Glory and Thanks to The Lord
Prayer & Praise Report #6, October-November 2020
Giving Thanks to the Lord
What country do you think of when you hear, “Power loss and limited water?” When someone says, “Sunny Southern California”, it conjures up images of beaches, sunshine, and great weather. However, as I write this Prayer & Praise report, our office and home have no power, which has been a common occurrence lately. This means limited or no water, considerations for food, and candlelight evenings. It reminds me of my time in some countries, and gives me a greater appreciation for how many people live in developing nations.
In all things, we want to give thanks! Our Lord Jesus continues to bring many people to Himself and deserves all the glory and honor.
Fighting over God’s Story?
According to the Joshua project, the speakers of the Viemo language, the Vige people, are unreached and have no Bible in their language.
Over the past couple of months one of our leaders in West Africa has had the blessing of premiering several new versions of God’s Story: From Creation to Eternity. One of those languages, Viemo, ran into a small problem that delayed the premier. A couple of weeks into this delay our leader received a call from a pastor wanting to show the language to a village. Another pastor, along with the storyteller and director for this language were upset. Apparently, both groups wanted to show God’s Story first! Can you imagine groups fighting over who gets to show a video about God’s love for all people?
As the Viemo narrator's mom listened to God’s Story, the God’s Story team observed her smiling, and sometimes even laughing at the voice changes that her son used in the narration. She was so connected and listening! To hear more of this story go to Heart Pocket Podcast episode #114 and #115 for December 15th and 22nd (heartpocket.org).
More Languages without Scripture?
The Kulango people are also unreached, less than 1% evangelical, and worship the devil. These people live in the very north of Cote d’Ivoire. The people believe that if they put a roof on their home they will die. In one particular village, the narrator for the Kulango God’s Story version built a roof on his house. The villagers watched and waited for this man to die. But he lived! As a result, other people in that specific village have built roofs on their houses. The few believers among this people group are making a difference in the belief system!
The Kulango narrator’s mom listened to God’s Story, discovered Christ, and now wants to work for Jesus! She and her daughters currently live like slaves, but due to God’s Story they found freedom in Christ.
So many came to the STS training among the Kulango people that they had to move the training outside under the trees!
Warming Hearts and Souls.
One of our Asia leaders recently wrote this about the needs of his country, "This year also the Lord had put a burden in my heart to pray and act for the people living in streets homeless and hungry. Most of our churches have Christmas outreach programs to share the Gospel and to help the needy. But at this time I strongly felt waiting till Christmas to help those suffering in streets in bitter cold in winter doesn't make sense. With nothing in pocket and being full of faith we at TGSP started to pray for 100 blankets. God graciously provided us 100 blankets to be distributed to the poor in streets. With the help of God we finished giving those 100 blankets to the people who were in desperate need. This ministry brought tears in our eyes as we saw the tragic condition of our people outside. I would request each one of you to kindly reach out to the people who are still unreached. Our small action can make a big difference many lives. We are blessed to bless others. Continue to pray for Our TGSP ministry. May God bless you all.”
This same amazing man of God reported that out of the 26,350 people who recently viewed just the first 13 minutes of God’s Story through a social media app, 18,610 people responded! He shared “I love this part of GS, I introduced [our] Savior to 1000’s of people using this part.”
Training Center, In More than One Way.
The training center in northern Uganda is nearly done! This project has served as an opportunity for the people building the center to interact with God's Word on a daily basis and has helped provide food for families in a difficult year. Even though the center has not yet been competed, training has started! This has helped to bring Ugandan nationals together with refugees.
What Does Our Online Training Cover?
We thank the Lord for the growth of our online STS training this year. We started with the regular STS training that covers the basic details everybody needs to learn, study and present Bible stories with in-depth discussion. In September we expanded to Assistant Instructor training, which was soon followed by an Advanced Training hybrid model. This hybrid model included a small group of people that participated in person, and a small group that logged in via zoom. Thanks to the ingenuity of one instructor, it felt like everybody was together, and the training went very well.
We are currently conducting an Instructor Refresher Course for some of our committed leaders.
Going Global with International students!
Since early this fall, a man who leads an international student ministry invited several STS instructors to lead and teach God’s Word weekly through social media groups. This ministry continues to grow by leaps and bounds as the students discover the love of Jesus and deeply engage in the Word. Although a majority of the students are believers, there is still a large number of seekers in these groups. Many participants have invited our leaders to other groups and are also asking for training. Due to the sensitive location of some students and the diverse time zones, we are thinking creatively for the next step.
Heart Pocket Podcast Grows
Two years ago, we ventured into producing our own podcasts. From the beginning we were given help and were unsure how about this would turn out. Praise God, in just 2020 alone, our listenership has grown more than 5 times. We give all credit to the Lord and pray these audio shows encourage, teach, and help people hide the Bible in their heart pocket.
Languages, Languages!
We are excited to report that after conducting Simply The Story training in Cameroon and Ethiopia, people loved the Word so much, now they want God’s Story: From Creation to Eternity in 28 languages just for those 2 countries! Please join us in prayer to complete these languages accurately and in a timely manner, especially during this pandemic.
Recently we said goodbye to a 91-year old hero of the faith. Just a couple of weeks ago, while in his beloved country of Egypt, Bill Grossman succumbed to complications from Covid-19. His home is now heaven. He served our Lord in both Tunisia and Egypt. Many of those who loved Bill have written to our Arab world leader saying that they have lost a pastor and a father. May our Lord comfort his family and all who loved this man.
Thank you all for your prayers and support. We wish you a Merry Christmas and a blessed New Year.
Andrea & The whole staff of The God's Story Project (TGSP)
Executive Director