Missions Update by Dr. Roy Rosedale

Pray for Missionaries Everywhere!

Richard Snook, President of Missionary Flights International, recently wrote:  “We just heard the report about 10 missionaries killed in Afghanistan.  What a shock to all of us and to their families.  The team was working tirelessly in Afghanistan helping the people with their medical needs.  They were doing what many missionaries around the world are doing every day…reaching out to and serving hurting people.

When an event like this happens, it opens our eyes, captures our thoughts and causes us to ask questions.  Why did it happen and will it happen again, possibly to a missionary we know?  I have often said that being a missionary is not for sissies.  It is tough to live in a foreign land like Afghanistan, Haiti or the Dominican Republic.  Many times they are not warmly welcomed by the local governments or the extremists who reside there.  Missionaries must be careful with their lives but they must also be faithful to their call.  Most missionaries who I know feel called to do what they are doing and they are at peace knowing they are accomplishing God’s will for their lives.”

I am reminded how important it is to pray for missionaries.  The world has become a dangerous place but God’s command is still clear to His people.  In the book of Matthew, He asked us to “Go into all the world and preach the gospel,” even though sometimes that world is not so friendly.  Will you please pray for missionaries today?  Pray that God will protect them as they serve Him with their lives.

Church historians remind us that the “church” around the world has often grown because of the blood of the martyrs.

News from Benjamin Musyoka in Kenya

Our van is back on the road again. We praise the Lord for the money given to replace the engine and front wheel differential which had failed. This opens the way for the resumption of married couples’ seminars. Our last seminar was held on August 21st at a rural shopping center, 270 kilometers from Nairobi. We have had many people, including government officials, request these seminars. As a result, we see stronger marriages and responsible leadership in homes. It also means that rural children go to school instead of becoming street kids.

We have recently had a peaceful conclusion of the constitutional referendum for Kenya. We were worried that tribal clashes would erupt again, but after the referendum on August 4, the country remained peaceful and it looks like the peace will prevail. We praise the Lord for this and thank you for prayers regarding the referendum.

Joel Adamson
After a new series of tests, Joel’s doctor referred him to a rheumatologist who decided to put him on Lupus medication. This worked amazingly, reducing pain and helping his breathing by 80%. It has been Joel’s best four-week period in two years. Joel is still working with pastors in Kazakhstan. Over the last several months, these pastors have been doing outreaches to the towns of Lugavoi and Merke to the east of Taraz and they have seen several come to Christ and new groups formed in each town. In recent weeks, persecution has broken out in those villages. Please pray that the new believers will resist the pressure to abandon their faith and that they will continue to meet in homes. We always need to keep Christians in the Muslim countries in prayer because when people start coming to Christ there is almost always persecution.

Steve & Terry Morgan

Thank you so much for your prayers and notes of encouragement...we arrived safely to Puebla, making it through an encounter with a "crooked" policeman, various checkpoints/searches, as well as two long days on the road.

We are glad to be "home," and we are off and running. Our Mexico Staff
Conference starts tomorrow! Please pray for safe travel for all; about 80 staff and STINT will be coming to Puebla for the four-day conference. We will also have many of the new Latin America Area Team with us. Please pray for a great time of vision, development and fellowship.

We will be doing a "Couples Talk" via Skype to the US STINT couples/families going through a briefing in Chicago before they go to locations all around the world for their year assignment. Please pray that we will communicate well and encourage these couples to walk closely with the Lord through the joys and challenges of being married and in overseas ministry.

SAT-7

Middle East people are coming to western nations where they can find other believers, churches, books, literature, DVDs & other Christian material. They are free to follow their hearts and seek Jesus, especially when their quest is awakened, exposed to the Gospel and the Bible through SAT-7. Here’s why: Besides reaching the Arab world, SAT-7 is now reaching all of Europe through Eutelsat’s Hot Bird-8 Satellite. A Sudanese man living in Spain expressed the impact this TV has on him. “You are like food in the middle of famine. I felt the Lord talking to me through this program. Muslim immigrants are rising 10 times faster than the rest of European society. Please pray that they will listen to SAT-7 and be turn to Jesus.

Dan & Lisa Leatherwoods/Missionaries in Spain

For several days, I have wanted to send out an update to share with you some special blessings that we received and an update to be able to pray more concretely.  Last week, we were invited to go to a praise and prayer service.  We went and experienced a flood of blessings as we found ourselves in the middle of a group of people who poured out their love and prayers for us.  Most of them had never met us before, but had been praying for Lisa since we started this battle with cancer. 

The service was a time of praise music interspersed with times of prayer. The time was filled with Scripture passages being shared, praise, and prayer.  It was an incredible time that the Lord used to encourage us as well as remind us that there is nothing impossible for Him.  The Lord has challenged me anew with the story of David and Goliath.  When David went out to face Goliath, it was clear that the Lord was going to fight the battle.

On September 1, Lisa will have her next scan to see what is happening inside.  Then September 8, we meet with the doctor to get the results.  Please pray with us that these days will be moments when we can clearly see and proclaim the work that God has done.  We have reached a point on this road where our kids need to see that God is working and that He has a plan through all of this.  We have seen them struggle in many different ways with the unknowns of this battle. Thank you for walking with us through each stage of this battle.

Lisa has two more chemo treatments this Friday and then again in two weeks. Thank you for your amazing encouragement, support and love for us and the ministry here.  We send our love in Christ, Dan for the family.

Mike & Ann Packevicz
Our Missionaries with English Language Institute/China

May is an exciting time of the year at ELIC. We are seeing the fruits of our work as teachers make their final commitments for the summer programs and new long-term teachers begin planning for their move to Asia. This year we again are blessed by the quality of these teachers and the hearts they have for service. We are also blessed to report that we are ahead of projections and will be able to meet the commitments we have with our partners in all of our programs throughout Asia.

May is also the time our teachers serving in Asia begin to think about their summer plans. We ask for your prayers that these teachers finish their year with the same energy they began. We ask for special prayers for the students who are in small groups and seeker studies with our teachers. Pray for meaningful conversation to take place – conversations that will impact these students with His love for them. We thank you for your partnership, both in prayer and with your finances.

SAT-7, a Christian Radio Network in the Middle East that sends out programs in Arabic, report: Even amidst cultures that are hostile to Christ, where radicals rule, people are watching SAT-7. The Word of God is entering their homes and hearts, germinating and growing. All the evidence suggests that the rate of germination may actually be increasing and a harvest is coming. By way of example, Iraq is one of the most difficult countries in the world for Christians. Hundreds of thousands of Iraqi Christians have fled this troubled country, fleeing persecution and threats from radicals. Please pray for the Christian radio and TV networks that are reaching people who are otherwise unreachable by missionaries on the ground.

Church Around the World is a missions news sheet which our church receives each month. Here are excerpts from the June issue.  It exposes what many missionaries face in the Moslem world where there is no tolerance for Christianity.  

Morocco – Moroccan authorities deported more than 40 foreign Christian workers in one week in an ongoing, nationwide crackdown that included the expulsion of foster parents caring for 33 Moroccan orphans.  As many as 70 foreign aid workers have been deported, including U.S., Dutch, British and New Zealand citizens.  Under current law, there can be no Christian church of former Muslims in the country.  No tolerance for Christians here.

Egypt – A mob of enraged Muslims attacked a Coptic Christian community in a coastal town in northern Egypt, wreaking havoc and injuring 24 Copts before security forces contained them.  The violence erupted after the sheikh of a neighborhood mosque incited Muslims over a loudspeaker, proclaiming jihad against Christians in a small town west of Alexandria. The legal system refuses to bring Muslims to justice after they destroy property and injure and kill Christians.

Pakistan – Islamic militants stormed the offices of World Vision (a relief and development organization) in northwest Pakistan, killing six aid workers and wounding seven others. If a Muslim becomes a Christian, he is often tracked down and killed by his own family members.

What can we do? – As Christians, we need to pray for the breakdown of strongholds of the enemy of Christ, learn as much as we can about Islam and pray for and love the Muslim people into the Kingdom.  In all these countries, Jesus is showing Himself to the people via dreams and visions.  Once they become Christians they have to remain underground.  If exposed, it means loss of job and often loss of life.

David and Yohana Hynum
Classes at the Canada Institute of Linguistics began again in the middle of June. Unfortunately they arrived late, weary and worn from Papua New Guinea. David had suffered a series of illnesses – one that he picked up on a village visit where he showed the Jesus Film. In Oregon, they both got a virulent cold/flu virus and then David reacted to some wood he cut and got a severe rash on his face! They are doing better now. David is teaching classes on translation of the Bible as he passes on his knowledge and experience of Bible translation principles to young men and women who anticipate going to tribal people that have no written language and of course no Bible. Yohana is preparing students to develop an entire literacy program for a minority people group who will then learn the language that is developed into a written language.

Because of demands for their experience and expertise their plan for the future is to go back to PNG for eight months of the year and during the other four months will be teaching in Canada and visiting family and friends. They have said God has been with us all these years and He will renew our strength for this new journey. Pray for them as they work as consultants now helping others finish their Bible translations.

Rachelle Hudson and Kimberly Kubichek - Thailand

Kimberly is now giving speech therapy on a weekly basis to a couple of children from missionary families, besides her regular work at OMF. This type of help is not readily available here, so it has been a great relief to the families.

Rachelle tells us that they are beginning to teach English on a regular basis. They will be working with the Thai staff at the headquarters and also two young Thai women who need to improve their English in order to join OMF as missionaries to the people of Cambodia.

The political situation and social issues in the country are a long way from solved but at least the streets of Bangkok are no longer held captive. They thank you for your faithful prayers.

A Mission’s Opportunity for Members of Church of the Woods (No travel required.)

Global Media Outreach, a ministry of Campus Crusade for Christ, is a ministry using laymen in churches to follow-up on men and women around the world who have received Christ through webpage ads like LooktoJesus.com. This can be an opportunity for you if you are an active Christian and know the Bible. It just takes 15 minutes a day to follow-up on one person. G.M.O. gives great, simple help in doing this so you are not alone as you get started.

More than 2,200 volunteers (called Online Missionaries) are located in countries all over the world. Our goal is to stay on the cutting edge of emerging technology and use these technologies to reach the world for Christ. Each day, over five million searches are done on the Internet for the spiritual terms such as:
“I need God,” “Who is Jesus?” and, “Prayer”

People are searching for God. Some have specific questions and others just want to know more. We present the gospel in over 100 languages and have volunteer responders available for those who email us. Our purpose is to help those who contact us before or after finding Christ, so we can help them grow in their Christian faith and become connected to a local church. 

In 2009, there were 66,971,497 people asking for help. Of these, 10,502,641 people indicated that they had received Christ. I have been doing this for six months. I follow up with one person each day. So far, I have responded to 153 people. Almost 50 of these people have received Christ. I have talked to people from Iran, Saudi Arabia, Algeria, Syria, the USA and other countries I could not go to. 

Talk to me about becoming an online missionary—Roy Rosedale 909-337-4369, or go to www.GlobalMediaOutreach.com for more information. I would love to help you get started!

Missions Committee
Our Missions Committee includes - Phil Connolly, Charlene Burgher, Norm Jenison, Dick Horne, Jack Mason, Rhonda Steele, Ted DeGroot and Rod Akins. Please feel free to contact any one of them if you have a question or comment about missions.