International (MNN) — Sometimes, the secret to success is working smarter, not harder. The Deaf are one of the world’s largest unreached people groups.
“There are still a lot of Deaf communities out there almost fully unreached with the Gospel,” DOOR International’s Rob Myers says, describing a persistent challenge in Deaf ministry.
Take Bangladesh, for example. Myers says, “Bangladesh is estimated to have several million Deaf people within the country, but less than 100 believers.”
Requests for new work are pouring in faster than the director of DOOR’s church planting program can meet them. So, DOOR is exporting its training.
(Photo courtesy of DOOR International)
Instead of gathering workers together and training them on the field, DOOR is making a 16-month video curriculum that can be accessed online from any location.
“As more Deaf missionaries become available on the field, we can meet the needs and demands for evangelism and discipleship in these communities,” Myers says.
A new approach
DOOR is modeling its curriculum after the work of Deaf missionaries in a secure location in Asia.
“In 2016, we surveyed the number of Deaf people and the number of Deaf believers. There were around 300,000 Deaf people, and the number of believers was around 20, so we sent in two Deaf missionaries,” Myers says.
“They learned the local sign language. They began sharing the Gospel, and within two years, local indigenous leaders were coming alongside these Deaf missionaries.”
Within five years, “Those local leaders had taken over the work completely, and these missionaries were able to go back to their home countries,” Myers says.
DOOR needs your help to finish the work. “If you’re passionate about seeing the Gospel get to places it hasn’t yet, you can visit our website, DOORinternational.org, to learn more about what God’s doing in some of these Deaf communities,” Myers says.
“Sign up to pray for some of these leaders in the field, and think about giving financially to see more Deaf people trained to be sent out as missionaries.”
Header and story images courtesy of DOOR International.
