Though animism/ancestor worship is the dominant religious practice among the Antanosy,  praise the Lord for those who have heard about Jesus Christ and received the gift of salvation. Despite being in a remote location, and there being very little evangelism there, pray that those who have found Christ and follow him would continue to grow through the work of the Holy Spirit. Pray for missionaries, especially for Malagasy believers, to answer the call to missions! Ask the Lord to send his people to serve and reach more Antanosy; ask for a church planting team and for a Bible translation project to begin.

There are several churches in the regional capital of Ft. Dauphin/ Tolagnaro, as well as others scattered amongst the villages. Even so, the call to bring the gospel to “every tribe, nation and tongue” has not been well-heeded, and though many Antanosy may have been to church or heard about God, there are many who mix what they’ve heard with their animistic practices. This, along with the fact that the majority of this area is quite remote and difficult to access, has created an obstacle for these people. But we know that no obstacle is too great, no area on earth that is impenetrable for Almighty God to bring His Light. Pray for the Antanosy, that the Lord would reveal his truth to them, that he would show them that his power is greater than any power they see in their rituals and traditions. Pray that he would bring understanding, wisdom and truth, through Jesus Christ and through his Holy Word.

There is now a large mining project in the middle of Antanosy territory; it produces ilmenite (titanium dioxide), which is used in products like “titanium white” tinted paint. As miners, environmentalists, engineers, businessmen join in the project from other Malagasy cities/universities, as well as from the West (Canada, Australia), pray that many of these employees will be followers of Christ. Pray that they will recognize the spiritual hunger amongst the Antanosy, who have blended a mixture of their culture of ancestor worship, Catholicism and Protestant beliefs which has left them wanting. Pray for the Lord to send missionaries—especially Malagasy!—into this far-flung region, and that many lost souls would become “titanium white” in Christ Jesus.

Antanosy territory is quite hard to reach, and particularly deprived of commerce, basic education, medical care and supplemental food sources. Subsistence farming is the norm, as is child labor (mining, fishing, agriculture). There are so many challenges: lack of infrastructure, poverty, hunger, isolation. Pray that the Lord will stir hearts and call out specific people to leave everything and serve amongst the Tanosy; pray that the Malagasy Church would be brokenhearted and compassionate for these people. Ask God to bring a church planting team, and those who can bring the Good News to this remote area of Madagascar.

There are quite a few cattle thieves who have given their life to Jesus. They are being trained to take the gospel to their people. Please pray for protection and that trust will be built.

A mission called the Jesus Family Movement has 2 Malagasy missionaries who have committed to church planting among the Antanosy. In 2015 they conducted initial surveys of several Antinomy villages with a plan of long-term ministry.

In September 2015 a survey was conducted among the Antanosy with Helimission, the METM church, and an AIM missionary. The church would like to work with us to plant distinctly Antanosy churches, but the Antanosy villages are very remote, hence the partnership with Helimission. There are no known believers.

Jesus Family Movement has 2 Malagasy missionaries who have committed to church planting among the Antanosy. They will be going out for an initial survey of several Antanosy villages in July.They will choose one of these villages to live in for long-term ministry beginning next year.

Survey trip planned for September 2015 with Helimission, the METM church, and August Basson. The church would like to work with us to plant distinctly Antanosy churches, but the Antanosy villages are very remote, hence the partnership with Helimission. Pray that this survey comes together well. 0 known believers.

We have the opportunity to visit Fort Dauphin (the main Antanosy town) during the first week of November. Our prayer is that from this we will have more complete survey data on the Tanosy people group and also develop some contacts whom we can connect with for a future survey of the Tanosy villages around Fort Dauphin.