One Pastor's Mission |
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 Dear Friend of the Bible,
Would you stay home if you had no legs? Would it be easier to decide if you had to walk on your hands and knees on a sandy path?
There are challenges to being handicapped anywhere in the world, but in rural Mozambique the challenge of traveling through thick mangrove forests and on sandy pathways could convince someone without legs to give up and stay home.
 That is not the case for Pastor Rafael Coman Samento. He is on a mission.
Pastor Rafael, 54, lost his legs in a mining accident in 1998 and ministers in the rural village of Inhapel where 10 Talking Bibles were distributed in 2006. He credits God working through His spoken Word for transforming his own life and the life of the church.
"Everything is different since the talking Bibles came to me and Inhapel."
Like most rural areas of Africa, Inhapel has a high rate of illiteracy. Very few people own Bibles or could read a Bible if they had one. Pastor Rafael estimates there are less than six written Bibles in Inhapel and does not recall ever seeing any of the 350 residents of the village read them.
Though Bibles are not being read, God's Word is being heard with Talking Bibles. Since the arrival of the Talking Bibles, several listening Bible studies have started based around families and neighbors gathering to hear the playing of God's Word. Since that time almost half of the people in the village are now attending the church and even more gather for the Bible listening groups.
The only requirement Pastor Rafael asks of his people before giving them a Talking Bible is that they will regularly play it and all people are welcome to come listen. Some choose to set weekly playing times in their homes and others simply play it in open areas for anyone passing by.
He said the people love hearing the Word of God and said when a Talking Bible is played people immediately gather around to hear it in their own language, "Just that it speaks Xitshwa causes them to come running."
"We are using the Talking Bibles as evangelistic tools," Pastor Rafael said as he gave examples of people in the village that would never otherwise hear the Bible, including one of the local witch doctor's wives who has come to listen to the Talking Bible study at the church.The combination of a man walking on his hands and the Talking Bible is causing people to hear God's Word that otherwise would not hear the Word of God in their language.
In Inhapel, faith is coming by hearing the Word of God. Pastor Rafael personally discovered the richness of God's Word ministering inward to him. With the arrival of the Talking Bibles, and solar panels to run them, the pastor began systematically listening through the New Testament and feels he now has a better understanding of Scripture to pass on to the people of his church. Before their arrival he only read small pieces of Scripture and had a difficult time comprehending the Bible as a whole.
"When I read the Bible there were verses I would skip, but the Talking Bible goes straight through. Because of this I've gotten revelation from it."
Using his strong upper body to propel his way along a sandy path from his home to the village church, Pastor Rafael carries his Talking Bible in his shirt. As villagers see their pastor moving towards the church they begin to gather in expectation of hearing God's Word. In the few minutes it takes the pastor to walk through the sand on his hands and knees to the church, many people will arrive at the church.
Each Talking Bible is placed in a home or village where a local pastor or evangelist can answer the questions about what the people are hearing. Many times the Talking Bible opens the door for discipleship among people who cannot read and where there is no discipleship material available for people who cannot read.
Please pray fervently and give generously to place these Talking Bibles in the hands of men and women who hunger for God and His salvation. It costs only a $72.00 tax deductable donation for a whole village full of people to listen to the Talking Bible.
Sincerely,
Sincerely,
Mark S. Hoekstra
President, Talking Bibles International
P.S. If you are not able to give a gift of $72.00 for a complete Talking Bible, we will add your smaller gift to others and provide someone with their very own Talking Bible. On average, 6 to 12 people listen to each Talking Bible. Again, thank you for blessing others with the Good News!! |
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