Mission &amp; Evangelism

How Will They Hear?

8 Suggestions for Finding and Equipping More Future Preachers How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher? (Romans 10:14, New American Standard Bible). “How will they hear without a preacher?” The apostle Paul asked that about his own people, the Jewish nation. But in a general sense, it applies to all who have never heard or understood the good news of the gospel of Christ. We need preachers of the gospel today. Desperately. But do we

July 15, 2020

Ryan Akers

Good News for ‘Every Nation’

After 63 years training leaders abroad, TCM is now developing effective workers for disciple-making movements through U.S. Cohorts TCM’s initials have stayed the same since its founding in 1957, even as the words those letters represent have continued to change (from “Toronto Christian Mission” to “Taking Christ to Millions” to “Training Christians for Ministry”). TCM has discipled and trained international Christian leaders primarily at and through its TCM International Institute facilities at Haus Edelweiss in Austria, a property it purchased in 1971. Making a Difference in the U.S. Until recently, TCM’s focus has exclusively been directed toward other parts of

July 15, 2020

Terry Allcorn

Who Will Send Them?

Each generation has been rightly concerned about passing along their faith to the next generation. David referenced the generation-to-generation process in Psalm 145. Mary sang of how the mercy of the Savior would extend to all generations in Luke 1. Paul proclaimed that God would be glorified through the church and in Jesus “throughout all generations” in Ephesians 3. Preachers and preaching play a central role in spreading the gospel globally and generationally. As more preachers proclaim salvation through the blood of Jesus, the broader the message spreads cross-culturally and the longer the message extends cross-generationally. This underscores the key

June 14, 2020

A Ministry Born in Kentucky and Chile

By Laura McKillip Wood Ignacio left the Catholic church long before he began studying at a university in Santiago, Chile. Although he was a self-proclaimed agnostic, a friend from his neighborhood invited him to El Oasis, a student group designed to provide students with a Christian community to call “home” during their college years. Ignacio loved music and discovered that an alum of his university led the band at El Oasis. Before long, Ignacio was a regular, hanging out with the other music lovers who attended. His interest in the band grew, and he asked to join it. The staff

June 1, 2020

Michael C. Mack

Ask the Lord . . . to Send Workers!

By Michael C. Mack We planned the articles for our August 2020 issue on March 20, the day the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 916 points and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said the nation’s largest city was “now the epicenter of this crisis” in the U.S., with 5,151 coronavirus cases and 29 deaths at that point. We were a nation looking for some sense of hope in the midst of a crisis we didn’t even understand. People’s anxiety was palpable and pessimism itself took on pandemic proportions. On that day, publisher Jerry Harris and I talked on

May 1, 2020

God Uses a Match Made in Poland

By Laura McKillip Wood Andrzej Korytkowski survived a complicated and traumatic family life that resulted in his parents’ messy divorce when he was 13. His mother became preoccupied with recovering from the breakup of her marriage and re-establishing herself, so she did not focus much energy on Andrzej and his brother. The boys spent most of their days with friends, at school, and finding things to fill their free time. They became independent, but they did not have much of a family life or support from parents. Andrzej especially missed having a father figure in his life. At this vulnerable

March 15, 2020

Megan Rawlings

Missionary or Imposter?

By Megan Rawlings “When was the last time you invited someone to church or shared the gospel with them?” The question hung in the air. I was only 20 when I was asked this, but I had been a Christian long enough to know I should have had a quick answer. However, as I stood in front of the pastor who posed the question, I sadly could not remember the last time I had told someone about salvation through Jesus. I was humiliated. I, like most Christ followers, had allowed life in general to suck up all my free time. I

March 15, 2020

A Story 31 Years in the Making

By Laura McKillip Wood It was the 1980s, and civil war loomed on the horizon in the African nation of Liberia. Missionaries Ken and Carolyn Vogel and their children worked with Liberian medical workers at a clinic. One day, a man appeared at the clinic carrying two tiny babies. His 2-week-old twins, a girl and a boy, were fighting for their lives. His wife had fallen into a coma shortly after giving birth. Their aunt, who had a 10-month-old of her own, had been trying to nurse them, but her milk supply could not keep up with the demands of

January 15, 2020

Four Decades in, GNPI Solar Kits Still a High-Impact Tool for Ministry

By Chris Moon Tom Nutt keeps getting requests. “Right now, I have sent out two so far this year,” he told Christian Standard. “I’ve got four that need to go out in the next few weeks and an additional one that I will ship in March.” He’s talking about the solar kits Good News Productions International, based in Joplin, Mo., has been sending around the world for the past 39 years. Nutt, vice president of operations for GNPI, says the organization has sent out nearly 800 of them in its historyall in an effort to enable missionaries to show evangelistic

January 8, 2020

Reach Men . . . Reach Families

By Don Wilson Churches in America are concerned about the loss of future generations. Some say our youth programs do not adequately prepare students to defend their faith as they encounter secular professors in universities. Others say young people cannot relate to the church’s outdated methods. And beyond that, organized sports are competing for our children’s attention on Sundays and throughout the week. While these and other issues are concerning, I believe there is a more significant and fundamental problem that is often overlooked. I’m referring to the influence fathers and men can have on the decisions their children make

January 8, 2020

Kent E. Fillinger

The Power of Invitation

By Kent E. Fillinger Jesus told the parable of a man who planned a great feast and invited many people to attend (see Luke 14:15-24). When preparations were completed, he sent his servant to tell his invited guests, “Come, for everything is now ready.” Surprisingly, the people on the guest list made multiple excuses for why they couldn’t attend. This angered the master, who told his servant to invite the poor, crippled, blind, and lame to come. After they arrived, there still was room. So, the master told the servant to invite anyone he could find to come to the

January 2, 2020

Ministry Behind Bars: How God Used a 'Reluctant Prison Chaplain' to Reach Hundreds on the Inside

By Bill Twaddell After trying my best to avoid him, I found myself face-to-face with a murderer. I didn’t like this guy. He had done horrible things to land himself at Western Illinois Correctional Center in Mt. Sterling, Illinois. In the casual parlance of American jurisprudence, he was a “poster child” for the insanity defense. Many years earlier, he had committed a murder, pleaded insanity, and been found not guilty. After being set free, he committed another murder. By the spring of 2011, this man had spent most of his life behind walls and razor wire. He had sent several

January 2, 2020

River of Life

By Laura McKillip Wood “When I was 14 years old, I traveled with my father to a little town in the middle of nowhere to teach one man. This man was planting a church in his house. My dad went there every month to teach him, and when I saw this, it really touched my heart. He left the city where we lived, a classroom full of students, and a big church where he ministered to go to just one person in a small town.” Jeff Fife watched his father on that trip. He saw his father’s care for that

December 25, 2019

From ‘Never’ to All-In: Let’s Start Talking Trip Leads to Missions Career

By Laura McKillip Wood Melvina’s hands shook as she dialed 911. “I found my dad on the floor! I can’t wake him up!” She took a deep breath and tried to calm herself as the operator instructed her to begin CPR. Within a few minutes, paramedics arrived, but it was too late. The heart attack was fatal. They pronounced Melvina’s father dead at the scene. In many ways, this event marked the end of Melvina Brown’s childhood: “I was 17, but his death turned me into a 30-year-old.” She made decisions about the funeral and bought a casket. She began

November 6, 2019

Waran People Celebrate Bible Dedication (Plus News Briefs)

Compiled by Jim Nieman and Chris Moon Mac Silvey recently posted a YouTube video showing the Waran people of Papua New Guinea celebrating the dedication of the New Testament translated for them by Pioneer Bible Translators. The translation was a labor of love for PBT’s William and Robin Butler, as detailed in Greg Pruett’s article “To the Least and the Last” in our November issue. The celebration took place, but due to “issues and setbacks” at the printing plant, Silvey said, the actual printed Bibles didn’t arrive for another few weeks. _ _ _ Other News Briefs A Dallas Christian

November 2, 2019

Innovative Disciple-Making Using Social Media

By Laura McKillip Wood The smell of fresh bread and pastries wafted around Eugene* as he stepped through the bakery door in Banja Luka, Bosnia. Shelves of baked goods lined one wall, and people quietly spoke with the cashier as they made their purchases. Eugene noticed two young men his age standing near him. One man wore a jacket with the name of a band on it. “I like that band,” Eugene said. After chatting for a moment, Eugene sat down with David and Petar. They drank coffee and talked about their shared love of music. As they prepared to

November 1, 2019

Michael C. Mack

How to Stoke a Passion for Living Out Christ’s Mission in Your Church

By Michael C. Mack We planned this issue to tell the stories of mission works located on six of the seven continents around the world. (We know of no mission to the 4,000 people who live in Antarctica during the summer months!) The idea is to demonstrate the ongoing fulfilling of Jesus’ mission to “go and make disciples of all nations” and to be Christ’s “witnesses . . . to the ends of the earth.” We hope these stories help kindle a passion for preaching the gospel message to the whole world . . . but let’s not get ahead

October 18, 2019

Jerry Harris

A ‘Singular’ Mission

By Jerry Harris Some might argue it’s a fine point to draw a line between the “n” and the “s” in the word missions, but I have always felt it there. Having graduated from a Bible college that emphasized the need of going “to the uttermost part of the earth,” I felt my commitment to Christ was measured by the space between where I started and where I went. There were mission requirements for my degree, and I remember asking the head of the missions department whether he valued foreign mission work over domestic ministry. I chose a domestic path

October 1, 2019