A double tragedy began Maggie LaBrecque’s prayers for two Central Asian women who are from a people group near and dear to her heart. Her prayers continued until there was good news to share. 

LaBrecque serves among many people groups, including a minority group the International Mission Board (IMB) team refers to as the Four Corners people because they live across four countries in Central Asia. Several years ago, LaBrecque met Eloise, who is from the Four Corners people group, while she was in the capital of her country waiting for her visa. Eloise is the first Christian in her family.  

The women kept in touch after LaBrecque moved into the mountains to serve among minority people groups living in that region. LaBrecque visited Eloise on trips to the capital.  

On one visit, Eloise shared that an extended family member named Moira died during the pandemic.  

In the cultures of LaBrecque’s adopted country, immediate family members are usually the last to hear when a loved one dies. Extended family members, friends or often acquaintances arrange for the body to be returned to the family. Many in this people group live scattered throughout the region as well as other countries. If they pass away, their bodies must be transported home, sometimes by vehicle on hours-long or days-long journeys. The family learns of the death upon arrival. 

LaBrecque said it is hard for Western minds to comprehend why the immediate family would be the last to hear, but she said it might be to spare them the agonizing wait for the long transport home.

When Moira’s body was returned to her hometown after a 20-hour trip over land, her mother saw the body and collapsed, dying from a heart attack. 

Eloise pleaded with LaBrecque to pray for this family and for their salvation. 

At the time, the Four Corners people group had only three known Christians in the entire country, including Eloise, who are all family members.  

The believers had faithfully shared with their family members for five years prior to the deaths. 

Not long after the death of Moira and her mother, Moira’s two younger sisters, Anna and Rebekah, moved to the capital to pursue higher education.  

LaBrecque also moved to the capital during the pandemic. She lived a 16-hour drive from all her coworkers and decided she needed to move to the capital for community during lockdowns.  

LaBrecque prayed consistently for the sisters’ salvation for four years.  

“Where these girls are from, it literally feels like the environment wants to kill them half the time with rockslides and avalanches and earthquakes. You can feel like you’re at the end of the edge of the world when you’re out there,” she said.  

Moving to the capital made the gospel much more accessible to Anna and Rebekah. Last year, after Eloise’s steady witness, the women committed their lives to Christ.  

Last winter, LaBrecque received a call from one of the girls’ older cousins. One of the sisters, Anna, was going to be baptized in two hours. Could she make it? LaBrecque was excited both at the news of their decisions of faith and the opportunity to attend their baptism.  

When all were gathered at the baptism, Eloise shared with the girls that while LaBrecque hadn’t met Anna and Rebekah, she had been praying for them to look to Jesus for salvation since they had moved to the capital.  

The women were moved when they learned she’d been praying for them by name. They began attending the fellowship where LaBrecque is invested. Over the summer, Anna invited LaBrecque to Rebekah’s baptism.   

At baptisms, it’s customary for attendees to share a story or word of encouragement with the person being baptized. Eloise shared about LaBrecque’s prayers for Anna and Rebekah, whom she’d never met.  

“Prayer is the first thing. It’s the absolute foundation,” LaBrecque said. “Prayer and asking Him for direction, for those opportunities to share, for the words, the language and the boldness to take those opportunities when He gives them to us, that’s the most important thing.” 

She said consistent prayer is also key. 

“We can’t do anything apart from prayer. That’s how we express our desires, our hopes to Him, and it’s also a way for Him to slowly, with prayer and His Word, our community that He gives us, to conform our will and desire to His.”

Answered prayer on this side of heaven 

Meanwhile, Brady Drew, an IMB worker who lived in another Central Asian country, had also been praying intentionally and earnestly for many years for an unengaged and unreached people group related to the Four Corners people. Around two months before he died of cancer, Drew learned the Lord answered his prayer for the gospel to reach the people group. 

In an email, Drew’s wife, Rani, shared with LaBrecque how meaningful it was for Drew to learn there are finally Christians in the people group.  

Three years ago, over tea, Simeon, who is from this unreached people group, shared with LaBrecque how 10 people from his group committed their lives to Christ. The group’s population only numbers several thousand worldwide, with a third of them in Simeon’s country. Last fall, around the same time Anna and Rebekah professed faith, two other young men from Simeon’s unreached people group made professions of faith and are being discipled. 

Their language is dying out, and LaBrecque estimates only two villages in the country speak the native tongue. Simeon translated several worship songs into the language, as well as some discipleship materials. One of the men in Simeon’s people group encouraged Anna to write songs in the majority language of the Four Corners people. 

Many people from Simeon’s people group, including the 10 new believers, recently moved to a neighboring country for work. LaBrecque prays they will take the gospel with them. 

Some prayers go unanswered for years. Sometimes, on this side of heaven, Christians don’t see the results of their prayers. LaBrecque celebrates how the Lord worked to bring to Himself to these new believers in Central Asia.  

*Some names changed for security reasons. 

(EDITOR’S NOTE —Download the June PrayerPoints featuring daily prayer requests for the peoples of Central Asia.