World Servants is sending a training team to several small villages in remote
parts of Central Mexico next month. Chris Clum says they’re very excited about the
trip because it is the culmination to a ministry that was years in the making. “There’s
been some resistance we’ve had from the government to go up into the mountains…and
we’ve also had some resistance just from the shaman and some of the traditional
Indians that have been opposed to the Christians coming up into the villages. It’s been a
long time coming, but they’ve actually asked to come and to provide training for them.
We’re excited that these doors are starting to open up.” Clum says in spite of an
openness to the Gospel, they’re asking that Christians pray for the work of the teams
and the local believers. “Often times in some of these villages of a 100, 125, there
might be only one or two Christians-so these guys are isolated, they have to deal with
language barrier…there’s a lot of issues that they have to deal with. Pray for unity for
them-pray that God is going to give these guys passion and vision to love and to serve
and to reach their villages for Christ.”
News Archives
Meanwhile, the internet is giving people around the world a chance to know
Jesus personally. Audio Scriptures International now has “A Portrait of Jesus”
available on the internet in 85 languages. The selection of scripture readings from the
Gospel of Luke, are available in Real Audio and MP3 formats. ASI also has entire
Bible readings in Albanian, with Mandarin and Russian available soon. Currently entire
New Testaments are available in some 200 languages. You can find ASI at
www-dot-AudioScriptures-dot-org.
We begin today’s newscast in the Democratic Republic of Congo where fighting
continues, despite the signing of a peace treaty. Sam Vinton is with Grace
Ministries International. He says their work is continuing. “We have received a
number of letters now from some of our pastors. Schools are reopened and a number
of places where we work – medical work – especially in Kipaka, in the Muslim area,
surgeries are again being performed and things are going well there. There seems to be
a civil kind of government controlling things.” However fighting just 125 miles away is
causing African leaders to ask for U-N help in ending the violence. While the fighting
continues, Vinton says many are open to the Gospel. “We’re hearing good reports as
far as the ministry going on in the churches. Responsiveness for the Gospel is there.
That, we are hearing continually and people are still believing in the Lord and going on
with their lives spiritually even though they’re suffering spiritually.”
Meanwhile, the death toll continues to climb in South America, where
Venezuela is stilling digging out of an incredible mudslide. Pastor Samuel Olson
lives there and is working with Feeding Starving Children International. Olson says
more than 50-thousand are dead and 250-thousand are homeless. He says the need
for food is incredible. “We’re talking about 160,000 children that have to be attended
to on a daily basis. The crops of the nation have been destroyed in five of the states.
The ports can hardly bring in things from the outside because of the recession that
we’re in.” Olson says Feeding Starving children wants to help 10-thousand children at a
cost of 90-thousand dollars. He says as they help, many are open to the Gospel.
“They’re so open to having people pray with them, give them counsel, helping them to
come to grips spiritually with their own lives. And, they want people to come, whether
to pray, whether to receive a word, to show movies like the Jesus Film, it’s an open
field.”
A recent upsurge in fighting in Colombia has left much of the country
demanding peace. This, in response to some of the worst clashes in months between
leftist rebels and security forces near Bogota over the weekend. ABWE’s Bob Trout
says, while their church planting work has not really been affected by the violence, the
body of Christ in Bogota is seeing more response to their efforts. “I think the people
are just looking for peace. We’ve noted in the last period of years, a growing concern
on the part of our national brethren for the peace of the country-on the part of our
brethren getting tired of the pressure under which they live. It’s a difficult situation to
live under. They still are desirous of serving the Lord. Of course, the peace that will
come will come through knowing the Prince of Peace, our Savior.” Trout and his family
are staying at D & D Missionary Homes in Florida while they are in the United
States.
Next, it was one year ago this week that missionary Graham Staines and his two
sons were killed by Hindu radicals in India. The deaths touched off protests and
started debates on religious conversion. His wife Gladys says she has forgiven her
husband’s killers and has now assumed his duties. She is currently overseeing the
Leprosy Home were he worked, as well as the ministry’s rehabilitation farm. She also
continues to work to fulfill her husband’s dream of building a 40-bed hospital nearby.
We begin today in Ecuador where a poor economy has led to a military coup in
that beleaguered country. Vice President Gustavo Noboa became the country’s 5th
president in three years after a military and Indian revolt forced President Jamil
Mahuad to resign. Back to the Bible’s David Lagacho says it’s not a good situation
for ministry. “People (are) totally distressed due to the situation. And, for ministries it’s
difficult to have all the financial resources because as the economy is bad, many people
don’t have enough money to support ministries financially.” According to Lagacho the
government and economic crisis is giving them opportunities to share the Gospel. “In
situations like ours in Ecuador is when Back to the Bible is most needed because we
bring a message of hope, and that’s exactly what people need in the middle of the
hopeless situation.”
Meanwhile, Christians in India honored those who have died as a result of their
faith in Christ. According to Voice of the Martyrs, the All-India Christian Martyrs
Day was held over the weekend in Calcutta. The event was held in an effort to bring
attention to persecution against Christians and to encourage believers to continue
leading people to Christ. Doctor P-P Job, who heads Tortured For Christ in India,
spoke at the event. After the message hundreds of Christians walked in a processional
through the streets.
Audio Scriptures International is embarking on a new ministry to Albania. The man responsible arrives this week to begin the work. The project
is the first of its kind in the history of Christian literature in the country. He explains the
need they re trying to meet. The situation in Albania is [80-percent] of the population
are not adequately educated, so the written version of the Scripture is great, but we re
targeting those people that live in rural areas that don t know how to read and write.
Dervishi says, as with any fledgling ministry, there are many needs. He adds that they re
currently looking for ways to duplicate the twelve cassette albums for use in Albania.
If we have the albums, then maybe in the end of February or March, we d like to send
the teams there. If there is anybody that wants to contribute to be part of this
tremendous blessing in the history of my country, contact Audio Scripture
International.
Elsewhere, a United States-based outreach is creating a new concept for the
work of churches in their communities. New Focus National’s Betsy Decker calls
this ‘creating space for ministry’. She explains the idea. “Often our lives are so busy,
that we don’t take the time to do what we want to do. New Focus creates the structure
in the church where we can do that. When you have a space, you’re making an
appointment with a person-and, as you’re relating to that person, you have an
opportunity to share your own life testimony about how God helped you.” Decker says
they are asking for prayer support as they work with churches nationwide to implement
their own programs. “Our prayer is that the church will wake up to the potential of
encouraging people daily and being open to people who have needs, so that people
don’t only go to church to worship, but they can go to church to share their need.”
