Acts 15 records the most important meeting in the New Testament. The debate strikes at the heart of the gospel. Paul and Barnabas are brought into sharp dispute with those who want to add to the salvation Christ has purchased, and so the church in Antioch appoints them to go to Jerusalem and hash things out.
The distance between Antioch and Jerusalem is about 350 miles. It’s probably not a route marked in the back of your Bible as a “missionary journey.” Nevertheless, Luke intentionally includes this stretch of travel in the book of Acts. And instead of simply writing, “They went up to Jerusalem,” he highlights a revealing detail: Along the way, Paul and Barnabas share stories of God’s work among the Gentiles to strengthen other believers (Acts 15:2–3). They don’t use the time to criticize or stir up division; they lift the church’s eyes by testifying to God’s grace.
Over the years, I’ve tried to do the same — to make believers glad by opening their eyes to the wonder and reality that God is doing a million things in the world, and we probably know five of them (and misinterpret four).
We’re so easily discouraged by the news. And sometimes we’re even discouraged by other Christians. Our busy lives narrow our focus to the day in front of us. (As it turns out, it does have enough trouble of its own!)
But God is at work around the world in ways we can scarcely imagine. So, let me encourage you and make you glad by sharing three stories of God’s grace.
Three Hundred Missionaries
In 1978, the Kachin Baptist Convention launched a remarkable missionary effort, recruiting three hundred men and women to carry the gospel into hard places. They trained for forty days and then were sent out in teams for a three-year commitment.
I first heard about this movement while standing in front of a statue built to commemorate their work. The base of the statue is covered with the names of all three hundred missionaries. As I read the names, one of those very missionaries, Hkalam Samson, stood beside me, quietly telling me his stories.
Samson — who has himself been imprisoned on false charges of terrorism, unlawful association, and inciting opposition — pointed to a name etched in the stone and said, almost offhandedly, “Do you see that name right there? That man was raised from the dead after being stoned. You can go visit him if you’d like.”
I stared at him, stunned.
And yet — incredible as that claim is — the heart of the story isn’t the miracle. The heart of the story is that the gospel was preached and people were changed. Through the work of those missionaries, it’s believed that as many as 6,200 new believers were baptized in a single day — what may have been one of the largest baptismal services in the history of the church.
Be glad. God is at work.
Indigenous Bible Translation
In 1999, Wycliffe Bible Translators and SIL International recognized that, at the then-current pace of Bible translation, it would take until the year 2150 for every people group on earth to have God’s word in their own language. That may seem disheartening, but it’s not the end of the story.
Rather than relying solely on foreign workers, local churches around the world have increasingly taken up the work of translation themselves. For example, the FJKM Church in Madagascar mobilized three hundred volunteers to translate the Bible from the national Malagasy language into a range of local languages. Through this grassroots effort, four New Testament translations were completed in just five years — and four more are on the way.
Did you know there has been a 70 percent increase in indigenous translators around the world?
Be glad. God is at work.
Beating Drums and Demons
My friend’s father (let’s call him John) told me stories of how he would travel from village to village with a drum, beating it to draw a crowd. He would then preach the gospel to anyone who gathered.
In one village, two demon-possessed women began speaking out as he arrived, discussing aloud whether they should leave because, as they put it, “Jesus is here.” Before long, the village leaders came and demanded that John leave. They wanted the ancestral spirits to remain in the village. Those two women, in particular, were a source of income for the community.
John refused to back down. He cast out the demons, preached the gospel, and both women came to faith in Christ.
Be glad. God is at work.
Stoke Your Fire for God’s Global Work
Most of us don’t naturally stumble across stories like these. They don’t tend to trend. The algorithm isn’t optimized for them. But they are out there — in abundance — for those willing to look. Here are a few places to start.
Read missionary biographies. The church has a long memory, and much of it is stunning. Books like Elisabeth Elliot’s Through Gates of Splendor, Don Richardson’s Peace Child, Brother Andrew’s God’s Smuggler, John Piper’s 27 Servants of Sovereign Joy, or Ruth A. Tucker’s From Jerusalem to Irian Jaya are not just history — they are testimonies to the same Jesus who is still at work today.
You can also read books that chronicle the advance of the gospel today. I recently wrote a book, Witness, to connect the story of Acts with the work God is doing right now. Tim Keesee’s A Company of Heroes or Dispatches from the Front bring to light new stories of missionaries serving in some of the world’s hardest places. Books like these are an on-ramp for anyone who wants to see the global church with fresh eyes, to be stirred rather than just informed.
Watch films that document the work of God in the nations. I played a part in creating Jesus in Athens, a documentary chronicling the powerful ways Jesus has worked among immigrants in Greece. Frontline Missions’s series Dispatches from the Front also shows some of God’s amazing work in the far reaches of the world. These and others are available for free on streaming services.
Subscribe to missionary newsletters. Most missionaries send regular updates — honest accounts of struggle and breakthrough, of slow years and sudden harvests. Ask your church leaders for a list of supported workers, and get on their mailing lists. You will be surprised how quickly the world grows when someone you know and pray for is living among another people group for the gospel’s sake.
Let Your Heart Be Glad
Whether through these or some other means, take time to be freshly convinced that Jesus is alive and at work. Don’t let news headlines have the final word. Seek out stories of God’s grace. Testify to his work among the nations.
Like Paul and Barnabas, be glad and bring others into your joy.
Desiring God