Women and children crowd around the door and window of a village house church in Bangladesh.

A Ghanaian woman leads Bible study during Sunday school at Kolinvaai Baptist Church in northern Ghana. A prayer of IMB missionaries is to disciple national believers to embrace their role in the Great Commission. IMB Photo

An IMB missionary leads a Bible study discussion in a home near Rioverde, Ecuador. Southern Baptists send IMB missionaries to be steadfastly present among those who have never heard the gospel — people in cities, people in hard-to-reach places and people who are dispersed and displaced around the world. IMB Photo

A Deaf woman is baptized in Batangas province of the Philippines. Ministry among the Deaf in Southeast Asia continues to grow. IMB Photo

Pastor Thomas Abgemeh from Grace Baptist Church in Pakro, Ghana, baptizes a new believer in the Densu River outside of Nsawam, Ghana. One of the IMB’s key goals is to see gospel belief that results in lives transformed among the nations. Each baptism an IMB missionary is a part of is another example of God’s work in transforming lives through our missionary presence. IMB Photo

Bryan Jackson worships beside his wife, Whitney, and Shelton and Brandy Johnson at the September Sending Celebration at Beaverdam Baptist Church in Beaverdam, Virginia. IMB Photo

Bryan Jackson worships beside his wife, Whitney, and Shelton and Brandy Johnson at the September Sending Celebration at Beaverdam Baptist Church in Beaverdam, Virginia. IMB Photo

Losing electricity doesn’t stop women in this Nairobi, Kenya church from digging into the Word of God. Without even thinking, they dug out their phones and continued with their study on the heart of God and learning how to do evangelism among their friends, family and neighbors. IMB Photo

Baba Dogo Church in Nairobi, Kenya celebrated eight baptisms in one day. The new believers, like this woman, are welcomed into the church and discipled. A big celebration honors their new life in Christ. IMB Photo

Baba Dogo Church in Nairobi, Kenya celebrated eight baptisms in one day. The new believers, like this woman, are welcomed into the church and discipled. A big celebration honors their new life in Christ. IMB Photo

Women dig into “Evangelism and Disciple Training” manuals at Baba Dogo Church in Nairobi, Kenya. The women’s group are hungry to learn more of God’s Word to learn more about the Father’s heart and Kingdom. IMB Photo

A man carries a cross on the Via Dolorosa, the walk Christ made before his crucifixion.

Crosses are stacked up on the Via Dolorosa in Old Town Jerusalem. Many people, usually in groups and taking turns, choose to carry a cross on the walk Christ made before his crucifixion.

Religious artifacts sit on a table inside Dominus Flevit Church, also known as Tear Drop Church. Dominus Flevit is a direct translation of ‘The Lord Cried.’ The Catholic Church is next to the Mount of Olives and is along the path known as The Palm Sunday Walk. The present church was built in 1952 and stands over the site where tradition has it that Jesus prophesied the destruction of Jerusalem.

A woman lights candles outside the Tomb of Christ in Jerusalem as she waits to enter. The tomb is next to Calvary, or Golgatha, and in close proximity to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. The church is built around what is believed to be the site where Jesus was crucified and the tomb (sepulchre) where He was buried.

Portrait of a woman at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. The church is built around what is believed to be the site where Jesus was crucified and the tomb (sepulchre) where he was buried. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre is an important pilgrimage destination and thousands visit every day.

Orthodox Christians worship as the morning sunlight and smoke from incense used during worship fills one of the Orthodox churches in Old City Damascus during a Sunday service. Old City Damascus is an area within the larger city of Damascus, Syria, and is a mixture of Christian and Muslims living and worshiping in a very small area of town.

Orthodox Christians worship as the morning sunlight and smoke from incense used during worship fills one of the Orthodox churches in Old City Damascus during Sunday service. Old City Damascus is an area within the larger city of Damascus, Syria, and is a mixture of Christian and Muslims living and worshiping in a very small area of town.

Orthodox Christians worship as the morning sunlight and smoke from incense used during worship fills one of the Orthodox churches in Old City Damascus during Sunday service. Old City Damascus is an area within the larger city of Damascus, Syria, and is a mixture of Christian and Muslims living and worshiping in a very small area of town.

The Chapel of St. Paul is a modern stone chapel in Damascus that incorporates materials from the Bab Kisan, the ancient city gate through which Paul was hidden and lowered out of a window in Acts 9:25 when he was threatened to be killed by the Jews.