Ambassadors for Christ Canada has been doing extensive short-term ministry throughout Latin America over the past several years. Through mission teams comprised of both lay people and church leaders, Ambassadors for Christ has engaged in leadership training, evangelism, church and school construction and renewal ministries.
Every time we go we take Bibles from LifeLight Ministries to distribute. Many believers and church leaders in Spanish-speaking countries are so poor that they cannot afford Bibles.
I (Brian) was preaching in a poor barrio. As always, I had brought a few Spanish Bibles with me. After the service, the pastor told me about a young man who needed a Bible. I said I would be happy to give him one, and as I presented him with one, I couldn’t help but notice how overwhelmed he was by this incident. I asked him to tell me what was happening.
He told me that he had been witnessing to another man whom he worked with for several months. One night as he was praying, he felt that God was telling him to give his only Bible to this man. At first he argued with the Lord, saying, “Lord, this is my only Bible, and I can’t afford to buy another one. If this man becomes a Christian, then I will try to help him get one.” However, his conviction from God was too much, so he yielded and gave his only Bible away. (This was on a Wednesday.) Then he said, “Now here we are, on Friday night, and God has given me a new Bible that is nicer than I ever could have imagined!” With that, he left to go, gripping his new Bible and rejoicing in the Lord.
A few days later we were at our host pastor’s home. While we were visiting, he received a phone call from another pastor who had heard that we had given out a few Bibles. She asked if we had any more, since she did not currently have one. I remembered that I had more back in our hotel room, so I asked her to meet me the next day. The next day she walked several miles and came bouncing into the house as she anticipated receiving this new Bible. As Linda, my wife, presented the Bible to her she hugged us repeatedly and kept saying “gracias” over and over again, with a huge grin.
These and other experiences have convinced us that whenever and wherever we travel with mission teams, a necessary item for our luggage is Bibles to give away.
Brian & Linda Hamilton
Every time we go we take Bibles from LifeLight Ministries to distribute. Many believers and church leaders in Spanish-speaking countries are so poor that they cannot afford Bibles.
I (Brian) was preaching in a poor barrio. As always, I had brought a few Spanish Bibles with me. After the service, the pastor told me about a young man who needed a Bible. I said I would be happy to give him one, and as I presented him with one, I couldn’t help but notice how overwhelmed he was by this incident. I asked him to tell me what was happening.
He told me that he had been witnessing to another man whom he worked with for several months. One night as he was praying, he felt that God was telling him to give his only Bible to this man. At first he argued with the Lord, saying, “Lord, this is my only Bible, and I can’t afford to buy another one. If this man becomes a Christian, then I will try to help him get one.” However, his conviction from God was too much, so he yielded and gave his only Bible away. (This was on a Wednesday.) Then he said, “Now here we are, on Friday night, and God has given me a new Bible that is nicer than I ever could have imagined!” With that, he left to go, gripping his new Bible and rejoicing in the Lord.
A few days later we were at our host pastor’s home. While we were visiting, he received a phone call from another pastor who had heard that we had given out a few Bibles. She asked if we had any more, since she did not currently have one. I remembered that I had more back in our hotel room, so I asked her to meet me the next day. The next day she walked several miles and came bouncing into the house as she anticipated receiving this new Bible. As Linda, my wife, presented the Bible to her she hugged us repeatedly and kept saying “gracias” over and over again, with a huge grin.
These and other experiences have convinced us that whenever and wherever we travel with mission teams, a necessary item for our luggage is Bibles to give away.
Brian & Linda Hamilton
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