria lost the Golan Heights region to Israel. During the 1990s, Syria and Israel held occasional, albeit unsuccessful, peace talks over its return. In November 1970, Hafiz al-ASAD, a member of the socialist Ba'th Party and the minority Alawi sect, seized power in a bloodless coup and brought political stability to the country. Following the death of President Hafiz al-ASAD, his son, Bashar al-ASAD, was approved as president by popular referendum in July 2000. Syrian troops - stationed in Lebanon since 1976 in an ostensible peacekeeping role - were withdrawn in April 2005. During the July-August 2006 conflict between Israel and Hizballah, Syria placed its military forces on alert but did not intervene directly on behalf of its ally Hizballah. In May 2007, Bashar al-ASAD's second term as president was approved by popular referendum.

Influenced by major uprisings that began elsewhere in the region, and compounded by additional social and economic factors, antigovernment protests broke out first in the southern province of Dar'a in March 2011 with protesters calling for the repeal of the restrictive Emergency Law allowing arrests without charge, the legalization of political parties, and the removal of corrupt local officials. Demonstrations and violent unrest spread across Syria with the size and intensity of protests fluctuating. The government responded to unrest with a mix of concessions - including the repeal of the Emergency Law, new laws permitting new political parties, and liberalizing local and national elections - and military force. However, the government's response has failed to meet opposition demands for ASAD's resignation, and the government's ongoing violence to quell unrest and widespread armed opposition activity has led to extended clashes between government forces and oppositionists. International pressure on the ASAD regime has intensified since late 2011, as the Arab League, EU, Turkey, and the US expanded economic sanctions against the regime. In December 2012, the Syrian National Coalition, was recognized by more than 130 countries as the sole legitimate representative of the Syrian people. Peace talks between the Coalition and Syrian regime at the UN-sponsored Geneva II conference in 2014 and the UN-sponsored Geneva III talks in 2016 failed to produce a resolution of the conflict. Unrest continues in Syria, and according to an April 2016 UN estimate, the death toll among Syrian Government forces, opposition forces, and civilians had reached 400,000. As of December 2016, approximately 13.5 million people were in need of humanitarian assistance in Syria, with 6.3 million people displaced internally, and an additional 4.8 million Syrian refugees, making the Syrian situation the largest humanitarian crisis worldwide. (CIA World Factbook)

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PRAYER REQUESTS:

• Pray for a swift end to the horrific civil war with people of peace rising to leadership.
• Pray for Jesus to reveal Himself to the millions of Muslims displaced by the war.
• Pray for the Church to be protected and expanded amid hostility.
• Pray for the Uttermost workers in the field.
• Pray for the US office.

Week of January 23, 2017

"You can trust a God who is not only sovereign but bleeds for you." - Don Carson

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FROM THE DESK OF: the Director of Communications

Well, its official- the Atlanta Falcons will play the New England Patriots in Super Bowl 51. 116 million people are going to watch this game. Its like sports is a big deal or something. Black, white, Republican, Democrat, rich, poor... everybody is going to gather around this game. 

Somebody should organize a company around this idea and use sports to spread the gospel...

For the Win[dow],

Bubby Bryan, DOC

VERSE OF THE WEEK: Luke 17:21

Behold, the Kingdom of God is in the midst of you.

COUNTRY OF THE WEEK: Egypt

The regularity and richness of the annual Nile River flood, coupled with semi-isolation provided by deserts to the east and west, allowed for the development of one of the world's great civilizations. A unified kingdom arose circa 3200 B.C., and a series of dynasties ruled in Egypt for the next three millennia. The last native dynasty fell to the Persians in 341 B.C., who in turn were replaced by the Greeks, Romans, and Byzantines. It was the Arabs who introduced Islam and the Arabic language in the 7th century and who ruled for the next six centuries. A local military caste, the Mamluks took control about 1250 and continued to govern after the conquest of Egypt by the Ottoman Turks in 1517. Completion of the Suez Canal in 1869 elevated Egypt as an important world transportation hub. Ostensibly to protect its investments, Britain seized control of Egypt's government in 1882, but nominal allegiance to the Ottoman Empire continued until 1914. Partially independent from the UK in 1922, Egypt acquired full sovereignty from Britain in 1952. The completion of the Aswan High Dam in 1971 and the resultant Lake Nasser have altered the time-honored place of the Nile River in the agriculture and ecology of Egypt. A rapidly growing population (the largest in the Arab world), limited arable land, and dependence on the Nile all continue to overtax resources and stress society. The government has struggled to meet the demands of Egypt's population through economic reform and massive investment in communications and physical infrastructure.

Inspired by the 2010 Tunisian revolution, Egyptian opposition groups led demonstrations and labor strikes countrywide, culminating in President Hosni MUBARAK's ouster. Egypt's military assumed national leadership until a new parliament was in place in early 2012; later that same year, Mohammed MORSI won the presidential election. Following often violent protests throughout the spring of 2013 against MORSI's government and the Muslim Brotherhood, the Egyptian Armed Forces intervened and removed MORSI from power in July 2013 and replaced him with interim president Adly MANSOUR. In January 2014, voters approved a new constitution by referendum and in May 2014 elected Abdel Fattah EL SISI president. Egypt elected a new legislature in December 2015, the first parliament since 2012. (CIA World Factbook)

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PRAYER REQUESTS:

• Pray for a strong and trustworthy government that will act in the interest of all its people.
• Pray for Coptic Christians to receive the encouragement and boldness they need to stand firm before their oppressors.
• Pray for Muslim-background believers to share Christ's love with their families and neighbors.
• Pray for the Uttermost workers on the field.
• Pray for the US office. 

Week of January 2, 2017

"If prayer seems like a diversion from productivity, remember that God can do more in 5 seconds than we can do in 5 hours." - John Piper

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FROM THE DESK OF: the Director of Communications

Back in the office this week for the first time this new year. We took down the 2016 calendar and began filling out the 2017 dates. Here's to a great year!

For the Win[dow]

Bubby Bryan, DOC

VERSE OF THE WEEK: Colossians 3:3

"For you died and your life is hidden with Christ in God."

COUNTRY OF THE WEEK: Yemen

North Yemen became independent from the Ottoman Empire in 1918. The British, who had set up a protectorate area around the southern port of Aden in the 19th century, withdrew in 1967 from what became South Yemen. Three years later, the southern government adopted a Marxist orientation. The massive exodus of hundreds of thousands of Yemenis from the south to the north contributed to two decades of hostility between the states. The two countries were formally unified as the Republic of Yemen in 1990. A southern secessionist movement and brief civil war in 1994 was quickly subdued. In 2000, Saudi Arabia and Yemen agreed to delineate their border. Fighting in the northwest between the government and the Huthis, a Zaydi Shia Muslim minority, began in 2004 and has since resulted in six rounds of fighting that ended in early 2010 with a cease-fire. The southern secessionist movement was revitalized in 2008. Public rallies in Sana'a against then President SALIH - inspired by similar demonstrations in Tunisia and Egypt - slowly built momentum starting in late January 2011 fueled by complaints over high unemployment, poor economic conditions, and corruption. By the following month, some protests had resulted in violence, and the demonstrations had spread to other major cities. By March the opposition had hardened its demands and was unifying behind calls for SALIH's immediate ouster. In April 2011, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), in an attempt to mediate the crisis in Yemen, proposed the GGC Initiative, an agreement in which the president would step down in exchange for immunity from prosecution. SALIH's refusal to sign an agreement led to further violence.

The UN Security Council passed Resolution 2014 in October 2011 calling for an end to the violence and completing a power transfer deal. In November 2011, SALIH signed the GCC Initiative to step down and to transfer some of his powers to Vice President Abd Rabuh Mansur HADI. Following HADI's election victory in February 2012, SALIH formally transferred his powers. In accordance with the GCC initiative, Yemen launched a National Dialogue Conference (NDC) in March 2013 to discuss key constitutional, political, and social issues. HADI concluded the NDC in January 2014. Subsequent steps in the transition process include constitutional drafting, a constitutional referendum, and national elections. Since the Arab Awakening in 2011, the Huthis have expanded their influence, culminating in a major offensive against military units and tribes affiliated with their Yemeni rivals and enabling their forces to overrun the capital, Sana'a, in September 2014. In January 2015, the Huthis attacked the presidential palace and President HADI's residence and surrounded key government facilities, prompting HADI and the cabinet to submit their resignations. HADI fled to Aden, and in February 2015 rescinded his resignation. He subsequently escaped to Saudi Arabia and asked the GCC to intervene militarily in Yemen to protect the legitimate government from the Huthis. In March, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia launched Operation Decisive Storm, a series of airstrikes against Huthi and Huthi-affiliated forces. In April 2015, the Saudi Government announced completion of the operation and initiated Operation Restoring Hope, which focuses on humanitarian aid and a return to political dialogue. However, fighting continued through the remainder of 2015 and into early 2016. In April, the UN brokered a "cessation of hostilities" among the warring parties and initiated peace talks in Kuwait. (CIA World Factbook)

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PRAYER REQUESTS:

• Pray for the Gospel to go forth in power despite current legal restrictions.
• Pray for freedom from the narcotic qat that holds 80% of Yemeni adults captive.
• Pray for the desperate economic situation to ignite a longing for lasting hope and security.
• Pray for the Uttermost workers in the field.
• Pray for the US office.

Week of December 5, 2016

"I've read in Plato and Cicero sayings wise and beautiful, but never in either: Come to me all who labor and are heavy laden." - Augustine

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FROM THE DESK OF: the Director of Communications

Last week we hosted our annual World Briefing. Our staff outlined updates, projects and challenges for the coming year. We had a blast introducing Uttermost to new friends as well as long time supporters. We're thankful for this time every year.

For the Win[dow],

Bubby Bryan, DOC

VERSE OF THE WEEK: Romans 5:6-8

"For while we were still weak, at the right time, Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person - though perhaps for a good person one would dare to even die - but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

COUNTRY OF THE WEEK: Rwanda

In 1959, three years before independence from Belgium, the majority ethnic group, the Hutus, overthrew the ruling Tutsi king. Over the next several years, thousands of Tutsis were killed, and some 150,000 driven into exile in neighboring countries. The children of these exiles later formed a rebel group, the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF), and began a civil war in 1990. The war, along with several political and economic upheavals, exacerbated ethnic tensions, culminating in April 1994 in a state-orchestrated genocide, in which Rwandans killed up to a million of their fellow citizens, including approximately three-quarters of the Tutsi population. The genocide ended later that same year when the predominantly Tutsi RPF, operating out of Uganda and northern Rwanda, defeated the national army and Hutu militias, and established an RPF-led government of national unity. Approximately 2 million Hutu refugees - many fearing Tutsi retribution - fled to neighboring Burundi, Tanzania, Uganda, and former Zaire. Since then, most of the refugees have returned to Rwanda, but several thousand remained in the neighboring Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC, the former Zaire) and formed an extremist insurgency bent on retaking Rwanda, much as the RPF did in 1990. Rwanda held its first local elections in 1999 and its first post-genocide presidential and legislative elections in 2003. Rwanda in 2009 staged a joint military operation with the Congolese Army in DRC to rout out the Hutu extremist insurgency there, and Kigali and Kinshasa restored diplomatic relations. Rwanda also joined the Commonwealth in late 2009 and assumed a nonpermanent seat on the UN Security Council for the 2013-14 term. (CIA World Factbook)

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PRAYER REQUESTS:

• Pray for the Church to lead in national repentance, reconciliation, and healing.
• Pray for the provision and hope for widows, orphans, and other continued victims of the genocide.
• Pray for committed believers to stand firm in the face of cultural and tribal pressures.
• Pray for the Uttermost workers in the field.
• Pray for the US office.