When missionaries must leave a nation, it’s never good … or is it?

Alex and Jennifer Parker* found themselves in that situation when their Creative Access Nation enacted laws forcing their family to leave the country. Although it was hard to leave behind their thriving house church, God provided a capable church member to shepherd the flock. In the meantime, the Lord allowed the Parkers to meet a former Hindu couple, Joseph and Elizabeth Kumar, in a nearby nation. Bold witnesses to their family and friends, the Kumars wanted to start a church but needed help. The Parkers sensed that the closed door in their original nation meant an open door to the Kumars’ country. 

Just a few months after the Parkers relocated in early 2023, between 30 and 50 people were attending the fledgling church in the Kumars’ apartment. Every week, the small home overflowed with people, and Jennifer and Elizabeth had difficulty holding children’s classes. The small congregation began praying for its own church building—a formidable challenge in their close-knit community where people are resistant to renting or selling property to a Christian church. 

The Lord gave an unexpected answer. When the Parkers’ had to move out of their rented home near the church, two church members readily offered Alex and Jennifer a large property they owned. The only problem was that it was an hour away. Yet what looked like a problem turned into expansion for the church. Located at an influential crossroads, the building was large enough not only for the Parker family but also for a church and for the pastoral/theological training center the Parkers wanted to start. Besides this, it was close to some of the church members’ homes. Alex and Jennifer continued their weekly travel to help the Kumars’ house church, but why not start a second church in this new location? 

And that is what they did. The couple offering the new property were willing to sell it to the church if they would pay off the mortgage balance. Valued at nearly twice that balance, the property was a bargain, but it still seemed a formidable amount to raise. But not to the God who moves mountains. He stirred the Parkers’ supporters and church members to give the entire amount within a few months. The Lord gave another miracle: the brother of two church members owned the vacant land next door, and he offered its use for free. The church is now using it for overflow parking. The Parkers know the Lord will provide for the Kumars’ church in His timing. They all are amazed that within two years, two churches have been started in a nation that the Parkers never would have entered had it not been for God’s surprising redirections. 

*All names changed in article