Muslim Uzbek People of Uzbekistan

* MUCH MORE about this people group at the JOSHUA PROJECT

Policemen raided the small group meeting at the church in Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan. "We're Christians, not radical Muslims," protested the pastor. "You're members of the Adolat Movement, and you're going to jail," hissed one of the policemen. The officers herded the church members into squad cars.

Adolat is the Uzbek word for justice. Many Uzbeks have flocked to the movement bearing that name in search of political freedom and answers for their personal lives. In recent years Islamic militants have tried to hijack the Adolat Movement, leading to police crackdowns. The ex-communist leaders of Uzbekistan understand so little about religion that they lump the few Uzbek Christians with Islamic radicals allied with the Taliban in nearby Afghanistan.

Uzbekistan is a former Soviet Republic in Central Asia that gained independence in 1991. Seventy years of government-enforced Atheism has created a spiritual hunger in that country. Though Islam was weakened during these years, 99 percent of all Uzbeks are Muslims.


Pray that God will direct the Uzbek people group toward salvation in Christ and away from the Islamic militancy. May God break the hold Islam has on this people group. Pray for the repeal of the laws that hinder the open preaching of the gospel in Uzbekistan.-WK

Jud. 6:15

"'But Lord,' Gideon asked, 'how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family'"

Today we might say that Gideon had a problem with his self-image. His argument sounds familiar: "I can't serve the Lord because I'm a nobody!" The Bible and 2000 years of church history remind us that God is in the business of taking nobodies and getting His work done through them. He often chooses the unlikely person because God's power is made perfect in weakness. Do you feel that the task of evangelizing across cultural barriers is too hard? Are you convinced that God could never use you to penetrate a frontier? He can-and He will if you are simply available. The greatest ability is availability.

Lord, help us to see ourselves and the world through Your eyes. We believe that You want to do great things through us as we trust and obey You.


Source From Global Prayer