Bengali Muslims of Diaspora

Bangladesh

As Saleemuddin walked down the dusty streets of the Eastern European city in which he was studying, he thought about the path through which God had brought him until now. He remembered how, back in his native Bangladesh, he had first heard the Gospel from a couple of Americans, Bob and Allen. They had been passing through Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, where Saleemuddin had come to do his bachelor's degree, and as he had taken them to several cultural events, they had shared with him about faith in Isa Masih (Jesus the Messiah). He had listened intently, but hadn't actually come to faith in Isa until about a year after he'd arrived in Kiev, where he was continuing to work on his master's degree in medical science. The possibility of remaining in Europe was an inviting one, and he knew that with a completed medical degree doors would open for him...but was God calling him to remain abroad, or to return to Bangladesh?

The Hidden Bengali in Diaspora

Bengali Muslims (native to Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal) are enterprising people who can be found in nearly every corner of the globe, and in capacities as diverse as students, professionals, and day laborers. There are large communities in many parts of India (apart from West Bengal) and other south Asian countries, and thousands working and studying especially in the Persian Gulf, the Middle East, and the West, and other parts of Asia. Sometimes these people who are away from home can be unusually receptive to the Gospel. At the same time, those who live in otherwise unreached and restricted access Muslim nations can be even more "hidden" than the local population, being a small minority in the midst of a larger unreached people group!

Prayer Guide for the Bengali Diaspora

* Pray that God would raise up people to reach out to Bengali Muslim communities all over the world.

* Pray that God would call Bengali Muslim background believers to reach out to communities of their people outside, as well as call some of those who come to faith abroad to return to Bangladesh and India to share with those in their homelands. Remember the Ethiopian Eunuch (Acts 8:26-40). God touched that man who was traveling and used his witness and influence to reach his people.

* Pray for God's Spirit and blessing to be poured out on the Bengali Muslims of Bangladesh and West Bengal, and that Muslim convert fellowships in those areas would send apostolic church planters to other Muslim peoples worldwide.

Background information, map and statistics about Bangladesh can be found here.

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