Hope is spreading in a small village in the Middle East. In May 2025, OM worker Seth* baptised 31 people. For the first time in over 50 years, new believers from a minority religious group took the bold step to publicly declare their faith in Jesus! Through faithful discipleship of local leaders by Seth and his co-workers, 13 Jesus followers multiplied to 189 within only 18 months — more than doubling the number of believers gathering together to study God’s Word, despite the constant challenge of regional turmoil.

And the good news continued to spread! In June 2026, Seth baptised 54 more new believers.

Seth, a believer who grew up in another Middle Eastern country as part of the same minority religion, said his own heritage was key to unlocking access to this closed community. “The love we have for one another is an essential part of my story with these people that God connected me to,” he explained. 

And the spiritual growth he’s recently witnessed is evidence of the Lord’s leading. “God has shown up in so many ways before I even decided to come here,” he said. 

Called to Christ

As a young man, Seth could never have imagined that his heritage would open doors decades later to share the gospel with other members of the same minority religious group.

Seth was not a follower of Jesus when he left the Middle East at age 18 to study in the United States. Although he identified culturally with the religion, it did not affect his day-to-day life. In fact, only 10 per cent of the population actively practise the religion, he estimated.

“I was not a religious man,” Seth said. “My compass in life was just to be a good, moral human being. That’s it.”

For years, Seth followed his own intuition, pursuing the jobs, relationships and opportunities that seemed most advantageous at the time. But when his marriage eventually started to struggle, his wife threw out a surprising lifeline: “Let’s go to church.”

Willing to do whatever it took to save his marriage, Seth started attending weekly services with his wife. “It was really small, but it was a community. I felt the love. I felt acceptance,” he described.

Then one Wednesday evening at the church, a special guest speaker singled out Seth: “God has made a new man out of you. He’s going to use you for His Kingdom, and you’re going to preach the gospel through the world.”

At the time, Seth didn’t understand the prophecy over his life — and it would take thirty years before he saw it come true.

Ten years later, Seth surrendered his life to Jesus, starting his journey as a new creation in Christ.

Called back

Before deciding to return to the part of the world where he’d been born, Seth said he was “working in a very good job, making good money, but I went through a period in my life where I felt there is still something missing.”

He read the book Driven by Eternity by John Bevere, and something in his heart shifted. “I started looking at things from a heavenly perspective rather than an early perspective,” he said.

Slowly, he began to recognise that his background, his language, his work experience and his desire to serve people might be part of God’s plan for his life. Seth started looking at non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and submitted more than 30 applications. None of them responded.

Then God started making connections for him. A name popped into his head, followed by an email from that person the next day. A random invitation to a special missions worker dinner at a church more than three hours from his house. And a chance to meet Andrew Scott, who at the time was the U.S. president of Operation Mobilization (OM) — the organisation where Seth had just submitted another application to lead a disaster relief programme in the Middle East.

During the dinner, Seth watched Andrew intently, hoping to connect and win his favour. Finally, he grabbed a free moment to introduce himself and share his story. “He just looked at me and said, ‘We need you on the field,’” Seth remembered.

Around two weeks later, Seth received a call from OM’s U.S. office. He learnt that Andrew had personally delivered Seth’s application and resume to the mobilisation personnel. After reviewing it, they all wanted him to join the team.

“Now we need to talk about support,” the caller continued.

Instantly, Seth’s celebration turned to confusion. “God was setting me up,” Seth joked. “If I had known it was a missions organisation, I never would have applied.”

But the opportunity was compelling, and the pieces kept coming together. By the time Seth and his wife were ready to take a vision trip to the Middle East with OM, they were convinced God had called them to take the next step.

After a week with the local team, the leader on the field officially invited Seth to join the ministry. Seth looked at him and said, “I quit my job before I came here. I’m already in.”

“The minute we went back to the U.S., we took a three-day course in how to raise support,” Seth shared. Afterwards, they spent the next six months raising two years of financial support from their family and friends.

Then, exactly twenty years after Seth had become a believer, he and his wife boarded a plane back to the Middle East.

Called to serve

“I was 55 when God called me to the mission field. My wife was 53,” Seth said. “I’m not 100 per cent set financially like I should be.”

They went because they were convinced that God was calling them to serve. “We heard God clearly,” Seth emphasised. “It’s the foundation I can stand on when I’m facing challenges.”

The past eight years in the Middle East have contained both highs and lows. For the first several years, Seth honed his skills in sharing the gospel in contextually appropriate and reproducible ways. This period of preparation allowed him to walk through open doors to reach members of the minority religious group in person, when his prayerful risks resulted in powerful transformation and spiritual fruit in previously dry places.

By God’s grace, Seth has helped facilitate two baptism services within two years — joyful, public celebrations of God’s goodness and faithfulness. Today, 233 disciples are studying God’s Word, with 18 leaders shepherding 54 small groups.

God has used Seth’s background to open doors into a closed community not even his local teammates could have accessed alone.

“We left everything behind knowing God is going to take care of us,” Seth said. “It’s an honour and a privilege to be called to serve.” 

*name changed