Some people are in our lives for a time and then “disappear” for a while. Some time ago, we did a Bible study with a couple and recently re-connected with them. They would bring their teenage son with them when we would meet to study. This son admitted himself into a drug rehab center and…
Teachers have an important role in the lives of so many! They teach more than what is found in any textbook. In this case, through the years, many teachers have relocated to a place where it is difficult to acquire visas to live and work. These faithful teachers and their families spend years investing both…
“Why do you cry at death? Don’t you know that death is immortality?” These were the words of comfort at the funeral of a man we studied the Bible with. Often, the response to the most devastating circumstances is to give the most hopeful of outlooks. While veiled differently, this is a typical response to…
Anil’s life in a hut on a mountainous sugar cane farm knew plenty of hardship. Plowing, planting and harvesting with the help of only their bullock, Anil’s family had sacrificed to the gods for generations to ensure their farming success. Into the midst of this darkness walked missionaries with a message of hope and life…
Our hearts are encouraged to see this small church plant catch the vision of reaching out to others and inviting them in. At our church barbecue, one of the unsaved visitors grew up in Indonesia with a knowledge of the majority religion there. In simple English, I shared the gospel with her while we sat…
As I walked through the busy streets of a densely populated Asian city, my mobile phone dinged, announcing a new text message. It read, “Good morning, Pastor, in this morning, I tried to lead my son to accept Jesus Christ as his personal Saviour, but I failed…” One week before, the gentleman who sent this…
It was 1981. Bob and Cecilia’s hearts sank. The door was firmly and finally closed. No way would the remote interior tribe allow foreigners to live in their village. Fast-forward thirty years. Their chief, Antimu, lands himself in prison—for murder. A week later the fierce warrior leader is surprised to be visited by a white…
The sound of a low steam whistle came from the street. I jumped up from my chair, knowing what that sound meant–snack time! I ran out and hailed the man on his blue motorbike, the back outfitted with a gas burner used to make steam. The steam comes up through a board with holes drilled…
“No $500 bills,” the bearded taxi driver grunted in Cantonese. “You must have change.” A friend and I had just climbed into the taxi on the way to teach a Bible class. The taxi driver had no interest in conversing with us so my friend and I chatted in the back seat. Two days later,…
Prison is a mission field in and of itself. One elderly Latino inmate was saved in prison years ago before being taken off death row. He learned to read, write and study. He has taught many men and led many of them to Christ. This man wrote: I only have a little time left (lung…