With guest John Duroe, regional director for Bangladesh. Hosted by Ole Olesen. (28:30)
Adopt a Bible worker
Gospel Outreach releases new brochure
Imagine you’re a mission strategist in charge of a worldwide evangelism budget. What must you know to make efficient and wise choices?
That’s the challenge posed in the new Gospel Outreach “Adopt a Bible worker” brochure, which has just been released.
The world population recently topped 7.5 billion. More than 4 billion have had at least some exposure to the gospel, leaving an estimated 3.16 billion who haven’t been reached, according to the Joshua Project.
Of the 3.16 billion unreached, 3.06 billion live in an area that many mission strategists call the 10/40 Window. That’s nearly all of the unreached–97 percent!
The 10/40 Window is a rectangular region found between 10 and 40 degrees north latitude. It includes North Africa, the Middle East, India, China, the Philippines and scores of neighboring countries.
It’s home to Islam, Hinduism and Buddhism. There’s a large nonreligious block too.
Compared with other areas in the world, little is being done to reach the 10/40 Window, and yet it holds the key to fulfilling the Great Commission. It’s the last great frontier for evangelism before Jesus returns.
“No one has the right to hear the gospel twice, while there remains someone who has not heard it once.”
As missions advocate Oswald J. Smith has said, “No one has the right to hear the gospel twice, while there remains someone who has not heard it once.”
Since 1993, Gospel Outreach has focused on telling the story of Jesus in the 10/40 Window. One of the most effective ways to do this is by sponsoring indigenous Bible workers who have a desire to share their love for the Lord among their own people. They already understand the culture, language, religion and social environment of the people living around them. And they can be sponsored through the Gospel Outreach Adopt-a-Worker program for $150 per month per worker, on average.
For more information about this program, contact Gospel Outreach and ask for the brochure titled “Adopt a Bible worker.” Or visit adoptaworker.org.
My uncle’s gentle witness
“If You will heal me, I promise that I will serve You,” I prayed.
India—I used to be a devout Hindu. I trusted 330 million gods and believed in Karma—the view that every activity in life had inescapable consequences that would determine my future destiny when I would be reincarnated. I smoked and could not resist alcohol.
One day I became very sick. My wife and family were frightened when they witnessed me vomiting nearly two liters of blood. In distress, they sent for my uncle, who came to visit me. This made me angry. “Why did you come to me?” I shouted. “I don’t want to hear anything about your Jesus!” I scolded him and told him to go back home.
But instead of leaving, he began to tell me in a loving way that Jesus was my Creator God. “If you would only trust Him,” he said, “Jesus can heal you of sickness and help you in your weakness.” Later, when the sickness did not leave me, I decided to reach out to Jesus. I prayed, “If You will heal me, I promise that I will serve You till my last dying breath.”
Just when I decided to surrender my bad habits to Jesus, my uncle knocked at my door again. He prayed for me. Suddenly as he was praying, a light came into my mind and I sensed a wonderful peace. I immediately threw all the Hindu gods in my home into the trash and destroyed anything that related to my old sinful ways.
I was delighted when an evangelist came to hold meetings in a village near mine. Our family attended every meeting. I will never forget the day my whole family was baptized into the Seventh-day Adventist Church. That was 14 years ago. Today, I work with Gospel Outreach in North Rayalaseema section in Andhra Pradesh. I have decided to use my testimony to reach out to others who need to hear about Jesus.
Watch the testimony here.
We welcome Brent Scully, his wife, Heather, and their three daughters to the Gospel Outreach family.
Brent Scully named president of Gospel Outreach
COLLEGE PLACE, Wash.—Brent Scully has been named president of Gospel Outreach, a Great Commission organization headquartered in College Place, Wash.
“I’m excited to be part of the team,” Scully says. “Jesus is coming soon. Now is the time to be praying, seeking Jesus and the Holy Spirit, and let Him use us to the fullest extent in reaching others with the gospel message.”
Scully, a Walla Walla businessman, has served for the past two years as executive director for Good Samaritan Ministries, a Walla Walla nonprofit agency that provides counseling for underprivileged families. He serves as an elder at the Village Seventh-day Adventist Church in College Place, where he has been active with youth ministry for many years. He and his family have also traveled to India on mission trips.
Jon Dybdahl, the previous president of Gospel Outreach, resigned in April for health reasons.
“I plan to continue involvement with training and strategy,” Dybdahl says.
“Jon’s background and focus on mission, education and training has been a huge blessing to Gospel Outreach, along with his work in expanding the volunteer office staff. We appreciate his service and dedication,” says Larry Dodds, board chairman. “And we extend our thanks to Brent for accepting this position and for his desire to follow God’s leading in directing our work. We welcome him, his wife, Heather, and their three daughters to the Gospel Outreach family.”
Gospel Outreach is one of few ministries to focus on the 10/40 Window of the world. This area is so named because it’s located between 10 and 40 degrees north latitude. It stretches eastward from North Africa to include the Middle East, India, China and the Philippines, as well as scores of neighboring countries.
Of the world’s unreached 3.1 billion people, 97 percent live in the 10/40 Window, according to the Joshua Project. This makes the 10/40 Window the most important area of the world in fulfilling the Great Commission.
As Paul wrote in Romans 15:20, “It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known.”
Gospel Outreach sponsors more than 2,000 indigenous Bible workers in the 10/40 Window. For more information, visit goaim.org or adoptaworker.org.
Anne Wangalachi / Creative Commons
One day a woman said God would destroy the entire world—even Ghana.
Ghana
Animist becomes Gospel Outreach worker
Ghana—My family were animists. Since my father was a fetish priest, he taught me how to communicate with the dead and how to evoke or call on the spirits. Jehovah’s Witness people came to our village and told us that God will destroy this world. I left Togo and went to Ghana. I thought, “God is not coming to destroy Ghana, just Togo.”
One day I heard a woman teaching. She said that one day God would destroy the entire world. I was shocked to think that this was going to happen here in Ghana too! When this woman went to church, I followed her and later became an Adventist Christian. I have now been a GO worker for 19 years.
Ram Reddy / Creative Commons
Miracle of the rain
India—In a village where I serve as a GO worker, the rainy season should start in June. However, one year no rain came. The farmers had already sown their seeds and were waiting for the rain. Days passed, but the rain did not come. The farmers gathered together and asked me to pray for rain. Other church members accompanied me to the fields where we prayed and fasted for a whole day and night.
The Lord heard our prayers and sent torrents of rain that very night. We praise God and thank Him for the miracle of rain.
VIDEO: Gospel to the boondocks
With guest Fred Webb, Gospel Outreach regional director for the Philippines. Hosted by Dick Duerksen. (28:30)
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