Transformed http://worldventure.com/News-And-Prayer/Stories-Around-the-World.html 39.599687-105.006584http://www.worldventure.comhttp://www.worldventure.com/Files/WorldVenture-Logo.jpgPowerful Partnerships. Transformed Lives.WorldVenture-TransformedLiveshttp://feedburner.google.comSubscribe with My Yahoo!Subscribe with NewsGatorSubscribe with My AOLSubscribe with BloglinesSubscribe with NetvibesSubscribe with GoogleSubscribe with PageflakesSubscribe with PlusmoSubscribe with FeedLoungeSubscribe with The Free DictionarySubscribe with inclue!Subscribe with Bitty BrowserSubscribe with NewsAlloySubscribe with ODEOSubscribe with PodnovaThank you for your interest in what God is doing through WorldVenture around the world. <![CDATA[30 Years of God's Faithfulness]]>
Dan knew this man as a teenager when Dan was growing up in Senegal. At that time there were few, if any, Christian Senegalese women for Christian men to marry.

Today, not only has the Lord provided this Senegalese believer with a wonderful believing wife, but he is an elder in a thriving church which, when planted by Dan’s parents in 1980, had only seven members!

In the last decade, this now vibrant Senegalese church not only meets in its own multi-story building in the center of town, it has planted four daughter churches, founded a private Christian school and established a private Christian hospital.

It was a thrilling reminder of how God is quietly building His Kingdom. Another blessing is that over a four-week period, one evangelical Christian wedding has taken place somewhere in Senegal each week. What a difference 30 years has made!]]> Fri, 18 Jan 2008 10:53:23 GMT <![CDATA[41 Years in the Making]]>
Our team of eight helped staff the Student Life Center, a ministry our missionaries in Macau used to make connections with Chinese students. While there, we built relationships and spread the word of the center’s work.

One relationship I made was with a young woman who practiced English with me. In school she had been taught that all she needed to depend upon was herself. In Macau, people believed in God, but that was not what she believed. She respected the culture of others, but, for her, there was no God.

I said, “I believe in God.”

She graciously remarked her respect of my culture. She stressed in strong words that she only needed herself and that belief in God resided in a cultural expression. That it was not true for everyone.

I said, “God is real and he has power. I believe God reaches through culture seeking the heart of all peoples.”

Shortly before we left the field, I gave her a 365-day calendar with Bible verses on each page. I challenged her to ponder what the verses said. She had strong words against faith, but has asked many challenging questions of the staff at the center. Clearly, the Spirit is working in her hard heart.

On this trip I realized that much of God’s mission takes place in the waiting. Waiting for his children to seek to serve him. Waiting for people to listen to his quiet voice and then make a choice that will transform their lives.

God patiently spent 41 years preparing me for this. He waited until I was ready. I helped plant his seeds of faith—it was life changing; I better saw God’s heart for all peoples and found in my own heart, a greater love for missions. This short-term mission trip, regardless of the outcome in the lives of those I met, changed me.]]> Wed, 14 Mar 2007 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[50 Years Growing Faith]]>
In 1957, Faith Academy opened its doors to teach the children of missionaries in Southeast Asia. Faith Academy, fittingly named, has stood for 50 years by God's faithfulness.

Even to this most recent school year, God has been working in our students' lives in incredible ways. The students have grown in maturity and in the Lord.

At our 8th grade retreat, the students had a chance to give each other “character beads.” Each colored bead represents a different character trait. It was awesome. The students earnestly thought about the different traits that they saw in each other.

All the students felt encouraged.]]> Sat, 22 Jul 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[750 First-time Decisions for Jesus]]>
Although we sensed resistance, we also saw the hand of the Lord upon our team. Joining us were several friends from the U.S., including a 14-person team from Fresno, California.

Their efforts to be relevant were welcomed with open arms and hearts by all. We praise the Lord for the unity we have in Jesus Christ that reaches across language, cultural and racial lines.

Standing with us were a collection of six local churches, all from different denominations, yet all cooperating together in the work of telling others about salvation in Jesus. About 750 people made first-time decisions during the evangelistic outreach.]]> Thu, 04 Sep 2008 20:32:27 GMT <![CDATA[A Christmas Gift]]>
Fred, a former Uganda national missionary, told me that he used his Christmas bonus one year to provide Christmas dinner for the county prisoners.

He reported, "We cooked the meat and rice, took it to the prison and spent the whole day eating, singing, and preaching. That was my most exciting Christmas.

"We bought a calf six months ago," Fred continued. "Now the calf is big and will make Christmas dinner for all the orphans in our village."]]> Tue, 11 Feb 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[A Common Sight]]>
Like trash, poor people are also a common sight in Mombasa. They seem to be everywhere; some just looking to earn a few shillings by washing your car or helping you park. It seems that many people are immune to them as they blend into the everyday backdrop of life in the big city and rarely notice the value of their lives…

One day, as I pulled into a dirt parking area to go into the post office, I actually had to park up on a small garbage heap. A “car washer” greeted us as we exited the vehicle in hopes we would agree for him to wash our car while we were away.

I gave the usual response in Swahili; “Sio leo” which means “Not today.” Upon returning from the post office, he smiled and greeted us again, hoping to gain our favor and a few shillings for his kind deed of watching our vehicle and helping us back out. I started the car and began to pull out. Feeling bad, I decided to stop and give him a few shillings along with a Gospel tract. After all, it was Christmas Eve.

Surprised by my change of heart, he smiled and thanked me. About one week later, on New Year’s Eve, I went back to the post office and was greeted by another person wanting to “help” as we parked. I graciously thanked him but denied his request to watch the car. Walking across the parking lot, I passed a group of “car washers” who were sitting under a tree. One of them stood up and greeted me. It was the same guy whom I had given the tract to the previous week.

“Can you get me a big book?” he asked. As I thought about his odd question, I realized what he was asking for. “Did you read the little book I gave you?” I inquired. “Yes!” he said enthusiastically – “And I prayed to receive salvation!” (Praise God!)

I assured him I would bring him a Bible soon. On my way back to the car, I couldn’t help but think about how I should do something for him now. So, when I returned to the parking area, I invited him to come with me to the nearby Christian bookstore to get him his Bible. As we picked out a Bible, we had a chance to talk. I explained to him the gospel to ensure he really understood. He opened up and confessed that he is an alcoholic. I shared with him that if he is now a child of God, then the Holy Spirit is living inside of him and will help him overcome this problem. “Since you are a new person now, there is no need for you to be a slave to alcohol anymore.” I encouraged him to come to church.

“Is there a New Year’s Eve service tonight?” he asked.

“Actually, there is.” I replied. Praise God, he came to church that evening! Also present was the homeless man who came to know Jesus in a similar way about two years ago, and has been faithfully worshipping with us, learning, and growing ever since. We’ve all heard the saying, “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure.” We have seen that when it comes to people, “What man may see as trash, God sees as treasure.” ]]> Sat, 24 Jan 2009 17:06:07 GMT <![CDATA[A Costly Commitment]]>
O. has continued with a discipleship course that we started when he still lived near us. I’ve mailed him several lessons. After he completes them, he e-mails me a summary of the main points and how he is applying them in his life A week ago, I sent him the last lesson in the series. He called to tell me he had received them, but someone had opened the letter before it got to him, and reported it to his boss.

Faced with questions, O. stood firm, declaring that he is a Christian. His boss was angry, and threatened him. He would lose his job if he did not change his mind.

Since O. has a government job, they can’t fire him because of his beliefs. However, if someone has it out for him, they can make his life miserable, trying to force him to resign. They can also transfer him, moving him far away from friends and family. They can fabricate complaints against him, refuse requests for vacation, belittle him at work. They can spread the word that he is a believer or spread lies about him.

Pray for this brother as he faces this time of testing. Pray that he will respond to evil with good; that God would give him strength and wisdom; that his family would join him in the costly commitment to follow Jesus as Lord.
]]> Mon, 11 Dec 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[A Different, Better Place]]>
Ty was in the right place at the right time—probably for the first time in his life. In August of 2004, Ty met Hiro of Saikyo Hope Church, who worked across the street from his house. Hiro himself had just come to Christ a few years earlier, and has been a zealous witness for Christ. He invited Ty to church, and he made a decision for Christ, and was baptized. Ty, which means strong, found his strength in Christ and then accompanied Hiro in doing outreach to the homeless in the area.

Ty grew up in Osaka, with a father rarely at home. After graduation from junior high school, he set out to find his fortune, traveling to Tokyo, over 300 miles to the east.

He tried a variety of jobs, including bar tending and working at a pachinko gambling parlor. While there, he joined the Yakuza, or Japanese Mafia, and eventually ended up spending five years in prison. While in prison, an inmate gave him the book Freezing Point by Christian author Ayako Miura, and he gained an interest in the gospel.

At 42, he was diagnosed as an alcoholic, and after coming to faith and accepting treatment, he was able to stop drinking. But he still battled with cirrhosis of the liver and on March 16th, at 51 years of age, God welcomed him home to glory.

In his last months he read the Word with hunger, and it was beautiful to hear how church members spent time reading Scripture to him and praying for him during his last days.

But that is not the end of the story. Meet Mr. Tana, a man with a similar background, who was influenced deeply by Ty. He has come to Christ, changed, and was baptized March 26th. When I met him a few days before the funeral, he told me that he was so sad that Ty could not see his baptism. I told him he would, just from a different, better place.
Names substituted to protect identities.

]]> Fri, 07 Apr 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[A Faith Story]]>
We plan for nine months in advance, build relationships with local churches, do a lot of training events, invest a lot of our resources. On a side note, Oruro is four hours away from where we live, so it’s eight hours round trip each time I visit.

Eleven college groups were involved in Oruro, and we were hoping and praying for another 60-80 college students to show up from around Bolivia to give us a hand. Except our faith was too small, and 144 students showed up from as far away as Tarija, a two-day trip by bus!

They came not because of a sports activity or exciting retreat, but because they were all anxious to share their faith. We housed everyone in local homes and churches, most (including my group) didn’t have access to showers, they ate whatever food their church had for them, and they worked 16-18 hours a day.

The studens had prepared dramas, mime teams, puppet teams, even special video presentations. They canvased the neighborhoods, streets, parks, all for the purpose of letting as many people as possible hear the Good News that Jesus came to save us from our sin and offer us abundant life.

At night they had open air live concerts complete with sound systems, lights, choreography, all in the three huge plazas in the city. For our closing meeting together, the sound team was a bit late getting everything ready, so a bunch of students talked me into teaching them the rules for American football. It was a blast, I was dying with laughter, and we agreed that next time I’m in Oruro we’ll finish the game.

When all was said and done, out of that group of 144 students who had come to share their faith, a group of 20+ came forward saying that the five days had so impacted their lives they wanted to make a renewed commitment to serve Jesus with all their energy.

One student told me, “I came here to share my faith. But I’ve also realized that I have not been faithful to God in so many ways. Today, I want to start again. Please pray with me to start again today.” And so, right where we had just an hour before been playing two-hand touch football with a three banana rush count, we kneeled and prayed along with all the other students and pastors.

We serve a God who loves to surprise us, a God who is alive and at work in the lives of people in our world today.]]> Tue, 10 Mar 2009 19:36:43 GMT <![CDATA[A Family of Believers]]>
Amadou, my language helper, told me about five children in the same family who wanted to follow Jesus. They wanted the joy and freedom in Christ that Christians have. When the kids told their parents they contacted Amadou because they themselves were not Christians.

Amadou and I went to the family’s house to meet the children. The father, Kamba, said that he and his wife were also ready to follow Christ. I told them that I would teach them about Christ and what it means to accept him and be a disciple.

When Amadou and I went to talk with Kamba and his family a few days later, I explained the message of salvation. I also asked very direct questions about becoming a Christian. Their responses were genuine. It was quite apparent that God was calling this family to himself.

That night all five kids, Kamba and his wife as well as his sister-in-law prayed to accept Christ.]]> Wed, 26 Feb 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[A Family's Transformation]]>
Visnja and Vlado, with their four little boys, live in an impoverished Romy settlement not far outside Murska Sobota, Slovenia. Vlado was abandoned as an infant, raised by various relatives and institutions. Visnja grew up in Croatia, where she suffered from a severe kidney disease since her teens.

Their home is a small construction trailer with a tiny bedroom built to one side. They have electric lights, a wood stove for cooking and heating, but no plumbing except for one faucet, cold water only. The water must be boiled before drinking. The community dumpster sits in their "yard" and dwarfs their little dwelling.

From Mel and Patty Davis' first meeting with this family, they saw an immense amount of courage in the face of extreme hardship, and a desire for spiritual things. The family was eager to talk with Mel and Patty and to see the Child Evangelism materials that Toncka, another believer, had brought along. One conversation led to another, and another, then the Lord put together a network of believers to assist them in getting needed medical care. One of these believers led Visnja to Christ while driving her to a doctor's appointment. Then their 8-year-old son accepted the Lord at Toncka's Friday Bible club. Vlado prayed to receive Christ soon after. And just a few weeks ago they joined other new believers, seeking baptism.

God is at work in Slovenia.]]> Thu, 09 Sep 2004 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[A Greater Power]]>
Over time and with exposure to the Word, a young man in Senegal came to the point of accepting the truth of the Bible and Christ as his Savior. His wife was the daughter of a sorceress. The sorceress' mother passed on to his wife certain of her powers via evil spirits. She was capable of foretelling the future, but the price for this foretelling was great weakness for a week or more afterwards. Also, she could never eat meat without severe physical repercussions.

This couple was invited to the home of Mary Anne Lattin and Marilyn Escher, CBI missionaries in Senegal, for dinner. These ladies did not know any of the woman's history and for supper they served spaghetti with meat sauce. The wife did not know what to do when presented with meat to eat, since she and her husband knew the dire effects eating meat would have on her. However, before the meat was eaten, the two women prayed in the name of Jesus and blessed the food. The man told his wife that she could eat the meat without worry because Jesus was more powerful than the spirits. So she ate, though with fear and concern. To her great amazement, in the days that followed there were no after-effects from the meal--an unheard of situation.

Some time later this couple was invited back to the ladies' home for a meal and again they were served meat. Once more the husband told his wife to eat since the meal had been blessed in the name of Jesus. As before, she ate and had no repercussions. Because this woman saw that Jesus had power over her evil spirits she became a believer in Jesus Christ.]]> Wed, 29 Jan 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[A Human Marabou]]> marabou. (Don't confuse this with the black and white African stork!) A marabou in West Africa is a medicine man.

As is the case of DR, a marabou heals people of a fair number of illnesses, guarantees wealth, power and protection from jealous husbands and wives, etc. through the use of incantations, Koranic verses, a good understanding of plants and the way people react to different stimuli.

One of DR’s specialties is writing out specific verses from the Koran on a smooth writing board called a walaga and then rinsing off the holy script into a catch basin with water taken from a specific river or stream with special qualities. This produces what is called nassiji which is then used to wash the ill person and which must also be swallowed to produce health, wealth or fame — basically whatever you are looking for, provided that is something within DR’s specialization.

I know that it sounds wild, but it is a very real occupation in which someone like DR can do fairly well even with his infirmity.

Now to Angelika and one of the ladies from our church began to tell Biblical stories to FN several months ago. They also taught her Jula songs to help her remember the stories.

FN was particularly touched by the message found in the stories and the tunes that they sang as well. She is very open to listen and is even interested in deepening her relationship with God in the ways that we understand. Of course this is a concern both for her and for us as we know that the day she decides to follow the Jesus Road exclusively, she may encounter resistance from both DR and the rest of her family.

Fortunately DR knows about the Jesus Road already. Although he is not yet a follower, he does have a clear idea of what. Pray for this couple and our growing relationship with them. Pray that following the fast the stories will continue and that they will help FN see who she really is before the King of Kings and who she can be if she gives her life entirely to Him.]]> Tue, 21 Nov 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[A Knock At the Door]]>
I got down and knelt beside her. "We've all offended God and we all need the Savior. That's what I told your son at the police station."

"You saw him?"

"Yes. I told him I forgave him. I wrote it in my declaration to the police."

She was astounded to learn it cost me $6,000 to replace the parts her son had stripped off and sold. "When there's forgiveness, someone still has to pay, so I had to bear it. That's what Christ did for me. I had a debt because of my sin; he took the punishment for me."

She then asked if she could bring her son's wife to visit. I said I wanted to meet her. They came the next day and I repeated what I told her mother-in-law. The man's daughter wouldn't let go of my hand when it was time to leave.

My heart broke for them. The prosecuting judge is suggesting 10 years in jail because he has been in prison before and used the car with accomplices for armed robbery. The court will probably come down hard on him, even though I did not press charges. He has been in prison since the robbery a year ago.]]> Thu, 10 Apr 2008 18:14:02 GMT <![CDATA[A Leader Among Leaders]]>
Raphael lived in Mbali, Uganda. He was a church planter, a Baptist association leader, the father of three children, and husband of one wife. He worked tirelessly for the sake of Christ and his people. Raphael was so excited about the local Bible school program that for one year he taught the curriculum at five different locations to over 140 people. There were 75 graduates that year. He saw the need to train his church pastors and elders and had the ability to hold together a very troubled district of 25 feuding churches and impart to them a vision of what could be. He was a leader among leaders and I was privileged to know him and work with him for a short time.

I was looking forward to seeing Raphael and once again talking with him. But it was not to be. While en route, I found out that the Lord had called him home. Death, ever present here in Africa, harvests men without much effort. He fell sick and died after a short hospital stay.

I will miss him. I see no one to replace him. Raphael was unique and I pray that God will raise up more like him: men of vision, men who are not afraid of hard work, and men who will sacrifice themselves for others.]]> Sat, 25 Jan 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[A Life Dramatically Changed]]>
A young orphaned man from the Tagabawa Manobo Tribe of Mindanao was raised by his sister. He had little hope in a culture that provides few opportunities for the poor. While a teenager, his brother-in-law shared the gospel with him, and he asked Christ to come into his life but there was little change in his lifestyle.

He struggled with keeping the wrong company and had problems with alcohol and tobacco. A couple of years ago, he came to Hope Mountain to live with his sister and brother-in-law and worked doing odd jobs around the facility. In the past year-and-a-half, under the teaching of God’s Word and the encouragement and prayers of the Hope Mountain family, God began to get a hold of his life and he committed himself to trusting and serving the Lord.

About a year ago, a staff member baptized this young man in the Talomo River. Later, he took some Bible classes offered at Hope Mountain. Now he is attending the Mindanao Baptist Rural Life Center in Bansalan where he is receiving training in agriculture and Bible.

His deep desire is to become apastor and share the love of Christ with others. Although his life has dramatically changed and now he has real hope and a future in Christ, life is still very difficult. This past June his brother was brutally murdered. Tribal culture says, “he must avenge his brother’s death,” but the Lord gave him grace and strength to trust Him and he refused to follow what culture demanded. Then in September, his teacher and mentor at Mt. Carmel suddenly died of a cardiac arrest at age 49. But even with these devastating tragedies, this young man is trusting the Lord and continues to want to serve Him.]]> Mon, 03 Nov 2008 11:38:53 GMT <![CDATA[A Love Story]]>
 He was living in the U.S.A. at the time and he told my mother there was another one just like it in the church where he bought it. He wished my mother could go to the U.S.A with him to get it herself. That dream never came true.

On my 18th birthday, mother told me this story and passed the necklace to me. I wear it everyday sensing I wear the love of my mother. When I came to Macau to start my first experience of living on my own, mother’s necklace came with me.

I can clearly remember the summer night I saw Linda Axline for the first time. A golden Chinese letter “love” was shining from around her neck! I was almost frozen when I realized that her necklace was the same as mine. As I turned to her to ask about the necklace, I wondered if it was the one my mother might have gotten if she had come to the U.S. or if it was just a coincidence. Linda told me that she bought it in a church in the U.S.A and it represents to her the love from God.

Because of “love” I found Linda who is like a mother to me more than a teacher. She told me God’s story, and I shared my mother’s story with her. Linda takes me to church with her, and takes care of me. I really appreciate having all these experiences.

And looking back, I understand they all happened for “Love.”

One Sunday after church, Linda had lunch with this young woman. As they talked about the challenges of life, Linda shared again God’s Story and clearly presented the choice we all have to make, to live God’s way following Jesus, or to live our own way following our own ideas and ambitions. And each way has its own consequences. At lunch that day, this young woman chose God’s way, and now she and Linda meet together every week to discover what God’s new life is all about! ]]> Mon, 02 Jun 2008 11:46:28 GMT <![CDATA[A Prodigal Son]]>
Levi, a 16-year-old Brazilian boy and his father had a terrible fight. His father gave an ultimatum, "Go to school or get out of this house! And if you leave, don't come back!"

Levi left home and began to cry. "What is going to become of me?" he thought. "I have nowhere to go." His friends were all troublemakers and would not help him so he began to contemplate suicide.

Just then a nearby public telephone rang. Levi answered it. A voice on the other end said, "Levi, God loves you. Don't do what you are planning to do, don't do it," and hung up. He said he felt something happening inside him. He had forgotten about his troublemaker friends and when he turned around he saw the police taking them away. He had been spared going to jail.

Levi realized that God was speaking to him and wanted him to get away from the influence of these people. He decided to go back home. "If they don't let me in I'll sleep on the doorstep," thought Levi. He also knew God wanted him to go to a weekend evangelistic encounter for teens to which he had been invited.

The last night of the Teen Encounter, Pastor Pedro spoke on "The Prodigal Son." When the invitation was given Levi was among the first to go forward. He fell on his knees weeping. "God, I'm wrong, I'm wrong! Forgive me, forgive me!"

Levi's father and mother were present. His father went forward, knelt down and put his arms around his son. "Dad, forgive me, forgive me!" cried Levi. "My son, I forgive you, I forgive you!" replied his father. And they wept together.

(The Palfeniers are retired CBI missionaries to Brazil.)]]> Wed, 22 Jan 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[A Radical Suggestion Concerning Bad Thoughts]]>
I groaned a little on the inside as soon as I heard who was on the phone that I had just answered. Once again it was Maria who was calling and wanting to talk to me.

Maria is a young person here in Bacabal who always imagines — among other things — that people are reading her thoughts. So she is afraid to leave the house as people would read her thoughts and then she would lose all of her friends. I have talked to the family and told them that I am not a trained counselor or psychologist. So we have worked together to get Maria to see a trained professional. However, even with the help of the counselor Maria still calls me and the conversation goes something like this.

Maria asks, “Pastor Bruce, I am afraid to go out of the house and go to school because I am thinking bad thoughts about my classmates. I’m afraid that they can read my thoughts. What should I do?”

I reply, “What is the truth Maria? Who knows what you are thinking?”

“Just God and myself,” replies Maria.

“That’s correct so do you have anything to be afraid of?”

“No, I guess I can go out after all.”

After this we talk a few more minutes about God, handing our thoughts over to God and then we pray asking God to help Maria. As I have said this seems to repeat itself almost every week and Maria usually calls at the most inopportune time.

This week the phone call could not have come at a worst time as I was buried with work preparing two courses that I will be teaching at a seminary, doing a lot of administrative work and preparing a message to preach in Sunday.

Once again the conversation started just as I had expected. But, instead of letting her ask the same questions about God and why he lets her think bad thoughts I decided to ask a question.

“When do you get these thoughts?” I asked.

The answer was that she usually had these thoughts after spending the night watching TV. She then explained with some pride that each night she would start watching the Brazilian soap operas around 6 p.m. By switching from one station to another she could keep watching soap operas until around 10 p.m. After the soap operas if she did not like the movie on TV, she would rent a film from the local video store and watch it until the early morning hours. She also explained how she really liked to watch horror movies late at night.

I asked if she really wanted to have the bad thoughts end and if she was willing to really work at gaining victory. She said that she did want to have victory. So I made what she considered was a radical suggestion and she was not sure if it would work.

So what was my radical suggestion? I suggested to Maria that if she wanted to have victory she had to turn off the TV. I suggested that instead of watching the films and soap operas that she read the Bible, listen to Christian music or watch Christian videos.

After a few minutes of thinking Maria said that she would try it. As I hung up I expected to get another phone call within a few days from Maria.

 A week later I went to a home Bible study that the mother of Maria was attending. I commented that I was surprised to not have received a phone call from Maria and the mother replied that it was because Maria was not watching much TV anymore. She was reading the Bible and trying to listen to Christian music. It was a very tough battle, but for at least one week Maria was winning.]]> Mon, 24 Apr 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[A Shepherd Finds Jesus]]>
For the last several years Aziz has been tuning his radio to Christian programs that are broadcast in Arabic and in his native tribal language. It was during these long lonely days in the mountains that Aziz came to believe in Jesus.

About a year ago he decided to write in to the radio program and ask for a Bible. Since then he has received a Bible, the Jesus video, several music CDs and a Bible study course that he has been working through. In one of his letters into the center he asked if someone could visit him.

His name and the name of his village were passed on to a partner who works in the same region and with a considerable amount of difficulty the partner and some national believers were able to find Aziz. They found that he is the only believer of his village and that his new faith is widely known by his fellow villagers.

He has even had several talks with the local religious leader. They also found that Aziz had a strong love for the Scriptures and that he had committed long passages to memory. His radio had fallen and stopped working so they gave him a new one along with some audio recordings of the Bible.

Because of the long periods of time that he spends in the mountains with the sheep he can only be visited by national believers once every two months. His family has noticed the changes in his life and are aware of his new faith.

For the time being they are allowing him to continue. He asked about being baptized in one of the future visits.

Visit this ministry's blog
]]> Tue, 30 Oct 2007 11:53:56 GMT <![CDATA[A Simple Piece of Paper]]>
Rosana is a woman from South America who now lives in Spain. One night during the course of an evangelistic campaign that Paul and Karen Jonsson assisted with, she was at home talking on the telephone with her daughter who lives in Brazil. Her daughter, whose life had been completely destroyed by drugs and prostitution, was telling her all about the wonderful new life that she found in Jesus Christ. Rosana listened in absolute amazement, unable to comprehend the incredible change that had occurred in her daughter’s life. Desperately wanting the healing power of Jesus for her mother too, Rosana’s daughter ended their conversation by begging Rosana to find a Baptist church where she could learn more about the Savior. Rosana wanted the same, but knew that there was no such church in Salamanca. "Where then can I go? Where can I find what my daughter has found?" Rosana asked. Little did she realize, however, that God’s plans for her life were already unfolding.

As Rosana stepped outside her home the very next morning, a stray piece of paper awaited her on the sidewalk. Rosana could not believe her eyes when she bent over to pick it up. It was a piece of literature discarded during the evangelistic campaign. It included an invitation to the Baptist Church of Santa Marta. Wasting no time, Rosana came to a special meeting that was held that very evening. Two weeks later, she became a Christian.

Rosana was discipled by the pastor’s wife in Santa Marta. Because Rosana is almost completely illiterate and speaks only broken Spanish mixed with Portuguese, she needs much assistance in her reading of the Bible. Praise the Lord that her husband, Manolo, is willing to help Rosana with this at home, even though he himself is not yet a believer. God is indeed at work in the most marvelous of ways.]]> Fri, 31 Jan 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[A True Child of God]]>
I spoke with a young girl recently after a True Love Waits presentation. She had become a Christian and her parents did not approve.

The girl was seeking advice about how to "give up" Christianity in order to please her parents. However, it was evident that this was not what she wanted to do. As we talked I was able to explain to her that if she had genuinely accepted Christ, no one could make her "give him up." He had saved her and she was his child.

We discussed how she could honor her parents as the Bible says. Then we prayed together that she would be able to live a truly Christ-like life before her parents without rebelling from their restrictions on her Christian activities. It seemed that in the end she was able to understand that she was truly a child of God as well as a child of her parents and she had new determination to do both well.]]> Mon, 20 Jan 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[An Angel on the Street]]>
The whole group stepped into a park with a lot of benches circling it, and almost every bench had a homeless person sitting on it, but out of all the people, I felt led to go to a certain person sitting a few benches away from us.

I grabbed a couple of people and we walked over to him. We handed him a stocking and then asked if he wanted prayer. “No hablo inglés” he said which means “I don’t speak English” in Spanish.

Immediately my face lightened up and I started speaking Spanish with him. It turned out he was from Barcelona, Spain. We started talking a little about ourselves and our lives. Somehow, the conversation became a talk about God, faith and all types of questions I couldn’t answer because I’m not an expert on the Bible.

Thankfully there is a boy in my class and his father who both speak Spanish and helped me out. We prayed over him and he asked for our phone numbers to talk more about it. I started crying as we left because of the emotion and my passion for speaking to people about God in Spanish. God really put me through an amazing experience I will never forget.

written by Angela (Angel) Gudeman
]]> Tue, 01 Jul 2008 11:19:02 GMT <![CDATA[An Eternal English Lesson]]>
When we were invited to attend the Team Effectiveness Seminar in Ivory Coast (Côte d’Ivoire) in February 2001, we jumped at the opportunity. We were not only looking forward to the time of training, but also excited about seeing first hand the country where so many missionaries with CBInternational we had known, lived and worked.

During our flight we looked down at the vast Sahara Dessert and were stunned to realize that only a few hours earlier we had left the emerald green fields of our ministry home in Ireland. This was only the beginning of a week of wonder and contrast as we tasted just a bit of the culture of Côte d’Ivoire. The long hours of warm weather were a welcome balm to our dampened, cold Irish bones. We were astounded at the masses of young people on the streets of Abidjan and later Bouaké, even late at night.

One evening when Sherri Schneidermann, a nurse at Baptist Hospital in Ferkessedougou, told us how she enjoyed going out and eating “street food,” we asked her if she would mind if we tagged along. We gathered that this was the equivalent of the Irish take away restaurants. The food was being prepared in large kettles of different shapes and sizes, and on grills over open fires. The cooks were obviously experts, chatting with their guests as they chopped and stirred.

We were sitting on the dimly lit street enjoying chunks of meat on sticks and fried bananas, when a nicely dressed young man walked up to us and politely asked in English if we lived in the area. He told us that he would like to find someone to converse with on a regular basis so he could improve his English. We told him that we weren’t from there but he could talk with us while we ate.

We quickly realized that his English was very good and he told us how he wanted to speak English like an American. His name was Soungari and he was working on his master’s degree in English at the university. In the course of the conversation we explained what we were doing in Ireland.

After listening politely he told us how his Catholic uncle had reared him although his father was Muslim. His mother’s side of the family was Roman Catholic and his father’s people were Muslim. Because his mother’s brother had no children he was acting as Soungari’s second father.

Soungari had never heard a clear presentation of the gospel and was especially interested in the concept that Jesus took the penalty of all our sin, and that nothing we can do is enough to lead us into a right relationship with God. Tim told him that all he could tell God was that he was a sinner and ask for forgiveness and accept Christ as Lord of his life. When asked if he would like to do that, Soungari said he would. He prayed a simple but seemingly knowledgeable prayer, repenting of his sin and inviting Christ into his life.

Sherri then re-explained salvation in Christ and began chatting with Soungari in his language. She found out that his tribe came from an area close to Ferkessedougou. She told him that he could come to the hospital when he was visiting his family, and someone there would be glad to meet with him. She gave him some Christian literature before we headed back to the conference center.

 

We have often prayed for Soungari, asking God to give him boldness to go forward in his Christian walk. We were fascinated by Côte d’Ivoire, and have a new appreciation for our missionaries there. We have left a bit of our heart with Soungari.

02040247]]> Sun, 16 Feb 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[An Official Engagement]]>
He had heard of Jesus Christ, who He is and what He had done, and wanted to know for sure he had trusted in Christ. He began to grow in the Lord, through the help of many and was baptized. He began to share his faith with everyone and was persecuted for his faith and was told by his family to never speak of Jesus in his village again.

He began sharing the Good News with others in other places. He studied the Bible through Bible correspondence courses, Theological Education by Extension and even went to a Bible school. He continued to grow and mature in his faith.

Then the day came when his family wanted him to marry. When he was a young child he was already promised to a girl, as two others in Nathan's family had already married into this girl's family. He now faced a dilemma, should he violate God's command of not honoring his father and mother by breaking their long standing promise (it was an official engagement) and following the command to not be unequally yoked or vice-a-versa.

After much prayer and counsel he believed he should stick to his word, but he was very open with his family and the girl's family that he was a committed follower of Jesus and would remain so. They all still agreed to follow through with the marriage.

Over the years, Nathan has witnessed through word and deed to his wife. Last November she told me she was very close to accepting Christ. Praise God she has carefully considered Christ and has accepted Him.

Pray as "Nancy" is discipled and pray that God will continue to use this family to reach their children, other family members, Sindhis and others for Christ. Nathan is now the principal of a Bible Correspondence Institute and also encourages pastors throughout Pakistan.]]> Sat, 06 Jun 2009 21:23:20 GMT <![CDATA[And the Angels Sang]]>
A young man had come and wanted to see me. My first reaction was a little groan. I really didn't want to be disturbed. The person turned out to be a young man named Mohamed. Even though he isn't from the people group we focus on, he had come to the Sunday night meetings at our home a long time ago (maybe a year or more ago) for a couple of weeks.

After that, I lost track of him. It turns out that for part of the year he lives with his mother near Abidjan, the capital of Côte d’Ivoire, but comes up to our town from time to time since his father lives here. This time he was up for the holidays (i.e., to celebrate Ramadan--yes, he comes from a Muslim family). I had seen him in town a few weeks earlier and had a little chat with him and told him to come by sometime.

Well, he did. After asking about his family, etc., I asked him if he had celebrated Ramadan and he said yes, but that he really hadn't become a full-fledged Muslim. In fact, he was rather neutral about it. He said that he wasn't anything, he was just seeking. So, I started the conversation on the direction of truth and knowing truth. Since this is a major aspect of God's character, it is something that must be present in man if he is to be acceptable to God. God is truth and to be in right relation to him, man must be in truth.

Mohamed readily agreed with this and after more discussion I was able to share some Scripture with him (1 Tim. 2:3–5, Jn. 1:1,14,17; 14:6; 17:17; the Romans Road--Rom. 3:23; 6:23; 5:8,10; 10:9,10; Eph. 2:8–10; 1 Jn. 5:11–13;  there were more, but these were the basics).

It was a joy to see him come to understand the reality of who Jesus is and what he did for us on the cross, especially in light of the fact that we had just celebrated Christ's birth the week before. It was an even greater joy to hear him pray and ask God to forgive him and make him his child, and that he believed that Jesus had died on the cross and had been raised from the dead.

02040143]]> Wed, 12 Feb 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Ania's Story]]>
Ania and I met through an Alpha Course, an evangelistic training course. I attended to learn how to run such a course; she attended because her life was in a mess and she wanted to find peace with God. And she is finding it!

Ania has had many struggles in her life, but she is starting to turn to God and trust him more and more. I am helping her grow deeper roots. And she's giving me access to a new circle of contacts as I meet her friends.

So the Kingdom of God infiltrates society, quiet but unstoppable, like yeast working through dough.]]> Sun, 04 May 2008 17:07:31 GMT <![CDATA[Awaiting A Faith Surprise]]>
Since I (Brent) was the only male in our group, and these were rough-looking characters, I decided to take the lead. I shared my testimony then launched into the gospel using our 10-question interactive guide.

As the guys finished their breakfast, one by one they got up and left. When only two of the men remained, I began wondering if I should shut this witnessing opportunity down. A little further and only one man was remaining, but I kept plowing ahead with the gospel, the whole time thinking, “This is a waste of time. Let’s get this over with quickly and move on.”

When I neared the end of the presentation, one by one the guys started coming back bringing a sixth man with them. I gave the invitation and they all prayed the obligatory prayer, most likely to maintain smooth interpersonal relationships with their new-found American friend (me). I was thinking that, at best, there may be one that is mildly interested in the gospel.

A few days later when some of the team members returned for a follow-up visit with our Filipino church planter, the guys were all there asking where the “Amerikano” was (I had already returned to Cebu). A few days after that when the celebration party was held, the Barangay Captain saw these guys there and immediately went up to Pastor Romil with a worried look and said, “We’ve got trouble! Those guys over there are my big headache in the community. They are all unemployed and always causing trouble.”

Pastor Romil has been meeting with this group weekly to teach them the Bible and also to teach them how to make laundry soap and how to market it. Through a small loan from our New Life Micro Enterprise ministry (which they paid off within a month), they were able to launch their new business. One of these “good-for-nothings” even went on a local talk show radio program praising Pastor Romil with his spiritual values and livelihood teachings.

The Barangay Captain is so impressed that he has asked Pastor Romil to start similar groups throughout his community and he will help to fund it. So far two other groups have been started. ]]> Tue, 18 Nov 2008 21:22:50 GMT <![CDATA[Baptized in a Sento]]>
As he explored faith, he read everything we put into his hands, and constantly asked questions. The Truth led this young man to faith in Jesus Christ. In his testimony he said, "I had denied God for 28 years since I was born. I used to think religion was for weak people who cannot live by themselves. But from this day on, I will be united with Jesus Christ, and would like to be used for God." He is an eager learner and worker, in many ways he is already being used by the God he did not know until recently.]]> Fri, 20 Jun 2008 09:43:13 GMT <![CDATA[Birth of a Daughter Church]]>
Our Filipino co-pastor, Wilford Cariaga, took up the challenge.

Every Tuesday night Pastor Wilford led a team of four to five from our church to this outlying barangay of Mandaue. After the Bible study, the owner would provide a nice meal for all of his workers.

It eventually morphed into a worship service. A baptism of 17 men took place; leadership from within has started to develop.

It appears, New Life Community Church now has its first daughter church. We're not sure how this is going to develop but we are just joining God in what He is already doing.

As these new believers go back to the province on the weekends, we see the possibility of some of them opening their homes for Bible study. This could give us new areas for outreach and church planting.

Pray for us that we would be sensitive to the Holy Spirit's leading in this.]]> Wed, 18 Jul 2007 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Blessing Youth with the Gospel]]>
Their children, kindergarten through elementary age, are left in the care of grandparents. Adolescents or high school age children are left to care for themselves. Our ministry to children and youth focuses on issues related to these circumstances.

The vacation Bible school and camps are becoming more than just a place for fun. Since most children only receive Bible teaching outside the home, VBS and camps provide a platform for discipleship and spiritual growth.

By God's grace many youth have come to know Christ and some have already been baptized. It was especially exciting to see youth come from non-believing homes, accept Christ and then at their baptism celebration, have their whole family and relatives come to witness the event. We rejoiced as Christian youth repented of their sins, sought forgiveness, and made commitments to have a closer walk with the Lord. The youth programs have opened the door for many to sincerely share their problems and seek counseling.]]> Fri, 18 Jan 2008 09:01:12 GMT <![CDATA[Boisterous, Bountiful Grace]]>
Jack Robinson and Mary Anne Lattin

For two and a half days in February, a carefully planned Christian event called the Jericho Project, or Jericho II, brought hundreds of Senegalese villagers together in a rural, open-air setting near the Muslim town of Diourbel. Thirty miles away, the largest mosque in West Africa draws pilgrims from all over the world.

Attending the event was the first believer in Jesus Christ from the entire area, who came to faith in 1965. Sitting in plastic chairs under a huge canvas for protection from the tropical sun, the crowd reached 2,400 people on the first afternoon.

Several groups sponsored and organized Jericho II, including the indigenous Mission Inter-Senegal. CBInternational built the center that housed the event, and CBI’s Mary Anne Lattin worked behind the scenes managing the logistics.

Meetings featured animated evangelistic preaching, testimonies of those who had come to Christ and three Senegalese Christian choirs. Other ministries included recreational activities for children and youth, virtually free medical and dental consultations every afternoon, and communal meals of rice and beef served in large metal pans.

Jericho II was not conceived as a western type evangelistic crusade. There were no altar calls. In the Serere and Wolof cultures represented at the meeting, people rarely make individual decisions to change the religion into which they were born. But these African societies traditionally hold annual community events, charged with great emotion, during which community members receive direction from key individuals on how to prepare to live their lives together for the coming year. In such circumstances entire villages can make decisions of profound, life-changing importance.

During the two and a half days of the project, 250 people indicated to leaders that they wished to follow Christ. Over 300 health consultations were made. Friendships were established. Understanding of the Gospel deepened. Good will was built toward the Christians and their message. Many people returned to their villages to consider together what they should do about what they had seen and heard. And the 1,000 children and young people who attended with their parents will be freer to make their own decisions for Christ some day.

In this strongly Muslim society, the dramatic numbers of local people attending the culturally appropriate outreach of Jericho II greatly encouraged evangelical Christians here. A team from Jefferson Baptist Church of Jefferson, Oregon, maintained a continuous prayer ministry around the encampment during the meetings and prayed as well with individual Africans with special needs. They also assisted in medical consultations and children’s activities. The impact of their loving, prayerful presence was not lost on the African Christians.

This wholistic model of ministry may have implications for outreach in other Muslim countries of the African Sahel, and it deserves further study. It was exciting to observe this creative, prayerful, laughing and boisterous community event designed and conducted by mature African leaders seeking to reach their country for Christ. They are already preparing for next year’s Jericho III.

02040146]]> Sat, 15 Feb 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Boldness Needed for Russian Girl]]>
Tatiana, a student in Paul and Marti Hindalong’s Beginning English Class, comes faithfully every Monday night. They first met her the previous summer at their teen camp, and she comes weekly to the Teen Club.

“All of these are outreach programs offered through our Paradigma Church ministry to reach out to unbelieving teenagers,” the Hindalongs explain.

One week at the Beginning English Class the other students could not come, but Tatiana came and was prepared. Working alone with her, Marti had the opportunity to talk more personally.

“As we discussed the meaning of the Bible verse she had been learning, she said that she did not know if she had yet been good enough to enter heaven,” Marti writes.

Marti shared the free gift of salvation with her, and Tatiana prayed to receive Jesus.

“That evening she talked about her decision to Paul and the student that he was teaching … Several days later she told several of our Teen club leaders about her decision, as well as our associate pastor.”

Yet apart from these early confessions, Tatiana has not come to church yet, nor — and this is one of the great challenges before this young woman — has she told her mother yet.
Please pray for boldness for Tatiana. Pray she continue in the path she has begun.]]> Mon, 31 Jul 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Genises Tapes]]>
He spends his days in a chair in front of his hut since he is in poor health. Others villagers join him from time to time. Each week I spend time visiting with him as he is my host father in his village where I am learning the Maninka language.

This man regulates disputes between neighbors and is regarded highly by his village.

May he one day be filled with wisdom from God.]]> Tue, 08 Jan 2008 03:37:54 GMT <![CDATA[Two brothers were badly burned in Tenkelen]]>
Two brothers were badly burned while trying to get honey out of a hive when a can of insecticide exploded. I received word about the two men several hours after the event while I was in my village seven kilometers away.

Arriving at village of Tenkelen I was shocked to see the severity of the burns that covered the chests, faces and the arms of the two brothers. One of the men was in shock after receiving several bee stings plus being burned. I wondered if he would even make it.

Due to the severity of the burns, I wanted to take them to the hospital in town but their family refused. Thankfully they did agree to send a runner with me to get medications in town that we could bring back.

When I visited five days later they were both starting to heal, although there were several debridment visits that followed as my ministry partner Beth and I visited on a regular basis.

Little did I know on my first visit that these two men were the sons of the Chief. Now this village is open to having health training and Bible story telling. May the doors to this village continue to be wide open!

]]> Sat, 03 May 2008 04:51:58 GMT <![CDATA[Building Dedication Marks Gospel Progress]]>
Kouta resides within the desert-like interior of Senegal, a rough, four-hour drive from the city.

Now 20 years later, Dan Penney was invited to the long-awaited dedication of Kouta’s new church building. The growing number of believers, resulting from this man’s faithfulness, demanded a larger place to meet.

“Last year,” Dan writes, “Dakar Academy’s annual outreach project was in the village of Kouta … as part of the outreach project, art students painted a mural depicting a fellowship meal with Jesus in an African style and in African surroundings.

Part of the WorldVenture team’s vision for the work in Senegal is to use art to communicate biblical truths in semi-literate communities.

The building symbolizes the distance the gospel has come in the village. Dan reflects on his impressions at the dedication ceremony.

“As we waited for people to gather for the worship service, I admired the interior of the building. This physical structure was an undeniable testimony to the faith of these villagers, where a few years ago not a single person in the village knew Jesus.”

Several government officials were invited to the dedication, as well.

“All these officials spoke briefly,” Dan reports, “endorsing the church’s presence in the community, and praising the impact of the believers in the region!”]]> Mon, 07 Aug 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Burned-Out VCR Still Works]]>
Saturday evening, at 6 p.m., the neighborhood park where we planned to show the Jesus film was all but empty. I was not optimistic regarding turnout for the event.

The pastor of the church, my brother-in-law and several of his church members helped me set up the AV equipment on a concrete stage build at one end of the park. “At least,” I thought, “the physical installation is good.”

I turned on the sound system and pumped some upbeat music into the open space. Slowly, a few curious onlookers began to gather. When we were ready to go, the few had become a small band of people spread out over the park’s grounds. Feeling encouraged, I hit the VCR’s PLAY button, and sat down to enjoy the first few minutes of the film.

Then it happened. An electrical short caused the whole apparatus to simply shut down. After the initial shock wore off, I scrambled to ascertain the damage. My heart sank as nothing seemed to work. I unplugged the extension and placed it into the socket next door. Uh-oh, major mistake! Without knowing it, I had plugged into a 220v outlet. Who has time for a voltage-tester? Let’s just plug in the VCR and see if we have power! I did, and immediately a dense cloud of electrical smoke filled the air. Boy, did I feel dumb! Of course, the rest of the equipment worked fine once we saw that the surge protector fuse had merely popped out, thus protecting the equipment. Too bad I wasn’t using that for the VCR!

We needed to get the tape out of the burned out VCR. I once again plugged back into the 110v socket and PRESTO! The VCR lights turned on! I tested the video feed – perfect picture. I tested the audio – lovely. By this time, instead of dispersing, the crowd had grown to several hundred people, all interested in our difficulties. Amazing! I hit the PLAY button again, grabbed my brother-in-law and headed backstage where we proceeded to bless and thank the Lord for his sovereignty and control. That night, six people raised their hands to accept Christ. Those who came alongside them to do the follow-up said that each of these were very serious and convinced of their decision. Praise the Lord!]]> Mon, 10 Jul 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Burning the Past]]>
High on the terraced hills of southwest Uganda people are coming to Christ.

Pastor Elias and a group of believers from his congregation together with CBI missionary Skip Sorensen traveled west of Kabale and then an hour off the main road to conduct evangelistic services in July 2003. They also went door to door and showed the Jesus film at night.

To get there they had to walk and carry all their equipment, including a generator, video projector and water. It was dry season. Way down in the valley they could see those preparing their fields for the rains.

But God had already prepared his fields high up on the hillside. After the first night's showing of the Jesus film three or four people prayed to receive Christ as their Lord and Savior.

Phoebe, a widow, was one of those people. And she understood what it meant to follow Christ because the next morning Phoebe came to pastor Elias and asked him to come to her house to help her get rid of some things.

After her husband died, Phoebe went to the witchdoctor who instructed her how to keep her dead husband's spirit from bothering her. She was to gather bones of a chicken she had sacrificed to the evil spirits, bones of a goat, some pieces of wood and her husband's smoking pipe and bury these objects in the mud floor of two different rooms in her home.

Phoebe knew that now as a believer in Christ she needed to get rid of the objects in her home to show that she was no longer trusting in the evil spirits and to show that she was really trusting Christ.

Pastor Elias prayed with her, confirmed that she really understood salvation and was trusting in Christ and then asked to be shown the spots in the floor.

The first was in a bedroom. Almost immediately, using a hoe, the pastor started digging up pieces of bone and wood.

Then they went to the second spot, in a corridor. There two more objects were found. After carefully sifting through the dirt in both places they made a pile of things outside getting ready to burn them.

Pastor Elias asked the woman if she had anything else. She said she also had grown tobacco and had the leaves drying and she knew it wasn't good to smoke. The pile grew.

Finally when everything was gathered the believers added the hulls and dried sticks from the recent bean harvest to start a roaring fire. All objects from her former life were consumed.

In October 2003 Phoebe and 12 others were baptized.

 

 

 

 ]]> Thu, 29 Jan 2004 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Caught in the Act]]>
Because of the genocide and following turmoil in the countries of Rwanda, Uganda and especially Congo, it is common to have lost relatives and friends.

The Sheers’ overseer recently found out that the news of his father was not true, because the man who approached him was a con artist.

This man had used this same approach on other people. He would claim that he had seen a lost relative in Congo or somewhere equally difficult to reach, and offer to deliver messages and money to them.

The Scheers’ overseer said that although he’s sad the news wasn’t true, he’s praising God that he found out before he’d given this man any money.

The deception might have worked if God hadn’t convicted the man of his evil way of life. He came to Christ and returned to the overseer’s family to confess everything and ask their forgiveness!
]]> Tue, 10 Oct 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Celebrating New Life]]>
We were joined by our daughter church from Umapad, Cebu, whose pastor is a former youth from New Life. The highlight of the anniversary service was 13 baptisms. New Life baptized five and Umapad Church baptized eight.

Everyone gathered around and supported the new believers as they were immersed in the water, signifying they have died to their old life lived for sin, and brought up from the water, signifying the new life given through Jesus. We were reminded of God’s goodness toward us as we worshipped together and praised Him for what He has done in our lives.]]> Wed, 04 Mar 2009 19:59:25 GMT <![CDATA[Chance Meeting Results in Fruit for the Kingdom]]>
A few years ago, while I was walking in city of Toda, a lady with a small boy started talking to me. She had been to church as a child and was interested in our church. I sent her a letter with some information, but there was no further contact after that.

Now jump to just a week ago. I was walking to Saikyo Hope Church from the Toda Koen train station. A woman calls out to me, “John sensei (pastor). John sensei! Do you remember me?”

Now, I am soon to be 50, and my memory is not what it used to be, so I smiled and listened to her story. Then I remembered. It was the same lady who I had met three years earlier on the street.

She told me the story of her difficult life in the United States and of her return to Japan to live with her parents with her 5-year-old boy. We prayed and I invited her to come to church.

The following Sunday, she came to church. We prayed and she asked forgiveness for her sins and accepted Jesus as her Savior.

Interestingly enough, before we had met on the street, she had had a series of migraines and then had had an evil nightmare that night, and planned to go to an exorcist the following day. Providentially, that next day was the day of our second meeting.]]> Mon, 24 Apr 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Changed by the Word]]>
Paola, a girl in our church was asked to go out with Gustavo. Paola said she would be happy to but he had to talk with her pastor first.

Gustavo was a bit surprised but because he really wanted to hang out with Paola he came with her to meet me.

I opened my Bible to the first chapter of John and rather than talking together we read John chapter one. Gustavo asked a number of questions and left. Each week it was the same until we got to John chapter 6.

Gustavo said, "I don't need to read with you any more."

I asked him why and he said, "Now I believe in Jesus, you don't need to read to me any more."

Gustavo has been baptized and now teaches Sunday school in our church.]]> Thu, 29 Jan 2004 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Changing Lives of the Violent]]>
The following testimonies from people in prison demonstrate that Christ changes the lives of the violent even after professional therapy has failed. The prison Bible study is filled with violent men who have been touched by the grace of Christ. They now communicate Christ to the violent of Luzira Prison in Uganda.

"Before I accepted Christ, I was filled with anger. I hated God and I would stone anyone who claimed to be a Christian when they came to our village. Now I'm preaching the gospel."--Robert

"I loved to beat up people. I was a good fighter and I enjoyed destroying people who spoke about Christ. But when I ended up in prison I found myself accepting Christ."--James

"I was from a saved family. But when they tried to preach to me about Christ, I called them devils. I had to be thrown in prison before I would realize that Christ is the true and living God."--Bosco

William was a successful highway robber until he had a fight with the police. In prison he found that he needed God: "I am preaching to other prisoners and winning them to Christ. Now that I am in prison, I have found freedom."

Edward, a witch doctor claims to have bewitched and murdered numerous people, stated, "On my way to murder someone I stopped to watch an evangelistic crusade. The preacher stated that there was a witch in the crowd and he started to pray for his conversion. Suddenly I was arrested. In prison I found Christ and now I love to preach to others."

"I was the worst of the worse. I enjoyed beating up my family and my relatives. I entertained myself by beating up children and watching them suffer. I hated Christ. But last year the police caught me and I received Christ in prison. I now spend my time witnessing to prisoners."--Bobby]]> Thu, 06 Mar 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Chased Out By Cats]]>
Yesterday we showed up at 9 a.m., and the entry door was locked. Georg, one of our men, went around to another door to get in and let us in.  He came back a few minutes later and said,  “We’ve got a problem, the rooms is full of cats.”

Now, the German word for “cats” sounds a lot like the colloquial term for “vomit,” so I thought at first that we had a big stinky mess to clean up.
 
Turns out the room really was full of cats, as the city was hosting a cat exhibition and they were using our room as well as every other room in the place. Obviously the room had been double-booked.
 
Our team leaped into action, began making phone calls, and in the space of a half-hour turned our living room into a worship service room. We had 44 people in our living room for worship, prayer, a sermon about grace, and time for cake and coffee afterwards.

Our previous worship service had 30 people in it!

With the 44, we were larger than the average evangelical church in Austria, and we had nine first-timers there yesterday.  It was a great morning, although our living room did look like the economy section of an airplane.
 
After the worship service, I was talking with one of our leaders and I told him that I did not want to use the auditorium any more as we couldn’t count on it being free.

Georg, a fairly new believer, heard me say this and afterwards came to me and said, “If this was a business deal I would absolutely agree with you, but don’t you think that the man who double-booked the room should get grace from us? You did talk about grace this morning?” 

He went on to say that the man would expect us to not do business with him anymore, and that we could be a huge testimony to him.

Needless to say, I changed my mind on the spot, he was right, and we’re going to stay with the auditorium. Praise the Lord that this church is being planted by the many and not the one.
 
We had a leaders meeting in the afternoon and we were talking about how well everyone responded to the surprise that morning and how well our team functioned. One of our men then said,  “I know that it was stressful for you and Sharon this morning to have to turn your house into a church building in the space of a half hour. I admit though, I had to laugh because I thought,  ‘I know that Satan wants to block this church, but is cats the best that he can do?  He really is a defeated enemy!’”

I’ve already gotten feedback from the non-believers who were there about how much they enjoyed it and how much they learned – they said they’ll be back. We’re praising God for how he is working.
]]> Tue, 10 Apr 2007 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Christmas Came Early to Lawley 2]]>
It is in this context that WorldVenture's mid-term worker, Nicole Beardslee, has a Bible Club for children in grades 1- 3.

It's been a very fruitful year as 60+ kids have gathered each week to hear about God and His love for them, especially His love towards us in sending Christ.

Nearly 30 kids have accepted Christ into their hearts through this time.

Last week was the final Bible Club for the year. It was a Christmas party where the kids got to make a photo frame for their parent or guardian and decorate their own cupcake to eat.  They also were ecstatic to receive a new backpack, toothbrush, a small toy and candy. This was an over-the-top Christmas for these kids and the screams of joy just got louder as they discovered the next item inside the backpack.

What a finale to a great first year of bible club!

It was donations to the Compassionate Children's Relief fund for southern Africa that made this all possible.

This fund enables us to provide food assistance, school fees, medical care, Bible Club materials and Christmas gifts to the children in need.  I just wish that you could see their faces as we are able to help children who have so little to succeed in life.]]> Thu, 30 Nov 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Christmas Festival]]>
The Licht und Salz (Salt and Light) Baptist Church in Wolfsberg, Austria, had 150 people in attendance at their annual Christmas festival. The response was very positive--at least three people told the pastor they want to begin meeting to read the Bible together.

A local school teacher attended and was so enthused that he asked if his children could take part the next year.

A leader of a church in another province was also there and his response was: "This is how outreach needs to be done in Austria!" The pastor said, "Up to this point I felt like our outreaches punched little holes in the spiritual barrier here. I feel like we just put a great big hole in the wall--I can't wait to see what God is going to do."

(Robert Wascher is an International Partner in Ministry with CBI. The Licht und Salz Baptist Church was originally started by CBI missionary Paul Jorgensen.)]]> Mon, 10 Feb 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[CD Gift Outreach]]>
Carrickmacross Baptist Church began as a mission church in County Monaghan almost 15 years ago. In 2006 it was officially incorporated and welcomed into the fellowship of Irish Baptists.

In spite of its presence in the town for several years, however, lack of an identifiable building has meant that most towns people are not really aware that the church exists.  (The church currently rents space in a local school for church services.) 

Church members are constantly talking and thinking about ways to increase the church’s visibility and impact on the town.

Last autumn Susan White, young mother of four and long-time member of the congregation, came up with an inspired idea for increasing the church’s profile in the community. Realizing that the congregation included a number of competent musicians, she suggested that the church produce a CD of Christmas music, which could be sold in local shops to promote a local charity, the Carrickmacross Cancer Society. 

For several weeks after Sunday services, church members rehearsed familiar Christmas carols and instrumentalists practiced solo and ensemble numbers. The final result was a lovely collection of Christmas carols performed in various styles.

Church members were glad to buy CDs as Christmas gifts for family and friends, and more than 40 shops in the town were willing to display and sell them as a means of benefiting a good cause. As a result of everyone’s hard work and cooperation, more than €3000 was collected on behalf of the Cancer Society, and the Baptist Church was given greater visibility in the town. 

We praise God for people with creative ideas in the church family, and we trust that he will continue to use Carrickmacross Baptist Church to impact our town and region.

]]> Thu, 18 Jan 2007 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Coming to Faith—Quietly]]>
He is a professional soccer player and I had not met him. I asked his wife if it would be a good idea to offer to study the Bible with him. She said, "Yes."

I visited their house to make the offer not knowing what to expect. "Would you like to study the Bible with me?" His response was very positive and we began our study.

My wife and I then went on home assignment. Upon our return it became apparent that he had obviously committed his life to the Lord. We continue to study the Bible together and have become friends.

He seeks to be an effective witness to his soccer teammates and family. His main challenge is learning how to relate to his new teammates, both on and off the soccer field. ]]> Tue, 04 Nov 2008 15:46:36 GMT <![CDATA[Confrontation Brings Healing]]>
I had been away at a pastors' conference and just returned home when the phone rang. Yoshen, one of the older students, was calling because he had been offended by James. Grace, who had helped found the church told Yoshen to contact me.

In Chinese culture and in Taiwan people are very reticent to confront and even more reticent to admit wrong. Yoshen was nervous just talking to me about the situation.

I knew James had offended people in the past as well so I said that I would talk to James. But I also encouraged Yoshen to read Matthew 18, the passage that gives instruction on what to do when we are offended. I encouraged Yoshen not only to read the passage but also to study and pray about what it said. And then I encouraged him to talk to James directly. He was very scared about the thought of doing that.

On both Friday and Saturday I tried to call James but could not reach him. I had wanted to talk with him before Sunday, the last day of his internship after which he would be returning to seminary.

On the fifth Sunday of the month in our church the congregation shares testimonies.

James was the first to get up and I was not expecting what I heard. James asked people to turn in their Bibles to Matthew 18, proceeded to say what he had learned from this passage and that Yoshen had come to talk with him.

James thanked Yoshen for confronting him and asked the congregation for forgiveness. He asked that if there were others who he had offended he wanted to know so that he could ask them directly for forgiveness.

God used his Word in James life for good.
]]> Thu, 29 Jan 2004 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Cost Counting 101]]>
I was dismayed when I heard the news. The kids who came regularly to my house in remote northern Ivory Coast (Côte d'Ivoire) had progressed steadily in their new lives as followers of Jesus. Now it seemed they had to compromise.

At a special place out in the bush each kid's family would sacrifice cows and sheep to family fetishes. Parents and grandparents insisted that the whole family attend the sacrifices. Besides family pressures, the kids were facing temptation: eating sacrificed animals provided their best opportunity to enjoy good-sized portions of meat.

For two hours I talked with the kids about why they should and should not participate in the sacrifices. We used as our starting point the Bible verses they had memorized and our discussions about how to apply them.

The children concluded that when an older relative tells them to take an animal out to the sacrifice place, they must obey. But they decided they could not participate in sacrificing the animals or eat any of the meat. They agreed to stay away from the meat, banding together to help each other resist the temptation to eat it. They knew their decision would mean going hungry.

Then we hit on a great idea: I could serve them a meal to help make up for what they had missed. So that day I gladly served the kids rice and, of course, a lot of meat.

02072456]]> Tue, 25 Feb 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Dancing for Jesus]]>
The Garba is danced in a big circle, with both men and women participating. The Dandia-Raas is danced in a circle but with partners, and each person has two round sticks about 16 inches long that they beat together in rhythm with the music.

Although we held this celebration as an outreach event, it was more about celebrating the life and resurrection of Jesus. We were also trying to show people that following Jesus does not mean losing your culture. We believe God blessed the event and we were pleased with the turnout. More than 170 people came, and everyone had a good time.

A good number of Christians came, but most of the people were not believers. Some English Christians were completely awed and said they had never seen anything like this before. The women wore beautiful flowing, colorful, shining outfits and plenty of jewelry, as they usually do for such events. We had substantial refreshments and a local Baptist church graciously allowed us the use of their facilities.
]]> Tue, 14 Jan 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Darya's Story]]>
The Natisk club is put on by our Perspective Ministry Team. It brings us into contact with unbelieving and unchurched teenagers.

Respecting the rules of the public school system, the club cannot be overtly Christian. Yet our young leaders, all Christians, bathe the club and students in prayer. They love and build bridges with the students for Christ and the church.

Darya attended club that winter and spring, finding her first friends from the church. That summer, she attended camp. 

Darya said, “Every time I came to club or camp, I learned something about Jesus. I had always known about Jesus, but seldom thought about him. I thought that he was very far from me.”

One of her new friends brought her to our apartment to study English. It was mid-summer and we were preparing to go on furlough to the States in the middle of August. Darya was with us for only about three lessons before we left, but one of the assignments that we gave her was to memorize John 3:16.

A diligent student, she memorized it in English, and in her “heart language," Russian.

We returned to Russia in January the next year, and of course, to our church. To our surprise, Darya was there. She rushed down the corridor to us, hugged us, and with a big smile greeted us with the words in Russian, “I repented!”

After we had left Russia, in August, Darya’s mother had become very ill with asthma and was rushed to the hospital. It was serious and Darya was very afraid.

That night she couldn’t sleep. She worried about her mother and felt helpless.

“I remembered all that I had learned about Jesus from my friends and the only Bible verse that I knew, John 3:16. It told about eternal life. I decided to call out to Jesus, and tell him all my problems and asked him to help me and my mother.”

The next morning the doctor called and her mother was better. But her new commitment was real, and thus she sought out our pastor to talk with him about it.

“After that," she says, "I began to tell Jesus all my problems and secrets. Now I have the best friend and the best father, his name is Jesus.”

It has been two years.

Darya is now in college. She continues to be faithful to English class each week. She is at the intermediate level, and it has been such a joy to disciple her. She is so eager to grow spiritually. She is active in our church fellowship and serves on the worship team, and sometimes helps in the children’s Sunday school.]]> Sun, 08 Apr 2007 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Enzo's Story]]>
We talked about the unfortunate consequences of unbridled anger. Then Enzo said something like “It’s almost as if we need to be born again and start over.”

My response was, “That’s interesting. Someone else said something like that.” We continued talking and I was able to mention Christ and the new birth. I left that day wondering if God wasn't working in Enzo.

Over the next year I became a frequent visitor to Enzo’s deli. I would patiently wait for opportunities to introduce spiritual conversation. I prayed for him and his salvation. He isn’t much of a reader but h  took my advice and read the gospel of John. By the time he finished reading John, Enzo was beginning t o love his Savior. By the end of the year, he had given his life to Jesus and accepted the gift of eternal life.

I asked Enzo if I could write about him and he was glad to think that his story might encourage you. In November, Enzo was baptized. He had hoped that Anna, his wife, would join him but she wasn’t ready. The gospel has changed Enzo’s life. He has a sensitive conscience that desires to live cleanly before the Lord. He made a decision to close his store on Sunday mornings so that he might come to church. It was a step of faith that the Lord has blessed. His sales have actually increased during the days that he is open.

I’ve also seen a change in Anna. She is happy to see me and has been praying and reading Scripture with Enzo. We’re grateful for the opportunity that we’ve been given by the Lord. We are seeing evidence of the fruit that God desires to bring forth from our lives here. Thank you for giving to the Lord so that Italians like Enzo might come to know Him.]]> Fri, 06 Feb 2009 08:25:09 GMT <![CDATA[Evangelism Explosion]]>
It is apparent that she has come to Christ by the changes that have taken place in her life. Thus, having noticed the changes in her life and being encouraged by her to find out more, Antonella’s husband, Bruno, attended the second training session of Evangelism Explosion (EE). The course is being taught to four churches that are working together to evangelize the central part of their province for Christ.

At the end of the first part of the training, Bruno said that EE would probably not work in Italy because it was an American program developed for Americans. Regardless of his response, I invited Bruno, Antonella and two people from our church who are in training to get a cup of coffee so we could talk. During the conversation, I asked Bruno if I could share the EE presentation with him. He agreed and I began along with the trainees intervening at times.

I was amazed at how Bruno has not been influenced by the normal Italian religious traditions even though he and Antonella were devoted for some time. Bruno seemed to be tracking with the presentation; therefore, I asked if the presentation made sense and if he wanted to receive Christ as Savior and Lord. He said, yes, and made the commitment through prayer to follow Christ. Not only did all the angels rejoice but our church has been rejoicing that Bruno and Antonella have new life in Christ. I won’t take the time to list all the divine things the Lord did to organize the evening in which Bruno came to Christ. A series of “circumstances” lined up in such a way that even the harshest skeptic would have been amazed.

Janet and I are now in the process of discipling Bruno and Antonella and it has been a delight to see the smiles come to their faces when they discover a new truth. Four days after Bruno’s conversion his boss called him into her office. Bruno is the foreman of a group of heavy equipment mechanics. There are at least 30 people under him. His boss asked if there was anything wrong.

Bruno said, “No, there is nothing wrong.”

She asked if Bruno was feeling okay. He said yes and then he asked why.

His boss said, “Everyone has noticed that you have changed. You have not yelled at your crew for two days and you have stopped cussing.” We rejoice in God’s transformation!]]> Mon, 29 Sep 2008 21:55:46 GMT <![CDATA[Evangelism In Her Heart]]>
In the Philippines, there is definite prejudice here where securing a job depends, not only on ability and education, but also good looks, youth, singleness and height. Yes, even height!

Lynn may be 4' 8" in high heels and weighs, at the most, 90lbs. She doesn't fit many of the cultural requirements. And her trade is in design — a very competitive industry itself.

Against these barriers she found a job — and not only a job but a great job. She works in an area called MEPZA (Macatan Export Processing Zone Authority), and designs jewelry for a well known company which sells to the European market. Lynn still praises the Lord for this incredible position.

She manages many employees which caused a great deal of jealousy among them. And to add to her lack of popularity, Lynn is a very open witness for Christ to all who cross her path.

After one week of work, she was being shunned during free time by her fellow workers.

This was Lynn's introduction to the work world never having to work outside her home before. Being avoided hurt her terribly. More, she explained, because it prevented her from sharing her faith.

Lynn brought this to the attention of our prayer group at World of Life Church.

This week Bo and I followed up on her progress at work. Lynn's grin was infectious as she shared God's desire for His Word to be heard.

Her work place is a 45 minute taxi ride away. During every taxi ride she witnesses to the driver. One taxi driver took her words seriously. Noting where she lived as he dropped her off he told her he lived another 10 minutes further down the road. If he picked her up every morning would she tell him more? Delighted, Lynn gave him a Bible on the next ride. Not wanting an accident, she reads his Bible to him and explains the meaning the entire ride.

Lynn also found two other employees who live near her and now, they too take the 45 minute ride with her and listen to the daily Bible study. She has invited them to her Saturday morning Bible study and prayer time at her home and a Friday night fellowship group. She said they are faithful in their attendance.

As Lynn talked further with us, she took delight in giving us an update about her work place.

"I miss lunch many times," Lynn says, "because I am determined that none at work will go to hell because I am unpopular or intimidated by those who dislike me. I look for small groups in the cafeteria and invite myself to sit down with them. Being superficially polite, they cannot say no to me. I then begin sharing. You know me, Cynthia, I like to say things straight. By the end of lunch, many are bowing their heads at the sorrow they have caused Jesus and praying to receive Him as Savior. I now have a Bible study at work, usually during our breaks, with 7 women and 5 men. I thank WOL's prayer group for their faithfulness in praying for me and for the lost."

Praise God for women like Lynn Deutsch.]]> Tue, 05 Dec 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Evangelized by the Holy Spirit]]>
"How did you become a Christian?" I asked a new acquaintance.

"I was evangelized by the Holy Spirit," she replied. And she told me her story.

She grew up in a Muslim family in West Africa. In adulthood, her sister became a Christian and began praying for her. But she continued to live as a faithful Muslim, even going to Mecca for the pilgrimage that Muslims dream of making once in their lifetime.

While walking around the sacred Kaaba stone in Mecca, she heard a voice begin whispering in her ear: "You are a Christian, you are a Christian." "I'm not a Christian," she replied. "That's why I'm here in Mecca."

But even after her return home to West Africa, the voice persisted. She continued to hear it for the next three years until she looked for Christian instruction and finally decided to follow Christ.

Making her decision known was a frightening prospect for her. As the month of Ramadan arrived--when Muslims fast during the daylight hours--this new believer decided that she would fast as a Christian but not tell her Muslim friends and family that she was fasting for a different reason. But the day that Ramadan began, she was hospitalized with a stomach ulcer that made fasting impossible. It also gave her time to think about whether she could really be a secret Christian.

When her medical treatment was finished, Ramadan was still in progress. "Are you going to fast?" a friend asked her.

"No," she replied. "But it's not because of my ulcer. I'm never going to fast again."

"What?" exclaimed her friend, "Why not?"

"Because I'm a Christian," she replied, to the shocked unbelief of her companion.

Today this woman no longer uses her Muslim name. She has taken the new name of "Grace," which reflects her conversion experience. She is a deeply committed Christian and fearless in her witness about Christ to people she meets at every level of society. Her work enables her to mix with men and women at the highest levels of government internationally, yet she receives the most humble of people into her home.

Can committed Muslims find Christ? This believer says that in response to persistent prayer, "I was evangelized by the Holy Spirit."]]> Sun, 02 Feb 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Every Day They Come ....]]>
We have a neat Bible story book that attracted all the neighborhood children. Often I (Laura) asked Mamadou, the lay pastor, to tell the story from the book using the language the child spoke. Since he did not know the stories well he asked me to tell them in French so he could translate it. We started with Genesis 1 telling the stories to those who wanted to hear. At that time 12 or so kids were coming, but the crowd soon expanded to the 35-45 we normally have now.

Since these children had never heard any of these stories before they were sometimes worried about their new Bible friends. They understood Joseph's older brothers not liking his dreams, but definitely objected to them selling him as a slave. They loved the ending, knowing how hard it is to forgive someone who hurt you like Joseph's brothers did him. During the plagues on Egypt 40-45 came daily. In June we started with 30-45 minutes of Bible story. Then I tried to have an activity that had something to do with the story — acting it out with crude props like inner-tube rubber for snakes, grass tied together for beards etc. Then everyone got a drink of lemonade (now I use more than a gallon/day and each one gets less than half a glass.)

Those who learn the memory verse get a cookie. Before school started I offered a book bag to anyone who could recite Ps. 103:8-14. I had six bags but 18 kids learned the passage! When school started we had to shorten the lesson time because some children go to school in the morning and others in the afternoon. The afternoon session lasts until 5 p.m. so they did not arrive at my house until 5:15 - 5:30 p.m. In Mali it gets dark a few minutes after 6 p.m. Many school children cannot write their own name! I offered to teach the regular Bible club kids to read and write. Tuesday through Friday we have literacy lessons. The kids who are in the afternoon session at school come to my house for reading lessons from 9 - 9:45 a.m., and then the ones who were in school in the morning come here for reading from 4 - 4:45 p.m. Then the soccer ball comes out and I send them to play in the street in front of our house. The one or two bicycles who pass don't mind going around the game. About 5:15 p.m. I call them in for lemonade and work with Mamadou on the memory verse. Soon the afternoon school students arrive and at 5:30 I spend a few minutes reviewing the previous lessons, then tell the new story.

I have piecemeal flannelgraph and old Sunday school pictures that supporters and friends have donated. When we use the flannelgraph I often let one child from each language retell the story with the figures. About 150 kids have heard at least one Bible story, and probably 75 have heard five or more stories. Forty are regular enough to have a general idea now of God's dealings with people thoughout the Old Testament. By the week before Christmas we had arrived at the story of Jesus' birth — new stories to these children who are just starting to learn about our God. As they learn of the gift of salvation may many accept him as their Savior.]]> Mon, 02 Jan 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Everything is Possible with God]]>
Who could have known that a couple weeks later a woman would walk into our worship service and say, “I'd been thinking about Christianity when I received a flyer from this church.” Yes, as we'd later find out, she lived in that very house! Coincidence? No! God? Yes!

This woman seriously examined Christianity with us, but seemed to be troubled by things. Then one day a breakthrough: “Kevin, I've been trying to understand Christ with just my head, but I know now that I need to accept Him with my heart...by faith.”

From the house I assumed was lost to the clutches of Buddhism, God had been calling His child, for a long time. In our living room, He welcomed her to Himself as she placed her faith in Jesus!]]> Mon, 04 Aug 2008 09:54:30 GMT <![CDATA[Festival of Hope]]>
The weather was exceptional for this time of year; the attendance for all three nights packed out the small outdoor stadium for 20,000; the music was excellent, from all over Latin America; the preaching by Franklin Graham was very clear and forthright. He gave a clear call for repentance and to believe in Christ.

We were not sure how such a direct message and a public invitation would be received here, not common for the culture. But without special prompting, hundreds went forward to express their desire to know Christ. We know personally of several friends and contacts who had taken non-Christian friends, and several of these prayed to receive Christ. All Christian workers know that these kinds of events produce different kinds of decisions, and sometimes with little lasting results. But what we saw was a true moving of God's Spirit as people were touched by the power of the simple gospel message.

Some came for the first time, others to reaffirm a decision made years ago, others to repent of a lifestyle which is not Christian. What was impressive were the number of young people who went forward, a supposedly hard group to reach here. This was also a joyful time for the Body of Christ in Uruguay: a time to be together with other believers, to see a physical representation of the church of Jesus Christ in Uruguay, and to enjoy a positive time of ministry together.

Many of them are from small local churches, so this impressive event was a great encouragement. It was truly a "Festival of Hope!" For those of you who like numbers, the results from these three days were: *Total attendance = +71,000 (42 percent were adolescents and young people) * Decisions = 8,250 (11.6 percent of all who attended) * Saturday morning event for children ("Festiniños") = a total of +25,000 children and helpers. The stadium was packed; several thousand more saw the event outside on giant screens. ]]> Sat, 25 Apr 2009 20:40:12 GMT <![CDATA[Few Options at 5 Years Old]]>
When Musa kept getting sick the children called their grandmother who lives 20 minutes away.

The grandmother took Musa to the clinic where they determined that he is HIV positive. The grandmother took Musa back to his home, refusing to assume care for him.

Musa’s father is unemployed, a drunk and assumes no parental role for the children. When the situation was brought to him, he denied that Musa had HIV. If Musa had HIV that would indicate that he had it himself.

The sisters became frightened for Musa’s health and not knowing how to take care of him, they asked us for help.

We took Musa to the AIDS clinic where he will be monitored by a pediatrician. When we returned him home we discovered that the sisters had moved out and Musa and his 11-year-old brother are on their own.

God allowed us to get Musa enrolled in a nursery school where he will be looked after and fed twice a day. His older brother can now continue to go to school.

Please pray for the — very literally — millions of children who are in need like this across southern Africa.]]> Fri, 28 Jul 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Few Options at 5 Years Old]]>
When Musa kept getting sick the children called their grandmother who lives 20 minutes away.

The grandmother took Musa to the clinic where they determined that he is HIV positive. The grandmother took Musa back to his home, refusing to assume care for him.

Musa’s father is unemployed, a drunk and assumes no parental role for the children. When the situation was brought to him, he denied that Musa had HIV. If Musa had HIV that would indicate that he had it himself.

The sisters became frightened for Musa’s health and not knowing how to take care of him, they asked us for help.

We took Musa to the AIDS clinic where he will be monitored by a pediatrician. When we returned him home we discovered that the sisters had moved out and Musa and his 11-year-old brother are on their own.

God allowed us to get Musa enrolled in a nursery school where he will be looked after and fed twice a day. His older brother can now continue to go to school.

Please pray for the — very literally — millions of children who are in need like this across southern Africa.]]> Fri, 28 Jul 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Finding God's Family in a Cab]]>
The other day, three friends and I hailed a cab. When it arrived, the four of us jumped in. Sensing our haste, the driver told us not to rush, to take it easy.

We didn't go a block away when we passed by a road accident. We saw a car with its front-end bashed in. Thankfully no one was injured and apparently the driver of that car was just standing around waiting for help to arrive.

I saw an opportunity to share the gospel with our cab driver, mentioning how life is so unpredictable.

Before I could say anything else, he started right in sharing his testimony about how wonderful Jesus Christ is, making him a new man. For a long time, he'd been addicted to gambling. He'd lost tens of thousands of dollars. His wife was so desperate that she tried to commit suicide. Their 8-year-old daughter (who had accepted Jesus as her Savior at her school) hung on to her mother and prevented her from jumping off their window ledge. Soon afterwards, the mother started going to church and accepted Jesus as her Savior and Lord.

Some time later, the father became a Christian also. He was, by the grace of God, able to break his gambling addiction. He said how merciful God was that He'd placed his daughter in the right place in the time of crisis to "save the day."

Now, the driver joyfully shares his testimony with his passengers and gives them Christian literature to read.

God is amazing. When I asked our driver which church he attended, he mentioned one of the names of our CB churches. What a small world God's family is!

]]> Thu, 01 Jun 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[First Jesus-follower at The Grace Place]]>
Recently she brought her 1st grade son to the mom’s class. He has a well-deserved reputation in the neighborhood for being a terror. Before us sat a well-behaved, obedient little boy while his mom couldn’t keep quiet about the difference Jesus is making in their whole family.

What an incredible testimony to the other unbelieving women! Her husband is not yet a Jesus-follower. Her enthusiasm for Jesus will also make an impact in her wide circle of friends.
]]> Thu, 17 May 2007 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[First Mission Trip]]>
Like many young people in Villa Espanola Church, Eduardo spent his days on the streets looking for a good time, getting into trouble, messing around with drugs and alcohol.

But God has transformed his life; he is a new creation … and a Sunday school teacher, AWANA leader, guitarist for the worship team, and assistant with the youth group.

Now, 22-year-old Eduardo is making plans to follow in the steps of the pastor’s son, Andres, who spent a year traveling and serving in Brazil, Paraguay, Bolivia and Ecuador with “The Radical Project” missions team.
]]> Thu, 14 Dec 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Forsaking All Other Gods and Goddesses]]>
Using Hindi, English and Swahili we manage to talk for some time about Revelation 3:20. Not wanting to push her decision we ask instead what we should pray about for her.

She astonishes us by replying, “That I would open my heart to Jesus.”

We then speak about the need to forsake all other gods and goddesses in order to be a follower of the Lord Jesus—that He will not share residence in her ‘heart’ with anyone else. With delight we listen to her pray in Hindi—knowing that she is opening the door of her heart to the Lord Jesus. ]]> Mon, 03 Nov 2008 10:32:22 GMT <![CDATA[From "No Chance" to Pastor]]>
To be able to have a hand in helping people develop ministry skills and to see them start to be used of God is exciting.

This has happened with a married pair of students of mine from the Intensive Seminary that I work with. When the husband came he was quiet, shy and sure that he would never lead a church. He had a slight stutter and was sure that he could never preach or teach.

Throughout the seminary course work he did an excellent job and constantly demonstrated that he was not only understanding the material but that he was thinking through the implications of what was being taught.

Soon pastor of his church also saw his potential and so he started giving him more and more responsibilities in the church. When the church decided to open a congregation in an area seven miles from town, he and his wife were the unanimous choice to be the workers.

That was just over a year ago. I have seen that couple grow within their ministry. They both love the church and are loved by the church members. He is teaching and discipling people each week. He cannot imagine being anywhere else at this point in time.

Praise God for the way that He has stretched this student and his wife for His glory.

Pray that God would continue to give me opportunities to not only help him but others like him as well.]]> Fri, 30 Jun 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[From a Beirut Prison]]>
Sarah, a Lebanese university student in her 20s, seemed eager to know more about the Christian faith, and was, apparently, the most active participant. Nadia, a Ukrainian in her early 30s, was a former cabaret dancer and (not so) occasional prostitute. She had discovered the Good News of Jesus on her own while reading a Russian Bible in prison. Nadia was happy about the message of forgiveness and the possibility of a new life and always eager to please us. I felt her a bit too compliant, but perhaps my French Cartesian mind is not comfortable with people who do not argue! Last but not least, Janet, a French university professor in her mid-40s, addicted for over 20 years to heroin, a combination of a Ph.D. mind and a child's emotional state. During our sessions, Janet would make some very insightful comments and then slip into “off mode" for the next 10 minutes, before coming back into the conversation with an intelligent remark. 

Nadia had been charged for being an accomplice to murder and was awaiting sentencing (three to 20 years), while both Sarah and Janet were charged with drug dealing, and were serving a five-year sentence. 

We explored together (in English, our common second language!), the message of Christ and it’s implications in our lives. They never missed a session (having a “captive audience is a definite advantage of prison ministry!). We finished the course in six months and all three wanted to continue, so we did the “Beta” course, a study in Philippians.

Sarah finished her prison time and decided to go to a Christian rehab center. Janet still had doubts and questions (the fruit of higher education?) while Nadia seemed to have none. At that point, the three of us continued the Bible study.

I asked Janet if she would be interested in a one to one weekly encounter with me. Janet and I met every Monday, sitting cross-legged on the cement floor in her tiny cell corner, exploring the pain in her past and trying to help her discover a new identity. No longer did she have to be an “EX” — ex-addict, ex-wife, ex-mother and ex-university professor — but could now have a new identity as a disciple of Christ! She felt that she had become too “marginal” for such a life. I assured her that, indeed, being a true disciple of Christ was to be very marginal, for it is the “narrow road.” By the time she finished her sentence, she had become a shy baby Christian, and was very afraid of what the future held for her.

This was 15 months ago.

Sarah dropped out of re-hab and went back to a dangerous life. Though she finished her college degree, accomplishing a good part of it while in prison under Janet's tutelage, she returned to her risky friends, holds no steady job and tries to manipulate Janet into meeting with “old friends,” who are of course still involved in drugs.  

Nadia is still in prison. She was recently sentenced (a relief after four-and-a-half years of detention!), she still has a year and one half to serve. We provide her with a weekly e-mail link with her family in Ukraine. Nadia is still a committed follower of Christ and would like to use her remaining time in jail to take a Bible college course in Russian by correspondence. She is continually worried though about her family in Ukraine — her daughter, mother, brother who are very poor and for whom she used to provide financially. She is worried about how to meet their expectations to be their provider when she gets out of prison. She of course refuses to engage in her former illicit activities to generate income and really desires to meet and marry a Christian man, in order to be a wife and mother as well as helping her extended family.

Janet has been engaged in an incredible journey over the last 15 months. After her release, she avoided returning to her former apartment to avoid bad memories and dangerous encounters. She accepted a job teaching French at the French cultural center in Beirut and was just beginning to make ends meet when last summer’s war broke out in Lebanon. The French cultural center was closed and she lost her job overnight and had to give up her studio apartment.

Yet, she continued to grow in her personal relationship with the Lord and volunteered to help us set up in the Beirut Baptist School a dispensary for the refugees. She was also learning to depend on the Lord for her daily needs as. Claire, her 14-year-old daughter, previously living with her dad, came to live with her. Now Janet had to trust God for the needs of two people, including a teenager!

After the first few days of war, the air pollution from the bombing was so bad that many of us had respiratory or eye irritation. Janet developed in 48 hours an abscess of the cornea and lost eyesight in her right eye. She needed urgent hospitalization but had no job and no insurance. We prayed. God answered. Janet holds a French passport and was able to be evacuated with us by the French navy at no cost. After an overnight voyage by ship to Cyprus we flew to Paris where she was taken directly by ambulance to a central Paris hospital where she remained five days and her eye was saved.

After attempting to find work in France to resettle there with Claire, by the beginning of September, she still had no job, no home and no school for Claire. Our family returned to Lebanon on September 9, the day the airport re-opened. A few days later, Janet had a positive interview in Paris and got a job … in Beirut!

She is now a director of a Beirut school, her daughter lives with her, they both attend church, and were recently baptized together. What a redemption!]]> Fri, 15 Jun 2007 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[From Addiction to Compassion]]>
God had freed Victor from his drug addiction, but he was still a fugitive from the law. There was only one thing to do: he turned himself in to the police.

Everyone expected the worst. Victor had no money to "gift" the judge, so it seemed he was headed for serious jail time. God had other plans. Victor was sentenced to a year of house arrest, an arrangement similar to probation in the United Sates.

From there God's plans got really interesting. As Victor's former clients came back to him to do more business, he gave them a healthy "dose" of God's truth instead. Victor told them how God had freed him from his narcotics addiction and had given him a new life.

Six months after Victor turned to Christ, a church sent a team to wallpaper his apartment and bought him a tea service so he could entertain his guests more properly. Not long ago, Victor was concerned only about where and how to get more drugs. Today he smiles over a cup of tea and shares the story of his transformation.

Life still gets hard at times. A few months after becoming a Christian, Victor heard a rustling noise outside his home. It could have been an animal except that it had a groaning sound to it. Stepping outside he found his alcoholic father lying semiconscious near the building.

Victor considered leaving him there. The last thing Victor needed, he felt, was the burden of nursing his father back to health, especially considering that his father would probably remain physically dependent and his mind might never be the same.

Victor turned to walk away, knowing his father would freeze during the night. Then he turned, picked up his father and carried him into the house. And nursed him back to health.

God's love had truly changed Victor inside--from addiction to compassion.

02042652]]> Fri, 21 Feb 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[From Fetish to Faithful]]>
We talked to him and found out that his wife had hit him with a stone. So, we asked that he bring his wife to talk to us.

Later that day his wife visited the medical clinic and told more of the story. Her husband, a fetish priest, had become very angry with her because she had come to faith in Christ. As a result of his anger, he had begun beating her in public to exert his authority as husband and fetish priest.

In a moment of frustration, she picked up a stone and hit her husband across the head to defend herself  – almost putting his eye out.

We listened and then counseled the wife to go and beg her husband's forgiveness. We explained that she, as a believer, needed to show Christ to her husband, in order that she might win him.

The next morning, she apologized on her knees, bringing her husband to tears. After that the husband summoned us to come and tell him about this Christ that would make a woman, so mistreated, forgive him.

As God would have it, we were conducting a leadership conference at this time, and one of the couples that were there with the medical team (Glenn and Barbara Lewis) have a ministry to couples. So we put them to work.

We all went, along with a local pastor and the Lewises’ and shared the gospel with this man in the middle of a lightning storm. He was apprehensive but interested, afraid of what the spirits and ancestors would do to him. He confessed that he believed Christ was the Savior – but was admittedly afraid.

He asked that we give him time to put the idol away so that he would not be hypocritical in his devotion to Christ.

Since that time, he has taken the fetish idol back to the person who gave it to him – and now lives committed to Christ.

The joy we now see in him is amazing.]]> Fri, 07 Sep 2007 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Fruit of Evangelism]]>
More than 2,500 people heard the gospel. The Lord Jesus miraculously healed 10 people and this attracted more people for the remaining days. People from Thiès came in great numbers, and more than 350 people gave their lives to Jesus.]]> Fri, 20 Jun 2008 11:32:02 GMT <![CDATA[Fruit that Remains]]>
This was a bit of a shock to us because she is not a believer—and is in fact married to one of the most influential men in Nkwanta. Several weeks later she flagged us down and asked Jan to come by their shop to talk with her—so Jan went.

During the course of the conversation this woman expressed that she had placed her faith in Christ—but needed tools to be discipled that would not trigger anything that would tip off her husband. Jan was able to guide her to some devotional readings that she could use—and because of our recent reading of The Divine Mentor was able to teach her how to be mentored by the people in the Bible.

She has expressed gratitude that we took the time to understand her situation—and that she has to nurture her faith wisely. We are overjoyed that she made the decision for Christ and we will be there with her to pray that her husband will also see the truth and come to faith. ]]> Mon, 01 Jun 2009 12:52:23 GMT <![CDATA[Fuel for the Fire]]>
"Nancy" became a believer on her own by reading the Bible. We were the first Christians with whom she ever talked.

Naturally, she had a lot of questions but she had come a long way on her own. She worked in stocks, but now says her job is to tell people about Jesus.

My wife has the joy of sharing with her and bringing materials for her to give to others. Since there are people from all over her restricted country working in this town, Nancy feels that if all these people were to become believers then most of her home country would be reached as they return to their villages with the gospel.]]> Wed, 15 Jan 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Gang Members Come to Christ]]>
Recently, in Penapolis a midsized town near San Paulo, we were to preach an open-air event in a neighborhood square, using the Jesus film as the attraction. Pastor Anacleto and a few of his church members had distributed door-to-door printed invitations for the event to homes and businesses in the immediate vicinity. Unbeknown to us (Andrew Trawick, friend and fellow evangelist, and myself), one of the residents told him that we would be run out of the park by a group of teenaged bandits who terrorize the neighborhood and who use the park as their meeting place. Often, rival gangs or police would engage in gun battles on that very spot. Pastor Anacleto assured the man that we would be there anyways.

The evening of the film was unlike any I have ever seen. We had a good crowd, probably 150 to 200 people all told. All of them, including children, were completely silent and still throughout the film and the preaching. This was indeed a special night. As Andrew began to preach, a group of teenagers to our right began to make a commotion. Andrew adjusted his opening lines and headed straight into an earnest and powerful gospel presentation. Immediately, the group quieted down and listened intently. When the opportunity to accept Christ was extended, I saw a few hands go up among those teenagers as well as many others around the crowd. You guessed it – those teenagers were the gang members!]]> Wed, 19 Jul 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Gift of a Holy Son]]>
I was visiting with a pastor in a rural area of Ghana. I asked him how his day had gone and he said, "Great."

I asked him why and he said because he had led a Muslim to faith in Christ that morning.

I asked him how that happened and he said he simply used the Koran.

Now intrigued I asked him how he had done that and he explained.

"The man came to me this morning because his daughter was in our school. He was having difficulties paying for his school fees and wanted to talk about that. After concluding that matter, I asked if he knew that the Koran talked about Jesus. He said he did. Then I asked if he knew what

Sura 19:19-21 says.  We read it together. In part it says that God ‘announced the gift of a holy son...and appoints him as a sign.’ So I told the man that in the Koran God says that his son is a sign for people. I asked him if he believed that God's son was a sign like the Koran says.

He said he did.

Next we read Sura 3:55 that says in part that Allah (God) said ‘I will make those who follow, thee, (Jesus) superior, to those who reject faith.’ So I asked the man if he believed that following Jesus was better than not believing and again he said yes.

Finally I took him to Sura 57:26 that says, "We sent Noah and Abraham...and established in their line prophets and revelations."  So I explained that Jesus indeed in the Koran is in the line of Noah and Abraham, came to reveal God and that those who place their faith in Jesus are better than those who do not believe.

He was ready to believe and prayed with me to place his faith in Christ."]]> Fri, 06 Feb 2004 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Gifts of Shoes, Nets and Grace]]>
At our Masaka site, we had divided the kids into two groups: one for morning, the other for afternoon. This way we could shuttle everyone to the store in manageable groups. But the children were so excited, everyone came in the morning.

We rented a van and the children's mentors took groups of 10 to the shoe store, where I was on duty.

For eight of the kids, it was the first time in their lives to have shoes.

One little girl, whose wardrobe for a long time consisted only of her school dress and a Sunday dress, had recently received a t-shirt from her sponsors.

Now she was getting her first pair of shoes. She was almost beside herself with excitement.

A children's Sunday school in the States gave us money last year for mosquito nets for the kids. Chronic malaria is a serious problem, so good nets make a huge difference. It took us forever to locate the kind that has a treatment which repels mosquitoes for years without further treatment, but we finally found them.

So when the Masaka children returned to the church with their new shoes, they also received a mosquito net.

One of the mentors told me it was so cute to watch the kids filing off toward home with the shoe boxes on their heads and the mosquito nets in their hands.

Another Story of Grace Gifts

Across the road from the Koro Abili IDP (internally displaced persons) camp where our children live is a school.

Actually, there are four schools. The original school, Koro Primary School, welcomed in three other schools displaced due to the civil war. All four schools share one small campus. These schools also have no books.

We collect textbooks no longer used by U.S. schools, which are shipped to us in Uganda. In a pickup truck, we loaded two book cases and about 200 books.

Children and teachers alike were excited. They were packed so tightly around the truck it was almost impossible to move. (Even the rain didn't dampen their enthusiasm, though it did dampen their clothes.)

We’ll be taking up more books as time goes on.
]]> Mon, 12 Feb 2007 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Girls-at-risk Ministry Transforms A Life]]>
When she first became involved in the girls-at-risk ministry, she was very aggressive and would hit all the other girls. Soon she heard the gospel, made a profession of faith and learned the Bible.

Slowly but surely Vanesa has changed. She is planning to start school and has the goal of becoming a teacher.

Praise the Lord for what He has done in Vanesa’s life. ]]> Mon, 21 Apr 2008 14:30:52 GMT <![CDATA[Glorifying God Through Drama]]>
The town officials sat around the table. The agenda item: who would represent their town, Kadiolo, Mali, in the regional arts festival. Soon it became apparent that the best choice was the radio drama team from the Christian station, Radio Yellen, the most listened-to radio station in town.

Soon they approached the leaders of the drama team and arrangements were made. The team, a group of about 20 Ivorian refugees, immediately thanked the Lord for this opportunity to share the good news of salvation in an unusual setting. For the ensuing weeks they prepared their material and bathed the situation in prayer, most concerned that God be glorified. The drama team is a very talented, well-trained Christian group. The leadership, Pastor Ibrahim, Soro Siriki, and Leah, have studied the Word. They write, direct and record a 30-minute broadcast weekly, reaching into courtyards and animistic villages.

Each week the team acts out a situation common in an African household. Then one of the actors says, “There was a man/woman in the Bible who had the same problem. Can I tell you about it?” These programs, using a common trade language, are sent out to 53 radio stations in three different West African countries. Many listeners have commented that from that program they receive very wise counsel. It was exciting for all of us because this group of Ivorian Christians represented Kadiolo, Mali.

Realizing that God had orchestrated this, the team prayerfully prepared their dramatic presentation. The festival lasted for several days, so the group lived there in that city and had many conversations with a variety of people. They effectively used the Evangicube, a paper cube that opens to show the gospel story inside.

As Pastor Ibrahim held the cube on his open palm many people stopped to ask what that was, often thinking it was a box of tea. He then took the opportunity to show them the box and present the gospel to them. One man returned often for more conversation. Before the festival was finished he accepted the Lord as his Savior.

The team's dramatic production won first prize in the theater division, paving the way for them to go to the national arts festival a few months later. The new Christian is from Fourou, the town where WorldVenture workers Tom and Laura Requadt work. Soon after the festival the entire team went to Fourou on a Sunday morning, met the new believer and presented him to the church, asking that group to care for him. Now, eight months later, Laura reports that he is still attending church faithfully and growing in the Word.

When the team was at the national festival several months later, the word went out throughout the community that the group from Kadiolo prayed together every night. Many came to talk to the team and some to just “watch the Christians pray.” The competition was stiffer and politics stronger so they ended the competition with an Honorable Mention. They made sure that the Lord was honorably mentioned in their lives. God is good, all the time; all the time, God is good. Praise his name!]]> Wed, 11 Jan 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[God at Work in Africa]]>
Northwest of Ferkessedougou (Ferke), Côte d'Ivoire, is a cluster of eight villages that have traditionally been animistic. The villagers worship spirits, cast spells, poison people and even have the power to create food.

The main village secretary went to each village and said that it was time to choose a different religion. They did in theory, but in reality not much changed.

Some time later a poisonous snake bit the village secretary and he was hospitalized for two weeks at the Baptist Mission Hospital in Ferke. During that time he heard the gospel.

At about the same time, women's groups from three of the churches in Ferke were meeting to plan an outreach to the eight villages. They surveyed, planned, sought funds, and conducted an evangelistic campaign. One weekend, 45 women in teams of 2 and 3 went hut to hut to share Christ in each village. A vaccination and medical team treated people without charge. That Friday evening was filled with Christian films, singing, skits, and preaching. On Saturday night another movie, more skits and preaching were presented in the villages.

At the conclusion of the weekend, 17 professions of faith in Christ were recorded.

The village secretary said, "These words are the truth." But he felt he couldn’t change and become a Christian until later in the year because he had so recently told the villagers to follow another religion. In the following year he planned on publicly becoming a believer.

The village hunters use sorcery to hunt. The Christian women brought meat so the hunters would not have to ply their trade through witchcraft, but one of the hunters went out anyway. All day Friday he did not get any animals and Saturday the same thing happened. Normally if a hunter is unsuccessful, he will breathe on the leaves of a certain tree in the forest and it becomes meat that they take home and eat. Saturday even this did not work for the hunter. He became convinced that Christ was more powerful than his magic and so became a believer. Even when he was defenseless against being robbed he knew that following Jesus was better than turning to his evil magic.]]> Wed, 05 Feb 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[God Intended It for Good]]>
This was caused by a land dispute with corrupt government officials, which escalated into violence with two people getting killed, lots of threats, and families being forced to flee from their homes.

The local officials hired two mercenaries to hunt down and kill the leader of the group. He and his family are hiding out in a Catholic convent. Two of the elders in the church are also targeted.

I was called in to help with relief needs and meet with the leaders to plan a course of action. Besides dealing with the immediate danger factor, we saw this as a God-sized opportunity to minister to people in their time of crisis. A relief and development plan has been implemented. Physical relief has been provided through the provision of medicines for the children and rice distribution.

Our local church was the ONLY organization that gave any help and the people noticed it and were greatly appreciative. Spiritual renewal is taking place as six of our pastors were able to go there March 4-8 to help with the reconciliation between the local officials and the people, hold evangelistic meetings, and present seminars on how to implement better farming techniques. The result is that the people are no longer fearful and have returned to work and there is a spiritual openness that was not evident before.

Many have come to Christ and the church is packed out every Sunday. The second stage of the spiritual renewal will be the start of a new church in a relocation site where there is currently 100 families living and sure to double in the next year. There is already a team formed from the local church for starting this outreach.

Community transformation is taking place as we help the people with agricultural livelihood projects and teach effective means of farming. Although the immediate crisis is now over, we believe God can use this experience to bring more people to Himself, plant a new church, and help with community transformation. God takes the trials and difficulties in our loves and turns them into opportunities for Kingdom-building.]]> Wed, 01 Apr 2009 03:36:16 GMT <![CDATA[God is so Generous]]>
Sunday, I was blessed to worship with my ministry partners in a nearby supporting church.

At offering time I remembered that all I had in my wallet, beside some coins, a $10 bill.

I have to admit I selfishly hesitated in taking that bill from my purse. But after being convicted by the example of that church giving so generously to my needs, I offered the $10 willing to the Lord for His work there.

After the service a man, who had been sitting behind me, handed me a folded up bill.

He said, “I feel led to give this to you.”

I thanked him as I received the money and stuck it in the outer pocket of my purse.

Once in my car I looked at the bill still folded. Seeing the numbers “1” and “0” I thought, “The Lord’s given back to me the $10 I gave to Him?”

Later, at home, when I unfolded the bill I found not $10 but $100!

God is so generous!

]]> Mon, 11 Sep 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[God Will Bring Radical Change]]>
Mathare Valley in Nairobi, Kenya, is much like an average city dump, only it is home to over 200,000 people, many of them children. The government does little for the poor of this area so they live among wet, rotting trash.

Often when I go to share the gospel with these people a young girl climbs into my lap. She has a smile that makes me melt. She wears a tattered purple dress. I can't help wonder what her future holds.

Her mom, dad and two brothers come too. Her dad is one of the elders of the church. He lost his job in the Kenya civil service when the government started cutting back its work force in order to appease the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The IMF was trying to curb government corruption, which is epidemic. But I'm not sure my friend is really the problem in Kenya.

As I wait and worship with God's people, a constant stream of women walk by carrying enormously heavy containers of water (15 liters or approximately 4 gallons each). The city rarely provides water in the slums (1,000 people sometimes share one faucet). Down the alley next to the church's rented building there are some young gang members still recovering from last night's smoking binge. This is the home of Africa's poor.

Africa's cities are a violent challenge to our message that Jesus is Lord of all. There does not seem to be much evidence here that he is alive and victorious over the forces of evil. Evil seems to be an undisputed champion in these foul smelling, overcrowded streets. The challenges are legion: drugs, alcohol, AIDS, unemployment, overcrowding, no law enforcement, no water, street kids, no schools, corruption, no sanitation, violence, no medical care and broken homes.

This place has a profound impact on me each time I go to share and learn.

In spite of many contradictory evidences, I have no doubt that the announcement that Jesus is the living Lord is the best possible news for my friends here. Everywhere else these folks turn they are "sat on, spat upon, ratted on." Before they need anything else, they need to be respected, given dignity, believed in and loved--each person here is created in the image of the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The Kingdom of God truly has been manifest in this place. Jesus is Lord of this little community. From this small mustard seed, God will bring radical change--to children, women, men, families, and neighborhoods--even cities.

I still have much to learn, but I'm very grateful that God has permitted me to have a tiny part in these lives. I guess God is not finished with me yet!]]> Sat, 01 Feb 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[God's Dream Team]]>
 “In the last days,” says God, “I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions.” (Joel 2:28)

I met a man to whom this has happened. When we met, I asked him how he became a Christian and an elder in the church. He told me that he was raised a Muslim his whole life but began seeking to know God quietly. One night when he was sleeping in his hut, he had a dream of a Man in a White Robe who revealed the way to have peace with God. The figure speaking to him with blinding light introduced himself as Jesus and explained the whole story of the Cross in his dream. Suddenly, he felt an awareness of his sin and need of forgiveness. Then he began to wake up. When he rose from his straw bed it was dark outside, but there was a glow inside his hut that startled his wife.  He proceeded to tell her about the dream and that he must find a Christian and help him understand what it means to follow Christ.

That is only one person among many that I have met who have come to Christ through dreams. According to one global mission expert, David Garrison, dreams are the second most prevalent way that Muslims are coming to Christ around the world. Stories from India, Pakistan, Iran, Iraq, North Africa, Indonesia and the Middle East all confirm the same claim. God is breaking through the political, social and spiritual barriers and speaking directly to people’s hearts.

Though this is beyond my comprehension, I have become a firm believer. Our role as prayer intercessors is to ask God to break through and speak to hearts. While much of the Muslim world is sleeping, there are Christians praying — and God is speaking. Have you ever considered yourself part of God’s Dream Team? As you pray for those who are seeking truth, meaning and forgiveness, God may answer in marvelously unexpected ways.

]]> Fri, 23 Feb 2007 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[God's Great Gift]]>
The church members are mostly Romanian-Gypsy. The church is financially poor and those who attend are in need of training. Another missionary has been working for several years to help equip and encourage the leadership. Jim has teamed up with him to offer classes providing good theological education. One of the men said, “No one has ever come to really teach us.” Several of the men seemed to really catch on to God’s big picture of redemption. ]]> Thu, 04 Sep 2008 16:57:55 GMT <![CDATA[God's Protection]]>
To understand how hard and dangerous it can be a national we work with in Sudan, tells of a recent event as he experienced God’s protection: “Several weeks ago, around 11 p.m., on a dangerous road to Sudan, we came upon a roadblock. Six Turkana gunmen with their guns pointed at us ordered the truck to stop.

Two of the gunmen walked slowly toward us and began to shout, ‘We want your money, phones and watches.’ So I grabbed my small bag and sat on it as they kept shouting.

I took courage to talk to them as the others decided to lie down on their bellies. Just then one gunman hit me with his gun barrel on my shoulder of my left arm, shouting, ‘Give me your money, or die!’

But then to my surprise he passed very quickly to the next person, a Kenyan business man in Torit town, Sudan, leaving me alone because he was making so much noise he drew their attention as he was crying, ‘Oh leave us, oh leave us—we do not have money!’

I asked all the people to collect funds for these men, exploitation; Sudan may also be a transit and destination country for Ethiopian women trafficked for domestic servitude; boys are trafficked to the Middle East, particularly Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, for use as camel jockeys; small numbers of girls are reportedly trafficked within Sudan for domestic servitude as well as for commercial sexual exploitation in small brothels. my forehead and then with his left hand he quickly checked my pockets to find very little money.

Glory to God—he did not find the money Rick Wilson sent for the project, my digital camera or phone that I had in the small bag I was sitting on because he did not order me to stand up or get out of the truck! Because of all the crying they told us to be silent. I went into prayer just God and me in silent communion and prayer! I prayed to God, “God remember your servant.” Remembering His promise in Psalm 121:1-8 then, I finally said, “God, be faithful to your words. Great and mighty is the Lord that I serve. He is faithful, able and true.”

And the ‘commander’ of the gunmen said to his fellow men, “Let them go.” As I prayed a light appeared. It was an approaching car and they fled not knowing if it was the police or others. The Turkana gunmen did not get much from me because God kept me safe by blinding them. My watch was on my wrist but they did not see any of what I had on me except for a few shillings. God blinded them! I was left in pain where they hit me with their gun, but God protected me and the funds I had for the project.

Psalm 125:2 says, ‘As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the Lord surrounds His people both now and forever more.’ I can continue to testify as Jeremiah 29:11-13, ‘For I know the plans that I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.’ ]]> Tue, 11 Nov 2008 14:33:01 GMT <![CDATA[God's Powerful Use of Short-Term Missions]]>
A WorldVenture short-term worker, Emily, received an invitation from the director of the orphanage in Bouake to greet the city leaders. These leaders are presently military people.

The director explained that if a white person goes and greets important people here, that makes a big impression and he wanted to profit from that. So Emily and Angelika Ragsdale went with the director to greet two of the military leaders here in town.

“Amazing … The local TV was present,” Angelika wrote. She translated for Emily as the TV people interviewed her.

They asked her: Why did you come? What were your impressions of working and living in Bouake?

“It was a great opportunity for her to give a testimony which all Bouake’s population heard when they watched the news the next day,” Angelika noted.

In addition to the interview, the director of the orphanage let one military leader know that one of their buildings needed a roof. All their equipment to finish the roof had been stolen. Emily pointed out that a new roof would be a tremendous help, so that the children would no longer have to eat outside.

The military leader replied, “You should have told me right away.” Immediately, he took his cell phone and placed a call.

The next day they started work on the building.]]> Tue, 22 Aug 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Gospel Growth in Fourou, Mali]]>
Occasionally, a pastor from a distant village would come down to Fourou to hold meetings, but this was very sporadic. Mamadou and Salif would read scripture together and talk about it.

Both men worked at the nearby gold mine. When the company cut back Mamadou was laid off, so they decided that he should be the leader of the growing group of believers in the village.

They prayed that a Bible teacher would come and work with them.

Investigating the opening of a new field, WorldVenture missionaries, Jan & Ernie Eadelman, came to Fourou.

The people in town said there was a group of Christians. They directed them to Mamadou.

He was excited to meet them and told of the five or six Christians in town.

Four months later Tom & Laura Requadt move there.

In the early days MaMa, Mamadou's wife, was very defiant.

Every Sunday after the people had gathered for church in her home she made a loud show of getting her tools and gear together then she stomped across in front of the meeting on the way to work in her fields.

Today she is very outspoken about the Lord. She talks to her neighbors over and over explaining about Jesus.  Her life changed and all her friends know that it was Jesus who changed her.

Now, less than three years later about 100 people are attending church each week.

They outgrew the pastor’s house and moved the meeting out under the mango tree. When they outgrew the shade they built a carport-type structure attached to the pastor’s house.
The group keeps growing and now not everyone can get under the roof of the carport – a problem with the rainy season.

Please, pray for believers in Fourou, Mali.

]]> Wed, 06 Sep 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Grace Church Gacuriro]]>
A year later with lots of volunteer labor, they built a church. Then in 1994 the genocide came. The pastor and three of the four church elders were either killed or fled.

In September 1994, it looked like the church might close without any leaders. I still vividly remember a service during those days when two recently widowed women sang a song of God’s strength in the darkest of times. Over the years this church has had more than it’s share of struggles, but through it all God has been doing a mighty work in the lives of individuals.

This church and it’s surrounding neighborhood was recently purchased by the government. About two thirds of the people in the area have already left and within a month or so the remaining houses and buildings are slated to be demolished. Knowing that the church will soon be torn down, we decided to hold a praise service to reflect on what God has done in our midst. It was a great time of celebrating God’s faithfulness and work in people’s lives, even in the midst of hard times and horrible sufferings. Here are just a few of the testimonies that were shared during the four-hour long service. ­

• On that first Sunday in 1992, we were only a handful of people and today the church has 204 members. ­

• Thirty young people got up and sang a song and talked about the positive impact that AWANA had in their lives. This was the church we began the AWANA program in and the impact it has had in people’s lives is truly amazing. ­

• A woman praised God for the strength and encouragement she has received from Him and the church. Over the years four of her children have died. Also, her husband contracted AIDS and nearly died several times. But, through Christ, and the support of the church she has found the strength for each new trial. ­

• A man stood up and thanked the church for helping him find a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. He recalled his years spent in prison and his chauvinistic attitude that caused him to treat his wife like a slave. Through the testimony and influence of two men in the church he came to Christ and praised the Lord for restoring relationships in his family. He even asked his wife’s forgiveness in front of the whole church! ­

• A number of widows got up and talked about God’s provision even in the darkest and hardest of times. ­ Another woman thanked the church for being there to bring her back to Christ. She stood in front of the church holding her 1-year-old son, born out of an immoral relationship. Through tears she thanked the church for being there and helping her come back to the Lord. ]]> Tue, 30 Jun 2009 15:16:07 GMT <![CDATA[Hard Journey, Rich Rewards]]>
I had the opportunity to go to Fodonovogo, a village about 60 km (about 39 miles) away, to visit a 7-year-old girl named Mariam. She had been hospitalized here in Ferkessedougou for several months last year. While she was here, she and her mother became Christians.

I went with N'Golo, the African head nurse in the inpatient department, Namena, who does the billing for all the hospitalized patients, and Pastor Issaou, the hospital chaplain. We left Ferkessedougou just before 8:00 that morning and got there about 10:30. We had to stop three times to ask directions because none of us had ever been there. The road was in very bad condition.

Mariam's mother, Zele, saw us as we finally arrived at Fodonovogo. With her new baby, Leah, strapped to her back she ran to greet us. Soon her husband came. We went first to the chief's home, then to Mariam's home, where we were offered water and peanuts. We gave our greetings and our news, then gave the gifts we had brought--bread, clothes, medicines, candy, and some pictures we had taken of Mariam, Leah, her parents and me before she left the hospital. They were very happy.

In return for our coming to visit, Mariam's family gave us gifts. In their custom, the woman in the group is offered the "condiments" because she is the one who prepares the sauce. So they gave me a big bowl of peanuts and then the only other Christian woman in the village, Fatoumata, added another bowl of peanuts to it. Then the chief of the village, along with Mariam's father, presented us with a sheep that they had just washed and combed.

They told us of Mariam's bicycle accident, in which she had fallen and broken her leg. They had gone to the nearest village, where elderly Christian women put ointment on Mariam's leg and prayed for her. Mariam's father was on a trip when the accident happened, but before he got back Mariam was already starting to walk again! We felt a definite lump on Mariam's shinbone where the break had been, but she walks normally.

While we waited for the meal, N'Golo, who'd brought along some pictures, told the story of Noah to an interested audience. Several people had come by when they heard that some visitors had arrived, so there was quite a group by this time. Afterward the pastor gave a short message. They shared some prayer requests with us and we prayed for them. They asked lots of questions: "Can we water our garden on Sunday?" "When you fast, how long is the fast supposed to last?" They have no Bible and they have no one to teach them on a regular basis.

Our visit soon came to an end, but they want us to come back. We said we would try to come once a month. The chief told us that he would give us four lots of land to build a church or a hospital. And since there is a dam nearby, he said, they could bring electricity to the village for us.

It really made us appreciate having a nearby church to attend, and a Bible to read anytime we want to.

02040249

]]> Tue, 18 Feb 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Heaven is Dancing! (Luke 15:10)]]>
We hired a substitute guard named Diatta ("jah-tah"). He works the Friday night shift. One evening he surprised us by saying he was an Animist. This began a significant conversation as we told him what the Bible says. He said that he had talked to Christians before, but one thing he didn’t understand was how one could be sure that the Bible was the reliable Word of God.

I had translated a very convincing article on that very subject so we gave this to Diatta and he suddenly became extremely interested in what the Bible had to say. We gave him a book to read that provides a good overview of the Bible’s message, and each week he would ask me questions about what he had read. When he finished that, we gave him a Gospel of Luke. Again, each week he would return with more questions, but he no longer asked, “How do I know this is true?” Then we gave him a booklet of Romans. We noticed that his questions were often quite insightful, and portrayed a real desire to understand the truth.

Eventually, I asked Diatta if he wanted to study the Bible with me once a week. Diatta surprised us one day by telling me he wanted to be baptized! I wasn’t sure he really understood all the implications of that, so the following week we studied what the Bible teaches about baptism. Diatta was more determined than ever to be baptized. I suggested that since Diatta was sure of this decision that maybe he should tell God about it in prayer. I purposely did not prompt him in any way about what or how to pray, wanting to see just how much Diatta understood of real faith in Jesus. To my surprise, Diatta prayed a perfect “sinner’s prayer” in his own words! I was now sure that Diatta knew Jesus.

While continuing the weekly Bible studies, I contacted a local Senegalese pastor about the possibility of Diatta being baptized and joining his church. In an amazing answer to prayer, this pastor was enthusiastic about welcoming Diatta and mentoring him.

Diatta has been attending that church and loves it. He continues to devour the Word. He is already witnessing to his family and friends.]]> Fri, 06 Feb 2004 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Hope in Horror]]>
(Written after the 1994 genocide.)

In a remote area of western Rwanda where rebel activity abounds, we had little contact with any of the churches for a few years. We were concerned that maybe these churches were not even meeting anymore.

We were blown away to hear that 700 believers were meeting. The last we knew, there were only 300 Christians. Person after person told us of the miraculous ways God had protected them as people all around them were being killed in the fighting. Now that the fighting had stopped in that area, the people were saying they wanted to serve God since he saved them from harm.

They were not only saying that they wanted to serve the Lord, but they were doing it. In spite of their desperate poverty, they built a new church building and even roofed it, all on their own. They also started two more daughter churches and now have a total of four churches in the area.]]> Thu, 23 Jan 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Hope is Alive]]>
I gave him money to give his friends for food, and then we prayed together. When we finished, Brian went down on his knees in front of me and took my hands. His own were shaking. “I didn’t know what you could do,” he said, “but I came. Thank you. Thank you.” He repeated the words several times. Then I walked him to our gate and saw him on his way.

A friend visited this little family. “Their needs are so great,” he told me on his return. “They really need help.”

I was able to come up with funds to pay the school fees so all three could finish the term.

The older brother wrote me a letter which says, in part: I must first start by informing you that the gloomy faces we were wearing are no more ever since you started helping us. I mean you have brightened our faces and the hopelessness in us is seriously fading out. In fact, a family that previously had no laughters, now can smile and laugh. I would like to thank God for creating such a person like you with very generous heart and full of mercy for the sufferings. I thank you so much for paying our school fees and for the money you sent through Brian to help us pay foods. I would like to kindly inform you that the money you will be spending on us will have to bear fruits. I promise that we shall work very hard to ensure that the money you invested in us is repaid through knowledge.

The story of hopelessness these young people experienced can be repeated thousands of times over in Uganda. Unfortunately, the reversal, the change from “gloomy faces” to “laughters,” isn’t nearly as often repeated. Brian was deeply troubled by his friend’s pain, and I, in turn, was moved by Brian’s distress. In the past, people had responded to my stories of need here in Uganda, so funds were available to help. That is how the body of Christ works; we all have a part. And it is God who receives the thanks and glory. That is just how it should be. Thanks be to God!]]> Thu, 04 Sep 2008 19:20:44 GMT <![CDATA[Hungry for Jesus]]>
Then she came to Hong Kong to attend university. During the past two years, she always wanted to be part of any program we were hosting. However, she was resistant to the gospel, even becoming angry when I spoke to her about Jesus.

Then we took some students to a Christian concert and joined 5,000 Christians from Hong Kong. After the concert, Zoe told me that she was ready to accept Jesus. My co-worker and I prayed with her to receive Christ.

We had a hard time because scores of other Christians wanted to give her a hug. I had to slow them down so that she could pray. They all gathered around her and laid hands on her as she prayed. If she is ever asked who led her to the Lord, she is going to have to say the whole chapel. ]]> Wed, 24 Dec 2008 21:30:15 GMT <![CDATA["I Have Everything"]]>
Because of this, several months ago I decided to leave my family with the hope that somewhere in this world there would be a better place for me. At the same time, I really didn’t think that life in a foreign country would be quite so difficult.

I remember the first time I entered this church, I was impressed with the way the people communicated with God, with the way they were praying and the way they were singing.

To be honest, I never believed that one day I would see things like this; to see so many people happy, to see tears in the eyes of some of them and I was asking myself, “What do these people have that makes them so happy?”

I learned later that they were happy because they had faith in God. I continued coming because the people of this church talked and acted in a kind way that made me forget my hard life on the street.

Not having a house to stay in and not being able to find a job, I had started to steal just to be able to eat and to be able to have clothes to wear and some pocket money. I soon had a circle of friends that I didn’t really like because of the way I was getting money to provide for my needs.

As I continued to come to church, I realized that God doesn’t really care about how beautiful you are dressed or how much money you have in your pocket, but he cares about who you are. I forgot even that God exists and I had lost interest in God, but God wasn’t like this.

He allowed me to lose everything because he wanted me nowhere but here next to him.

I asked God to forgive me of my sins and help me to believe in him and follow him. I asked him to be my Lord and Savior and help me to do his will each day of my life.  And I thank him that he has now accepted me into his family!

Today people think I still have nothing, but in this moment I really have everything!]]> Fri, 25 Aug 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Into the Light]]>
(Submitted by a CBI-related pastor)

Manuel drank alcohol instead of coffee early in the morning. He grew a long beard and liked to intimidate others. When he got drunk, he felt exceptionally brave and loved to make trouble. He often hurt his own family. He would get out a knife and throw it at his wife for fun. In fact, he hit her once on the thigh and the scar remains.

One afternoon, Manuel approached a pastor and told him he wanted to talk. Because Manuel was drunk at that point, the pastor suggested they talk early in the morning the next day. The pastor visited Manuel the next day, shared the gospel with him and Manuel received Christ.

Immediately, he went to his neighbor's house and called to a friend. The friend told him to come again another time, but Manuel insisted that he stop what he was doing because just a few minutes ago he had been saved and he wanted his friend to be saved too. That same day, Manuel's friend accepted Christ through the help of the pastor and Manuel.

Manuel, his wife and four children, together with some friends, were among 37 I baptized. Several others shared their testimonies with tears of joy, grateful to the Lord for bringing them out of darkness into his wonderful light.]]> Sun, 26 Jan 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[It Takes One to Reach One]]>
Through a CBI church plant in Kigali, Rwanda, Suzanne and her husband became believers in the early 1980s. Afterward, CBI sent them for further education in Nairobi.

Suzanne wanted to make a difference. She and two other women began visiting the Kibera slum. Tens of thousands of people live together there in a shantytown not far from downtown Nairobi.

As Suzanne and her two friends went door to door in evangelism, they met Janet. Janet did not want to become a Christian because those who are believers do not share their husbands with others and that hurt her prostitute business.

The women visited Janet numerous times. On one visit they shared John 4 and talked about the Samaritan woman and how she lived. Janet began crying, saying she was exactly like that woman. They prayed together and Janet placed her faith in Jesus Christ. They left a booklet in Swahili called The Way of Life.

On the next visit Janet's daughter, who was also a prostitute, joined the group. The following time the room was too small so they met outside. After that 16 women were found waiting for the three evangelists. The group continued to increase in size, but some drifted away when they realized that there was no physical help connected with this time of sharing.

Currently, 26 women meet and, of those, 18 are already committed believers. They are well thought of by their friends and neighbors in the slum. There has also been considerable improvement in the behavior of the children who have come to Christ.]]> Thu, 30 Jan 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[It Takes Time]]>
A family persecuted one of their sons for accepting Jesus. Then last year the older brother confessed to me that he was considering the claims of Jesus, but was concerned about the persecution he would face if he ever accepted the Lord. I assured him that he would certainly face it if he ever took this step. I know that his family would not appreciate another family member becoming a Christian.

Since then I have seen nothing in his life to indicate that he is still considering the claims of Jesus, but I have continued to pray for him. When our assistant pastor and I planned a camp program as an evangelistic outreach to adults, I invited him. He was thrilled with the invitation, paid in advance so he could come, and invited a friend to come with him.

During the three days, both men participated in the activities, played games and made new friends. I noticed that during the Bible study times, both men sat absorbed, drinking in every word. When our music leader taught the campers some Christian choruses, the men grabbed some tam-tams and beat out the rhythm, African style.

His friend approached me just a few hours before the camp was over. "Mary, would it be all right if I came to your Sunday morning church service? I want to see if the things the men are teaching us are really in the Bible. I have never before heard such words as these men are teaching."]]> Sun, 12 Jan 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[It Took a Miracle]]>
At her baptism Sandra (not her real name) described her life as a long search for love. She tried to find it in relationships with men, in religion and philosophy, and in drugs and alcohol. She married and had two children, but her ultimate treasure remained illusive. Her marriage fell apart and she sank further into drug addiction and deep depression.

Along the way, Sandra's sister, as well as her ex-husband, heard the gospel through members of New Life Church in Murska Sobota. Both prayed to receive Christ and became active members of the fellowship. Sandra told how her sister had shared her newfound faith, adding "I knew God was speaking to me through my sister. He was saying 'Do you love me?' It was as if His hand had grabbed hold of my heart."

But still Sandra resisted. She moved in with another man and tried to pursue work and study, but became more deeply depressed. "I was suffocating," she said.

During this time, many in our fellowship became aware of Sandra's situation and began to pray earnestly for her conversion. Months and months went by. Sandra's husband came faithfully to church each week, sometimes with his and Sandra's two young children. I found it agonizing to watch. I had seen similar situations before, and though I prayed, I admit that I thought the outlook was bleak. I figured it would take a miracle.
 
And so it did. Sandra shared, "I was so depressed that I had been shutting myself up in the bedroom for days at a time. I struggled with fear of what it would mean to surrender to God. I had a Bible and began to spend hours reading it. One afternoon I decided to go out for a walk and ended up in a beautiful, sunlit meadow. It was then that I heard God's voice, bringing to mind the words I had read in I John, 'Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue, but with actions and in truth.' I fell to my knees. I knew that was the truth. I had found love; love in truth. Now I wanted to live it in action, in obedience.
 
"God has been so merciful to me. He has given me the grace to return to my husband. We are a family again. We do not have a foundation of happy, loving memories, but we have the foundation of God's love."

Sandra and her family are now a smiling foursome in church each week. She sings alto and he sings bass in the choir we have started. And we all keep praying for them and for the many young believers that make up our fellowship. There have been five baptisms this autumn—five lives, five testimonies and a multitude of challenges as each person seeks to grow in Christ.

02040140]]> Sun, 09 Feb 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Brent & Chris Ralston]]>
They would invite him to our services and youth meetings. Rather than condemning him, our church people showed acceptance of him as a person.

A couple of years ago we had a short term missionary working with us who had a very positive influence in this young man's life. He committed his life to Christ, committed to Bible study, and committed to changing his ways. His father would only let him come to church twice a month, but he would be there when he could.

For several months after he graduated from high school, he drifted away and reverted to some of his old ways through bad influences. But our young people patiently, lovingly reached out to him and he is now weekly attending services, youth meetings and even prayer meetings.

He has become one of our teachers for our tutorial program that ministers to our 50 sponsored kids. He said that having this opportunity to reach out to children has brought new meaning into his life and a joy and satisfaction that can only come from serving God. He recently testified that "Jesus is my best friend." God continues to mold and shape him into the man that He wants him to be. He will be starting college in a few months after waiting one-and-a-half years for the money to become available.]]> Sat, 19 Jul 2008 05:33:29 GMT <![CDATA[Japaneese seeker comes to faith]]>
"I had denied God for 28 years", says a young businessman for whom we have asked you to pray for. As is true with many Japanese seekers, he was logical and methodical in this six month spiritual journey with us. He read everything we put in his hands and was constantly asking questions.

Recently he shared his testimony saying, "I used to think religion was for weak people who cannot live by themselves. But from this day on, I will be united with Jesus Christ, and would like to be used by God." He was baptized this Easter and is eager to be used by God! ]]> Fri, 06 Jun 2008 15:45:33 GMT <![CDATA[Leading Them Home]]>
Just a few weeks ago I was preaching in the hospital courtyard on a Sunday afternoon. I usually offer a time at the end of the message for questions. On this particular occasion I asked that those who might have any questions to come directly to my house and then pointed out my house, which can be seen from the preaching point.

I was very pleased to have two men come to see me that afternoon. The first, from a village about 15 miles away, had been visiting his brother who had been hospitalized.

The second man was about to be released from the hospital after several days of care. He had come from a village near Abidjan and had been sick for some time. He expressed his appreciation for the fact that his treatment at the hospital had been successful and he was once again on his feet. He felt that God had brought him to our hospital that he might follow Jesus Christ.

It was my privilege to pray with both of these men as they accepted Christ as their Savior.]]> Sun, 19 Jan 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Letter from a radio listener in North Africa]]> "My dear friends, I want to tell you that I have had many problems from many people who saw me receiving your Bible courses and these friends told me to cut these courses and throw them away.

"But God revealed to me through your radio programs that Jesus Christ came to save and I opened my heart to receive Jesus. I am still listening to your radio programs. I am 46 years old and I am happy with Jesus, thank you.”

]]> Wed, 24 Oct 2007 07:49:57 GMT <![CDATA[Libraries by Faith]]>
Thank for your prayers for our trip to Kremenchuk. It was one of the most amazing ministry experiences I’ve ever had. Our team consisted of five people, all former students of KTS or REALIS librarian programs.

For 8 hours, we taught a group of about 25 church librarians. I was so proud of my Ukrainian colleagues! They did an outstanding job. It was their first time teaching. They were all nervous going into this and felt they had nothing to share. Instead, they realized that they are seasoned experts who have a lot to give. It was incredible to see those whom I have trained now become trainers themselves. It’s hard to describe. The verse kept coming to mind: “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth” (3 John 1:4).

The amazing part was not that they just passed on information about libraries; it was that they were passing on their faith. You see, many of these librarians serve in small rural churches and resources are extremely limited to say the least. At first they complained that we were able to do what we did because we were “rich” and from the big city. However, my Ukrainian colleges told how we had no resources when we began either. We had to begin with a vision and by faith plan and pray. Imagine that, building libraries can be an issue of faith!]]> Mon, 15 May 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Life Changing Power]]>
It is full of drug users and dealers, prostitutes, and countless broken families. This man's life took a turn for the worse as he lived there five years ago. He became a dealer and user of drugs, he got involved with prostitutes, robberies, and more. Out of the blue, he asked Kraig if he could share his testimony with the Umapad Bible study. It was powerful!

The members of the Bible study began to see the life-changing power of Jesus Christ, as he shared with them his recent conversion and commitment to follow Jesus as his Lord and Savor. One woman couldn’t stop smiling as a joy inexpressible shown from him! ]]> Sat, 09 May 2009 20:53:54 GMT <![CDATA[Life Under the Bridge]]>
We were a bit tired, but very curious, so we took off on two motorbikes through the dirty city. We arrived at the descending spot, and climbed down a short brick wall, ducking to get under the first bridge next to the mocha-colored river.

There we found four men and two women. They had cleared sleeping spots in the various bridge sections, with belongings of tattered suitcases, and filthy pillows stacked around. One spot was used for a primitive kitchen strewn with disposed, plastic forks and a cracked, grimy KFC bucket.

My newfound friend informed me that people lived on the other side of the bridge also, but that it was more difficult to communicate with them because the only access was by a Tarzan-type rope tied together with old, filthy cloths.

The community we were visiting didn’t know the others at all. The second bridge community that we visited lived in scrap houses, and also had children. The kids don’t go to school anymore, and when I asked a 19-year-old what tomorrow holds for him, he had no idea.

Getting out from Under the Bridge: A shack, a bike, and two piglets

Pastor has been meeting with the bridge people for about two years. He has been helping families move from ‘the street’ to a poor community to the tune of $250. He pays $150 for one year’s rent in a tiny shack, purchases a cart on a bicycle for $40, and then two piglets for $60.

The husband then uses the cart-bicycle, known as a becak, to collect trash to re-sell, plus find thrown-away food to feed to the piglets, and the wife cares for for the house and animals.

After four months the pigs are ready for sale, by which they earn money for the next year’s house rent. During this whole process, the families generally accept the Lord, are discipled, and start attending worship services. There are now two to three families ready to make the big move.

We are so privileged to be called to life and ministry in Indonesia. There are challenges, heartaches, frustrations, and even suffering, and yet the joy that we experience in giving what we’ve got here in Indonesia is incredible.
]]> Mon, 06 Apr 2009 18:56:00 GMT <![CDATA[The Lion, the Witch, and the Serpent]]>
I had never met a leper before, but when I saw them all waiting, I felt compelled to greet each of them by name and extend my hand. I was asked to speak briefly and chose to tell the story of Jesus healing the 10 lepers (Luke 17:11-19). Christ’s love for the untouchable is so powerful!

In reality, each of us was warped and numbed by leprosy of the heart called sin – yet God reached out to each one of us! I focused on the one leper who returned to thank Jesus and how his faith healed him on the inside. African Pastor Francis gave an invitation and about 30 stood with bandaged feet and raised gnarled hands to receive this same healing from God.

We visited another village where a funeral was taking place. Drums beat in the distance, several women wore black, but one woman was walking around in a white dress. We found out that she had consulted a witchdoctor for healing who told her to make a vow with a spirit and change her name from Mary to a name that means “Belonging to the Serpent.”

When we talked with her, she clearly was fearful of the path she had chosen, but had no hope of release. I challenged her to trust Christ and turn from the power of the Serpent spirit.

Her mother and aunt were fearful of what the witch doctor might do, but the pastors and members of our team circled around and prayed for them despite the opposition they would face. 

Later I talked with a group of 50 kids and 20 adults. I told them a story of an 8-year-old boy who killed both a serpent and a lion in one day!

I began with the account in Genesis of how the serpent deceived us and the curse of sin affected the human race. Then I told them how Jesus crushed the serpent’s head on the Cross. When I put my trust in him as a child, I didn’t have to fear death because he helped me kill the serpent. Then I told them how Satan roams the earth like a lion seeking to devour, but Jesus protects and give us authority in his Name. The pastor led in a prayer and many in the group prayed and raised hands of faith.

Only God knows how many will continue to walk with him, but pray for these children and adults. Please, continue to pray for Mary and her family to find freedom, healing and power in Jesus Christ.]]> Thu, 18 Jan 2007 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Literacy Camps Focused on Jesus]]>
“Many have come to me saying ‘Please help me learn to read.’ In our village most young people have not been able to go to school but they want to learn to read.

“I know how they feel. I was one of them, then I heard about a man in Kadiolo. I went to his literacy camp—four weeks of learning to read and write—and I learned to read about Jesus and how He changes lives. I accepted Jesus and later went to Bible school to learn to become a pastor.

“I would like to use the same program this pastor uses. I would like to start this program in January and finish it in April. This is the dry season when no one works in the fields so there is free time to learn to read.”

Like most dreams, his has a price tag. He needs funding for his camp. He also needs prayer that those who learn to read will find Jesus as Savior.

The pastor in Kadiolo continues to hold a Literacy Camp each January. More and more young men learn about Jesus for the first time as they learn to read, write and do numbers.

Pray that God will speak to the hearts of the “learners” that they will learn about the Lord and begin their walk with him. Pray also that funds will come in so other young men and women can learn to read, write and walk with God.

We've established the Mali: Literacy Camp #6451-902, a special fund-raising project through WorldVenture. If you like to support this ministry, click on the link for more information.



Along with teaching the literacy program to children and young people, this
pastor also shares his faith.
]]> Wed, 20 Feb 2008 08:15:38 GMT <![CDATA[Lives in Transition]]>
I told him I will soon be able to give him a “radio” (digital audio player) holding a chip with those radio programs and the Wolof New Testament. Happily, the second shipment of the Megavoice players arrived. Our night guard is a typical example of why we are translating and recording stories into the national language. He is illiterate and has no access to the gospel except through audio media. He is Serer; his second language is Wolof. Seeing the Word of God birthing faith in him makes the effort and hardships encountered all worthwhile.

He also has an example in his relative for a life changed by the gospel. This woman, a daughter of a sorceress, was the first person Mary Anne Lattin led to Christ after our move to Diourbel in 1977. Neighbors who were opposed to the Diourbel church’s building near them came to her to be treated for conjunctivitis, cuts and headaches at the dispensary she operates out of her home. They note that her previous quick temper and harsh words have been replaced by gentleness.

When she prays, however, she is hardly gentle. Raising her voice, she grabs heaven by the collar and boldly claims the sufficiency of God and His faithfulness to fulfill His Word. She and her husband are also charter members of the Diourbel church. Praise God for how He is building His church.
]]> Mon, 04 Aug 2008 10:03:05 GMT <![CDATA[Making the Most of Every Opportunity]]>
After arriving at the local Village Inn in Tucson, Arizona, (while on home assignment from Senegal) I discovered that the "coffee" I was invited to by a friend named Mercy, had somehow been upgraded to dinner. Being as I had worked up an appetite while preaching (an occupational hazard), this was fine with me. The second discovery was also fine, although a bit out of the ordinary. The friends Mercy brought with her were not Christians and neither one spoke English. They did, however, speak Russian, so Mercy--the only one present who could speak both Russian and English--became the indispensable translator.

At first, the conversation revolved around family, work, and Mercy's experiences as a child in a German concentration camp. Then the conversation took a different turn, and I began to see the deeper purpose to this meeting. Mercy began to ask me questions about the Christian faith and how it applied to the marital and living situations of the ladies sitting across from us.

Gradually, Mercy began to weave her own testimony into our talk, yet frequently directed questions back to me as the resident "expert" in the faith. Finally, after one of the strangest witnessing sessions I've ever been involved in, Mercy and I had the privilege of praying with and seeing these two women come to Christ. That it took place almost completely in Russian and over hamburgers in a restaurant in Tucson merely made it that much more surreal. I left the restaurant that night filled with gratitude over having been a part of such a wondrous event and with admiration for a dynamic Christian lady who had seized an opportunity to share her Lord with others.

We have to be willing to think out of the box somewhat, and to make the most of the opportunities when they arrive. In essence, we have to be like a certain Russian evangelist I know who grabbed an opportunity one night in Tucson not long ago.]]> Sun, 02 Mar 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Medicines of Sorcery Destroyed]]>
My father and his brothers had medicines of sorcery that were passed on to them from their father.  They used this medicine to heal.

One day my father's older brother, who was the keeper of the medicine, took seriously ill.  When he thought he was near death he called for me.  

He said to me, "My son, they have told me that you have given yourself to God. I have the family medicine. I have looked at all our family's children for the one to whom I can pass this medicine on to. I have found none who I feel can use it following its prescribed ways. It should have been you, as the oldest of the children. But now you have given yourself to God. If I do not pass it on to anyone it will destroy you all. Tell me, does God exist? Have you seen him?"

I said, "Yes, I know him, I have seen him."

He said, "If He really exists, can you take this medicine from us and save us all from this terrible thing?"

I was extremely happy to hear this! Because I knew the power of the Lord was within me. I said that I would do it.

So he sent for the family. My father had died by then, but my other uncle, his younger brother, came. Friends were sent for; all the people that had received of that medicine in the past came. Then my elder uncle told them that he wanted to save the family from the woe of this medicine.  

My younger uncle was afraid and pleaded with his brother not to do this. But my older uncle insisted that this is what he wanted to do. So he brought out all the medicines of sorcery, including two large horns of power.

We lit a fire and I began to pray, "In the name of Jesus, God, if you have the power to remove from our people this woe, burn these things up in your name!"

I began to shake and my arms were filled with the Spirit.

The pagans that were there began to say, "This young man will be dead by tomorrow for what he is doing!  And look, he is being possessed by the spirits!"

They didn't understand the Spirit that was enabling me. After I prayed I cast the medicines into the fire.  The fire blazed up and burned them all.  

I took a shovel and put the fire out with some mud and took the lot and threw it down the outhouse (pit toilet). Then I went and prayed for my sick uncle.  Before that night was over he died.  

We buried him the next day. But the sorcery that had plagued our family was gone! This has become a great testimony in that whole area. After that, my uncle's children and wives and grandchildren repented, turning to the Lord.  For this, I praise the Lord!

…

Now I am studying at the pastor's school of NCM (New Creation Ministry in Rwanda sponsored by WorldVenture).  I praise the Lord greatly for this.  

God had given me a promise since 1996 in my dreams that I would someday study.  I saw myself sitting at a desk studying, writing and reading books.

I could not figure out how I would ever be able to study with my level of schooling (only three years of high school) and our lack of money. I just prayed and the Lord assured me that some day I would study and even receive a diploma.

So now I know that God answers those who pray to Him. He is real, the true God. He doesn't deceive his people. Everyone who depends on him He listens to. Those who seek peace and life and a good life, let them repent and pursue God praying to him, seeking Him with all their heart, and He will do it.

In finishing I ask the head of our school (Gary Scheer) to pray for me that I might finish well. Thank you all.

Pastor John Hamenyimana.]]> Thu, 16 Nov 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Meet Eduardo]]>
Like many of the young people in Villa Española, he grew up spending his days out on the streets, looking for a good time, getting into trouble, and messing around with drugs and alcohol.

Then God transformed his life. Now he teaches Sunday school, leads AWANA, plays the guitar for the worship team, helps with the youth group, and on and on the list goes. The regeneration of his heart on the inside is bearing fruit on the outside.

The next step waits for him. Eduardo is preparing to go out as a missionary. This will be the second young Uruguayan missionary going out from this church in the past year.

From everywhere to everywhere, summarizes one of the five basic goals of WorldVenture. It is our joy to see this church, which has received missionaries in the past, take up the call of sending out its own.

Please pray for Eduardo, that he will find his strength in God through all that he faces abroad, and for our church as we adjust to him being gone.]]> Tue, 13 Feb 2007 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Micro Businesses in Mali]]>
Tom Seward tells the story of the many "micro" enterprises surrounding their work in Mali. These enterprises resulting out of the need for adequate income naturally intersect with presence of the Sewards in the community.

Tom writes, "Our guard/yard worker and his wife have opened a small boutique and are selling tea, sugar, kerosene, rice and soap.

"Another friend is welding a donkey cart for our laundress to rent out for extra income and to help when we leave or she retires.

"One of the men who we work with on the Jula language Radio Team is developing recipes, gathering clientele, and trying to accumulate kitchen appliances and the furniture to open a restaurant in Kadiolo.

"A second individual on the Radio Team has a telephone booth, but the arrival of cell phones has diminished the demand. He'd like to buy a photocopier and computer to open a 'business center' with Internet access.

These business start-ups are their own dreams in which they ask us for our help in various ways. We like helping, especially testing new recipes!"

Most of these people are employed, but on a part-time basis. The need to support large families, pay for education for their children, and support elderly parents back in the village drive the launch of these ventures. Even though the Sewards' work focus is youth and leadership development, the life on life relationships they have as part of the Mali community naturally generate opportunities for micro business development.

This could be the story of many other WorldVenture missionaries in developing countries. Redemptive relationships inherently require life on life involvement in practical ways. Jesus often answered the immediate need with the aim at addressing reaching the eternal one.]]> Wed, 14 Mar 2007 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[ Mila’s Story]]>
One of the first people I met in Prague, Czech Republic, after we accepted the position at International Church of Prague (ICP), and the last person I expected to show up at an ICP worship service, was Mila Eliasova. She was the former tenant of our house and had asked to store some of her furniture with us for a few months, which gave us several opportunities to interact with her during that time. She was obviously seeking, spiritually, but seemed to be a bit New Age in her orientation, and skeptical that absolute Truth could be found. As we sat and talked with her over tea, we learned that her daughter had come to Christ while attending the Christian school our children attend. One of the Christian mothers had befriended Mila and was “taking care of her spiritually,” as Mila described it. She said she felt God was working on her, and even saw the fact that the pastor’s family moved into to her house as significant.

In mid-November, at the Harvest celebration at the school, Mila’s friend practically ran up to Esther and said, “I just knew you would want to know that Mila made a profession of faith this week!” She was voraciously reading her Bible, and e-mailed me several questions about the Bible, indicating she was eager to learn and grow.

A few weeks later, Mila and her daughter began coming to ICP, and before long they became regular attenders, but always sat in the back of the sanctuary during the worship service. Later, she asked if she could help the church in any way, and has quickly made herself indispensable. Mila coordinated our “Welcome to ICP” Sunday, decorated the sanctuary for the Advent series, and is filling in at the office as needed. She also joined the planning team for our Forums on Business Ethics, and offered her home for a 10-week Jesus film follow-up course on Discovering Christianity.]]> Tue, 16 Mar 2004 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Ministry at the University]]>
Seven have accepted Christ. Of those, two who were returning home, received baptism. There are over 10 in the seeker Bible study who are seriously considering the claims of Christ. As the new term begins, we expect 90 new students. We will be contacting each one. We hope many will join us. ]]> Tue, 19 Feb 2008 08:36:21 GMT <![CDATA[Ministy in Oruro]]>
There were 11 college groups involved in Oruro, and we were hoping and praying for another 60-80 college students to show up from around Bolivia to give us a hand. Except our faith was too small, and 144 students showed up from as far away as Tarija, a two-day trip by bus!

They came not because of a sports activity or exciting retreat, but because they were all anxious to share their faith. We housed everyone in local homes and churches, most (including my group) didn’t have access to showers, they ate whatever food their church had for them, and they worked 16-18 hours a day. They had prepared dramas, mime teams, puppet teams, even special video presentations. They canvased the neighborhoods, streets, parks, all for the purpose of letting as many people as possible hear the Good News that Jesus came to save us from our sin and offer us abundant life.

At night they had open air live concerts complete with sound systems, lights, choreography, all in the three huge plazas in the city. For our closing meeting together, the sound team was a bit late getting everthing ready, so a bunch of students talked me into teaching them the rules for American football. It was a blast, I was dying with laughter, and we agreed that next time I’m in Oruro we’ll finish the game. And when all was said and done, out of that group of 144 students who had come to share their faith, a group of 20+ came forward saying that the five days had so impacted their lives they wanted to make a renewed commitment to serve Jesus with all their energy.

One student told me, “I came here to share my faith. But I’ve also realized that I have not been faithful to God in so many ways. Today, I want to start again. Please, please pray with me to start again today.” And so, right where we had just an hour before been playing two hand touch football with a three banana rush count, we kneeled and prayed along with all the other students and pastors.

We serve a God who loves to surprise us, a God who is alive and at work in the lives of people in our world today.]]> Sun, 15 Feb 2009 19:43:24 GMT <![CDATA[Moving of the Holy Spirit]]>
Kamba and his family came to Christ here in Farakala, Mali. Amadou's (Brian's language helper) cousin Sibiri also converted. We are happy to report that they are committed to God and anxious to grow in him through discipleship.

Two men from Nangola, a village about five miles away, came to our house to report there were 41 people in their village considering becoming Christians.

My wife, Jenny, and I were hardly over our shock when the message came that those living in the village next to Nangola are also interested in the gospel. This is not normal for the Senoufos. They have been described as resistant to the gospel by various mission groups, as well as by other Malian ethnic groups. The missions that have worked with them in the past would be dumbfounded to hear this news. God is touching and preparing their hearts. What Jesus said in John 4:36, 38 is true for these Senoufos, "... and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest ... I sent you to reap that whereon ye bestowed no labor: other men labored, and ye are entered into their labors."]]> Fri, 28 Feb 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Multiplying Disciples]]>
Janet (not her real name) came to Christ in Jubilee church four years ago. She frequently came to Sunday service, sat in the front, and during the preaching she would cry the entire time. After the service women from the church would sit with her to minister to her, listening to her and praying for her.

Janet began attending Allan and Ione's small group, where she came to Christ and and was later baptized in the ocean. She would often come to dinner and sometimes spend the night on our couch. During this past two years, Janet has begun blossoming for the Lord. She is a manager of a retirement home with over 150 residents. She regularly prays for and shares Christ with the residents. A number of them have come to Christ through her ministry this year.

One day when I was visiting Janet asked me to talk to an older man with cancer. She said he was a "hard nut." I chatted with him and then asked if I could pray for him. He said "please." A few days later, Janet led him to the Lord. He is now with the Lord.

Janet also regularly invites non-Christians to attend our small group. In our small group we usually start with a meal, and then spend time reading the Word and sharing our lives with each other. One of those people that Janet invited was her dentist, Tom (not his real name). Tom is a middle-aged man, who at the time, was going through tremendous crisis in his life. After a long process, he came to a point of giving his life completely to the Lord. He told me that to trust in Christ required a leap of faith, but he also recognize that not to trust in Christ required an even greater leap of unbelief. He chose to believe.

Tom's life has been completely changed. He was baptized this year and has been very involved in sharing his faith with drug addicts, serving the elderly and growing in his relationship with the Lord. He still has many personal issues that he is working through, but the entire tenor of his life is changed. Tom plans to start and lead a small group in his own home this year. Pray for Janet and Tom. Our goal is to multiply disciples like them all over Hong Kong and the Chinese World.]]> Tue, 17 Jan 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[My Hope Evangelistic Campaign]]>
Although most are very small, 1,600 churches participated, approximately 6,905 believers opened their homes to watch the three TV broadcasts, 50,000 family members and friends attended the meetings.

An estimated 16,000 people made a profession of faith and 10,000 recommitted their lives to the Lord.

One woman who worked in the national call center for three nights shared the story of a man who called from a public phone booth. He had no phone in his home so he walked to the public hospital and called from there. He prayed to receive Christ on the pay phone.

He also asked for special prayer for his new life, since in his neighborhood there is a lot of influence from spiritism.

What a blessing for the seed planted in this community.]]> Fri, 18 Jan 2008 09:30:20 GMT <![CDATA[Myanmar Cyclone Relief]]>
Current estimates suggest 100,000 have died. (CNN story)

Cyclone Nargis hit the country causing a tidal surge to sweep inland resulting in massive flooding.

In response to this tragedy, WorldVenture is receiving funds for humanitarian relief. You can donate online to the Myanmar Cyclone Relief fund (#6440-970) by going to our Donation page and selecting MYANMAR CYCLONE RELIEF.
]]> Wed, 07 May 2008 16:32:23 GMT <![CDATA[Never Quit]]>
On the front page he puts quotes, jokes and interesting stories. On the back page he writes a gospel message. He hands out about 500 a day. His goal is to establish contact with people so that he can share his faith. He works hard and is very faithful. He has been at it for three years with little fruit to show for his efforts. But, he continues, he doesn’t quit.

Another one of our colleagues, plays the violin. He practices with two other musicians on a weekly basis. A couple times a year his trio puts on concerts in Rome. He has shared his faith on several occasions with his fellow musicians. He is keen to meet the family and friends of his trio in order to establish opportunities to share his faith. He and his wife work hard at meeting their neighbors to establish relationships. They have seen little fruit from their efforts lately. They continue, they don’t quit.

I coach basketball twice a week for the purpose of sharing my faith with basketball players. I have shared with just about everyone I have met at the club at one level or another. I’m sharing my faith with two people at the present time. I keep learning what to say and what not to say. I work hard at it, but, haven’t seen any fruit. I am convinced that I need to continue.

Some of my beliefs have changed over the years. For instance, I used to think that if one works hard one would eventually achieve what one was striving for. That is true at times, but when one works with people it also depends on the other person’s response. In this case, Italians are resistant to change and to accept the message we share. Only God can convict the heart, bring repentance to the person’s life if the person is willing to accept His offer. God doesn’t force Himself on anyone. We continue in God’s grace working and waiting for the harvest. ]]> Tue, 19 Feb 2008 08:01:25 GMT <![CDATA[A New Family Of Faith]]>
Kwaku shared that he stopped praying the prayers because there was no satisfaction or peace in them—and consequently his mother stopped preparing food for him in the home as punishment. 

He shared that he had visited churches with his friends who were outside his families faith, but his family had forbade him to continue doing that...so he stopped. 

Lloyd went home with a burden to pray for this young man—and asked that God would give him wisdom and opportunity in leading him to faith in Christ. Over several months—Lloyd had many opportunities to build upon his relationship with Kwaku—always sharing the gospel. 

One day, Lloyd was riding with Glenn Lewis in Kumasi and saw Kwaku on the roadside.  They stopped and asked Kwaku to take a ride with them. As they talked, the Holy Spirit led the conversation to spiritual places. Kwaku then begin to share his plans to get picked up by a major league soccer team and start his own farm. Lloyd and Glenn asked Kwaku if reaching these goals would satisfy his inner hunger...if he would then understand his prayers to Allah, if he would then find the peace that he was searching for.

Kwaku answered...no.

Lloyd and Glenn shared with Kwaku that the life he was looking for, the peace and satisfaction he was longing for could only be found in Christ. Kwaku then received Christ there on the roadside in the car.  
 
Kwaku's excitement about his new found faith in Christ led to his family ostracizing him—denying him food and treating him as an outsider. So Lloyd adopted him into their family and into their circle of Christian friends, Kwaku has been amazed at the care and love he sees in the people of God.  
 
Lloyd gave Kwaku his own Bible and Kwaku said, "You have given me the best gift ever, you have given me life!"
]]> Mon, 24 Mar 2008 19:16:28 GMT <![CDATA[No God Loved Me Like This]]>
After hearing once again about Jesus' sacrifice for all of us she sits quietly for a few moments staring into space oblivious to what we continue to say. Focusing on us once again she says, "You know what I'm thinking?" We shake our heads, "All I can think about is that—no God loved me like this!" Yet she cannot bring herself to trust Him as Lord and Savior. She wrestles with thoughts of what it might mean for her to be rejected by her community.

The question finally surfaces, "Will you take care of me if I convert?" Everything within me wants to say, "Yes, of course." But the reality is that God is the object of our faith; her confidence has to be in Him. We lovingly explain once again that we invite her to follow Jesus (who is Himself God) and that God is able to take care of her in all situations. We continue to pray for her. ]]> Mon, 29 Sep 2008 21:35:13 GMT <![CDATA[No Language Barrier to Love]]>
Every day I come into school and Fabrice asks me (using hand motions) to re-tie the loop so he can hang it up. I’ve continued to do this for weeks now — and although it’s a very simple task, I’ve let it annoy me the whole time. Not that it makes me mad, its just not something I enjoy doing.

Yesterday I realized that I could continue doing this each morning — or I could do something about. (I don’t know why it's taken me so long to realize this but it did). So today I came to school with a needle and a spool of thread. During our morning break I picked up his bag and sat down on one of the benches in our classroom. It didn’t look as good as new – but by the time I was done it was all back together and hangs on its hook quite nicely.

I gave it to Fabrice and he danced for about 10 minutes. He then went and showed everyone in our class. They were all so excited about it that they each brought me their own backpack.

I’ve never noticed that everyone’s backpack is torn in same way or another.

So I spent the rest of the morning sewing backpacks. Then we had a second recess after lunch and as soon as I sat down — half of the second grade class came up to me with their backpacks wanting them sewn.

During recess and the afternoon classes I was able to finish up first, second, and third grade’s bags. They all now have fully functioning backpacks. Each kid did a little dance and gave me a hug as payment for the repair job.

It might be in a pretty silly way – but silly or not, God is at work here and I get to be a part of it. I didn’t get to sit down and tell anyone about the Bible today – and I definitely didn’t see anyone become and new Christian, but I got to show them a little bit of his love by using my time and my hands to help them. These things make redemptive relationships. And love is something that these kids definitely understand. There’s no language barrier there!]]> Tue, 17 Apr 2007 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[No Turning Back]]>
Our family had been invited to join a special baptism service in the bush. Six village churches had combined to celebrate over 20 new lives who had been changed this year. Young and old alike, mothers and fathers told their story of how they turned from idols to follow the true and living God.

The baptismal consisted of a simple 4' x 5' cement structure filled with well water. A choir stood behind us and sang songs throughout the service after each person told their faith story.

The pastor asked some new questions like "When you get sick are you going to go back to the witchdoctor?" or "If your husband leaves you, do you promise to be faithful to Jesus?" or "During final exams are you going to wear amulets or study and trust the Lord?"

Though we could only understand what was translated, as the service was in Serere, their joy was clear in any language. It was powerful to see people come out the water and clap or dance after they had been baptized. Over 300 church members applauded, amened and celebrated together that day. What a beautiful picture of why we had come to serve in Senegal—to see lives changed. ]]> Tue, 10 Mar 2009 19:46:46 GMT <![CDATA[Not Ignorant]]>
The challenge is to help the participants know that we really care for them.

Knowing we are “religious,” they may hold their relational distance. We don’t want to give the impression that we just want “a few more notches on our Gospel gun.”

We openly tell them that we are here to help the entire person, mind and spirit included. We teach that God is the first giver of communication and language; that is, words and thoughts did not just accidentally come into existence.

Also, from the first chapter of John’s Gospel we explain that Jesus Christ, the living Word of God, came into the world as a foreigner and made himself like us to redeem us.

We are so thankful for the chance to enter these redemptive relationships.
]]> Thu, 20 Sep 2007 15:07:07 GMT <![CDATA[On the Road to Glory]]>
The family was shocked at the amount of people who took the time to come and celebrate at her funeral.

The Good News of Christ was shared with the family throughout the events of the funeral. Her family was also surprised when the church members celebrated throughout the night that the woman was in heaven with her Savior.

It is believed that if you become a Christian you will have a bad funeral, no one will come. This deters many from following Christ because they feel they will be dishonored/humiliated in their death.

The turnout for this old woman's funeral proved to her family that as a Christian, you too, will have a good funeral. This family has since attended Sunday church services. The woman's son announced to the church that he wanted to follow Christ. Through his mother's death his heart was opened to the Truth!]]> Mon, 09 Oct 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[One Drop of Blood is Enough]]>
Then in a voice barely audible, half questioning, half hoping she adds, “… surely there’s one drop of blood for my son.”

My eyes tear up — not because of the bits of hair pricking my face and neck but because these words are so totally unexpected coming from my friend! My mind flashes back to our conversation of the previous week when she poured out her heart about her son’s relapse into drug use. On that day I shared a testimony which I happened to hear on TV earlier in the week — a drug addict of 20-plus years whose introduction to Jesus resulted in his complete healing and restoration.

In numbed silence, I knowingly nod my head and mentally reply, “Oh there is, there is — blood enough for you and your son … enough for the whole world! Just believe in Jesus.” And I silently pray, “Jesus reveal yourself to her.”

Her voice regains a confident note as she adds, “I’m at peace about it — I know that you are praying too.” Indeed I am. There was no opportunity to talk openly that day — but Lord willing, we’ll have another chance.


THE REST OF THE STORY, NEWLY UPDATED:
Remember how my friend had begun to pray to Jesus for her son? Listen to this.

You would typically find Ben Joseph hanging out on the ASU campus in Phoenix, Arizona, where he and his wife, Aleyamma, have been ministering to international students for about as long as I have been in Mombasa.  But in May of 2005 they “took a risk” and joined us for one “marathon” month of ministry among the South Asian communities of Mombasa, visiting in homes, speaking to various groups, preaching and teaching in the church and being a blessing in countless ways.

What a thrill it was have them return in June 2006 for another “marathon” month. To use a favorite phrase of mine, we literally “ate our way around Mombasa” as we visited in homes, extended and received hospitality night after night, sometimes in group settings but often one family at a time. It was awesome to be a part of sharing “the truth in love” in each of the settings.

One such evening was spent with my friend.

After dinner our conversation took a more serious turn as Ben challenged her to go beyond just believing in Jesus to answer prayer for her son’s recovery from drug addiction — to trusting Jesus as her Savior. 

She was thoughtfully quiet — we did not press her to respond. However, she did want Ben to meet with her son if it could be arranged. 

A few days later an invitation to meet was received and accepted.

It had been awhile since I had seen her son — his movements had become that of a wizened old man — sleep deprived eyes acknowledged my introduction of Ben and with a seemingly painful effort he spoke, inviting Ben into the house …

An hour or so later when I returned, I was immediately struck with the impression that he looked better.

Later my friend related to me that her son had called her at work at the end of Ben’s visit. The tone of his voice so amazed her that she commented to her assistant, “I’ve never heard my son's voice sound so confident.”

Ben had shared the story of the prodigal son. My friend's son readily saw himself in the younger son, as he too had recently “come to his senses” and had embarked on a self-detoxification program. At some point in the discussion, Ben offered him the choice of “being prayed for, which would help temporarily” or “going to the Source.”

He replied that he had no faith, but that he understood what Ben was talking about and wanted to go to the Source.

Ben introduced him to Jesus Christ.

My friend's prayer for her son was answered!

My colleague who meets weekly with my friend's son sent this report,

“His change has been so drastic that even his wife … has been shocked at how 'different' he is now. Before, when he was on drugs, he would sleep for hours on end and often be sick because he hadn’t gotten his fix. Now, he says he is awake everyday at 6:30 a.m. singing and joyful that God has been so gracious to him.”
]]> Fri, 23 Jun 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[One Drop of Blood is Enough]]>
Her words are spoken in a confidential tone — phrases and half sentences — accompanied by the staccato snipping of the scissors, “Ever since you told me that Jesus heals … I’ve begun to pray to Jesus — I never thought to use his name before … since he came to help us — since he gave his blood …”

Then in a voice barely audible, half questioning, half hoping she adds, “… surely there’s one drop of blood for my son.”

My eyes tear up — not because of the bits of hair pricking my face and neck but because these words are so totally unexpected coming from my friend! My mind flashes back to our conversation of the previous week when she poured out her heart about her son’s relapse into drug use. On that day I shared a testimony which I happened to hear on TV earlier in the week — a drug addict of 20-plus years whose introduction to Jesus resulted in his complete healing and restoration.

In numbed silence, I knowingly nod my head and mentally reply, “Oh there is, there is — blood enough for you and your son … enough for the whole world! Just believe in Jesus.” And I silently pray, “Jesus reveal yourself to her.”

Her voice regains a confident note as she adds, “I’m at peace about it — I know that you are praying too.” Indeed I am. There was no opportunity to talk openly that day — but Lord willing, we’ll have another chance. Please join me in praying for her to embrace the whole truth about the ‘blood’ that is enough.]]> Fri, 23 Jun 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[One Man's Journey Toward Christ]]>
All the men working for me are Muslims so every year during Ramadan they fast. One year during this time one of my young workers who does everything with deep sincerity and intensity came to me wanting his pay. As usual he sat and talked, in monologue, about the rightness and wrongness of various events in life. His coal black eyes blazed with intensity as he described what Islamic law says, and how people rebel against it. As I listened to him drone on, I was inwardly praying that the Lord would give me something to say. Eventually he came to a close and asked for his salary.

As I paid him I casually asked how his fast was going. He responded by telling me what a joy it was to fast according to Islamic regulations. So I asked him what he was accomplishing with his fast. While signing the receipt for his salary, he answered something about his sins, and hoping that Allah would accept him into heaven some day. He bid me goodbye and pushed open my back door to leave.

"Jesus already paid for your sins. You don't need to add anything to what he's already done." I said. The man stopped in his tracks, turned and looked at me again. "What do you mean?" he asked as he came back into my office and sat down.

I briefly explained the gospel. "And Mohammed?" he demanded. "What of him?" He got up and stormed toward the door again, pushing it open and started to leave in a huff.

I was stunned, but immediately said, "Jesus loved Mohammed too, and died on the cross for his sins just as he did for yours and mine." Again he stopped, the door half-open, and turned towards me. His eyes blazed more intensely than ever, his facial muscles expressing what I thought was anger.

I wondered what I had gotten myself into. Slowly he shut the door, faced me, and came back into the office and sat down. "I don't have any more time to talk tonight," he said, "but I'd like to come back again and talk with you about this further."

I heard nothing more from him for a month. He'd been sick, and the fetisher he went to didn't seem to be able to help. We talked for awhile about his symptoms and my suggestions of what he should do. Then I suggested we pray to Jesus about it. "Yes," he said, "that's what I want." And so we did.]]> Thu, 06 Feb 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[One Tender Voice]]>
It was a 3-year-old child who articulated every word of the prayer with sincerity in his voice. It was so touching to hear that tender voice confess sin and ask the Lord to enter in his young heart.

What a testimony to all those present there! At the end of the service, when people were leaving the church, five college-aged young people stayed behind to talk with me and let me know that they also had prayed and desired to give their lives to the Lord.]]> Tue, 07 Apr 2009 20:34:09 GMT <![CDATA[Our Redeemer Lives]]>
The Sunday event followed the morning service and drew many people who had previously not responded to the gospel. Barb and the girls sang and shared for 30 minutes in Kinyarwanda on both Saturday and Sunday. Everyone seemed quite enthusiastic about hearing the "abazungu" (white people) singing in their native language. They were equally impressed to see two little girls standing in front of so many people with such poise, grace and joy.

As Barb sang "Nzi k'umucunguzi wanje ariho" (I know my redeemer LIVES) people stood to their feet and shouted! After they sang, a pastor got up and invited people to come forward. About five adults and 20 kids came forward for prayer on Sunday. This church is in an area that is being developed by city planners for an industrial park. As more and more people are being moved out of the area it is uncertain what will become of the church, but for now, it is shining brightly with the joy and enthusiasm of the Lord. ]]> Thu, 04 Sep 2008 17:17:55 GMT <![CDATA[Outreach to Kaffrine]]>
Partnering with local missionaries and national pastors, the ministry teams laid the foundation for a church building, made 1,600 bricks by hand, built 20 benches, treated 53 people during a medical clinic put on evangelical drama performances in seven surrounding villages to approximately 1500 people, preached in two different villages to approximately 600 people, taught Bible stories to around 500 children, etc.

Eight people prayed to receive Christ during the weekend, but if the history of similar past outreaches is repeated then many more may come as a result of this event in the weeks and months ahead.

One little boy, who had probably never heard the Gospel before this time, gave a touching response when asked what he learned from the visitors.

"Jesus loves me," he said.]]> Mon, 20 Aug 2007 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[PACT Church Plants Daughter Churches]]>
The Wu Chang Church was the recipient of WorldVenture's Plant a Church Together project in 1986 to purchase their original building. This project partners national churches with U.S. churches to plant a church. After 15 years, the church has grown to overflowing and the facilities were stretched beyond capacity.

Over the last five years the church planned and prayed, asking for God to provide a new place for them to worship. With 600 to 700 worshipping the Lord together each Sunday, they also thought of other alternatives to relieve some of the crowding. Knowing that many of their members lived in other parts of the city, the church leaders considered taking a group from the church to start a daughter church.

Four years ago the first daughter church began with over 50 members of the congregation, forming a core group for the new church. Within a matter of months the mother church had grown to replace those who had left, and the new church had grown as well.

In 2004 the church once again asked for volunteers to move from the mother church to a new daughter church in a third area. Once again both churches have grown well, leaving the Wu Chang Church still overcrowded.

At the same time John Cheng, senior pastor of the Wu Chang Church, grew increasingly aware of the hardships experienced by the smaller Conservative Baptist churches in the countryside. God’s rich blessing on his church prompted him to consider what his large church could do for these other churches. Over the last four years the church has sent out evangelism teams to the town churches, sent staff to teach and train Sunday school and teen outreach workers, and help to fund some churches that were struggling financially.

With an economic downturn in 2004, a half-finished building was put up for sale. The 10-story structure was in an ideal location, across a major intersection from the recent constructed city government building.

After negotiations the church bought the structure and began the process of converting it into their new facilities. In August, the Wu Chang Conservative Baptist Church Taiwan began using the offices and chapel of their new building in the City of Kaohsiung. The new sanctuary, seating 900, was finished soon after in September. The church dedicated the new edifice in November, and has given an open invitation for any who would like to attend.

The Wu Chang Church has become an example to many Christians in Taiwan of how to share God’s blessings with his people.]]> Mon, 08 Jan 2007 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Pastors Profess Faith In Jesus for Salvation]]>
At the end of a course on "The True Gospel," one pastor stood up and said, "I am a pastor. I oversee multiple churches. But, in these lessons I've come to realize that I'm not even a Christian. What do I do?"

And, he was not alone. Of 36 pastors in training, 22 stood to publicily show that they were trusing in Jesus alone for their salvation for the first time. Many Rwandese believe that salvation is turning from sin to the church or religion. These pastors understood for the first time that salvation is a relationship with God through the work of his Son, Jesus Christ.

New Creation Ministries' Pastoral Training School provides valuable training for pastors and church leaders in Rwanda. With the shortage of pastors, many find themselves overseeing multiple churches. After taking a course on Expository Preaching, one pastor shared, "After my first time preaching in this new way, people came up to me and said, 'You're preaching has really changed—you're good!' I've continued to be affirmed in other churches, as well. Now I have been invited to train 14 other pastors how ot preach using this new method."
]]> Fri, 20 Jun 2008 09:12:47 GMT <![CDATA[Perseverance for the Sick in Cote d'Ivoire]]>
“The mood was festive even if the sky was getting dark and rain was threatening. At last we were going to have an official opening of the addition to the Torogo clinic; a dream had become a reality,” Linda writes.

A hospital building project begun in 2002 with the provision of funds, celebrates its first patients four years later.

Soon after funds were provided, Côte d’Ivoire suffered a military coup on the government. Evacuation of all WorldVenture personnel serving in Côte d’Ivoire in September 2002 halted construction while still in the initial stages of hauling sand. Ground had not even been broken.

Returning to the region — still politically restless, yet settled into a ‘new’ normal  — Linda resumed work at the clinic in 2004.  

The question of continuing the building project returned.

“The care of newborns and malnourished children had only increased,” she said. “We needed more space! So the building went from ‘if we build’ to ‘when do we break ground?’”

Construction resumed in April 2005 and was completed a year later.

“The heavens opened up as we celebrated what God had done, but the rain did not dampen the spirit of those gathered there. As various people had an opportunity to share,” Linda shares, “my heart was filled with joy for all the Lord has done at the clinic in the 15 years since I was asked to lead it.”]]> Fri, 04 Aug 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Perseverance in Trials]]>
(These events happened in the summer of 1994)

We had our first graduation of the New Creation Ministries leadership training class in Rwanda. The chaos of war and genocide erupted in the country during the course.

One man’s wife and baby were killed. He was hunted like an animal for weeks but somehow survived. His teenage son wandered aimlessly through Rwanda for six months until he finally wandered home. He persevered, continued studying, has become the president of his church association in Rwanda, and is one of our graduates.

One woman used to study with her husband but he was shot in the head on the road just down from their house in the first days of the genocide. His body was one of hundreds that would eventually be thrown into a ditch. After that, his wife and four children began a three-month odyssey filled with hiding, threats, horror, pain and fear. But she too persevered, worked hard as a single parent, continued studying and is one of our graduates.

Two of the graduates work together in a church. After the genocide and war passed, there was a move in many churches to get rid of leaders from a certain background. Both the men stayed, persevered and are now graduates of our class.

A year-and-a-half ago another student’s wife and baby died. Shortly after he was diagnosed with AIDS, as was his 6-year-old daughter. He missed a lot of classes and struggled to stay encouraged. He pastors a large church and is trying to be a good father to his three girls. He has persevered, continued to study and is one of our graduates.

There were 7 in the first graduating class and 14 who continued on for a third year.]]> Fri, 10 Jan 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Perseverance of the Faith]]>
Aliou was born in a village of sorcery and witchcraft. There was no escape from the power of evil. As a child Aliou always had a desire to read but never went to school.

When a nonprofit agency started working in the area, Aliou attended reading classes. When he heard a man was also helping people learn to read in a nearby village, he went and received the Gospel of Matthew. With this book his mind was learning to read, and his heart was getting to know the Creator of the Universe.

Through helping a team of CBI short-term workers, Aliou became a Christian and decided he wanted to spread this good news.

He went back to his village and began teaching people God's word. This brought much persecution but he persevered and soon he was teaching a group of 10 boys.

Aliou continued his outreach to other villages. One village had 30 believers. In another village a woman became a Christian; as a result her brother persecuted her, told her not to listen and beat her so badly he broke her arm. She persevered.

Aliou visited a "historic" or "special occult" village made up of groups of huts given over to witchcraft, Satan and magic. In this village there was a woman with only one child. Every time she got pregnant she would miscarry. Aliou and others prayed for the woman and she gave birth to a healthy baby. The village saw the power of God and many came to faith.

When Aliou and the other believers wanted to build a church, they asked the village for land. They were given a section of the village where people living there always died. So the Christians built their church there and lived.

The gospel expanded to seven more villages in the area. The power of Christ began winning over the threatening powers of evil in this area.]]> Sat, 01 Mar 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Philip's House]]>
These children were taken in at different ages—some as young as 3 years old. I have known two children for eight years. One is married and the other is working on the chicken farm that the directors of the project have in Romania.

Nicoleta and Vasilica were born into a good family, but when their father and mother died in a car accident they were given to the state and put into a state home. For years they were neglected and abused. They had one aunt who was able to take their older brother but not the three younger ones.

Sadly, no one knows where the youngest is or what became of him. The older brother who was raised by the aunt is a lawyer living and working in Timisoara, Romania, and is normal in everyway.

Nicoleta and Vasilica grew up in our small orphanage and are doing well, but they have never bounced back completely from the abuse and the neglect they experienced in the state home. They have suffered with issues of abandonment to almost total despair. Socially, they never felt a part of the group. They closed themselves off and were very withdrawn. However, as adults even though they still have some issues, they are doing quite well with jobs and are looking forward to a brighter future.

Nicoleta is now married, but still has a very difficult time thinking and reasoning. Some would say she is mildly retarded, perhaps because of the harsh existence she had before coming to Philip's House and to the Lord. I have talked to her many times and I have seen her grow and interact more with others. She is not the same girl that she was before, and with her husband’s help, she is doing well. They have their own work and are living in a small village outside Timisoara.

Nicoleta’s younger brother Vasilica has many of the same problems and it is hard for him to be around people because of his early years. He is working and living on the farm. His hopes are to have a wife and family one-day. They have had to work through many issues, the hardest being why the aunt didn’t pick them and why they were left to the state.

Through you all and the work of God there, these young adults now have a future full of hope. Their lives have improved tremendously!]]> Mon, 22 Dec 2008 18:51:54 GMT <![CDATA[Placement of a Pastor and Partner]]>
In 1999, when David was 29 years old he asked God to direct him as to how he could help the perishing people. It was at that time that David acknowledged his call to preach and attended a three year certificate course at the New Life Pastors Institute in Accra.

In the meantime, the pastor of Salvation Baptist Church passed away. The pastor who replaced him, soon after, was caught in an adulterous affair. The members of the church asked David to come to accept the post in Nkwanta.

In June, Pastor David gave us an estimate for a simple structure (100? x 50?) that he wanted to build so that his church would have place to worship. The cost of the structure was estimated at 14,400,000 cedis (approximately $1,600). With the help of two individuals from the U.S. we were able to take Pastor David a gift of 10,000,000 cedis (almost 70% of the total cost) toward his building project.

David is an example of the pastor that we will be walking alongside; leaders with passion and calling but who lack the resources and vital training necessary to build a productive and self-sustaining ministry. David?'s passion is planting churches and bringing the lost to Christ. He travels to very remote places regularly by foot, and has trekked through swamps and been attacked by swarms of bees, but nothing stops him. He has planted three other churches and left leadership in place. David can?'t do it alone. He has one deacon in his church with no training, he does not have any associate ministers in his church.

It is our prayer that we will be able to help David and others like him to become reproducing leaders.]]> Mon, 08 Jan 2007 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Planting in the Shadow of the Catholic Church]]>
We (Rob and his partner John) were conducting a five-question survey of a neighborhood to help a recent church plant better reach its target area. The survey finished by asking what advice the respondent would give a pastor or priest who wanted to help his community. This was the question that instigated RL’s rough response.

John, my friend, and I looked at each other. We knew he was not speaking alone, but for thousands of Quebeckers.

“So you would never consider attending a church?” we asked.

“Never.”

“Under any circumstances?”

“Never, ever, ever, ever!”

“Do you believe that God exists?”

“Absolutely, I believe in God. I will never stop believing in God. I just hate the church. The church and God are not the same thing. All it wants is my money. What do they need my money for? Look at the Pope! The Vatican! There’s enough money there to feed a small nation for years. The church is abusive. They want to tell me what to do. I never want to have anything to do with it, ever.”

Many Quebeckers are emotionally opposed to the Catholic Church. For most, it’s the only church they’ve known. Some have heard of a church called Protestant, but they’ve never come into contact with one.

As we share the love of Christ, the challenge is to stay focused on a personal relationship with God, rather than the “church” (although many hold a very slippery definition of “God” as well). The message is a personal relationship with the God of the universe, not the “church” as an abusive intermediary. There is only one mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus.

We spoke with RL for another 30 minutes or so. We shared the message of a personal relationship with God through Jesus, but there didn’t seem to be any actual comprehension.

John plans to follow up with him another day.

Please pray for the church planting efforts in Quebec, Canada.]]> Tue, 12 Sep 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Power of a Dinner Check]]>
She lost her husband and four kids in the war. They're from Masisi, an area of the Congo where there was and still is war, death and rapes. Elena was raped multiple times and she now has AIDS. Elena is a Christian and she loves Jesus. I met many women in a similar situation at the clinic that day, but God put Elena on my heart to help.

She didn't want to go back to her village and you can understand why. After a long talk with one of the missionaries together with a nurse and some other people she started to see that going back to her village when things are calm again is not a bad idea. There she has somewhat of a house, which her dad left for her. There is a medical clinic in the village where she will be able to could continue receiving medical assistance.

When I met Elena she cried out to me asking if I could help her. I felt compelled to help her and proceeded to give her 50 dollars. This will help her to sell things like beans and tomatoes and she was excited about it. She can now start to save some money and eventually return to her village. There are two "counselors oradvisers " to the rape victims at the clinic. They will follow up and help Elena with selling the vegetables. They'll also train her how to buy and sell to make a living.

50 dollars and love changed the course of her life. In contrast one meal in any restaurant for two would be close to 50 dollars, but for Elena it is a way out of her situation.

She thanked the Lord for the gift and prayed that God would bless me as I have blessed her. Remember her in your prayers! It's very sad what happened to her, but we and she knows that God loves her and will always be with her. Pray that she'll be able to sell and be wise with the money. It’s not always easy.]]> Fri, 15 Jun 2007 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Power of Prayer]]>
Venu and Raji Nair were born and raised in India. Venu came from the city and his wife Raji came from a rural area. They, like most Indians, were Hindu. They worshiped the many gods of Hinduism. They had heard of Jesus Christ in India and they were interested in this god also, as one more to take note of and worship. They married in the early 1990s and later they came to work for a company in Kenya.

Venu played badminton and was quite an aggressive player. So much so that he hurt his knees playing. In East Africa he hurt his knee for the sixth time playing badminton and went to a doctor who wanted to take the excess fluid off the knee. This process damaged the ligaments further. Venu started reading medical journals and seeking medical treatment wherever he could get it to try to heal his knee and reduce the pain.

Raji had been attending a women's Bible study led by CBInternational missionaries, in Mombasa, Kenya. One day she sought counsel from CBInternational Pastor Larry Bishop regarding the overwhelming problems she and Venu were facing. Larry asked her what she thought about Jesus Christ. As a good Hindu she thought he was just another god. Larry told her to pray to God and ask Him to reveal Himself to her, to show her who He was.

One night they were attending a special outreach event at Fellowship Baptist Church in Mombasa. They were not impressed by the testimony of a visiting woman (a convert out of Islam) since her problems were nothing like the problems they were facing. After the service as they were standing in a side hallway of the church, the power went out. They were completely in the dark but yet they could see outlines of people. They watched as this woman walked through the courtyard and out onto the street. But then she turned around and came back inside to them even though they knew she could not see them. She took hold of their hands and began to pray. It was as if Jesus were speaking directly through this woman, as they heard in her prayer the answers to the many questions they had been asking. At the close of her prayer she dropped their hands and walked away without an additional word.

Tears were streaming down their faces. Because of the way it happened they became convinced that Jesus was alive and interested in them and even calling them. God was revealing himself to them.

Over the next year, Venu and Raji became more involved with Christians at FBC. But it wasn't until a church elder was shot in the church parking lot on his way to prayer meeting, that brought them to their next step of obedience. While visiting Joshua in the hospital and seeking to comfort him, they heard him say that he thought maybe he had been shot because God wanted to tell something to someone in their group, that God would use this shooting in some way. Immediately both Raji and Venu felt like God was speaking to them saying that Joshua, who also was a Hindu before, honored God by openly declaring that he was a Christian and that God was with him all the time. So Raji and Venu decided to get baptized to honor God and declare to the world that they are Christians and have accepted Jesus as their personal Savior.

As told to Glenn Kendall at an Asian Bible Study led by an Asian elder of Fellowship Baptist Church, Mombasa, Kenya, October 27, 2001.

02040144]]> Thu, 13 Feb 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Praise Songs for Sempire People]]>
Backstory: Achaka and his band were sent to the Arts Festival to represent their town of Fourou.

At the festival he met a drama team from Kadiolo in southern Mali. They made friends and often told about their work and life as Christians. They did radio drama for Radio Yeelen and other radio stations across West Africa.

The story of Jesus, his death and resurrection, meet a need in Achaka’s life and he accepted Jesus as Savior.

The team knew of other Christians in Fourou, so the Sunday after the Arts Festival the entire team went to Fourou, a town about 40 miles away. Achaka went to church with them and they introduced him to the Christians there.

Now: One year later, Achaka has continued with the church and growing in the Lord. The church’s balafone player moved away, so Achaka began playing for the services. Using his natural talents to serve the church was a natural fit.

At that time, there were no worship songs for the Sempire people created by the Sempire people.

Just before Easter Pastor Mamadou, his wife, MaMa, and Achaka went to Kadiolo to attend a music workshop. They learned to create songs using Scripture and biblical truths set to music of their people group.
When they returned to Fourou they brought with them six new songs. On Easter morning they taught them to the congregation and they loved the songs — the first worship songs ever created by Sempire people for the Sempire people.

Like the Psalmist the believers in Fourou can say, “And he has put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: Many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the Lord.” Psalms 40:3

]]> Wed, 06 Sep 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Prayers Over Time]]>
Sophia became pregnant in 1998. She was the unmarried daughter of an Austrian woman and a man from Nicaragua.

Trying to help her daughter, Sophia's mother brought her to our church. It couldn't have been a worse Sunday to come. My husband was preaching through Timothy and was talking about the role of women in the church.

Sophia, as a very strong feminist, couldn't stomach the sermon and didn't come back. But her mother did come until she moved back to Nicaragua.

After her mother left, Sophia began coming to our church. She said she was drawn to the church in part because she wanted a spiritual foundation for her now born son. She wanted him to have Christian influence.

But Sophia just couldn't place her faith in Christ. She had trouble understanding how a God of love could allow suffering.

Her father had verbally abused her and her ultimate problem was that she knew that if she were to become a Christian she would have to forgive her father and she just didn't want to do that.

I told her, "God won't require you to forgive your father until God has repaired your heart."

Our home assignment was coming up and I told Sophia that with her permission I was going to tell her story to every church in America in which we spoke and I was going to ask them to pray for her. And we did.

The first Sunday back in Austria when I saw Sophia I knew there had been a change in her life. She was there with her mother and said, "What you were telling me, I did." She had placed her faith in Christ and she had forgiven her father.

We had such a day of rejoicing the following Sunday as she told the entire church about her new faith and that she was not only able to forgive her father but love him and she was even financially supporting him. God repaired her heart to love her father.

Sophia is truly changed, her heart is repaired and she is trying to share her faith with others.
]]> Thu, 29 Jan 2004 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Prison Opportunities]]>
Then a new couple who began attending church had a domestic quarrel. The police were called and arrested the husband. In the scuffle, the wife bit one of the policemen, so they arrested her, too. Now our pastor had access to the prison, though not in the way he wished. One of the other prisoners subsequently accepted Christ. After receiving a Gideon New Testament, another prisoner said, “I was planning to commit suicide, but now I have hope.” ]]> Thu, 04 Sep 2008 16:35:27 GMT <![CDATA[Purposefully Driven Life]]>
Just a few weeks after our arrival here last June, Irish Christian recording artist Sammy Horner volunteered to come to Carrickmacross to do a free outreach concert. Not having a better venue to offer, we invited friends and neighbours to a concert in our small rented home. We honestly had no idea how many people to expect, but between visitors and church people, we were packed into the house like college students into an old phone booth! We had people standing in the back garden and people sitting on the stairs! In all 60 people came and thoroughly enjoyed themselves, staying late into the evening to visit with each other and enjoying coffee and homemade desserts.

Sammy tailored the concert to the diverse audience (ages 5 to 84!), and he sensitively and winsomely shared the gospel. While on holiday with his family in the Caribbean, the unsaved husband of one of the Carrick Baptist believers struck up a friendship with a couple of Americans, who also happened to be Christians. They recommended and loaned to him a copy of Rick Warren’s bestseller, The Purpose Driven Life, which completely fascinated him.

On his return to Ireland, he let it be known that he would like to be part of a Purpose Driven Life discussion group – which we were only too glad to organize. Although we are still waiting to see a clear-cut conversion, the discussions are continuing, and this man has purchased and given away at least five more copies of the book to friends and relatives!

After several years of hard work and prayer on the part of previous WorldVenture missionaries and local Christians, Carrickmacross Baptist Church was officially “constituted” on Sunday, October 30, 2005, with 29 baptized believers signing the church covenant to indicate their commitment as founding members. As part of the worship celebration, New Testament Scriptures relating to the unity of the Body of Christ were read in the native languages of this diverse family: Irish (Gaeilge), Slovakian, Tagalog (Philippines), Hungarian, Dutch, Polish, Lithuanian, Russian and English. (The German-speaking family was absent!)]]> Fri, 13 Jan 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Quietly at Work]]>
Every time he left church with a short-term team from New Life Church in West Linn, Oregon, he would shout to his mother that he was leaving. Often his mother would shout something back.

All of this happened in July 2007. Even though Anderson was helping the team with evangelism, he, himself, was not a Christian. That is until July 7, 2007. It was on this day, one of the last days that the team was at the church that Anderson responded to an evangelistic message and accepted Christ as his Savior.

On November 23, 2008, Anderson sat in front of the church with seven other people. They each shared their testimony before being baptized. It was during Anderson's testimony that I learned the whole story.

It was exciting to hear how God is working in the lives of these people. The day before the baptism the pastor of the church asked me if I would be willing to help with the baptism as there were a good number of people to be baptized. I said I would be willing to help.

It was a surprise and an honor when the pastor asked me to baptize Anderson among others. What a great privilege to be part of this young man’s life. We often do not see all of the results of the ministry of short-term team quickly. Sometimes it takes a year or more to see how God used the team to help change the life of someone. ]]> Mon, 22 Dec 2008 19:28:53 GMT <![CDATA[Redemptive Friendship with Gia]]>
How delighted she was to spend the whole afternoon reading Scripture and sharing how God has intervened in her life. She is only two years old in the Lord and has experienced a complete change in her life.

She is a beautiful woman who has left a life in Russia. Italian men already have eyes on her, but she wants to stay firm in her faith.

She lost her highly professional job in Russia just because she turned 40 years old. Her health deteriorated, she longed for something more, searched many avenues and found emptiness until one day the Lord met her.

After moving to Italy illegally for work, she now works for a cantankerous elderly Italian woman who has kept most assistants for only 3 months.

Gia says only the strength from Jesus has kept her there. Now after nine months the woman, just yesterday softened. What a test in patience.

Gia in thanking us for the afternoon said, "I was not ready to receive all Jesus' blessings today!!”

She felt renewed and ready to start another week of serving her "padrona".

Dan and I felt that we were the ones that got the blessing just from being with her. What an example of a woman of faith!
]]> Tue, 12 Sep 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Restoration Ministry]]>
Connie and her local Restoration team hosted a regional training for nearly 60 adults who came from several neighboring States (Amapá, Piauí, Pernambuco, Pará) and ours as well.  As usual, Connie was an excellent host, administrator, organizer and leader with her team and the out-of-town guests.

At night her national leader spoke on how to relate and minister to Brazilians who are trapped in a homosexual life-style. I should probably tell you that for lack of any other option, the location where the meeting was held was a Catholic retreat center. To Connie’s surprise three of the nuns attended the evening sessions. During the weekend two of them later asked for personal help with issues related to the delicate subject matter being taught. Connie and her team were overwhelmed with this response.]]> Wed, 17 May 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Sasha Dreams of Missions]]>
One of my students, Sasha, said that she was so interested in reading a book on Amy Carmichael (a missionary to India who worked with orphans) that she read the whole book in one day. She said that she had never done that before in her life, and I said that I hoped it wouldn’t be the last time! She is really seeking God on how he might use her as a missionary.

I just got papers from my students this last week, and am excited to read about such topics as Russian Orthodoxy and Missions, Nationalism and Missions, Medical Missions, the Dynamics of Mission Teams, and Christian Education in a Hindu Context. These students are able to write and think about so much more now than they could two years ago!]]> Fri, 21 Jul 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Saving Grace]]>
That evening after the service, he stayed behind with me and prayed to receive Christ as his personal Lord and Savior. He had great joy and transformation on his face as he declared that this was the day he finally accepted the salvation that he had heard of for so long.

His family wasn't very thrilled with his decision to follow Christ and he was aware that it wasn't going to be easy. No one was more against him than his wife. A few days later, we heard that his wife threw him out of the house because he had become a Christian.

After a few days of being pressured by her children and other relatives, she received him back in the house. Please pray that the Lord will work in her heart so that she too may know His saving grace.]]> Tue, 07 Apr 2009 20:40:54 GMT <![CDATA[School's Support for Austrian Boy]]>
At the conclusion of the school year, the principle of the Vienna Christian School, a WorldVenture affiliate school, surveyed the graduating seniors concerning their experience at the school.

The following is an answer from a student responding to the question: What would you say were the highlights of your time at Vienna Christian School?

“Before coming here I was Catholic, but just in name only. Coming here helped me think about God. When I wasn’t feeling good or things were going wrong this year, I gained an understanding that God has a plan and that it will work out. There was a lot of trauma with my parents splitting up and seeing doctors wasn’t enough. No one knew, but I would go and read the Bible. I found peace through reading it.”]]> Thu, 27 Jul 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Seeing Life from a Different Perspective]]>
He'd never experienced anything like it before—talking about God (his mother is an atheist), people respecting and loving one another, being valued...By the middle of the week he was in the thick of things and by the end he did not want to go home. He is open to hearing about the Lord, so we are hoping his heart will be touched by the love of God and that his life will be transformed. ]]> Mon, 29 Sep 2008 21:48:02 GMT <![CDATA[Sharing Faith]]>
I gave my testimony which lasted about seven minutes and during the whole time one could have heard a pin drop. No one talked. Most of the players seemed interested in what I had to say and kept eye contact with me while I spoke. After I shared my testimony and my conviction that Jesus is the only way to God through faith, I left copies of the Gospel of John on the bench so they could pick them up after practice. I challenged them to read a chapter a day and after they finished each chapter to ask the question, “What does John say I must do to have eternal life?” In the first 12 chapters John gives the answer to the question in almost every chapter. Every player, to my knowledge, took a Gospel after practice. I was encouraged by their response. During the following practice one player wanted to talk further about what I had said during my testimony.

During the next basketball season I look forward to having future opportunities to continue sharing my faith. I await with anticipation how God germinates the seeds planted through my testimony. ]]> Thu, 17 May 2007 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Sharing Newfound Faith]]>
A week later a student from Estonia joined our group. Since both of them were returning home soon, we got into sharing a gospel tract with the Estonian gal. I thought, "We have an American and a Japanese sharing Christ with an Estonian." The Japanese student was only two weeks old in the Lord and already sharing her faith. ]]> Tue, 07 Apr 2009 21:26:42 GMT <![CDATA[She Is No Longer Afraid]]>
She was standing on the hill as the crowd came up from the water. Some of them had just been baptized. She consistently resisted those trying to get her to place her trust in Christ. She felt she had good reason not to trust in Jesus.

Around her neck she wore a scraggly string necklace. The pendant was made up of a few small pieces of wood. Looking at it, it was ugly, insignificant.  But to her it was her everything. It was her god.

When she wore her necklace her crops grew, she had money to put her kids in school, she seemingly prospered. But there was a high price. She had sold her soul to the evil spirits. They controlled her. She feared them and what they could do to her.

That is why every time the growing group of Christians in the area encouraged her to put her trust in Christ she steadfastly refused. She was afraid. She knew the power of evil that controlled her.

I was with the group coming up from the baptismal service and noticed the woman standing on the hill. I said to the group, "Why don't we share the gospel with her?"

"Oh we have but she refuses to believe," was the response.

Like Jesus saying, "Cast the net on the other side of the boat," I said, "Why don't we talk to her again?"

And we did. And this time she agreed to place her trust in Christ. But to believe she knew she had to remove her god, and she did. And Christ was faithful. He did protect her, he has provided for her ... and she is no longer afraid.
]]> Thu, 29 Jan 2004 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[She Led Dozens to Christ]]>
Liva was a village woman who wanted a better life. She moved to Antananarivo, Madagascar, and began looking for work.

She didn't find work but she found a group of women in her area who were meeting in a small group lead by CBI missionaries.

The women in the group welcomed her, loved her, read the Bible with her and she found Christ.

But when she didn't find a job Liva decided she should go back home. But her village was full of people who drank and stole from each other and life was miserable there.

Liva's life was changed and she wanted to share her new hope in the village. But she did not have status to teach adults so she gathered some of the kids of the village and taught them what she had learned in the city.

The kids came to Christ and their lives were changed. Their lives were changed so much that the village elders noticed the difference in their children and came to the woman and asked what she was doing with them.

Liva suggested that a pastor and leader from the city should come and tell them about Christ. They agreed. The men came, shared and 30 adults in the village stood and said they wanted to believe. The pastor told them all to sit down and again explained that he was asking them to come to Christ. Again the same 30 stood.

A man from the city went to the village to help the new group and the believers grew to 90.

Stealing and alcoholism declined dramatically in the village. In fact a teacher returned to the village and was surprised at the changes. He came to Christ and went back and started a church in his school.

People from the capital came back to their place of origin as required. There they found that many in their village found Christ and changed. Those visitors went back and started a church in the capital.

A simple, uneducated, unemployed, unmarried woman was used by God to reach dozens of people in her networks and saw those people come to Christ.]]> Thu, 29 Jan 2004 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Short-term Mission Teams]]>
In February, Grace Community Church from Auburn, Washington, returned to Senegal for their second trip, using basketball to reach kids with the gospel.

In March, a diverse team of volunteers from David’s Church in Millersburg, Pennsylvania, brought calibrating tools and hundreds of pairs of glasses with them. They were able to provide glasses for dozens of needy Senegalese. One of the team members, a hair stylist, made several missionaries very happy by giving hair cuts. The pastor served as speaker at the Spiritual Retreat for WorldVenture missionaries in Senegal. While he was busy with the adults, several other team members provided a VBS-type program for the MKs, and still others manned the kitchen, providing wonderful meals with foods that we can’t normally find here. (Yup, that’s where the turkey comes in.) One of the most entertaining features of the retreat was when one of the team members, a professional auctioneer, auctioned off numerous items to help raise money for one of the ministries in Dakar.

It was a great joy for us to host one of our own supporting churches for a 10-day Prayer Walk/Vision Trip. One of the goals of the trip was to try to discern whether or not Senegal will be at the heart of the church’s five-year global strategic focus. Fellowshipping with members from one of our own supporting churches and having them see firsthand what we do, see, hear and smell day in and day out was great. But the most exciting thing about having Millington Baptist Church of Basking Ridge, New Jersey, come to West Africa, was seeing the excitement mount as they began to catch a vision of how their church body could become more closely involved in a long-term ministry with the national church and the WorldVenture missionaries on the field.

One of the hardest-working teams we’ve ever had (we hardly gave them any time to rest!) came to hold soccer clinics and tournaments as part of an effort to use sports to reach young people for Christ. This team of 10 people from Bethel College in Indiana touched hundreds of lives while they were here! More and more people are beginning to see the great value in reaching young people with the gospel through sports evangelism.

Missions transforms people. Those who served here in Senegal returned home different people for having experienced missions firsthand. To learn more about how you can participate in missions check out WorldVenture's Opportunities. ]]> Thu, 17 May 2007 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Showing Hope Around the World]]>
My night watchman, who is not a Christian, has worked for me for almost two years now. He's very open to listening to and talking about the gospel and has completed some Bible correspondence courses.

Once I went to his home and showed the Wolof version of the Jesus film to his family. Though his family is of the Diolla tribe, they live in Thiès and know Wolof.

When I received a Diolla translation of the Jesus film I told my guard about it. The next night when he came to work, his cousin came with him hoping to view the Jesus film in Diolla.

He had come to watch the Southern Baptist film, La Solution, on another occasion and many of my neighbors were here. After the showing they asked me questions and made accusations against Christians, the Bible, and Jesus. In the discussion I mentioned that in the Koran, when God is talking about himself, he refers to himself as "we," thus indicating that even though the Koran denies the Trinity, it also supports it. My guard’s cousin left my house that night convinced that I was wrong but as he was reading his Koran, he saw that I was right. The Koran is filled with Allah referring to himself as "we."

Now, this man has seen the Jesus film in Diolla and was touched by it. He came back to see it again with his family and many of his friends. I invited a Diolla couple from my church, as they would be able to answer questions after the showing. Thirty-nine people came out for the showing, some of whom had never heard the gospel.]]> Fri, 03 Jan 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Simple Conversion Bears Fruit]]>
The church was a good distance from Steve's home, so on the first visit he went with a couple from the local church. The woman they visited was named Ester.

"On our first visit, she made a simple profession of faith," writes Steve. "Arrangements were made for her to be welcomed into the nearby church."

At that point, Steve lost personal contact with the woman, since the distance to the church prohibited frequent visits. Later in the year, when Steve had the opportunity to visit again, he learned that Ester had stopped coming to church.

"I was a disappointed, but sometimes those things happened."

A few months later Steve met with a few people from that church concerning other matters. During the meeting, one of them asked if he remembered a visit he had made earlier in the year. He guessed wrong, recalling a different visit.

They explained a little more, and he finally realized, "Oh, you mean Ester."

Ester had returned to church. With her, she brought her sister and then later her mother-in-law. Then they invited another friend.

Altogether five new people are now attending church as a result of Ester's conversion!]]> Thu, 30 Nov 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Single Mom Plants Third Church]]>
Maria is a 48-year-old single mom who is a fervent prayer warrior and a woman of great faith.

As a result of putting what she learns into practice she has planted three churches and seems to be untiring in her desire to see people come to Christ. Even though she has the responsibility of a daughter and an ailing mother, her church work is a priority in her life.]]> Tue, 21 Jan 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Small Beginning]]>
Ndrasana didn’t learn to read until he became a Christian. He started a church with his wife and three children in their remote area of Sakalava, Madagascar. Their village has 300 people but at first only Ndrasana’s family was attending the church

Now, the church never has less than 250 people on Sunday mornings and up to 400 on special occasions--some come from several other villages. Even more impressive is that Ndrasana trained most of the leaders of the other nine churches in this valley.]]> Thu, 27 Feb 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[So We Showed Them Jesus]]>
Erika often lets about 28 neighborhood kids play in her yard, where they enjoy the grass and the toys--a real drum, a soccer ball and sometimes crayons and paper. One day Erika allowed them to watch a Veggie Tales video, even though the tape was in English and the children could not understand it.

At the end of the video the children chattered about what they’d seen. One spoke out in his broken English, "Show me Jesus." Erika remembered that in 1999 she and CBI missionary Gary Bennett had shown Rwandan kids the Jesus film in their own language. Erika thought, "Mike and I are staying in Gary's house while he's away; could that film be here?" After a quick search she found it.

"So we showed them Jesus," says Erika, "and they loved it!" After sitting spellbound for an hour, the children had to go home before the film finished because darkness was falling. But the next day 30 returned to watch the rest. Erika watched as the children heard the gospel presentation at the film's end. "I want so much to share my heart for them and for their need for Christ," she thought. But the language barrier got in the way.

As if God read her mind, Felician, the Philips' night guard, came for the last 20 minutes of the film. Language was no barrier for him. When Erika turned off the TV, Felician stood up, asked the children some questions, and then invited them to accept Christ. All 30 children prayed with him! Felician then led them all in a celebration of praise singing.
02050253]]> Sat, 22 Feb 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Soft Hearts, Hard Hearts]]>
Lillo asked me questions about what he was reading. He wanted to know about Mary and Joseph, and to confirm if Mary was really a virgin when Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit. I began to chuckle inside when I realized that Lillo had never heard the story. He has heard the name Jesus, but he has never heard how Jesus came to earth, where he lived and what he taught. He really never understood the resurrection. He has questions about the Holy Spirit and the Trinity.

Imagine my joy in having the privilege of talking to someone who has no preconceived ideas about the Christian faith?

Just a few minutes after realizing the openness of Lillo’s mind concerning the Bible, an Italian man came up to the stand and asked if we had a light for his cigarette. We told him no that we didn’t smoke.

He noticed the Bible was open on the work bench and asked us if we were talking about the Bible. When we said yes. Then he began cursing and expressing his displeasure for God and Christianity by means of several depreciating phrases. The one I disliked the most is “porco dio.” God is a pig.

When the man walked away, I couldn’t help but think of the poignant spiritual contrast I had just witnessed.

Lillo has an innate sense that there is a God who has the answers and he is looking for that God who can answer his questions. And this other man who is fed up with religion and God and anything that has to do with faith.

Please, pray for both those whom God has softened and prepared here in Italy, and that God would have mercy on those burned by the steep Christian history in this place.]]> Sat, 10 Feb 2007 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Sometimes You Reap, Sometimes You Sow]]>
The neighbors above us in our apartment in Budapest, Hungary, started a church about 10 years ago. They meet in a local school.

We sponsor a Bible club for kids in the area. There was a first grader who wanted to come to the club but she was shy. So she came with Judit, her mother, to our club. Judit listened to my poor Hungarian with the kids. But Judit didn't just listen she would help me by correcting my Hungarian and retelling the stories so that the kids could understand.

Over the months our stories spread from stories in Genesis to the life of Christ. Judit and her daughter stuck with us. Judit said, "I understand more about the Bible than ever." But she was not ready to place her faith in Christ. My wife, Beverly, would visit Judit and another believing neighbor prayed for years for Judit's salvation.

Within weeks of beginning our home assignment we heard that Judit had accepted the Lord as her Savior on a retreat. We rejoiced that we were able to sow and that Hungarians were able to reap.]]> Thu, 29 Jan 2004 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Spirit-Breathed Breakthroughs]]>
On July 26, 1998, a husband and wife were the only ones present in the church that meets in their home. The next Sunday attendance doubled. Then it doubled again--and again. The wife was thrilled that three of her unsaved relatives had started coming to the services. Below are some stories from this growing congregation.

Among the Wolof it takes time for seeds to germinate. A believer told me there are many people who observe Christians for a long time in order to see if their actions match their words.

Another couple had witnessed to their families for many years. When the man's father was dying he called not the oldest son, who is Muslim, but the believer in order that he would pray for him. The oldest son announced to the funeral guests that the father had honored the believer. This same father and brother had persecuted him for converting. Since the funeral, the family dared not call the believer's children "unclean pagans," and for the first time a non-Muslim received their full share of the memorial gifts which are given at funerals.

Some years ago, I had given another woman a Wolof New Testament. Her Muslim husband warned her not to read it. However, when her daughter ran away from home, she picked it up and gained such comfort, that she continues to read it when he is away with one of his other three wives. This woman has started attending our church.

A soccer player in his early 20s came to the door one day and asked to study the Bible. He completed seven Bible correspondence courses and asked to do more. One question in the course was, "What do you think of Christ?"

He answered, "He is my Savior."

Startled at his confidence, I reviewed the gospel and asked him, "When did you accept Christ?"

He said, "Six months ago, and my life is changed."

He came to the Lord while I was in the United States, with the help of God's Word alone. He is attending church, witnessing to his family, and five of his friends have since asked to do Bible correspondence courses. This man is named after his French-Roman Catholic grandfather, but the rest of his family is Muslim and Wolof-speaking. His mother asked a visiting pastor, "If I want to become a Christian as my son, how do I enter in?"]]> Sat, 18 Jan 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Spiritual Harvest in Senegal]]>
A few weeks ago, I drove down to speak at a church in Port Murray, New Jersey. This was my first support raising appointment with WorldVenture and had never visited this church before.

I preached from Isaiah 43 regarding the future promises of the kingdom and how God will make a “roadway in the wilderness and rivers in the desert” as a picture of what is happening in Senegal.

Even though it is a dry, desolate place, there is a rushing river of responsive hearts to the gospel and we have been asked to jump into that river.

He called us by name and promises to always be with us (vs 1-7); he wants us to be a witness to the nations (vs 8-13); and he is doing a new thing in a thirsty land (vs 14-21).

We have witnessed a partial fulfillment of these promises in Senegal.

As I shared several stories of how the people of Senegal have burned their idols and been set free from the bondage of traditional religion, there were many in the congregation who were encouraged to know that God is working in places around the world and answering amazing prayers in order to bring people to himself. I told them of men coming to Christ through dreams, seeing groups of women walk miles in order to hear God’s Word and children ask their parent’s permission to follow Christ after watching the Jesus Film.

One of the repeated ideas in my message was, “If we will make his name known, he will make his name great!”

While the final chorus was being sung, a man in his late 20s came forward with tears in his eyes and embraced me while I was standing at the front.

He whispered to me, “Up until six years ago, I was a Muslim and grew up with my family in Southern Senegal. Then I became a follower of Christ and came to America. I live not far from here, but I have never been to this church before. Today the Lord told me to come. When you spoke about what God is doing among my people, I was so blessed because that is my story.”

I asked him, “So, how did you become a Christian?”

He answered, “From a missionary just like you,” then he added, “I am so thankful that you are being obedient to God’s call.”

He promised to pray for me because he wants more missionaries to come to Senegal.]]> Fri, 01 Sep 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Student Life Center]]>
Numerous students from a neighboring country have come to know the Lord through this ministry. During our two-week stint we had the privilege of sharing God's truth to many students either through sharing our planned seminars, our testimonies, or presenting the Gospel to them.

Three young ladies received Christ as their personal Savior. All three of them were sown and watered by the student center or back at their hometown. We were at the right time and place to pick the fruit. One young woman said, "The Lord had convicted my heart just a couple of days ago."

Another of the three women came to church the same day our team arrived at Macau. She said to me "I hope to be baptized in Macau."

I met the third one my first night in Macau. She came to say good-bye to the missionaries at the center as she was getting ready to go back to her hometown and then off to Indiana as a transfer student. It was a surprise to see her a week later.

She informed me that she was waiting for her transcript and that she came by because she had time to kill. I saw this as a divine appointment and asked her if she had ever made the decision to receive Christ after all her interaction at the student center and church. She admitted that no one ever asked her that before. After clarifying the choice one must make to begin a relationship with God, she invited Christ in her heart and she gladly told others that she was now a Christian before she left.

You can imagine the excitement in our hearts. I am reminded of 2 John 2:4 "It has given me great joy to find some of your children walking in the truth...” 
]]> Mon, 21 Apr 2008 14:14:57 GMT <![CDATA[Talk About Jesus]]>
I shared my testimony with my friend and it was clear he was very open to learn more. So the next time we got together I brought two Bibles, and we looked together at the story of Jesus and the gospel from the Word.

At the end I wrote a prayer for him, saying that if he wanted to receive Christ and become a Christian he could use this prayer. He has been an agnostic most of his life but in recent months God had been doing much to open his heart.

Since he comes from a Jewish family the prayer I wrote for him began, “God, I receive Jesus as my Messiah.” When I handed it to him, he read it aloud, got choked up, turned to me and said, “I didn’t just read it, I prayed it!”

Six days later I met with another friend. I had said to him, “The next time we meet, I’d like to talk about your relationship with God.” He said he was not just interested but eager to have that discussion. Various times in his life he tried reaching out for God and faith. Though he had several Christian friends, no one had ever clearly explained to him the heart of the Christian message, and taught him how to live the Christian life. So when we met, again I brought two Bibles.

I asked him about his own spiritual journey, then shared my testimony. I showed him from the Word about Jesus and the gospel. Again, I wrote a prayer for him. Again, he prayed that prayer, and with gladness declared his faith in Christ. Both of these new brothers are enormously grateful to me for taking the time and effort to introduce them to Jesus.

In both cases, it is so clear to me that evangelism is a team effort. Evangelism is always done by the Body of Christ, the Church, never by an individual, or maybe almost never. Various other Christian friends, both recently and over the years, had planted seeds and watered them. It was my privilege this time to harvest. ]]> Sun, 08 Feb 2009 19:08:29 GMT <![CDATA[Tears of Freedom]]>
When I first saw "D" the weariness in her eyes told me her story: physically she was walking around freely; spiritually she was trapped behind bars. We met at her grown daughter's baptism. Rather than opening D to the gospel, her daughter's conversion had increased her resistance. "Why," I wondered.

Majda, one of D's co-workers, had on several occasions shared the gospel with her. Receptive at first, D gradually began to shut Majda out. Months passed and the tension at work increased. At times, D was almost hostile.

One Sunday, Majda called to invite D to her house, and D came. While Majda's believing friend prayed in the next room, Majda showed D a video clip of Nicky Cruz's testimony. D began to cry. "Majda, I know all this," she said. "But I just can't move ahead, I can't come to God."

Majda asked, "Is there some sin that you think is too big for God to forgive?" D cried, "Yes! Yes! I have so many sins, so many terrible sins, too terrible for God to forgive." Majda assured D that God could and would forgive her. With that D literally threw herself to the floor, sobbing and confessing her sins one by one. "Everything was wet," Majda told me later, "her shirt, the carpet, all soaked with tears." But then D stood up and said, "I'm free! I'm free!"

D was baptized April 7, 2002. Though I had prayed that D's mother would come to the service, I was stunned when she walked through the door. She had vigorously opposed her granddaughter's conversion and was even more upset about her own daughter's. But she loved the service and has since come back for every church meeting. I'm thinking before long we will have another baptismal service.

02051554]]> Sun, 23 Feb 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[The Choice is Not Easy]]>
While in Cote d’Ivoire, West Africa, I began teaching an evangelistic Bible class to sixth graders. They attended a small school that served three villages—all very poor, with no running water or electricity. Two of these villages each had a tiny church; the third didn’t. Over 99 percent of the villagers were spirit worshipers, fearing, worshiping, and sacrificing to the spirits that lived in the rocks and trees around them. Once a week, close to 30 sixth graders stayed after a long day of school to take part in the Bible class. Mainly they stayed because of the games and prizes--but they stayed. I want to tell you about two of the boys in this group.

The first, Wadanna, came from the village with no church. Not only was there no church, it had no Christians. Wadanna was a very bright and thoughtful boy. He listened carefully to what was taught and near the end of the school year came to me to say that he believed what he’d been hearing. "I know I sin," he said. "I want to have Jesus as my Savior." We prayed together and then he went home to tell his family he had become the first Christian in their village. I’d already had other children tell me they wanted to become Christians, but their families wouldn’t let them or they were too afraid. Wadanna’s father wasn’t at all pleased to learn that Wadanna had chosen to follow the "Jesus Way," and he told Wadanna that he couldn’t attend church. But he did allow Wadanna to continue to visit me, and every week he came and was part of a small discipleship group. At the end of a year, Wadanna’s father said to him, "What you have done in following the Jesus Way--it is good." He had watched his son carefully and was impressed by what he saw. And he allowed him to begin attending church. One of Wadanna’s brothers began attending both the discipleship group and church. A year later, both were baptized. Both became very active in church, teaching and leading as adults.

The second boy, Nagalourou, was the opposite of Wadanna. Nagalourou, couldn’t have cared less about what was being taught at the class. He loved the crossword puzzles, the scrambled word games, the word mazes, fill-in-the-blanks, matching, and true-false questions I gave every week--all of which were new to the children. That’s what brought him. But when he turned in his page each week, it was always signed the same way: "Nagalourou, little son of the devil." He wanted nothing to do with Jesus.

The next school year Nagalourou went to a junior high in another town, and I rarely saw him. But he had not been able to get the words and truths he had heard in my class out of his mind. While I was on home assignment he visited other missionaries. A couple years later, another boy from a Christian family brought Nagalourou to me. Nagalourou wanted to tell me that he had decided to follow Jesus. He had thought it through carefully, and he knew exactly what was in front of him--his family wasn’t supportive. But Nagalourou was adamant. He was committed to following Jesus.

Things were desperately difficult for Nagalourou. He was called before his extended family night after night. He was threatened with beatings, with no food, with no money for school (and without school, there was no future). He was told more than once that he was no longer part of the family. In the African culture where family and community are one’s identity, this is almost unbearable to think of. It’s the worst threat possible.

Many times Nagalourou would come to me or another missionary in desperation. "What am I going to do?" he asked. His hands would tremble; the stress was etched on his face. "How am I going to live?" Yet every time he’d conclude by saying, "But I can’t give up Jesus. I belong to Jesus." And back he’d go to the village. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, Nagalourou continued persevering. As angry and as violent as his family became, he was unshakable. Three of his siblings started attending church. They saw in Nagalourou something they wanted--freedom from the fear and slavery of spirit worship and a strength that doesn’t fail.

One of the leaders of the little church in Nagalourou’s village told me that the other students watched him closely, and because of his courage, many of them started attending church as well, the same students who before had said, "I want to follow Jesus, but I can’t because my family won’t let me."

(Catharine Coon now serves in Uganda)]]> Sat, 11 Jan 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[The Christian's God]]>
They said if she gets well the whole family will accept the Christian's God. She came to visit us early one morning. She is so little and frail—but has a BIG smile.

Her son and daughter-in-law had brought her in to the doctor so they stopped to see us on the way. It was really fun to see her. The latest news is that she is eating well, walking all over the village. The swelling in her hands is gone and she is a happy lady. Pray with us that God will continue to work in her family. They cannot help but realize that God has healed her. It is their turn to keep their promise to Him.]]> Sun, 08 Feb 2009 19:56:32 GMT <![CDATA[The Curse of John Peter]]>
So the family abandoned baby John at our preschool. But what were we to do with him? We aren't an orphanage. The youngest children we care for in our daycare are 6 months old, and the children in our preschool are between ages 2 and 6. We have never cared for an infant. Besides, we are only able to care for children during the day. Nevertheless, right here in front of us was a newborn baby, with no one to care for him.

I didn't know what to do. Christ's words rang through my mind: "Whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me" Matthew 18:5. So I looked for a way to help. I arranged for John Peter to spend his days at our day care center Monday through Friday. We provided him with all of his clothes and food. On the weekends, we arranged for others to care for him in their homes. Those who cared for him were afraid that he had the same disease that killed his mother, and prayed they would not catch it.

We decided to dedicate little John Peter to Christ, since he had been committed to spirits and witchcraft when he was born. A common practice for most Mozambican infants. With his father's permission, we held a dedication service at church. We were so surprised that he gave us permission, and were even more surprised to see his father attend the service! Still paralyzed and ill, he wanted to see his son consecrated to God. It took courage on his part to be willing to break the family traditions of witchcraft. I was overwhelmed with amazement and joy.

John Peter ... who will he become? Abandoned and given up for good, then saved and dedicated to God. No one knows what the future holds for him, or what he will ultimately become in God's plan. What I do know is that he is a gift from God, and that he will be one of the first to go all the way through our day care, preschool and El Shaddai Christian School! ]]> Wed, 13 Jun 2007 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[The Depressed Woman and the Skeptic]]>
During the summer of 2000 a woman in our congregation held a Good News Club in a commons area near our church in Rome, Italy. Each week she shared the gospel with kids.

The club started with 14 kids and dwindled over the summer to just two. At that point we canceled the club.

In May 2001, three women came to us asking why we were not having the club in the commons. We explained our reasons but then asked them if they wanted to join us in a Bible study. They did and for the next six months the truth of God's Word penetrated the hearts of the two who were not believers.

Paula was depressed. She wanted freedom from the depression. As she studied the Bible she learned from the Bible patterns of thought that led her to her depression. The Bible studies taught her how to think better.

Nicoletta was a skeptic. She was a skeptic of us, of the Bible and of God. Through the Bible studies she became convinced that Christ was true. She found that Christ indeed is the way, the truth and the life. She placed her faith in him.

On Sunday, October 19, 2003, both Nicoletta and Paula were baptized. They are continuing in their faith and growing in Christ.]]> Thu, 29 Jan 2004 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[The Divine Appointment]]>
One Sunday I preached in seminary chapel on Romans 1:16, all the while praying, "Lord, give me chances to witness directly to the people here in this ‘delicate’ situation, proving that I too ‘am not ashamed of the gospel.’

That night on the way home from the city our Toyota, which had never failed us in eight years, stopped dead and refused to start.

Flashlight in hand, I was under the hood pretending to know something about cars when a voice hailed me from the sidewalk.

"Can I help you? I am a Toyota repairman on my way home from work."

Under his arm he carried a small bag. He took some wrenches from it and went to work before I had a chance to answer him.

First he checked the gas to the carburetor because I was sure that was it. Next he checked the ignition system, and when he did we saw in the darkness a spark flashing out of the coil. "Ah, that's it," he said, and proceeded to remove it.

Then, of all things, he took a brand new Toyota coil from his bag exactly the same size as the one he had just removed from my 1989 Toyota. The only problem was that I had just spent the last of my cash to buy medicine for a needy student. So we offered to take the mechanic home with us to get the needed money.

He was hardly in the car when he asked me, "Why are Christians always so easy to get to know?"

I told him that even the Koran says that Christians were their "cousins" or closest friends. From there on he let me explain the whole gospel to him, right down to exactly what happened on the cross. At my house, over tea and a cinnamon roll, we talked more. He seemed enthralled and offered no argument.

Before his taxi came, I gave him a little booklet on how to find peace with God, my name, and my phone number and asked him to call me when he was ready to talk more.

This was surely a divine appointment. Our car stalling for the first time in eight years and a man walking by just after the car died, carrying a brand new Toyota coil in his bag was no accident.]]> Mon, 13 Jan 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[The Fruit of Faithful Gifts]]>
A Fulani woman came to see Diane Eliason, nurse practitioner at the Baptist Hospital in Ferkessedougou, Côte d'Ivoire. The Fulani live in much of West Africa and are a people group who have not yet embraced Christianity in large numbers.

The woman was pregnant and weak. And yet Diane noticed that she was a pretty woman. She had the typical beads and jewelry of the Fulani too. Diane asked her if she had come from far away. The response was that it wasn't far, just a three hours walk. Tests showed that her hemoglobin was low. She really needed a transfusion.

Diane hoped that she had come with someone who might be able to give blood. She was alone.  Transfusions at about $20 a unit, a fraction of the cost in the United States but still very expensive for most people coming to the hospital. Diane has a fund to help in such cases.

Diane explained to the weak woman that even though she did not have the money for the needed treatment that she was special in God's eyes, that God loves her, and that God had prompted Christians in America to give in Christ's name so that Diane could allow the woman to have her needed transfusion.

A week later the woman was back at the clinic where Diane works. She had come again, three hours walk, for another check up and with a sister. But she had come with more. The Fulani woman explained to Diane that her father had killed a cow, taken the meat to the market and given her the $20 so that she could repay Diane and the hospital for the cost of last week's transfusion.

Diane's heart was torn as the tests came back again that the woman needed another transfusion.  Again she explained God's love for the woman and gave her again the transfusion needed without payment, because of the generosity of Christians in America and the faithful work of medical people in northern Côte d'Ivoire.]]> Fri, 06 Feb 2004 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[The Lady Who Came to be Saved]]>
For some workers in Kenya ministry is slow but the following story indicates the rate of response to the gospel may be accelerating.

A lady came to me saying she wanted to be saved so I set an appointment with her the next day. I had planned on going to visit her with her nephew, a 25-year-old lay leader in a local church, and another pastor.

When I got to the pastor's house, he explained the woman’s request. "She came wanting to be saved." Though he had a busy morning planned, the pastor agreed to meet the woman. We met her nephew and the three of us went to the woman’s house.

Her husband was away but we had his blessing to talk with his wife.

We shared Scripture verses explaining the way of salvation. She listened intently and nodded in agreement. When she was ready the pastor led her in a prayer of confession and commitment to Jesus.

We urged her to come to church and share her testimony. The pastor's wife and another lady visit her to continue encouraging her.]]> Wed, 05 Mar 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[ The Lord Is the Answer]]>
Lucilia wanted to commit suicide. Her husband was on drugs and living in France and because he was not around she couldn't even divorce him. The man she was living with was cheating on her.

Then she met Lenna, a believer from our church. Lenna told Lucilia that she needed the Lord. Lenna shared the gospel, read Scripture with her and Lucillia found her hunger was met in Christ. She came to faith and believed that he was her Savior.

Her life changed dramatically and after a few years the man she was living with, Marcel, came also to faith. Each was able to finalize their divorces from their previous spouses. Then on one dramatic weekend Lucilia and Marcel had their civil wedding on Friday, married before the government, on Saturday both were baptized and on Sunday they had their official church wedding.

Now Lucilia is especially dynamic in sharing her faith. She knows for sure that the Lord is the answer. Her life has so turned around that she wants to share the good things she has found with others. In fact a couple from Angola in our church have followed Lucilia and Marcel's example and have been baptized and married in the church.
]]> Thu, 29 Jan 2004 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[The Mayatima Project]]>
 At this point she does not even look like she has HIV, which really helps her in school and with friends. Imagine you have a disease like AIDS and it shows all over your face in the form of sores and rashes. Imagine being ostracized for that reason. Now because of the Mayatima project Lucy receives what she needs to be as healthy as she can be. But, best of all she does not look as sick as she did before. The school and community does not leave her out any longer. She now has friends who will talk to her and teachers who will touch her.]]> Mon, 24 Apr 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[The Meaning of Good Friday]]>
We expected only 50 university professors and researchers at a "What's So Good About Good Friday?" event, but 82 showed up, along with their 30 children.

I was able to speak for an hour and a half, going step-by-step through the arrest, trial, crucifixion, and resurrection of Christ. We know of at least two who came to faith in Christ and many others who showed a desire.]]> Wed, 08 Jan 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[The Ministry Continues with Powerful Impact ]]>
There are about 80 people in a church on Sunday mornings in downtown Bouaké, Côte d’Ivoire. The church continued meetings and activities after Western missionaries had to evacuate the country following an attempted coup in 2002. The sermon is translated from a local trade language, Jula, into French for those who need it. The church seeks to serve people from different ethnic backgrounds, so they translate messages and do not use musical instruments, which often are closely tied to one language and tribe.

One Sunday, following the service, everyone stood outside in a rough circle as one of the deacons spoke about a man who had just been converted. The man is the older brother of the pastor and he had come to Bouaké several weeks before for medical help not available in his hometown. He brought with him several fetishes, man-made charms to ward off evil, which would protect him during his trip while helping him regain his health. The charms were not working so he had accepted Jesus as his Savior, deciding to follow the teachings of the Bible. It was explained to him that a man can only serve one God. If he chose to serve Jesus then he must give up the beliefs and fetishes which had been purchased at great price or passed down to him from his family. His entire life centered around a world view where the proper charms, sacrifices and ceremonies would allow him to gain favor with the spirit world. Now he had taken a new path.

A pile of branches was placed in the center of the circle as the deacon presented to the crowd each item the man had brought as his protection. One by one they were placed on the branches as he said publicly he was choosing to leave these things behind. A match was used to light the branches as the church people began singing and dancing slowly around the fire. They sang "I used to be tied up by Satan but now I have found freedom in God.” This community of believers wanted to show the new convert that each one of them had done as he was now doing, so he could count on their help and the help of God.

The man told the group that these were all of the fetishes he had with him but that more were back in his house in the village. When he returned home, he asked the Christians in his village to help him burn the rest and help him stay faithful to his decision to become a believer.
]]> Tue, 16 Mar 2004 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[The Park Couldn’t Contain the Story of Jesus]]>
In a rural community known for its collapsed economy, witchcraft and mix of Muslims and nominal Christians, a weekend outreach included showings of the Jesus film. Though we experienced no hostility during the first night’s showing, there was no visible response to the public invitation at the end of the film.

On the second night we showed the film in the athletic field of a local primary school. This time dozens of young people stood at the public invitation to receive salvation in Jesus.

At a girls’ boarding school next to the athletic field, residents lined the inside of the chainlink fence surrounding their compound for a chance to watch the film. They cheered whenever Jesus healed someone. When the invitation was given, four of them prayed--loud enough for us to hear over on the athletic field! Several outreach workers walked over to the school and received permission to go inside and counsel the girls. God answered our prayers "that the message of the Lord may spread rapidly and be honored" (2 Thessalonians 3:1).

02040248

]]> Mon, 17 Feb 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[The Plan]]>
If he was putting his faith in going to church, he was in trouble. It occurred to me that others were probably in the same boat. I began to contemplate options for reaching these and others with the plan of God for their redemption—and what it really means to be a Christian.

About that time, I received a document in French that presents THE PLAN in chronological order, beginning with God and creation and progressing carefully through Scripture until the coming of Christ and his work on the cross. I didn’t think I had a good enough command of the language (Cebaara) to do the teaching myself, so I asked this guard and others for names of various ones who might help me, and I got three helpers.

There was no point in trying to begin during rainy season or harvest, so we picked January to start. We started in February. We meet three times a week: Sundays, Mondays and Wednesday—when nothing else conflicts with it, like funerals or rain. Everyone is invited—believers and unbelievers. We meet under the trees in the chief’s courtyard—a neutral place. About 40 adults come. In the beginning, we did two lessons a night so that we would be able to finish before rainy season, but the people started coming later and later, so we are only doing one lesson per night.

They people appear open to hearing God's message. We will be faithful in presenting God's Word and look forward to seeing the transforming power of God's Word in the their lives.]]> Fri, 11 Apr 2008 10:38:58 GMT <![CDATA[The Plentiful Harvest]]>
"Jesus’ resurrection” I replied and our conversation continued on for 20 minutes over BBQ Chinese style. Upon our return from our Asia STM, an e-mail awaited Ming by another college student she counseled and spent time with.

She wrote: “Thank you for everything that you have done for me, the Bible and introducing me to God. You must be the sower of God to sow good seeds in my heart.”

God’s Spirit is moving in historical ways to bring people to know Him and glorify His name. We spent 12 days in China, holding seminars using English, attending prayer, worship, outreach meetings, and meeting with students both formally and informally. At least two made decisions for Christ, many others seemed to move closer to belief in Jesus.]]> Mon, 01 Jun 2009 12:56:34 GMT <![CDATA[The Power of a Changed Life]]>
Rosina had been saving money for two years in order to come to the CBInternational-related seminary. We knew it would be rough for her, but the interaction in classes between Bible study and personal application revolutionized her life.

She came from a non-Christian family. Her father left home when she was young. She became a Christian and has prayed for the opportunity to share Christ in her own home. When we started the evangelism and discipleship course, we mentioned that God won't use us "over there" if we don't share the gospel where we live. This became a personal challenge for Rosina. She shared Christ with her mother and her sister.

Rosina was raped by her uncle when she was 17. He was convicted of incest in another case and sent to prison. Rosina always wanted to react with vengeance toward her uncle. She asked me if I knew who would go with her to share the gospel with her uncle. An elder from one of our churches went with Rosina to share Christ with the same uncle who had done her so much harm. He received Christ as his Savior and asked Rosina to forgive him.

Rosina had a lot of stretching and changing to do in her life but, thank God, she was willing to let him change her.]]> Thu, 09 Jan 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[The Power of Changed Lives ]]>
Twenty-five years ago a Roman Catholic priest came to the village of Nangoula not far from where we live in southern Mali. A number of the men of the village decided to believe in the God that the priest talked about. Unfortunately the priest didn't return to teach the people. So when the men of Nangoula, now older men, heard that we were not far away, they sent for them so that they could learn more about the God they believed in.

The Nangoula village surprised everyone. The 6th grad students took the exam that they must pass in order to enter 7th grade. Normal passing rate is about 75 to 80 percent. But 96 percent passed. Of their 50 students only one did not pass and that student was a dumb-mute. The village was thrilled with the results.

When the villages around heard about the success rate of the Nangoula children they wanted to know what type of sorcery or what charm or magic they had used so that their children learned so well. The village told the others that they made a covenant with God giving him the children in their village and asking God to bless them in their school studies. They believed their children's success in school was a direct blessing by God on their children because of their prayers.

While studying at Denver Seminary, God laid southern Mali on our hearts. Now we are working there and finding remarkable openness to the gospel among the Supire, a Senoufo people who tend to be animists or spirit worshipers.

Mali has 33 spoken languages. Of those languages only four have more than 1 percent believers in Christ. There are 11 languages that have no missionaries working among them at all. 
]]> Fri, 06 Feb 2004 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[The Power of One]]>
James was a seminary intern at our church in Taiwan. He was a jokester, loud at times and through his humor he would offend some of the youth. He also tended to order them around.

I had been away at a pastors' conference and just returned home when the phone rang. Yoshen, one of the older students, was calling because he had been offended by James. Grace, who had helped found the church told Yoshen to contact me.

In Chinese culture and in Taiwan people are very reticent to confront and even more reticent to admit wrong. Yoshen was nervous just talking to me about the situation.

I knew James had offended people in the past as well so I said that I would talk to James. But I also encouraged Yoshen to read Matthew 18, the passage that gives instruction on what to do when we are offended. I encouraged Yoshen not only to read the passage but also to study and pray about what it said. And then I encouraged him to talk to James directly. He was very scared about the thought of doing that.

On both Friday and Saturday I tried to call James but could not reach him. I had wanted to talk with him before Sunday, the last day of his internship after which he would be returning to seminary.

On the fifth Sunday of the month in our church the congregation shares testimonies.

James was the first to get up and I was not expecting what I heard. James asked people to turn in their Bibles to Matthew 18, proceeded to say what he had learned from this passage and that Yoshen had come to talk with him.

James thanked Yoshen for confronting him and asked the congregation for forgiveness. He asked that if there were others who he had offended he wanted to know so that he could ask them directly for forgiveness.

God used his Word in James life for good.
]]> Thu, 29 Jan 2004 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[The Privilege of Serving]]>
“It has been a blessing to see God working, but also sobering to see the devastation to health, finances and families that HIV/AIDS leaves in its wake. My first day was at Lawley. We met with caregivers, went to the clinic and then took several people to Nazareth House inside Johannesburg for treatments. One woman was newly diagnosed with AIDS. She was going in for her first visit to begin the process to get on antiretrovirals. I was amazed at the sheer number of people who were sick with AIDS!

“The second day of my trip, we were off to a village even farther out than Lawley. Kathy taught under a tree for the community on HIV/AIDS and how they can help their friends and neighbors who are affected by the disease. The following day I was able to go back to Lawley to help with Bible Club. Children from grades one through three come to this “mini-VBS” once a week and learn a Bible lesson, have a snack, play a game and do a craft. About 75 children were there on that day. They learned about how King David was chosen by God. I taught them some new songs with motions that they really enjoyed learning.

“At the beginning of my second week, Kathy and I traveled to Mozambique. We held two seminars on HIV/AIDS at two different churches. About 60 people attended and were taught the basics of HIV/AIDS and how to take care of those who are sick – both physically and spiritually. We were also able to make some home visits. One particular woman we visited was in her early 20s and was widowed in October 2006. She seemed to be suffering from severe depression and had convinced herself she had HIV, even though she had tested negative several times. This is why the education is so important! Even though AIDS is rampant in these two countries, the knowledge that people have regarding HIV and AIDS is somewhat faulty. You could see the light bulbs go off in their heads as they understood more of how they could care for their loved ones and neighbors. The Marracuene church even blessed each of us with a capulina (a skirt made out of a strip of cloth that most of the women wore) and danced and sung in our honor.

“I saw firsthand the ministry going on in Southern Africa. Prayer is the most effective tool. I am praying that the Lord will spark a fire among the people who were at the seminars, that they will make an impact in their community and that many will come to know the Lord. The ill have many needs and obstacles to overcome, but God can change hearts. My prayer is that he will do just that in Southern Africa. Please pray that the churches in these communities will be able to model sacrificial giving to help those while they are sick and that they will become master gardeners, so that they can grow produce on their own. I believe that the seminars in South Africa and Mozambique are just the beginning.”

As Beth experienced, the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Southern Africa is overwhelming. In some countries about 1/3 of the entire population is affected by the devastation of this disease. At first it seemed a daunting task to effect change in one community, but it also made me realize that God alone can really do the work of producing transformation within a community. I can only help one person at a time. God has been faithful in walking with me through this journey of ministry to those who are sick with AIDS, and their children and families who are left behind to deal with the grief and often poverty that comes when the parents are gone.

We have seen many blessings and provisions over the last three years of working in the Lawley community that show God can change things. One is the expansion of the nursery school that we work with. About 130 kids in three different sites are being looked after, taught God’s Word and his world, and fed two wholesome meals a day. A small group of people in the community are willing to look after child-headed families or bring orphans into their homes to care for them. We have a Bible Club, where young children can hear of God’s unfailing love for them every week. Nearly 300 people have been touched by Christian love and outreach while they were dying, and more than 75 people walk and work in the community after getting on the antiretroviral medication. The partners who have made all this happen have been brought from many different walks of life and from many countries. Yes, God has been working in these last three years! Let us not forget to praise him for his listening and answering our prayers!
]]> Thu, 17 May 2007 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[The Prodigals]]>
Youth from all over Uganda came to the National Youth Camp. We presented "True Love Waits," a program that helps prevent AIDS by encouraging sexual abstinence. Many in attendance signed commitment cards.

A group of boys from Kampala who called themselves "The Prodigals" came to the camp. They were street kids and prodigal in every sense. They all came from difficult family situations and in some cases had no family at all. They were troubled youth with very troubled backgrounds. But they had all recently come to know Christ. They were literally finding their way home, looking excitedly for those who would guide them in the Christian life.

Their behavior did leave much to be desired, but they were new Christians and had no idea what was acceptable. Discipline problems or not, I would have taken a camp populated by youth like them who demonstrated a similar desire to sincerely learn to live like Christ.]]> Sat, 08 Feb 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[The Secrets Behind a Smile]]>
I have a brother and a sister. When I was very young my parents quarreled all the time and did not pay attention to us children. When I was in middle school, my dad moved away, and we had very hard lives. I studied very hard to make my mom feel better, so I was able to enter college. About the same time my dad came back, but the war never stopped between them.

I thought being away in Macau would change things. But that was a silly idea. My first summer holiday from university, I returned home. I thought I could do something to help change the fighting. But I couldn’t, so I didn’t stay long and returned to Macau very sad.

When I returned to Macau that summer, some things began to change. I complained my parents never cared for us and I decided to never go back. With this decision I felt like I escaped from that burden, but at the same time I felt very guilty. It was at this time a Christian friend shared a Bible verse with me. “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”

This gave me great comfort. I began going with her to church and began to learn about Jesus. I learned the real pain in my life and in my family’s life was because of our disobedience to God. I learned Jesus died to pay the penalty for my disobedience to God. All I needed to do was to decide to follow Jesus and I could have God’s peace in my life. At Christmas in 2004, I made my decision to follow Jesus public by being baptized.

As I followed Jesus, I learned how much God loves me, and how much he loves my family. And he began to teach me how to love my family. Christian friends began to pray for my family and for me. I looked forward to going home, even with all the quarreling. I tried to rebuild the relationship with my dad. I started to care for my brother and sister, and told them about God’s love. Life is still difficult with my parents, but my brother and sister and I have a nice time together. God is rebuilding my family.

I joined a Bible study small group with other students and continued to learn more and more about God’s love and power in my life. And even though I am a very emotional girl, God continues to encourage me and strengthen me in the difficult times. God loves me. God loves you. And His love will never change.

Several of the students we are working with have similar stories. The good news is the Good News is bringing them hope.  ]]> Sun, 01 Jun 2008 11:36:09 GMT <![CDATA[The Shock of Prison Ministry for a Young Missionary]]>
Dougg & LeAnn Custer forward this report on the experience of Manuela, a short-term missionary sent out from their church in Austria:

“I shouldn’t be here, I’m scared” echoed in Manuela’s mind as she walked into the men’s prison in Kingston. She had to line up like a prisoner herself and be checked off a list as she and over 30 of her Logos 2 crew mates entered through a tunnel. She was aware of over a thousand men looking down at her from their cells. A Spanish team member described the atmosphere as really tense. As soon as colleagues from Indonesia and Ireland started our mini-outreach the prisoners settled down and listened intently to all that the team was sharing. They seemed to really enjoy the dramas as crew members performed “In the Light” and “Redeemer.” There was loud clapping and shouts of “Amen” being called out as a team member shared about new life in Jesus Christ with many responding to the message. Manuela asked one of the guards what the men were in for. He told her “mainly murder.” She shuddered as she looked around at men as young as 20. “I’ve never been in prison before,” she remarked, “and I felt we shouldn’t be there at the start, but by the end we were all so encouraged.”

(Excerpt from “Stories from Jamaica,” a short e-mail report from the Operation Mobilization ship, the Logos II, where Manuela from the Spittal church is serving as crew member for two years.)]]> Mon, 01 May 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[The Spirit's Ministry]]>
So it was with great joy that we returned to that church last November after being gone for more than three years. It was at that time that we learned about the decisions of two men that Jim had worked with, Domingos and Geraldo. Domingos is a policeman in the city of Sao Luis. His wife had made a decision earlier and he started to attend the church.

Jim visited him, they did a Bible study together and he was attending church regularly. He made his decision to follow Christ before we left Brazil, but he had not been baptized. When we saw him on our return visit he told us that he had been baptized earlier that year.  What a joy to see that he has followed through in his obedience to Christ.

Geraldo is a salesman whose wife and children had attended the church for many years. Jim visited him a number of times and helped him through some difficult times (including a motorcycle accident and having his motorcycle stolen). He had been involved in a Bible study with another member of the church, but never made his decision… that is until last year.

When we saw him at the church he told us that he had made a decision to accept Christ. He still has not been baptized but remains faithful in the church. It is so great to know that the Spirit continues to do His work to bring about fruit from our efforts (and the efforts of others who also invested in their lives), even after we are out of the picture. It is a joy to see those we worked with follow in the faith.]]> Sat, 06 Jun 2009 21:01:09 GMT <![CDATA[The True Shield and Protector]]>
A sorceress was asked to put a curse on a young woman in her village who had come to Christ. She mixed her "medicaments" and approached the woman's hut during the night, but found her way barred by some invisible barrier. So the next night she re-mixed the potion and approached from another direction, but found a barrier there as well; the next night the same, and so on.

When Moise heard her testimony at a conference this experience led her to get to know this Jesus who was taking such care of his devoted one—the sorceress had become a believer!

God is our protector, our shield, our helper.]]> Fri, 06 Feb 2004 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[They Came to Jesus]]>
While I was home on home assignment in 1999, I talked with the folks from my home church who were thinking of coming to Senegal as short-termers to do evangelism. I thought of all the prayer, work and time that goes into leading a Muslim to Jesus, and I feared this team would feel some disappointment at the end of their time of missionary assignment. I knew they had already gone to several other countries (Russia, Pakistan, England) to do evangelism, and the Lord had greatly blessed them with high statistics.

In talking with them, I told them how long it takes on an average in Senegal to lead someone to Jesus. They assured me that they were prepared for few visible results, but that they wanted to do what they could. In July they came. They were divided up into three teams of ten each. Each team was given several national missionaries and six or eight translators. Finally they were provided with transportation, and they were off.

All of us kept praying for their projects, programs and contacts. We had started out with some real encouragement, as two of the translators had accepted the Lord just from going through the training sessions to be translators for an evangelical witnessing team. Also, a few days after their arrival, the former pastor of my home church, Dennis Burns, preached in our Thiès church and a young Muslim fellow accepted the Lord.

After about ten days of faithfully expending efforts, emotionally, physically and spiritually, the team that went to the Bambey area every day saw the Lord do a real miracle.

Dennis Burns' assistant pastor, Dave Shepherd, was the team leader. After meeting with him that day, the village chief invited him to sit and talk. Dave did so. Several hours later the chief and several of his family members accepted the Lord, leaving Islam to do so.

A few days later—on a Sunday—Dave took his team back to this village of Lagomak. They held a morning worship service at which over 100 people attended. At the end of his message he gave a public invitation (something unheard of in Senegal as people are so afraid of persecution they will not make any public statements for some time after they accept the Lord). First Dave asked for the new believers to come forward to commit themselves to daily living for Him. THEY CAME! Then he asked for any others that wanted to accept the Lord to come forward and join them. Many came, until there was a count of 100 or more people standing in front of David. Virtually the whole village became a Christian village in one sweep, leaving Islam.
 
Today one of our Mission Inter-Senegal missionaries, Musa Diouf, from Sebikotane, goes to that village two or three Sundays a month to supervise the discipleship of these people. One unsaved man donated a parcel of land for the people to build a church. 23 of the new converts come regularly on Sunday mornings to worship together in the Serere language. Others come too, but less regularly. They average 30 people each week. One of the Christian laymen from the Thiès church now lives in a village not far from Lagomak, and works as a high school teacher there. He goes to Lagomak every Sunday to lead the worship services when Musa isn't there.

One of the new converts, Musa Diouf, (no relation to the missionary from Sebikotane) has been growing leaps and bounds, and has been accepted at a Bible School in Dakar directed by Maurice Vaudin, an evangelical missionary from Switzerland. If Musa can successfully complete his requirements at Maurice's Bible School, he would then qualify to continue his studies in the Bible Institute that Ed Statler is running. Might he be the future pastor of the church in Lagomak?

02040135]]> Tue, 04 Feb 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[They Find Christ Inside]]>
The Duruma People live scattered over hundreds of semiarid square miles in Southeast Kenya and Northwest Tanzania. At the most only two percent of the over 200,000 Duruma would call themselves Christians. The rest are predominately spirit worshipers.

Because of their dry land and their spirit worship, their lives are hard. But those who follow God have peace, freedom and don't have to endure capricious acts against them by evil powers.

Samuel Mwanza is a Duruma. He also has a heart for God. CBI missionaries Bill and Mary Ellen Stroup first came in contact with Samuel. He was looking for work in the Kenyan coastal town of Mombasa so that he could make enough money to marry the woman he loved.

Samuel earned some money by cutting the grass, tending the flowers and gardening for Bill and Mary Ellen. Many weekends Samuel would go to his home area, called Sapo, not only to get to see his future bride but to gather a few friends and family to worship the true God as best they could.

For years the group of 15-20 people gathered in the end of a pump house. But as they worshiped God and read his Word, their knowledge of God, his love, his goodness and how to follow him increased.

Samuel also attended the BTCP (Bible Training Center for Pastors).

One day Samuel came to CBI missionary Tim Okken and asked if CBI could help the Sapo believers get a better church building and not have to meet in a dilapidated pump house.

Tim replied that he would write to his supporters and if God motivated some to give he would help them with the building.
 
They were only given $100, hardly enough to even start on a building.

Samuel and his small group stayed faithful. They continued to meet and

Samuel continued to learn.  Over a year Samuel studied 10 TEE (Theological Education by Extension) books with other Duruma rural pastors. Now Samuel is one of the most biblically trained church leaders in Duruma Land.

In 2001 Tim and Jan Okken again thought about the small but dedicated groups of believers at Sapo. They also realized that they had a year before their next home assignment. Maybe this time they could help the Sapo believers in getting a building. Tim and Jan sent out an e-mail.

This time they were given $5,000, enough to build a very nice church building.

So Tim helped the believers build the building and they went home on their home assignment. In the fall of 2003 Tim again visited the Sapo church. He was surprised and pleased to find 80 people regularly meeting with Samuel in the new building.

Tim commented, "In this area where people live in houses built of mud sticks and grasses, it does seem that God uses a nice building to help people find Christ. People come to the nice building but they stay because they find Christ inside."]]> Thu, 29 Jan 2004 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Twenty-two pastors come to trust in Christ]]>
Is it possible for churches to be led by pastors who aren't Christians? Sadly, yes! In January, at the end of a course on The True Gospel, one pastor stood up and said, "I am a pastor. I oversee multiple churches. But, in these lessons I've come to realize that I'm not even a Christian. What do I do?" And, he wasn't alone. Twenty two of thirty six pastors in the class stood to publicly show that they were trusting in Jesus alone for their salvation for the first time!

Many Rwandese believe that salvation is turning from sin to the church (religion). These pastors understood for the first time that salvation is a relationship with God through the work of Jesus Christ.
]]> Fri, 06 Jun 2008 15:53:30 GMT <![CDATA[Toddler Responds in Little Steps]]>
“I'd like to tell you about a little boy,” says Kathy McElmurry, mid-term worker in Madagascar, “For his five years of life has been hidden behind a wall of autistic behavior.”

From Centre Fitiavana, a school with a considerable handicapped population, Kathy explains: “His story isn't too much different from other kids around here.”

This means, no father at home and a mother who works all day. His care falls onto his sister, who herself is only a first grader.

When Kathy first started working at the school in November, the little boy was totally passive. He showed no interest in his environment, nor any response to his teacher's efforts.

In just under a year, of care and love from Kathy and the school, he has become like any other toddler exploring his environment.

“He has discovered that it is fun to climb up and down a low step, bounce a ball and pet a dog,” Kathy recounts. “He has also found out that if he touches his mouth and says ‘oo,’ the last syllable of ‘rano,’ the Malagasy word for water, he gets a drink."]]> Wed, 23 Aug 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Triposa's Story]]>
“That’s her Christian name.” My interest was piqued and as soon as I was able, I scooted over to her on the floor mat, and started to dig into her story. “So, how did you become a follower of Jesus?” I asked.

“That’s a long story,” she laughed.

“It’s Okay. Please...” I urged.

“Well, I was a cook at the school where Pastor Albet taught. I  watched and listened to the Christians around me. One night, I had a dream. I was between wake and sleep, and demons began to bother and attack me. There were big and little ones—lots of them! I wanted to be free, so I decided to do what my teaching said to do and recite al Quran, but the demons just laughed at me. So then, in desperation, I decided to try what I had heard at the school, and when I told them to get out in the name of Jesus, they fled in fear. That’s what got my attention, and eventually, as I looked for the Truth, I became a believer."

When she accepted the Lord, her family was livid and went after her. “What did they do...what happened?”

“At first, they beat me, so I ran away. Then they came after me and took me back to the village, holding me on the motorcycle so that I wouldn’t escape. I ran away again, but they caught me and took me to Java to see my relatives there. They made me do so many things—drink flower water, drink a concoction from seven wells... My grandfather stuck a keris (mystical Javanese knife) to my throat and threatened me, but my grandmother told him not to kill me.”

“Were you afraid?”

“Not really. Every time they made me do something, I would pray beforehand. Finally my family took me to a witch doctor, and then to one of the highest religious leaders. Both of them saw a cross on my forehead and despaired saying, 'She's too sick,' and they let me go.

"It wasn’t until I wanted to get married that I went back to my village to try to get my parents' blessing. When we had our baby girl, my family started to accept me back, even though my husband and I are believers.”

I was struck by two things especially. One was the calmness with which she told her story. She wasn’t the heroine. In fact, she relayed it almost as if it was every day life. She was a child of God just doing what she was supposed to be doing!

Secondly was her parents’ tenacity and resolution to attempt to steal her back, and God’s relentless love and power to hold her in His hand.]]> Tue, 10 Mar 2009 18:53:07 GMT <![CDATA[Twins in Madagascar]]>
In northern Madagascar there is a remote tribal group that thinks only animals give birth to multiples and therefore if a woman gives birth to twins they must be animals and are killed. A sacrifice is made for the woman to cleanse her and she is allowed to live.

A few from this tribe have become Christians. When a Christian woman in the village had twins they were permitted to live. Her husband was one of the village elders and her brothers were both very influential Christians. It was decided that the twins were not allowed to stay in the village so they were taken to a nearby town. The survival of these twins was the beginning of the impact the gospel is making in that area.]]> Fri, 07 Feb 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Universal Truth Via Prof]]>
Cedrick and Francis, two young students, were convinced that universal truth cannot be known.

I challenged this presupposition, but they weren't convinced...until he walked by.

"Hey prof!" they called out. "You're a philosophy professor, so what do you think, does some sort of universal truth exist?"

"Absolutely!" he confidently responded. "This becomes clear as we regard morality. It doesn't matter what society you are in; incest is wrong, murder is wrong, the abuse of children is wrong. Granted, there are societies that do not believe that these are wrong, but it is clear that human beings have certain inherent rights that supersede the particular beliefs of any one society. These are all universal truths."

He continued for a bit, completely demolishing any arguments Cedric and Francis might have had.

God did an amazing thing through a non-Christian philosophy professor today.

Though still not ready to accept the gospel, it was the second Jesus-centered discussion I've had with Cedrick. I'll be back next week to meet with him, Francis, Milène, Jonathan and Jonathan.]]> Tue, 13 Nov 2007 16:39:30 GMT <![CDATA[Uses of a Digital Camera]]>
I was at the Carnival retreat of a church in the state of Pará, a 12-hour bus ride from Bacabal.  Being the guest speaker at the retreat, everyone treated me nicely and was always willing to talk or greet me as they walked by.

Then I noticed a young man who seemed to be an outsider and was not involved in much of anything.  In fact, he spent most of his time just sitting listening to his walkman while others were playing volleyball or some other game.

Sitting down next to him I tried to start a conversation with him but it was kind of difficult as he would not stop listening to his music.  When asked why he was not playing volleyball or some other game his only response was “I don’t know” and then his headphones went back on.

On the second day of the retreat the same scene repeated itself but this time I had a secret weapon.  Taking out my digital camera I took a picture of us two and then started showing him the camera.  I then suggested that I take more pictures of him and the others playing volleyball.

I was able to get him in the game and within five minutes everyone had forgotten about me and I was off to show someone else my camera.  From that time on I never saw the young man alone or not involved in some activity with the group. Praise the Lord that the last day of the retreat he rededicated his life to Christ.]]> Fri, 07 Apr 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Victory in Devastation]]>
During the 1994 genocide in Rwanda, Pastor Enias and his immediate family narrowly escaped death, but 317 members of his extended family were killed. One of those killed was Enias' mother.

A few years later a man came to visit Enias and in their discussion the man asked Enias for forgiveness for killing his mother.

As word got out about this, Enias was severely criticized for forgiving the man. In Rwanda, the rule of the land is revenge.

One of our dear friends, Tom, told us how his daughter and two young grandchildren along with other Hutus were yanked out of minibuses by the military and beaten to death on the spot in retaliation for some Tutsi soldiers who had been killed in that place.

Revenge is rampant yet Enias, a man who lost so many family members and who could have justifiably accused this man before the authorities instead responded, "because Jesus has forgiven me, I can forgive you for killing my mom."

Also from Rwanda...

A number of our friends were subjected to "re-education camps." During their stay they were only given one cup of boiled corn each day and lived in squalor. They were told repeatedly that "before the missionaries brought Christianity to Rwanda, tribalism was not a problem." (In reality, tribal conflict is centuries old). They were told that Christ is for white people and that they need to return to the worship of their traditional ancestral gods.

In spite of their anti-Christian teaching, the authorities somehow allowed the Jesus film to be shown on one occasion. Pastors Jean and Samweli and others were able to talk with the many people who came forward wanting to know more about Jesus after the film. God works even in the midst of persecution. Even when attempts are made to suppress the good news, God’s word still pierces the darkness.]]> Sat, 04 Jan 2003 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Vodka to Church Plant]]>
His wife came to the point where she could no longer bear to watch him ruining himself, his work and his family. She took her daughter and left Oleg, leaving behind a stream of broken, empty promises. Oleg continued drinking and his life continued to spin out of control.

Unable to stay sober long enough to focus on his work, Oleg’s business went down the tubes and still the grip of his addiction held on to him firmly. His liver could take the abuse no longer and Oleg’s health broke. He found himself in the hospital with little hope for recovery.

Among his few visitors, was a man he knew from childhood. They had renewed their acquaintance not long before when the friend shared the testimony of how Christ had changed his life. Oleg also wanted his life to change and he knew he could not change it on his own. He began to realize that God had a greater plan for his life.

“I had a feeling of peace. I knew I wasn’t going to die.”

Oleg gave his life to Jesus Christ and to this day, has led a sober life. Months went by as he patiently waited for his wife to realize that the change was real and lasting. Finally, she came back with her daughter and restoration of the family began.

As Oleg continued on the path of recovery, he became involved in church life and continued to grow as a follower of Christ. He wanted to keep growing and become a better servant. His pastor and a friend recommended the church planter training program, Project 250 Donetsk, the training ministry of the Mission Society, Spiritual Renewal of the Donbass.

During this time, his pastor and another church planter from Spiritual Renewal gained a vision for a summer of outreach throughout their city and its surroundings. Oleg’s role was to follow up on new believers in his region. The response was good and out of necessity, Oleg became a church planter, even as we continued to pray that his wife would come to know Jesus Christ as Savior. Almost two years later, our prayers were answered affirmatively.

Last fall we were able to begin a new course of study with 23 new students of church planting. Almost half of the men studying are former alcoholics, drug addicts and criminals. These are men who know the life changing power of the blood of Christ. Their lives and message give powerful proof to the claims of the Gospel. Our training program appeals to these men because they can continue working. They only have to ask for time off work twice a year for three to five work days. It’s real training for real men in a real world.

Oleg is now a non-resident student at Kiev Theological Seminary getting a bachelor’s degree in ministry with the emphasis in church planting. The church consists of about 50 members and is hoping to purchase the building it meets in if the government can produce the documents for the sale. A project has been approved by the mission to give the church a no-interest loan if funds become available. As an entrepreneur, Oleg exhibits a can-do spirit in the business world and in his ministry as a church planter.]]> Fri, 27 Jul 2007 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Vulnerable]]>
Late this fall she e-mailed us… "Well, I have lots of things I want to share with you. First, I became a Christian last month when I was having a Bible study with my friend. She and I have Bible study every week, just like what I used to have Bible study with Bill.

"I kept asking questions about God every time just as what I did in Macau. She would try to find answers for me and tell her own story to me. Finally, I cried without reasons except realizing how many sins I had and how much I wanna be a better person, so I told her I'm ready for God cos I knew I can’t do it myself. God is the One who is always willing to listen and help, and I’m ready to have a new life with love and grace in my heart.

"I’m still on my way to reading the Bible and learning how to be a good follower. And I remember once I forgot to pray before I eat, and I realized it when I was eating, so I just stopped to pray and keep eating. It is funny because I know I'm still new to God, sometimes I forgot things. But every time I think of you come all the way to Macau just to let people know God, I will ask myself to learn more from the Bible and be more like you.

"And I really wanna thank you for giving me the help when I was in Macau. I'm grateful for Linda correcting my poor pronunciation and Bill teaching me God's words and helping me know God step by step."

It is always a joy to see and hear of students who have given their lives to Jesus and are doing their best to follow Him! But it is always a challenge for them when they leave here where they have a “safe” environment and people who care and will help guide them through the spiritual growth process step by step. Particularly the new believers are vulnerable to the enemy’s “fiery darts.” Cults, legalism, pride, focusing on less important issues, worldly pursuits, neglecting their walk with God are some of the challenges they face when they return to their homeland or when they go overseas to study. We try to stay in touch and encourage them from afar through e-mail, Internet chats, and occasional personal visits if possible, but it is not the same as being together.
]]> Sat, 24 Jan 2009 17:08:04 GMT <![CDATA[Wheelchairs of Hope]]>
Soon, individuals and teams began transporting the wheelchairs into Asia.

Next, through a contact, Wheelchairs of Hope met the decision makers for France Bed, a chair-leasing company that has chairs by the dozen which they regularly discard. Suddenly, this small compassion ministry acquired over 100 chairs.

In recent months, a gathering of Christian and non-Christian volunteers cleaned and repaired the chairs. As with many compassion efforts, in the labor to bring relief to the needy and hurting the love of Christ is shared verbally and non-verbally.

These chairs have been sent to the Conservative Baptist Global meeting for two consecutive years and in the upcoming year, the chairs will be sent to Bali for Indonesian pastors to use them as tools for evangelism.]]> Mon, 18 Dec 2006 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[When God Makes A Point]]>
After speaking on Mark 1:16-20, where Jesus called the four fishermen to follow him, two things happened. First, one young man approached me about taking charge of the music ministry! Second, an Argentine doctor married to an American businessmen had a dramatic encounter with God.

As I asked to what point people would obey Jesus’ call to follow, mentioning opportunities in Africa, Asia, and Afghanistan, Margarita felt someone kicking her chair. She was very irritated that someone would be so rude and turned around to ask them to stop. But there was no one for two rows! When asked what she was thinking when the kicking sensation started, she said she had just told God if he wanted, she’d be willing to go to Afghanistan! ]]> Wed, 19 Nov 2008 20:49:47 GMT <![CDATA[With Thankfulness]]>
Rosaria is the newest member in God's family.She has had a difficult life and praises the Lord that she now knows Christ. Ciro led Rosaria to the Lord and our believers are beginning to reproduce disciples. Angelo led a lady to the Lord Sunday afternoon. She didn't know that salvation is a free gift. She thought she had to merit God's grace by doing good works. She was welcomed into God's family and will start attending church in order to grow.

Our leaders express a desire to grow in the Lord. We will be looking at J.C. Ryle's book, Holiness. I will translate parts of this as a daily meditation. These men will then pass the teaching on to the people they disciple. Praise the Lord for His work in us and through us.
]]> Mon, 22 Dec 2008 18:54:32 GMT <![CDATA[Women of Wirira]]>
All of the women of this village have suffered brutal rape, most have witnessed the violent deaths of their husbands and some of their children in the genocide of 1994. Most are HIV positive. Their lives are overwhelmed with sorrow and suffering.

Heaping insult on injury, to have been raped in this cultural context is a huge shame.

They handle this shame by keeping it secret. The very thing that would help them — i.e. sharing it and receiving support — is not a social option. Joseph says the women are weak both in body, because of injuries and the HIV infection, and in faith.

As we drove, Joseph elaborated on the plight of the women. Marriage is difficult because of the numbers of women who survived compared to the men. Men can be more picky about marriage. Men in this area have been known to refuse to marry women outside their tribe because they won’t cook enough potatoes for them.

Justice, also, is difficult to find. The gacaca — or local justice process — going on weekly across Rwanda fails these women because of the cultural restrains on exposing the crime of rape. If a man confesses before gacaca that he has murdered, he may be released into the community. But if he confesses rape, he will surely go to jail for life. Thus the men do not confess that they have raped. At the same time, women do not accuse the men because of the public disgrace of being raped.

The conference covered many days but some significant moments deserve highlighting.

One afternoon we took time to draw their trauma itself. The women choose what they will draw, and during this time they worked alone, and quiet. Later, we gathered in a circle again to share their stories.

"The pain washes over me as I discipline myself to continue to listen and enter in. We weep together," I later noted in my journal.

The next day, we continued the stories, painfully, quietly. Then I begin sharing a psalm, Psalm 13. It is a song of lament and it is very fitting. “How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and every day have sorrow in my heart?”

We talked about how David cried out to God, sharing his feelings freely. We noticed how David expected God to bring the help, and in the last lines, he expressed his confidence that God will not fail him — “But I trust in your unfailing love …” I asked the women to gather in small groups of three to four, and write their own laments to God following the same pattern.

Later again we gathered and the women read them. Again we wept.

We continued to read Scripture that reminds the women that they are loved by God, precious to him, and strengthened by him. I asked them to remind each other that they are loved, they are precious in God’s sight, he gives them strength, and he promises to be with them.

Immediately, I noticed an excitement and laughter in the room as they turn to each other to share this.

I went around the circle, taking hands with each, hugging them, telling them “You are loved. You are precious to God. He will give you strength.” Then in classic African style we danced and sang together for awhile.

The rest of the week continued in deep investigation of the hurt and pain that these women carry. Story after story of the anger, abandonment, and humiliation they have felt. Even, thoughts against God, wondering why he let this happen to them and why, if he loved them, would he not have stopped it. We counted the children they had lost and the ones that remain among them and the orphans many of the women have taken into their home.

Then unexpectedly, Joseph, asked to speak to the women. He had shared with me that he felt quite broken, hearing the women's stories, and their awful pain. He is a Hutu man, and wanted to ask their forgiveness for what has been done to them.

After he shared this, the women eagerly forgave him, and extend to him their trust and their love.

Thank God for the healing going on in Rwanda. Please, pray for more tenderness and honesty among the innumerable victimized and suffering of this country.]]> Mon, 05 Mar 2007 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[WorldVenture Day of Prayer]]>
 Pray for redemptive relationships, that those who are hearing the gospel and seeing it demonstrated before them in acts of mercy will be sensitive to the Spirit's call. Pray that national leaders will be courageous, bold in the Spirit, and that they would grow in love and knowledge. Pray that many more Christians in the States and around the world will develop a deeper commitment to missions, sharing the passion of Christ himself "to seek and to save that which is lost." Pray that the work of God would not suffer for lack of generosity on the part of his people. Pray for powerful ministry partnerships and for the transformed lives that result, as God continues to lead us together. We invite all who share in the ministry to join us as we intercede together.]]> Thu, 17 May 2007 09:00:00 GMT <![CDATA[Yaya's Story]]>
It was a Wednesday morning when a 13-year-old boy came to our gate to ask for work. He said he was from Côte d’Ivoire, his parents were dead, he’d been sleeping at the truck stop for a week, and had infectious injuries on both shins. We tried to find out the truth of his stories.

As he talked to our houseworkers or Pastor Youssouf, we’d compare notes and find that things didn’t add up. We invested as little money as possible, not wanting to get scammed by a young thief, yet wanting to help this obviously needy young man get a good meal each day and find some support.

For two days he did yard work at the church camp, but when he wanted to take his earnings to buy pants, instead of food or medical help, we were left scratching our heads. Pastor found a room for him to rent, and we decided to take it a month at a time. After Pastor took him to pay the first month’s rent, a woman across the street flagged them down, saying she knew the boy and his family. It turned out that he was the grandson of a neighborhood chief in Kadiolo, his parents had died, but his uncles and grandmother had been caring for him since he was little. He had a nice home and certain advantages and village honor.

Pastor invited his uncle to come with them to our house to sort it all out. The boy, named Yaya, his uncle, Pastor Youssouf, Marikot our yardman, and Freddy, who is the youth group leader at church, sat together and heard the whole story. It turns out that Yaya, who was top of his 6th grade class, had stolen a chicken and sold it for pocket change and been prosecuted by the owner. He’d spent two days in the local jail and his family had been forced to pay a large amount for the chicken and the fine. He started skipping school because he was embarrassed that everyone knew about his jail visit. The school director talked to his family, but they didn’t know where to find him. They were glad when Pastor showed up with him a week later.

At our house on Saturday, we all talked about making life choices, and how he’d seen the bad road he was on. We encouraged him to pursue God’s road and become a man of God, honorable and just in the community. He already had many earthly advantages, but hadn’t seen them or taken advantage of them. He needed to see the rewards God gives for following him. We asked him to come to church the next day and to youth group that afternoon. His uncle was in agreement on that, seeing that we Christians had taken care of him. We all prayed together and we offered to give him a Bible on Sunday if he came to church. Which he did! And to youth group that afternoon.

We were away most of the week at meetings, but when we returned, Saturday morning Yaya was waiting to greet us and ask some questions. Marikot was at the house working, and very clearly answered his questions in his language. Yaya said he wanted to follow Jesus and together we led him in a prayer of acceptance of Jesus as his Saviour. Praise the Lord!

The next day, he was at church again with his new Bible, marked clearly with his name. He asked to borrow a songbook so he could join in the music. We pray that Yaya will continue to grow in faith and make good choices based on God’s Word, and that his changed life will be a witness to his uncle and grandmother, and others who may be watching how things work out for those who follow Jesus.]]> Fri, 13 Jan 2006 09:00:00 GMT