the caribbean and west indies islands Since BIMI was organized, one of the first areas of missionary involvement was the Caribbean and West Indies. There are still approximately 85 missionaries ministering in these islands. Their primary ministry is church-planting. BIMI missionaries and trained national pastors have planted over 200 fundamental Baptist churches in the Caribbean. Associated ministries include Bible institutes and colleges, Christian schools, radio stations, Bible camps and short term service ministries. The Caribbean is a world of its own—an island world of over 48 million souls. Each of the more than 50 inhabited islands is uniquely different, not only in size and terrain but also in people who make up their population. Eight languages and dialects are spoken: Spanish, English, French Patois, Creole French, Dutch Papiamento, Chinese, Danish and Hindi. Throughout the Caribbean, the standard of living is much higher than when our first missionaries reached this needy field. One will find a mixture of religion and cultic practices. Spiritism is widespread and is culturally accepted in many of their holiday celebrations. The need of the Gospel is still great. The doors are open in most of the Caribbean for church-planting missionaries. In some islands, missionaries team together to plant new churches. However, God has been honored in that Bible school graduates are now serving on twenty-four islands of the West Indies, as well as in Canada, the U. S. A., Africa and England. Nationalism is an issue that must be addressed. The only way to effectively evangelize these islands is through training national leadership. Not only do the churches have Bible schools but also Christian academies. Nassau Christian Academy, a ministry of Baptist Bible Church in Nassau, Bahamas, has almost 1,400 students. Located on the island of Antigua, the BIMI Caribbean Radio Lighthouse saturates the area with the Gospel. National pastors, BIMI missionaries and American pastors have broadcast “The Truth of the Gospel” over this powerful station since 1972. As many as 8,000 people have received Source of Light Bible correspondence courses at any given time. Over 30,000 children have written in to join the Little Lighthouse Club, providing Bible memory and life lessons from the Bible. This is a tremendous soul-winning and Bible- teaching ministry. Through sermons and songs, a truly Biblical message is being broadcast over CRL in both English and Spanish. 18