World AG Fellowship - Madrid, Spain

It was an honor and a privilege to participate in the World AG Fellowship recently. We are part of such an incredible Worldwide Assemblies of God Fellowship. I love hearing from all our brothers and sisters and the amazing things God is doing from the corners of so many nations and peoples.  

We received a double blessing in Madrid because not only did we get to be part of the gathering of the AG World Fellowship with our Asia Pacific Leadership team, by being encouraged and building stronger relationships. Tim and I also celebrated our 20 year anniversary while in Spain!  Praise the Lord for such a blessed week.

The Gospel is Going to the Hard to Reach Places

Someone is waiting…

Growing up I lived in a little trailer, and nearly all the neighbor kids around me were refugees from a peninsular Asian country that embraced communism after the conflicts that took place there in the 70’s.  These children were my first exposure to the world of Asia Pacific, so it was very exciting to go to their home country this fall and visit the Asia’s Little Ones affiliated project there that over the years has transformed the lives of hundreds of children, and has been a creative access ministry platform for our kingdom workers to serve there, share the gospel, disciple new believers and plant the church! 

Because it is a sensitive country I will not name the place and will refer to the ministry by its initials LC, but it is a ministry that has grown from small beginnings, ministering to a handful of street children of the outcast ethnicity, to now serving a hot meal to roughly 100 children daily!  These children faithfully attend classes for English and Mandarin, and receive tutoring, and life skills training that has made all the difference in their lives, and empowers them to a better future.  For the students and families they also get to meet followers of Jesus and hear the Good News of the Gospel for the first time.  So many of them have watched the followers of Jesus carefully for many years and over time LC can boast that every single person affiliated and working with them is now also a follower of Jesus!  

Recently, LC opened a coffee shop next to its campus to continue outreach and serving in the community after school hours, provide greater opportunities in skills training, and maybe someday aid in the financial cost of the ministry of LC.  

I love all the projects I get to be part of because of Asia’s Little Ones. It’s exciting that this particular compassion project for children’s health and education has become the catalyst for planting the church and providing kingdom worker’s visas! I am especially excited for what the future holds in this “closed” country. 

No place is really “closed” to the gospel if you follow the creativity and leading of the Holy Spirit.  And you can see the church birthed anywhere, if you are willing to sacrifice, and willing to endure for as long as it takes by the power of the Holy Spirit.  

I believe someone who reads this ministry update will be called to a hard place that others feel is impossible or just too difficult. If that is you, I urge you to obey God’s leading immediately. Reach out to us so we can pray for you and help you in your journey however we can, and take steps of faith even if others think you are nuts. The best Christmas present you can possibly give, is to give Jesus your “yes”. The Never Reached have waited long enough for the Gospel.  Someone is waiting for you.

ALO Ministry to Sensitive Country

For the past three years we (Asia’s Little Ones) has been partnering with the Sunrise Foundation in one of our colder northern Asia Pacific countries. I had the opportunity to go there and join the ministry in September and explore all the many aspects of the ministry.  In the quasi post-communist country it was exciting to celebrate the 30yr anniversary of the church, but it struck me that nearly every testimony was that of a first generation believer.  I pray that as they grow, they are able to raise up the next generation!  

    Some of our pastors with a heart for young people are so excited to recently be invited into the schools to present suicide prevention, and sex education with the focus on abstinence before marriage using the Focus on the Family curriculum! We help fund purchasing rights to use this curriculum, and leader training for these school outreaches.

   It was a difficult trip inland to the rugged edge of the Gobi Dessert.  The harshness of the land, weather, and history of this place has chiseled it’s imprint on the people and culture here.  But inside a herdsman’s hut (ger) worshiping, praying and fellowshipping with a group of 20-25 new followers of Christ, there was a warmth, joy, and softness from the touch of heaven itself.  

   It was humbling to receive the thanks of these families as they came to realize that Asia’s Little Ones was responsible for sending the aid they received last spring as they struggled to feed their families and their sheep.  In those moments, I am more emboldened to ask people to give to Asia’s Little Ones, knowing we are bringing hope, sustaining lives, and sharing the gospel in a very tangible way in corners of the forgotten world such as this.

   While in the town, and later in the capital city I was able to join the Sunrise Learning/Community Centers that are transforming the lives of so many young people.  My last day, one of the questions that came up after the English club as the students lingered was, “What do Christians believe about hell? Do you have to be a Christian to not go to hell?”  It opened the door to a full gospel presentation with many listening attentive ears! May the Lord continue to water the seeds that were planted!

We were back in Indonesia!

We made it back in Makassar, we were able to visit some of our favorite people and some of our favorite foods. It truly felt like being home, but the greatest part of the trip was being able to go back and see ministries that we fed so much into, still flourishing and growing. We touched base with Hani and Supri, President of the Bible College and Chair of the Esperanza House board, and found that both the college and the Esperanza House are doing really well.

We also spent time encouraging and preaching in three churches in Makassar.  GSJA El Shaddai, planted in the early 2000’s, is growing and expanding after they took the opportunity to renovate and expand their facilities during the extended COVID-19 shut downs. The second one was GSJA Agape Blessing Church. We were part of their very first service in 2013 and excited to celebrate 10yrs with them, as well as look at property to build for their growing congregation (they have rented spaces up until now).  The third church was GSJA Petra. A very special church to us that we were very directly involved in helping to plant. We visited on their youth night and even then the service was packed out. It is so exciting to be part of what God is doing in Indonesia, and to see how seeds that we were part of planting are now growing, flourishing and reaching the lost.

In Bali while we were in Indonesia, the first AGWM Asia Pacific Regional Retreat in 6yrs happened! We were able to reconnect with missionary friends from across the region, to hear the vision for our region from our leadership, and receive spiritual instruction and refreshment. We are more passionate than ever for the Never-Reached of Indonesia.

Some bonus photos from the Indonesia trip!