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Transcript of Global Harvest, Volume 4
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Global HarvestA Mission Information Magazine
for
Churches of Christ
Editor: Wayne Barrier
Founding Editor:
J.C. Choate
Associate Editor,
Design, Lay-out:
Betty Burton Choate
Publishers:
J.C. Choate Publications/
World Literature Publications
Team Members and Contact Information:Wayne and Janet Barrier: 3000 County Road 10, Flor-
ence, AL 35633; Phone: 256-766-2807; Email: wbarrier@
highwaay.net
Betty (J. C.) Choate: 708 Burton Drive, Winona, MS
38967; Ph. 662-283-1192; Email, Choate@WorldEvange-
lism.org; Website: WorldEvangelism.org
Byron and Gay Nichols: P.O. Box 11218, Springfi eld, MO
65808; Phone: 417-823-4918; Email: [email protected]
Jerry and Paula Bates: P.O. Box 172, Winona, MS 38967;
Ph. 870-897-2373; Email: [email protected]
Louis and Bonnie Rushmore: 705 Devine St., Winona,
MS 38967; Ph: 662-739-3035; Email: rushmore@Gospel-
Gazette.com; Website: GospelGazette.com
Rafael and Kattia Barrantes: 19 Standridge Cv., Jackson TN
38305. Phone: 731-267-32 Email: [email protected]
We have been asked if “World Evangelism” is a “para
church” organization, doing the work of the church. Please
let us make it clear that “world evangelism” is simply an
identifying designation that we have found useful, dating
from the years when we printed a report/newspaper by
that name. As the work had grown and others added their
We invite submission of feature and report articles from biblically-sound brethren, along with
colored photographs, for inclusion in future issues of Global Harvest.
Disclaimer: We believe that we must answer to God for what we teach and promote. It is our
purpose to be biblical in all that we do and, to the best of our knowledge, we will not promote
in these pages the work of unsound brethren. Because we cannot personally know all that anyone
believes and teaches, we ask your help in guarding against unknowingly publicizing those who are
either liberal or fanatical. If such material is inadvertantly printed, we ask your understanding
and cooperation.
energies to those of
J.C. and Betty Choate,
something other than
a personal identifi ca-
tion had to be made.
But we are still simply
individual brethren who
have individual spon-
soring congregations,
while choosing to work
together in order to
multiply our talents and
effectiveness. Our plea
to the world is that we
all go back to the New
Testament for every-
thing that we teach, and
we certainly would not
want to do anything that
would violate the pat-
tern there.
It is the work of the
church to evangelize the
world. Let us do that.
at
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Global Harvest Volume 4 Fall, 2010
Editorialsu Becoming Global in our Vision........Wayne Barrier......6
u The Power of Evangelism.............J.C. Choate..............7
Articlesu Jesus Christ the Eternal Sacrifi ce .............................4
u Alert to Doors of Opportunity.........Glover Shipp........21
u Mission Vision............George W. Hall.........................32
u Why Aren’t Churches Standing in Line?...L. West.....36
u The Crisis Before Us.........Roger Dickson...................41
u Lifetime Guarantee!...........Betty B. Choate................83
Reports from Team Membersu Church Growth in India Today.....Jerry Bates............8
u The World Evangelism Team......Louis Rushmore.......9
u A Global Tool...............................Byron Nichols.........11
u World Evangelism School of Missions........................13
u Maywood Missionary Retreat......................................15
u A Good Time Was Had by All....................................16
u Tracts and Overseas Containers?...............................19
u Spanish Voice of Truth International........................24
Gleaning from the FieldsNorth America
u Dorcas in Tennessee....................................................12
u You’ve Got About 3 Mnutes.......Eileen Shaver...........14
u Silently Suffering....................Ronnie Crocker............17
u A Strong Word of Commendation................................17
u ChristianCourier.com..............Wayne Jackson...........18
u House to House.........................Matt Wallin................19
u The Master’s Wall...............Sandi Rog........................19
u Polishing the Pulpit.............Matt Wallin.......................22
u Victory in Christ at Bogalusa, LA...Mike Price..........23
u Lads to Leaders..............Roy Johnson.........................24
u SEARCH.............Phil Sanders and Mack Lyon...........25
u Reaching Our Hispanic World....Paul Swanson..........27
u World Video Bible School............................................28
u Gospel Broadcasting Network....................................28
u Somers Ave. World Bible School....F. Stinebaugh.......29
Central and South Americau Haiti Christian Development......Dr.David Smith........30
u Biblical Institute of Central America...G. Hall..........33
u Fernanda Is Baptized........J. Randal Matheny............34
u “Volante” Evangelism........Troy Spradlin...................34
u Missionary Trip to Iquitos........Helmut Garcia...........35
Europeu Mission to Ukraine................Jim Sherman..................37
u A Taste of Heaven..............Roy Davidson....................38
u France.........................Charles White............................39
u Romania’s Needs...........Harvey Starling......................39
Middle Eastu A Persian Shepherd and His Sheep....Don Petty.........40
u The Rose Hill Church........Sylvio Salomon.................40
Africau Changing Earth — Touching Heaven....Ruth Orr......43
u Counting the Cost of Discipleship....Ron Pottberg......45
u Whom Shall We Fear?..........Doug Wheeler................46
u Child Witches....................Larry D. Mathis..................48
u Churches in the Democratic Republic...Doyle Kee....48
u God at Work in Bujambura, Barundi....Doyle Kee.....49
u Denominational Preacher Converted...K. Odogwu 50
u 17 Years of Labor...............Steve Worley......................51
u A Christian Brother Dies..........Steve Worley..............52
u The Power of the Printed Page.......S. Imogoh.............53
Indian Sub-Continentu Historically, the First Church........Sunny David........55
u N. India’s Preachers’ Lectureship.....Earnest Gill......56
u Impact of TV in India...............Joshua Gootam...........57
u On the Road with Arjunan and Glory.......................59
u J.C. School of Evangelism....Philemon and Kingsly...60
u Vignettes of Trivandrum............P.K. Varghese...........62
u Annual Summer Bible Camp.....S. Rajanayagam........63
u Mission Trip to Bihar..................Vernon Douglas.......65
u Travel with P.R. Swamy................................................76
Asiau Chinese Agape Foundation..........................................66
u I Can Take the Gospel to China...................................67
u The Final Push............................Robert Martin...........68
u Papua New Guinea.................Jab Mesa.......................70
u Sonlight in the Pacifi c.................Randy English............71
u The Missing Link..................Priscilla Sellers................72
u Praying with Expectation........Demar Elam.................73
u Trials and Love.....................Dominador Belo..............74
u Salvador Cariaga’s Goat Project..................................75
u A Plea from Sunrise Christian Orphan Home............75
u Voice from Micronesia.............Scott Shanahan.............77
u Campaign in Australia and NZ...Kent O’Donnell......78
u Mission Team to New Zealand.....Kevin Moore..........80
u A Refreshing Approach to Evangelism....Ian Terry......81
Table of Contents
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4 Global Harvest
A little quiz from the pages..1, What kind of work have the ladies of the Acton
church chosen to do to help destitute children?
2. The new book, LEST WE FORGET, tells of the
work of missionaries of the church during what time?
3. What question does Eileen Shaver ask visitors to
the U.S. Capitol?
4. Name three things the adults and young people
from the Central church in Cleveland, TN did when
they worked in Winona recently.
5. What kind of work does Ronnie Crocker do?
6. Into how many homes is “House to House” sent
each time it is printed?
7.What is the name of the program that has been so
successful in teaching young people in the church?
8. Who are the two speakers on the longest-running
TV program in the church?
9. Have Christians responded well to the needs in Haiti?
10. Who attacked ------------ with machetes?
11. Who was killed in Jos, Nigeria by a Muslim mob?
12. What did Augustine Agwulor learn from a piece
of trash?
13. How did the people in a Presbyterian church in
Shillong, Assam, India learn the truth?
14. What do students in the J.C. School of Evange-
lism learn to do?
15. Are there people today who have the disease of
leprosy?
16. Besides English and local languages, name two
other languages spoken in the Pacifi c Islands.
17. What kind of “Lifetime Guarantee” do Christians
have?
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Global Harvest 5
We Need Your Help! In order to make Global Harvest the informative, useful, and inspiring magazine we envision, we
must have input from brethren, churches, and program projects throughout the brotherhood and all over the
world. We will try to make you aware of services available and of needs you might help to cover.
We need four things from our readers/participants: (1) Your name, address, phone number, and e-mail address.
(2) Submissions of articles (with accompanying high quality color photos; if sent over the internet, pho-
tos must be at least 200 dpi and 4x5 in size). Articles need to be story-form, rather than general ‘report’ form;
they need to focus on a particular event, specifi c method of work, some turn of events, an exemplary person,
etc. Writing should be succinct, professionally done, without exaggerations or embellishment of truth to make
a more exciting story, allowing 750 to 1000 words for one page, preferably 11 pt., “Times New Roman”.
(3) Please understand that we cover services made available through brethren, of printing, magazines,
and various programs of work. We do not solicit or accept paid advertisements.
(4) At this time it is our intention to print Global Harvest twice yearly, in the interest of helping bre-
tren to be more aware of what is being done and of what needs to be done. Financial support will be greatly
appreciated from brethren who will make a personal donation to receive the magazine individually, and
from congregations that will pay for bundles to be supplied to their members.
Individual donation: $5.00 per copy
Congregational donation: $75.00 per 25 copies;
$125.00 per 50 copies
Jesus Christ the Eternal Sacri! ceJohn 1:1-3 identifi es
One of the Godhead as
“the Word”, saying that He
was with God in the begin-
ning and that He was God.
Then verse 14 explains that
He was made fl esh — Je-
sus Christ.
Romans 8:17 declares
that we are children of God
through the Sonship of Je-
sus Christ, and that we will be joint-heirs with Christ,
eternally.
Have you thought about the extremes in these
descriptions of the beginning of the eternal picture for
the Word, and of His existence after the judgment, the
other end of the eternal picture?
What monumental things happened between
these two situations, to make such a change? What
do these things mean, in relation to the existence of
Christ? What did our salvation really cost the God-
head? Was it 33 years, for the Word, in a borrowed
body, and then the release from that body in death?
Consider these questions:
F Do we see the Word in the Old Testament period?
F He is called “the Son of God”, yet it was through the over-
shadowing of the Holy Spirit that He was conceived. Why?
F He emptied Himself — of what?
F He was given the Holy Spirit at the time of His baptism —
“God given to God — why would that be necessary?”
F Through Whose power did He do His miracles?
F How was He “made in all things like His brethren”?
F While on the earth, sometimes He knew what people were
thinking, and sometimes He asked for information. Was He not
omniscient, as One of the Godhead?
F Was His human fear of suffering and death what caused His
agony in the Garden? Was He 100% God and 100% man?
F What does it mean that after the judgment, He will turn the
Kingdom over to God, and will Himself be subject to God?
These are some of the questions dealt with in the book, Jesus
Christ the Eternal Sacrifi ce. There is much more involved in
the study of our Lord than a review of His parables, His miracles,
and His confrontations with the Jewish leaders of His day. You
are invited to look into these questions, to focus for awhile on God
Himself, rather than on “myself as I relate to God”. The book is
$6.00 a copy, money back if you are not satisfi ed. 662-283-1192.
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6 Global Harvest
The past 30 years have been a pe-
riod of great change all across the world.
In 1980, communism was a major force
used to rule two massive populations of
people in China and the Soviet Union.
These two nations shared superpower
status with the United States and were
considered by most of the world to be
serious threats to freedom and national
security. It seemed that their reach and
power would only grow stronger and
that they would gather other nations into
their sphere of infl uence and control.
The United States was generally
regarded as the greatest superpower,
with ability to protect its sovereignty
and way of life. Changes started to oc-
cur. Both the Soviet Union and China
moved away from traditional commu-
nism. Their expansion into other coun-
tries stopped. Their economies moved
in the direction of market driven sys-
tems to replace the communist-style
command economy. As we entered the
21st century, the United States seemed
to be all alone as a superpower. China
became a major player in international
trade and the United States market was
one of its best customers.
Change continued to occur. The
New York World Trade Center destruc-
tion at the hands of Muslim extremists
in 2001 revealed another threat to global
security and freedom. The last ten years
have been infl uenced by this threat. The
United States economy has struggled as
this threat has been addressed. China
has grown a massive economy and is an
economic world power now.
Almost every successful big busi-
ness has had to become global in itsfi eld
of reach. Small businesses in America
are the backbone of our overall eco-
nomic system, but large corporations
are needed to connect our local needs
with global resources and markets.
Raw materials from foreign countries
are essential to the production of many
everyday goods needed by everyone.
Successful businesses must know how
to operate in a global system of market-
ing, communications, production, and
logistics. Even small businesses with
very local markets must offer products
made halfway around the world. They
must know how to provide customer
service on products made far away
from the United States, and they have
made the necessary changes to operate
in this way.
What does all of this have to do
with world evangelism and the church?
I believe the church has failed to adapt
as quickly as we should to changes in
the global environment. Our message
never changes, but the most effective
way to get the message to all the world
can change. We have resources today
that can be used to help spread the Gos-
pel that were not available in the past.
We should use these resources. Let’s
consider some things we could do.
First, every Christian and congre-
gation of the church should think glob-
ally when considering their work. Our
mission has always been global. Jesus
commanded His people to take the Gos-
pel to “every person in every nation”
(Matthew 28:19,20; Mark 16:15,16).
We can do a much better job of design-
ing our evangelism efforts to reach all
the world. Businesses depend on their
ability to operate in a global economy to
survive and make a profi t. We can think
globally, too. That doesn’t mean that we
neglect efforts to grow and edify locally,
but it simply means that our “mission
work” program within the local congre-
gation should incorporate methods to be
effective as a global effort.
What are the methods and approach-
es that are important for a mission effort
to be “global”? What do businesses do?
Businesses make certain that the global
community knows about their product.
They do this by employing mass market-
ing methods. Businesses know how to
communicate with masses. We should
evaluate proposed mission efforts that
we would support to make certain that
they are designed to reach masses. The
church has limited resources for its
world-wide outreach, so we must be
careful to use them effectively. Both
individual efforts and overall programs
should meet this criteria.
Too often we fund expensive mis-
sion programs that are poorly designed
and doomed to failure before they even
start. Spreading the Gospel certainly
involves individual teaching and com-
munication, but the personal contact
should be a component of an overall ef-
Continued on page 12
Editorial:
Becoming Global
in Our VisionWayne Barrier
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Global Harvest 7
As our Lord was preparing to re-
turn to His Father in heaven, He spoke
the words that have come down to us
as “the Great Commission”. This was
His command to weak, failing human
beings to take up His unfi nished work
of salvation and to carry the news of
what He had done to every creature in
all the world. Have you ever wondered
why Jesus gave that huge responsibil-
ity to humans and not to angels? The
angels could have simply appeared as
humans, and they could have untiring-
ly and ceaselessly carried the message,
without fail, to every soul. In contrast,
humans have obeyed the commission
only once since it was given. Repeat-
edly, we have failed our Lord. So why
did He entrust the greatest treasure of
the ages in our weak hands?
Stop and consider: Who learns more
from the studies in a class, the teacher
or the student? And when a Christian is
studying God’s Word, as he is teaching
some lost and erring soul, who does the
most extensive studying and learning
and growing? The teacher!
Does that explain why Jesus en-
trusted the Gospel in our hands? He
knew that the surest way to keep new-
borns in the kingdom, growing and se-
cure in Him, was to give them the work
of teaching others! As we teach and
pray, we grow, regardless of how that
soul out in the world responds.
Yes, the Lord’s church has been giv-
en a great work to do. That work is to
evangelize the world. Jesus commanded
the apostles, and all of us who came af-
ter them to “go into all the world and
preach the Gospel to every creature”
(Mark 16:15, 16).
The Gospel is the good news that Je-
sus died on the cross for the sins of the
world, that He was buried, and that He
was resurrected from the grave, so that
man might be saved and have the hope
of eternal life. Christ said that it was the
facts of that Gospel — the facts of that
good news — that were to be taken to
all the world. He also said that the com-
mands of the Gospel were to be preached
and obeyed if man was to be saved.
Individual Christians exist as the
Lord’s church in a city or a village, and
throughout the world, wherever the
Gospel has been preached and there are
those who have been willing to obey
it. With the conversion of two or more,
a local congregation is formed, and it
begins to function as a body of God’s
people. In addition to meeting each
fi rst day of the week to worship, its
main work is to evangelize, to preach
the Gospel to those in that area, and as
it grows in knowledge and numbers, it
is to reach out to the whole area in an
effort to establish other congregations.
The group of Christians that make
up a local congregation should never be
satisfi ed to just meet on the fi rst day of
the week to worship. Worship is very
important, as well as living the daily
Christian life, teaching and edifying
each other, and being a compassionate
element in the community to help those
in need, but each Christian — the local
congregation itself — should be very
much aware of the opportunity and the
responsibility to take the Gospel to their
family members, to friends, to those
with whom they work, and to people
in general. “But as we have been ap-
proved by God to be entrusted with the
Gospel, even so we speak, not as pleas-
ing men, but God who tests our hearts”
(1 Thessalonians 2:4). “For though I
preach the Gospel, I have nothing to
glory of: for necessity is laid upon me;
yea, woe is unto me, if I preach not the
Gospel!” (1 Corinthians 9:16)
When the church is busy taking
the Gospel to others then it is happy,
it has a mission, it has plans and goals
to reach the lost, and as a result the
congregation will grow both spiritually
and numerically. That’s God’s plan.
Are you a Christian? If so, what
are you doing? Are you teaching God’s
Word to those around you? Have you
converted anyone? What are your
plans for the future?
As a member of the Lord’s
church, a member of a local con-
gregation, what is that congrega-
tion doing? What efforts is it mak-
ing to take the Gospel to others? Is
the church growing? Is it establish-
ing other congregations in the area
around where you live? What plans
does it have for the future?
May God help us to do more to
take the Gospel to the world. This
is the hope of mankind. This is your
hope and my hope. U
The Power of Evangelism
J.C.Choate
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8 Global Harvest
About the fi rst of April my wife and I returned from In-
dia. Due to a family emergency we had to cut this trip short.
Nevertheless, it was a busy and profi table time. During the
trip, we witnessed 29 people immersed into Christ, which is
the most of any of our trips thus far. Those responses simply
emphasize how the native people with whom we labor are
out working trying to teach others the truth. We are only
privileged to see a few results of those labors. Since we
returned, we have received reports of several more that have
obeyed the Gospel.
Fifteen of those baptisms occurred when we were with
the Gootams. On the very last day we were there, Ricky and
I traveled north about two hours, leaving Paula behind to take
care of some business and to teach a ladies’ class. We visited
an independent denominational church in Pulugogulapadu, a
small rural village. The preacher in that location had been
listening to Joshua Gootam on the TV for about one year. He
had also traveled to Kakinada to study with him, and he want-
ed someone to come and preach to his congregation. This
was Friday at midday and a small crowd of 25 had gathered
in a shelter that served as the church building. I preached on
the identifying marks of the church for about two hours, in-
cluding translation. After the lesson, 13 people wanted to be
baptized, along with the preacher and his wife. There was no
water nearby, so we had to travel to a canal a few miles away
to immerse the people. It took a while to make the arrange-
ments, but to see the special event in the dirty waters of the
canal, knowing that a new congregation of the Lord’s church
had just been established, made the effort worthwhile.
We also worked with Philemon Rajah and the J.C. School
of Evangelism. This school is achieving amazing results.
Sessions are now being held in two locations, and we were
able to teach at the new location for two days. Philemon
handled the other two days until we were able to arrive. The
students at this location are busy working for the kingdom.
The preacher for that congregation is attempting to establish
a new congregation in a nearby village. There is an inde-
pendent denominational group with whom he is studying,
and we had a Gospel meeting with them one night. Again, I
preached on the identifying marks of the church, and it was
well received. The preacher for this group commented after
the lesson that he had never heard such things before, but
that he would continue to study. Pray that the truth will fall
upon good and honest hearts. More requests for the school
are coming from several locations. It is certainly rewarding
to know the school is being so well received and is achieving
great results.
During this abbreviated trip, our main focus was on the
schools associated with Bear Valley. Schools have proven
to probably be one of the most effective ways of spreading
the Gospel in most countries. Educating people in their own
language and culture, by their own people, is unquestionably
the cheapest and best way in most situations. The results
of a school compared with the work of a located mission-
ary, as has often been practiced in the past, are incredible. Let
me give one illustration. Andrew Connelly worked in Tan-
zania for about 32 years, and during that time he established
two congregations with a total membership of about fi fty. The
school that bears his name was begun about 12 years ago. It is
now associated with Bear Valley, although initially it was not.
During those years the school has graduated about 90 men.
These men have since begun approximately 70 congregations
and baptized roughly 5,000 people. In most places we are able
to train 15 men or so for less than $2,000 a month.
The school in Vishak, India is going well. They have nearly
fi nished the second fl oor of their building, which will include a
classroom, library, a sleeping room for the students as well as a
room for visiting teachers. This extra room is much needed as
Church Growth in IndiaJerry and Paula Bates
Continued on page 10
Jerry Bates with students in the school in Takoradi, Ghana.
The baptism of converts in Pulugogulapadu.
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Global Harvest 9
If every member of the Lord’s church were a mission-
ary, there are not enough Christians to take the Gospel of
Christ personally to the over six billion souls inhabiting our
planet. Consequently, mass evangelism must play a crucial
role in fulfi lling the Great Commission of Christ for each
generation to evangelize the world. Yet, mass evangelism
alone is an inadequate response to the Great Commission.
There are several components of especially effective foreign
evangelism that complement each other when used together.
For instance, neither radio, television, Internet, literature,
campaigns, benevolence, schools, orphanages, building pro-
grams abroad nor vocational programs individually are as
effective as combining some of these to increase the likeli-
hood of satisfactorily evangelizing a foreign fi eld with the
Gospel.
The World Evangelism Team refers to several mission-
aries who, along with their respective sponsoring congrega-
tions, voluntarily cooperate to implement this philosophy
in taking the Gospel throughout the world.
Mass evangelism leads off the World Evangelism ap-
proach to taking the Gospel effectively to the foreign fi eld.
This includes extensive radio and literature, plus television
and the Internet. Numerous radio programs weekly in a vari-
ety of languages garner hundreds of thousands of respons-
es annually. Brethren native to various Asian countries who
have matured in the Lord’s church over the past fi ve decades
follow up these radio responses with various kinds of lit-
erature and personal contact, resulting in several thousand
conversions per year. Worthy of notice, the foreign brethren
with whom we labor take the third part of the Great Commission
in Matthew 28:19-20 more seriously than their counterparts, es-
pecially in America; they as enthusiastically and tirelessly teach
new converts as they do teach candidates for conversion, which
results in a 75% to 80% retention rate and more rapid maturation
of new Christians.
Bible Schools in various nations, each adapted to local
circumstances, stabilize and contribute to future growth of
the Lord’s church. World Evangelism team members equip
brothers and sisters in Christ to know God’s Word more per-
fectly, encourage foreign brethren to evangelize their fellow
countrymen and teach them how to exercise correct biblical
interpretation for themselves; we teach and urge develop-
ment of self-suffi ciency — instead of fostering a never-end-
ing dependency on American Christians.
Campaigns for six to eight weeks at a time twice (or
more) yearly to several countries, especially in Asia, but also
in Africa and South America, provide for seminars and staff-
ing of Bible schools. These occasions heighten the knowl-
edge of God’s Word in those Christian brothers and sisters
whose task it is to take the Gospel to their respective nations.
Internet websites and television programs augment
forms of mass evangelism mentioned already. The Internet
affords opportunity to disseminate the Word of God in parts
of the world where either it may be impossible to physically
take the Gospel or where the Internet provides additional re-
sources. Gospel Gazette Online (www.Gospelgazette.com)
is now in its 12th year of publication; it is published monthly
The World Evangelism TeamLouis Rushmore
J Ahti, a Burmese brother, teaching across the border of Tibet, in China.
Continued on page 10Louis giving a tract to a Catholic lady in Bangalore.
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10 Global Harvest
and thousands of articles are archived. Readers from every continent, including Antarctica, have responded. Television programs air in some metropolitan areas of India, in Tamil, Telugu, and Malayalam languages.
Literature is an important puzzle piece of comprehen-
sive world evangelism. In addition to the benefi ts of Bible
correspondence courses, tracts and books provide much
needed printed resources that are ready whenever, wherever
readers are ready. J.C. and Betty Choate wrote or published
hundreds of books over the preceding decades, specifi cally
useful for growing Christians on the foreign mission fi eld.
Despite the passing of brother Choate, hundreds of titles
continue to be available, with new titles being added to ex-
pand the educational materials for use, stateside and abroad.The fl agship of World Evangelism literature is The
Voice of Truth International magazine, which goes into 80 countries in English, and it is available in Spanish, Telegu, Tamil and Braille. Tens of thousands of copies are printed quarterly. Each issue is a veritable library of biblical themes. Additional monthly magazines in various languages are printed in smaller quantities, plus books and Bible courses in various languages of India and Myanmar.
Some forms of mass evangelism that seem to have
less usefulness to western societies (e.g., radio and litera-
ture), are still very effective in many foreign mission fi elds.
An estimated 10 to 35 people may read each piece of litera-
ture, and re-read it until it is worried to pieces. Last year in
one instance, a brother in Myanmar to whom I gave $100,
printed 1,000 copies of my tract, The One True Church of
the Bible, in the Lisu Chinese language on glossy paper
with two colors of ink, plus 1,000 in the Rwang Chinese
language. Then, he purchased a bus ticket to mainland
China, rented a hall, advertised and taught the tract to the
Chinese souls who assembled to hear about Jesus Christ
and His church. Doubtless, everyone commends the bang
for the buck that our brother squeezed out of $100. Subse-
quently, my prayer to God has been that He providentially
provides me $100,000 per year for the explicit purpose of
printing tracts for Asia! The World Evangelism Team in America resides in
Missouri, Mississippi, Alabama and North Carolina, be-sides additional missionaries in other places with whom we interact. The brethren are many with whom we labor side by side overseas. World Evangelism offers a comprehen-sive approach to foreign evangelism through voluntary cooperation of Christian men, women and sister con-
gregations. To God be the glory! U
Continued from page 9
The World Evangelism Team
presently the teachers have to stay in a hotel about thirty min-
utes away from the school. Transporting the visiting teachers
is thus expensive and time consuming. Future plans include
making this school a hub for other schools. John Dean and his
father, Samuel Raju, think they can attract many English-speak-
ing students from several other states in India, most of which
have relatively few Christians and no schools. We hope to train
these men in Vishak, and then they can go and begin churches
and schools in their home states, thus greatly spreading God’s
kingdom in many more places than has been achieved thus far
in the history of the church in India.
In conjunction with the brethren at Bear Valley, we are
working towards establishing three more schools in India
within the next year or so. We are currently talking with three
men to direct these schools, two of whom the Choates have
worked for many years, and Philemon Rajah introduced us
to the other one. The three proposed locations are Bangalore,
Mumbai, and Trivandrum, in three different language groups.
The last two weeks in May I traveled to Takoradi, Ghana,
teaching in the Bear Valley school in that location. This ap-
pears to be a great school. I had 20 students in my class, and
all but one was already preaching in various congregations.
A few of the students go to preach in a refugee camp about
a couple of hours drive from Takoradi. It is a deplorable
situation in that camp. As you might expect, all of the resi-
dents there are in deep poverty, having fl ed their homes in
various countries due to civil war. One of the students was
forced to leave his home country of Liberia when he was
17. He reported losing several members of his family. After
graduation, he plans to return to Liberia and help spread the
church in that war-torn country. That is a great sacrifi ce on
his part, going back to the place of such hardship and heart-
ache, as well as limited opportunities to make a living. We
are blessed in many ways, but knowing that we have never
had to face such confl icts is surely one of the best. May we
never forget those blessings. U
Continued from page 8
Church Growth in India
The classroom in Takoradi.
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Global Harvest 11
A Global ToolByron Nichols
From the very fi rst issue of The
Voice of Truth International one of
our major points of emphasis was to
produce a magazine that would be
benefi cial to both Christians and non-
Christians, as well as to both American
and foreign readers.
Another of our purposes was to
create a publication that would be
helpful to brethren in other countries in
their efforts to print smaller magazines
for their special use. Our intention
was to make available to them a larger
volume that would have a good vari-
ety of articles and subjects so that they
could then reproduce into their smaller
publications some of the ones that they
deemed most suitable and potentially
benefi cial for their readers.
This effort has defi nitely proved
to be a success. Especially in India,
but in other countries as well, breth-
ren have very gratefully been able to
take advantage of this opportunity to
enhance their printed evangelism and
edifi cation endeavors. Many are work-
ing with enough English speaking and
reading people that they do not have to
do any translating of the articles.
Thousands of free copies of each
quarterly issue of The Voice of Truth
International are being sent around the
world, with some of them going into
areas where it is advantageous for the
material to be translated into the local
languages. This is quite a task, but it is
not undertaken for the entire contents
of an English edition. Usually only rel-
atively small portions of the magazine
are translated for greater distribution in
a given area.
The printed page continues to be
one of the most powerful teaching tools
available to man, and it will undoubt-
edly remain in that category for many
years to come. May the Lord help His
people to judiciously use our resourc-
es to His glory and to the saving of the
lost. U
A recent convert in Timisoara, Ro-mania, reading The Voice of Truth.
Many of the articles for the monthly magazines published in India are drawn from the pages of The Voice of Truth International.
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12 Global Harvest
fort involving mass communication.
For programs to be designed that
can function as needed there must be
effective cooperation between congre-
gations and individuals. Consider the
level and types of cooperation employed
by the apostle Paul in his effort to take
the Gospel to the non-Jewish world.
Paul worked with a team of over
three dozen direct co-workers, plus nu-
merous other cooperating individuals.
Many congregations were involved in
his work, and local Christians were left
to carry on the outreach after the “mis-
sionaries” had gone on to other places.
We can do the same thing today. We
must work together. This requires trust,
commitment to the mission, love for
one another, and a burning desire to
please God by reaching all of the lost
with the Gospel.
Paul’s mission efforts involved
extensive travel. These fi rst-century
workers walked, rode horses, and
sailed on ships. They traveled under
whatever conditions and in whatever
ways were necessary to reach all the
world. Travel today is very different
than in the past. We can inexpensively
go to the other side of the world in a
day. Some of us go, but too often we
stop and stay in one place. Fifty years
ago when the church in many places
was just being established, that method
was more needful. Today, it may not al-
ways be the best use of our time and ef-
fort. With fast and inexpensive means
of travel, we can go, according to the
situation, to encourage and strengthen
the follow-up mass communication
efforts of our local brethren, many of
whom have now been Christians for 30
and 40 years.
Finally, we need to train networks
of partners throughout our area of reach.
These partners would be local brethren.
They should be taught and trained to work
with us and others as a team. This com-
ponent of a global effort seems to be very
diffi cult for us. We personally enjoy the
basic teaching of the Gospel and preach-
ing. Training others to be communicators
of the Gospel is diffi cult work. This effort
requires skills that many of our mission
personnel do not possess. We need to de-
velop the ability to do this task. We must
have local co-workers, and we must trust
them to function without our supervision
if a “global” teaching effort is to succeed.
Businesses do this today. We can, too.
Our “business” as the Lord’s church
is the most important in the world.
Hundreds of millions of untaught souls
are at stake, and even our souls are at
stake. We’ve been told to do a job and
it is not done, but we can do it. God
will bless us and our efforts. His hand
of provision will guarantee that the out-
come is good if our work is according
to His will. We know His will. Let’s
pray that we can work together as never
before to reach the lost today. U
Becoming Global in Our Vision
Continued from page 6
Several of the sisters of the Acton, TN Church of Christ work diligently, cutting and sewing clothes for children in underprivileged countries. They recently sent several hundred pants, shirts, and dresses to Haiti, for earth-quake victims there.
Dorcas in Tennessee!
The ladies in the Acton Church
of Christ are modern-day Dorcases,
according to Betty Choate (sister-in-
law of J.C. Choate’s Betty), one of
the hard-working team members. In
response to the need for clothing for
poverty-striken children in Honduras,
Guatemala, Haiti, and other Central
American countries, they have cut and
stitched hundreds of items — shorts,
shirts, and dresses, for children up to
size 14. The ladies work one day each
month as a group, with some doing
the cutting, and others — profi cient in
stitching — taking the items home and
working throughout the month to com-
plete the garments. The church, and in-
dividuals, provide funds for the fabrics.
Shipments are made regularly by
“Healing Hands International”, an out-
reach program of churches of Christ in
Nashville, TN. If you would like to be
involved in such a practical ministry,
call (615) 832-2000; [email protected].
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Global Harvest 13
World Evangelism School of Missions April 28-30 the fi nal session of the
two-year mission training program was
held in Winona, MS. Wayne Barrier of
Florence, AL is President of the school,
and his son, Dr. Jeremy Barrier, serves
as Director.
The purpose of the school is to of-
fer practical training in many aspects
of short- and long-term mission efforts
throughout the world. Students meet
monthly in Winona for two days of
classes, nine months of the year. One of
the men of the World Evangelism team
co-teaches classes, along with a visiting
missionary, enabling students to profi t
by their years of experience on the fi eld.
Missionaries who have participated
have brought a wealth of knowledge
to the table. Loy and Debbie Mitchell
(Zimbabwe), Gordon and Jane Hogan
(Singapore), Colin and Ellen McKee
(Indonesia), Don Green (Indonesia/Sin-
gapore), Don and Sylvia Petty (Pakistan
and Iran), Philip and Pat Slate, Jerry
Humphries, L.T. and Joanne Gurganus
(Japan, Ukraine), Mike Brooks (Nepal),
James and Barbara Jones (Kenya), and
Dennis and Sharon Larson (Indonesia)
served as guest speakers. Betty Choate,
Janet Barrier, and Joanne Gurganus had
sessions with the ladies.
Those who attended all of the
classes and received a Certifi cate of
Completion were Joey Barrier, Gene
and Madolyn Gibson, Louis and Bon-
nie Rushmore, Ashley Bates, and Jerry
and Paula Bates. A number of other
students were present for some classes
but were hindered by college schedules
and family needs from participating to
the point of earning a certifi cate.
Our goal in having the school is to
stimulate commitment to foreign evan-
gelism, while equipping prospective
missionaries. This will enable them to
avoid pitfalls that often create ongoing
problems in the fi eld as well as shorten-
ing the duration of the missionary’s stay
in his chosen work. Knowledge gained
from the years of experience of others
is critical if we want to do a better job
of reaching the world in the future. U
Lest We Forget
Dr. Philip Slate has worked dili-
gently to bring together the mini-bi-
ographies of brave missionaries of the
early Twentieth Century. These men
and women — 84 of them — are pic-
tured in the collage shown on the front
cover of his book, which has just been
released. Anyone, reading the book,
will be humbled by the courage and
faith of these Christians who blazed the
trail for those of us who would follow
them.
Lest We For-
get is afford-
ably priced at
$8.00 per copy
and can be or-
dered from
World Evange-
lism, P.O. Box
72, Winona, MS
38967; Phone:
662-283-1192
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14 Global Harvest
I live in Gainesville, VA, but I often make the two-hour
drive to our nation’s Capitol. One day in June of 2009, my
curiosity was piqued when I saw what looked like a man
dressed as Jesus is usually portrayed. Going closer, I met
Rita, who explained that she brings the mannequin every day
and stands with it, in her attempt to remind people that we as
a nation need to return to God’s laws and morals. She asked
me to join her, and I said I would love to! She knows a lot of
people in Congress and is always reminding them, “Do the
right thing.”
Yesterday at the Capitol, I tried out a plan. Since I’m not
allowed to hand out any literature and Rita doesn’t want me
to have a Bible in my hand, my mouth — with God’s help —
is the only way to reach people.
So, depending on God’s power and guidance, I decided
to speak up! First a group of high school kids came over to
see the signs that Rita had on display. I asked them, “Where
are you from?” They said they were from Miami. Then I
asked them if they were Christians. They said they were
from a Christian school. I cheerfully responded, “OK, how
about practicing on me! You’ve got about 3 minutes to tell
me how to be saved. What would you tell me?” One boy
said that he couldn’t do it and went to get one of the girls.
She confi dently told me that I needed to believe in Jesus
Christ as the Lord. And that He died for my sins. I happily
encouraged her to keep going by saying something like “...
and then He was buried, and ...?” Another girl spoke up and
said “And He was resurrected.” I said, “YES! Now tell me
what my response to Jesus should be, based on what He told
His apostles just before He ascended up to heaven.” They
needed a little help with that, so I said Jesus commanded
them to “Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to all
creation. He that ...?” I stopped . She fi nished the sentence
by saying, “He that believes will be saved.” I looked at her
and said, “No, Jesus didn’t say that.” And I encouraged her
to go and look up the verse in the Bible. The teacher then
returned, and they left, looking curious.
Then, God sent two men who had just arrived from some
place in Africa. They are too new to become U.S. citizens
yet, but they are planning on doing so. I went through the
same scenario with them, but I also introduced Acts. 2:36-
38 to the questions. The man named Jus answered that love
saves us. I pointed to the mannequin of Jesus and said, “Yes,
and He says that if you love Me you will obey my com-
mandments.” So, I asked, “Jus, what did Jesus command
His apostles to do and to teach people to do to be saved?”
He said he’d go and look it up and also look up what Peter
told the people on Pentecost, what they must do to be saved.
After that, God sent an associate pastor. By that time, I
was feeling confi dent in the Lord! He came up to me and
said, “Thank you for standing here and doing what you do
at the Capitol.” I said, “You’re welcome! Where are you
from?” And then I asked him if he was a Christian. He said
yes and that he was an associate pastor and the man that Rita
was talking with was the pastor of their church. I was de-
lighted and said, “Ok, practice on me. If you had three min-
utes etc. etc....” (Same as the fi rst.) He told me that all I had
to do was believe in Jesus and that His blood that was shed
on the cross would cleanse me from all my sins. I asked him,
“How should I respond to Jesus to get His blood?” He said,
not by works, but simply by asking Him to forgive you of
your sins and you’ll get forgiveness. I asked him, “Would
the apostles, Peter and Paul, agree with what you said?” He
said, something like “Certainly.” Then I said, “Since Je-
sus is the author of eternal salvation, what did He tell His
preachers/apostles, just before He ascended back to heaven,
regarding how people were to be saved? and keep in mind
that these parting words were as important as a man’s last
words before he dies.” Then, the other pastor came over and
they had to leave. I’m keeping all of them in prayer!
Yeah! It seems effective, and their curiosity about what
I’m asking may cause them to question their beliefs and go
“look it up”. Please pray for these people to be truth seekers
and doers of God’s Word! U
“You’ve Got About 3 Minutes . . .”Eileen Shaver
Eileen, with Rita, the Jesus mannequin, and a Bible student.
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Global Harvest 15
When we talk about a
“missionary retreat” most
people probably think that
it is a get-away reserved
for that special group of
people called “missionar-
ies”. Please let me clarify.
This retreat is for every
Christian who is con-
cerned about souls and the
outreach of the church,
and these points of emphasis are gar-
nished with good food and the best of
fellowship!
Sometimes at church gatherings,
the continual topics of conversation
are totally secular — sports, work,
politics, the weather. Participants in
this retreat converse with avid interest
about the needs, the opportunities, and
the achievements in the spiritual world.
What a joy!
Randy Matheny wrote this about
the Maywood Missionary Retreat:
“The best deal in the brotherhood!
For $10 a night you get all the food you
can eat (24/7!), all the fellowship you
can handle, all the teaching and inspi-
ration you can hold — in the midst of
God’s nature and the comfort of the
Maywood Christian Camp.
“The speakers are lined up. Some of
these guys have so much experience,
they knew Moses. Others are just get-
ting rid of the green around the gills.
“Oh, and entertainment is provided
at no extra cost, on Thursday night.
The Barrier pickins and grinnings, plus
some. No painted clowns, though.
“So come along, enjoy the fellow-
ship and be inspired by what God is do-
ing in the world and by the power of his
Word.
“Speakers this year included Colin
McKee, Don Petty, Don Posey, Gor-
don Hogan, Roy Wilson, Loy Mitchell,
Randal Matheny, Robert Martin, James
Jones, Don Green, Randy English and
Ronnie Crocker.” U
Make reservations for next year
by contacting Janet at 256-766-2807;
Email: [email protected].
Maywood
Missionary Retreat
Plan to Come Next Year!
Approximately 100 have attended each of the four annual retreats.
We didn’t “capture” everyone in this picture, but these were some who attended in May of 2010.
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16 Global Harvest
The Central Church of Christ in Cleveland, TN has
supported our “world evangelism” mission efforts in Pak-
istan, India, and Asia for many years. There was interest
among the elders, Tom Harrison (the preacher), and numer-
ous others in bringing a group to Winona to help with what-
ever work needed to be done.
The fi rst week of June, 18 teenagers and 7 adults descend-
ed on Winona, bursting with energy and enthusiasm to com-
plete all the jobs listed on our white
board.
Y Tremendous progress was made, sorting, shrink-wrapping,
and cataloguing materials in the archives room (books and mag-
azines printed overseas and here in the States during the years of
our work). Y Shelves were constructed. Y 600 boxes of The
Voice of Truth International were strapped for the next ship-
ment over-
seas.
.Y Proof-
reading was
done on the
manuscript
of a book,
and on tracts
to be printed.
Y A privacy
fence was put
up at the back of
the Rushmores’
yard. Y Boxes
of books were
consolidated
(lots of lifting
and moving of
boxes) to make
room for the new ship-
ment. You should
have been here! The
fellowship was great,
and the sense of spiri-
tual accomplishment
unsurpassable!
Apply soon to come
down for a fun time!
Time out for devotional, morning and evening.
Ambitious work in the
archives room.
Shelving constructed for “almost out-of-prints”.
The human chain from the truck to placement of almost 200 25-lb. boxes!
Unloading pallets of books — 14,000 books!
Putting up that wonderful privacy fence!
Mealtime!
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Global Harvest 17
Today when one of our members
has a heart attack or stroke, we publish
it in our bulletin for prayers. In our Sun-
day services, we spread the word to pray
for someone diagnosed with cancer. On
Wednesday nights we update the con-
gregation and more prayers are offered.
In situations like these, it is great to see
the church spring into action with visits,
support and even fi nancial help.
However, there are prayers that
never make it to our pulpits. For some
members, their situation is too shame-
ful to share with the church. These
brothers and sisters in Christ have been
silently suffering for months and even
years. They assemble with us every
Sunday for worship, however, we nev-
er hear their cries. As the director of an addiction recov-
ery program carried out by the City
Boulevard church of Christ, I have
been receiving calls from Christians
around the country. I have been
hearing the cries of mothers, fathers,
grandmothers, brothers, and sisters of
drug addicts and alcoholics. For years
they have been privately praying for
answers and secretly searching for so-
lutions. It is sad to see these brethren
silently suffering alone from the fall-
out of addiction.
On occasion, I will speak about
drug and alcohol addiction for vari-
ous churches of Christ. Almost every
time, at the end, a church member will
stealthily approach me in tears to talk
about what they are too ashamed to
share with their brothers and sisters.
Brethren, please be aware of the
souls sitting next to you on Sunday
morning. They may be silently suffer-
ing over an addicted love one. Please
refer them to our web page (www.
projectrescue.org). Please set up an
appointment for me to speak to your
congregation about drug and alcohol
addiction within the Lord’s church!
This is a way for you to “fulfi ll the law
of Christ”, as Paul urged in Galatians
6:1,2: “Brethren, if a man is overtak-
en in any trespass, you who are spiri-
tual restore such a one in a spirit of
gentleness, considering yourself lest
you also be tempted. Bear one anoth-
er’s burdens, and so fulfi ll the law of
Christ.” U
Ronnie Crocker is Director of “Project
Rescue” under the oversight of the
City Boulevard Church of Christ at 618
City Boulevard, Waycross, GA 31501;
Email: [email protected];
Phone: (C) 912-816-0518
(H) 912-283-3727
nd the nt I h be
Silently SufferingRonnie Crocker
“…if one member suffers, all the members suffer…” 1 Corinthians 12:26
A Strong Word of
Commendation
Among the speakers for our May-
wood Missionary Retreat — primar-
ily, men with many years of experi-
ence in foreign work — was a unique
fi gure. Brother Ronnie Crocker is a
missionary in our own mission fi elds,
working with substance addicts and
with those involved in prison minis-
tries. His message was powerful and
motivating, bringing tears to many
eyes in the audience.
The feeling among those of us
who heard him was that he needs to
be out every week, saying the same
words to congregations through-
out the brotherhood. His is a mes-
sage that ought to be heard by every
Christian.
Increasingly, elders and preach-
ers in the church are becoming in-
volved in prison work. We know
that the number is growing be-
cause of the requests we receive in
the “world evangelism” offi ce for
study materials to be sent to prison-
ers. This is as it should be. It is no
trivial thing that in Matthew 25, Je-
sus specifi cally named the work of
ministering to those in prison as one
of the responsibilities of Christians.
When people have hit rock bottom,
that can be the turning point in their
lives, and we need to be there to of-
fer the Gospel to them.
If the congregation with which
you work is already involved in pris-
on ministry, or if you need a platform
for launching such a program, call
brother Ronnie and arrange for him
to come and share his story with you.
What he says will do more to rally
the church behind this much-needed
and commanded work than anything
anyone else could say or do. Check
out his web site. Give him a call.
You’ll be thankful you did.
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18 Global Harvest
For the past eleven years the Christian Courier has
been a feature on the world wide web, with the printed ver-
sion being in circulation for forty-fi ve years. During this
span, several thousand articles have gone into virtually ev-
ery nation of the world. We have never kept meticulous re-
cords of our responses for two reasons. First, such work
is very time consuming and we are so overloaded with our
schedule that we can scarcely keep up with pressing duties.
Second, we are satisfi ed to let the Lord keep the records (2
Timothy 2:19), and reap our happy reward at the appropriate
time. We do confess that our hearts are warmed with such
a constant fl ow of encouragement that we do not lack for
joy at the efforts expended. Permit me, however, to provide
some brief examples that have demonstrated to us the value
of our labor.
* A few weeks ago a young man (20 years of age) con-
tacted me from a town near Atlanta. He had read an article
on baptism on our site and felt he had never been baptized
scripturally. I put him in contact with a preacher in the area,
and he was immersed into Christ within a week.
* Recently I received a note from a brother who teaches
prisoners in several institutions. He praised our material and
said that he uses it frequently in his work. His words were:
“You are teaching many who are in prison.” He mentioned
four recent baptisms.
* A lady in Florida was a “Jehovah�s Witness”. Some-
how she found her way to our web site and had her eyes
opened to the Gospel. She contacted me and I helped her
make a connection with a sound church near her. She was
baptized and was very happy to have discovered the truth.
* I�ve been contacted several times by a brother who
is employed in one of the Arab countries of the Middle East.
He meets with a small congregation of Arabs who have be-
come Christians. They have to assemble in secret for fear of
Moslem persecution. They use our web site for Bible classes
and are tremendously grateful for the assistance. We occa-
sionally send them printed material; we cannot mail the lit-
erature directly. We have to send it to a third party in another
country who smuggles it in to these brethren when possible.
* We are constantly receiving emails from denomina-
tional preachers who thank us profusely for the web materi-
als. They use these in their sermons. They are still in error,
of course, but they are learning and they are recommending
our site to others. Not long ago, I received a letter from an
Anglican priest who had read one of our articles, and though
disagreeing with certain elements, he praised the informa-
tion he obtained and was most courteous.
* We are even attracting attention within the world-
wide infi del community. Richard Dawkins of Oxford Uni-
versity in England is probably the world�s most famous
atheist. His book, The God Delusion, has been a bestseller
in skeptical literature. A while back, I wrote a review of that
hateful tirade. A few weeks ago, he sent me an email ac-
knowledging that he had read my article.
Examples of this nature exist by the hundreds. Perhaps
these will assist in illustrating the value of the Christian
Courier on the Web. We deeply appreciate the support of
our fellow Christians. U
Wayne Jackson is a preacher of the Gospel and Editor of the
web site, ChristianCourier.com
ChristianCourier.comWayne Jackson
THE MASTER’S WALL
He fi ghts for his freedom. She fi ghts for her life. To-
gether, they fi ght for each other.
After watching Roman soldiers drag his parents away
to their death, David, a young Hebrew, is sold and en-
slaved to serve at a villa outside of Rome. David trains
to become a skilled fi ghter. He works hard to please his
master and hopes to earn his freedom. However, an op-
portunity to escape tempts him with its whispering call.
Freedom beckons, but invisible chains hold him captive
to the master’s granddaughter, an innocent girl with a fi -
ery spirit. David vows to protect Alethea from his master,
the murderous patriarch, and contrives a daring plan —
sacrifi ce his own life to save hers.
THE MASTER’S WALL was a
2009 fi nalist in the Historical Fiction
category in the Genesis. The story
takes place near Rome in 76 AD,
and Sandi (a member of the Lord’s
church) just signed a three book
deal with DeWard Publishing, THE
MASTER’S WALL being the fi rst in
her IRON AND THE STONE series!
Order from Sandi Rog, 11043 Depew St., West-
minster, CO 80020; Ph. 303-438-7276; Email:
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Global Harvest 19
Matt Wallin Teamwork is a beautiful thing. There’s no better exam-
ple of Christ’s prayer for unity than a congregation or group
of believers all working together as one team for a common
goal. The teamwork that is seen in the brotherhood is amaz-
ing. Christian doctors writing apologetics; radio, television,
and print ministries reaching out to the masses; missionaries,
preachers, and members taking the message to the streets
and to individuals—all of us are working together with the
one goal of reaching the lost with the Gospel.
Thankfully, people still want the Gospel. And the Gos-
pel is the best value out there. You can’t fi nd anything that’s
worth more than the Gospel. Psalm 19:7 says, “The law of
the Lord is perfect, converting the soul.” The Word of God
is perfect for converting people; but we have to put it before
them. We can’t give away eternal life if we keep the Gos-
pel hidden under a bushel, hidden in a church building under
lock and key. We have to put the opportunity out there. House
to House Heart to Heart is one way, one of the best ways, that
you can put the Gospel into the hands of the people.
What is House to House Heart to Heart?
How does it work?
What can it do for you and your congregation? The title “House to House” comes from Acts 2:46: “from
house to house . . . with gladness and singleness of heart.”
We’re trying to get to what’s mentioned just two verses ear-
lier in verse 44 where it says, “All that believed were to-
gether, and had all things common.” We want everyone to
be believers and to have everything in common, and we’re
taking the Gospel from house to house until that happens.
House to House is a customizable, eight-page, color
magazine. It’s printed every two months, for a total of six
issues a year, and is directly mailed into the homes in your
community. Each issue is fi lled with Gospel lessons, simple
biblical truths, and encouraging stories that help your con-
gregation build bridges with those in your communities.
House to House Heart to Heart puts a positive face on your
congregation as it introduces you to the community. It is a
personal invitation to the members of your community to
visit services and to ask Bible questions.
Even though House to House is mailed out for you, you
have the ability to customize each issue, making it personal
and relevant for your community. Using the front page, you
can list your congregation’s name, contact information, loca-
tion, service times, and services offered; you can even include
a picture of the building or of your minister. You can start
out being “that church that sends those magazines,” or “that
preacher that writes those articles,” and grow from there.
House to House also allows you to customize your back
page. You can write an article about something your com-
munity is dealing with, advertise a Gospel meeting, or offer
a free Bible correspondence course. The back page is fully
customizable and can take you as far as your imagination
will allow. Promote your Gospel meeting in the spring, va-
cation Bible school in the summer, homecoming in the fall,
and give away coats in the winter.
You can reach out to teens by emphasizing your youth
program, to parents by showing the benefi ts of your Bible
school, to women by emphasizing your ladies’ day, to fami-
lies by promoting your family days and fellowship events,
and to singles, primetimers, and those new to the community
when you have events and activities that might interest them.
House to House will plant Gospel seeds, that when you
water, will produce a God-given increase.
How much would it cost you to send
House to House into your community?
House to House costs 29¢ per copy to print and mail.
Can you afford to reach the people in your community with
an attractive, personal, series of Gospel sermons and invita-
tions for only 29¢ per household?
If you mail the minimum of 1,000 copies each issue, you
will be looking at about $300 an issue, or $150 per month. You
can send House to House into 1,000 homes in your community
for what it costs three families just to have cable TV. If your
congregation has 50 members, an extra dollar contribution per
member each week would produce $200 a month, more than
enough to send House to House into your community.
Authorities say “going to the mailbox” is “the most
looked-forward-to event of the day” for many people—the
most looked-forward-to event of the day! If your congrega-
tion sends out House to House you can be part of the most
looked-forward-to event of the day for every home in your
community.
Where is House to House today? To let you see where we are, let me show you where
we’ve been. House to House Heart to Heart started in 1994,
with one congregation sending out 1,000 copies of each is-
sue. Today, we work with more than 1,100 congregations
each issue to mail House to House into more than 2.8 million
homes every single time. That’s more than 1,100 churches
Continued on page 20
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20 Global Harvest
working together and cooperating to
spread the one Gospel.
We have worked with churches in all 50
states, Washington D.C., and 23 foreign countries (South Af-
rica, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Japan, India, Australia, England,
Canada, Mexico, Bahamas, Belize, British Virgin Islands,
Honduras, Netherlands Antilles, Argentina, Guyana, Peru,
Iraq, Trinidad, Ghana, Haiti, Nigeria, and Malawi). Read
success stories from some of these congregations at www.
housetohouse.com/contacts.
Now we’re ready to work with you to help spread the
Gospel in your area.
How do we send House to House
Heart to Heart into our community? For more information about the benefi ts of the program
and its costs, or to request a free packet of information, you
may e-mail us at [email protected], or call the
offi ce at 256-435-9356 and ask for Blake Hamm or Derek
Raulerson. For additional information and archives of ar-
ticles, please visit our Web site at http://www.housetohouse.
com. U
Continued from page 19
House to House
Heart to Heart
Available NOW! Full-color, pocket-sized, tri-fold tracts on 60 topics, written
in old-time Gospel clarity. Call 662-283-1192 for a list of the titles and to place
your order.
These conveniently-sized
tools will be helpful for out-
reach and for strengthen-
ing young Christians. We
are making an introductory
price of only ten cents each, $5.00 for 50, plus postage.
PreachingPreachingAnotherAnotherGospelGospel
J.C. Choate
Who Is
Jesus Christ?J.C. Choate
Overseas Containers???? We folks in the offi ce here in Winona would like
to partner with others in the church who are shipping
containers to points overseas. We have books, tracts,
and magazines (English, Spanish, French) that we
want to share with those brethren who so desperately
need literature. We would be willing to pay our per-
centage of the cost for shipping, believing that shar-
ing the load will enable all of us to do more.
Please contact us at 662-283-1192.
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Global Harvest 21
We were a tour group of Christians,
all with international experience. We
had been invited by the Chinese govern-
ment to be its guests. Our tour director,
Ed Enzor, accepted the invitation with
the stipulation that we be granted the
opportunity to converse with Buddhist,
Confucian, Muslim and other religious
leaders in China. To his surprise, China
agreed to his stipulation.
So here we were touring China and
having conversations with religious
fi gures. We were also given a VIP tour
of the country — the Forbidden Palace,
the Great Wall, the Terracotta Warriors
and other wonders. We were assigned
a guide (government monitor?), but he
soon saw us as no threat to his country,
so left us alone late every day.
The tour was almost over, and what
a tour it was! We were on a train to
Suchow, where the government would
host us in a farewell banquet. I was sit-
ting by our guide, who commented, “You
people don’t drink, smoke or go to night-
clubs. You are invariably kind and trust-
worthy. What makes you different?”
Suddenly, I saw an unexpected win-
dow of opportunity open before me. We
spent the remainder of the trip talking
about the Christian way of life. When
we arrived at the banquet, we were in-
troduced to Communist dignitaries in
this fashion, “And we are all Christians!”
As far as I knew, he was never baptized,
but at least he identifi ed with us, seeing
something special in us that he wanted.
Windows and Doors
of Opportunity
Another window— in this case, a
door — of opportunity opened for me
one night while we were serving as
missionaries in Brazil. We had a suc-
cessful correspondence course pro-
gram going, with six courses graded
in diffi culty. One contact, a university
student named Angelica, had fi nished
all six courses with outstanding marks.
There was one problem, however. She
lived in Recife, a northern coastal sea-
port some 1,000 miles away.
We fi nally got to her city and sat
down to study further with her. I sensed
that she was ready for a crucial question,
so I asked her, “Angelica, in the words
of Ananias in Acts 22:16, ‘Why do you
tarry? Arise and be baptized and wash
away your sins, calling on the name
of the Lord.’” She answered, “I have
been waiting all evening for you to ask
that.” So we went to a quiet moonlit
lagoon of the Atlantic Ocean and there
buried her in baptism, our fi rst convert
in what is now a multiplying work of
many congregations and Christians. It
all began with an open door.
That leads me to the Ethiopian Eu-
nuch in Acts 8. Here was an offi cial of
the queen of Ethiopia, returning home
by chariot from a pilgrimage to Jerusa-
lem to worship God. His journey would
have been between 1,500 and 1,800
miles each way. If he could make 20
miles a day, it would have taken some
75 or more days. And when he arrived
there, he couldn’t even closely approach
the temple, even if he were a Jew, be-
cause he was a eunuch and no disfi gured
person could enter the temple courts.
Yet, here he was, returning home
and reading from Isaiah 53, but not
understanding its meaning. At that
point Philip the evangelist ran through
a wide-open door by divine guidance.
After a teaching session as they bumped
along on the road toward Gaza, the eu-
nuch was ready to be baptized. Upon
confi rming his faith, Philip baptized
him and the eunuch went on home re-
joicing. We don’t know what occurred
in his life afterward, but do know that
a fl ourishing church developed very
early in that country.
The elderly Ananias had to be al-
most kicked through the open door into
Saul of Tarsus’ heart. When he fi nally
called on Saul to arise and be baptized,
Saul quickly complied, and look at the
long-term consequences of that act!
Finally, Saul, who became the
apostle Paul, had a vision for the entire
Greco-Roman world. His travels took
him as far north as Asia Minor, Mace-
donia and possibly Bithynia, and as far
west as Rome, if not farther. Directly
or indirectly he launched 15 or more
congregations. Yes, he had a vision
and lived it out. He told the Corinthian
church that a door of effective service
had opened to him in Ephesus.
Open Doors or Windows Today
The Lord still opens doors and
windows for us, but we must be alert to
them and act rapidly, before they close.
At the end of World War II in Japan,
General Macarthur saw that Japan had
lost more than a war. The Japanese peo-
ple had lost their emperor as their god
ALERT TO DOORS AND
WINDOWS OF OPPORTUNITYGlover Shipp
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22 Global Harvest
and had discovered that their old way of life was gone. Ma-
carthur perceived this as an open door and called for 50,000
missionaries to go there. How many of all American religious
groups put together responded? About 500, only a token force
at best. Not long afterward the door began to close and Japan
is now worshiping the almighty yen, rather than God.
Currently, Nations University, an Internet Bible school with
which I serve as a regent and professor, has hundreds of students
in Iran studying its courses. No one is welcome in that Islamic
country for face-to-face evangelism, yet a door remains open, at
least for now, to teach God’s Word there via the Internet.
Voodoo-ridden Haiti has been devastated by an earth-
quake of unimagined proportions. A great and challenging
door has been opened there to not only help physically, but
even more urgent, to teach Haiti’s shattered people about a
loving and caring Lord.
How to Respond to Open Doors and Windows
It is easy to be complacent in our comfortable and busy
lives, and so miss golden opportunities placed before us by the
Lord. The solution to this diffi culty is to pray for Pauline-type
vision to see these doors and windows cracking open and then
to do something about them.
When Isaiah saw a vision that shook him from his com-
placency and heard the Lord’s voice asking, “Whom shall I
send? And who will go for us?” he answered, “Here am I. Send
me!” (Isaiah 6:1-8). That is how
we are to respond to doors of op-
portunity to share God’s message.
Wherever we are and whatever
the opportunity God has placed
before us, even if it is far differ-
ent than we had ever anticipated,
let us say with Isaiah, “Here am I.
Send me.” U
Glover Shipp is an elder in the Ed-
mond Church of Christ in Edmond,
OK, sponsors of the “Search for
the Lord’s Way” TV programs,
featuring brethren Mack Lyon and
Phil Sanders. Glover’s email ad-
dress is [email protected].
The quad-fold tract, entitled
“Interviews with Early Christians: ‘How Were You Converted’?” may be ordered from World
Evangelism, P.O. Box 72, Winona,
MS 38967, for ten cents per copy,
plus postage.
Continued from page 21
ALERT TO OPPORTUNITY
A Brief History of Polishing the Pulpit
Polishing the Pulpit began with three friends getting to-
gether to brainstorm sermon ideas. We soon invited a few
other friends and someone said, “This is great! We should
tell others.”
We did and invited a speaker to discuss sermon prepa-
ration and give sample sermons. Interest increased; more
speakers were invited. We moved to a hotel conference
area. We dreamed big. “Let’s invite the best speakers in the
brotherhood and see who we can get.” They came. Wives
wanted in, so we added women’s classes. While these
great speakers were assembled in one place, we decided to
offer classes for elders. They loved it. People began com-
ing from all over the country.
Youth workers and deacons became interested. We add-
ed tracks for them. PTP moved to a large event center in the
Smoky Mountains. Attendance approached 1000. Chris-
tians from other nations began coming.
“Why don’t you have classes for regular members?”
we were asked. So we added a Spiritual Renewal Weekend,
as well as tracks for members, teens, and children. Atten-
dance surpassed 1400.
That brings us to 2010. The largest PTP ever is in the
works: 102 speakers and worship leaders, 10 concurrent
sessions each hour, 375 separate classes spread over seven
days. Our attendance goal is 2000!
What does God have in store for PTP now? Come and
see! U
Check the web site at: polishingthepulpit.com.
You will fi nd helpful information about Polish-
ing the Pulpit, “House to House”, the Spiritual
Renewal Weekend, all sponsored by a thriving,
sound, and visionary church!
Jacksonville Church of Christ, P.O. Box 520. Jacksonville,
AL 36265; Email: [email protected]
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Global Harvest 23
What a journey it has been! Nancy
and I have been in the Lord’s work for
over 36 years. There are not enough
words to describe the gracious love
of God. I fi nd the depth of his love
beyond my comprehension at times.
Nancy and I began working with the
church of Christ in Bogalusa, Louisi-
ana in the spring of 2008. The congre-
gation is very small, but we have put
our trust in Jesus Christ and the power
of His message as we lift Him up in the
preaching of the death, burial and res-
urrection. Just as God’s Word prom-
ised, people have been drawn unto Him
and we have new brothers and sisters.
We have now set an attendance re-
cord of 47. That number was in spite of
the fact that two were out ill and three
were traveling. We just fi nished our
second Gospel meeting and now have a
new sister in Christ. We are averaging
between 25 and 35 in attendance. This is
so wonderful when you consider that two
years ago there were only 12 in worship.
God has blessed us with some won-
derful contacts, which turned into Bi-
ble studies and new converts. We now
have 8 men, including me, and have
formed a men’s fellowship and train-
ing class that meets every Tuesday.
We have a meal together, then a devo-
tional study from Scripture concerning
the Christian life style and leadership.
That is followed by a discussion of the
work in Bogalusa and making plans for
future activities to attract the lost and
establish contacts for Bible studies.
The church here had a real set back
some years ago. The building was get-
ting close to being full when three fac-
tories closed and the congregation was
left with only a few members. We can
seat 100 comfortably, and when the day
comes that we fi ll up the auditorium,
there is an area already prepared for us
to fi nish a balcony. 13,500 live within
the Bogalusa city limits, with 40,000 in
the surrounding area.
Stuart Parker, one of the members,
did the preaching for over three years,
but he and the brethren needed help.
They asked Nancy and me to begin
full time work with them and build the
church back. The men met together
this last fall, and we have made a fi ve-
year plan, with the expectation of be-
ing self-supported in about fi ve years.
The following is the plan for our future
growth.
VICTORY IN CHRIST at Bogalusa, LAMike Price
Evangelism:
Evangelism is the priority for
the church because growth through
evangelism does not take place un-
less people in the community are being led to Jesus Christ
through the presentation of the Gospel. This can be done
collectively and also on the individual level by the adults
and the youth of the congregation.
Congregational evangelism is conducted as a group by
the opportunities we offer our neighbors in the community
in which we live.
One Sunday a month we have “Bring Your Neighbor
Day”. Our Sunday Bible classes and Sermon are designed
to convey the Gospel message. We follow services with a
potluck lunch. We keep a record of those who visit, includ-
ing phone numbers and addresses. We contact these visi-
tors the following week in an effort to set up Bible studies
and identify any needs.
Once a year, we will have at least a one-day (Saturday)
Vacation Bible School and combine this with door knock-
ing during the day, trying to set up Bible studies and learn
the needs of those in the community.
Twice a year, we will conduct a Gospel meeting with
the specifi c effort to reach the com-
munity, which will also involve door
knocking.
Individual evangelism is so im-
portant in that it takes place many times with friendships,
contacts and involvement in the community by the indi-
vidual Christian. This creates opportunities to invite people
to worship and also set up personal Bible studies.
Congregational Maturity:
Maturing the congregation is vital for its spiritual and
emotional heath, and for its continued good attitude toward
the lost and each other. This involves in-depth Bible stud-
ies, leadership training, the spiritual strengthening of the
home and marriages, and the training of the youth to face
the world-views they will be taught in school and in the
work force. The continued faith in God and growth as a
spiritual servant of Christ must be fortifi ed in all members.
If you would like to be a part of supporting this state-
side mission effort, please contact us. We would love to
come and talk to you about its importance to God and to the
lost souls of this area. UMike Price, 1516 Columbia Ave., Bogalusa, La. 70427; Cell:
601-467-0775; Home: 601-798-9542; Offi ce: 985-732-3247.
FIVE-YEAR PLAN
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24 Global Harvest
To those who are concerned
about the future of the church:
Pioneers come in many shapes
and sizes. Our country — especially
the Southwest — was founded by pio-
neers! Many of you came from great
pioneering families. I would like to tell
you today, that you are a pioneer. Why?You have decided that you
want your youth to be trained in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. You recognize the seriousness of the situation that exists in the church today. You see what is going on in congregations around you, congregations that once stood on New Testament principles but today do not know where they stand.
You have seen what happens to a congregation when its youth are entertained but not spiritually trained, when exorbitant amounts of time and money are spent on entertaining the youth, but the Bible is not studied. You see that these youth are never taught the reasons WHY they are New Testament Christians and they do not have an answer when asked about baptism, the Lord’s Supper, women’s roles in church, or instrumental music.
So, I would like to say that you are a pioneer. You have decided to do something about this problem! You see this problem developing in your hometown and in your home state, and you plan to do something about it. We understand! Lads to Leaders/Leaderettes is committed to providing you with events and materials to help you train your youth so that they will learn “thus saith the Lord” about important spiritual issues.
Lads to Leaders/Leaderettes has over 40 years of evidence that training youth to be leaders in the church, school, and community works! We look forward to serving you! Thank you for your pioneer spirit! U
“Pioneers for the Lord” was published in the event program for the fi rst ever Lads Express on April 25, 2010 at the Gaylord Texan Resort & Conference Center in Grapevine, Texas.
Lads to Leaders/Leaderettes, 5280 West Alabama Christian Drive, • Montgomery, Alabama 36109; • Phone: 334.215.0251; Fax: 334.215.0856; Web: www.lads-to-leaders.org; Email:ladsoffi [email protected].
Lads to LeadersPioneers for the LordRoy Johnson, Executive Director
The Spanish “Voice of Truth International”
To get the Spanish version of
The Voice of Truth International
back into production, we have had
to overcome MANY obstacles — as
you can see from the candid photo on
the right. NO! Just kidding! Rafael,
Mainor, and Louis did NOT come
to this point in frustration, dealing
with the problems — but ALMOST!
Well, actually, they worked together
in great patience and harmony, and fi -
nally we were able to submit the fi le to
the printer. It is now available for use,
both in Central and South America,
and among Spanish works here in the
States.
We do have copies of back num-
bers of La Voz de la Verdad Interna-
cional, as well as Spanish versions of
The Gospel of Christ, The Church
of the Bible, New Testament Wor-
ship, You Can Be Just a Christian,
and What Is Christianity?, available
for use in evangelism or for bulk ship-
ment to workers in Spanish-speaking
countries. If you need these materials,
please contact us at 662-283-1192. We
want to work with you to get the Word
out to those who are looking for the
truth. U
Rafael Barrantes, Louis Rushmore, and Mainor Perez, overcoming ob-stacles in Spanish! (Sometimes, we just have to have a little fun in the offi ce....)
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Global Harvest 25
How many religious television programs do you know that have been on the air continuously for 30 years and are still doing well? On August 29, 2010, “In SEARCH of the Lord’s Way” completed 30 uninterrupted years of broadcast-ing and is presently stronger in audience measurement than ever. Mack Lyon, speaker on the program since its begin-ning, had this to say about that: “It is the Lord’s doing; and it is marvelous in our eyes,”(Psalm 118:23).
In his own words, Mack Lyon tells the story of the be-ginning of “In SEARCH of the Lord’s Way”:
I was the only Christian in my family when, at age 15, I committed my life to preaching the Gospel. My mother was a strong believer in God and His Word, but did not obey Christ until many years later. I had been baptized at age 12.
We lived so far out in the country that no one would have ever come to teach us the Gospel. My father bought a battery-powered radio and a wind-charger to keep the bat-tery charged. It brought us the Word of God. Wow! What a marvel radio was!
Being the only Christian, I sat up alone on Sunday nights to hear W. L. Oliphant preach the Gospel from Dallas, Texas. Radio was in its infancy then. And I marveled that I, living out in the country, as isolated from civilization as I was, could hear the Gospel preached in that far away city of Dallas, Tex-as. I fell down by mother’s rocking chair and promised God, if He would let me live to be an adult, I would preach His Word by means of the media—meaning the printed page and radio.
A few years later came television. From the fi rst one I saw, I knew God didn’t give us television so we could see “Championship Wrestling, featuring Gorgeous George”. I believed then as I do now, that television is a gift from God to His church to be used to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the growing population of the world! Oh! I know, it’s as Isaiah and Paul both said, “They have not all obeyed the Gospel” (Isaiah 53:1; Romans 10:16). We will not be held accountable for that. But, we will have used these God-given methods of preaching the Gospel to people who are isolated in the high-rise apartment buildings of our great cities, as I was in the country. Some of them are converting—some men—some women—some denominational preachers!
In 1979, TV GUIDE had an article in which it said that 50 percent of the people in the average city or town in the U.S. received their religious teaching by television, while ten percent of the people in the same city or town received their religious teaching by attending church services on Sat-
urday or Sunday. The church of Christ in Wewoka, Okla-homa, where I preached was enjoying the largest attendance of religious groups in town. And from the local newspaper I learned that we were teaching one percent of the popula-tion—the same one percent every week. The other 99 per-cent were my friends—some on a fi rst-name basis. I could not live with that! So we began the SEARCH program to reach the people in our town only.
“In Search of the Lord’s Way” was fi rst broadcast on station KTEN, channel 10, Ada, Oklahoma the fi rst Sunday in September, 1980. On September 1, 1982 the elders of the Edmond, Oklahoma church took the oversight of the pro-gram and continue to the present.
The Five-fold purpose of the SEARCH Broadcasts
R To take the way of salvation to millions who live right among us—those whom we have yet to persuade to worship or study with us.R To light a candle in the darkness of immorality that is gaining acceptability and respectability in our society.R To resist the materialism and humanism that is choking the faith and spirituality out of so many people.R To restore credibility to the religion of Christ that has been diminished in commercialism and sensationalism of many religious TV programs.R To tell your friends that the church of Christ is not dead, but that it is very much alive and that we care.
The program soon began to spread throughout the country. People began to hear the Gospel truth preached in a loving way as they traveled in Oklahoma and wanted it for their area as well. Broadcast television stations began con-tacting Mack Lyon, because they saw the quality and the kindness of the program and wanted it on their station.
SEARCH is now reaching out to literally hundreds of millions of people every week in all fi fty states and abroad by radio and television broadcasts and by fi ve satellites. SEARCH appears on 76 multi-country broadcast markets,
In Search of the Lord’s Way
Phil Sanders and Mack Lyon
Continued on page 26
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26 Global Harvest
one hundred cable systems, and fi fty radio stations.
The SEARCH program appears each Sunday morning at 7:30 EST on the Inspira-tion Network. The Inspiration Network (INSP) is a 24 hour-a-day net-work available to nearly 65 million U.S. households via cable and satellite televi-sion. The network targets the millions of Americans who embrace inspirational values. INSP is distributed to more than 2,400 cable systems representing more than 32 million subscribers, including Comcast, Cox, Verizon and AT&T. INSP is also available to DIRECTV’s more than 18 million subscribers via channel 364 and DISH Network’s more than 14 million subscribers via channel 259.
SEARCH appears in the top 210 television markets and in all fi fty of the United States. In all, SEARCH broad-casts by television to hundreds of mil-lions in the USA and abroad. SEARCH also broadcasts to South Korea, Guam, the Bahamas, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guyana, Trinidad and Tabago, Domi-nica, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, St. Lu-cia, St. Kitts & Nevis, and Iceland. A small group of brethren in Iceland use the SEARCH program as a primary means of evangelism and use their money to broadcast the program daily to the entire nation. Through our broad-casts on stations in New York, Michi-gan, and North Dakota, SEARCH also reaches into various parts of Canada. SEARCH also appears four times weekly on the Vision Heaven network, which broadcasts on two satellites, Galaxy 25 and Hotbird 6. These two satellites reach all of the USA, Canada, Mexico, Europe, the Middle East and North Africa. They also provide pro-gramming through live streaming at www.visionheaven.com.
For the last few years Randy Eng-lish, a missionary in American Samoa, sponsored by the Forest Park Church of Christ in Forest Park, Georgia, has aired the SEARCH program over the Pacifi c Broadcast Radio, a shortwave and broadcast station four times daily.
This program goes out to more than 30,000 islands in the Pacifi c Rim. Pa-cifi c Broadcast Radio goes out to Cook Islands, Tonga, Fiji, Vanuatu, Solomon Islands, New Zealand, Samoa, Ameri-can Samoa, Tuvalu, Kiribati, French Polynesia, and Wallis and Futuna.
SEARCH also reaches into all the world via the internet. SEARCH’s web-site has one thousand unique visitors per day. One can download from the internet the last two years’ worth of programs and transcripts, daily devotionals, and the “Upon the Rock Bible Study Series.” If one loves a cappella singing, SEARCH offers nearly two hundred hymns sung by the Edmond Church of Christ.
In 2010, SEARCH began offering study sheets to go along with its pro-gramming. Each week the study sheets go online before the broadcast so view-ers can use them while they’re watching the program. Many congregations and Bible classes are already using them to facilitate their study of God’s Word. Several smaller churches throughout the country use the SEARCH program as part of their worship services.
From its beginning, SEARCH has endeavored to partner with local con-gregations. We regularly invite viewers and listeners to attend the worship of the churches of Christ. We use our nation-wide outreach to introduce people to God’s family in the local congregation. We customize the program for support-ing churches in the viewing area, adver-tizing information on our trailers about the services of fi ve hundred churches throughout the United States.
SEARCH sends out copies of its newsletter, SEARCHLight, to all who ask. We currently mail nearly 70,000 each month. People request audio cas-settes, CDs, and transcripts for each pro-gram, free of charge. SEARCH has never sold anything over the air or made any appeals for money. Through the constant
effort of staff and volunteers, SEARCH fi lls nearly 5,000 requests for information per program. They regularly send out audio cassettes, CDs, DVDs, and transcripts of pro-grams to those who want to
study further.
The Future of In Search of the Lord’s Way
Since January 2009 SEARCH has gradually pursued a course of transition of the speaking duties from Mack Lyon to Phil Sanders. Some ask when the transition will be complete, and only the Lord knows the answer. Whatever happens, one can be sure that preaching the Gospel in love will continue. Phil Sanders and Chris Lyon have several goals for the future. They want to continue to use radio, television, the internet, and the printed page to take the Gospel to the whole world. They plan to use their media and electronic tools to the fullest.
We are constantly dreaming and seeking new ways to evangelize. We are exploring ways to enlarge our use of the internet and electronic media. We want to use social networking and innovative programming to provide some interactive programs usable for evangelism and training in the Scrip-tures. We also want to create some evangelistic DVDs to share with pros-pects and on campaigns.
SEARCH could not do its work without the prayers and fi nancial support of brethren all over the United States. This is the Lord’s work, lovingly sup-ported by the Lord’s people! Without the Lord, we could do nothing (John 15:4,5).
If you would like to know more about the SEARCH ministry or to put the SEARCH program on your local ca-ble station, please contact us at 1-800-321-8633 or email [email protected]. It often costs little or nothing to put it on the public channels provided in most communities. Please consider includ-ing a gift to SEARCH in your church and private budgets. We are committed to preaching God’s Word in truth and
love. U
Continued from page 25
In Search of the Lord’s Way
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Global Harvest 27
The Need The Hispanic population has ex-
ploded in America in the past fi ve
years, growing at the rate of 5,000 per
day. In some counties of Mississippi,
the number of Hispanic people doubled
over a 10-year period. As Christians,
we cannot afford to ignore or neglect so
many souls.
To our knowledge, there are no
Spanish-speak ing congregations or as-
semblies of the Lord’s church meeting
in Northeast Mississippi. The nearest
one worships at the Getwell church in
Memphis, Tennessee. The only other
Spanish-speaking congregation near
our area is with the West President
Church of Christ in Greenwood, MS.
Few Spanish-speaking ministers or in-
terpreters are available in the Northeast
Mississippi area.
Short-Term Goals The Pontotoc church has been in-
volved in reaching the Latino commu-
nity since the late 1990s when Robert
and Jennifer Wright provided interpre-
tation of our worship services.
D We plan to continue to plant the
truth of God’s Word in the hearts and
minds of non-Christians and to help
those who obey the Gospel to grow in
their knowledge and commitment.
D It is our intention to hire a part-time
Hispanic minister, and we will contin-
ue to provide expense money and some
support for a Spanish-Speak ing Minis-
try, as in the past.
D We have discussed this work with
Ramon Gon zales, a Bible student at
Heritage Christian Uni versity in Flor-
ence, Alabama, and with Carlos Barri-
entos, Hispanic minister at the Getwell
congregation in Memphis. One or both
of them may work with us on a part-
time basis. This will likely be every
other week until more support can be
raised. Pontotoc will provide funds for
this work until additional support can
be secured through sister congrega-
tions.
D Brother Gonzales will graduate in
May, 2010 from Heritage Christian
University: Brother Barrientos contin-
ues to preach at Getwell and will come
to Pontotoc as needed on Sunday after-
noons for a 3:30 PM service.
D Robert and Jennifer Wright will
continue to play a vital role as interpret-
ers and communi cation coordinators.
Long-Term GoalsD A full-time minister for a Hispanic
congregation in the Pontotoc area.
D An autonomous Hispanic congre-
gation meet ing in the fellowship build-
ing of the Pontotoc congregation until
they can relocate to another building of
their own.
D Continual growth of brothers to be-
come lead ers of the church, i.e. teach-
ers, ministers, el ders, and deacons.
D Continual growth of sisters to be-
come Bible teachers and follow the
pat tern of Titus 2, with the older wom-
en teaching the younger women.
Oversight John Moore and Paul Swanson
serve as elders of the Pontotoc Church
of Christ and will oversee this work.
Regular fi nancial reports will be
prepared by Kevin Kirby, Pontotoc dea-
con and treasurer. Status reports will be
given on a quarterly basis to update sup-
porting congregations. Jay Street will
be responsible for these reports.
We ask for the cooperation of sis-
ter congregations, through prayers and
funds, in developing this work. U
Ph: 662-489-2949; 662-297-4056.
Reaching Our Hispanic WorldPaul Swanson
Spanish Materials Available for Evangelism and Grounding in the Faith
The Voice of Truth International magazine
Class and study books.Call 662-283-1192
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28 Global Harvest
Gospel Broadcasting Network,
under its newly appointed Executive Di-
rector, Gary McDade, is looking for help.
What he needs is beyond the scope of
anything GBN personnel can do on their
own, but the task is within the reach of in-
dividual Christians in specifi c locations.
Three major things need atten-
tion: the national economic slump has
affected revenues for telecasting. Is it
possible for you who support GBN on a
monthly basis (individuals and congre-
gations) to talk among Christian friends
and relatives (and area elders) and to fi nd
matching support? If you’re giving $50
a month, can you raise that much in
matching funds through commitments
of one or two folks (or congregations)?
If so, overnight the revenues would dou-
ble, and many goals of expansion would
happen effortlessly.
The second need can be met in this
way: “For one concerned Christian in
each county to take it upon himself/
herself to locate and recruit members
of the church (or “a team” within the
church) who would be eager to contact all
the congregations in the county that cur-
rently do not support GBN, and to edu-
cate them on the vital need for their aid.
The third way you can help GBN to
reach the goal of becoming a 24-hour
network cable, continually televising
quality programs developed by sound
men in the church is to go to your lo-
cal cable management and urge them
to include GBN in their regularly trans-
mitted telecasts. A gratifying number
is willing to do this.
Gary McDade wrote: “Erin and Er-
ica Cantrell are the daughters of Wayne
and Peggye Cantrell of McMinnville,
Tennessee. On a recent visit with the
Arlington Church of Christ, where they
worship and where Wayne serves as
the local preacher, the girls came up to
me after my update on GBN to make a
contribution. At fi rst they handed me
50 cents. I asked what this was for, and
their Mom and Dad explained that the
girls raised chickens and sold the eggs,
and sometimes they contributed their
money to worthy causes.
“The small crowd that was gath-
ered chuckled, and I said, ‘Wait a min-
ute. This contribution means more
than meets the eye.’ Patiently they lis-
tened as I explained: “Soon GBN will
be viewed by 2.1 million people in the
Philadelphia area. The annual budget
for GBN happens to be 2.1 million
dollars. And that means that 2.1 mil-
lion people can be taught the Gospel in
Philadelphia for only $1.00 each for a
whole year! The girls gave me another
$7, and I observed, See? This $7 will
bring Bible teaching into seven homes,
24 hours a day, for a year!” U
Phone: 866-525-4677; www.gbntv.org
What is World Video Bi-
ble School? It is a service, in
its 24th year of operation, sup-
plying vital teaching materials
for churches of Christ in the
US and throughout the world.
The name defi nes the ser-
vice: a very full Bible School
curriculum on a college level
for preachers, leaders, and stu-
dious Christians, enabling any
who are hungry for increased
knowledge to gain that knowl-
edge in the convenient loca-
tion of “home”, and at a frac-
tion of what it would cost to
attend classes on a campus.
The extended value of the videos is
that they can provide sound biblical train-
ing for men in preacher schools throughout
the world, at little or no cost to the foreign
school. Let me quote from a review of last
year’s work: “We have sent out an average
of over 19,000 videos per month, which
translates into over 55,700 hours of teach-
ing, or 85,000 lessons each month during
the year. That brings the total of videos that
we have sent out to more than 1,200,000
since we started in 1986.”
Letters of appreciation come from many
different situations: “Beloved, accept my
profound gratitude for the various materi-
als you made available to me this year. The
number of CDs and DVDs you sent have
been tremendous help to me and the church
in general in our quest for the truth and its
dissemination to the world. May God con-
tinue to grant you the fi nancial means to send
books, CDs, and DVDs in the coming year.
It is through ‘Searching for Truth’ DVD that
a Moslem, after watching it, became fully
convinced and surrendered himself to Christ.
Since his conversion he has remained faith-
ful to the Lord up till now. Never has he let
the verbal attacks from his relatives cause
him to renounce his faith in Christ.”
World Video also makes available evan-
gelistic videos and study books, in English,
Spanish, and other languages. Teaching
posters on the church, the Gospel, and “The
Gospel Re-enacted” are available in Chinese,
English, Spanish, and Swahili. The prices,
especially for bulk use, are often $2.00 or
less. It will be in your interest, and in the
interest of the congregation with which you
worship, to order the catalog and to use these
materials. Also, help them with a generous
gift, to share the cost of all that WVBS gives
away. Call: 512-398-5211. U
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Global Harvest 29
Many of us at Somers Avenue
had heard about the success of World
Bible School through the years but did
not become involved with the program
until 2009. New members who came
to us from other congregations that
were already actively involved in WBS
asked the elders if they had considered
participating in the work. At the same
time, another member approached the
elders about our being part of WBS.
After contact with WBS, they sent a
representative to meet with the elders,
to give details of the process and costs
that would be required of our congre-
gation to be a part of this mission work.
Mark Phillips volunteered to take the
lead in setting up the program.
After discussion with people in
other congregations who were work-
ing in WBS, the elders decided to move
forward with the commitment. At the
request of the elders, John Reese spent
time with us, explaining the need for
workers in this kind of mission effort
and how we could participate. Thirty-six
individuals signed a list that they would
be willing to help with mailing out and
grading the courses going into different
countries.
Mark Phillips set up a room at
the church building, devoted to World
Bible School. He ordered all materials
and fi rst lessons, and arranged the room
for easy access for volunteers to come
in at times that were suitable for them.
Mark ordered 3,600 of the fi rst lessons
and, to date, only a few have not been
used. The lessons were mailed to Zim-
babwe, Sierra Leone, and Kenya. After
a few months with no responses, it was
discovered that the government in one
country was not giving the money that
had been deposited for postage to the
school. While we were waiting for this
stalled situation to clear up, we received
more requests from another country.
Some people worked at the build-
ing after Bible study on Wednesday
night, preparing the lessons for mailing.
Others worked days during the week as
they had opportunity. Some came in as
teams, and some worked individually.
Team effort is a “fun” way to participate.
Some of us made a day of it by meeting
early in the morning, breaking for lunch
at a local eating place, then coming back
and fi nishing the task after lunch. We or-
ganized our own assembly line operation
in order to speed the process. One team
of four mailed almost 1,000 lessons this
way. Different approaches work for dif-
ferent people. Retirees are an asset to this
kind of program. We are more fl exible in
our schedule and have more “free” time
than those who are still committed to full
time jobs. Most of us cannot go into a
foreign country personally, but we can
reach the people where they are by mail.
There is a place for all to serve.
Now that we have mailed out all
of these thousands of lessons, mostly
to Sierra Leone and Zimbabwe, we are
waiting for the responses. Mark Phil-
lips said that recently 16 responses
from Muslims were received from Si-
erra Leone. They had completed the
Christian course and asked for Bibles.
Mark sent Bibles to them and a letter
letting them know that there are cours-
es available for Muslims to use as well
as the one for Christians.
Our task has just begun! We pray
that the work we do will reach good and
honest hearts that will obey the Gospel
and be able to teach others in their own
villages and towns. U
Yvonne Stinebaugh (Somers Avenue
Church of Christ, North Little Rock,
Arkansas) 106 S. Claremont Ave., Sher-
wood, AR 72120; Phone (501) 835-3859;
Email: [email protected]
Somers Avenue Church of Christ Involved with World Bible School
Frank and Yvonne Stinebaugh
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30 Global Harvest
I want to thank everyone for what
you have done. Your outpouring of
love and concern for the people of Haiti
and for the Lord’s church is amazing
and profoundly appreciated. Frankly, I
have never witnessed such generosity in
my life. In the past, I have always sent
hand-written notes to donors. I feel so
guilty in not doing this, but I hope you
understand as I attempt to update you.
The responsibility to be good stew-
ards of your funds that I and the board
of HCDP feel is overwhelming. You
have given generously, and many have
given sacrifi cially. Thank you for your
trust. We share the expectations that
your funds will be used wisely, and
with the help of God, we are committed
to doing everything within our power
to use every dollar wisely. The funding
must last for more than two years, and
every spending decision is important.
With no housing, food or facilities,
up to 400,000 people left Port au Prince
and fl ed to relatives in the Artibonite
Valley where Gonaives, our base of
operations, is the major city. Its popu-
lation has swollen from 200,000 to
300,000 or more in a matter of weeks.
The population on our HCDP head-
quarters has risen from 3 to 65 persons
in a few days. Like every other city in
Haiti, the strains on already poverty-
stricken individuals and families have
been enormous.
Here is a brief overview of what we
are doing:
P Complete food support is being
given to scores of refugees in Gona-
ives, Poteau, and Gros Morne.
P Other food distribution to other
refugees of Port au Prince and to the
Bois Marchand community (outside of
Gonaives and where our development
farm is located) and other areas sur-
rounding Gonaives
P Gueston Pacius is coordinating the
reception of shipping containers from oth-
er aid groups, which are loaded with food
and supplies, and assisting these organiza-
tions in their distribution in the area.
P HCDP is identifying and preparing
safe and secure areas for support (the
incidence of abuse of women is alarm-
ing; this must be done before further
refugee relocation is completed).
P Providing school support for many
children from Port au Prince who had
their schooling disrupted in the middle
of the year; some were high school se-
niors about to graduate
P Distribution of tents and tarps do-
nated by various church and aid groups
P Providing selected injured individ-
uals medical, surgical, and emotional
and spiritual support while aided at
several non-Port au Prince hospitals
P Providing general medical support
for local refugees
P Upgrading our farm to provide
housing, security, water facilities, and
latrine facilities to accommodate refu-
gees from Port au Prince
P Replenished our seed bank and
plants support. This provides agricul-
tural families the means to plant food to
Haiti Christian
Development ProjectDr. David Smith
The excitement of unloading desperately needed foods and supplies.
Continued on page 31
Grateful Haitians with aid buckets.
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Global Harvest 31
care for their returning family members
P Have begun training seminars for
micro-loan program among the Port au
Prince refugees. This is a fi rst step to re-
storing some degree of self-suffi ciency
for these masses of unemployed refugees.
Pacius, our brother who is respon-
sible for running the development cen-
ter under normal circumstances, said
that transport of the container from the
DR border across Haiti to Gonaives
went smoothly. No big problems with
customs. Only a small fee.
Pacius is delighted with the many
thousands of pounds of rice, beans,
etc. and buckets with food and hygiene
products. The container contents are
under shelter in our locked compound
and protected from the weather.
Tomorrow, they will load a 20 foot
container by truck to take to needy
folks in Port au Prince. Jambon, a very
respected leader at the Delmas church
in Port au Prince (formerly, a school of-
fi cial there before the earthquake – now
living with his family on the HCDP
compound) went with him. They have
already talked with people about safe
and effective ways to make a good dis-
tribution.
I could sense the joy in Pacius’
voice as he planned the distribution.
HCDP is receiving aid from Judsonia
church of Christ – containers of food.
This cooperation has enabled us to
avoid spending a great deal of money at
the beginning of this effort. That will
probably end soon as the government
starts restricting aid shipments. Then,
we will have to purchase food. We are
making contacts with Riceland Foods
(headquarters 50 miles east of Little
Rock) to work with one of their Hai-
tian representatives to get a good price
on rice purchase. We will then need the
money that we are currently saving.
We are securing our farm to make
it safe for women to stay. The rampant
abuse of women in the refugee camps
has made all women fearful of living
in unprotected environ-
ments. We are prepar-
ing satisfactory shelters
(tents – but with tin
roofs above them) for
housing until they can
decide what their future
work and living plans
will be.
We are profoundly
thankful for the Judso-
nia church of Christ and
for Healing Hands who
have partnered with us
to extend our aid and in-
fl uence. Although our primary thrust is
development, this crisis has reordered
our priorities for a season of time. This
is unfortunate for everyone, but we are
committed to working through these
diffi cult times with much prayer and
commitment to do His will. We need
your prayers as we seek to do His will
in all things.
Thank you for your patience. And
thank you so much to so many for mak-
ing this possible. I realize that this rep-
resents so, so many good people who
have sacrifi ced unselfi shly – donors
from many small churches throughout
many states, a wonderful minister and
support staff at the Judsonia church of
Christ, Counterpart and is dedicated and
effective staff, and the support of the US
government. We appreciate your sug-
gestions as we report back to you over
the next many days how this aid has
brought tremendous relief to scores of
people. It is greatly appreciated.
Again, thank you, thank you, thank
you, thank you, thank you, . . . . . . . . and
for His Service, U
David E. Smith, MD, Haiti Christian
Development Project; www.hcdp.
net; Heart Clinic Arkansas, 10100
Kanis Road, Little Rock, AR 72205
Email: [email protected]
“Above all else, guard your heart, for it
is the wellspring of life.” Proverbs 4:23
From our sisters in Haiti: “Praise Lord we have our brothers in the states that know our situation and help us to survive. We were starving but not anymore with the food you brought to us. We had heard there were food distributions in many places but when we got there we could not get food. Sometimes we walked two hours to get food, but we get back empty and hungry. We praise Lord every day for using you to feed us. “
(Statement about food buckets and hygiene kits sent by churches of Christ; message and pictures sent
by Gueston Pacius.)
Haiti Christian Development ProjectContinued from page 30
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32 Global Harvest
Suppose that you enter a country of
ten million people where the church is
not established. You have accepted the
challenge of making disciples by tak-
ing the Gospel to all. What is your re-
action? Are you fearful, overwhelmed,
or confused? Where do you start?
What will you do? Is it possible? What
is your vision/plan? How does God fi t
into all of this?
The fi rst decision is to seek the
decision, revelation, vision, plan, pur-
pose, and will of God. Without debate,
God is not willing that any should per-
ish. We adopt His will. He sent Jesus to
die on the cross to rescue the perishing.
Jesus states clearly in the Great Com-
mission to take the Gospel to all (Mark
16:15,16).
So the vision is clear. We do not
have to generate a vision. It has al-
ready been given to us. Then, He
promised to provide for all our needs
(Philippians 4:19). God promised to
give us power to accomplish our great-
est dreams (Ephesians 3:20,21). Jesus
said all things are possible to them that
believe (Mark 9:23). We must believe
that God wants us to take the Gospel
to all, and we must believe that we can
do it with God. Remember that God
did not give us a spirit of fearfulness,
but of power and love and discipline (2
Timothy 1:7). So, the starting point is
the vision, not the method.
It is imperative to understand that
the method must be able to accomplish
the vision/goal. Should we trust our
ways or God’s ways? To ask is to an-
swer. In the fi rst century, the goal was
accomplished (Colossians 1:23). Wow!
Amazing! They did it without building
church buildings for the new church-
es, without sending support for local
preachers in the mission church, or
anything to cause de-
pendence on the send-
ing church. It worked
well and is worthy of
duplication.
Without doubt, the
Book of Acts is our
history book and ex-
ample to take the Gos-
pel to all. Multiplying
the number of dis-
ciples is a given and
a must! See examples
in Acts 2:41; 4:32;
5:14; 5:28; 6:7, etc.
(multiplying exceed-
ingly). Just adding a
few here and there cannot meet God’s
expectations or ours. Our method must
demand multiplication. Should we ex-
pect less? God wants it to happen.
Since faith still comes by hearing
the Word (Romans 10:17), we must
teach the Word to the multitudes. But
how? Paul explains to Timothy the se-
cret in 2 Timothy 2:2. Don’t worry; it’s
simple. Timothy was told to do what
he had seen Paul do; that is, to teach
others to teach others, etc.
For example, in the fi rst year one
disciple teaches 3 others to teach others
= 4 teachers. In the second year, the four
each teach 3 more (12 new teachers) 4
+ 12 = 16 teachers , etc. It is simple,
biblical, effective, and practical. It can
be done anywhere in the world, even in
the USA. All work is “mission work”.
For sure we do not expect a perfect
pyramid, but if we get a 10% result, it
will be awesome. Remember this only
represents ONE graduate. Already, by
God’s grace, we have reached thou-
sands. U
Mission VisionGeorge W. Hall
First year—one disciple teaches 3
others to be teachers = 4 teachers:
(1+3=4)
Second year—the four teachers
each teach 3 others to teach others
= 16 teachers: (4 + 12)
Third year—the sixteen each teach
3 more to teach the Gospel = 64
teachers: (16 + 48)
Fourth year—256
Fifth year—1,024
Sixth year—4,096
Seventh year—16,384
Etc. .....
The “method” — to teach others to teach others!
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Global Harvest 33
Biblical Institute of Central AmericaGeorge W. Hall
“Easter” week is called Holy Week
in Central America. The countries pret-
ty much shut down, and the people head
for the beaches. The brethren in Gua-
temala take this opportunity to have a
national lectureship (conference) for
edifi cation and fellowship. It was es-
timated that nearly 5,000 attended this
year. The brethren honored me by ask-
ing me to speak on two occasions.
This was a campaign week for the
students of our Biblical Institute. Most
of them worked the area around the
conference location in Guatemala City.
Twenty-three were baptized by the stu-
dents, plus seven more that responded to
Christ during the lectureship. Eight stu-
dents were invited to spend the week in
Peten, Guatemala, where they had their
own lectureship. Around 300 attended in
this jungle area. The students taught and
baptized thirteen believers. Four more
were added as a result of Gospel preach-
ing in the lectureship. The week’s results
of just the students: 36 baptisms, 14 res-
torations. Total for March: Baptisms 57,
restored 47. The most important number
is 53. They, the 53, are being taught by
the students on weekends to teach others.
The same thing is happening in the two
other institutes.
A number of American Christians
participated in the June 7-13 campaign
in Granada, Nicaragua. The cost per per-
son was about $1,150. The value—price-
less! We encourage Bible classes, ladies’
classes, youth groups, individuals, etc., to
sponsor their own student/missionary in
future campaigns. This personal hands-
on approach will bless your soul. Keep
in touch by email with your student. Af-
ter graduation, as they are self-supported,
you can follow them for years. Call me
at: 325-388-0000. Claim your blessing!
Be bold! Reject complacency!
What I am about to describe is amaz-
ing. It represents nearly three months of
work by one of three BICA schools (all
glory to God!) Many would be thrilled if
their missions produce these results in 10
years. It is dedication. It is method! In
Nicaragua, Director Erick Garcia, M.D.,
provides the following report: They had
three week-long evangelistic campaigns,
one week each in Boaco (this was to es-
tablish a new church), Matagalpa (also a
church was established this week), and
Fatima. Eighty were baptized and thirty-
fi ve restored.
On our weekend works 40 were bap-
tized and 18 restored. In Jinotepe (school
location) on the Monday and Wednesday
afternoon work, 15 baptisms and three
restorations. Totals for three months, not
including Erick’s personal conversions,
are 135 baptisms, 56 restorations, two
churches established.
Other works include: conducted a
youth seminar for 600 young people in
January; March 29th-April 3rd, Erick
trained 100 leaders for one week (7 AM-
11:30 PM), long days. Some lost were
there—fi ve baptized and three restored.
BICA Baptisms, Restorations,
New Churches Established
Nicaragua
600; 375; 9
Guatemala
448; 238; 2
Honduras
649; 750; 10
Total
1,697; 1,363; 21
1,697 baptisms + 1,363 resto-
rations = 3,060 saved in 2009
by students. Based upon 365
days, that is 8.4 souls saved
per day. Glory to God! These
results from 2009 prove that
this method works!
Erick, the director of the school,
conducted nine conferences. He was on
four campaigns (preached in three): two
baptisms and 12 restorations. He taught
three seminars; he taught seven differ-
ent conferences in seven churches about
BICA concepts. The government re-
quired him to attend 15 meetings (educa-
tion ministry, mayor’s offi ce, vocational
center), he attended 10 meetings with
churches. Erick preaches in the north
at Ciudad Dairo; they plan to re-open a
church in this area at Sebaco. He trains
leaders in the local church, Jinotepe,
twice a week (6-9 PM). He also preach-
es once a month at the Jinotepe church.
He has served as youth director for three
months. Oh, by the way, he teaches the
ladies every Friday night. Erick usually
walks about fi ve miles in the mornings
and he is ready to meet the staff at 6:00
AM. Does he work too much? Yes!! We
all work hard. We need your backing.
Support is a constant problem. Please
help. U
Biblical Institute of Central America:
A two-year Bible school to prepare
evangelists and church leaders;
http://www.bica.info
Students at the Biblical Institute of Central America.
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34 Global Harvest
Fernanda Porto was baptized on Tuesday, April 21, in her
parents’ swimming pool here in São José dos Campos, Bra-
zil. She had been studying two to three times a week with
my wife, Vicki, and with our daughter, Debora. Then, the
following Saturday, May 1, she had a Caesarian section for
baby Loretta’s birth. What a blessed week!
When possible, we prefer to have women study with
women and men with men, so when Fernanda approached
me one Wednesday night after our home group Bible read-
ing, I passed her request on to Vicki.
Fernanda’s home is in Campinas, about two hours away,
so it’s possible she may be returning there after she regains
her strength from the delivery.
Vicki had just recently fi nished a series of studies with
Fernanda’s mother Ritinha, who also sat in on the studies with
her daughter. We pray she will decide to follow the Lord.
Fernanda and Ritinha have been participating in our Sunday
worship and in our midweek home Bible readings. Fernanda
has also been twice to the monthly ladies’ meetings. We re-
joice in her decision to obey Christ in baptism. U
J. Randal Matheny, in São José dos Campos, Brazil
Email: [email protected]; Website: brotherhoodnews.com
Fernanda Is BaptizedJ. Randal Matheny
Fernanda Porto being baptized into Christ by Randal Matheny.
Andrea and I
embarked in Janu-
ary on our fl ight to
a long-term mis-
sions commitment
in the South Ameri-
can nation of Para-
guay. We are over-
seen by the Margaret
Street congregation
in Milton, Fla.
I attribute to the providence of God our readiness to
begin the work. We have hit every one of our targets and met
all the goals we set out to achieve. We are fully funded and
have completed all the preparation that we possibly could.
Andrea and I are still learning the language. We can speak
pretty well, but it is still dif-
fi cult to communicate ef-
fectively (especially about
religious matters). But, we
were wanting to do SOME-
THING that would benefi t
the church — even if we
weren’t capable just yet to
speak the language. So, we
decided to start handing out
fl yers in the parks, street corners, and bus stops to invite people
to worship. In Paraguay, they are called “Volantes” and almost
everyone will take one if you offer it. Thanks be to the Lord, we
have already had several to
respond!! Please pray that
these fl yers will reach those
souls who are searching to
know the Truth!
This past weekend we
had a congregational retreat.
We spent two days singing,
studying, worshiping, and
fellowshipping, with Chris-
tians of Paraguay and Amer-
ica. The spiritual fellowship
was wonderful, even in a
different language! U
Troy Spradlin: web blog:
The Spradlin Summary
“Volante” EvangelismTroy Spradlin
Order J. Randal Matheny’s new book
CHOOSE! 13 Choices to Transform Your Heart and Soul
is now available and makes a great gift.
See information here:
http://forthrightpress.com.
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Global Harvest 35
My brother-in-law, Luis Juarez, a faithful church work-
er from the Monte Carlo congregation in Lima Peru, and I
spent almost 40 days with two congregations in the Peruvian
jungle (better known as the Amazon), an amazing place to
work and spread the good news of our Lord.
On this misionary trip, brother Joe Ruiz de La Rosa came
down from Mississippi, USA with his wife, Bonnie, his
son, Kevin, and Jessica, his grandaughter, to help with the
planned work.
Iquitos: At the beginning of our missionary trip, we spent
time in this wonderful place in the Peruvian jungle. The fi rst
three days after our arrival, we studied with a lady about the
plan of salvation and the Bible church, and we give God’s
glory that she obeyed the Gospel.
Luis and I have taught about leadership in the church
to one young brother by the name of Gabriel, so that he is
able to share with the membership until a dedicated married
preacher and family go there to work full time for the Lord.
While in Iquitos, in addition to preaching and teaching
many Bible lessons, we were also working at manual labor,
building a proper side walk to the building, since that area
has a lot of rain and the members and visitors get their shoes
wet and dirty because of the mud. We had the help of our
brother Victoriano and his son, Nicolas — a mason. They
came over from Requena, a town about 16 hours away by
boat, sailing down the Amazon and Ucayali rivers. Thank
God we had such good help and support from our brothers,
since working together makes it faster and better.
Requena: At the Church of Christ in Requena, the local
missionary is named Victoriano Goñas. There are over 30
members that meet together, and they are very lovely and
supportive of this fi ne work. On our arrival, we had a meet-
ing to coordinate what everyone would be doing: evange-
lism, handing out invitations and fl yers, working with the
children’s Bible class or VBS, and Ladies’ Bible lessons.
The Ladies’ Conference was taught by sister Bonnie Ruiz,
and her translator was Gracy Goñas. The theme was “The
Blessings of the Faithful Christian Woman”, and everything
was very successfully done.
This trip was a great blessing through our spiritual labors
because there were brethren who were out of the church, and
four of them repented and were restored. The messages came
from the Word, so they were powerful, and two souls were
added into Lord’s church: a young lady named Rosa Angé-
lica Nuve and Mister Pinedo, an old denominational preacher.
From now on he is a true Christian and wants us to visit his
village as soon as possible, to spread the Gospel down there in
a town called Tamanco, about 25 hours away from Iquitos by
boat and 10 hours from the Requena community.
After the trip, the Ruiz Family went back to Lima for the
Bible conference being held at Stone Bridge, a congrega-
tion located in Lima north area. After about three days, they
returned to Mississippi. We stayed over in Iquitos for ten
more days to continue with the Bible lessons about God’s
dispensations of time, how a true Christian must worship,
and the plan of salvation. We never stopped doing that kind
of teaching, as night after night, we gathered together at the
church building to sit down and learn more about God’s
word. “And daily in the temple, and in every house, they
ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ” (Acts 5:42). U
IGLESIA DE CRISTO MONTECARLO, Urb. Montecarlo I Etapa,
Calle 11 E-17, Lima 31 PERU, SOUTHAMERICA; Phone:
011511-5745755; Skype: hgidecm
Misionary Trip to Iquitos / RequenaHelmut Garcia
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36 Global Harvest
Why aren’t churches standing in line?Larry West
More than 80 We Care Ministries Cadre workers
from 18 states showed up recently to join hands with the
saints at the Southwest Church of Christ in Phoenix, Ari-
zona, to reach out to the neighborhood and win souls. By
Victory Sunday, 64 had obeyed the Gospel and four more
had come back to the Lord during the 12-day event. And
what is more amazing is, the workers traveled not more than
one mile away from the church building in any direction in
their search for souls! Some neighbors, seeing all the activ-
ity actually drove up to the building, asked what was hap-
pening, got out of their cars, came in, heard the Gospel, and
were obedient to the Gospel before they left to go home!
The fi elds are truly white! What God needs is caring but
fearless workers!
“Why aren’t churches standing in line to invite tried-
and-proven soul-winning ministries such as We Care Minis-
tries to come to their congregations to help rescue the lost?”
That is what members of the We Care Ministries staff are
asking me, their director. And I don’t know what to tell
them. Maybe you can help.
Is it because:
1. Churches don’t know about us? The answer
I get is, we have been conducting our Campaigns 35
years, now. We have been conducting training Sem-
inars about 25 of those years, sometimes as often as
three times a month, all over the nation. We have been
writing articles the 35 years.
2. Churches don’t believe we are really winning
many souls as we claim? The answer I get is, we have
published converts names, have told their conversion
stories, have spent tens of thousands of dollars getting
the news out.
3. Churches don’t believe enough new souls
are being kept? The answer: Isn’t one soul worth the
whole world? Yet, the truth is, when churches put our
“AfterCare” package to work, we are fi nding they are
keeping 40-60% of those we are baptizing.
4. Churches really just don’t want to grow? The
answer: We have no answer for them. If that be true,
all we can do is grieve!
5. Churches really just don’t want to work that
hard? The answer: Such an excuse has actually been
given me. But again, we have no answer for them. If
that be true, all we can do is grieve!
6. Churches don’t want to spend the money it
will cost? The answer: And this answer too has been
given to us. Well, again, we have no answer for them.
If that be true, all we can do is grieve! For what is the
value of one soul? If the air conditioner in the building
were to break, wouldn’t the money be there by the next
Sunday, to have it fi xed? Especially if it be in July and
in the South!
Maybe you know of other reasons, which are actual-
ly just excuses! But our nation is in trouble! We all know
it. We are convinced the answer to our nation’s trauma is
not more bailouts. It’s not in greater armaments. It’s not
liberal arts education, as valuable as that is. The answer is
where it always has been. “Blessed is the nation whose God
is the LORD” (Psalm. 33:12). When the church wins souls
it brings, among other things, national security, prosperity,
blessings of all kinds — in addition to the deliverance of that
soul from Satan’s grasp. The answer to this world’s prob-
lems is in the hands of Christians!
The kingdom is fi lled with citizens, but only a few have
joined God’s military service! Ours is a SAR mission, Search
And Rescue! It’s time we repent and go to work as soldiers. U
We Care Ministries, 3201 N. 7th Street, West Monroe, LA 71291
www.wecareministries.com, Phone: 318.397.2000
Hey!
How would you like to give away
a million dollars?It’s fake, of course (Uncle Sam hasn’t started printing
million dollar bills YET) but God’s plan of salvation on
the back is real. This is an eye-catching little tract.
35 cents each; $30 for 100.
Call 662-283-1192
email: Choate@WorldEvangelism.
org
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Global Harvest 37
May 6-23: Glimpses of events in my
most recent trip to Ukraine:
I fl ew into Donetsk, and Vlad and
Oksana Pirizs picked me up at the air-
port and drove me to the church build-
ing in Kramatorsk where I taught a class
on “The Fruits of Righteousness.” At
8:30 PM they drove me to Lina’s (I do
not know her last name) where I stayed
through Sunday. Vladia and her mother
are not Christians, but Vladia attends
the youth gatherings of the Kramatorsk
Church of Christ. She is a fi fteen-year-
old who speaks English. Her mother,
Lina, speaks very a little English.
May 8, Saturday
Two mosquitoes and jetlag kept me
awake some of the night. Both Vladia
and her mother were gone when I woke
up. Lina came back about 9:00 AM and
fi xed some breakfast and cooked for the
meal that afternoon. I used the morn-
ing to get ready for my class at 3:00
PM with the young people. I taught on
“Young People of the Bible.”
May 9, Sunday
Sunday morning, I taught a class on
“Paul’s Positive Outlook in Philippi-
ans”. At the worship service I preached
on “Romans 7”. Vlad picked me up and
we drove to Krasnoarmeysk where Sa-
sha and I were dropped off at Terry’s
mother-in-law’s, Valentina’s house,
where we spent the week teaching and
uplifting the church.
May 10, Monday
We had nine people in attendance.
We studied “What is Happiness” until
2:00 PM, with a short break. At 5:00
PM, Sergey (a member of the church
living in adultery) came for a Bible
study. We walked to a little lake and
he tried to convince us that his second
marriage was alright, using 1 Corinthi-
ans 7, but he could not prove that verse
15 allowed his second marriage.
May 11, Tuesday
Ever since I arrived, I have tried to
change my US dollars into grievnas.
The banks were closed for the week-
end and Monday was a holiday. Today
I tried again but the lines were too long
in the morning. Our class was from
11:00 AM to 2:00 PM, with the regular
break. We studied “True Love” and had
11 people. In the afternoon we went to
the bank, but got there too late. They
close at 4:00 PM.
May 12, Wednesday
I fi nally got some local currency. It
made me feel a little more secure.
We had class at the regular time,
8:00 AM to 2:00 PM with a break. Sa-
sha did well for his fi rst time as a Bible
class translator. He is the preacher for
Krasnoarmeysk and has his Master de-
gree from Bear Valley Bible Institute of
the Ukraine. We had 10 people, count-
ing Sasha and me. Three were men
from Krasnyi Laman; two of them are
not members of the church. We stud-
ied “The Positive Thinking of Philip-
pians” and “How the Blood Works”.
Lionid and Tatiana (members of the
church), Sasha (a non-member who has
been coming to the assemblies for fi ve
years) invited us to their fl at. We had
tea and studied the Bible on “Marriage,
Divorce and Remarriage.” We also had
great fellowship.
May 13, Thursday
The water was off yesterday and
today. We had our class from 11:00 AM
to 2:00 PM, fi nishing up the study on
“The Formula for Happiness” and go-
ing through the study of “Why Miracles
Cannot Happen Today.” We had 10 in at-
tendance. Later that evening we had tea,
and Valantina said that the congregation
had been resurrected from depression and
wanted to get busy again. They have had
some major problems the last few months.
May 14, Friday
The water was still off. We fi nished
our classes for the week. We answered
questions and studied “Why Suffering
Exists”?
May 15, Saturday
Gorlovka had a youth rally from
10:00 AM to 3:00 PM at the Bear Valley
Bible Institute of Ukraine. In the after-
noon I visited with Lynn and Vieta (an
orphan boy they have into their home
almost every weekend). That night at
the church building we had about 25 in
attendance and I spoke on “The Age of a
Christian.”
May 16, Sunday
We had Bible class at 10:00 and
worship at 11:00. I taught 2 Peter 1 for
the class and “Righteousness” for wor-
ship service. We had 45 in attendance.
Mission to Ukraine . . . All in a day’s work!Jim Sherman
Continued on page 38
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38 Global Harvest
May 17, Monday
Classes for me at Bear Valley Bible
Institute of Ukraine started. My subject
for the week was “The Preacher and
His Work.” Classes continued from
8:30 to 3:15, with breaks for chapel and
for lunch. Three of my students will
graduate next week with their Bach-
elor Degree in Bible. Steve Hollister
from Montgomery, Alabama taught the
“Gospel of John” this week and next
week he will teach 1, 2, 3 John.
May 18, Tuesday
Classes continued until 3:30 PM.
At 5:00, the young people wanted to
sing with all the parts, so we sang until
5:45 and then went to the youth get-to-
gether where I spoke on “Young People
of the Old Testament.”
May 19, Wednesday
The class schedule was changed
after chapel. We went from 10:45 AM
until 1:00 PM, because Dan Owens
from Paducah, Kentucky telecasts a
Bible study from Paducah at 3:00 PM.
May 20, Thursday
Our classes were on schedule and
we fi nished by 3:30 PM. At 3:45 Egor
Kramarenko picked the Fergusons and
me up for supper at their fl at. Ira Kra-
marenko is a member of the church and
an English teacher at the local language
institute. Her husband is not a member.
We had a wonderful time and I arrived
back at my room at 8:00 PM. Dennis
Curd and one of his elders were there
and Terry was making arrangements
for them for the night.
May 21, Friday
Friday was test day. They all passed
and will graduate with a Bachelor de-
gree next Friday.
May 22-23, Saturday and Sunday
We left for Donetsk at 10:30 AM.
Terry, his family and Steve Hollister
went shopping and eating before they
took me to the airport. My fl ights were
on time, with a stop-over in Munich.
Jim Lucas picked me up and we were
home by 7:30 PM. U
Jim Sherman, email: jdsherman1@
hughes.net
Continued from page 37
Ukraine . . .
On Sunday, the sixteen who as-
sembled in Burcht could speak nine-
teen languages!
The English-language congre-
gation that meets in Burcht, Belgium
(across the river from Antwerp) is
small. Sixteen met on Sunday. Two
regulars were absent. Brother Philip
Dela and his family from the church in
Maastricht, Holland were visiting, and
Philip preached on the need for humil-
ity to avoid backsliding and apostasy.
There were two visitors from the
church in Eindhoven, Holland. It was
a foretaste of heaven. Part of the New
Song is, “For You were slain, and have
redeemed us to God by Your blood out
of every tribe and tongue and people
and nation” (Revelation 13:7).
Those gathered to remember the
Lord’s death could communicate in nine-
teen langauges: Aramaic, Bassar, Chinese,
Dutch, English, Ewe, Gallego, German,
Fanti, French, Italian, Nzema, Papiamen-
to, Polish, Portugese, Spanish, Turkish,
Twi, and sign language for the deaf.
Roel De Gruyter and Roy Davison
work with this congregation. U
Roy Davison Email: RoyDavison@
oldpaths.net
A Taste of HeavenRoy Davison
Do you remember what Jesus said
in Matthew 25? One of His stipu-
lations for approval of His people
was that they had visited those in
prison.
Thankfully, Christians are do-
ing much more “prison ministry”
now than in earlier years. But one
problem that must be overcome is
the tendency to be unforgiving to-
ward those who have committed a
crime. That is the message of The
Jonah Complex by brother Ezra
Lucas, Jr.
Order your
copy from:
www.xlibris.
com, for
$15.99 in
book form
or 9.99 in the
e-version.
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Global Harvest 39
This is serious information you
want to consider: There are seven con-
gregations in three districts in which
we work in Romania. The challenge
with just one congregation is tremen-
dous, but to work with seven churches
is a monstrous task and means the work
to do, the funds needed and the respon-
sibility are seven fold!
The fi nancial needs and the bud-
get would not be nearly as great if we
were content to simply work and wor-
ship with just one congregation. We
cannot and will never do just that!
What is the great need? We must
continue to “evangelize”, to spread the
message to the 2,000,000 in our area and
to be diligent to teach those converted
to the Lord! This means seven meeting
places, training teachers and preachers
for seven places, travel to and from sev-
en cities and towns, Bibles, books and
pamphlets for seven places, Bible class-
es for ladies, men and youth in seven
places, children’s Bible class materials
for 16 weekly children’s Bible classes,
men to handle the funds and be account-
able in each place, evaluating scores of
emergency calls for help for food, medi-
cine and general physical needs, and
then providing the funds which are be-
yond the capabilities of the local church-
es, selecting, training and working with
Romanian Christians who know the
seven congregations and help us com-
municate regularly with as many people
as possible by email, phone, newsletters
and personal letters, conducting special
soul- winning programs in which the lo-
cal people participate, directing about
20-25 different U.S. Bible teachers who
come for short term teaching here in Ro-
mania each year — and then we must
have a highly competent accountant to
report what funds are received and what
they are used for to a particular depart-
ment of the Romanian government.
Do you think we could use more
help? U
Harvey Starling, P.O. Box 915, Madison,
AL 35758
One large delight for us here in
Lyon was the visit of Richard Wolfe,
the preacher at the 1515’ Street Church
of Christ in Olathe, Kansas (our spon-
soring congregation). Richard came to
Europe for several reasons: 1) to visit
the work in Lyon ; 2) to speak at the an-
nual family retreat of the French speak-
ing Churches of Christ ; 3) to visit and
encourage the Church in Liege, Bel-
gium, where he and his family lived and
worked for 22 years, from 1971 to 1993.
Richard exhorted us during our worship
period on May 9”’ ; then he spoke twice
at the family retreat, on the book of
Ecclesiastes. His French has remained
excellent over the 17 years he has been
away from Europe; the only criticism I
would have is that he speaks with a Bel-
gian accent! Just joking.
It was really great to have Richard
with us for a few days. We missed see-
ing his wife Jade, who was not able to
travel with him this time. Richard and
Jade made a large contribution to the
French work in the many years they
worked here, and all of us who worked
with them will remember and love
them to the end of our days. Pam and
I remember the times our two families
spent together way back when. Our
three girls and their two boys became
— and have remained — good friends.
Precious memories.
Last month I announced the birth
of a baby to one of our young couples.
Another of our couples had a baby
this month. I have to tell you about the
unique name he was given. It’s a boy,
and when I asked his name, the father
told me (here’s what it sounded like:)
EE-VEN. So, I thought it would be
Yven (as in Yvan), or something like
that. As I spelled it out to make sure I
was understanding, the father corrected
me: H-E-A-V-E-N. This child is not
only heaven’s gift, that’s his name, too!
I just returned from three days in
Marseille to teach the book of Hebrews
to the four students in their “Christians
in Missions” one-year school. The Mar-
seilles church works uniquely in their
neighborhood, so they have lots of ac-
tivities for the children around them.
While I was there, they were preparing
a program for the children and were in
heavy rehearsals. It was fun to see the
kids so excited about the event. They
asked some excellent questions and lis-
tened well during the 18 hours we stud-
ied together.
The theme of the retreat this year
was “Edifi cation,” with special empha-
sis on fathers and sons. The major at-
traction (outside of Richard’s presence)
was the fact that several sessions were
directed by a father and a son working
together in the same congregation. It
was a way of showing that the Church in
Europe has grown into its second gen-
eration and that we have a new group
of young people taking on responsibil-
ity and carrying on the work into the
future. It’s a great sign of maturity and
an encouragement to all of us who have
worked here for so long. Brethren, the
Church in French-speaking Europe is
strong and stable, even if its numbers
are not what many would like. Pray for
us, and for all those who are working’to
take it into the next generation. U
Charles White, 6 Impasse Mil-
lon, 69100 Villeurbane, France;
Email: [email protected]
FranceCharles White
Romania’s Needs
Harvey Starling
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40 Global Harvest
A Persian Shepherd and His Sheep
Don Petty
As my wife and I, with our family, taught the Gospel in
Tehran, Iran, we lived on the second fl oor of a house, with the
church meeting place on the ground fl oor. Out the picture win-
dows of the kitchen on two sides one could see for miles around.
My wife, Sylvia, drew great comfort and security, con-
fi dence and hope, looking north toward the big El Bourz
Mountains. Down below, almost coming up under a balcony
porch off the side of the house, a shepherd daily brought his
fl ock of sheep to drink in a brook running past our house.
Sylvia often marveled at the gentle way he led them,
talking to them and even singing. As they reached the water,
he generally reclined on the bank in a position to see them
all. At times he would even sit under that balcony where he
could lean against our house, keeping an eye on his sheep.
Frequently, and almost always, one at a time the sheep
would come to him. He would scratch their ears, and around
behind their ears, or pat them on the head, always saying
something in a soothing tone, allaying any fear or uneasi-
ness they must have felt. A number of different sheep would
come to him each day, all would seem to have their own
‘story’ or problem they confi ded to him.
As they drank their fi ll, the shepherd rose and slowly
walked away. He did not command them to follow; he mere-
ly walked on and they followed.
Sylvia commented to me many times about that shep-
herd and the sheep. She said it is no wonder the Lord chose
the parables of the shepherd and his fl ock to illustrate and
explain the work of the overseers in the church.
She saw the care and trusting relationship between that
Persian shepherd and the sheep who depended on him for
their protection, nourishment, leadership, and care. Good
elders today in the Lord’s church provide those same things
to the fl ock. U
Don Petty Email: [email protected]
THE ROSE H ILL CHURCH IN MAURIT IUSSylvio Salomon
We have seen our last Sunday of worship at Rose-Hill,
a day fi lled with many memories for us. We were nearly fi fty
to attend the service on this occasion and that makes things
a bit different as most members from the Riche-Terre church
(where Tony and Caroline Leuteritz work) responded posi-
tively to our invitation.
A check of $10,000 was given by the owner as com-
pensation to vacate the premises occupied by the Rose-Hill
Church of Christ for many years. Approval was granted on
January 24, 2010, at the time of a general assembly of the
church.
At this time the money has been cashed and duly cred-
ited to the Rose-Hill Church of Christ bank account. Ev-
erything has been removed from the church building and
keys refunded to the owner. The church meets temporarly
for worship at Vallijee, Port-Louis, in our home. This will
continue until we fi nd another meeting place at Rose-Hill or
nearby. We truly want to fi nd a piece of land for the church
this time. For those who do not know, the Rose-Hill church,
with this building now vacated, is a story covering more
than 35 years.
We leave this building with sadness, due to the past,
but we are more than confi dent that God has a better plan for
us and for His work in Mauritius. Please think of us and the
work here in your prayers.” U
Sylvio Salomon email: [email protected]
On Measured TimeHarry Presley
While we enjoy the blush of youth
We seem immune to mortal strife
And often fail to face the truth
About the terminus of life.
We only think of living on.
Assuming life will stay that way;
Old age is some forbidden zone,
And death a region far away.
But there’s a place ahead for all
Where soul and body separate
In their response to Hades’ call,
And tombs in patient silence wait.
For earthly lives, although sublime,
Upon the beats of time depend;
We live each day on measured time
And when it lapses, time will end.
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Global Harvest 41
He wasn’t much for stirrin’ out,
It wasn’t his desire;
No matter what the others did,
He was sittin’ by the fi re.
Same old habit, day by day,
He never seemed to tire;
While others helped
to build the church,
He was sittin’ by the fi re.
And when he died as all must do,
They said he went up higher;
But if he’s still doin’
what he always did,
He’s still sittin’ by the fi re.
— Author unknown
We Christians are in an evan-
gelism crisis. We have blended
a “whatever” generation with a
biblically ignorant generation and
come up with a generation that
could care less about snatching
people off the pathway to hell. It
is a generation that wants to live
within the sound of church build-
ing and the chapel bell but not
within yelling distance of souls
that are falling through death into
eternal damnation.
There’s little excitement to-
day about sowing the seed of the
kingdom, because there is no ex-
citement in seeing the need of a
spiritually starved generation of
people. When challenged about
their lack of evangelistic fervor,
we receive only the reply, “What-
ever.” When a generation arises
that is ignorant of what the Bible
says concerning the damnation
of those who do not obey the
Gospel, then they have little con-
cern for preaching the Gospel.
Where are those who have a pas-
sion for the lost?
These are times for serious
repentance on the part of us Chris-
tians. In many ways we have lost
our identity. We have forsaken the
identity by which Jesus said the
world would know that we are His
disciples. Our identity was to be
manifested by our love. That love
was to extend to unbelievers as
well as to believers. A love that will
not take us to our lost neighbor’s
house will certainly not take us
to heaven. Paul had it right: “For the love of Christ compels us ...” (2 Corinthians 5:14). We will not
bring the world into Christ unless
the love of Christ compels us to
take His name into the entire world.
We have a bookshelf full of
“feel good books” that seek to mo-
tivate us to do this or that in order
to feel good about ourselves. But
there is a limit to feeling good when
the feeling does not come from do-
ing that which I know I should do
in saving the lost. So where are the
books that emphasize the wrath,
terror, judgment, fear, and con-
demnation of a just God who will
send people to a fi ery hell because
they did not obey the Gospel? Or
worse, where are the books that
tell me where I am headed if I am
just “sittin’ by the fi re ...”? Again,
Paul said it right, and probably
correctly translated by the old ver-
sions, “Knowing therefore the ter-
ror of the Lord, we persuade men”
(2 Corinthians 5:11).
If I understand the fact that
the Bible teaches that those who
do not obey the Gospel will be
punished with everlasting de-
struction from the presence of the
Lord Jesus, then I understand that
Jesus is more than a sweet teach-
er meandering down Judean path-
ways with His disciples. I read 2
Thessalonians 1:6-9 frequently. It
talks about a Jesus of vengeance
when He comes again. As Paul
said, though we knew Jesus ac-
cording to the fl esh, we want to
know Him as He now is as King,
Head, and Judge over all things (2
Corinthians 5:16). He is coming
with vengeance on all those who
do not obey the Gospel of His
death for our sins. He is coming
with vengeance on a “whatever”
generation that has lost its pas-
sion for lost souls.
It’s time for an evangelistic
paradigm shift. And, believe me,
such shifts come with great pain,
the pain of repentance. Our laugh-
ter must be turned into mourning.
We must remember the words of
Jesus, “Blessed are those who mourn.” We must start mourning
over our sin of laziness in order to
be blessed.
I write these words in or-
der that no one misunderstands
the motives of all of those who
are sincerely concerned about
world evangelism. We are seri-
ous about accomplishing the
only reason for the existence of
this world. That reason is why
we search throughout the popu-
lation of the world for those who
want to prepare themselves for
eternal dwelling in the presence
of God. We are in the business
of populating heaven. U
[email protected], africainterna-
tional.org
The Crisis Before UsRoger Dickson
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42 Global Harvest
The Lord’s work in Nigeria, along
with other West African countries, has
been some of the most fruitful in mod-
ern times. One cannot read about it, or
visit there and see it fi rsthand, without
becoming excited.
I have been going to Africa for
eleven years and the excitement every
year, as the time approaches for us to
plan our next trip, is almost ecstatic.
We can hardly wait to get there to see
World Bible School students and dear
friends we made the previous years.
They look forward to our coming as
much as we do.
The people in the many countries
where I go in Africa are mostly peaceful
and loving in nature. They are God-fear-
ing and receptive to the Gospel, wanting
the hope of a better life hereafter. But
there was always the talk of the Muslims
and their hatred toward Christians.
Muslims were said to be violent,
that they would kill innocent mothers,
fathers, and children when tribal con-
fl icts break out, especially in Nigeria.
The charge was that, by far, the greatest
challenge facing Christianity in Africa
is the Muslim world of North Africa.
In 2005, after going into Nigeria
for several years, and because I be-
lieve that the Gospel is for everyone,
my friend Sheila Hamlin and I decided
to go to Maiduguri, about as far north
as you can travel without being in the
Sahara desert. We would be working
with some World Bible School students
of mine and the small church in Mai-
duguri. The population there is 98%
Muslim. Most had never seen a white
woman, but we were treated with the
greatest respect among all there. We
felt completely safe because we were
with a young man who was a for-
mer Muslim but had been converted
through the World Bible School cours-
es and was now a Gospel preacher.
We visited the villages, taught hun-
dreds of women, worked with the World
Bible School students and saw 11 bap-
tized for the remission of their sins. If
someone wanted to be taught privately,
they would take us into a room with
no windows and shut the door so no
one could see them talking to us. They
would tell me, “I have to go to my inner
room and hide my lessons so no one will
know I have them. If they see me with
a Bible and these lessons they might kill
me”. One Muslim lady was determined
to be baptized after our lesson and we
slipped her out to the motel and baptized
her in the bathtub.
One day we took a trip to Chiebok,
a far village from Maiduguri. The most
humbling experience of my life was
there, as over 200 women sat on the
ground, along with their with babies,
for hours, listening to God’s Word be-
ing taught. Then, as we slept there with
them, my prayer to God that night was,
“Thank you, God, for this wonderful
experience you have given me. May it
truly humble me as your servant.” The
next morning, after we taught for four-
and-a-half hours, a Muslim lady who
had just one leg wanted to be baptized.
Now, there is no water in Chiebok.
It has to be hauled in during the dry sea-
son, and this really was the dry season.
There was no water to baptize her unless
we went all the way back to Maiduguri,
over the rough roads that almost tore the
car up getting there, plus it would take
hours to get there and back. Her faith
said, “We will fi nd water.” So as she
hobbled along with a cane and one leg
we walked for over two hours and still
found no water, but she insisted we keep
going. Then someone said they saw a
very small bubble of water coming up
CHANGING EARTH — TOUCHING HEAVENRuth Orr
Continued on page 43
Twelve courageous men who left Islam to become New Testament Christians, pictured with Ruth Orr.
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Global Harvest 43
out of the ground. She said, “This is
where we will fi nd water.”
Those people dug with their hands
(because that was all they had) for over
an hour and, little by little, the water
started coming out and fi nally there was
enough to cover her frail body. She did
not mind that it was muddy because now
she was “white as snow” and her sins all
gone. Some people back home did not
believe this when we told them about it,
but God prepared a way, as He does for
anyone who has enough faith and love
for Him, as this lady did.
We went back to the village and it
was time to say good-bye to the women
of Chiebok who were still waiting for us
and hoping we would stay longer to teach
some more. Our hearts ached because
of the tears rolling down their cheeks
as they begged us to stay. We certainly
left with humble hearts and grateful for
the experience to teach so many women
who had traveled for miles by foot just to
come and listen to God’s Word.
We made our way back to Maidu-
guri and worshipped with the church
before having to leave, praying that
those baptized would remain safe and
faithful. Later we heard that one of the
women was forced to leave her home
because of becoming a Christian.
In June 2006, tribal war broke out
in Maiduguri. I was in Anambra State,
teaching, when one day my elders from
home called and said, “Ruth you need
to come home immediately. Your fam-
ily is begging us to bring you home.”
Stunned, I asked, “Why?” They had
learned that hundreds were being killed
in Maiduguri, and that homes and
businesses were being destroyed. The
news had gotten to America, but not to
Anambra State. All I could think about
was those who had become Christians
the year before while we there, and
all those women and children, and the
church that we had grown to love so
deeply. Were they safe?
Where we were at the time, it would
take us two days to reach Lagos, to get
our ticket changed and a plane out. I
begged them to let me stay one more
day to fi nish up some things and then
we would leave.
As we prepared for our depar-
ture the next day, one of the preachers
came to the motel and said that the Ibos
were bringing their dead to Anambra
State to bury them and they were kill-
ing every Muslim along the way. He
also said that I could not leave because
rioters had broken down the doors of
the prison and had ordered all prison-
ers to leave. They had taken the guards
as prisoners and burned the offi ce. We
had 82 prisoners ready to be baptized
the next day and many of them, and
those already Christians, refused to
leave but they were beaten and forced
out anyway.
So now the roads and country were
fi lled with loose prisoners. We did not
know what to do because I did not want
my family to know this and have more
worry about my safety. Because we
couldn’t leave, the king of Anambra
State, a good friend of mine, said that
he would call my elders and family and
tell them that since we just had a few
more days it would be best if we stayed
there where he knew we would be pro-
tected, and, if need be, he would take us
to his palace to ensure our safety.
Finally they agreed, and because
guards were stationed around the motel
and at the entrance, we decided to stay
there. We never saw any violence or
heard much because there were no TVs
or radios. So we kept teaching students
as they came to us at the motel. The last
two days we were there, we almost felt
special as they put secret service men at
the motel and at our bedroom doors.
When time came for us to go home,
we stopped by an internet cafe to check
e-mails and someone had written one
that said, “Please pray for Mrs. Ruth
because she has been captured and is in
prison in Nigeria.”
CHANGING EARTH — TOUCHING HEAVENContinued from page 42
Continued on page 44
An assembly of the church, made up of former Muslims, nuns, and priests.
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44 Global Harvest
Many of the prisoners that were
forced out gradually began to come
back on their own, and some called Fe-
lix, the preacher in charge of the prison
work, and wanted to know what to do
because they needed to be baptized.
Some of these were Muslim prisoners,
and they were scared. Felix was devas-
tated over the whole horrible thing. Fi-
nally about 70 came back, and many of
them were baptized. These were then
given their freedom because of their
honesty and wanting to do what was
right, and because there was no place
to put them unless they were sent off
some where else.
On our way out we saw charred
bodies along the road and where many
Muslims had been burned at stakes. It
was a horrible thing to see and have to
remember. The killing ended as quickly
as it had begun, as if to say, “This is the
way we solve confl icts.” Tribal confl ict
will probably always be in Africa but
Christianity can surely lessen it, so we
keep teaching and praying for them.
I am thankful that God spared our
lives while there. We later learned that
out of the 2,000 or more killed in Mai-
duguri, not one of those baptized last
year was killed, and their church build-
ing was spared also.
We continued studying and teach-
ing many Muslims through World Bible
School and then a great break-through
came in November 2009. Isaac Onye-
buchi, a World Bible School convert
himself, started teaching many Muslims
living in a mosque compound in La-
gos, Nigeria. Ron Pottberg and I were
in Lagos for the preachers’ workshop,
and one day Isaac brought two young
World Bible School students to study
with us. Since Ron was teaching others,
I sat down with these and learned that
both were Muslims but that they had
very open minds concerning what the
Bible says. They had almost fi nished
the World Bible School lessons and at
the end of our study they both requested
baptism. What a joyous occasion it was
to witness them becoming Christians!
This was on Friday, and on Sun-
day we went to worship where Isaac
preaches. These two young men were
there but had been beaten and cut up
terribly. Part of one of their ears was
almost cut off. Their own people had
beaten them up when they went home
and they found out they were no longer
Muslims but had turned to Christianity.
They went to live with one of the Chris-
tian families, but eventually had to go
back to the mosque compound where
they had lived before their conversion.
Ron and I had left to go to Ghana
to work when Isaac called to say that
65 more Muslims from the mosque had
been baptized, but persecution was com-
ing to many of them. Their possessions
were destroyed and their Bibles burned.
Then the news came that the two
we had taught, and had been cut so
badly, were in the hospital and not ex-
pected to live. They had been reading
their Bibles and doing their last lesson
just given to them when someone saw
them. They took a machete to them and
left them for dead. If not for Isaac fi nd-
ing them, they would have died. He got
them to the hospital and called me. We
immediately got money together for
blood, since they had lost so much, and
for the hospital charges. They were un-
conscious for days and not expected to
live, but prayers went up from all over
and God has spared their lives. After
more than three weeks in the hospital
they have been discharged and are in a
safe place, we hope.
I wondered why just these two were
so brutally beaten and cut up. We learned
that they were the top two instructors in
their school system. Riliwan had writ-
ten me that if God allowed him to live he
could help convert hundreds to Christian-
ity. The next day is when they tried to kill
him. These are the words he wrote after
coming out of the hospital. “Persecution
has come upon those of us professing to
be Christians but we are thankful God
has spared our lives. We pray we can
continue to live and help Isaac teach and
convert many others. Isaac is a wonder-
ful man and a man who sacrifi ces much
to help others know Christ. We had to
give up our jobs so we now need a trade
or something to sustain us to live. Thank
you everyone who gave money for our
hospital stay and for helping us to have a
safe place to live.”
We have since helped them get
a trade and they are struggling to put
their lives back together. No, this is not
tribal war, but persecution of the worst
kind. Persecution has come from their
own family who said, “We had rather
see you dead than convert to Christian-
ity.” Riliwan and the others say they
hold no animosity toward their attack-
ers but will try to teach them and, by
their attitude and Christian living, they
are hopeful to bring them to Christ
also. For sure there are the radicals,
and most cannot be taught one-on-one,
but with a background from studying
the World Bible School lessons, they
learn enough to thirst for more Bible
knowledge. Let’s keep teaching those
that God puts in our path. I love what
Ron Pottberg says: “Every morning I
pray that God will put someone in my
day to whom I can, in some way, show
Christ.” Me too, Ron. U
Ruth Orr 1272 Yell Road, Lewisburg, TN
37091 wbsteachgyahoo.com or wb-
Continued from page 43
CHANGING EARTH — TOUCHING HEAVEN
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Global Harvest 45
Each year World Bible School
teachers have the opportunity to study
with over one million new students. At
any given moment there are over two
million students studying the Bible!
And all of these people, spending time
in the Word of God, results in many
coming to an understanding of the truth
and requesting to be baptized into Jesus
Christ. They come from different cul-
tures, backgrounds, and religious be-
liefs. But God gives the increase, as
they give their lives to Him.
We travel to many different coun-
tries each year to work with our WBS
follow-up people, and we have the op-
portunity to see thousands of baptisms.
I always marvel at some who truly do
count the cost of discipleship in ways
that most of us will never fully under-
stand or could even comprehend. Hav-
ing grown up in the US in a Christian
environment, we sometimes fi nd it hard
to imagine what it must be like in count-
ing the cost when converting from a
totally different cultural background.
Over the years as I have worked in many
different countries, I have studied with
Hindus, Muslims, and Buddhists, as
well as atheists and other groups. I have
come to realize that often times when a
person from one of these cultures choos-
es to convert to Christ, there truly is a
counting the cost of discipleship. Many
of them are disowned by their families,
shunned, and even considered as dead to
the family. Many lose jobs, wealth, and
even inheritances that would have been
theirs if they had stayed true to their
family’s belief system.
But I am reminded of Paul’s words
to the Philippians in chapter 3, verses 7
and 8 “But whatever things were gain
to me, those things I have counted as
loss for the sake of Christ. More than
that, I count all things to be loss in
view of the surpassing value of know-
ing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I
have suffered the loss of all things, and
count them but rubbish in order that I
may gain Christ.” I have heard some
comment upon their baptism, saying:
“I have to do what is right, regardless
of loss or consequence.” And while
we admire their dedication and convic-
tion to their new-found faith, giving up
family or even wealth is a small price
to pay for eternal life.
But what about when their very
lives are at stake? What happens when
they receive death threats or, worse
yet, when attempts are made on their
lives, often by their own families or
friends? Over the years we have met
many WBS students whose lives were
threatened because they converted to
Christianity. I met one young man
whose family tried to have him killed.
I have met others who had to go into
hiding because their lives were in con-
stant danger. The threat is real, and we
often have a hard time understanding
this counting the cost, as it is so foreign
to our life’s experiences.
What I am about to tell you hap-
pened recently while we were on a
mission trip to Nigeria. We have seen
persecution in the past and have heard
the stories, but this time we saw it fi rst
hand, and it becomes very personal
when you know the people who are
persecuted.
Riliwan Adesan grew up in a Mus-
lim environment and followed after
that faith into adulthood, but last year
he enrolled to receive the World Bible
School lessons in order to get a better
understanding of what Christians re-
ally believe. The more he studied, the
more he began to believe in Christ, and
to realize his own need for` a Savior to
forgive him of his sins. Brother Isaac
Onyebuchi met him and studied with
him further. Riliwan also studied with
us and was then baptized into Christ for
the forgiveness of his sins. On the front
cover of this magazine, you can see the
joy on his face after his baptism.
That was Friday, and on the fol-
lowing Sunday in Lagos, as we were at
worship, we saw Riliwan. His former
Muslim friends had taken clubs and
a machete to him. They struck many
blows, beating and kicking him, and
then they nearly cut off his left ear. A
week later others saw him reading a
Bible and questioned him. They then
took the machetes and almost killed
him. Isaac found him, as he had been
left for dead, and took him to a hospital.
He was unconscious and would have
died if Isaac had not found him.
Riliwan spent three weeks in the
hospital. Upon his release, having no-
where to go but back to the place where
they had already abused him, he re-
turned, set on standing up for his new
faith. That next Sunday, following
his release, we saw him at the church
services. He was determined not to
forsake his new faith and the gather-
ing together with other Christians. He
sang the songs, listened to the teaching,
committed to growing in faith in the
Lord Jesus.
When we saw him and saw his
wounds, we knew something had to be
done, for there was no doubt he would
lose his life if he stayed where he was.
Arrangements were made to rent an
Counting the Cost of DiscipleshipRon Pottberg
Continued on page 46
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46 Global Harvest
The most densely populated country
on the continent of Africa — Nigeria
— can frighten almost anyone. As a for-
eigner who has been traveling to Nigeria
since 1984 on annual mission trips for
Christ, I can assure you that even most
Nigerians have fears for their personal
safety and security. At times, they be-
come afraid that they won’t have enough
to eat and could actually starve to death,
that they can’t pay their rent and will be
evicted and have nowhere to sleep, that
they might be killed in a tragic accident
while they are traveling by public trans-
portation in poorly equipped vehicles
on poorly maintained roads, that they
might meet armed robbers and be shot
to death, that they might be kidnapped
and held for ransom, that they might fall
sick with some serious illness that they
can’t afford to treat and thus will die,
that they might be in the wrong place at
the wrong time when Muslims begin to
kill Christians. These fears grow from
REAL experiences that your Nigerian
brethren face in their world.
When I was in Nigeria earlier this
year, and planning to be there for three
months, outbreaks of violent killings be-
tween Muslims and Christians took place
in the Jos, Plateau State, area. In mid-Jan-
uary, and again in early March, around
350 people were killed in each of these
two clashes between Muslims and Chris-
tians — a total of over 700 killed, and two
of them were your brethren. There have
been multiple kidnappings in the south-
east corner of Nigeria (Abia and Akwa
Ibom States) in recent months, even while
I was in Nigeria. Four of your brethren
— Mkpong, Achinefu, Akpan, Aniefi ok
— have been kidnapped, mistreated, and
then released when expensive ransoms
were paid — and all these in just the
months of February, March, and April.
On March 15th, a bomb was planted and
exploded in Warri, Delta State, killing
four and wounding others — a city in
which I was to be preaching the Gospel
from April 9th -12th ... but didn’t ... because
my Elders called me to come back home
on March 17th. They made a wise deci-
sion, and I appreciate being called home.
Dangers such as these cause FEAR
in the hearts of Nigerians! I felt FEAR
at times on my recent mission trip! In
Matthew 10:24-42, our Lord Jesus en-
courages us to not be afraid of those
who call us names or who can even kill
our body but not our soul, for God cares
for us even as we are being persecuted
for His sake. If we are faithful in His
mission for us, we will not lose our re-
ward from Him. So ... more trips to Ni-
geria to preach the Gospel of Christ are
in my plans! What about you?! U
Doug Wheeler: [email protected]
Whom Shall We FEAR?Doug Wheeler
the Cost...Continued from page 45
apartment some distance away from
those who wanted him dead. And
while our sympathy and sorrow went
out to him, he was still devoted to stay-
ing true to his Lord and to the church.
This sobering experience made me
ask myself the question we all need to
ask: “Am I willing to lay down my
life for my faith?” We often times talk
about “Counting the cost of disciple-
ship” and while that is easy to say and
contemplate in our safe setting, it is not
the case for many of our brothers and
sisters around the world. Since we re-
turned home from Nigeria, others have
also been persecuted and have had to be
placed in safe houses.
Pray for those who are persecuted
for their faith. Pray for your brothers
and sisters who are willing to lay down
their lives for their faith. One day, you
might have to do the same. U
Ron Pottberg: [email protected]
Evangelists of the church of Christ, headed out for campaigns in northern Edo State.
Doug’s armed police guards.
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Global Harvest 47
Child WitchesDr. Larry D. Mathis
In Nigeria, so-called “witch
children” are being blamed for all
the problems faced there, especially
in Akwa Ibom State and Cross River
State. It is reported that there are some
930,000 HIV/AIDS orphans in Nige-
ria and that some Nigerians believe
HIV/AIDS is spread by witchcraft.
There is a deep belief that a spell
can be given through the consumption
of food and drink, and that the soul of
the person who eats or drinks this spell
will then leave the body to be initiated
in a gathering of witches and wizards.
It is also believed that the
“witch” can then wreak all manner
of havoc, causing diseases like HIV/
AIDS, cancer, typhoid, malaria, and
hepatitis. Other calamities include,
but are not limited to, mental health
problems, extreme poverty, rape,
abuse of all kinds, accidents, igno-
rance, broken families, drunkenness,
torture, infertility, divorce, on-going
violent confl icts, smoking of marijua-
na and other misfortunes.
“Suspected” witch children are
mistreated in various ways. Some are:
• abandoned, isolated and ostracized
from their community.
• taken into the bush and slaugh-
tered.
• disgraced publicly and murdered.
• bathed in acid or acid is forced
down their throat as an exorcism.
• poisoned to death.
• buried alive.
• chained and tortured in churches to
extract confessions.
It is reported that 15,000 children
have been accused of witchcraft in two
of Nigeria’s 36 states and that 1,000
accused children have already been
murdered. African Christian Schools
is working with an orphanage in Nige-
ria that is operated by Cliff Jarrell, an
American missionary who is a member
of the church and who has lived in Ni-
geria for about 15 years. He has been
invited by the ACSF Board of Directors
to operate his orphanage on the campus
of Nigerian Christian Bible College,
which is located in Akwa Ibom State,
where the atrocities are being commit-
ted. Perhaps some of these children can
be rescued before it is too late!
At this point, it is not clear what
the exact role of NCBC will be; but,
one thing is certain — the need to teach
the Truth of the Gospel remains urgent!
Whoever you are, wherever you
are, these children need your help now!
Your prayers are needed, but we also
need your fi nancial assistance in either
one-time gifts or monthly contributions
so that we can continue training evan-
gelists and other church workers who
can help combat such atrocities against
innocent children. Can they depend on
you? U
Sources: www.denverpost.com
FIFI WANDALIKA, AN EXAMPLE FOR YOUNG CHRISTIAN WOMEN
Fifi Wandalika, a young sister in the church in Lubumbashi, Democratic Re-
public of the Congo, decided four years ago to do two years of study in the new
Bible school in Kinshasa, DR Congo. In her early twenties, she persevered and
graduated from the Bible school. Back in Lubumbashi she began to work out
of the World Bible School offi ce which serves that area. She was invited to
make a mission trip to Kolwezi, an important city six hours to the north. With
no support but only her transportation paid, Fifi worked for several weeks
among fi ve churches of Christ in the area. She worked with groups of women,
and individually with Christian women, and with those seeking to become
Christians. She taught the women how to live as Christians and how to confi rm
their faith by a knowledge of the Bible. Fifi is now back in Lubumbashi but is
ready for other mission trips. She does not ask for regular support but would
accept money to pay the expenses of her trips. This is how one Christian young
lady is using her knowledge and talent in Kingdom work..
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48 Global Harvest
The Gospel sprouts in the most un-
inviting fi elds. The eastern Democratic
Republic of the Congo (DRC) area from
Goma to Fizi is proving to be a fertile
fi eld, in spite of its tragic history. Pri-
marily through French Bible corre-
spondence courses, churches are being
planted with a growing spirit of evan-
gelism. Three brothers from Switzer-
land — Brady Smith, Angel Panzano,
and Doyle Kee — traveled through this
region to contact and help the recently
established churches. The mission team
came into the area by fi rst fl ying from
Bujumbura, Burundi, to Kigali, Rwanda,
and then taking a public bus from Kigali
to Goma.
Goma — An A" icted City in eastern DRC
The approach to Goma in the
northern Kivu province of the RDC is
possible from three directions: by plane
from the captital of Kinshasa, by road
from Kigali, Rwanda, or from the south
by boat on Lake Kivu from Bukavu,
RDC. Visas and border crossings are
not always easy. Corruption is a way of
life for many offi cials.
A Congolese man, Dunia Kaendo,
who was converted in Kenya, began
establishing churches in the northern
Kivu province in 2002. It took four
years for the nascent churches to really
overcome denominational teachings
and traditions and to have fellowship
with churches of Christ elsewhere. In
2007, two graduates returned from two
years of study at the Hilton Terry Bible
School in Kinshasa. Since then, teach-
ers from the school have twice visited
this group of churches.
In August 2009, $9,000 was raised
to help these churches which had been
devastated by the civil war in the prov-
ince. Goma was also partially destroyed
by a volcanic eruption in 2002. Because
of the civil war, many sisters in the church
have been raped, church buildings have
been burned, and many Christians have
fl ed to refugee camps. When our team
reached Goma, we had seminars with
representatives of churches as far away
as 100 km from Goma. The church has
some good leadership and is progressing
with little outside help.
Bukavu — Bible Course Results South of Goma about 80 km in the
Nord-Kivu province is the hilly city of
Bukavu. The Swiss team took a boat for
the three-hour trip from Goma to Bu-
kavu on Lake Kivu. Through the work
of Bible correspondence courses, two
churches have been established by stu-
dents. One remains a house church of 17
members and the second one has a small
building but no chairs. The 35 members
sit on the fl oor during the worship. Our
Swiss mission team had an opportunity
to have a day’s seminar for the members
and for visitors from 14 different reli-
gious groups. We also visited the meet-
ing places of both assemblies.
Uvira —The Hub of the Province of Sud-Kivu Another 150 km to the south of Bu-
kavu is the strategically important city
for Congolese missions of Uvira. The
team decided to take an extremely dif-
fi cult road through the mountains of
eastern RDC to avoid visa complica-
tions by another road through a part of
Rwanda. There are three churches in
the Uvira area. For the last four years,
the principal infl uence for growth of
these churches has been French Bible
courses. From Uvira the Gospel has
spread about 50 km south to the area
of Fizi. Four churches have been es-
tablished there. The mission team did
not visit these churches, because there
was no road on which public transpor-
tation could go. A brother from Uvira
(65 years old) has walked the distance
twice to edify the churches.
In the eastern DRC, there are two
graduates of the Bible school in Kin-
shasa and two others who are now
students. These brethren will be help-
ing these churches. In addition, there
are four house churches in Bujumbura,
Burundi, just across the border. Lead-
ers from these churches have fellowship
with those in eastern RDC.
After fi ve years, there are now 15
churches in the eastern RDC area and
six in Burundi, just across the border.
There is no one among these churches
with foreign fi nancial support and no
buildings have been built or rented for
these churches. French materials and
Bibles have been sent, and World Radio
pays for a weekly broadcast in French
in Bujumbura (which is heard across
the border in DRC). U
Questions and offers of help with Bi-
bles and French materials can be sent
to Doyle Kee: [email protected].
The Churches of Christ in EasternDemocratic Republic of the Congo
Doyle Kee
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Global Harvest 49
Burundi is a small country in the
great lakes’ region of central Africa.
As a French-speaking country which
borders the Democratic Republic of
the Congo to the west, Rwanda to the
north, Kenya to the east, and Tanzania
to the south, Burundi has had its own
tragic history. There has not been,
though, a known history of New Tes-
tament Christianity in the country.
Six years ago, two Burundian “pas-
tors” were looking for further bibli-
cal training and enrolled in the World
Bible School. Kay Patton in Abilene,
Texas, followed their progress until it
was evident that a personal French con-
tact was needed. She eventually com-
municated with Doyle Kee in Geneva,
Switzerland. The need was for further
study in French with these two men.
Through communications with Boni-
face Okalo, Joachin Mvuyekure, and oth-
er student referrals, an active program of
Bible correspondence courses in French
was developed. In 2006, Doyle Kee and
Barry Baggett made a trip to Bujumbura
and had seminars with the students. They
were welcomed by Boniface and Joachin
and introduced to a number of pastors
and denominational churches. Two other
students, Amou Akembe and Samson
Munahi, showed interest in starting house
churches in their homes. In time it was
clear that Joachin and Boniface were too
tied to their denominational background
to continue a restoration of the New Tes-
tament church.
Correspondence course work con-
tinued from Geneva, and in 2008 Brady
Smith and Doyle Kee returned to Bu-
jumbura. They found that the Gospel
had continued to expand. Through
the active evangelism of Samson and
Akembe, at least eight house churches
had been established in Burundi and
two others across the border in the
eastern DR Congo city of Uvira. Smith
and Kee encouraged the movement and
had seminars with more students who
had enrolled through newspaper pub-
licity placed during the visit two years
before. The editor of a local newspa-
per, Patrice Ndikumasabo, also began
working with French WBS students.
Kee and Baggett set up an arrangement
with a radio station to broadcast pro-
grams in French, with the support of
World Radio from Monroe, LA.
Eary in January 2010, three broth-
ers from Switzerland spent a few days in
Burundi. They confi rmed the vitality of
the restoration movement in the coun-
try. Inroad has been made in a refugee
camp four hours from Bujumbura and,
during a visit there, the mission team
confi rmed that a church had been estab-
lished among the 9,000 camp residents.
Through Bible correspondence
courses and follow-up trips by French-
speaking workers, the church now has
its history underway in Burundi. No
foreign workers are in the country and
no outside fi nancial support is coming
in except for the radio program. The na-
tional leaders are maturing. French, Ki-
rundi, and Swahili Bibles are needed,
as well as other French materials to en-
courage the local tent-making leaders.
Some money has been given by USA
and European churches to ship and buy,
locally, Bibles for Burundi. Local lead-
ers are now initiating a program to put
some Bible courses in these two other
languages. Some help will be needed to
get these printed. If anyone knows of
material and courses already available
in Swahili, contact: Doyle Kee (The-
Doyle et Barbara Kee, Mission en fran-
cophonie 15, ch. des Laz, 1213 Onex/
Genève, Suisse; Tel. 022-793-7537.
A PART OF
FRENCH WORLD MISSIONS
Those of us working in the
French world receive from time to
time letters of this kind. We will use
some funds (always needing more!)
contributed for French materials to
respond to their request:
“We greet you in the name of our
Lord Jesus Christ. Peace to you, may
God bless you for the work you are
doing around the world, to evangelize
and to teach the Gospel of Christ.
“We are the Yeoville church of
Christ based at Yeoville in South
Africa. We are a French congrega-
tion formed of refugees from French
countries of Africa living in South
Africa. The Yeoville church of Christ
is composed of 69 members and 26
children attending Sunday school.
“We request help for us with some
French materials (French Gospel ma-
terials and hymn books for singing).
We would like to know about other
French congregations around the
world so we can communicate with
them. Our address is: Yeoville Church
of Christ, Gordon Road, 58A, Ber-
trams, South Africa 2094.”
Love you in Christ, Gabriel Kilolo
God at Work in Bujumbura, Burundi
Doyle Kee
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50 Global Harvest
I want to tell you the story of
“Pastor” Victor Olarenwaju. Prior to
his conversion, Mr. Victor was a dili-
gent seeker of Truth. He hails from an
Islamic background before his zeal to
fi nd the Truth got him translated from
the Islamic religion into a denomina-
tional church in 1991.
Therafter, the same zeal to dis-
cover the Truth persisted. According
to Mr. Victor, he saw a tract containing
an advertizement of a free Bible Cor-
respondence programme. Because of
his interest, he immediately copied the
Postal address and wrote to the adver-
tizers, indicating interest in the Bible
programme, with a view to fi nding
more truth about the Bible and God.
After some weeks, the course was sent.
Through the Bible lessons, Mr. Vic-
tor started searching for a church whose
teaching corresponded with what he was
studying, but he never found any.
Then, after many years of search-
ing for the true church and not fi nding
it, Mr.Victor decided to begin his own
church. He called it “POWER CARE
EVANGELICAL MINISTRY”. At this
point in time, he had completed the cor-
respondence programme and had fi lled
in the baptismal request form attached
in the last lesson sent to him.
Upon the receipt of Mr.Victor’s
request for water baptism, the teacher
in the American church sent the request
to a Christian brother living in the City
of Ibadan where Victor lives but, due to
some other engagements, this special
assignment was not carried out until
October of 2009, six whole years after
the request was sent!
Brethren, God, who was interest-
ed in saving the soul of this Truth seek-
er, preserved this particular envelope of
Mr. Victor’s request, among heaps of
papers and junk in the brother’s house
for six good years, until the day that I
came in search of some materials that
could be used in our Prison Evange-
lism. On that day, I was asked to go
and search for some useable materi-
als from junk that was already decay-
ing and wasting in the brother’s offi ce.
Mr. Victor’s request for baptism was
among the tracts and papers I packed
that day from the offi ce.
On getting home, I called
the local telephone line he [Vic-
tor] had included in his form, to
ascertain whether he had ever been
baptized.When I fi nally got him on
the phone after several days of at-
tempts, I fi rst asked whether he is
Victor Olarenwaju, to which he re-
sponded, “Yes”, and following this
answer, I asked him whether he
knows anything about the World
Bible School. After some pause
he responded with a positive,
“Yes”, but then he told me that he
had asked them to come and bap-
tize him six years ago but they did not
come. Immediately, I told him that his
teacher in America had sent me to bap-
tize him and he shouted a loud “Alle-
luia” on the phone.
I alerted my team concerning the
developments and we took off in search
of Mr. Victor, whom we discovered in
a remote village at the outskirts of the
city. After a two-hour Bible discus-
sion, he was baptized into Christ that
same day at about 4:00 PM.
Presently, efforts are being made
to change the entire denominational
church he founded into the New Tes-
tament church, but that has not been
easy because Victor, who is already a
family man with a wife and four chil-
dren, is afraid that we are about to end
his means of feeding his family. Also,
Mr. Victor, who is a strong fi gure in
the Christian Association of Nigeria
[C.A.N] is being lured by that denomi-
national body not to agree and change
his church to the church of Christ.
Brethren, shall we all fold our arms and
watch this man be taken back from us?
If you were in my shoes, what would
you do to help secure these souls? You
may reach me for any help in this par-
ticular work through: U
P.O.Box 20615 U.I, Ibadan 200005, Oyo
State, Nigeria, West Africa.
E-mail:[email protected]
Denominational
PreacherConvertedKingsley Odogwu
Kingsley Odogwu
Teaching students on a college campus.
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Global Harvest 51
In 1992, I visited Kampala to meet
with church leaders and conduct my
fi rst Leadership Workshop in Uganda,
East Africa. It was a tremendous suc-
cess, considering what the country had
suffered at the hands of Idi Amin. The
major request made by the representa-
tives of the 35 congregations who at-
tended was that we help them establish
a school of preaching in Uganda.
Dr. Solomn Aguh and I, under the
oversight of the elders of the Central
Church of Christ in Gadsden, Alabama,
had started the School of Biblical Stud-
ies, Jos, in Plateau State, Nigeria, West
Africa in 1989, so we knew what such
an endeavor would take. We knew
that we would have to fi nd good men
to teach, and then provide them with
an outstanding education in Bible. We
asked the Ugandan brethren to choose
men of good report and send them to
SBS in Nigeria. The Church of Christ
at Foote Street in Corinth, Mississippi,
agreed to provide the funds necessary
for this project.
Seven men traveled to Jos, Nige-
ria, to study Bible at SBS. One of the
men brought his family, and his wife
also completed a four-year course of
study. The studies were rigorous and
the living conditions were deplorable
by American standards. Two men
proved unfi t, another lost interest, but
the other four proved to be outstanding
Christians with a love to teach and par-
ticipate in seeking the lost.
Brother Luke Apamaku completed
a four-year accredited degree in Bible
at Jos in 2003. He joined the teaching
staff to learn administration until re-
turning to Uganda in June of 2007.
Muhyana Raimond completed his
degree program and returned to Kasese
in 2005. Simon Odungo completed his
program in May of 2006 and started
working in Soroti. In May of 2008 Sis-
ter Joyce Apamaku completed her stud-
ies and returned to join Luke, work-
ing at Kigumba. Brother Anguaza E.
Rhone completed his studies in 2009,
returned to Uganda, and as future head
of the school he obtained a Certifi ca-
tion of Incorporation, establishing the
Uganda Christian Bible College.
Brother Aguh and I traveled again to
Uganda from Nigeria in 2006. Dur-
ing that trip, we purchased 13 acres of
land at Kigumba in Northern Uganda.
Brother Rhone Agaza added two more
acres in 2009. We have completed reg-
istration of the land, site survey, and
plans for the two buildings we intend to
build. A hand-dug water well is needed
as well as plans to bring electricity to
the site.
In November of 2009, the elders
at Corinth sent Terry Smith, Solomon
Aguh, and myself to Uganda for two
weeks. We were met by Brother Rhone,
who had arranged for us to travel and
visit with brethren thoughout Uganda.
We informed them of our current plans
for the Uganda Christian Bible College
in Kigumba. We answered questions,
and welcomed any suggestions they
offered on how we could better serve
the needs of the Church of Christ in
Uganda.
17 Years of LaborSteve Worley
Luke & Joyce Apumaku Family
Anguaza E. Rhone family Continued on page 52
Muhyana Raimond Family
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52 Global Harvest
Sunday morning, January 17, 2010,
started out as another day of worship
for the brethren in Jos. The tragedies of
that day have changed many people’s
lives. Here are details concerning the
events on that morning and the days
following.
I received the following message
written Sunday, January 17th by broth-
er Solomon Aguh, President of SBS.
“We greet you in the name of our Lord
and Savior Jesus Christ. We resumed
classes last week, and I have been pre-
paring the reports to send to you but
have not fi nished yet. Just today after
the morning worship service, we heard
loud noises about two kilometers away
from the school. We learned later that
the Muslims had attacked a denomina-
tional church while in worship.
“Two of our students who went to
worship in town were taken while on
their way back. One escaped. The oth-
er, a Cameroonian, is still missing. We
reported to the police. We are still hop-
ing the Lord will bring him to us safely.
Lots of people killed and houses burnt.
Pray for us. — Solomon”
On January 22, brother James Ik-
wulono, who is living on campus, sent
the following: “Greetings and love to
you and your family. I am writing to
inform you of the current events at Jos.
On 17th January 2010, six days after
resumption of SBS classes, brother
Theo-dore Essemo went to worship
with the Township Church of Christ,
Jos. During the worship, Ebulla helped
conduct the giving and communion.
“After worship he and one of the
students were on the same motorbike
on their way back to the school when
they ran into Muslim militants that
were attacking churches. Their mo-
torbike was stopped by the mob and so
they jumped off the bike and ran in dif-
ferent directions because the Muslims
were running after them with cutlasses.
The other student was intercepted by
another Muslim who took him to his
house and then released him, and then
he found his way back to the school.
“But for Ebulla there was no
news until on Monday, 18th January,
his dead body was found in the hos-
pital. Ebulla was 34 years old and re-
mained single until his death. He was
a 200 level B.A. Ministry student. He
was from Mbo in Kupe Nwaneguba
district of Cameroon. His family wants
his corpse conveyed to Cameroon, and
now arrangements are under way. All
our SBS family mourns the demise of
brother Ebulla. We believe we will
meet him in heaven. — James”
I talked by phone with Solomon
on January 24th and he said that every-
one was staying inside their homes. The
offi cials allow people to be on the streets
from 10 AM until 5 PM each day, but no
one is going out until after the weekend.
Needless to say, rumors are rampant,
and everyone is fearful. The students of
SBS remain on campus.
As soon as we are able to take
possession of brother Ebulla’s remains,
we plan to hire an ambulance and
driver for transport. We hope to send
a staff member and a student at SBS
from Ebulla’s village with his remains
to the border with Cameroon where his
family will transport him to his village.
Please pray for the people of Ni-
geria. There is danger, both from Mus-
lim militants and from kidnappers. U
17 Years . . .Continued from page 51
Simon Odungo
A Christian Brother DiesSteve Worley
Our plans are to start the school as soon as the pri-
mary construction is completed. Our teaching staff
will consist of four men and one woman. We plan to
teach Bible and a two year course in Drip Irrigation
Farming. All of our teachers are qualifi ed to teach
this method of farming. In the near future, we hope
to add two more teachers, a Nigerian missionary who
is completing his Master’s Degree in Nigeria, and a
Sudanese student, who is attending SBS.
Our appreciation goes to the loving Christians
who have supported SBS and its extended works in
Nigeria, Chad, Niger, Cameroon, and Uganda. Our
brother Paul exhorts us through God’s word when he
wrote, “And let us not be weary in well doing for in
due season we shall reap, if we faint not”(Galatians
6:9). May our Lord bless this effort to bring glory to
His name. U
Steve Worley email: [email protected]
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Global Harvest 53
Jesus’ command in the great
commission in Matthew 28:19,20 and
Mark 16:15,16 contains both generic
and specifi c aspects. Specifi cally, we
are to preach “the Gospel” — and that
excludes fables, human traditions, and
philosophies. Generally, we are not told
“how” to go. Thus, it’s a matter of cost,
convenience, and expediency concern-
ing the method we adopt. Some ‘go’ by
foot, by land and sea, and others go by
air. Some go with tracts and books and
bible correspondence courses, while
others go on the radio, TV and the Inter-
net. And it’s safe and many times wise
to combine several methods of going.
God could, but He has not designed
for souls to be saved by any other way,
other than through preaching (Romans
1:16; 2 Corinthians 4:7). “He who wins
souls is wise” (Proverbs 11.30).
I have been a Christian since I was
converted at age 17 in 1979. In these
years, I have known of many wonder-
ful methods by which the churches of
Christ have tried to spread the Word
across the globe. Personally, I have tak-
en almost all of the Bible Correspon-
dence Courses that I knew of in the
brotherhood. Since I received the Gos-
pel through the World Bible School, I
can tell fi rsthand of the effectiveness
of that method. Also, I have received,
studied and taught from several materi-
als — books and journals — produced
by the brotherhood. Books by Leroy
Brownlow, Edward Wharton, Roger
Dickson, John Waddey, P.D. Wilmeth,
T. Pierce Brown, Jim Mcguiggan, John
Stacy, V.P. Black, Eddie Cloer, Jim
Massey, and J.C. Choate, among oth-
ers, have helped many of us in Africa
to learn how to be Christians and how
to teach others. I have read publications
from Firm Foundation, Gospel Advo-
cate, Truth For Today, Truth For The
World, Mission Printing, The Chris-
tian Bible Teacher, Latin American
Crier, and The World Evangelist, to
name a few. The efforts of J.C. Cho-
ate and The Bible Literature For Af-
rica Program of the Berclair church of
Christ have been outstanding in provid-
ing tools to help others learn to do the
will of God through the printed page.
This is especially so for us in Africa,
Asia, and India.
Many stories illustrate the great
value and power of the printed page in
the work of God. Here are two from
my own experiences:
“Tract in The Trash”
I met my fi rst missionaries when
Bill Banks and Doug Wheeler came to
Nigeria in 1984. Since then, my ‘mis-
sionary efforts’ have been closely in-
tertwined with Doug. He comes every
year, and together we travel around
much of the South and West of Nige-
ria teaching and preaching the saving
message of Christ. In the course of our
tours, we meet many, many different
personalities: Village chiefs, traditional
rulers, civil servants, offi ce workers,
military personnel, police, students
and rural folks. Some are our brethren,
some are new converts, while many
can be classed as ‘prospects’.
In the city of Agbor in Delta
State, our ‘contact person’ — with
whom we stay and work — is a broth-
er by the name of Emeka Molokwu.
Brother Emeka is a great Christian, and
a most zealous evangelist and church
planter. Yet he is not a “preacher”. He
is a professional, self-employed and
runs his own company. Three years
ago while we were with Emeka, as
we talked about the problems of the
many rural preachers who have little
or no fi nancial support, and of others
who are getting some support; one idea
we discussed was ‘how to encourage
preachers to save and possibly invest’.
Brother Emeka had some great ideas
about investments, but he then told us
he wanted to take us to meet another
brother who has better knowledge.
We met this other brother — Au-
gustine Agwulo — a very tall and huge
person. Brother Augustine was very
happy to share with us his ideas, for us
to be able to counsel local preachers.
We gained much from his talk, but we
ended up gaining even more from the
story of his conversion:
Augustine works for the Delta
State Government. His services relate
to investment and fi nancial manage-
ment. He has a huge offi ce with many
subordinate staff. One day, as he passed
the secretary’s offi ce into his, he no-
ticed a squeezed ball of paper. He hates
trash, so he picked it up, intending to
throw it into the trash basket.
On a second thought, he decided
to unwrap the paper and see what it con-
tained. It turned out to be a tract from the
church of Christ. He was curious, so he
took it into his offi ce and read it. He was
shocked and disturbed to fi nd a church
that teaches doctrines ‘completely dif-
ferent’ from most of the denominations
he had attended and known.
Augustine was a seeker who had
been disgruntled with many denomina-
tional practices around him. What he
had found in that piece of paper was
‘treasure hidden in the trash’. He made
copies of the tract, and kept one in his
The Preaching Power of the Printed PageSylvester Imogoh
Continued on page 54
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54 Global Harvest
car. He intended to check out ‘what
kind of church is this church of Christ
that teaches differently from most oth-
ers?’. One day, in his own town of Ag-
bor, he saw the sign of the church. On
Sunday, he went there to worship, mak-
ing sure to arrive early so as not to miss
out on any of the worship activities.
At the end, he asked several questions.
With his education and a mind set on
knowing the truth and not justifying
manmade doctrines, he quickly saw the
truth and was baptized.
Today, brother Agwulor is a pillar
in the church at Agbor and a true ser-
vant of Christ — all because somebody
saw the need to print a tract.
An ‘Impostor’ World Bible School Student
All those who have been involved
in the use of WBS as a method of evan-
gelism can tell many stories about their
students in foreign lands. When postage
increased in Nigeria in 1993 from 30
Naira per letter to 150 Naira, it became
clear that the WBS program would be
affected since many of the ‘students’ are
high school children who in most cases
can hardly afford postage on their own.
One response from me and my
team was that we started an offi ce in
Igarra that we have called The Chris-
tian Resource Center — CRC. In that
offi ce, we give out, receive and grade
WBS schools lessons. We established
a network whereby we send the les-
sons to different villages via the local
preachers and anyone else who is avail-
able. As we have traded the lessons to
and fro, we sometimes receive a re-
quest for a visit, for baptism, or to start
a congregation.
In the village of Ugboshi-Ele, we
had this incidence: A lesson was sent to
the village for one young boy. We did not
know that after he worked the fi rst book,
that he moved to the city to live with his
uncle. Meanwhile, at home, his cousin
brother saw the paper on the table, was
attracted to it, and started to study. He fi n-
ished several booklets and signed up —
requesting to be baptized. We went, and
at the waterside, he had a “confession”
to make. It was then that he revealed that
he was not the original owner of the les-
sons, but that his cousin that we thought
was working the books had gone to live
in the city. He then told us his own name,
and we baptized him. This was a case of
someone who learned the Gospel under
a ‘fake name’ and was saved. That is the
power of the printed page.
My word to you at World Evan-
gelism, World Bible School, and oth-
er publishers of the Word of God is
to never be weary of doing this good
work. The spate of technology in the
US may have made many alternatives
available-in computers, electronics,
DVDs etc, Yet, you all must realize that
many nations have not got to where you
are in that development. Thus, we still
rely heavily on the printed page here in
Africa. It’s sad to notice how the postal
system in some parts of the world (as
in Nigeria) is making it harder to mail
books and papers to our brethren. I do
not have an answer to the situation,
but it may be wise to consider printing
materials locally in some of such coun-
tries. For we must not fail to continue
to take advantage of the power of the
printed page as we strive to obey our
Lord’s command to “go’.
The South West School Of Evangelism
The School of Evangelism is located
in Ibadan, an ancient city of 15 million
people in the southwest end of Nigeria.
There are several Bible training schools
in Nigeria, but most are in the far East
where the strength of our brotherhood
exists. The Director of the school, Eb-
enezer Olufemi Makinde, was trained
in the Far East. With the spirit of ag-
gressive evangelism, he thought it wise
to start a local training program for
brothers to provide leadership in the
village congregations.
While Doug Wheeler was in Nige-
ria this year, we had the Great Work-
shop at the Inikokoro congregation
where Makinde preaches and where the
training takes place. Every year, while
Doug is on his annual mission trip in
Nigeria, we have a ‘Great Workshop’
that attracts as many as 400–500 of
our preachers and church leaders from
across the West and South of Nigeria.
In the “one day for evangelism” dur-
ing this year’s workshop, fi ve obeyed
the Gospel in baptism as we massed
out for door knocking. And in the few
weeks that Doug would spend in that
area, part if his efforts involved teach-
ing special courses at the SWSE.
Later, Makinde asked me to teach
at South West for a week. I taught the
11 preaching students two courses:
Hermeneutics and Church Leadership
and Organization. We spent a total of
three or four hours in the class daily,
beside several informal hours answer-
ing questions, giving advice, and in
counseling. The students loved our
time together, and I have gained from
the experience.
I completed my work and set a test
for the exercise. Makinde had left for
Lagos on Saturday morning, to speak
to one of the congregations that was or-
daining elders and deacons. I have al-
ready received several calls of appreci-
ation from the students. My joy is that I
had one more opportunity to contribute
to the great task of World Evangelism
by training others who will go out and
join us all as we must “scatter the pre-
cious Seed” (Luke 8:11). U
(Sylvester) email: [email protected]
The Preaching Power . . .Continued from page 53
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Global Harvest 55
April 16-18, Friday-Sunday, I was in the city of Shil-
long, the capitol city of the state of Meghalya in the north-
east, where I was invited to speak in a Gospel meeting. The
meetings were very well attended with great enthusiasm by
over 200 people.
The church at Mawlai in Shillong had also put around
the building loudspeakers for the outside crowd to hear. Shil-
long is an interesting city in India, where more than 90% of
the people are believers in Christ, mostly Catholics and Pres-
byterians. There are about six congregations of the Lord’s
church in Shillong.
After the meetings were over, one young man was bap-
tized, and after I returned to Delhi a member of the church
in Mawlai called me to say that there are about four more
contemplating obedience to the Lord’s command of baptism.
Interestingly, the church at Mawlai in Shillong was the
fi rst congregation of the Lord’s church in India in modern
times, established more that sixty years ago.
The following insert is by Betty Choate. It is a recount-
ing of God’s wonderful providence at work.
“Members of a Presbyterian church in Shillong began
to study their Bible and to compare what they were reading
with what they knew to be Presbyterian doctrine. As they
learned the differences, they made changes in themselves
and in their church, to fi t what the Scriptures teach concern-
ing obedience to the Gospel and the organization of believ-
ers into a congregation.
“Prenshan Kharlukhi, a government worker, was a
leader in the changes. One day, in the Shillong public li-
brary, he came across (of all things!) a church bulletin from
a congregation of the Lord’s church in Abilene, TX. How
did such a thing get there? No one knows. But a correspon-
dence began, and eventually brethren from the Texas church
visited the church in Shillong. To their surprise and joy, in-
vestigation proved that this was truly a sister congregation!
Fellowship was established, and the church in Shillong and
Meghalya State survived and fl ourished in these sixty+ years
— a testimony to the fact that wherever God’s Word goes,
there is the possibility that honest, seeking souls CAN learn
the truth and become simple New Testament Christians.” U
Sunny David email: [email protected]
Historically,The First Church of Christ in India
Sunny David
Sunny David with his translator.
The congregation in attendance.
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56 Global Harvest
I am thankful to God for giving me the privilege to
share with you that the Lord is doing great things here in the
Northern India. It is beyond our expectation and hopes. Yes,
Our Lord given us the promise that He will be with us when
we do His good will.
My name is Earnest Gill, and I obeyed the Lord in 1992.
I did graduation in commerce, but soon after becoming a
Christian I attended National Bible College in Chennai. Af-
ter graduation, I started work in Amritsar, the border city of
Pakistan in the Indian Punjab. After working there about 10
years, I moved to the capital city of Chandigarh.
This is a western kind of young city, only 60 years old.
After India’s independence from British rule, Eastern Pun-
jab became a state without a capital. The western Punjab in
Pakistan got its capital as Lahore. Chandigarh was Pandit
Jawaharlal Nehru’s “Dream City” of modern India, the fi rst
planned city and also known in India as the CITY BEAUTI-
FUL. It was built in 1953 and serves as the capital of two
states, i.e. Punjab and Haryana.
While in Amritsar, I started a Punjabi monthly magazine
with the assistance of brother J.C. Choate, but after about
eightyears we could not continue as by this time we had
started translating and distributing Truth for Today’s Hindi
books. Along with several others, I have been translating
Truth for Today’s Hindi and Punjabi books each month.
Our vision is to evangelize the Northern Belt, which is prac-
tically neglected or considered as tough, comparatively. To ful-
fi ll this great task, we have been able to start the North India
Bible College. Dedicated and experienced people work together
prayerfully to make it a success. We are so thankful for Ameri-
can brethren who, along with several others, assist us through
Brother Charles Scott from TN, Brother Russell G. Bell from
Topeka, KS, and Brother Eddie Cloer of Truth for Today.
Through North India Bible College the Lord is using us
mightily. So far in the four batches we have sent 34 students in
the Hindi speaking states, working in Punjab, U.P., Bihar, Ben-
gal, M.P., Jharkhand, Orissa, and Maharashtra states of India.
We have been conducting annually The North Indian
Preachers’ Lectureship for the past four years. Preachers
from more than 10 North Indian states attend it. This time I
was thrilled to see the overwhelming response and love for
the NIPL from the brothers all over India. It was encourag-
ing that at least 90% of the brothers told us over the phone
after reaching home that they appreciate this effort.
Besides sending 2,500 Hindi and Punjabi copies of Truth
for Today each month, we send Bibles, New Testaments, and
small tracts to various parts of the country, free of cost.
In the past couple of years, 10,000 Hindi New Testament,
and 1,000 Hindi and Punjabi Bibles were sent to brothers
throughout India. Also, 5,000 song books (Hindi, Punjabi
and English combined, 248 pages) were printed for free dis-
tribution among the congregations.
Further, 11,000 copies of Hindi translation of Why I Am
a Member of the Church of Christ By Leroy Brownlow
(translated by Earnest Gill) have been distributed among the
Hindi speaking brothers, to help them as a tool of evangelism.
In addition, 65,000 of the Hindi and about 13,000 Punjabi
copies of Truth for Today’s Seeking a Better Life have been
printed and mostly distributed among the masses. This book
has been appreciated very much in all the languages.
The work in the North India is taking roots, so pray that
the Lord will give the fruit in its time. U
Earnest Gill: E-mail: [email protected]
North India Preachers’ LectureshipEarnest Gill
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Global Harvest 57
It was exactly 36 years ago that brother J.C. Choate and
Sunny David travelled 48 hours on a train from Delhi to reach
Kakinada in order to record radio sermons in Telugu for church-
es of Christ, for the fi rst time. And we have been on shortwave
radio ever since. We thought it was a remarkable achievement
for the church in India, and especially for the State of Andhra
Pradesh. The impact of radio preaching was tremendous, and
this Telugu speaking land has never been the same.
However, once again, brother J.C. asked me to break new
ground, this time to prepare for television in 2003. I took up
the challenge with a bit of nervousness. Little did I know how
great and powerful the medium of TV is. Our very fi rst tele-
cast on a commercial Telugu channel, seven years ago, was
mind-blowing to people. For the fi rst time, millions of Telugus
were able to put a face to the voice that had been familiar to
them on the radio for more than three decades. The response
was overwhelming, and people began to connect with us in a
more personal way and to discuss subjects of eternal value.
The denominations were already there on TV long before
we were, but in no time Satya Vani (VOICE OF TRUTH) be-
came the most-watched program on the religious section. Peo-
ple saw from day one that we were different. The Word of God,
when preached as it is, is more powerful than all the manmade
doctrines. People began to be attracted to the truth in a wonder-
ful way. My son, Ricky, a graduate of Freed Hardeman and
OCU, later joined me in TV preaching. Many young people are
being drawn to the Lord through our combined efforts.
Here are some comments we received from our audience
scattered far and wide:
“Dear Sir, greetings. You are preaching the word of God
on TV every week clearly and supporting your teaching with
Bible references. It is a wonderful effort. Please continue to
do so for a long time.” — D. Apparao, Vizag City
“Dear Sir, we are watching your TV program along with
my family members. You taught us truth about music, prayer
and Lord’s supper. We learned many truths so far. May your
program increase.” — G. Dharm Rao, Ravipadu
“Sir, your TV lessons are very useful to us. We are taking
notes all along. You are special in that you are giving refer-
ences from the Bible and showing the scriptures on the screen
as you read. Many doubts are being cleared and questions
answered from the Bible. Please accept my whole-hearted
thanks.” — G. Emmanuel, Ravulapalem
“Sir, your lessons on TV are so pleasing to the eyes and
ears. There is no dancing, prancing and shouting, unlike oth-
ers. You are telling it as it is. I am from the Hindu back-
ground. I am thirsting for Bible knowledge. Your programs
help me to know the way of the Lord clearly. Thank you so
much.” — V. Krishna, Bandarlanka
“Dear Sir, I am a Hindu, but watch your prgrams on TV
with great interest. I gave up idol worship. Thank you for
teaching that God is Spirit and not matter. I am sure mil-
lions of Hindus like me will turn to the true and living God
through your programs.. — Y. V. Reddy, Srikakulam
“Dear Sir, I am a shopkeeper and watch all Christian
programs on TV daily. I notice you don’t ask for money
or give your bank account number and ask people to trans-
fer money to you online. On the contrary, you are offering
free Bible courses, books and magazines. You
are the only people willing to give. Others, it
seems, are there only to receive. There is a vast
difference between church of Christ programs
and others. God bless you.” — M. Venugopal,
Hyderabad
We can go on quoting from letters endlessly.
We receive about 250 letters per day as re-
sponses to our programs. We enroll about 100
a day in the Bible courses, and for others we
send out books and magazines. TV is able to
convert people to the truth. Many new con-
gregations are coming up as a result. Here are
few instances:
IMPACT OF TV IN INDIAJoshua Gootam
Continued on page 58
Ricky and Joshua Gootam with Bibles for distribution.
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58 Global Harvest
A few months back, one denominational preacher responded
to our telecast. In fact he came over here personally to get
clarifi cation on several Bible subjects. He has been follow-
ing our telecasts for some time and came to the conclusion
he was wrong. I got him to take the Basic Bible Course from
us and also gave several books written by J.C. Choate and oth-
ers. He began to take more and more interest in the church
and attended a couple of our monthly preachers’ workshops. In
March this year when Jerry and Paula Bates came, Ricky took
them over to his village. They held a meeting and, when the
invitation was extended, the denominationl preacher was the
fi rst one to get up and obey the Gospel. Thirteen more were
baptized that day. He is in his late 50s and is very zealous for
the truth. He especially likes our singing without instruments.
We not only started a new congregation there, but we also got
their church building. There are scores of instances like this
where people started congregtions of the Lord’s Church in
their villages or towns due to our TV programs.
About three years go one young Hindu lady walked into
our offi ce, wanting to talk to me personally. When told I was
in the hospital, she wept bitterly and went back to her village
disappointed. A few weeks later, she came again on a Sunday
and declared her intention to obey the Gospel that very day.
She had been following our telecasts in her home. Theirs is a
staunch Hindu home, and her husband was much against her
becoming a Christian. But she put the Lord fi rst, travelled
by bus about four hours and obeyed the Gospel, determined
to start the church of Christ in her village. She broke bread
several weeks all alone in her home.
A few weeks later, she came again to Kakinada, this time
with her mother and younger sister, so they could be baptized
here. She had taught them the Gospel, and from that day there
were three in that congregation! Meanwhile, she was getting
books and Bible courses from us, studying the Bible intensely,
and assimilating the truths. Two months ago, both the mother
and the two women came and visited with me. They have now
grown to 21 members, all women, and the visiting preacher
happens to be the only man in their assemby. The husband
who protested vehemently is now neutral. And the congrega-
tion meets in her home every Sunday. Her nine-year-old boy
recites many Scripures and knows all the songs and numbers
in our Telugu hymn book.
These three ladies brought Rs.1500 as a gift fom their
congregtion for our TV work! This good sister’s name is
Ramadevi. She is so well versed in the Bible and so zeal-
ous for the truth that she picks up conversations with co-
passengers on the bus and tells them about Jesus Christ and
His only church. She hopes some day both her husband and
father would obey the Gospel.
There are many, many such stories. The Word of God
is powerful, and He has given us a powerful medium — the
television — to carry the Gospel to modern homes. This is
one of the tools we have and we’d better make use of it while
it is available in India. God bless you. U
Joshua Gootam is the Telugu TV speaker in AP, India.
Email: [email protected]
IMPACT OF TV...Continued from page 57
Study materials sent to TV viewers and
radio listeners.
Paula Bates having a class with the children at the orphanage.
Solomon (right), formerly a denominational preacher, pic-tured with Ricky Gootam and others who were baptized.
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Global Harvest 59
On the way of our Gospel journey we got an opportunity to meet Brother David, who is one of the Preachers of Church of Chirst. He works in Salem. He asked us to come and conduct Bi-ble Classes for two days in his place once in a month. In this picture Brother and Sister David and two other broth-ers are with me.
Tirupur District preacher, brother Ramaraj, with his congregation members. We visited them in January, 2010. According to our plan for this year 2010, we’ve started our Gospel journey in Tamil Nadu State. The third Sunday of January we went to Dharapuram, Tirupur District. There I preached in the Gos-pel Meeting on 16th Saturday evening and then the next day on 17th, the third Sunday. I gave God’s message in the worship service in two congregations.
My wife, Glory, is hearing our Radio message on 20th Satur-day on the way to the Hill Yer-
caud. U
Email: thewordof
Brother Sivakumar who stands near me works with us. He is a Salem Dis-trict Preacher. He gathers and worships God with the members in a village every week. On 21st February, 2010, we at-tended the worship service with these people and I gave God’s message there.
We would like to visit and stabi-lize our District Preachers and the Lord’s Church. Please pray for our Gospel journey.
I am giving baptism to Esther. She is studying in a Higher Sec-ondary School.
The girl who stands at last in the sec-ond row in this picture took baptism this month. Her name is Rajalakhmi. Her own sister who sits and looks back also took baptism with her. Her name is Esther, studying in Higher Secondary School. Both were Sunday school stu-dents in 1995. They have been attending the worship service and other church activities. The elder one is 22 years old
and younger one is 17 years old.
I am giving baptism to Rajalak-shmi. Now she works as a Staff Nurse in the Government Hospital.
In our Gospel journey, we met brother Prabakaran, who is a preacher of Na-makal District on 20th February, 2010. We found a piteous situation there. He couldn’t do God’s works properly because of his wife. She is not at all helping him in God’s ministry, so he is worrying about it very much. We gave him counsel and asked him to pursue in Christian life. We went to his place with two brothers.
On the Road with Arjunan and Glory...Tamil Nadu, India
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60 Global Harvest
When we do what God wants us to
do, no matter how great the task may
seem to be, He gives us living fruits
for us to cherish with the team in heav-
en. From the time we started working
with the Choates for the extension of
the kingdom of God and establishing
the only one true church of the Bible,
though there were many hard experi-
ences and obstacles, we have been en-
joying the happiness of bringing souls
to the Father. The encouragement and
support to us through the Choate family
and the Bates and from the World Evan-
gelism team all these years have helped
us to proceed and work more tirelessly.
JC School of Evangelism
(Members of Lord’s Church
establishing new Congregations)
With the graduation of the fi rst batch
of students, the evangelism school has
passed a milestone in the history of the
Gospel work done by the New Testa-
ment Church in India. This school is a
novel attempt to train and encourage
the ordinary interested members of the
church to satisfy the wish of our Lord,
that every Christian must bring souls to
the Father’s kingdom. Though the Chris-
tians are heavily burdened with work and
family priorities and worldly pressures,
when the powerful Word of God is given
to them in the right way to know their
responsibilities as Christians (to teach
souls), nothing can stop them from bring-
ing joy to heaven (Luke 15:7).
Initially, this “JC School of Evan-
gelism” was started to remember and
remind future generations of the exem-
plary Gospel work done by J.C., our
motivator for evangelistic work, who
still lives in our hearts.
We are happy to report, though,
that the school is bearing fruit beyond
our expectations. Here are some of the
important results. . . .
During this year, 2010 beginning,
students of the school started new con-
gregations and Gospel work in four ar-
eas: Tirumangalam, Karur, Alanganallur
and Tirunagar. In these areas, it is through
the efforts of the students alone that new
souls have been baptized and worship
services are going on. The young church-
es in all these places are growing.
More than 50 people have been add-
ed in 18 months, only through the efforts
of the students of the school, all ordinary
members of the Lord’s church who have
secular jobs to support their families.
In the home congregations of the stu-
dents, the number of visitors has increased
by at least 20% since this effort began.
Students, themselves, started arrang-
ing house Bible studies, that is, some stu-
dents go for house Bible studies in their
area two days a week, some even for fi ve
days a week, according to the rest time
they get after their regular work. Other
students have turned such house studies
into area Bible classes, combining three
or more families for meetings.
After seeing the enormous response
and result this JC School of Evangelism
produced, preachers from other cities
have requested us to conduct the same
training in their areas. Up to now, due
to a shortage of funds, we selected only
one more city apart from Madurai for
conducting the program. Now the class-
es are conducted, and interested mem-
bers of the Lord’s church are trained for
evangelism in two places, that is every
3rd week of every month in K’palayam
and every 4th week of every month in
Madurai city. We request your prayers
for the funds needed to begin this soul-
saving program in other cities where the
church members have a thirst to win
souls, but who are in need of proper in-
puts and fi eld training.
Thank God we have printed mate-
rials: Bible correspondence courses in
Tamil and English, a monthly maga-
zine (Gracious Word) in Tamil and
The Voice of Truth International in
English, Christian Hand Bills in Tamil,
and the television messages on CDs and
cassettes for the students to use when-
ever they go out to do their evangelism.
JC School of Evangelism and Follow-up WorksPhilemon and Kingsly Rajah
Paula and Jerry Bates, with Philemon Rajah, and the fi rst graduating class. Continued on page 61
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Global Harvest 61
To all the Bible correspondence course
students who complete the lessons, we
send/give Bibles. All of these tools are
supplied through contributions donated
to the Choate/Bates mission funds. We
request you to kindly uphold these ef-
forts in your prayers and help us to get
these materials continuously.
With the success of this novel pro-
gram of training faithful members for
evangelism, now there are many in-
vitations to visit churches throughout
Tamil Nadu and nearby states. So now
we have a project of going each week
to a different congregation to preach
and help the Christians to look serious-
ly into the Lord’s last commandment to
GO INTO THE WORLD!
Response from Television Programs
Also, we hear from preachers of
the church, saying that, due to our tele-
vision programs, some of the viewers
contacted them and studied with them
and took baptism. This information we
come to know after a long time, only
when we meet these preachers some-
where. So even without our knowl-
edge, the TV programs are producing
good fruit. Thank God.
Gospel to the Visually Challenged
Thanks to the world evangelism
team for helping us take the Gospel to
these special people those who are ne-
glected both spiritually and socially in
India. Of the 37 million people across
the globe who are blind, over 15 mil-
lion live in India.
Every month we conduct Bible
camps for the blind in different cities of
Tamil Nadu state and also in the other
states of India. Through such camps in
these 12 years, some 300 people have
taken baptism and many thousands have
heard the Gospel of Christ. Thank God
now we have materials to ensure the
spiritual growth of these blind people,
through the mercy of the Choates and
the world evangelism team. We share
the Gospel through TVOTI Braille
magazine in Tamil and English every
month, and also we have Braille Bible
correspondence courses for them. Apart
from these materials, we provide them
with audio magazines (television mes-
sages on audio tapes). Through these ef-
forts, every month at least three to fi ve
blind people obey the Lord in baptism.
As we often have fellowship with the
blind people and meet them regularly,
they have some genuine requests for
their spiritual growth, for which we re-
quire all your prayers and support.
1. Many school and college-going visu-
ally challenged students ask us for used
or empty audio tapes for their secular
studies.
2. By the grace of God, we are able to
freely provide the New Testament on
audio tapes to these blind people. Some
have their own tape players, and some
request players from us so that they can
study the Word of God. Since blind
people in India are mostly poor, they
cannot afford such equipment.
3. Blind people are also aware of ad-
vancements in technology, and some of
them request the Bible or New Testa-
ment on CD in Tamil, English, Telegu,
Kannada, or Malayalam languages.
There is an opportunity for us to cheap-
ly produce these CD’s.
Please pray for these genuine re-
quests of these special people who are
eager to learn and obey the Lord. U
JC School of Evangelism . . .
Continued from page 60
Bibles purchased for distribution.
Baptisms resulting from the students’ work. Philemon Rajah works in Madurai, India.
Email: [email protected]
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62 Global Harvest
Vignettes of
the work in
Trivandrum,
Kerala,
South IndiaP.K. Varghese
Our daughter, Pretty was married to Aji on August 8, 2009 at Kottayam. He is a preacher who attended our Bible School at Trivandrum. His parents also are Christians. Now they both are in His service. Praise God for that. Remember them in your prayers.
Gigi, the daughter of Vincent, one of our members, is taking scriptural immersion. Vincent is a good learner of the Scriptures. He encourages many to turn to the Lord.
On every Friday, we started an Open Bible Study for the truth seekers. We invite our TV contacts too for this session. Some newcomers also turn up, which is encouraging. We are planning to continue this on a regular basis. We request your earnest prayers so that the Word may be spread further. U
Christians at Kovalam worship in the renovated building. Members are increasing so we had to ex-tend the space. Now we have enough room, but still the children are sitting on the fl oor. We are get-ting more contacts locally since we started our TV program in Malayalam. It really helps the work in Kerala. The churches here appreciate the brethren who are supporting this program. It is our prayer that God may give them the right reward.
One of our new contacts named Sandhya Rani is taking baptism after several studies. She is a faithful member now.
P.K. Varghese Email: [email protected]
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Global Harvest 63
As a servant of God and a partner
of World Evangelism team that spreads
the Gospel of Christ across the globe
through printed pages, Radio and TV,
which were envisioned by our late
Gospel pioneer and spiritual giant J.C.
Choate, I am so happy to contribute
this article for Global Harvest.
First of all, we are extremely happy
to announce that we have harvested 12
precious souls from the fi eld of Satan
through our just concluded 13th Annu-
al Summer Bible Camp, held on May
3-5, 2010, in a Hill Station called YE-
LAGIRI, which is about 300 km from
where we live.
It is a joy for me to narrate about
the Summer Bible Camp for this jour-
nal. Oh yes, it was a real spiritual feast
for the many congregations, coming
from the four corners of Tamil Nadu
and from the neighbouring states of
Karnataka and Pondichery. To our sur-
prise, the gathering crossed the mark of
500, and it comprised saints from 49
congregations, representing 52 towns
and cities. Here, I have no hesitation
to say that this is the only event which
attracts saints from so many congre-
gations in this part of India. One can
imagine the immense joy it brings in
meeting so many children of God from
so many different congregations in one
place, to have fellowship with them for
several days.
Twelve preachers spoke on 12 dif-
ferent topics in three morning devotion
sessions. The program started by 7 am
and fi nished by 8:30 pm each day, with
a break of two hours after lunch — and
the rest of the day things were so hec-
tic! In the afternoon, after the break,
we split the gathering into six groups,
one each for married men, married
women, young men, young girls, and
children, and also one for the TV view-
ers and magazine readers. Each class
was handled by sound teachers and we
informed them of the topics well in ad-
vance so that they could do their job in
the most effective way.
More than 30 TV viewers and mag-
azine readers attended the camp. We
arranged a special session for them be-
cause all were from different denomi-
nations, and they were allowed to raise
their questions and doubts about the
one true church and salvation. There is
no need to say that this was a challeng-
ing session, which took hours together.
On the second evening, nine people
obeyed fi rst, and then another man.
Again, with an extra session two more
obeyed.
More than 100 children took part
in this camp, and they enjoyed it very
much. We took them away from the
adults and this helped them as well as
us! They learned many songs and sto-
ries.
During the break time of the second
day, we had a special meeting for the
full-time preachers, discussing many
things about the work in the congrega-
tions and also about what we can do to
improve the Bible Camp in the future
to be more effective. We have decided
to prepare notes of lesson for the kids,
to teach them in a systematic way about
New Testament Christianity as they are
the future of the church in this land. We
need your help in this regard and you
can send us lessons that you have over
there already.
We distributed Bibles and books
that we printed. Participants asked me
to provide more Bibles and tracts, if
possible. They asked us to come and
conduct meetings in their places to help
their congregations. We may have to
plan more Gospel meetings and special
classes for them in the future, and we
need your help for this endevour.
In closing, I always thank the World
Evangelism team, sister Betty, brother
Annual Summer
Bible CampS. Rajanayagam
Continued on page 64
Bible classes under the trees.
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64 Global Harvest
Jerry and sister Paula Bates, and others like the Barriers and
the Rushmores, for helping us to reach the millions of souls
that are perishing in this pagan land of India. The Bates were
with us very recently, and they know what we do in this part
of the country.
Concerning another part of our regular work, we had a
meeting for lepers yesterday, and almost 30 people took part.
They are showing much interest in knowing things. Since,
most of them are from Hindu background, they fi nd it diffi -
cult to understand real Christianity. Their educational back-
ground is also a big challenge. However, we are studying
and encouraging them in all possible ways. Especially, I am
in touch with the family who is close to them and constantly
encourage him to visit them. Hope there will be some con-
versions in the near future.
The place where they meet is in a pitiful condition, and
I helped with some money to have good roofi ng at least. I
have attached a picture of the present thatched roof.
We also distributed clothing to both men and women,
and they are happy about that. I made it very clear that God
is helping this through saints, because you love the Lord.
We always insist that they look for the next life where
there will be no more sickness, and they understand that.
However, they need to learn more. Please remember them
in your prayers. U
Rajanayagam is a Tamil evangelist, living in Kangayam, Tamil
Nadu, India. Email: [email protected]
Annual Summer Bible Camp
Continued from page 63
TV and Magazine contacts. Several of these obeyed
the Gospel.
Rajanayagam teaching a class in a lepers’ colony.
Preachers who attended.
Racheal teaching the ladies.
Poverty is evidenced by the poor condition of the thatched roof.
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Global Harvest 65
We would like to thank God Al-
mighty for what he has done in this
mission trip to the north of India and to
Nepal. We would also like to thank the
Davis Road Church of Christ in Banga-
lore, India for continuous and relentless
prayers for the team and for our safe re-
turn after the successful completion of
the mission.
Since the establishment of the 7
Davis Road church, many missions of
such nature have been made under the
able leadership of brother P.R. Swamy.
Since it is every member’s duty to bring
souls into Christ for His glory, Douglas
and Prasad organized this mission.
The state of Bihar, with a popula-
tion of 90 million, has extreme poverty
at all levels. It is a breeding ground for
dacoits, rebels, and anti-social elements.
Bihar has been a great religious centre
for Jains, Hindus, and most importantly
for Buddhists since Buddhism was born
in that area of India. Few tourists, today,
spend time in Bihar.
You may be surprised to note that
Raxaul is a settlement in East Cham-
paran district, on the border-line be-
tween India and Nepal. It is without
basic facilities such as electricity, wa-
ter, roads, and proper drainage — the
feeling, being there, is that one has
reached the end of the civilized world.
But by God’s grace, He has provided
three valuable souls, brothers Munilal,
Chotalal, Nagender Prasad. One of
them was a total opponent to Christian-
ity, but on our last day he came for-
ward, repenting
and asking to be
baptized. We have
sown the seed but
the task ahead is
much more chal-
lenging than words
on paper can adequately tell.
During our visit, we went to three
major villages, two of them bordering
Nepal: Ghodasan, Naykatola and Ra-
gunathpur. In all these places only the
name Christianity was heard through
Duncan Hospital run by the Emmanuel
association and a small Catholic church
in Raxaul. Very little evangelistic work
has been done by any of the denomi-
nations, and there are no churches of
Christ in the area, to our knowledge.
We have found this as a learning ex-
perience and a “wake up” call, that we
should be prepared to bring God into
the lives of these people.
Every one of us has to take a keen
interest in evangelizing the area with
the following:
P Establishment of the church and
multiplying the souls into more num-
bers.
P Provide opportunities for the new-
born souls to be edifi ed with the Word
of God for a duration of 3 to 6 months.
P Find an appropriate person or per-
sons who will lead in edifi cation and
evangelization at this East Champaran
district, under the guidance of 7, Davis
Road church, with knowledge of Hindi
and Bhojpuri languages, preferably.
P Find persons who will be transla-
tors of the Word of God into Bhojpuri,
the colloquial dialect.
P Find enough fi nancial resources for
the planned effort.
Ooty Children’s Home
Ooty Children’s Home is an en-
tity of “We Serve Charitable Trust”
and part of the Indian government’s
requirements to be allowed to receive
foreign funds for evangelism. Being
involved with the home, we used this
trip also to look into the possibility of
helping orphans, fatherless children,
and children in dire poverty. Seeing the
great needs there, we have decided to
go through the channels to bring some
children from these areas to our OCH.
These children will be trained in
aspects connected with Christian life,
moral, and secular education, to go
back and be involved in their society
for a better life. U
Mission Trip to East
Champaran District
of Bihar State and
Birgunj of NepalP.R. Swamy and Vernon Douglas
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66 Global Harvest
Addie's Story
from a Cardboard Box She came to us in a cardboard box
during the night. We found her at the
Mama Jo’s House Christian Care Center
gate. It appeared that she had been born
a few hours before she had arrived at our
gate. We do not know her actual date of
birth. From looking at her, it was evi-
dent that she had some severe problems.
At fi rst, we thought she only had club
feet, but we soon found that she had ar-
throgryposis. Arthrogryposis, or arthro-
gryposis multiplex congenita (AMC),
comprises nonprogressive conditions
characterized by multiple joint contrac-
tures found throughout the body at birth.
We sent her to Guilin, Guangxi
Province, for special treatment, but very
little was accomplished. We inquired
of other medical facilities in China and
they could offer no help. It was at this
point that we decided to bring her to the
US for treatment. The Shriner’s Hospi-
tal in Greenville, SC accepted her as a
patient. At the time of her acceptance
by Shriners and her arrival in the U.S.,
she was about two years old.
The Stan Burnette family of Bu-
ford, GA agreed to be her host family.
They immediately fell in love with her
and she loved them. It was a beautiful
match. The surgeries began and will
continue for many years to come. After
a strong bond was established between
Addie and the Burnettes, they called
and asked if they could adopt Addie.
The adoption process was immediately
begun and is now completed. She is
a very blessed little girl and so are the
Burnettes.
Li Yunfei
with Deformed Hands Li Yunfei, born on September 30,
2004, is currently at the Jackson Fam-
ily Care Center, one of our six care
centers, located in Zigong City, Sich-
uan. He was found by one of our work-
ers who went to visit some orphans
in the nearby rural areas. His mother
left home in 2005 and remarried. She
never returned to the family. His fa-
ther killed someone and then was sen-
tenced to death in 2008. Yufei had to
live with his grandparents. Life with
his elderly grandparents, who are farm-
ers, is very diffi cult. Yunfei was born
with deformed hands, but as poor peas-
ants, the grandparents could not afford
medical treatment. We applied for free
surgery from the Shriner’s Hospital for
children in Greenville, South Carolina.
They will provide orthopaedic surgery
for him. He will travel to the States in
June and we have a host family ready
for him in Atlanta. U
[email protected]; Chinese
Agape Foundation, 201 S. Peachtree
Parkway, Peachtree City,GA 30269
CHINESE AGAPE FOUNDATION
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Global Harvest 67
How is this possible? Aren’t mission-aries prohibited in China?Y It’s true, the Chinese government does not give visas to missionaries.Y I will be employed to teach Con-versational English to Chinese univer-sity students.Y Chinese schools are desperate for native English speakers to help stu-dents improve their English level. Y Teaching in universities is my “visa and residence permit” to remain and work in China.Y I will be teaching students who have had about 10 years of English al-ready. They can read and write it, and some speak and understand well, while others don’t.
So, how does this relate to getting the Gospel into China? Y Native English speakers are in great demand. Y All that’s needed are faithful Chris-tians willing to take a year (or more, if they choose) out of their lives to teach in China, and to take advantage of this amazing opportunity to have an infl u-ence for Christ on the future teachers and leaders of that great nation. Y Privately and without fanfare, I can practice “friendship evangelism” in its purest form.
Isn’t it a Communist country? How can I share the Gospel? Y “Religious discussions” are legal in China. Y Publicly, I am allowed to answer fully any question asked, if the Chinese person brings up the subject. Privately, I may initiate and discuss any subject. Y The government already knows that a large percentage of those who go to China to teach English go for religious purposes.Y As long as I don’t publicly fl out their policies and cause them to lose face, Christian teachers are welcome. I just need to be discreet.Y The opportunities are tremendous for me to share my faith.
How does the Chinese government pay my way? Y The Chinese government provides a furnished apartment, utilities included. Y Suffi cient salary on which to live.Y A travel stipend with several weeks off to travel within China, or even to neighboring countries.
What if I’m not a teacher?Y That’s OK. Most of those who’ve gone to teach are not professional teach-ers, and yet they’ve been successful.
How much does it cost?Y About $1700 — $2000 for a single
round-trip, open-return plane ticket (with most, if not all, refunded by the Chinese university at the end of the teaching contract).Y US passport costs approximately $100.Y About $170 for a visa, and about $200 for recommended immunizations. Y International medical insurance: varies from $45-$125 per month. Y Various other optional costs, such as teaching materials, emergency fund, etc.Y Very little compared with most other mission endeavors. The cost for a year in China is usually less than the cost of just one month for a full-supported mis-sionary elsewhere in the world!
What are the requirements?Y English must be my native lan-guage, a bachelor’s degree or higher. Y Reasonably good health, and be be-tween ages of 20 to 70.
What will I do with my time?Y Teach Conversational English or other selected subjects between 12 and 16 hours each week. In my free time, I can have as many private religious dis-cussions, in English, as I can schedule.
How long of a commitment will I be making? Y 10-11 months — one school year.Y Contracts are renewable; many have exercised this option.
But I don’t speak Chinese! Y I don’t have to. Y I’ll be teaching students who have already studied English for many years. They just need me to help them use what they’ve already learned.
Who’s there now?
Y Over 100 members of churches of Christ are currently working in Chinese schools from all areas of the U.S. and even a few other countries. They are of all ages, from just out of college up into their 60’s, singles, couples, and some families with children.
“The harvest is plentiful, but the
workers are few. Ask the Lord of the
harvest, therefore, to send out workers
into his harvest fi eld.” (Luke 10:2) U
Contact Global Harvest for information.
I can take the Gospel to mainland China
and the Chinese Government will pay my way!
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68 Global Harvest
When our family moved to the
Pacifi c Island country of the Fiji Islands
in 1973, it was only two years later
that I began to dream of carrying the
Gospel to every country in that region.
There was a need because the Lord’s
church had been planted only in Fiji,
American Samoa, and Tonga. There
was only one congregation in each of
these countries; they were very small
and barely surviving.
In December 1974, I worked up a
strategy plan for carrying the Gospel to
every nation beginning where we were,
and then reaching out. When I shared
the idea with Mary, she said, “Robert,
how can we do this? This is bigger
than anything we have ever done for
the Lord.” I said to her, “Mary, God
will help us, and we will take on one
or two nations at a time and get others
to help us.” In January 1975, we had
a visit from brother John Maner, one
of our elders. As I shared this dream
with him, he looked at the map on the
wall in my offi ce and said, “Robert, do
you know how to eat an elephant?” I
thought for a minute and said, “One
bite at a time.” I then thought that this
will be the key to carrying the Gospel
and planting the Lord’s church in every
nation in the Pacifi c.
In January 1976, we started reaching
out to strengthen the very small body of
Christ that had been neglected and was
about to die at Nu’uuli in American Samoa and Nuku’alofa, Tonga. We set in
motion the plan to carry the Gospel to the
nation of Western Samoa, from there to
Vanuatu, then the Solomon Islands. We
were getting others involved in helping
us in the work of the Lord and in time
we had missionaries in Western Samoa
and Vanuatu, with plans in motion for
a missionary in American Samoa. The
Gospel was spreading, and the Lord’s
church was being planted throughout the
South Pacifi c, into the Central Pacifi c,
and fi nally into the North Pacifi c.
We now have four families over-
seen by the Forest Park congregation
in Atlanta, and fi ve overseen by other
congregations that we are working with
in the Pacifi c, a total of nine families
laboring for the Lord in the 22 countries,
30,000 islands, and among the 6+
million people of the Pacifi c Islands.
In January 2007, we looked at the
nations in the Pacifi c Islands where we
had not carried the Gospel, the fi eld that
we know is “white to harvest” (Matthew
9:37). To climb this mountain for the
Lord would take: Prayer Power, Man
Power, Will Power, and Money Power.
I knew that we could not do it
by ourselves; we would need others
working with us. Stacy Ferguson had
come to help with the responsibilities in
Pacifi c Islands Bible College, allowing
me the time, money, and energy to work
on this extended effort. In December
2007, I went to our elders at Forest
Park and presented a Power Point
strategy. They gave me the green light,
and away we went with climbing this,
another mountain, for the Lord Jesus
Christ in the Pacifi c Islands. With His
help we set the plan in motion, looking
at each nation and at the challenge of
carrying the Gospel to each nation, as
well as getting others to help
THE FINAL PUSH IN
CARRYING THE Gospel TO THE
7 NATIONS IN THE PACIFIC
ISLANDS.
We started with the fi rst 4 islands:
We had already laid the ground work
with Scott & Rebecca Shanahan who
live in Pohnpei. They would carry the
Gospel to Kosrae once they had built
up a solid foundation in Pohnpei, where
they now live as missionaries. Scott
and Rebecca are working diligently in
sowing the seed in Kosrae to plant the
Lord’s church there.
Then to Nauru, where a number
of us have made short trips and
have preached the Gospel on many
occasions. We would use some of our
Fijian brethren whom we have taught,
baptized, and trained, and who have
contract jobs there, as missionaries for
the Lord. They have baptized others and
are working to plant the church there.
The Final Push
to Carry the
Gospel to the
Last Nations in
the PacificRobert H. Martin
Continued on page 69
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Global Harvest 69
We started working on Tuvalu, where we had initially taken the Gospel
in 1988. In 1989 and 1990, I took Randy
English there with me and fi nally turned
that work over to him. During those
early years a few were baptized, but no
follow-up effort had been made there for
many years. Now, we would go back
in with workers like Guy Baker, Dan
McLeod, and others to help us.
Guy is willing to get really in-
volved, the congregation where he
preaches in North Carolina will be hand-
ling the Bible correspondence course
work. Guy committed to two trips a year
to Tuvalu, and I will go in with others,
making the third trip yearly. With the
teaching, strengthening, the restoring
of the unfaithful members, and with us
having already made three trips into the
main island of Funafuti, others have
been baptized, and the Lord’s church is
on the way to be fi rmly planted.
From there we went to New Caledonia, and we have already made
two trips, laying the foundation. I knew
that we needed men who speak French to
work effectively in this nation. I knew,
also, that Josh and Christy Cook, with
whom we are very close, had worked
as short-term missionaries in France
and Belgium while at Freed-Hardeman
University. They had studied and
were working in the French language.
I contacted them and Josh went with
me on the fi rst trip to New Caledonia,
a survey trip. We worked diligently in
giving out tracts, Bible correspondence
course enrollment cards, enrolling
people in Bible correspondence courses,
and studying with anyone we could.
At the same time we were praying
and looking for others who speak
French and could help in this good
work. This is an interesting story of how
the Lord provides workers. Since New
Caledonia is a French speaking nation,
we knew that we needed materials in the
French language. I contacted sister J.C.
Choate and was telling her of our need.
I knew from earlier inquires that they
had four books in the French language
and I could use a supply of them. What I
did not know was that she would contact
Barry Baggott in Nashville, Tennessee
and would be talking to him about our
need for French materials.
Barry got in touch with me
and shared the abundance of French
material that they have at “French
World Outreach”. I remembered Barry
Baggott’s name in the missionary
circle, so I asked him to give me more
information about where he had worked
and what he was doing now. He said
they had worked as missionaries in
France for three years and 14 years in
Ivory Coast, Africa, which is a French-
speaking nation.
When Barry mentioned his work
with the French World Outreach and
how he was making trips to French-
speaking nations, I knew that this is the
man the Lord is providing to head up
this work of carrying the Gospel to New
Caledonia and on to Wallis & Futuna.
We are now well on the way to taking
the Gospel to New Caledonia. Barry has
made one trip into New Caledonia, with
Wallis & Fu-tuna in
his sights.
We are now
working to plant
the Gospel on the
last 3 Pacifi c Island
countries:
Niue Island, where I have made
many trips sowing
the seed, is fi rst. We
now have Antony
& Janet Raine from
New Zealand who
are willing to take on this work.
Tokalau Islands is second,
where we are taking the Gospel with the
help of our beloved Samoan brethren,
in the Samoas and New Zealand. We
have already started giving out tract
packets and are enrolling in Bible
correspondence courses people who
are boarding the ship from Samoa to
Tokalau, and those people returning to
Samoa.
Finally, there is that far fl ung
country/territory of Chile which is
Easter Island. I will be making the fi rst
mission trip in November or December
of 2010 with Josh Blackmer and the
Troy Spradlins who live in Paraguay. I
will then turn the responsibility for this
Spanish-speaking country over to them.
We are praying, we have the plan in
progress, and we have the co-workers
to work the plan. We knew that, with
our heavy work load, we would need to
bring in others to help in this effort for
the Lord, and He has done His part. We
are so thankful to Him for providing
all that we need to carry the Gospel to
the last of the Pacifi c Island nations/
territories. It will take time, patience,
and much sustained help to accomplish
this work for the Lord. U
Robert H. Martin: robertfi [email protected]
... to the Last Nations in the Pacific
Continued from page 68
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70 Global Harvest
How time goes by, and here we are
saying, “God is good”. Indeed space
cannot fi ll all God has done for us. We
continue to give thanks and praise for
providing for our daily needs.
Radio Ministry World Radio continues to support
my Sunday Morning Sermon for 2010.
Christians from rural areas tune in on
Sundays in the morning and evening to
listen to the Bible lessons. One walked
into my offi ce and wanted to see me in
person and say thank you. He gathers
his family and friends around his radio
each Sunday to listen to the sermons. I
was encouraged to hear from him, and
I offered to visit them if they want me
to come to their village.
My nephew, Cain Desiang, who
does the editing of my Sunday Sermons
just graduated from the University of
Technology, after four years, with a Di-
ploma Degree in Electrical Engineer-
ing-Communications. He won all three
top awards in his department. He is a
very strong and faithful youth leader in
our congregation, who will leave Lae
for Port Moresby soon. He is waiting
for his job offer.
Cain gave me the challenge to do
my own editing of the sermons. I almost
gave up. God is good. Cain was a tough
tutor. I am grateful for his help over the
past three years. He will be one of the
great tools for the Lord’s church where-
ever he goes. I taught him, his brother
Nick, and Arthur Tatara to prepare ser-
mons and preach. All have done well in
their spiritual lives and school work.
Baptism After months of prayers and Bi-
ble studies, Rachael Gabori decided to
be buried into Christ. I can remember
Rachael staying at our home for a few
months while attending the University
of Technology, and then I married her
to Gilmore. We saw their fi rst-born baby
girl, Esmo, and now seeing her become
a sister in Christ is a joyful time for all
of us. She will graduate in Business
in March and then seek employment.
Gilmore was also a graduate of the Uni-
versity of Technology in Building.
The 23rd PNG
Women’s Workshop Preparation of three years resulted
in Christian women from all over PNG
gathering to Tami Island and having
a wonderful time of spiritual feast and
fellowship. Their guest speaker, Cath-
erine Scott, could not make it from the
U.S., but God provided another through
Kathy Huff, accompanied by her hus-
band, Dr. Tobey Huff. Wives of the
MBC students also attended and, for
them, it was a great learning experi-
ence. While the women had their Bible
Classes, the men and youth prepared
meals and served the women. Elderly
mothers also helped in preparing food.
For Becky and me, we thanked our Lord
for the church on Tami Island that has
grown into maturity in its faith. Three
souls were added to the Lord’s church
during the workshop. About 300 wom-
en attended. The 2011 workshop will be
hosted by the Kundiawa church.
To our sponsoring congregation,
Highland Church of Christ in Mem-
phis, Tennessee, our partner since the
beginning of the Bible College from
the School of Life to MBC for the past
30 years, we thank you and appreciate
your loyalty, love, support, and part-
nership. May our Lord richly bless and
keep you. U
Jab & Becky Mesa – MBC, P.O. Box
409, Lae, M.P. Papua New Guinea;
Email: [email protected] students of Melanesian Bible College, with their families.
Papua New GuineaJab Mesa
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Global Harvest 71
Greetings to you from the won-
derful nation of the Solomon Islands,
where our team of three is being blessed
to daily preach and teach God’s Word,
and to labor in strengthening and en-
couraging the church that Jesus built!
Mike Burk (Green Forest church
of Christ) and Buzz Toland (Bellefonte
church of Christ) have joined me for
this important work, and we are grate-
ful to report to you that God is provid-
ing us with encouraging progress, as
well as some unexpected opportunities
for the spreading of the Gospel in this
country.
Here’s an overview of some of
the wonderful things that have taken
place over the past week:
In addition to teaching three Bible
classes each night for the adults, teens,
and children, we’ve been abundantly
blessed to teach two series of daily
leadership classes, which both visi-
tors and members have been attending.
It has also been our joy to have daily
personal Bible studies with those who
are seeking God’s Way, as well as stud-
ies with individual Christians who are
seeking to strengthen their commit-
ment to serving the Lord. Two more
precious people were added to the body
of Christ today, and there was the en-
couraging return of a very talented
leader who had gone away from the
Lord a few years ago.
We’ve been working with teachers
for the children’s Bible classes (level 1
and level 2), who’ve just announced the
beginning of a new Bible Quiz program
for the children, which is also being ex-
tended into the adult Bible class.
More progress has been made in
our search for a suitable place for the
church of Christ in Honiara to construct
a new building, with the government
accepting a land-use proposal submit-
ted on behalf of the local church.
This week God also opened a
great door to us through which we
can help serve the people of Rendo-
vah Island, an area devastated by an
earthquake that struck on January 4th,
2010. We’re seeking to get relief sup-
plies shipped into the country, which
can then be placed aboard a ship that
is co-owned/operated by a member, for
delivery to Rendovah.
Another unexpected blessing
came this week while fi nalizing plans
for taking the Gospel to the Kwaio
people, in the highlands of Malaita.
We have learned that one of our sisters
in Christ has relatives living among the
Kwaio, which will be of great help as
we seek to enter this extremely remote
region in the near weeks to come.
God is blessing us in many ways
as we labor here. We know that this
would not be possible without your
constant prayers, your support, and
your many acts of kindness that com-
bine together to advance the cause of
Christ. In the midst of this, we see
how very good God is, especially in
the past few weeks as we’ve been la-
boring across several nations. God has
brought us through diffi culties and dan-
gers, and seemingly impossible situ-
ations, but nothing is impossible with
Him! How great it is to bring the Gos-
pel to others! “Tanggio tumas” (thank
you)…and again we say thank you! U
Randy English
Sonlight in the PacificRandy English
A new birth
A local Christian and Randy English.
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72 Global Harvest
It works!! For two years now we have had “children’s tutorials”
in Manila, Philippines, reaching out to the communities to teach and
train children . The teachers work diligently on a daily basis to teach
children their academics and their Bible lessons. While the children
are being taught inside the classroom, their parents, who are waiting for
them, are also taught from God’s Word. Then later in the year I, along
with others, make a mission trip to Manila and begin to have one-on-
one Bible studies with the parents, concerning their eternal destiny. To
date, there have been over 160 enrolled in the tutorials, and 110 of the
parents have obeyed the Gospel. Today ,there is a congregation of 96
that did not exist two years ago, as a result of this program.
There is a wonderful dream in my heart. I have seen over and
over again that when we reach out to teach children, it is an open door
into the hearts of their parents. It is my dream to make a “Children’s
Tutorial Kit”. I believe this is the MISSING LINK to connecting the local
congregations to the community. This kit would equip the congregations
to do what they cannot do for themselves. It would provide a one-
year-academic and Bible curriculum, materials, and equipment, along
with a one week VBS curriculum, and a full year Sunday Bible school
curriculum.
Along with the kit would be a 3-day seminar for training women
how to use the materials for the fi rst year. Then for year two and
following, it would be each congregation’s responsibility to replace
the “consumable” items in the kit and continue the program. The
congregations would then begin to reach out to the parents with the
Gospel. The kits would be sponsored by congregations/individuals in
the U.S. This would be a one-time contribution to get these kits into the
local congregations, then the local congregations would be responsible
for the succeeding years. There is much work to do, and I covet your
prayers as I begin to work on the “Missing Link Kit”. Pray as we begin
to “hide God’s Word” into the hearts of children that we are solidifying
a foundation for the future of the church. May God grant wisdom,
discernment and creativity.
For more information: Prissy Selllers: sellers7@sbcglobal.
net
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Global Harvest 73
God is to be praised and thanked
for His bountiful blessings which have
enabled us to establish Philippine Theo-
logical College, located in Salomague
Sur, Pangasinan Philippines. The col-
lege exists for the sole purpose of train-
ing men for ministry in the Philippines,
and for missionary service in China
when God opens that door of opportu-
nity. It seems that China is moving to-
wards opening her doors to the outside
world as they embrace free enterprise
in a free market economy. This will ne-
cessitate the need for her also to open
her doors for the free fl ow not only
goods but of other peoples who will
bring various religions with them.
Years ago, we prayed for God to
open the doors of the Soviet Union so
we could preach a message of recon-
ciliation to God through Jesus Christ
(2 Corinthians 5:17-21). God answered
those prayers and the Soviet Union was
dissolved, but we had prayed without
expectation or preparation. We had to
play “catch up” in evangelism for fi ve
years.
Even though we were ill pre-
pared, we still baptized thousands in
the former Soviet Union, establishing
congregations in the East of Russia,
the West of Russia, from Moscow up
through Northern Russia, Siberia to the
Arctic Ocean, and even on the Sakhalin
Island. We also established congrega-
tions in Ukraine. However, I have often
wondered what we might have done
had we been prepared.
There is an old Portuguese prov-
erb that goes like this, “If you don’t
have a dog, hunt with a cat!” What does
that mean? It means do the best you
can with what you’ve got! That is what
we had to do regarding evangelism in
the former Soviet Union. We must not
allow history to repeat itself. We need
to prepare now for the day China opens
her doors to the outside world.
Praying without expectation re-
minds me of the farmers who had ex-
perienced a drought for several years.
They decided to get together to pray
for rain. You may know the story, for
it has been told many times. When they
got together to pray for rain, no one had
brought an umbrella! They were pray-
ing without expectation.
Recorded in the book of Acts is
a biblical account of Christians praying
without expectation. In Acts 12, we
read where Herod the king had lifted
his hand to harass some in the church.
He killed James, the brother of John,
with the sword. He saw that it pleased
the Jews, so he imprisoned Peter and
delivered him to four squads of soldiers
to guard him. In verse fi ve we read,
“Peter was therefore kept in prison, but
constant prayer was offered to God for
him by the church.”
Please get the picture: Peter was
in prison and the church was having
prayer sessions for his deliverance. We
can imagine the saints asking God fer-
vently, with great solicitation, that He
deliver Peter from the hands of King
Herod. God answered their prayer with
a “Yes”, and an angel freed the apostle
from prison. He immediately went to
the house of Mary, the mother of John
Mark, where the saints were meeting,
and he knocked at the gate. The Bible
says that a girl named Rhoda went to
see who was knocking. When she
Moultrie AuditoriumHendrickson Dormitory
Praying with Expectation Demands PreparationDemar Elam
Philippine Theological College Salomague Sur, Pangasinan Philippines
Continued on page 74
John Elam Dining Hall
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74 Global Harvest
Conrad Espenilla, one of the elders
in the church, has had hard trials since
becoming a New Testament Christian
in the Philippines in 1993. He was im-
prisoned in Libya on suspicion of steal-
ing equipment in an oil company where
he was working as an engineer, but was
later vindicated and released. Then,
coming home one day, riding with his
family from the burial of his father, his
new vehicle, driven by their houseboy,
ran through a concrete fence. Though
the car was a total wreck, he and his
family escaped unhurt.
But the biggest trial came when
he moved to Las Vegas, Nevada, as an
immigrant two years ago. Contrary to
his expectation, he got no job because
the U.S. had just begun its economic
downturn. His wife Maggi ended up
as the breadwinner by accepting a low-
paying job in a nursing home. Then, it
was discovered that his wife was suf-
fering from a brain tumor. Her doc-
tor prescribed surgery, but they had no
money, no insurance, and they knew of
no relative to help them.
At my advice as a Christian, I told
him to expect trial, to accept the trials
with joy and calmness, to pray and wait
for God to answer in his own way.
God did answer. His wife has now
had the surgery, is recuperating and
feeling fi ne. And they are overfl owing
with gratitude for the wonderful way
God took them out of their worst trial.
First, they learned that the surgery
could be done in the Philippines at St.
Luke’s Hospital for only $10,000 in
contrast to $30,000 in the U.S. They
did not have that money, but they de-
cided to come back to the Philippines
and hope they could fi nd the money
somehow. Then, upon learning of
their plight, one of the members of
the Bright Angel church in Las Vegas
— Mrs. Gaye Vaughn — decided to
give a personal contribution of $5,000.
The elders of the church also decided
to help with $2,500. The remaining
balance was divided between two of
their daughters: Myleen (Mrs. Stewart
McDonald of Australia) gave half, and
Monalisa’s IBM insurance took care
of the rest. Stereotactic Radio Surgery
(SRS) was performed on sister Maggi
and she went home the next day.
Both Conrad and Maggi have re-
turned to Tacloban, their
hometown, to share their
experience with a special
Thanksgiving Fellowship.
Sister Maggi says she will
invite 50 of her relatives
who are Catholics to be
present at this service.
She hopes some of them
will open their hearts to
the invitation of God to
the Gospel of Christ, for
the greater blessings of
forgiveness and eternal
life. U
realized it was Peter, she was so shocked
that she didn’t even let him in but, in-
stead, she ran and told the Christians in
the prayer session that Peter was out-
side, knocking at the gate. What fol-
lowed next is both revealing and even
a little humorous; it revealed that they
were praying without expectation. They
told Rhoda, “You are beside yourself!”
But Rhoda insisted that Peter was, in
fact, standing at the gate. These Chris-
tians then declared, “It is his angel.”
Peter continued to knock, wait-
ing for entrance, and when they fi nally
went to open the gate and saw him, the
text states “... they were astonished.”
Why should they have been aston-
ished? Had they not asked God to re-
lease Peter from prison? Obviously,
they had prayed without expectation!
Do we not often do the same to-
day? Let us pray in faith and urgency
that God will open the doors of com-
munist China so that we can have an
opportunity to evangelize that massive
number of souls for our Lord. Howev-
er, let us never pray without expecta-
tion. Let us pray and then prepare!
That is what we are trying to
do with the Lord’s help at Philippine
Theological College, located on the
South China Sea just across from main-
land China. God has blessed us with a
four-year Bible college for the purpose
of preparing men for ministry in the
Philippines and to be missionaries, lat-
er, to China when God opens that door
of opportunity for evangelism. Our re-
sponsibility is to pray and prepare!
God Has Blessed Us With a “School
of Tyrannus Opportunity”... Acts 19. U
Demar Elam is Director of Mission Stud-
ies at Amridge University and is Presi-
dent of Philippines Theological College.
Email: [email protected]
Praying with
Expectation . . .
Continued from page 73
Trials and LoveDominador Jack Belo
Maggi and Conrad Espenilla
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Global Harvest 75
Yes, you can see from the photo-
graph that Salvador has a sense of humor,
but he also has a true servant’s heart. He
loves his country — the Philippines —
and he has devoted his time and energies
to developing ways to help his people,
both spiritually and physically. His ulti-
mate goal is the salvation of souls, and he
makes opportunity to show people how
much he cares by also showing them how
they can pull themselves up out of pov-
erty. He has a program of, among many
other things, providing goats and teaching
the new owners how they can earn a liv-
ing from by-products: milk, cheese, etc.
In order to get his message to the
American church, he says, “If you or
someone you know would like to invite
me to speak, please let me know. I can
speak in churches, public and private
schools, small groups, company func-
tions, family gatherings, social groups,
and community meetings. I am will-
ing to speak over a wide range of sub-
jects from delivering sermons from the
Bible, to organic gardening, to medi-
cal missions, to helping the poor to be
self-suffi cient, etc. Goat raising and
organic gardening are popular topics
that resonate well to most of my audi-
ences. There is something about help-
ing people become self-suffi cient that
most people are attracted to and I am in
the forefront of that work in the Philip-
pines. I have been invited to go to other
countries and share what I know with
the leaders there, as well.”
Salvador Cariaga: [email protected]
http://organicgarden.shutterfl y.com/
http://arapalgoatfarm.shutterfl y.com/
Salvador Cariaga’s Goat
Program for the Philippines
Angel Madrigal was 9 years old
when the mountain in her Bario of Guin-
saugon, Southern Leyte came crashing
down, instantly killing over 2000 inhab-
itants. Her auntie told her grandmother
and sister to run, as she went back to
the house to warn the rest. As they were
running, her grandmom slipped and fell.
She urged Angel and her younger sis-
ter to keep running. The wave of mud
and rocks eventually caught up with the
two kids. Her sister was covered and
buried. Angel grabbed a branch as she
was being overpowered by waist-high
mudslide. Miraculously, her sister came
out and survived, but was bloodied and
injured. Angel was unscratched, but I
can sense that, after four years, and at a
young age of 13 now, she is still suffer-
ing from the trauma of that tragedy.
From childhood, Angel had been
raised by her grandparents. Her grandfa-
ther mysteriously died seven days after
the tragic event that took the life of his
beloved and many other relatives. An-
gel has been living with other relatives
since. After hearing about our program,
she asked to join the Sunrise Christian
Orphan Home where we are helping
over two dozen young men and women.
One of them is Jazel, her cousin who
also lost her mom in the mudslide.
We need sponsors for Angel, and
possibly her sister, Angelica, now 12
years old. If you could help them in any-
way, please contact me at cariaga@ya-
hoo.com or Howard Hopwood, one of
the Elders of Wilshire Church of Christ
in Oklahoma City. Wilshire has been
involved in our work for many years.
They have been supportive of the Leyte
orphans and Sunrise Orphanage since
the beginning. U
http://leyteorphans.shutterfl y.com/
A Plea from
Sunrise Christian Orphan Home
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76 Global Harvest
A hectic month – This is the heart
of the summer. Max temp went up to
110’F. In Bangalore up to 96’F.
11th to 16th:- Venkatesh and I went to
North Andhra Pradesh, beyond Rahja-
mundri, a village called Muramanda.
11th:- Departure 10pm by bus to Vi-
jayawada.
12th :- Brethren received us and took
us by another bus to Mandipetta. The
same night, at Murabanda, an open-
air Gospel meeting was held with full
stage arrangements. 200 gathered in
front of us, but they put two loud speak-
ers and the whole village (2,500) heard
the Gospel. Meeting began at 9 pm and
concluded at 11.30 pm. Venkat spoke
in Telugu and translated my speech.
Preacher is Samuel Christoper; he and
his dad and the local congregation ar-
ranged everything.
13th:- Day class for the preachers. 12
attended, morning and evening ses-
sions. I spoke in English with Telugu
translation.
Second day- Night Gospel meeting be-
tween 9.00 pm to 11.30 pm. 225 attend-
ed. The whole village heard the Gospel
with the help of the P.A. System.
14th:- Day classes for preachers. Night
Gospel meeting was conducted in a
nearby village, called Pulimeru. 100
attended. C.H. Raja Prasad arranged
the meetings, with the help of the local
congregation.
15th:- Night open-air Gospel meeting,
arranged by the preacher, John Abra-
ham, and the local congregation. 200
gathered. Village folks listened to the
message through P.A.System.
16th:- More than 100 youths gathered
at the Murabanda village Congrega-
tion meeting place, 10.30 am to 1.30
pm. They meet in the school premises.
Preacher, Samuel Christopher, and his
daddy, Devadass, arranged the meet-
ings. They operate this school. Ven-
katesh and I spoke. One young girl,
Chandra Kala, obeyed the Gospel.
The same evening, Venkatesh and I
returned to Bangalore. This is the 2nd
time the local congregations made a
joint effort and spent about Rs. 20,000
(less than $500) for this trip. We dis-
tributed Telugu Bibles, tracts and cal-
enders. They were very happy. In June,
the preacher, Samuel Christopher,
wants to visit us with his family. Very
hospitable and fi ne Christians.
17th:- My nephew, Murali Krishna,
Divisional Engineer, Tele-com depart-
ment, came and visited us. He has a
N.T. in Sanskrit, the ancient language
of India. I presented the book, “I AM”,
edited by Jeremy Barrier and Charles
R.Webb, to Murali. He appreciated the
book. He is a Hindu.
19th:- Departure to Mumbai by fl ight.
Arrived 1.30 pm. Brother Yesu received
me at the airport, and we went by taxi
to Badlapur and stayed with him in his
house. Conducted Bible Study with his
family members, namely his parents
and brother and sisters. They all are
denominational people, go to New Life
Fellowship. They are originally from
Adoni, A.P and came to Mumbai and
settled down here many decades ago.
They speak mother tongue, Telugu, and
Marathi, the State language, and Hindi
the National language.
20th:- Yesu and I, after visiting his
contacts, went by train to Jalna, Au-
rangabad. This is also in Maharashtra
State, 6 hours’ journey from Badlapur.
21st:- Two young preachers, Solomon
and Devi Dass, received us. Conducted
full day classes for these two preach-
ers. They go to denominational church-
es. Last time when I visited them, we
shared the Gospel. They did not obey
the truth yet. I spoke in English and
Yesu translated into Marathi.
22nd:- Yesu and I visited the two preach-
ers and their village. Contacted their fam-
ily and friends and shared the Gospel.
23rd:- We returned by train to Bad-
lapur. Visited preacher John and his
family. He preaches for a congrega-
tion of the church of Christ, meets in
a school building. We went to Philip
David and his family and the church
which meets in Bandra. In my last visit,
I baptized 4 souls. They are faithfully
meeting every Sunday. Shared the truth
with all of them and encouraged them.
24th:- Returned to Bangalore by fl ight.
25th:- Departure 2.25 pm to Vijayana-
garam (A.P) with Venkat by train.
26th:- We Arrived at 3.15 pm. Preach-
er, G. Joseph, and his team of preach-
ers, about 10 of them, came to the rail-
way station and received us. We stayed
in a hotel. Evening, conducted Bible
study at Chinthapalli. 4 were baptized
in the Bay of Bengal at 7 pm.
27th:- We proceeded to V.P. Rega vil-
lage. Visited the preacher, G. Joseph,
and the congregation where he preaches.
Then we went to Peda Banta Palli, con-
gregation where S. Nehemiah preach-
es. Conducted Bible study and 8 souls
were baptized in a small lake nearby.
Same day, we went to Bobbilli
Catch your breathand travel with P.R. Swamy for a month . . .
Continued on page 83
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Global Harvest 77
A little over a week ago, we had a
phone call from someone who could
barely talk. The man, named Salter, had
listened to our radio program and want-
ed us to teach him. We came to fi nd
out he is only 35 years old, but he had
a stroke when he was 31, so he barely
gets around and is very diffi cult to un-
derstand. However, his mind is incred-
ibly sharp, and he can see well enough
to read his Bible. He just can’t turn the
pages.
Anyway, we studied with him a cou-
ple of times and immediately felt close
to him. Scott gave him a ride home from
the hospital one day, and Salter told Scott
that he wanted to be his brother in Christ.
The next night Salter came to the as-
sembly with us for the fi rst time. I
wish you could have seen how help-
ful the members were with getting him
into and out of our truck, especially
one 17-year-old brother named Alidger.
Scott’s sermon that night was on
the plan of salvation, and during the
invitation song Salter raised his hand.
He wanted to be baptized right then.
We spent a couple of hours cart-
ing the brethren around, looking for a
good spot to bring Salter into the wa-
ter. It is diffi cult here in Pohnpei be-
cause we don’t have a lot of places
where you can just walk into the ocean,
especially for a stroke victim. Even-
tually, the Lord provided us with a
good spot. We had to make sure it was
clear of sea urchins fi rst, and then two
of the men, Charlie and Velerio, very
carefully brought Salter into the wa-
ter and baptized him. We didn’t even
need a light to see because God pro-
vided us with a very bright moon last
night and a clear sky full of stars. All
of the brethren were beaming from the
awesomeness of this man’s determina-
tion to be saved, and in my short four-
and-a-half years here, this might be the
most beautiful thing that I have seen.
It just goes to show that people who are
truly searching for truth will fi nd it.
Reporting Stateside This year, we made our third trip to
the States to report to all of our invest-
ing congregations in America. This
trip was by far the busiest we have ever
had, but I also think it was the best. We
managed to visit with all but one of our
investing congregations, met one new
congregation, spent time with both
sides of our family, and we were able to
attend two lecture-
ships and a Gospel
meeting. All of that
brought us to sev-
en different states.
We put over 8,000
miles on a car, fl ew
to three states and
took a four-hour bus
ride. It was exhaust-
ing, but well worth
the time spent. We
hope that you all en-
joyed seeing us as
much as we enjoyed seeing all of you.
Sadly, we can’t spend the time that we
would like with each family member,
friend, congregation, and investor, but
we did get to spend some time with
many of our closest friends and got to
know some new ones.
One of the interesting things about
being foreign missionaries is that while
we were just visiting “home”, we are
glad to be back “home”. I once heard
a man at a missions workshop reading
a list of “You might be a missionary
if’s”. One of them was, “You might be
a missionary if the only place you feel
at home is in the airport.” It is confus-
ing at times (especially when someone
asks, “Where are you from?”), but it is
a great reward to have two places that
you consider home.
We got right back to work Sunday
morning, worshipping with the saints
in Kolonia and then Sunday evening in
Mand. Monday morning, we were up
bright and early (one of the benefi ts of
jet-lag is that you wake up at 5:00 in the
morning, ready to take on the day) and
got to work preparing our classes and
lessons for the week. The preaching
school started back on Wednesday, and
there was a lot to do to prepare for that.
On top of that, there were a million er-
rands to run, lots of people to visit, and
a house to get back in order. Rebecca
and I had a great visit to the States, but
are very glad to be back to work in our
adopted homeland.
Brethren Continue
Steadfast In Our Absence
One of the goals of the work that
you and we are doing is to establish in-
dependent congregations of the Lord’s
Voice from MicronesiaScott and Rebecca Shanahan
Continued on page 79
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78 Global Harvest
After attending the lectureships in
Tasmania last year, I mentioned how
I hoped that a more active relation-
ship would be developed between New
Zealand and Australian brethren. Well,
I am glad to say I was part of a wonder-
ful example of just that at the end of
February.
Two years ago, a couple of sisters
from the Gipps Street Church of Christ,
in Toowoomba, Australia, came over to
help us with a campaign here in Palmer-
ston North. They saw how things were
done, and promptly set about having one
organised for their congregation in 2010.
The time arrived and it turned out
to be a real multi-national effort. In all,
there were about 10 workers from New
Zealand, fi ve from Malaysia, two from
America, at least fi ve from other Austra-
lian congregations, and a number of the
local brethren, including a man whose
family recently migrated from Africa
(Nigeria, I think).
I had expected the weather to be
typically Australian, dry and hot, but
this couldn’t have been further from the
case. I could stay only one week, and it
rained every day — I even had to wear
three layers at one point! While Satan
was probably rubbing his hands togeth-
er in spiteful glee, the conditions
likely worked to our advantage.
You see, Toowoomba hadn’t had
a decent rainfall for 10 years, and
I think this made for a more pleas-
ant and successful reception at
the door. It seemed to me that the
rain caused people to feel happier, and
thus be friendlier, than they might have
otherwise been. So the cruel joke the
devil tried to have at our expense actu-
ally backfi red on him. Not only were
we still able to knock some doors, but
the average attitude we faced was more
positive; and as a real poke in the old
serpent’s eye, there were fi ve baptisms!
God’s greatness is at its greatest when
He uses the least likely circumstances
to achieve the least likely results (cf.
Joshua 23:10; 2 Corinthians 12:9).
Campaigns always have humorous
moments. My favourite one to tell this
time is of a lady who came to the door
and said, “I’m not home.” I looked at
my door-knocking partner and looked
back again. She said, “Seriously, I’m
not here.” All I could think to say was,
“I’m going to put a pamphlet in your
door, so when you are at home you can
read it.” We then left and laughed for a
long time afterwards.
Thanks to Rod
Kyle for direct-
ing another well
organised cam-
paign, and to
the Toowoomba
congrega t ion
for taking care
of us all so well
(3 John 5:7).
C o m m e n d a -
tions all ’round.
A week after returning from the
campaign in Toowoomba, we went
down to help with the door-knocking
effort in Wellington. It was great to
work again with Kevin Gray, who used
to be part of the team here in Palmer-
ston North. The weather was blustery
and cold, which wasn’t ideal, but a real
challenging aspect were the pathways
we had to negotiate to get to many of
the doors. Some of them were more like
goat tracks: steep, narrow, and rickety.
Aside from such physical diffi cul-
ties, it was also a challenge to fi nd much
spiritual awareness. I think I had only
four or fi ve conversations of any real
length, and none wanted to study the
Bible. One guy made it clear he wasn’t
interested and slammed the door, but
from the way he said it, he expected us
to know that before we even knocked.
Clearly, my “through walls, mind read-
ing ability” was on the blink. Despite
the sparse positive responses, we still
gained the victory in giving hundreds of
TOOWOOMBA CAMPAIGN Doors knocked: 4,922
People spoken to: 2,071
Bible study appointments set: 46
People to call back on later: 88
Baptisms: 5
Breakdown:
Knocked 107 doors to get 1 Bible study.
Spoke to 45 people to get 1 Bible study.
Set 9 studies to have 1 baptism.
Campaigns in Australia and New Zealand
Kent O’Donnell
Kent, Rachael, Chloe, Ethan, Michael & Phoebe O’Donnell.
Most of the campaign workers for the fi rst week. Continued on page 79
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Global Harvest 79
people a chance, which, at the end of the
day, is all that is expected of us. Any-
thing beyond that is a bonus, for which
God deserves the credit anyway.
In May, we’ll be having another cam-
paign of our own with the help of students
from Freed Hardeman University. Please
pray for the success of this venture.
Following the outreach in Wel-
lington, the congregation down there
hosted a Family Camp in Waikanae,
which is on the Kapiti Coast (March
19th-21st). The theme was: How to
Live in a Lost World, and the keynote
speaker was Lonnie Jones, Jr., of the
Blue Ridge Church of Christ, Georgia,
USA. It was a fun weekend.
The church in New Plymouth host-
ed their annual Weekend Camp Lecture-
ship. The lessons this year came from
the book of Psalms and were presented
by Niel Richey who preaches for the
Piedmont Road Church of Christ, in
Marietta, Georgia, USA.
On April 15th, we had the fi rst of
what we plan to be a regular Men’s
Discussion Group. The purpose of
the meeting is for us to get together
and talk about doctrinal issues, marital
matters, fatherly responsibilities, and/
or study various Bible verses, etc. This
has been long overdue, and I think it
will be of great benefi t to those of us
in leadership positions. To kick it off,
we deliberated over the topic of how
we should dress for worship, especially
when we are serving in some capacity.
It was a robust discussion, and the best
thing for me is that everyone present
made a positive contribution. U
Kent & Rachael O’Donnell, 44 Suzanne
Gr., Palmerston North 4414, New Zea-
land. Ph.: 011-64-6-3544944. E-mail:
Sponsored by the Central Church of
Christ in Cleveland, TNt
Campaigns . . . Continued from page 78
church. Each time Rebecca and I go
off the island, it is a test for the brethren
who will one day be on their own. So
far, we are greatly pleased with the re-
sults. Both congregations met faithful-
ly for worship and Bible class while we
were away. The men in each congrega-
tion did a great job of developing their
own sermons and teaching the adult
Bible classes. The women made sure
that the children’s classes were kept up,
and they took turns teaching them.
Also, the brethren took good care of
our newest brother, Salter. He was able
to attend each service and looks like he is
much, much stronger than he was when
we left. We are so happy that our family
here in Pohnpei is growing in the Lord,
and we look forward to it becoming com-
pletely independent in the future.
Plan the Work, Work the Plan Rebecca and I were blessed with
the opportunity to meet several times
with our deacon of missions while we
were in the States. With him we are
planning a campaign for 2011. Rebec-
ca and I have also spent a lot of time
together sharing ideas for the work and
making plans for the next few months.
Here are some of the things that we
want to try to do. We ask that you pray
for us in these efforts:
G First, we have not been able to
spend the time that we need in Mand
and, as a result, the church there has
had negative growth in the last year. We
want to step up our efforts in that com-
munity. One thing that we will do is to
spend a part of every Monday there (we
plan to call them, “Mand Mondays”).
Our goal will be to get Bible studies go-
ing with people that may one day come
to Christ. When we don’t have Bible
studies scheduled, we will go door-to-
door, inviting people for Bible classes,
and we will visit some of the erring
brethren in the village. Also, Rebecca
has decided, and plans to discuss with
the women in Mand, how we can in-
crease the attendance for the children’s
Bible class. There seem to be a million
children in this small village, yet often
there is only a handful of kids in Bible
class. Rebecca, working with the local
ladies, is going to look at how to grow
this into the kind of program that the vil-
lage children will want to attend.
G Second, we need to grow the con-
gregation in Kolonia. At least for now
we plan to take Tuesdays for door
knocking and Bible studies in areas of
Kolonia where we already have mem-
bers living. The idea will be to invite
their family, friends, and neighbors for
Bible studies, and eventually to have
larger groups in more concentrated ar-
eas. This will mean that we will not be
doing the School of Preaching on Tues-
days anymore. Instead, the school will
meet Wednesdays and Thursdays for
longer periods of time.
G Third, we are looking at doing a
summer Bible school workshop in both
congregations. There will be classes for
adults and children. We have not worked
out all the details, but we will likely use
public buildings. In addition to the cam-
paign that we are planning with Don
in 2011, we are also looking for other
groups to come out in 2011, 2012, and
2013. We will have more details on
future campaigns and how you can get
involved in the future. There is much
work to do, and we desperately need
your prayers and the help of our Father
in Heaven to get the work done. We
thank you in advance for your prayers!U
Scott and Rebecca Shanahan, P.O.
Box 2467, Kolonia PNI 96941, Feder-
ated States of Micronesia; Email:
MicronesiaContinued from page 77
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80 Global Harvest
A new mission team has formed
on the campus of Freed-Hardeman
University in Henderson, Tennessee,
with plans to move to New Zealand in
2011 to establish the Lord’s church in
Porirua City, just north of the capital
city of Wellington. The team consists of
Alan Fisher, Jonathan and Leah Harri-
son, and their sons, Jonah and Brayden,
and Kevin and Lynne Moore, with their
daughters Loren and Kaitlyn. Kevin
has been Assistant Professor of Bible
and Missions at Freed Hardeman Uni-
versity since 2004, having previously
served a total of three years as the uni-
versity’s missionary-in-residence and
fourteen years as a missionary in New
Zealand. Jonathan currently works in
the counseling department, and Alan
works in the library on FHU’s campus.
Alan, Jonathan, and Leah have
all made multiple trips to New Zealand
over the past few years to work in vari-
ous campaign efforts. Kevin worked
with the church in Wellington from
1987 to 1994 as a single man, then
he and his wife Lynne spent 1996 to
2003 planting the church in Wanganui,
where their two daughters were born.
The university has granted the Moores
a two-year leave of absence to initiate
this new work in Porirua City, while the
rest of the team are making long-term
commitments to continue the work.
Porirua City is the home of about
50,000 residents. The lower North Is-
land of New Zealand has an estimated
population of nearly 832,000 people,
with a combined total of around 150
New Testament Christians. While there
are faithful congregations in Welling-
ton and Palmerston North, there is no
established church of Christ in between
these two cities – a driving distance
of about 90 miles (145 kilometers). A
small group of Christians has recently
started meeting together in the town
of Foxton, about a 20-minutes’ drive
south of Palmerston North. Porirua
City is about a 20-minutes’ drive north
of Wellington, and if a congregation
can be planted here, this will be one
step closer to evangelizing the many
communities along the west coast of
New Zealand’s lower North Island that
have yet to be reached with the Gospel.
The Moores, the Harrisons, and
brother Fisher are all seeking fi nancial
support. For more information, con-
tact the New Zealand Mission Team
at FHU Faculty, Box 259, Henderson,
TN 38340; or e-mail Kevin Moore
([email protected]), Jonathan Harrison
([email protected]), or Alan
Fisher (afi [email protected]). U
Mission Team to New ZealandKevin Moore
Kevin and Lynne Moore with Loren and Kaitlyn; Alan Fisher; Jonathan and Leah Harrison with Jonah and Brayden — The new mission team to Porirua City, New Zealand.
Friendspeak et. al.
Ministries utilising Scripture por-
tions to assist people with learning to
read and speak English (such as Friend-
speak) are being carried out in a number
of congregations. We have heard of this
at Canberra, Eastside (Sydney), Hunter
Valley, Warringah, Belmore Road and
Macquarie, in Australia.
The Hunter Valley church now has
13 studies using 3 readers to teach peo-
ple whose native languages are Korean,
Chinese, and Saudi Arabian. Classes
are conducted at Newcastle University,
in two shopping centres, and in homes.
Three of the students are now attend-
ing meetings of the church. A lunch is
being planned at a Newcastle restau-
rant so that all the students can meet
with each other and the teachers. U
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Global Harvest 81
Combine Jesus’ parable of the Mar-
riage Feast (Matthew 22:9,10) with the
Great Commission (Mark 16:15,16) and
you have the basic ingredients for the
Caring and Sharing program of the Col-
lege church of Christ, Searcy, Arkansas.
Directed by deacon Eddie Cloer, the out-
reach had small beginnings in November
2008 when about a dozen guests, invited
from the church’s benevolent program,
met at the building on a Monday eve-
ning for a “Friendship Meal.” Before the
meal, a couple of popular hymns were
sung and a brief Gospel presentation was
delivered by a local preacher. During and
after the meal personal workers visited
with non-member guests and set up in-
dividual Bible studies. Using left-overs
from the Monday Friendship Meal, a sec-
ond, but smaller meal was organized for
Thursday evening at the church building.
Those who wanted to study could come
and eat, and then split up for their indi-
vidual lessons. Provision for children’s
classes was made at both meals.
It took several months for the
program to bear fruit, but after one and
a half years an average of 150 are be-
ing fed physically and spiritually every
Monday evening, and about 70 precious
souls have responded to the Gospel.
In addition to the church’s benevo-
lence program (His
House), guests are
also invited by door
knocking the streets
around the building,
by radio promotion,
by word of mouth
invitations to friends,
neighbours and rela-
tives, and by inviting
those visiting Sunday
services. The Caring
and Sharing program
with its Friendship Meal has become the
main outreach for the College church.
It takes considerable time, money
and human resource to organize an ef-
fort such as this — but what is the value
of a soul? (Matthew 16:26). Congre-
gations with fewer resources than the
College church shouldn’t be deterred.
Perhaps they could manage a smaller
version of the program, or perhaps sev-
eral congregations could work together.
The combination of food, fellow-
ship, devotion, and individual study
will result in a harvest of souls. U
Dr. Eddie Cloer is a professor of Bible
at Harding University and also directs
Truth For Today World Mission School,
Searcy, AR. He may be contacted at
(501) 268-7588.ItItIt t t takakakeseses c c conononsisisidedederararablblble e e tititimememe, , , , momomoneneney y y y y y (5(5(5(5(5(5(501010101) ) ) ) ) ) ) 262626268-8-8-8-7575757588888888...
Thu Nguyen-Hoan was born in Viet Nam and migrated to Australia. In
her new home she was searching for spiritual truth and, through God’s mar-
velous providential care, she came in contact with Christians and became
a part of the Lord’s church. It is her ardent desire to share with her family
members and other idol worshippers in Viet Nam, as well as with English-
speaking seekers, the precious truths she has learned. To aid in that sharing,
she has written A New Song in My Life, as a bilingual account of her story
and the greatness of the God of the Bible.
If you would like to purchase a copy of A New Song in My Life, contact
Thu at [email protected], or call her in Australia at (02) 6292-1825..
A Refreshing Approach to EvangelismIan Terry
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82 Global Harvest
town and preached to the church of
Christ. Proceeded to Parvathi Puram,
conducted a night Gospel meeting at
leprosy colony. 50 persons gathered.
One girl came forward to obey, her
parents objected. Returned to hotel.
28th:- We went to Komarada and
conducted Bible study. Three were
baptized. Proceeded to Kinjangi,
preached the Gospel and two were
baptized. One denominational person
invited me to preach at his wedding
ceremony. I shared the Gospel, taking
Ephesians 5: 22,33, comparing the re-
lationship of husband and wife with
Christ and His bride (the church), ex-
plaining about the one church Jesus
built, etc.
Proceeded to Hiramandalam. P.
Ravi and his brother, David Raj, ar-
ranged meetings in three places, Hi-
ramandalam, P. Gajapathi Nagar and
Parlakimundhi, on the Orissa State
border. We preached the Gospel. We
visited the palace of Bobbili and Par-
lakhimundi. Before our Independence
(1947), these small kings (raja) used
to have mountain retreat homes in
Ooty, my native place, and my elder
brother used to be the care taker. Dur-
ing March, April, and May (our sum-
mer time), the Rajahs used to come
and enjoy the season, cool climate of
Ooty for 2 months and then go back.
We had a night Gospel meeting at
Kothur, inside a house. 40 gathered.
A small church is meeting here. The
local Christians and their preacher ad-
vised us not to go further into Orissa
State because of the political situation
and persecution of Christians. We
returned to Hiramandam. David Raj
and the congregation are constructing
a church meeting place. Doors and
windows were not put yet. We slept in
the church building, all sides open.
30th:- We got up early, conducted
one Bible class for preachers. 10 were
present. Then we went to Srikakalam
Road Railway station and took the
train to Bangalore. We arrived at 1.30
pm. In the last trip, 20 precious souls
were baptized.
During the month we baptized
45 souls. Preachers with whom we
work reported 115 souls; March and
April total, 160; Total for the year:
160+145=305 U
P.R. Swamy and Vernon Douglas work
with the churches in Tamil Nadu, India.
email: [email protected]
nothing, but in everything by prayer and
supplication, with thanksgiving, let your
requests be made known to God; and
the peace of God, which surpasses all
understanding, will guard your hearts and
minds through Christ Jesus.
“ Finally, … whatever things are true,
whatever things are noble, whatever
things are just, whatever things are pure,
whatever things are lovely, whatever
things are of good report, if there is any
virtue and if there is anything praisewor-
thy — meditate on these things” (Philip-
pians 4:6-8).
Then He looks us right in the eye and
says, concerning the problems that we
will inevitably have to face: “My grace
is suffi cient for you, for My strength is
made perfect in [your] weakness.”
So we answer, with gratitude and con-
fi dence, that we will be thankful for the
challenges, because those are the times we
draw most from the strength that Christ,
our Brother, supplies. “Therefore I take
pleasure in infi rmities, in reproaches, in
needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for
Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I
am strong” (2 Corinthians 12:9,10).
And on those occasions when Satan
has been doing his worst to hurt us, God
pulls us to His breast and He says, “Can a
woman forget her nursing child, And not
have compassion on the son of her womb?
Surely they may forget, Yet I will not forget
you. SEE [and He holds up His hand be-
fore my eyes], I have inscribed you on the
palms of My hands…” (Isaiah 49:15,16).
Then He puts me down and sends me
on about His work, and, as I turn, I hear
the happiest and most beautiful singing!
“The LORD your God in your midst, The
Mighty One, will save; He will rejoice
over you with gladness, He will quiet you
with His love, He will rejoice over you
with singing” (Zephaniah 3:17). U
What a guarantee! What a life!
Continued from page 76
Travel with P.R. Swamy for a month . . . The Lifetime Guarantee!Continued from page 83
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Global Harvest 83
We’re always looking for
the “Lifetime Guarantee”
on things that come into our
possession. That paper brings
us a sweet sense of security,
provided the company has a
good reputation for standing
behind its products.If a new coffee maker
stops working, in the grand scheme of life that is no big deal. If a dishwasher refuses to run just after the warranty is out, that pinches, but we can manage a replacement without too much challenge to the monthly budget. If a vehicle suddenly has to be replaced, that is a larger, longer-term commitment, and can be extremely painful. But, looking back at life’s challenges in the material world, through the years, we’ve survived, met the crises, and we’ve moved on past them.
However, it isn’t in the world of material possessions that we face our greatest insecurities and most daunting challenges. It is in life itself, with all the unseen dangers and trials that lurk along the path on which we are traveling. Where is the “guarantee” that will undergird us and assure that we will come out safely on the other side, with our spirit intact and whole before God?
God offers a “Lifetime Guarantee” to every child of His. True, we have to accept it, fi ll out the form and send it in – but He has done His part. Is the guarantee any good? Titus 1:2 states in clear language: “… in hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised before times eternal …” So the guarantee is ironclad.
What is our part of the agreement?
First: The contract is only between God and His children. So, one must be a baptized believer, a member of the Lord’s church, in order to have access to the guarantee.
Second: Since the product being placed under warranty is yourself, you must totally submit your life, your mind, your body, your possessions, your everything to Him. He can’t take care of what you have not entrusted in His hands.
This kind of submission can well be expressed in the frequent prayer: “Father, everything I am and everything I have is Yours. Use my thoughts, my strength, and my time today as You see best. Please don’t let me get in Your way.”
Now, you’ve registered God’s purchase of yourself, and you are His responsibility. You can voice your confi dence in the warranty in these words: “I know him whom I have believed, and I am persuaded that he is able to guard that which I have committed unto him against that day” (2 Timothy 1:12).
What does His warranty say?
“… I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20).
“… And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do…” (John 14:13).
“I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you” (14:15).“Jesus answered and said to him, ‘If anyone loves Me,
he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him” (John 14:18,23).
“Now this is the confi dence that we have in Him, that if
we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if
we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that
we have [‘have’ — already, it is ours] the petitions that we
have asked of Him” (1 John 5:14,15).“And God is able to make all grace abound toward you,
that you, always having all suffi ciency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work” (2 Corinthians 9:8).
This statement is the clincher. He promises:
ALWAYS: There will be no situation and no occasion in
which He will fail.
ALL SUFFICIENCY: He guarantees that there will be
enough of whatever you need to do what He wants you to
do. True, sometimes – looking down the road, or the day
or the hour – you may not see how there can possibly be
enough time or enough money or enough of self to meet the
challenge, but go on by FAITH. He has promised, and it is
His responsibility to work out the details. [And sometimes
the only way God can alert us to the fact that we are trying
to go through a door He has closed is to deny us the “all
suffi ciency” we ourselves expected. If He wants it done, the
door will be open, and the suffi ciency will be there.]
IN ALL THINGS: Often we don’t even know what we
need, but God sees all the way to the end of the road, and He
guarantees that nothing will be lacking.
AN ABUNDANCE: He repeats His promise, for the
sake of our struggling faith.
FOR EVERY GOOD WORK: Well, here is another
condition for us to meet: our focus and goal must be
involvement in the good work that makes up the life of the
Christian. He designed our bodies, so He knows we must
have food, exercise, relaxation, and fellowship, but these are
peripheral to our main focus in life – our work with Him.
Then, like the comforting and reassuring Father that He
is, He takes us on His lap and gently says: “Be anxious for
The Lifetime Guarantee!Betty Burton Choate
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Sorry, that’s all for this time . . . You’ll have to wait for the Spring 2011 issue to read
more of the inspiring work Christians are doing around the
world. But, wait [ah em...], I have a little confession to make.
Our purpose in investing time and money in the printing of
Global Harvest might be classed as somewhat ulterior. What
we want you to be motivated to do with great spiritual
excitement is one or all of these things:
^ Choose a particular person or area of work for which to pray every day.
^ Begin to support, even on a limited basis, some mission effort somewhere, so you will have a vested interest in the souls there.
^ Encourage the church with which you worship to invite a missionary to come and tell you of the work he is doing.
^ Sign up to be a World Bible School teacher.
^ Develop a local prison ministry.
^ Follow the example of the College Church in Searcy in outreach to the community, through fellowship and personal Bible studies.
^ Make a list of lost family and friends for whom you will pray, and schedule studies if you can.
^ Make opportunities to bring up spiritual concerns in your conversations with others.
^ Have on hand tracts, copies of “House to House”, “The Voice of Truth International”, and other teaching materials to give to people you meet — even at a service station, in a restaurant, or on the street.
^ Begin praying and planning to go on a mission trip.
^ Pray for God to plant you where He wants you to be.
^ Ask God: “Please don’t let me get in Your way.”
The safest, happiest, most exciting life a Christian can live is
one of working in partnership with God. Good soldiers don’t sleep on
patrol. Let’s MARCH in the Lord’s Army! Together we can win!