Download The Nations Magazine July 2011

by James Ray

Some years ago when I was in Dundee, Scotland, I walked through the old church once pastored by Robert Murray M'Cheyne. When M'Cheyne died at the age of 30, he had read his Bible through 100 times.

Walking into the church, I passed his grave, very prominently placed on the church grounds. I could almost still feel his passion in that church. He never sought to be known but he was. He never tried to be great but he was. He radiated genuine spirituality and Godliness.

On one occasion he preached a meeting in a Scottish village called Newton. Due to the huge number of people who attended, the service did not take place in the church but in the Newton graveyard, some distance from the building. M'Cheyne preached on the Great White Throne. He continued preaching till the sun set behind the mountain tops.

One who was present at the meeting described in detail the impact of that hour.

"As the darkness fell, M'Cheyne compared the shadows with the setting of time and the ending of life. Soon the speaker could not be seen for the darkness but the power of God was present as the preaching continued. The voice of M'Cheyne penetrated the blackness with a burning earnestness. Through the darkness came the pleading voice of the preacher—and it almost seemed—as if it were the voice of God Himself."

A voice as if it were the VOICE of God penetrating the blackness—and that is what we need at this hour—to penetrate the blackness and the darkness.

And that must be our all consuming passion...PENETRATING THE DARKNESS! Pray for the 100+Nations Ministry and our new target of 20 nations listed in the editorial of this magazine. Pray earnestly for missionary workers for these dark areas of the world. We face the greatest darkness of history. Where do we go from here? We follow the steps of Christ into the shadows, piercing the darkness with HIS GLORIOUS LIGHT.

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A white blizzard and 40 degrees below zero weather forced their plane to land and took them to the cabin of an old Indian woman where they discovered…She Had Waited 70Years!

NORT HERN ONTAR IO in winter can be a cold, white world. Little, widely-scattered settlements are separated by miles of frozen lakes and forest. The only roads are century-old trails connecting the water routes. Who could ever forget the smoke of each cabin rising into the still, frosty air—catching the light of the fading sunset?

Oil lamps begin flickering, doors open and figures step out in the vanishing light to pick up an armload of firewood for the night. Voices are heard and their tones are mixed—some happy, some sad—for pain and sorrow are the lot of all mankind.

It was to several such settings that an Indian friend and Garland Cofield had flown in January 1967. Sometimes a few days can seem like weeks and that trip was one of those times. They held Gospel services in the villages and were on their way home when the weather took a turn for the worse.

Garland's friend had a wife and baby waiting in his village, and Garland had a family waiting for him, so they were both a little homesick. They were eighty miles from the friend's village when the weather made it impossible for them to go on. Garland searched the chart for a settlement within their fuel range. Upon locating one, he turned the plane in that direction.

By the time they landed and had secured the aircraft, a full-fledged blizzard was beginning to blow. That night after the storm, the temperature dropped to 40 degrees below zero! In a sheltered area they built a fire, ate, and unrolled their sleeping bags. Garland's mind was filled with questions:

"Where would they get fuel to fly on? What was he doing here when he could be somewhere else, preaching to crowds? What if they could not get out? What if they got sick?" There was not a phone or a doctor within 360 miles of where they were!

Then he checked himself. He was a "child of God." He remembered the words of Paul to the church at Thessalonica. In everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you (1 Thessalonians 5:18). Just then, his fellow-laborer suggested that they should try to hold a service in the village.

Moments later, they pushed open a cabin door. There sat the oldest Indian woman Garland had ever seen. She was alone and blind. Her loneliness, blindness, and poverty, mixed with misery and guilt were intensified that night by the fury of a white blizzard. They proceeded with the "service" and explained the Gospel of God's grace to their "audience" of one. Two hours later she had received Jesus Christ through faith in Him, and they began to sing:

"Amazing grace!
How sweet the sound,
That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost,
but now am found,
Was blind,
but now I see."

Garland and his friend learned that she had heard about the Gospel before the turn of the century from a traveler and that all those years she had longed to hear more. God had granted two men—one white, one Indian—the privilege of finishing that story of hope which had begun so many years before!

Both men knew that the God of heaven and earth had sent that storm to change the course of a little airplane with two preachers aboard and brought them to the very village, to the very cabin where He had chosen to save the soul of a dear Indian woman who had waited 70 years.

Garland Cofield's experience shows the great need for missionaries to take the Gospel to America's NEIGHBORS IN THE FAR NORTH. Since the first missionary was approved for that area in 1963, many missionaries have endured the harsh climate to take the Gospel to that vast region.

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Garland Cofield, She Had Waited 70 Years BIMI WORLD, 1980.

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Bible Distribution Planned for the...City at the End of the World "the uttermost part..."

Ushuaia, the city located at the tip of Argentina, is commonly regarded as the southernmost city in the world. Sometimes it is referred to as the "City at the end of the world." The International Bible Ministry of BIMI joins Rev. Roger Blevins, BIMI South America Director, in this exciting project.

Your help is needed to enable the printing of 50,000 Bibles for Ushuaia and Buenos Aires ($2.50 per Bible). This would be a wonderful project for a church, Sunday school class or individual. Some might help with 100, 300 or even 500 Bibles. Pray for this exciting ministry, literally to the "uttermost part" of the earth.

Your gift can literally go to the "End of the Earth."

"Uttermost Part" Team
Here is how YOU and your church can become involved.
125 Churches giving $1,000 or 250 churches giving $500 = $125,000 (amount needed)
If Only 20 People or 20 Sunday School Classes or Ladies Groups gave $50, the church would have the $1,000 needed ...ONLY 20!
Think of that—ONLY 20 GIFTS OF $50 AND YOUR CHURCH COULD JOIN THE "Uttermost Part Team" with a gift of $1,000.
Help us make it happen for the Glory of God.

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They stand huddled together on the small cement porch of the massive brick building. Speaking in hushed tones, they look longingly at us as our bus slowly pulls away from the curb. From the window, I can see disappointment and sorrow in their eyes. Hope is fading, expectations are crushed, dreams are becoming unfulfilled. I watch until the bus turns the corner. Sadness fills my heart and tears fill my eyes.

Every minute detail of our visit has been planned by the directors and the team. Hundreds of boxes are transported to the huge military factory in the Soviet Union. We are told that ten thousand people work in this building where we have been given permission to stand in the lobby near the barriers and turnstile. The plan is that when the workers take their break and come from behind the barriers and through the turnstile, we will present them with their gifts from the Christians in America.

A young woman approaches and engages me in conversation. Since I cannot speak Russian, I am relieved that she speaks English. She is fascinated that we are there and tells me that I am the first American she has ever met. A man speaks to our interpreter and tells him that there are two hundred people in a top security office who cannot leave their post. Could we please deliver enough boxes for them to share?

The man smiles with pleasure as team members pick up boxes and follow him. Thousands of people are crowding behind barriers.

They are pushing, shoving, shouting, and waving their arms in the air. I am alarmed and ask the young woman who speaks English, "Are they angry that we are here? Are they cursing and threatening us?" "Oh no," she replies, "word has spread throughout the factory that some Americans are here with Bibles and they are pleading for them. They are afraid that they will not receive one."

"I shall forever see them—standing on the edge of eternity with all hope gone."

The manager, who has previously given us permission to be there, arrives and apologetically says, "You cannot stay in the lobby, you have to leave and go outside. People are leaving their jobs, the factory is closing down, and we cannot keep order." The team hurriedly moves the boxes to the street. Amazingly, the workers break through the barriers and follow us.

Within a short time the boxes are empty and for the first time in their lives, almost ten thousand people hold in their hands a copy of the Word of God. The BIMI Bible distribution team members are elated. They are thanked and hugged and kissed by the grateful people who make their way back to their jobs, clutching hope in their hands.

But then, I see them. A small group of ten or twelve people waiting. We frantically search the boxes and the bus for more copies of the Bible, but there are none. They wait patiently, longingly, hopefully, but they wait in vain. We sadly board our vehicle and drive away. The bus turns the corner, and they can no longer see us, but in my heart I shall forever see them—STANDING ON THE EDGE OF ETERNITY WITH ALL HOPE GONE.

Last copy gone, no more to share And I n'er can forget that look, Of those who stood and waited there But missed out on God's Book.

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The Republic of Suriname is a country in northern South America. At just under 64,000 square miles, Suriname is the smallest sovereign state in South America. It has an estimated population of approximately 490,000. Most of the people live on the country's north coast, where the capital Paramaribo is located.

Official language: Dutch. Trade language Sranan Tongo (a Dutch Creole) Geography Area: 163,820 sq km, Suriname became independent in 1975. After nearly 300 years of Dutch rule, Suriname became independent in 1975.

Operation World reports that nearly half the popualtion would call themselves Christians, but most don't have a personal relationship with Jesus. There are 16 languages spoken in Suriname. The whole Bible is available in 4 languages. The New Testament is available in 4 languages and parts of the Bible are being translated into 8 languages. Suriname is on the target list of the 100+NATIONS list of countries for prayer. Pray for missionaries for the country of Suriname.

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Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Acts 4:12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.

Jennifer R Scarfi -  VANUATU
Michael & Christine Schrimshire -  ENGLAND
Andrew & Jill Schultz -  ZAMBIA