God is Drawing Persians from Iran to Jesus in London

Since our arrival in London earlier this year, it’s been our privilege to serve and reach out to members of many different unreached people groups here. One of the most significant of these has been Persian asylum seekers from Iran and Afghanistan as we have been learning from our much more experienced co-laborers in the Gospel at IPC-Ealing who’ve been reaching out to Persians in London for many years.

Yesterday we praised God together as a church at IPC-Ealing as we baptised a new Iranian Christian, who we will call “N”. "N" is the fourth member of her family to be baptised at IPC-Ealing, following her son, daughter, and son-in-law into saving faith in Jesus Christ from Islam. "N" and her grown children have suffered much to come to London from Iran as asylum seekers, having literally lost almost everything to come here and to now follow Jesus.

Please join us in praising God for "N" and her family’s faith in Jesus Christ and for their family’s bold witness as they continually reach out to others with the Gospel. Please also join us and our Iranian friends in praying for the people of Iran as they continue to suffer under an oppressive Islamic regime that suppresses the Gospel and Christ’s church in their home country, and many Iranian Christians, moderate Muslims, Zoroastrians, and secular Iranians have fled Iran over the past several decades and come to London.

Britain's Newest PM And London's Current Mayor Are From UPG's

This is not at all a political post....but... many of you have no doubt heard by now that we here in the United Kingdom have a new Prime Minister today! Politics aside, both the new Conservative Party PM, Rishi Sunak, and the current Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan (a member of the Labour Party), paint a fascinating picture of just how diverse the United Kingdom is today and exactly why God has called our family to serve here in London.

Each of them are the first ever non-white and non-Christian holders of their respective offices in the history of Great Britain, and each are members of what missiologists would describe as “Unreached People Groups”. Incoming Prime Minister Sunak is a Hindu, born in Southampton (along the southern coast of England) to Punjabi Indian parents who emigrated to the U.K. from East Africa, and was named as the new PM today, during the middle of the Hindu festival of Diwali, one of the most important Hindu holidays (we have heard and seen fireworks all over the city of London these past few days for Diwali).

Meanwhile, Mayor Sadiq Khan, a Sunni Muslim, was born in the South London neighbourhood of Tooting to Pakistani emigrant parents. Each of these men are the children of South Asian emigrants to the U.K. and come from polar opposite ends of the political spectrum, are thoroughly British in every way imaginable, and illustrate just how amazingly diverse the United Kingdom is today. Each of them are widely respected in Great Britan as leaders and success stories of their respective communities, and each of them and the communities they represent (and the U.K. as a whole) are deeply in need of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

It is such a enormous privilege for us to live and serve as ambassadors for the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the nations God has gathered together in this amazing place called London. We are blessed to have 45 different nationalities represented within our host church, IPC-Ealing, a church God has been been pleased to use since 1969 to reach the nations in London and beyond. Our newly launched House Group that began meeting in our home last month, has 7 different nationalities represented just within our group!

Please pray as we continue to minister here in West London, and as we look to launch a new weekly Free English Class ministry next month at IPC-Ealing to help our church love our neighbours and share the love of Christ with them. Thank you so much for your prayers and partnership in the Gospel!

Back at All Souls for Evangelism Conference

Shanna and I are back at All Soul’s Church again today for an Evangelism Conference with Randy Newman, author of “Mere Evangelism”! Really great content and I’d recommend his book of the same title strongly for those who’ve a heart for sharing their faith and an interest in C.S. Lewis.