Brunei

Challenges for Prayer

The unreached.

a) The Malay majority are Muslim with a handful of Christians, none daring to publicly make his or her faith known. There is little reason for people to change their spiritual status quo; pray for the Spirit to move in the hearts of Malays.

b) The Chinese lack security and are still regarded as foreigners, even if born in Brunei. Most still follow the traditional religions of China or are secular. Less than 20% are Christian and, of those, many do not pursue the Christian life. Chinese Christian businessmen from Brunei and from abroad have significant potential to impact Brunei economically and spiritually.

c) Tribal peoples have either converted to Islam and then been absorbed into the mainstream of national life, or they have remained isolated in jungle villages. Pray for those still in villages; there is a fairly strong Church and witness to them.

d) The expatriate workforce will inevitably grow. The largest groups are Muslim Bangladeshis and Indonesians, Hindu Indians and Nepalis (the latter making up much of the Brunei army), Buddhist Thai and Catholic Filipinos. The presence of many Filipino believers holds great potential for reaching the majority unreached (Brunei Malays).

     For an additional 3 Challenges for Prayer see Operation World book, CD-ROM, or DVD-ROM.