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: byron.nichols@att.net

Jerry and Paula Bates: P.O. Box 172, Winona, MS 38967;

Ph. 870-897-2373; Email: Jerry@worldevangelism.org

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: manuelkattia@msn.com

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

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

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?

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.

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

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

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.

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.

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.

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.

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; contact@hhi.org.

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

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.

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: wbarrier@highwaay.net.

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.

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!

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: ronniecrocker1@gmail.com;

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.

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:

sandirog@aol.com

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

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 Promotion@housetohouse.com, 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.

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

Continued on page 22

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 shippslog@att.net.

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: wes@housetohouse.com

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

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 ce@lads-to-leaders.org.

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....)

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

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 chris@searchtv.org. 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

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

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

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: fystineark@aristotle.net

Somers Avenue Church of Christ Involved with World Bible School

Frank and Yvonne Stinebaugh

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.

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: ds@cordoc.net

“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

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!

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.

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: randal@fastmail.fm; 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.

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

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

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

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.

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: cwhitelyon@aol.com

FranceCharles White

Romania’s Needs

Harvey Starling

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: Dosyl56@aol.com

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: ssalomon@intnet.mu

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.

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

Rdickson@mweb.co.za, africainterna-

tional.org

The Crisis Before UsRoger Dickson

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.

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.

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-

steacher@cscofc.org

Continued from page 43

CHANGING EARTH — TOUCHING HEAVEN

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

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: wheeler_dm@hotmail.com

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: ron@worldbibleschool.net

Evangelists of the church of Christ, headed out for campaigns in northern Edo State.

Doug’s armed police guards.

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..

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: Thekees@bluewin.ch.

The Churches of Christ in EasternDemocratic Republic of the Congo

Doyle Kee

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-

kees@bluewin.ch) U

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

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:odogwukingsley@yahoo.com

thevoiceoftruthinnigeria@yahoo.com .

Denominational

PreacherConvertedKingsley Odogwu

Kingsley Odogwu

Teaching students on a college campus.

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

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: sworley98@yahoo.com

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

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: imogoh@yahoo.com

The Preaching Power . . .Continued from page 53

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: sunny_davidin@yahoo.co.in

Historically,The First Church of Christ in India

Sunny David

Sunny David with his translator.

The congregation in attendance.

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: ernst@rediffmail.com

North India Preachers’ LectureshipEarnest Gill

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.

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: jgootam@yahoo.com

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.

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

christ@bsnl.in

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

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

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: petrosbible@yahoo.com

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: peekeyvarghese@yahoo.co.in

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.

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: rajarichal@yahoo.co.in

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.

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

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

chinamission@charter.net; Chinese

Agape Foundation, 201 S. Peachtree

Parkway, Peachtree City,GA 30269

CHINESE AGAPE FOUNDATION

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!

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

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 ji@aol.com

... to the Last Nations in the Pacific

Continued from page 68

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: jabmesa@global.net.pgThe students of Melanesian Bible College, with their families.

Papua New GuineaJab Mesa

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

thesonlight@hotmail.com

sonlight@samoatelco.com

Sonlight in the PacificRandy English

A new birth

A local Christian and Randy English.

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

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

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

jackbelo@mailcity.com

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: demar.dixie@comcast.net

Praying with

Expectation . . .

Continued from page 73

Trials and LoveDominador Jack Belo

Maggi and Conrad Espenilla

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: cariaga@yahoo.com

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

hophopwood1@sbcglobal.net

http://leyteorphans.shutterfl y.com/

A Plea from

Sunrise Christian Orphan Home

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

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

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

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:

kentandrachod@slingshot.co.nz;

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:

scottshanahan@hotmail.com

MicronesiaContinued from page 77

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

(kmoore@fhu.edu), Jonathan Harrison

(jdharrison37@gmail.com), or Alan

Fisher (afi sher73@yahoo.com). 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

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 xuanthu@netspeed.com.au, or call her in Australia at (02) 6292-1825..

A Refreshing Approach to EvangelismIan Terry

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: prsdoug@hotmail.com

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

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

Continued on page 82

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!