All Nations, All Peoples: Understanding God's Heart for the Unreached

Hello, and welcome back to Nations 4 Jesus. Today I want to talk about something that's at the very heart of God's purposes for the world—something that appears throughout Scripture from Genesis to Revelation. It's captured beautifully in the shortest chapter in the entire Bible: Psalm 117.

Let me read it to you—all two verses:

"Praise the LORD, all nations! Extol him, all peoples! For great is his steadfast love toward us, and the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever. Praise the LORD!"

This tiny psalm contains a massive vision: ALL nations praising the Lord. ALL peoples extolling Him. Not some. Not many. ALL. And today, I want to unpack what that means, why it matters, and what it calls us to do. Much of what I'm sharing comes from a powerful sermon by John Piper called "Everlasting Truth for the Joy of All Peoples," and it's challenged me deeply.

[Defining the terms - what are "nations" and "peoples"?]

First, we need to understand what the Bible means by "nations" and "peoples." When Psalm 117 says "all nations" and "all peoples," it's not talking about political states like America, Spain, Brazil, or China. It's referring to ethnic, language, or cultural groupings within these political states.

For example, if you look at China, there aren't just "Chinese people." There are the Hui, the Dulong, the Li, the Lisu, the Shui, the Salar, the Yao, and dozens more distinct people groups—each with their own language, culture, and identity. In the Bible, you read about "the Jebusites, the Amorites, the Girgashites, the Hivites, the Arkites, the Sinites, the Arvadites, the Zemarites, and the Hamathites" (Genesis 10:16-18).

So when Psalm 117:1 says, "Praise the LORD, all nations! Extol him, all peoples!" it means: "Praise the Lord, Hui of China! Praise the Lord, Bahing of Nepal! Praise the Lord, Baluch of Pakistan! Praise the Lord, Maninka of Guinea! Praise the Lord, Saluwan of Indonesia! Praise the Lord, Dakota of South Dakota!"

[Jesus and the nations - the Great Commission]

These are the kinds of groups Jesus was referring to when He said after His resurrection in Matthew 28:18-19: "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations"—literally "panta ta ethne," all the ethnic groups, all the people groups. This is the same phrase used in Psalm 117:1.

And these are the groups Jesus meant when He said in Matthew 24:14: "This gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come." Not just all countries. All peoples. All ethnic groups. All language groups. All distinct cultures.

[The crucial question - how many remain unreached?]

So here's the huge question for followers of Jesus today—and it should be on our minds constantly: How many peoples are there, and how many of them are still unreached with the gospel of the kingdom? How many still have no church that obeys Psalm 117 and praises the Lord?

Let me give you some current statistics from Joshua Project, one of the most reliable research organizations tracking unreached peoples. As of 2025, there are approximately 17,446 distinct people groups in the world. Of these, about 7,401 are considered unreached—meaning they have little to no access to the Gospel, with less than 2% evangelical Christians among them.

These unreached people groups represent approximately 3.4 billion individuals—that's 42% of the world's population! Think about that: Nearly half of all people alive today belong to people groups where there's virtually no Christian witness, no churches, no believers who could share the Gospel with them in their own language and cultural context.

Let me break this down further. Among these unreached groups, 243 have populations over 1 million people. Some mega-peoples are still largely unreached: the Shaikh of Bangladesh (150 million), the Yadav of India (50 million), the Pashtun of Afghanistan and Pakistan (49 million), the Japanese (123 million). These aren't small, isolated tribes hidden in jungles—these are massive people groups that have somehow been overlooked or proven resistant to the Gospel.

[The myth of "missions is over" - addressing wrong thinking]

Now, if you hear someone say that the day of Western missions is over, you know something is amiss in their head or in their heart. Let me be direct about this because I hear this sentiment sometimes, and it's deeply troubling. When people say Western missions is over, they may not believe that the God and Father of our Lord Jesus is to be praised by all peoples. Or they may not believe that anyone is really perishing without the Gospel. Or they may believe that local people can do a better job than Western people.

But here's what that last argument misunderstands: The very definition of "unreached" means there aren't any—or aren't strong enough—local people capable of doing the work. That's what unreached means! And nearby reached peoples may actually be less culturally acceptable than Westerners in many contexts. For example, Chinese Christians may have an easier time reaching certain Muslim peoples than Arab Christians would, simply because there's no historical religious conflict between Chinese and Muslims.

The day of Western missions is not over. And the day we think it is will be the day you can write "forsaken" over the doors of our churches. God means for us to engage with Him to bring about Psalm 117: "Praise the LORD, all nations! Extol him, all peoples!"

[Teaching the next generation - practical application]

If you have children who don't know about the "nations," let me give you some practical suggestions. Subscribe to resources like the Global Prayer Digest or visit websites like Joshua Project's "Unreached of the Day." Read a story to your children about a different unreached people group each day and pray for them.

In our homeschool, we've made this a regular part of our routine. We'll learn about a people group—where they live, what they believe, how they live, why they haven't heard the Gospel—and then we pray specifically for them. They're growing up with a God-sized vision of the world, not a me-sized vision of their own comfort.

[Breaking free from small worlds - the call to bigger vision]

John Piper writes: "Oh, that children and teenagers and adults in Christ's Church would break free from our tiny little worlds of family and friends and church and Western culture! Jesus Christ is building His church around the world. We are meant to think and feel and work with Him in this cause."

Then he says something that really convicted me: "Who knows how many of our personal problems are owing to narrowness of thinking and smallness of affections in relation to God's global purposes."

Think about that! How many of our anxieties, our discontent, our sense of purposelessness stem from the fact that we're focused only on our small circle? We're worried about our comfort, our plans, our preferences, our problems—when God is orchestrating the greatest movement in history: bringing worshipers from every tribe, tongue, and nation to His throne!

When we expand our vision to include God's global purposes, our personal problems often shrink to their proper size. When we're praying for unreached Buddhists in Mongolia or persecuted Christians in Nigeria or hidden believers in North Korea, suddenly our complaint about the worship style at church or frustration about our schedule seems petty.

[The dramatic shift - Christianity's new center]

Now, here's something crucial we need to understand: The world and the church have changed dramatically in the last 100 years—truly the greatest missionary century in history. Listen to what missiologist Andrew Walls wrote in his book "The Cross-Cultural Process in Christian History":

"[The twentieth century] has seen this great recession from the Christian faith in the West, there has been an equally massive accession to that faith in the non-Western world. [At the beginning of the century] well over 80 percent of those who professed Christianity lived in Europe or North America. Now, approaching 60 percent live in the southern continents of Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Pacific, and that proportion grows annually. Christianity began the twentieth century as a Western religion, and indeed, the Western religion; it ended the century as a non-Western religion, on track to become progressively more so."

Updated statistics for 2025 show this trend has accelerated. Today, approximately 67% of Christians live in the Global South—Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Oceania. Only 33% live in Europe and North America. The church's center of gravity has shifted dramatically southward and eastward.

[We are not the center - humility and rejoicing]

Here's what this means: We in the West are not at the center anymore. God may or may not be done with us in our self-absorbed prosperity in America. But He certainly is putting others on the Christian map to humble us and call us to confess and rejoice that others may be far more effective in finishing the Great Commission than we are.

The dynamics of church and missions will never be the same. And that's not something to mourn—it's something to celebrate! God is raising up missionary movements in South Korea, Brazil, Nigeria, India, and China. Korean missionaries are reaching Central Asia. Brazilian missionaries are reaching North Africa. Nigerian missionaries are reaching unreached peoples across West Africa. Chinese believers are taking the Gospel along the Belt and Road Initiative.

John Piper gives a small example of this shift: "There are more Anglicans in Nigeria than in England and America put together. Their bishops are biblically conservative, and they vote. Who would have dreamed just thirty years ago that powerful, liberal Western bishops would be called to account biblically by the churches they planted in Africa?"

This is the new world we live in. It is the world that God is guiding and shaping for His glory. And we need to adjust our thinking accordingly. We're not the only ones reaching the unreached anymore—and that's wonderful! But it doesn't mean our job is done.

[The ongoing call - goers and senders]

So let's join God in His great global purpose and not be limited in our thinking, feeling, and acting to our local concerns. Let's give ourselves to missions—either as goers or as senders. Because here's what Psalm 117 makes crystal clear: God will not be satisfied until every people group on earth praises Him. Not just some. Not just the easy-to-reach ones. ALL.

[The ultimate purpose - God's glory among all peoples]

Here's what we need to understand at the deepest level: Missions isn't ultimately about helping poor people or making the world a better place or even saving souls—as important as all those things are. Missions is ultimately about God's glory being displayed among all peoples. It's about Psalm 117 being fulfilled. It's about every tribe, tongue, and nation gathered around the throne in Revelation 7:9 worshiping the Lamb.

God created diversity—different languages, cultures, peoples—not as a problem to be overcome, but as a canvas on which to display the infinite beauty of His glory. When a Mongolian nomad worships Jesus, it reveals something about God's character that an American suburban worshiper can't reveal. When a Fulani herdsman sings praise to Jesus, it displays God's glory in a way that a Brazilian city-dweller can't. God wants all the colors, all the sounds, all the cultural expressions of humanity praising Him—because only then is His glory fully displayed.

[Closing challenge and prayer]

So I want to challenge you: Don't be satisfied with a faith that's focused only on your personal salvation and comfort. Don't be content with a Christianity that's all about your needs being met and your problems being solved. Expand your heart to embrace God's passion for all peoples!

Ask yourself: When was the last time I prayed for an unreached people group? When was the last time I gave money specifically to reach the unreached? Have I ever seriously considered whether God might be calling me to go? Am I raising my children with a vision for all nations, or just a vision for their own success?

God is building His church among all peoples. The question is: Will we join Him in that work, or will we stay focused on our tiny worlds while billions remain unreached?

Let me pray: 

Thank you for joining me today. Until next time, remember—keep your eyes on the nations and live for the fulfillment of Psalm 117!

Spotify podcast

Why Was Jesus So Angry?

Hello, friends, and welcome back to Nations 4 Jesus. Today I want to talk about the only time in all of Scripture when Jesus is portrayed as passionately, actively angry.

If you've watched The Chosen, you might remember the powerful scene where Jesus clears the temple. It's dramatic, it's shocking, and it might have made you a bit uncomfortable. But friends, have you ever stopped to ask why? Why did Jesus get so angry that day? What was it about the temple that provoked such righteous fury in the One who came full of grace and truth?

[Setting the scene - the temple clearing]

All four Gospel accounts record this event—Matthew 21, Mark 11, Luke 19, and John 2. Jesus entered the temple in Jerusalem and saw the buying, selling, cheating, and utter chaos that was going on. He took a whip and drove out all those who were selling. He overturned the tables of the money changers. He sent animals scattering. This wasn't a gentle correction. This was righteous anger on full display.

And I used to wonder at this. Why did He get so angry at the moneychangers and sellers of sacrificial animals? Shouldn't He be more angry about the injustice to people He saw every day—slavery, treatment of lepers, shunning of children, corruption of the religious leaders? But His righteous anger at the temple points to a truth that we need to understand.

[The primary reason Jesus came - God's glory]

Here's the truth: Jesus did not come to earth primarily for us, as we like to believe and are often taught. Now stay with me here—yes, He came to earth to show us God, to teach us how to live, and to die for our sins, purchasing salvation for all who would believe. But His primary reason for coming to earth was to bring glory to God.

Listen to Jesus's own words in John 17:4-6: "I glorified You on the earth, having accomplished the work which You have given Me to do." And what was the work? "I manifested Your name to the men You gave Me out of the world." Jesus's main concern was that His Father in Heaven might be worshipped fully and completely by those He had created.

Friends, God is the creator of all things. He is so incredibly holy, mighty, just, beautiful—truly beyond words. He made us and sustains us and deserves all our thankfulness, praise, wonder, and worship. Jesus recognized that more than any other human being on earth, and He was jealous for His Father's glory and worship.

[What Jesus saw in the temple - the Court of the Gentiles]

So when Jesus entered the temple that day—whose actual building was directed by God "to establish His name there for His dwelling" according to Deuteronomy 12—His anger was roused by what He saw. Now here's what many people miss about this story: All this buying and selling was happening in the Court of the Gentiles.

The Court of the Gentiles was the place set apart for non-Jews to encounter God, worship Him, pray to Him, and find relationship with Him. This was the only part of the temple where Gentiles were allowed. And what did Jesus find there? Noisy, smelly, deceiving distractions to relationship, prayer, and worship!

How could people encounter God and worship Him amidst the buying and selling of animals? How could they pray with hundreds of pilgrims yelling and arguing with money changers who were doing their best to make a profit and cheat country folks out of their meager earnings? Friends, it was impossible! The very place designed for Gentiles to meet God had been turned into a marketplace.

[The deeper issue - lack of concern for the nations]

And here's what really provoked Jesus's anger: The fact that all this was being done in the Court of the Gentiles showed the lack of concern and love that the Jewish leadership had for non-Jews. Time and again, Jesus had seen their lack of concern for the Gentiles surrounding them. Like Jonah—remember our last episode?—they hoarded their "privileged" status as followers of God and were not eager to see Gentiles coming to faith in the one true God.

This didn't reflect the mentality of all Jews, but it certainly seemed to be the mentality of the temple leadership who would allow such a cacophony of noise and corruption in the very place set aside by God for the prayers and worship of foreigners. This angered Jesus! How dare they prevent people from coming and worshipping the Lord? The Lord deserves all praise and glory, and anything that hindered that—anything that hindered the salvation of Gentiles—needed to be destroyed.

[No one challenged Him - they knew it was wrong]

Here's something fascinating: I believe that everyone who was there knew in their hearts that what was going on in the Court of the Gentiles was wrong, even before Jesus so publicly pointed it out. How do I know? Because no one challenged what He had done. No one tried to stop Him. He was justified in His anger and His actions, and they knew it!

God deserved every bit of praise and worship, and all people deserved an opportunity to meet Him, fall in love with Him, and worship Him. The religious leaders had forgotten this. They had made God's house into a house of commerce instead of a house of prayer for all nations—which is exactly what Jesus called them out for.

[Biblical foundation - a house of prayer for all nations]

In Mark 11:17, Jesus quotes from Isaiah 56:7 when He says, "Is it not written: 'My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations'? But you have made it 'a den of robbers.'" Friends, did you catch that? A house of prayer for ALL NATIONS. Not just for Jews. Not just for the privileged. For all nations!

God's heart has always been for the nations. We talked about this in our Jonah episode. From Abraham to Israel to the temple itself—God designed it all with the nations in mind. The Court of the Gentiles was supposed to be a place where people from every nation could come and encounter the one true God. But instead, it had become a barrier to worship, a hindrance to the very purpose God intended.

[The application for us today - a challenging question]

Here's where this gets uncomfortable. I wonder what Jesus would do today if He stepped into some of our churches? Would He find congregations totally focused on prayer and the worship of Him? Congregations that welcome all who would seek Him, causing no hindrances to the worship of Him?

Or would He find churches eager to show off their wealth? Eager to sell the latest best-selling Christian novel in the lobby? Eager to entertain the congregation and the visitor rather than challenge them to serve God more wholeheartedly? Would He find red-hot worship of God—people whose primary goal in life is to glorify the Lord and find total satisfaction in Him? Or would He find lukewarm, self-serving, self-focused weekly gatherings of people who call themselves Christians but are living lives no different from the world around them?

[Modern barriers to worship - what distracts us?]

Let's get really specific. What are the modern equivalents of money changers in the Court of the Gentiles? What are we allowing in our churches—or in our own lives—that hinders genuine worship and keeps people from encountering God?

Is it the obsession with building programs and fundraising that overshadows prayer and missions? Is it the focus on comfortable seating and coffee bars while ignoring the unreached nations? Is it the celebrity pastor culture that draws attention to personalities instead of pointing to God? Is it the entertainment-driven services that tickle ears but don't transform hearts?

Or on a personal level—what's cluttering our own "court of the Gentiles"? What's taking up the space in our life that should be reserved for encountering God and helping others encounter Him? Is it busyness? Entertainment? Comfort? The pursuit of wealth? Friends, Jesus is still zealous for His Father's glory. And anything that hinders worship—anything that keeps us or others from glorifying God—should make us angry too.

[The global perspective - do we care about the nations?]

And here's the missions angle we can't ignore: The Jewish leaders didn't care that they were hindering Gentiles from worshiping God. Do we care that there are 3.4 billion people in unreached people groups who have never had the chance to encounter God? Do we care enough to do something about it?

According to recent data, only about 3% of missionary efforts and resources are focused on reaching unreached people groups. That means 97% of our efforts are going to places that have already been reached! If Jesus was angry about money changers blocking Gentiles in Jerusalem, how does He feel about our neglect of billions who have never even heard His name?

[Closing encouragement and prayer]

Friends, Jesus got angry—passionately, righteously angry—because people were being prevented from worshiping His Father. He cared more about God's glory than about keeping the peace or maintaining the status quo. May we have that same holy jealousy for God's glory. May we remove any barriers in our own lives that hinder worship. And may we be zealous to see all nations come to know and worship the one true God.

Let me pray: 

Thank you for joining me today. May we never forget what Jesus was willing to get angry about—and may we share that same passion for God's glory among all nations.

Until next time, remember—keep your eyes on the nations remembering that God deserves all praise and glory, and all people deserve the opportunity to worship Him.

Episode Description: Only once in Scripture is Jesus passionately angry—when He cleared the temple. Why? The money changers were operating in the Court of the Gentiles, the only place where non-Jews could encounter God, blocking the nations from worship. Today, with 3.4 billion unreached people and only 3% of missions focused on them, what would Jesus do if He walked into our churches? Would He find passionate concern for the nations, or comfortable, entertainment-driven gatherings? Five ways to align with Jesus's zeal for God's glory and the nations' worship.

Scripture: Matthew 21:12-13, Mark 11:15-17, John 17:4-6, Isaiah 56:7

Read more: nations4jesus.blogspot.com

Spotify podcast

Prayer: The Most Important Thing You Can Do

Hello, friends, and welcome back to Nations 4 Jesus.

Today, I want to talk about what I believe is the most important thing you can do right now in obeying the Great Commission. It's not complicated. You don't have to leave your home. You don't have to spend money. You don't have to make any huge sacrifices—except some time.

The answer? Prayer.

Just pray!

The Bible is very clear that prayer changes things. Jesus—God in the flesh—prayed. Think about that for a moment. If Jesus, who had only three years on earth to accomplish everything He came to do, took time out of His incredibly busy schedule to pray, then He obviously wants us to pray frequently.

Listen to these examples: Luke 6:12 tells us Jesus spent the whole night praying to God before choosing His disciples. 

Matthew 14:23 says He went up on a mountainside by Himself to pray. 

Luke 3:21 and 9:28-29 describe Him praying at His baptism and on the mountain of transfiguration. 

And Matthew 26:36-45 shows us Jesus praying in the Garden of Gethsemane before His crucifixion.

If Jesus prayed that much, how much more should we?

So here's my question: Why is prayer so often seen as the last resort rather than the first response? Why would we rather take some sort of action to fix a problem rather than go to God first?

I believe one of the main reasons is that we often don't truly believe that prayer will make any difference.

That fatalistic view of prayer often comes from our ultimate view of God. Let me ask you some questions:

Do we truly believe the words of the Bible? 

Do we believe that He is concerned and involved in every aspect of our own lives and the lives of the lost? 

Do we believe He has a plan for this world? 

Do we believe He is still in control, despite the things we see around us that would tell us otherwise?

Friends, it really comes down to one essential decision that Adam and Eve were asked to make in the Garden, and that we are asked to make every day in our own lives: Do we believe the truth of God, as shown to us in the Bible, or the lies of Satan?

Because for every truth of God, Satan counterfeits that with his own lie.

Many people, including many Christians, look at the world around them—even at their own lives—and take on a fatalistic view. They think nothing can change. The lies of Satan seem too powerful, too persuasive. They quietly accept the way things are, the status quo.

Yet, the status quo in our world today is not how God first created our earth or how He desires it to be functioning today. God's perfect way does not include war, killing, divorce, abortion, abuse, or slavery. Although He allows it, in His sovereignty, to ultimately accomplish His good purposes…while He was on earth, and today through the Holy Spirit, He battles evil and asks us to join Him.

Jesus shares a powerful story in Luke 18:1-8 about a widow who was seeking justice. She continued to persistently ask the judge for justice, until finally he gave her what she asked.

Jesus shared this story to show that we, as His disciples, "should always pray and not give up" (Luke 18:1). This type of praying is called petitionary prayer.

Let me share with you one of my favorite descriptions of petitionary prayer. Theologian David Wells wrote:

"Petitionary prayer is rebellion—rebellion against the status quo, the state of the world in its sin and fallenness. It is the absolute and undying refusal to accept as normal what is completely abnormal. It is the rejection of every agenda, every scheme, every opinion that clashes with God... a declaration that Evil is not a variation on Good but its very opposite."

Did you hear that? Prayer is rebellion! It's refusing to accept evil as normal!

Petitionary prayer is prayer that:

1. Believes that God does not want the current evil status quo to continue on earth
2. Believes that God can change things for the better through His power
3. Believes God will change things in response to the prayers of His people

Now, let me be clear: Prayer is not magic. It doesn't always work the way we expect. It's not something we do in our own strength, but a response to what God is already doing within us and in the world.

As Walter Wink wrote, "Our prayers are the necessary opening that allows God to act without violating our freedom. Prayer is the ultimate act of partnership with God."

It's recognizing that God is in control, He is acting, He will be faithful to our prayers, and He is asking us to join Him through prayer.

Let me share something beautiful I experienced while we were living in Seoul, South Korea. We attended Jubilee Church, and Pastor David did something I had never seen in a church before or since.

After he finished his sermon each Sunday, he would ask that we pray as a congregation about what we had just heard. He would pick out four or five main points from the sermon. For each point, he would first pray about it, and then he would have us—out loud—pray and talk to God about how we would have Him work in our lives and in the lives of others.

This would go on for about 15 to 20 minutes.

Friends, I cannot tell you how thrilling it was to stand amongst my brothers and sisters in Christ as we were all verbally, and at the same time, pouring out our hearts to the Lord! I believe it pleased the Lord greatly. And His blessings and use of Jubilee Church are very evident.

Pastor David ensured that prayer was not just something done quickly at the beginning and end of the service, as a sort of duty, but that it was an essential part of our time together. And I could almost see the smile on the face of God when He heard our times of prayer.

Prayer is especially significant for missions because in mission work, we come up against so much of the evil status quo and the fatalistic views of so many cultures.

Satan desires that Christians—whether in missions or in mission support—will doubt God's power to change. He doesn't want us to beseech the God of the Universe to bring unreached people groups to Himself because Satan will continue to lose ground.

Satan wants us to think that the situation is hopeless, that the people are a lost cause, that God doesn't care about them.

But friends, this is a battle for every soul! We must engage in petitionary prayer on behalf of the lost and in our own lives.

We must ask ourselves this question: "Do we really think God would fail to bring about justice for His chosen ones who cry to Him night and day? Will He keep putting them off?"

Jesus answered it for us in Luke 18:7-8: "I tell you, He will see that they get justice, and quickly."

So, what do we do? How do we go beyond a quick "bless the people in China and bring all the lost to You" into true spiritual warfare on behalf of the lost?

Well, God has provided a wealth of resources! Let me share some of my favorites with you.

Here are websites that I highly recommend for your daily prayer time:

Operation World (operationworld.org) - This incredible resource leads you in prayer for a different country every day. Not only will you pray very specific prayers for that country, but you'll also learn a lot about different nations in the process. They also have a mobile app and you can sign up for daily emails.

Unreached of the Day (unreachedoftheday.org) - Through Joshua Project, this resource helps you pray for a different unreached people group each day. They have a mobile app, daily podcast, and email subscription. It's a fantastic way to keep unreached peoples in front of you every single day.

Voice of the Martyrs (persecution.com) - This ministry focuses on the persecuted church. They have a Global Prayer Guide covering 68 countries where Christians face persecution, and they send out prayer updates to help you pray for and fellowship with persecuted Christians around the world. You can also sign up for their free 2026 Prayer Calendar and monthly magazine.

Open Doors (https://www.opendoorsus.org/en-US/) - This ministry also focuses on the persecuted church. They come out with the World Watch List which shows the 50 most persecuted nations in the world each year and provides numerous resources to pray for them.

If you look at the description of this podcast, you will see that I have listed each of these resources. 

Friends, prayer is effective and so very necessary. It moves the hand of God!

Listen to what Paul says in Colossians 4:3-4: "And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should."

And Jesus Himself said in Matthew 9:36-38: "When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, 'The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.'"

So here's my challenge to you: Pick just one or two of these resources. Start small. Commit to praying for the nations for just 5-10 minutes a day.

Use Operation World to pray for a different country each day. Use Unreached of the Day to pray for a specific people group. Use Voice of the Martyrs or Open Doors to pray for the persecuted church.

As you pray, watch what God does in your heart. Watch how He breaks your heart for what breaks His. Watch how He grows your passion for the lost. Watch how He uses your prayers to move mountains you can't even see.

Because prayer is rebellion against the status quo. Prayer is partnership with God. Prayer is the most important thing you can do right now to obey the Great Commission.

Heavenly Father, You are sovereign and good! We don’t accept the lie that prayer doesn't work. We don't believe that nothing can change. We won't surrender to fatalism. Instead, Lord, we join Jesus in the battle through prayer. We cry out toYou for the lost. We intercede for the unreached. We will stand in the gap for the persecuted. Thank you for showing us through Your Word and Your Holy Spirit that our prayers matter. They change things. They move Your hand oh God. In Jesus’ name, Amen. 

Thank you for joining me today. I pray this has inspired you to become a warrior in prayer for the nations. Until next time, keep your eyes on the nations... and never stop praying.

You can listen to this at Spotify podcast