Hello friend. We live in a world trained to skim—feeds, headlines, short clips, fast takes. And if we’re honest, we can start carrying that pace into our life with God: a glance here, a verse there, and then we’re on to the next thing.

But Scripture invites us to something different: to slow down long enough to actually listen—to let God’s Word soak in, reshape our instincts, and steady our hearts.

And that matters not just for our own souls, but for God’s global mission. 

Believers in places like Pakistan and Nigeria don’t have the luxury of “casual Christianity.” Following Jesus can cost them everything. And still, they choose to follow Jesus and make him known—because he is worth it.

Let’s choose to resist the hurry—and take one small step of unhurried faithfulness toward the Word and the world God loves.

In today’s edition:

🇵🇰 Pakistan—faithful witness under pressure, and leaders being equipped for patient, relational mission.

📖 The Message—a simple 2026 reset: stop scrolling Scripture and start sitting with it.

🇳🇬 Nigeria—pray for believers enduring violence and displacement, and for courage to keep making Jesus known.

Faithful Witness Under Pressure 🇵🇰

Pakistan’s population of over 250 million people includes one of the largest concentrations of unreached people groups on earth. Many have never heard a clear, faithful presentation of the gospel.

In a Muslim-majority country where discrimination can be quiet—at work, at school, in the form of “second-class citizen” treatment—and danger can be sudden—false accusations or mob violence—believers often live on the margins. Pakistan’s blasphemy laws are frequently used to target religious minorities, and even rumors can ignite violence. 

Add to that a backdrop of economic pressure and rising militant violence in parts of the country, and everyday ministry can feel costly.

Still, quiet seeds of faith are being planted. Radical is training young believers and church leaders from rural areas in Pakistan.

Through Bible teaching, mentoring, and one-on-one pastoral care, we’re strengthening them in Scripture, encouraging endurance, and equipping them to share Christ with their Muslim neighbors through patient, relational witness.

How to Pray:

🙏🏼 Pray for believers facing quiet discrimination at work and school—may God grant favor, wisdom, and steady joy.

🙏🏼 Pray for open doors through everyday relationships with Muslim neighbors—hospitality, compassion, and conversations that are natural, patient, and Spirit-led.

🙏🏼 Pray that the rural trainees Radical is equipping would be deeply rooted in Scripture, discerning under pressure, and courageous to shepherd others even at a high cost.

Stop Scrolling the Bible—Start Sitting with It 🪑

Could I interest you in trying a physical Bible this year?

No, I’m not a Bible salesman, but hear me out.

We live in a golden age of access to Scripture—an age our spiritual ancestors could hardly imagine. 

Every verse is a tap away. Podcasts read the Bible to us while we drive (perhaps you’d like to give ours a listen?) AI apps can summarize the Isaiah scroll in an instant. If there’s a way to consume Scripture quickly, efficiently, and with minimal friction, someone has designed it.

And yet somehow… We are still starving. 

In places where following Jesus is costly, we hear stories of believers clinging to Scripture as if it were their only oxygen. In the West, we often drift past verses like billboards on a highway—glanced at, but never entered.

But James tells us the goal is not to hear the Word and nod politely; it is to look intently, to linger, and then to do (James 1:22–25). 

That kind of hearing can’t be microwaved. It requires something we’ve nearly lost: attention.

But here’s the hopeful part: you don’t need a monastery or a six-month retreat to change this. 

You just need a Bible—an actual, physical Bible—open on the table.

There’s something grounding about paper and ink. You can’t swipe away Leviticus. You can’t toggle to Instagram when a verse hits too close or too far, for that matter.

A paper Bible invites you to slow down. To think. To notice. To obey. And that kind of slow consumption—small but serious—can bring peace to a distracted heart. 

So as 2026 begins, here’s a simple challenge—nothing flashy: Pick a book of the Bible. Pick a plan. Commit with one other person. 

Read slowly. Ask questions (Ok, I promise I’m not a salesman, but maybe try this book for help?) Read expecting God to speak. 

And when he does—obey.

If thousands of us did that this year, and thousands of communities were shaped not just by access to Scripture, but by actual submission to it, imagine what God could do. 

He might just use you to bring Jesus to the attention of someone who desperately needs to know him.

—Steven Morales

Endurance to Keep Making Jesus known 🇳🇬

Nigeria is a land of massive gospel opportunity—and real, costly suffering. 

The gospel first came to the southern coast through Portuguese merchants centuries ago, then spread more widely through missionary movements and the growth of local churches.  

In the 1970s, university-campus revivals helped ignite student fellowships and mission movements that strengthened the church’s reach.

Yet many Nigerian believers live with daily vulnerability as Islamist militants and armed groups carry out attacks, kidnappings, and destruction—especially across the northeast and the Middle Belt, with violence spreading beyond areas once considered “safer.” 

Millions have been displaced, trying to hold faith and family together amid trauma and loss.

Nigeria’s church is large—but in places where fear can feel louder than hope, believers need fresh courage to hold fast to Jesus and keep making him known.

(To hear a first-hand witness of what’s happening in Nigeria, listen to the latest episode of Everyday Radical with Dr. Arllen Ade of Healing Africa Ministries.)

How to Pray:

🙏🏼 Pray for steadfast faith and wise leadership in churches grieving violence, rebuilding, and caring for displaced families.

🙏🏼 Pray for protection for believers who gather to worship under threat—and for boldness to keep making Jesus known in the aftermath.

🙏🏼 Pray for the rescue of those abducted, and deep healing for survivors and families living with uncertainty.

📍 Attention Worthy

• If Iran’s regime cracks, what happens to the underground church? A glimpse into Iranian believers’ hopes—and the urgent question of readiness if freedom suddenly arrives. 

• A different “blessed” scorecard: these Beatitudes reframe fruitfulness as meek, dependent, often hidden—before it’s ever impressive.

• Disciple-making reset: a back-to-basics guide that clears the noise and recenters what actually matters on mission.

• An evangelism experiment: talk less, listen longer, ask better questions—and watch how clarity (and compassion) show up when you slow down.