Inspiring prayer for the unreached

By Jami G. in Ulan-Ude, Siberia — We're in full-on packing mode. In two weeks, our family will move from the main city in our area of Siberia to a small village where many of the residents are Buryat. As our family embarks on this new step in our ministry to the unreached, the theme of prayer keeps pounding in our hearts and in our minds.

We've heard in so many ways and from so many places the adage that a church-planting movement’s foundation rests on prayer. We really believe it's true. And, so, as we build a new home in order to live among the unreached, we feel a fresh desperation to come to God, seek him, and ask others to engage in the spiritual battle of prayer with us.

The unreached people of the world are unreached for a reason! We live in such a spiritually dark place and know that only God can break through these bonds of oppression to change people's hearts and minds. As we bring his message of hope to the Buryat — a primarily Buddhist group where less than 1 percent of the people have been reached with the gospel — we're ever aware that if there is any fruit, it will be God who produces it.


Learn more about the Buryat from their
Joshua Project profile.


We ourselves are growing in prayer, but we also are seeking a team of at least 1,000 people who will deeply and consistently pray for the Buryat and for many new churches to be planted in the Republic of Buryatia. One of the catalysts for this call to prayer is from “Contagious Disciple Making: Leading Others on a Journey of Discovery” by David and Paul Watson, which notes that the disciple-making movements that have really taken off in the past have had not just hundreds but thousands of people praying for them.

Here are some practical steps we’re taking — and that any global worker could take — to inspire prayer for the unreached:

1. We're using our networks, both here and abroad

We have written to pastors and spiritual leaders to see if they have ideas of how to spread the excitement of coming to our God on behalf of these unreached people. At the same time, we are sharing our vision with friends in Russia and asking them to get the word out. We would love to see people around the globe praying throughout the day for the Buryat.

2. We're staying connected

We understand that many people want to pray, but they don't know what to pray for unless we who live among the unreached help direct them. We send a weekly update that keeps the Buryat on people’s radar and makes it less likely that they will forget to pray. We don’t want writing these prayer updates to fall to the bottom of our to-do list, so we schedule them into our weekly calendar.

3. We're bringing the Buryat to life

Our updates go beyond simply listing prayer needs. When the Buryats have a holiday, we explain their traditions. When there’s a reason to mourn, we share the sad story. The gospel message flows through daily life — game nights and English lessons and meals together. We want those praying to connect with the Buryat as real people, and sharing about the extraordinary way God uses ordinary situations helps build those connections.

As we embark on this pattern of concentrated prayer, there are ways we want to grow:

  • We want to follow up. We hope to highlight specific prayer requests that are more likely to have tangible answers — and then report the good news when they are answered!
  • We want to reciprocate. We aim to pray more regularly for those who are praying for us. We want to develop a system of connecting with someone each day to ask how we can be lifting them up in prayer, too.
  • We want to be open to the Spirit. We have begun praying through Psalms and allowing the Holy Spirit to lead through his Word.

It truly is amazing that we can talk with the Creator of the universe! It's beyond comprehension that he wants to engage with us and work in and through us. The more we come to him in prayer, and the more others are praying alongside us, the more we will be filled with awe by his wonders.

About the photo: There are 86 unreached people groups in Russia. During a missions-education course for believers in Siberia, the names of these people groups were typed out on a scroll, and the group gathered to pray for each group.

About the author: Jami G., originally from Washington state, lives with her husband and three children in Siberia, in the Republic of Buryatia. Their desire is to see the local church reach the native Buryat people and for the Buryats to know and praise their Creator. Click here to contact them.

More Harvest Heartbeat stories

Mentoring Aigerim — Sometimes, ministering "among" the unreached means sharing a kitchen and letting discipleship naturally develop.

Uncovering the unreached — Our worker's treasure hunt leads to guides that inspire Ukrainian believers to engage the cultures around them.

Learn more about the unreached

Additional Posts

By Erin Brown July 2, 2025
"This probably looks impossible, but you serve a God who is greater." These are the words of Abigail Niles, a young woman who followed the Lord to Romania.
By Diaspora North America June 29, 2025
March 7, 2025 Have you ever made a New Year’s resolution only to break it in less than a week? On March 1, 1.8 billion Muslims began their annual fasting month called Ramadan. They are supposed to fast completely—no water or food—during daylight hours from March 1–Mar 29. It begins with much fanfare, promises, and declarations, as fasting during Ramadan is one of the five pillars of Islam. Muslims believe that faithfully keeping the fast ensures one’s place of favor with God. But many Muslims won’t be able to keep the fast through the whole 30 days. The reasons and excuses are myriad. Sometimes they will continue to claim to be fasting, but in reality, they are eating behind closed doors. To gain God’s favor, they must fast through the whole month, not just part of it. So, they live with the guilt and shame of not fulfilling the requirements of Islam. What was supposed to help gain their salvation now stands in condemnation. A Feast Within the Fast To complicate matters even more, Persian New Year’s Day is March 20, right in the middle of the fasting month. Persian New Year is one of the most important cultural holidays for most Iranian and Afghans, as well as many others with a Persian background scattered throughout Central Asia and the Middle East. In fact, many people with Persian heritage don’t just celebrate on one day. Their New Year’s celebrations extend over two weeks! How do they reconcile these two weeks of festivities within Ramadan? For Arab Muslims, it is a non-issue. But for the Persian world, it IS a struggle. The hard-core Taliban will try to push people to keep the fast. However, many will lean more towards keeping their more ancient pre-Islamic traditions of New Year’s. I would encourage you to take time to explore with your Muslim neighbors and colleagues why they fast. Then share why Christians fast. Perhaps read Isaiah 58 with them, summarize it, and ask for their thoughts on this passage. One more thing to note during Ramadan is the Night of Power. Each year, during Ramadan, on or about the 27th day of the month, there is a special time called the Night of Power. This year it will happen on or around March 26. Muslims believe the Night of Power is when Mohammad first received the revelations of the Quran from the Angel Gabriel. Prayers offered up by Muslims during Ramadan—especially prayers in a mosque—are believed to be weightier than prayers at any other time. However, prayers on this special Night of Power, prayed in a mosque, are considered infinitely more valuable than any other prayer. Many Muslims will stay up all night praying on the Night of Power to earn extra points with God. There is a small problem in all of this, though—Muslims can’t agree on which night is actually the Night of Power. It is sometime during the last ten days of Ramadan, with tradition stating that it is on the 26th or 27th night. There are several resources to help Christians and churches pray for the Muslim world through this month of Ramadan. I would encourage you to connect with some or all of them. Please make others in your church aware of these resources. Perhaps you could even host a special prayer time at your church, utilizing these resources. Ramadan 30-Day Prayer Guide Booklet – This can be purchased as a hard copy or PDF. Prayercast – A wonderful website with many videos on the Muslim world. If you sign up, you can receive daily prayer videos that also work great during a Sunday worship service to help raise awareness of the need for prayer for the Muslim world.
By Erin Brown June 25, 2025
"He must increase, but I must decrease."
Show More