Worldwide Activity Report -- September 1998
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Copyright 1998 by The Family

         "Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to everyone, everywhere," Jesus told His followers. Every day, in nearly 85 countries, Family missionaries share Jesus' message of hope and love with many thousands. Following are some highlights of their recent activities and experiences.

The professional
From Nat, Russia
         He's killed eight people already. On Thursday he is scheduled to kill another--or be killed. It's Tuesday. You meet him in a chance encounter. What will you say to him?
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         A light rain is falling as Family members Jan and Kristina board their bus. It's a two-hour ride to the nearest station where they can catch a train home.
         Kristina settles into a seat by the window but quickly discovers that the reclining feature of the chair offers only one position: fully reclined. Jan fares even worse. He takes a seat next to a young man in a denim shirt and slacks, who appears to be quite drunk.
         As the bus pulls out of town, Jan strikes up a conversation.
         "Here, have a beer, pahzalasta!" Misha says to Jan as he reaches into his bag and pulls out two beers. One in each hand, Misha bangs and rubs them together, then taps the bottom of one bottle against the top of the other. The bottom bottle pops open and erupts in a spray of fizz. He hands it to Jan.
         All the beer has loosened Misha's tongue. By the time he was 20, he had served a five-year prison term for murder. Now he is 24 and has a family--a wife and a daughter--who he loves dearly. He makes $10,000 a month.
         Jan asks the obvious. "How does a young man like you make so much money when the economy is in such a mess?" He's not prepared for the grisly answer.
         "I'm a professional boxer," Misha explains. "But each match is actually a fight to the death, with no rules. The only audience is a handful of Mafia bosses."
         Misha has already killed eight people, but he's worried about Thursday. His next opponent outclasses him as a fighter and outweighs him by 25 kilos. Misha has already sustained numerous injuries, and his doctor doesn't give him much longer to live--even if he survives Thursday. He sees no way out.
         Worst of all, he's certain that God could never forgive him for what he's done. Is it too late for Misha? Can anyone be too bad for Jesus?
         If only I could get him to pray and receive Jesus, Jan thinks.
         Jan begins to relate the message of salvation, how God has saved even worse sinners.
         Misha, now in deep depression, keeps repeating how bad he is. His speech is slurred. He drinks until he passes out.
         Jan is left with a sinking, frustrated feeling. He came so close to helping Misha, but failed. As the bus bounces on, Jan and Kristina don't know what else to do but pray for him.
         The bus begins to slow, and the driver calls out their destination. Misha is still sleeping. Jan tries to wake him. If only they could talk a little more. If only Jan could lead him to the Prince of Peace. But Misha is out cold.
         Jan and Kristina gather up their things and step off the bus. The rain has stopped, leaving behind what look like puddles of tears in the streets. Life is so hard for many people.
         Jan and Kristina walk a short distance, still trying to shake their sad experience on the bus. They need to catch the next train, but don't know where to go. They stop to check the signs.
         Suddenly Misha appears from behind them and says hello as he's about to pass. Kristina and Jan are so surprised that for an instant they're uncertain about what to do. Kristina realizes she can't miss this chance to talk to him again. She reaches out and grabs Misha by the arm, looks him in the eye, and says, "God loves you, Misha! You know He wants to help you!"
         "Da, da," Misha mumbles.
         "Look, Misha, God sent His Son, Jesus, so that you can have a new life. Pray with me right now to ask Jesus into your heart."
         Misha repeats a salvation prayer after her. His new life has begun.
         Jan and Kristina miss their train and have to wait several hours for the next one, but Misha didn't miss what may very well have been his last chance to receive Jesus.
         Sometimes people have messed up their lives so much that they think they are beyond help, but no one is beyond the reach of God's love and forgiveness. Not even a professional killer. Not even Misha.
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         After a decade of religious tolerance and freedom to preach the Gospel, the chance to openly tell others about Jesus in some of the former Soviet republics is quickly passing. Can you give to our work to make it possible to reach others like Misha? So many need Jesus, and there is so little time!

"If I make my bed in Hell ... You are there!" (Psalm 139:8).
From Mercy, Taiwan
         Recently Mrs. Hsi, a friend who belongs to a national organization that ministers to prison inmates, invited me to accompany her on one of her monthly visits to a large women's prison in southern Taiwan.
         After passing through four sets of security gates, we arrived at the last one. A warden opened the steel door, and we saw about 45 women squatting in the narrow hallway outside their cells. Most of them were drug offenders. Some were young, but quite a few were middle-aged or older.
         Their living conditions are shocking. Each tiny cell sleeps seven people. In the middle of each room is a toilet, and on one wall is a wire for their towels, cups and toothbrushes.
         When I saw the women squatting there in that hot and stuffy hallway, I nearly burst out in tears. Jesus, help them to find You this day, I prayed in my heart.
         We sang some songs, and then I told them a few inspirational stories about the transforming power of God's love. The inmates were starved for reassurance and love, and their eager response helped me get over my nervousness. When I offered to lead them in a salvation prayer, they all prayed fervently to receive Jesus into their hearts. Some of them were crying.
         In the midst of all this, one of the women was trying to comfort her two-month-old baby, who had been born in prison. The baby was fussy because of the heat, but the guards wouldn't allow the mother to stand up and walk around. I asked if I could hold the baby, and the guard agreed. As I took the baby from her teary-eyed mother, I couldn't help but think of my twin babies at home. How blessed we are!
         My heart was broken that day for those needy and forgotten souls. I will be returning each month with Mrs. Hsi to shed a little light in this dark corner. Please keep our ministry in your prayers!

Jesus turns bad to good
From Simon, Praise and Michael, Brazil
         Luana, a 40-year-old mother who lives in the sprawling Paraisopolis slum where we do volunteer work, has been attending our Bible classes for months. Now she has experienced the power of prayer and is telling everyone about it.
         Her story begins about five months ago, when she asked us to pray for her 20-year-old daughter, Simone, who had gotten involved with the wrong crowd and was coming home drunk every night.
         "If something doesn't change, she will end up dead like my son. One day I came home and he was gone. They found his body up in the woods. He'd been shot three times, gunned down by the Mafia. Now it's Simone! I don't know what to do. I have talked, cried, screamed. Please pray for her. She has two children of her own to care for, and I couldn't bear losing another of my children like that!"
         We prayed for the Lord to work in Simone's life, and Luana asked us to pray for herself as well. Since her son's death three years ago she had not been able to get over the bitterness she felt at the loss.
         The next week we heard the news that Simone was in jail, accused of stealing a car. We continued to pray for Simone, and Luana kept us informed of how things were going.
         Before long, Luana told us that Simone was changing. She had received the Lord, was reading the Bible, and had asked that we all keep praying for her. She was becoming a new person!
         Simone's case moved slowly through the legal process, but meanwhile her faith became stronger. Three weeks ago the charges against her were dropped, and she was released. Now she is hungry for the Word and wants to help the women she met in prison, who are still there.
         Luana now understands that the Lord can turn even the "bad things" to our good.
         "He planned everything!" she says. "He knew that Simone's time in jail would bring her to Him. How are tribulation and difficulties good for us?--That's how!"

         [Caption to go with photo of Family volunteer with slum children in Mexico: jas_kids.jpg:] Little citizens of Kingdom Come: Jason with young friends from a Guadalajara, Mexico, slum. He has just prayed with them to receive Jesus' free gift of salvation.
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         The Family is a nonprofit, volunteer organization. Each of the activities you have just read about was made possible through donations from businesses, associations and concerned individuals. If you would like more information about The Family, or if you would like to help sponsor Family volunteers or projects, including any of those mentioned in this issue, please contact us at one of the addresses below:


Copyright (c) 1998 by The Family