225 years of God’s Word in Bangladesh

When you first visit the offices of the Bangladesh Baptist Church Sangha (BBCS) in Dhaka, Bangladesh, a striking mural is likely to catch your eye. It’s a mosaic portrait of William Carey in the forecourt of the Sangha’s offices, surrounded by brightly coloured pink and white flowers. Bangladeshi Baptists are proud of their history, which they date from the moment that William Carey moved across into what is now the Bangladeshi district of Dinajpur, after his famous landing in what was then known as Calcutta. But their 225 year celebration planned for this November isn’t about dwelling in the past, as amazing and rich as that might be. “The whole idea of the celebration is to go forward,” says Louise Lynch, “looking into how we can share the gospel even more successfully across Bangladesh!”

Louise and Peter are BMS World Mission workers in Bangladesh, working alongside BBCS to support and strengthen their pastors, churches and activities across the country. Peter and Louise have been in Bangladesh since 2018, and today they’re being interviewed for Premier Christian Radio about a story of mission in Bangladesh that’s still going on all these years later.

“We’re seeing a Church now established and growing in many places,” says Pete. “The work of mission and sharing the good news of Jesus is still something very much at the heart of what the Baptist churches want to do.” When you look back at the work of BBCS across the years, this desire to share God’s love in word and deed couldn’t be more evident. Whether it’s flood relief given out to the poorest communities, no matter their background or beliefs, or the appointment of a new mission co-ordinator (aptly named Barnabas!), it seems very likely that the Bangladesh Baptists of generations to come will have plenty of reasons to look back and celebrate, as they’re doing this autumn.

Why not watch Peter and Louise’s interview now, and as it concludes, pray along with them for another 225 years of gospel presence in Bangladesh? “The lovely line in the Lord’s Prayer that I always love in Bangla is ‘Thy Kingdom come’,” says Pete, “because that’s our prayer for the nation.”