A Flying Saucer Lands in Zatual [January 2012 eMagazine]

Some years ago I wrote a song that I titled God of Tears. It was birthed as I read the account in Scripture of Jesus' weeping for Jerusalem, an amazing scene. God was shedding His tears for the people who were soon to torture and kill Him.

That song became a prayer, as it includes a line in the chorus, "God of tears, break my heart with what is breaking Yours." As we begin a new year, I hope that you will, along with me, make that one of your foremost prayer requests during all of 2012. Compassion is a divine gift, and we could all use more.

We eventually recorded God of Tears using the vocal talents of an Argentinian friend named Marcelo Guidi. You can listen to it here: www.heavensfamily.org/tears. I hope that its simple chorus will resonate within your heart. And as you read this month's magazine articles, may you rejoice knowing that your compassion is wiping some of the tears of the "least of these" around the world.

— David

Rice & A Blanket

We receive a continual stream of photos from our partners around the world as they inform us of pressing needs that are being met through funds we've entrusted to them. We always request that they send us photos of smiling beneficiaries, but coaxing smiles is not always easy or appropriate, and we sometimes receive poignant portraits like this one. When we read the stories behind such portraits, it causes us to pause and pray. Here's the story behind this photo.... Read more...

A Flying Saucer Lands in Zatual

For a Discovery Channel adventurer like myself, it was an Everest moment. We were the first foreigners to ever visit Zatual, a remote and primitive village strung high along a mountain ridge in Chin State, Myanmar. Zatual's inhabitants are all members of a small tribal group called the Zangiat, who speak their own distinctive language.

To reach the 52 village families who were waiting for us, our jeep and motorcycle convoy slowly negotiated miles of deeply-rutted, bone-crunching forest trails as we ascended over 3,000 feet above the valley. When we finally arrived at the village entrance, the Zatual villagers were lined up to greet and adorn us with tribal sashes. After a prayer by one of the village's three pastors, a ribbon was cut, and we walked where no American or British feet had walked before, shaking dozens of grateful hands. Read more...

Jungle Book

That Nuai, still going strong at 85

His parents raised him to be a Christian, and he'd been attending church faithfully for 36 years. He sensed, however, a spiritual void in his life, and something told him that what he needed could be found in the Bible. So That Nuai took his Bible and journeyed deep into the neighboring jungle where nothing could distract him. For seven days he read God's Word, and the "jungle book" did its work in him. When he emerged a week later, he was a changed man, a true believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, born again by the Holy Spirit. That was 50 years ago, and it was the beginning of That Nuai's incredible journey. Read more...

In Satan's Backyard

Jaidee (face blurred to protect identity) talking to a few of the many sidewalk workers who attempt to lure customers into nightclub establishments

Provocative young girls beckoned every sidewalk passerby: "Don't resist! Come inside!" Pulsing street music and flashing lights mixed to form a hellish vortex that pulled the unwary towards their seductive summons. I was in a red-light district in Thailand. It felt as if we were in Satan's backyard.

We walked a few blocks to escape and find a quieter place where we could talk. I wanted to learn more about the clandestine ministry of Jack and Jaidee (not their real names), who are seeking to rescue desperate women and children from sex slavery in one of Thailand's tourist towns (which I can't name for security reasons). Finding our spot, Jaidee told me their story. Read more...

Parting Shot

Residents of Zatual Village in Myanmar (see above article) were intensely interested in HF staff member David Warnock's photos of snow, something they will never encounter in their tropical climate.