People International
People International is an international network of national missionary movements who covenant together to accomplish our mutually agreed mission and to live out common values. This network is made up of members from our national offices across the world and partners from like-minded organisations in many other countries. We celebrate the international nature of our organisation and the variety of church expression within our membership, all wholeheartedly agreeing with our statement of faith and principle of unity.
We are comitted to the common purpose of "Unveiling God's glory to Central Asian Muslims through establishing and enabling his church." We do this through six ministries: evangelism, church planting, leadership development., Bible translation, media and meeting human needs.
Core Values
These organizational Core Values shape the way PI works. Together with our Statement of Faith and Purpose Statement, they describe the heart of who we are and how we live.
- God Centered We are passionate in our love for God and His Word, and we strive for purity of heart towards Him, the world around us, and those we serve.
- Love for Muslims God has put a deep love for Muslim people in our hearts which we express by sharing Christ in biblically and culturally appropriate ways.
- Teamwork and Partnering We strive to serve in teams that are united in strategy and purpose, with team members serving together and dependent upon one another. Where possible we partner with others who share our values and purpose.
- Creativity and Flexibility We encourage original and bold initiatives resulting in diverse, effective, Spirit led ministries.
- Church Focused We serve the Church from all the world by sending members to plant, develop, and equip missional churches that are locally led and resourced.
- Care for One Another We celebrate God's work in us individually, recognising our human frailties and limitations, forgiving, respecting, and investing in each other in an ethos of grace.
- Integrity and Stewardship We are diligent in using the resources God has entrusted to us, acting with integrity in our dealings with those we serve, our members, donors, partners and governments.
History of People International
In 1979 the leadership of People International (then Gairdner Trust Ministries) was deeply moved by events coming out of one of the first trips into Central Asia. A UK member met an Uzbek Christian who was desperate for the scriptures in his own language. The following year when our member returned to deliver the scriptures, he learned that the Uzbek Christian had been arrested and placed in a psychiatric hospital. We later heard that an overdose of drugs was administered to him and he died in the hospital.
The first years of ministry were devoted to raising awareness among the Church in the West about the needs of Central Asians. Muslim awareness seminars were held, prayer fellowships started, literature published, and inquiries about Central Asian Muslims were answered. Pioneer researchers were sent to the then little-known areas of Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Xinjiang in Western China. Wherever our researchers went they found millions of Central Asian Muslims who desperately needed the Saviour. Churches in the West had little or no information about these people.
