[2026 Ramadan] Day 5: Kazakhstan, Preparing the Way for Jesus' Return Along the Silk Road!

Kazakhstan is the 9th largest country in the world by land area, with a population of 20 million. Contrary to its state ideology of secularism, the Kazakh people firmly maintain their traditional Islamic faith. Under the powerful influence of Islam for over 1,400 years, the evangelization rate of the Kazakh people is only 0.1%, making them a nation in desperate need of the Gospel. Recently, the "Astana Grand Mosque" was completed in the capital of Kazakhstan. As the largest mosque in Central Asia, it can accommodate 230,000 worshippers at once, and its dome is among the largest in the world. Through this, Kazakhstan is revealing itself as the center of secular Islam in Central Asia and the Eastern Asian continent. Furthermore, in one city in southern Kazakhstan, there are over 800 mosques, but only one church. Even that church is in a situation where it may have to close its doors due to spiritual pressure, highlighting the severe spiritual difficulty.

In Kazakhstan, Ramadan is a period when people who have lived secularly return to Islam once again to wash away their sins. Many people fast to soothe their hearts of condemnation through the act of fasting, and Imams encourage this by claiming that prayers during Ramadan are a thousand times more effective than usual. Some individuals with a strong sense of guilt even begin fasting before the Ramadan period starts. During Ramadan, the number of people listening to Imams' sermons online increases, and a trend of observing Ramadan is spreading like a fad among the youth. In particular, the "Auyz Ashar" culture—inviting family and friends to dinner after the daily fast—is powerful. By sharing the first meal after fasting, they confirm and strengthen their identity as an Islamic Ummah (community), further solidifying the influence of Islam in Kazakhstan.

On the other hand, the number of Kazakhs seeking the truth increases during the Ramadan period. No matter how much they try to wash away their sins through fasting, the guilt does not disappear, and even within the Ummah community, the presence of God is absent. During Ramadan, some Kazakhs seek Jesus and His teachings through social media in search of the truth. One Kazakh youth even knocked on a church door during Ramadan, heard who Jesus is, and accepted Him. He rejoiced, saying, "My heart is filled with peace and joy I’ve never had before. The fear of death and judgment is gone." The only hope for the Kazakh people is our Jesus. During Ramadan, this Jesus will be revealed among the Kazakhs!

<The Story of Brother S>

Brother S was born into a devout Muslim family. From a young age, he went to the mosque every week with his father and observed the Ramadan fast. His belief that Islam was the truth was shattered by an incident he experienced as a teenager. Islamic extremists armed with guns and weapons came to his neighborhood, gathered the villagers at the mosque, and encouraged them to join ISIS. As a teenager, Brother S trembled with fear at this sight. After this incident, a strong perception took root in his heart that "Islam is not a religion that saves people, but a religion that kills."

While feeling skeptical about Islam, he happened to see a video about Jesus on social media and continued to secretly search for videos about Jesus without his parents' knowledge. He became reluctant to go to the mosque and stopped observing the Ramadan fast.

On the day he turned 18, Brother S accepted Jesus as his personal Savior in his heart. Recently, while attending Vision School, he informed his parents of his faith in Jesus, which led to many hardships and persecutions, including being slapped and having his finances taken away. Although there were times of discouragement, he did not give up. Instead, through Vision School, he embraced the Arab nations and decided to go out to them this summer. Hallelujah!

We believe that during this 2026 Ramadan, countless holy young people like Brother S, who find, believe in, and follow Jesus while searching for the truth, will rise up in Kazakhstan.

Kazakhstan is located at the center of the Asian continent and was a strategic point on the ancient Silk Road. Over 100 years before the birth of Jesus, starting with Zhang Qian's expedition to the Western Regions during the Han Dynasty, civilizations and cultures were exchanged along the Silk Road, and the Gospel spread eastward along this highway. Thus, Central Asia, where Kazakhstan is located, became a mission center of the East and a pathway for delivering the Gospel to China and as far as Gyeongju in Korea.

However, in the 7th century, Kazakhstan and Central Asia were Islamized, and the spread of the Gospel through the Silk Road weakened and eventually stopped. For 1,400 years, the Silk Road remained trapped in the darkness of Islam. To this day, the Silk Road has become a path where the world's unreached people groups are gathered.

"A voice of one calling: 'In the wilderness prepare the way for the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God.'" (Isaiah 40:3)

In the year 2000, the "Silk Road" reappeared in the history of world missions. About 20,000 members of the Central Asian church gathered in City A of Kazakhstan for the "Silk Road Jesus March" assembly. It was the first time the Central Asian churches had gathered together, and it was an unprecedented event in the Muslim world where over 20,000 Christians met for a single mission rally. There, the Central Asian church received the calling to "Preach Jesus along the Silk Road." In 2025, workers in Kazakhstan and Central Asia resolved and declared the "Silk Road 2030" vision before the Lord. When the Silk Road is restored with Jesus, world evangelization will be completed. "By 2030, let us dispatch 100,000 missionaries from Central Asia along the Silk Road to complete the final Great Commission! World evangelization in our generation!" Through this heart-pounding vision, we believe God will once again make the Silk Road a highway for the Gospel, allowing us to see the return of the Lord.

To this end, the "Silk Road Mission Camp" is being prepared for June 2026 in City A, Kazakhstan. This is the very same city where the "Silk Road Jesus March" took place in 2000. However, there is a change in the participants being invited. The Central Asian church alone is not enough for the restoration of the Silk Road. All churches along the Silk Road must gather to mobilize as the army of Jesus and advance together. To the north of Kazakhstan are the Russian churches, to the east is China’s army of one million, to the south are the Persian churches, and to the west are the Armenian and Turkic churches. God desires to raise Kazakhstan as the mission center of the Silk Road. The churches of Kazakhstan will become the voice crying out in the wilderness, preparing the way of the Lord together with the churches along the Silk Road.

[Today’s Prayer]

1. During the Ramadan fasting period, please have mercy on the Kazakh souls who hear the truth but do not understand it, and open their closed spiritual eyes and ears! We desire for the light of the knowledge of Jesus Christ to shine in their hearts. Let them realize that religious rituals cannot wash away their sins, and let them confess that salvation is obtained only through faith in the blood of Jesus Christ shed for us!

2. Let us pray in spiritual warfare, rebuking the spirit of Islam and the spirit of secularism that bind Kazakhstan in the name of Jesus Christ! May the 1,400-year hold of Islam be broken now, and may they come forward before the Gospel of Jesus Christ! May the people of Kazakhstan, who have been tainted by secularism, cast away their love for the world and rise as a nation that yearns for the eternal Kingdom of God! May they rise with discernment, declaring that only the Gospel and only Jesus are the truth! May holy worship, which rightfully belongs to God, be restored in this nation!

3. The Silk Road Mission Camp will take place this June. May this be a time when the churches along the Silk Road consecrate themselves to the Great Commission of the end times! May 100,000 missionaries be sent out along the Silk Road by 2030 for Jesus and the Gospel! May the highway of the Silk Road, currently blocked by Islam, be restored, and may the church rise to witness the Gospel to the ends of the earth along that highway! We declare that the revival of Kazakhstan will become the revival of all nations. May the Kazakh church prepare in advance for the coming persecution and tribulation. May they awaken the remaining Russian churches, and together with the million-strong Chinese church and the Persian church, rise as the voice crying in the wilderness to prepare the way for the Lord’s return!