SEEDS OF THE KINGDOM
Stewarding the harvest in all the world
pg. 8
159 | No. 04 | JUL/AUG 2024
EMBODIED FAITH
Daily life in light of our God made flesh
pg. 4
IN WORD AND DEED
CAMA’s 50-year legacy of transforming lives and restoring communities pg. 22
As we mark our 50th anniversary, we stand mid-journey to reflect on the path of CAMA Services as an Alliance expression of relief and development in missions. Like the biblical concept of harvest, our work has been a long obedience—a faithful commitment to sowing seeds of hope; preaching, praying, and working in the name and power of Jesus; and reaping the fruits of transformed lives and restored communities.
Fifty years ago, a small group of passionate individuals stepped out in faith and obedience, believing that every act of kindness carried a kernel of the gospel message. In the killing fields of Cambodia, they started an Alliance initiative to respond to people terrorized by war. This desire to take Christ’s compassion and mercy to places of disaster and pain continues to drive the ministry that CAMA does around the world today.
Our journey has been marked by seasons of both abundance and scarcity as God has led us from a specialized relief ministry to a global Alliance Missions specialization doing relief and development with over 70 staff members working in 20 countries around the world. CAMA workers have a calling to do development work that is collaborative, local, evangelistic, and marked by a learning posture. Over the years, we have sent staff who specialize in agriculture, business, community wellness and advocacy, disaster relief, education, and health care.
As we look forward to the next 50 years, we are grateful for what God has done and for what He will do through CAMA. Our staff is deeply committed to their part in our Christ-centered, Acts 1:8 family, raised up for the end times, where the work that we do is vital as our King’s return draws close. We are grateful for our strong partnerships with Alliance churches and with individuals who are committed to caring for the least of these as we wait together with lamps lit for the return of our King!
May our legacy continue to be one of compassion, service, and unwav ering faith. Happy 50th anniversary, CAMA Services!
Co-Directors for CAMA Services
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EMBODIED FAITH Daily life in light of our God made flesh | by Stephen Ko | pg. 4
FREE VERSE
Quotes from the Kingdom | pg. 7
TOZER ANTHOLOGY
Compiled by Harry Verploegh | pg. 7
SEEDS OF THE KINGDOM
Stewarding the harvest in all the world | by Tim Crouch | pg. 8
FOR ALL GENERATIONS Following Jesus with uncompromising obedience by Omar Niebles | pg. 12
THE KINGDOM IS LIKE SHARED AREPAS
How Envision Chicago is breaking bread and serving the least of these by Emily Smith | pg. 18
IN WORD AND DEED CAMA’s 50-year legacy of transforming lives and restoring communities | by Sonata Wilson | pg. 22
YOUR GENEROSITY IN ACTION
From the Begging Bowl to the Breadbasket by Lori and Chelsea, CAMA workers serving in Guinea | pg. 30
TRUST IN THE IN-BETWEEN A year of experiencing God’s provision and waiting for more | pg. 36
PRAYER IS PRIMARY
Requests from Alliance workers | pg. 38
ALLIANCE FAMILY NEWS
Personnel changes, obituaries, and classified ads | pg. 39
FOUNDATIONS
Good Seed—but Just Sprouted
Adapted by Alliance Life staff | pg. 46
Daily life in light of our God made
by Stephen Ko
One evening during my pediatric training, a young adolescent was admitted with an unsteady gait and slurred speech. While playing soccer that afternoon, an errant ball hit him on the back of the head. Though he sat out the rest of the game, persistent dizziness and lingering disorientation prompted a visit to the emergency room. After an initial examination, the presumptive diagnosis was a concussion. But a CT scan revealed a more ominous problem that no one anticipated—a sizable cancerous brain tumor was impinging on his cranial nerves.
The five-year survival rate for glioblastoma multiforme is abysmal, less than 7 percent. Yet this young man would live significantly longer than predicted by his pathology. Statisticians said he beat the odds, that he was living on borrowed time. His doctors declared a miracle. But his parents knew that God had healed their son.
Oncologists speak about five-year survival rates for cancer. To me, these percentages dehumanize patients. Numbers and statistics don’t tell the story of suffering and pain. They can’t reveal an individual’s determination or speak to their faith in God.
As The Alliance, we embrace divine healing. “Christ our Healer” is the third part of the Fourfold Gospel and core to Alliance theology. At a summer faith convention in 1881, A. B. Simpson experienced the supernatural power of Jesus after claiming the promise of divine healing for himself. This experience would change the course of his ministry and the future trajectory of The Christian and Missionary Alliance.
According to Romans 6:23, the wages of sin are death. Even though divine healing may, and does, occur on Earth, our bodies eventually succumb to sickness, injury, accidents, or other bodily harm. In times of illness, divine healing foreshadows our future resurrected bodies, which will be impervious to the effects of sin. Jesus’ healing power is a foretaste of resurrection and heaven
itself. We look to the day when “he will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away” (Rev. 21:4, ESV).
Now, however, in moments of crisis and acute affliction, the throes of illness can easily consume our lives. These are the minutes and hours we cry out for physical healing from above. Yet, what about ordinary days and mundane times? I believe Jesus desires for us to embrace health and healing daily. In 1 Corinthians 6:19–20, Paul teaches us that our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit; therefore, we should glorify God with them. By embracing holistic health, we embody faith in Jesus while pointing others to Him.
How do we do this? We choose incarnational health, reflecting Jesus’ design for our lives and the health decisions He would choose on Earth. Theologically, there is only one Incarnation—God made flesh in the form of His Son, Jesus Christ. Yet, incarnational health decisions embody how Jesus would live, breathe, and act. They are choices that glorify God, made possible by the Holy Spirit dwelling inside us.
The Incarnate One took on flesh (see John 1:14). He inhabited every part of our being—saw through human pupils, listened via tympanic membranes, tasted through gustatory receptors, and smelled using olfactory cells. Jesus walked on feet with the same 26 bones, 33 joints, and roughly 120 tendons, ligaments, and muscles that yours and mine have. Jesus was Incarnate for the highest calling—to provide a path to salvation for all humanity.
When Jesus returned to heaven, He sent the Holy Spirit to us, and when we confess with our mouths and believe in our hearts that Jesus is Lord, the Spirit resides in us. In Ephesians 5:18, Paul says to not to be drunk with wine but to be filled with the Holy Spirit. This Spirit empowers our God-designed bodies to do what God intended.
Every bodily decision we make should glorify God.
When we embrace incarnational health, we consider how our physical health influences our spiritual health and vice versa. We realize that our bodies are intertwined with our relationship with God. What do we overlook if we fail to use our eyes, ears, noses, mouths, and hands as instruments for the Holy Spirit to impact the world? What do we thwart if we fail to protect our sight, hearing, heart, and lungs? What do we miss if we assume injury negates God’s purposes in our lives rather than discovering new ways to do what His Spirit desires?
By living with embodied faith, we worship the Living God while paving the way for others to experience the life, death, and Resurrection of Jesus. In 1 Corinthians 10:31, Paul says, “Whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all for the glory of God.” Every bodily decision we make should glorify God.
Through our five major senses, we appreciate the majesty of Creation. We catch a glimpse of the imago Dei before the effects of sin metastasize throughout our bodies. As we purify ourselves of what is dishonorable, we become vessels of honorable use, set apart as holy (see 2 Tim. 2:21).
The gift of sense allows us to perceive what surrounds us. We experience the beauty of a glistening sunset, the sound of symphonies, the taste of brownies, the smell of flowers, and the touch of a loved one. Similarly, we were created to breathe, create, move, rest, and love. These bodily functions facilitate engagement with the world by helping us live abundantly while navigating relationships around us.
As Christians, we gravitate toward traditional spiritual disciplines like fasting, meditation, and prayer. Yet, we can also worship and glorify God through our hearts, lungs, minds, movements, and rest. We see their functions differently when we understand that God created our systemic organs to help redeem our bodies for His purposes. Instead of mundane roles within the body, they help us embrace God’s vision for our lives while reflecting God’s image to those around us.
When we realize that exercise was created for our bodies to fulfill God’s purposes, we see the gym and pool in a different light. Instead of perfecting or maintaining our bodies for ourselves or the sake of others, we do so to reflect the image of God. Even when our bodies are broken, frail, or dying, we can still worship the King of Kings creatively and uniquely with these earthen vessels.
When we recognize that God created rhythms of labor and rest to connect work and repose, we view sleep differently. It provides a respite from the toil of work but also invites us to greater faith and intimacy with God.
When we appreciate that our creativity emulates the Creator, it changes the way we approach our work, relationships, and worship. In Ephesians 2:10, Paul says, “We are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Not only are we His handiwork and workmanship, we are also His poetry (from the Greek poēima , translated here as “workmanship”), tapestry, and artistic expression.
Only in eternity will disease, illness, and aging cease to exist and stop ravaging our bodies. Only in heaven will our bodies be made whole. Yet incarnationally healthy choices reflect the Resurrection today like divine healing does. The risen King gives meaning to our lives, both spiritually and physically. Through Him, we glorify God and point others toward the gift of future resurrection.
So, let us embrace Christ our Healer in times of crisis and suffering and incarnational health every day, whether we are healthy or sick.
Stephen Ko is the senior pastor of New York Chinese Alliance Church and the author of Faith Embodied , a book on living incarnationally in order to glorify God. Previously, Stephen served on the faculty of Boston University in the departments of global health and pediatrics and at Alliance Theological Seminary. He is passionate about vitality in faith and health and writes at the intersection of science, medicine, and theology.
Incarnationally healthy choices reflect the Resurrection today like divine healing does.
“Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness.”
—2 CORINTHIANS 9:10
“Greatness in the kingdom of God is measured in terms of obedience.”
—JOHN STOTT
“Six days you shall labor, but on the seventh day you shall rest; even during the plowing season and harvest you must rest.”
—EXODUS 34:21
“Jesus made clear that the Kingdom of God is organic and not organizational. It grows like a seed and it works like leaven: secretly, invisibly, surprisingly, and irresistibly.”
Compiled by Harry Verploegh
Our today is bound to all our yesterdays, and our tomorrow will be the sum of our present and our past.
The sovereign God has permitted us to have a measure of conditional sovereignty, a mark of the divine image once given at the Creation and partially lost by the Fall.
We may sow to the flesh if we will. There will be no interference from above.
The way to deal with a law of God is to work along with it.
By faith and obedience we can put every divine law to work for us. And the law of sowing and reaping may be brought to our service and made to toil for our everlasting good.
“He that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.” There it is. And we need only to submit to it to gain from it an everlasting reward.
Deeds done in the Spirit, in obedience to Christ and with the purpose of bringing honor to the Triune God, are seeds of endless blessedness.
The sweet harvest of a life well lived will be there to meet the sower after the toil is ended.
—from The Next Chapter After the Last. Originally published in Alliance Life on April 13, 1988.
by Tim Crouch
“He also said, ‘This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. All by itself the soil produces grain—first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. As soon as the grain is ripe, he puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come.’”
—MARK 4:26–29
The Gospels are full of Kingdom parables. In the majority of these stories He told, Jesus was trying to convey what His Kingdom is like—the way of living that is different from the world’s way.
Mark 4 is a chapter packed with these parables, and the one we will examine here, in verses 26–29, is about a growing seed. It is important to note that when Jesus is asked to interpret the meaning of a story earlier in the chapter, He explains that seeds represent the Word of God. If these seeds of the Kingdom are the Word of God, as His people, we need to learn how to steward them rightly by doing it God’s way, not our way.
by Erin Lillie
The first thing a good steward of the seeds of the Kingdom does is sow them. But if the seeds are the Word of God, then what does it mean for us to sow them? The theologian Charles Elliott wrote in the 1900s that everywhere you see Jesus talk about the Kingdom, you can apply it at two levels—personally in your own life and broadly in the world. In your own life, please be an abundant sower
of the Word. Part of stewarding the seed is by planting the Word deeply in our own hearts and living by it. We don’t want to be hearers of His Word only, but doers who sow those seeds in our own lives (see James 1:22). Beyond ourselves, these seeds of the Kingdom are also meant to accomplish God’s purposes in the world.
Let’s also look at a couple of other verses that will shed light on this parable. In 2 Corinthians 9:6, Paul says that sowing abundantly leads to reaping abundantly. The reverse is also true—if you sow sparingly, you will harvest sparingly. I need God’s Word, these seeds, in me. I’m waiting for God to do something miraculous in me, but if I’m not sparing any seeds to share with others, I probably won’t produce much fruit. So, we’re meant to scatter and sow the seeds of the Kingdom abundantly.
In Isaiah 55:10–11, the writer shares that just like the natural cycles of precipitation water the ground and cause plants to grow and yield fruit, providing enough to eat and also to plant again, so, too, does God’s Word not return void. His purposes will always be accomplished. The farmer in this parable can’t control how much rain
the field gets after it is planted, but God takes care of that. And He doesn’t provide just enough for the farmer to live off of—He also provides extra seed for the next field where He wants to see a harvest.
This is the way of the Kingdom. Many of us labor in our own fields—probably not as farmers, but maybe in business, industry, or ministry—and we worry about results as we get things done. But Jesus says, “My Kingdom is an operation where the business plan is guaranteed. When you steward the seeds in the way I tell you, I’ll take care of the rest. You won’t even know how it takes place, but I’ll do it.”
Mark 4:28 says, “all by itself the soil produces grain.” In Greek, “all by itself” is one word modifying “soil,” and the original word is where we get our English word “automatic.” What we view as automatic dirt is God taking care of the parts we can’t see by the work of His Spirit. That’s the nature of sowing in the Kingdom.
When my wife, Shelly, and I have traveled to new mission fields looking for places where Kingdom seeds can be sown and where the gospel is not well known, we still occasionally run into believers. It is always interesting how people become believers in places where there aren’t enough people walking around talking about Jesus for anyone to really hear and believe. One story we encountered was of a young woman named Galia.*
Galia grew up poor, and at a young age she had to work instead of going to school. As she was out in the fields all day, she got more and more depressed. The only thing bringing her joy was when she would listen to music on the radio at night. Periodically between songs, she’d hear a voice say, “Jesus loves you and gave His life that you may live.” Galia had no idea who Jesus was, but she liked the music, and it brought her joy in a dark time.
After a while, Galia decided she didn’t want to be alive any longer. One day, instead of going to the fields, she went to the river. Climbing on a rock over the water, she threw herself in.
But Galia felt hands grab her in the water and pull her out. She wiped away the water in her eyes and looked around, but no one was there. So, she jumped into the water again, and she was pulled out again. The third time, when the unseen hands dragged her out of the water onto the rock, she was scared and ran home.
At home, her mother said, “Our friends are returning!” Their friends had left the country for work, but they were coming back. Galia was so glad—and when she saw her best friend, a young girl her age from that family, she hugged her tight. As they hugged, her friend whispered in Galia’s ear, “Jesus loves you and gave His life that you may live.” She was shocked to hear the same words she
had heard on the radio all those difficult nights. Galia’s friend and her family had found Jesus in the country they emigrated to because there were seed-sowers of the gospel in that field. And Galia’s friend went on to become a sower in her home country. This is how God is at work underground, whether we know it or not, whether we are sleeping or laboring.
So, what does it look like to be a good steward of the seeds of the Kingdom as the harvest is growing? The parable says that the harvest grows incrementally, and when someone goes and sows seed, there are four stages. The first is what I like to call stage zero—what grows underground when God is at work. The second stage is one that farmers call “tillering.” Tillering happens when wheat first pops up through the ground and looks like a blade of grass. Think back to the parable in Matthew 13 when Jesus shares that there are weeds among the wheat—but not to pull them up because until they are further along in maturity, the weeds and the wheat look the same.
The third stage is when the stalk grows tall, bringing the head of the wheat higher so it can get more sun, which makes the harvest ripen. A ripe harvest, with the plant fully mature and with lots of grain on the head, is the fourth stage. In this Mark 4 parable, Jesus is saying, “In my Kingdom, I need you to tend these stalks so they can grow tall. They will produce fruit as the rain of the Spirit falls and the sunshine of My love comes out. Where you’ve sown these seeds, it’s going to produce fruit in someone’s life.”
The last thing that Jesus talks about in this parable is the harvest. Once the grain is ripe, the farmer puts his sickle to it because it is ready; the harvest has come. We often associate the word “sickle” with the Grim Reaper, an image of death. In one way, the sickle in this passage is a death image, but in another way, it isn’t. Remember, Jesus said, “Unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds” (John 12:24). Interestingly, the Greek word for “ripe” in Mark 4:29 means “to give over; to give itself up.” It is the same word used by Mark when Jesus yields Himself to capture in Gethsemane. And Jesus calls us to do the same thing, to give ourselves up. But this image is also about the fruit of the Kingdom yielding itself in a harvest because God has been at work both underground and through our efforts.
This is what we are called to—to steward the seeds of the Kingdom without which we wouldn’t know Jesus. God’s intention when He poured seed into your field was not
just to feed you but to have you steward the seeds for the next field that needs to hear the good news. Being good stewards begins with giving ourselves up.
We are blessed because someone was obedient to God and sowed seed in our fields, and we found life. And everywhere God brings about a harvest, He gives extra seed for the next field yet to be plowed. Can we live this way, as givers and sowers instead of just receivers?
I don’t know where you are in the story, but maybe the Lord wants to use this word to encourage you to share the gospel with your desk mate at work or to demonstrate His Word through acts of compassion. It might be about tending the stalks of young people that God is calling into service. Or maybe you’re one of those stalks God is calling to go and bear fruit.
I will tell you this—there is not a single field on this earth where God doesn’t intend to bring a harvest. There is not a people, culture, language, society, or subgroup that God doesn’t intend to bear the fruit of salvation. We have all benefitted from someone who planted the seeds of the Kingdom—will we in turn be good stewards by sowing abundantly, prayerfully tending the stalks, bringing in the harvest, and not hoarding the grain but setting aside seed to sow in other fields?
*Name changed.
Tim Crouch is the U.S. vice president for Alliance Missions and oversees the ministry of nearly 700 Alliance international workers. Tim’s heart is to see gospel access flow from those who have gained it to those who still await it.
by Omar Niebles
“To what can I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling out to others: ‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge and you did not mourn.’ For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and “sinners.”’ But wisdom is proved right by her actions.”
—MATTHEW 11:16–19
Iused to DJ parties; every DJ loves a great party. It was easy to love the people who would dance all night no matter what song I played. I also came to appreciate those who couldn’t dance but didn’t let that fact stop them from joining the celebration. The toughest people at a wedding? Those who didn’t join in the celebration at all and complained instead.
We’ve all experienced times in our lives where we haven’t wanted to participate—and I am not just talking about dancing at a wedding, but also in life, for a multitude of reasons. There are occasions where God calls us to take part in what He’s doing, and at times, we choose not to engage. The problem with our response is that God is moving. He is engaged. He is looking for His children to join Him in His amazing work in our neighborhoods, workplaces, vacations, and barbecues, both locally and globally. God is actively at work in the lives of people around you, healing and working miracles. He wants you and me to be part of it, yet sometimes we look the other way. We get distracted and busy, jealous and afraid. Sometimes we may think God gets a little too noisy for our comfort level.
Here’s the problem—when we disengage or choose not to engage, we become a generation that lacks perception
and refuses participation. We become known as those who missed the promises, goodness, and plans of God for us and those around us. But there is good news. We have the opportunity to be known as a generation that says yes to Jesus Christ with uncompromised obedience in order to participate in His plans and promises for our world. The question we want to wrestle with here is how. How do we know we are saying yes to Jesus with steadfast obedience?
Jesus begins this portion of Scripture in Matthew 11:16 with His own question, “To what can I compare this generation?” In Jesus’ culture, when you were invited to a wedding, you joined in on a celebration that lasted for days. When there was a funeral, people were hired as mourners to help grieving families if they could not engage emotionally. It would be shameful to attend a wedding or a funeral and not engage appropriately. Yet these people Jesus addressed brought shame to themselves, not just because they didn’t understand what was going on, but because they chose not to participate. No matter what God tried in their hearing, in their viewing, they chose not to respond. And for a culture like this in those days, it was offensive. I believe Jesus is posing that same question to us today.
How do we know we are saying yes to Jesus? First, by perceiving and participating in what God is already doing.
John the Baptist came and preached a message of repentance. He challenged the people to reconsider their sin and how they were living their lives. He challenged anyone who would listen to realign their lives back to God. Sadly, everyone thought John was crazy. He ate bugs, didn’t dress in the latest fashion, and hung out in the wilderness. Some folks responded, but as Jesus stated, most thought he was a demon-possessed lunatic. Jesus, on the other hand, came celebrating and being among the people—and everyone believed Him to be too loose to be sent from God or even to be God. He hung around and allowed Himself to be embraced by people the religious elite thought God would never surround Himself with. John was too rigorous. Jesus was too inclusive. And the people were uncomfortable with both types, so they wouldn’t join in.
Have you spent enough time with the Lord to know when He is at work? To perceive when He is on the move, even when you cannot feel Him? Do you have a sense deep in your soul that God is in your midst and is doing something new? Jesus’ generation missed it. People were being stirred and moved to reconsider their sin, but most ignored the stirring. Outcasts were being welcomed in by Jesus. He was healing, blessing, forgiving, and speaking with authority, but they ignored Him. Friends, have you learned to perceive what God is up to in your life and are you learning to say yes when He calls your name? Or are you ignoring the stirring?
and understand what He is up to, but they do not. The revelation comes to those who are childlike. By using the term “childlike,” Jesus is talking about those who do not rely on their own understanding, ones who are not living life based on their own power, status, or strength. They are people who trust like a child.
Once on a family vacation, one of my daughters taught herself how to swim. She was about four or five years old and decided she was going to jump into the pool and swim to the other side. The risks involved never crossed her mind. I considered the risks, yet if I had given her this information, it may have kept her from taking the plunge. So instead, knowing I would be with her, I gave her the green light: “Go for it.” My daughter dove in, and for the next 30 minutes, swam repeatedly from one end of the pool to the other.
Sometimes, if we really knew how things were going to play out, we would never take the first step forward. Are you trusting God to be with you as you take the next step, or do you not move forward until God reveals the whole plan? Let’s relearn how to be like children. Let’s remember that we can trust the Lord to remain sovereign over everything He invites us to engage in.
Jesus isn’t going to take away the work, but He is there in it with us.
The third way we know we are saying yes to Jesus is when we learn to rest in Him while on His mission. After talking about the childlike and whom God chooses to reveal Himself to, Jesus says, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light” (Matt. 11:28–30, NLT).
The second way we know we are saying yes to Jesus is when we become childlike. Later in Matthew 11, Jesus prays, “O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, thank you for hiding these things from those who think themselves wise and clever, and for revealing them to the childlike. . . . My Father has entrusted everything to me. No one truly knows the Son except the Father, and no one truly knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him” (Matt. 11:25, 27, NLT).
Jesus challenged—and continues to challenge—people’s preconceived notions about what God is doing. Some may think they are wise, believing they know God
This is the beauty of Jesus Christ. Regardless of how people have responded to Him, He again gives them the opportunity to perceive and participate. He sees what is truly burdening the crowds. He knows why they ultimately long for Him and show up wherever He is. He sees their striving, their toiling. He knows how they have been wasting their time and energy and are exhausted. They ultimately cannot find a place to lay their burdens down, so He offers them rest and refreshment.
Jesus’ promise is not that work will cease. Many times in our lives, we come to Jesus wanting to disengage. We say, “Jesus, take this away from me.” But instead, Jesus says, “No. I will give you refreshment so you can continue to join Me in My mission. I will breathe life into your lungs,
I will show up in power and victory so that you can keep in step with Me.” Jesus isn’t going to take away the work, but He is there in it with us, making sure that we have all that is necessary to accomplish what He has called us to do. John the Baptist and Jesus were both misunderstood and persecuted. You, too, as you keep step with Jesus and His mission, will be misunderstood and persecuted, but fear not. He has refreshment and nourishment, not just to sustain you, but to help you thrive.
In this passage, Jesus poses the question, “To what can I compare this generation?” But the underlying question for us is, “What kind of generation do we want to become?” Let me for a moment address the generations that might be reading this article.
Traditionalists, those of you who were born approximately between 1925 and 1945, you were labeled the silent generation. You learned to not cause trouble. In the name of Jesus, I bless you to give the enemy trouble. As long as you have breath, Jesus isn’t done yet.
Baby Boomers, those born approximately between 1946 and 1964, your generation has been labeled the “me” generation. You were taught to not trust anyone. But Jesus is saying you can trust Him. All you have been carrying and burdened by because no one seemed trustworthy, you can lay at His feet.
Gen X, those born approximately between 1965 and 1976, your generation has been labeled the forgotten generation. But Christ has not forgotten you. He sees you; He hears you. He knows your toil and promises refreshment.
Millennials, those of us (yes, that’s me) born approximately between 1977 and 1995, we have been called the first global generation. Our problem is we have too much knowledge. We think we know best, but there is One who knows more and better than we do. Will we trust in what He is doing?
Gen Z, those born approximately from 1996 to 2015, everyone is trying to catch up to you. You are the first generation of digital natives. Much of how you have been raised, or are being raised, is about being smart, stable, and secure. Your greatest investment will be how you engage with Jesus Christ in this incredibly diverse world you are in.
At the Cross, all generations find their purpose. It is at the Cross that Jesus made permanent trouble for the enemy, where He showed that God could be trusted to fulfill what He promised, where He offers you paradise instead of toil, where you obtain your greatest security. The Cross made no sense to most, but God used the nonsensical things of the world to bring us life.
So, do you want to participate in God’s plans and promises for our world? Then say yes to Jesus with uncompromised obedience. Who knows where your yes will ultimately lead you? But I do know that a yes is what Jesus is looking for in us. Yes, Lord.
Omar Niebles is the happy husband to Kerri and proud DODO (Dad Of Daughters Only) to Mia, Noelle, Londyn, and Penelope. Omar serves the Metropolitan District as the director of missions and justice engagement, and he is passionate about mobilizing the local church to engage peoples and areas that are unreached and unengaged. Most importantly— he loves Jesus.
The sun never sets on the Alliance family, spread out across the globe. Wherever we find ourselves, we can be certain that we are each sent. Just as the Father sent Jesus to proclaim the upside-down Kingdom of love, so
tch John tell a story, share a devotional, issue challenge, or cast C&MA vision. Released on the 12th of each month
his wife, Susan, live in Nicholasville, Kentucky. He currently serves in the office of the Ohio Valley District.
The Who is You In An Age of Advance
cmalliance.org/stumbo-video
A field of grain at night in Wallace, Nebraska.
“He took him outside and said, ‘Look up at the heavens and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.’ Then he said to him, ‘So shall your offspring be.’”
—Genesis 15:5
How Envision Chicago is breaking bread and serving the least of these
by Emily Smith
The poor, thirsty, uninvited, unhoused, needy, sick, and imprisoned exist throughout the world, but here, stateside, Envision Chicago’s mission is to pursue those in the heart of one of the country’s largest and most diverse cities. As the state of the Venezuelan displacement crisis worsened in 2022, Chicago became a sanctuary city for those making the dangerous trek to escape unlivable circumstances in the South American countries they had originally fled. By May 2023, Envision Chicago was met with a new opportunity to reach the nations through their local metropolitan ministry, as Venezuelan migrants began showing up at their door after hearing about a food pantry open to any who would have a need.
As those serving with Envision began interacting with the migrants, they met two men who had been sleeping at the police station since their arrival in the city and soon found out that there were many more than just the men they had met through the food pantry—over 35 people were sleeping on the floor of their local station.
Nearly 20,000 total migrants had journeyed to Chicago to find safety and stability, with most taking shelter in police stations across the city. As Envision Chicago site coordinators, Scott and Natalie Manke, and the congregation serving through Envision Chicago assessed what role God was calling them to play in the midst of this migrant displacement crisis, they called to mind Jesus’ words for all who would call themselves His followers in Matthew 25:35–40. Scott remarks, “Love your neighbor, right? That’s what we preach. So, no matter where you’re at, wherever you find yourself, whoever is near you, it becomes your responsibility to love them.”
eight to noon, and they can come to the center, they can shower, we’ll try to provide them with some hygiene stuff. At the same time, we’ll cook breakfast every day for them so they have a hot meal,’ because they weren’t even eating regular meals. ‘We’ll provide a place for them to sit at a real table and eat.’”
Scott, Natalie, and the team began executing a plan as they saw needs arise. By early May 2023, Envision Chicago was serving 30 to 50 people per day, providing breakfast, lunch, showers, and hygiene supplies. “It really was a great gospel opportunity for us,” Scott says.
“For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me. . . . I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.”
—MATTHEW 25:35–36, 40
As Chicago’s police stations began to overflow with the displaced, failing to fulfill a need they were never created to meet, Scott, Natalie, and the Envision team began asking themselves what margin they had to serve this suffering population. “The police station is being overwhelmed because they can’t handle that many people,” Scott explains. “And so, we said, ‘Well, what we can do is we could open up our facility every morning from
As Envision worked to meet the needs of the migrants, it became clear that hunger and lack of hygiene were only the beginning of the hardships at hand. Scott explains, “One of the current challenges in the city is that the government is giving people six-month vouchers for housing, so they can go out and find an apartment, and the first six months are paid.” However, it takes most migrants up to 18 months to obtain legal documentation for working in the United States. And without a job, migrants run into losing shelter after six months since they have no income available to pay rent. This dynamic creates a vicious cycle of failure to gain stability. “Landlords are raising rent significantly and evicting those who can’t pay the increase,” Scott says. “It’s creating stress and other crisis issues for these families, such as the need to transfer children to new schools and starting over in new communities.”
Over the past year, Chicago and Envision’s situation with the migrants has evolved month-by-month. While short-term issues have been resolved, none of the longterm narrative has been addressed. Because of the constant change, migrants are forced to shift along with the city systems without being given a long-term solution, leading them to lack hope about what refuge in Chicago will look like. While the displacement emergency currently has less immediate pressure, it persists in being a big-picture crisis.
By mid-August, about three months into Envision’s involvement with the migrants, they were receiving 100 people per day, all showing up for dinner, clothing, and care. As some came more and more regularly, cooking food and sharing meals became routine. Scott recalls one day early on, “I came into the center, and a number of migrants were in our back parking area where we cook food. They were out there cooking arepas, which is a bread that they use, and some food to fill it with, to make sandwiches. A couple of our community members and staff were out there with them, and they were laughing and, you know, communicating the best they could. As I stood there being served by these migrants, I thought to myself, This is the Kingdom. It was simply the joy of being together in community around food, as people from two different worlds. I was crying, and they start to ask in Spanish why I was crying. And it gave me an opportunity to talk about the Kingdom and heaven and this idea of us being together and breaking bread. There are just so many of those gospel stories woven into [this] journey.”
Spanish-speakers, we need more resources. The need is not going away, and so long as people are crossing our borders, we will see more and more coming to Chicago.”
“The return on investment is on God and not us.”
Within just a few months, the migrant displacement crisis in Chicago had become an abundant blessing and answer to prayers for Envision, creating a dynamic and ever-changing opportunity for them to serve the nations. God is doing in this place what only He can do—creating beauty from hardship and taking what the enemy meant for evil to be used for good, continuing His redeeming work.
As the migrant ministry in Chicago has ebbed and flowed, Envision has found a routine to reach the community regularly. Thirty people consistently show up for breakfast; Mondays and Thursdays are for ESL classes; Tuesdays and Sundays are for Bible study; and Wednesdays are reserved for classes on family enrichment, covering important topics such as communication, trauma, domestic abuse, and addiction. Each week, 20 people regularly attend a bilingual and Spanish-translated worship experience, which specifically serves the migrant group, as many do not speak English and utilize Google Translate for simple communication with the Envision team. While Envision has established consistent service to the migrant population, their needs in order to continue ministering to this people group are also being exposed. “We need more staff to make a more significant impact—Spanishspeakers especially,” Scott says. “In order to hire more
As Scott, Natalie, and Envision Chicago move forward and adapt to the ever-shifting situation with the migrants, one thing will not change for them—helping people encounter Christ through their love and service is central to their identity as a ministry. While they serve those who are displaced, sharing the gospel to meet the Venezuelan migrants’ deepest need will remain at the heart of everything they do. “That is the storyline of what we are doing and the storyline of just about every person we see,” Scott shares. “We rejoice in those who have met Jesus face-to-face, but there are so many more who are not having success in finding the true answer to their needs—not for lack of opportunity, but for lack of their own responsiveness. It’s hard to shift your eyes to Christ when you’re just trying to survive.”
In sharing the gospel and loving people like Jesus, we often experience what it means to be a link in the chain of God’s plan of salvation for individuals. While God can certainly give us a front-row seat to bringing a soul into His Kingdom for eternity, we are each more often a middle link, connecting one encounter with the Kingdom to another—and with every link, those far from Christ are brought closer and closer to the last link, knowing and accepting Jesus. “Are we investing in gospel-centered activity?” Scott asks of his own ministry. “If so, the return on investment is on God and not us. In our case, we are fulfilling Matthew 25:35–40, and for that reason, the work is living out the representation of Christ to hundreds who do not know Christ, with the hope that they will. I think any investment in prayer and resources behind works like this are fruitful and beneficial for the Kingdom—we have to have faith to see it, regardless of how long it takes for the fruit to come.”
Emily Smith is an editor and copywriter at the Alliance National Office. Emily earned her bachelor of arts from Iowa State University in 2021 and moved to the Columbus, Ohio, area post-graduation as part of a church-planting team ministering to the city of Columbus and campus of Ohio State.
rom the late 1950s to the early 1970s, thousands of people were displaced by war in Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam. Having served in Vietnam since 1911, Alliance international workers began reaching out to internally displaced refugees with food and other basic forms of relief. However, as the 1970s ushered in intensification to the conflict, The Alliance recognized that more needed to be done to address the growing humanitarian crisis. In 1972, discussions began at the
C&MA Headquarters in New York about the creation of an organization that would come alongside those in need while keeping with Dr. A. B. Simpson’s vision to minister to the whole person through both word and deed. Thus, CAMA Services was born. CAMA would go on to do officially what Alliance international workers had already been doing unofficially for a century— caring for the sick, feeding the poor, and providing relief to those impacted by war and natural disasters.
CAMA’s 50year legacy of transforming lives and restoring communities
by Sonata Wilson
Left: The Alliance established CAMA in the 1970s in response to the needs of thousands of refugees, like these children in Laos, displaced by violence.
And for the past 50 years, CAMA has dedicated itself to demonstrating Christ’s compassion through immediate relief and long-term development to transform lives and restore communities.
Why? Because this world is so utterly and undeniably broken.
Because of the Fall, every aspect of our lives—our relationship with God, our interactions with others, our treatment of creation, and even how we view our very selves—has been bent away from its original intent by brokenness. Since that fateful day in the Garden, every area of life has been afflicted by sin as the enemy has actively stolen, killed, and destroyed.
Because of this, we now live in a hurting world where poverty and injustice prevail. This poverty is holistic in nature and goes well beyond a matter of money and physical need—it is fully spiritual, social, and emotional, as well as material. Today, countless lives and whole communities are stuck under the corroding influence of the evil one—entrapped by systemic poverty, subject to corrupt governments, constrained by warped cultural practices, enslaved to social injustice, and so much more—without help and without hope.
But Christ came to redeem.
Because the problem is holistic, the solution must be holistic too. Only Christ has the power to reconcile and redeem. To transform and restore that which has been broken, those of us who are waiting for the King must share the gospel while coming alongside others with both action and compassion. This is what the Kingdom of God is like. When we demonstrate and proclaim the gospel not just in word but also in deed, we powerfully proclaim the truth of the compassionate God who loves unconditionally. And by loving “the least of these” (as Christ calls us to do in Matt. 25:34–40), we love our Lord.
CAMA came into existence for this very reason—to love those in need through both word and deed. Having sent international workers in the decades prior to countries throughout Southeast Asia to share the gospel, The Christian and Missionary Alliance established CAMA in 1972 to respond to the needs of the thousands of refugees who had become displaced by the violence taking place in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. In 1974,
CAMA received its official status as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, and The Alliance formally began establishing programs through CAMA in 1975 at the conclusion of the Vietnam War, when it became apparent that there was both great physical and spiritual need among the refugee camps lining the Thai-Cambodian and Thai-Laotian borders.
In those early years, CAMA served as a catalyst by helping resource others. There, in Thailand, CAMA international workers brought together representatives from the Royal Thai government, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the International Red Cross, World Vision, Food for the Hungry, and several other organizations looking to come alongside the displaced and created a committee for coordinating relief services to refugees within the country.
Led by the CAMA director for five years of its 15-year life, the Committee for Coordination of Services to Displaced Persons in Thailand—or CCSDPT—pledged to share resources and to support one another with the goal of meeting the rising needs the best that they could.
With the help of this committee, CAMA was able to extend Christ’s compassion to those hurt by the regional conflict through the provision of food, clothing, med-
Below: CAMA workers shared Christ and distributed Bibles in the refugees' own languages, including Lao.
Opposite: At the end of the Vietnam War, it became apparent that there was great physical and spiritual need among the refugees, like these, fleeing Vietnam.
ical care, and spiritual ministry. As physical relief was delivered, CAMA’s international workers shared about the hope of Christ in the refugees’ own languages. The Word was made accessible to refugees as Bibles were distributed in Vietnamese, Cambodian, and Lao and as CAMA invested in Christian radio broadcasts that reached across Asia. Short-term Bible training pro grams were also established within the camps to help refugees develop further in their faith journeys and to raise up local leaders. Timothy, a man who spent part of his childhood in one of the refugee camps assisted by CAMA, had this story to share about hope he came to know through these relief efforts:
I was born in Laos during the peak of the Vietnam War to an extremely poor family—
so poor that simply surviving outweighed entertaining any hopes or dreams beyond making sure that our daily needs were met. In 1975, when I was about six or seven years old, my family fled the country to escape to Thailand.
A few months after settling into our third refugee camp, I learned about CAMA after being told that their international workers were helping families by providing blankets, cooking pots, and canned food. I also heard that they were giving away T-shirts to children. One hot and sunny day, I went out to a building in a dusty field and got into a long, long line. After waiting for almost two hours, they gave me a T-shirt. This T-shirt became the most valuable thing I had, and this invaluable thing soon instilled in me the ability to have hopes and dreams—leading me and my family to move to America, to become U.S. citizens, and then, eventually, to me becoming a pastor. It wasn’t until 2017—when I became an international worker for The Christian and Missionary Alliance—that CAMA’s impact in my life came full circle. Who would have thought that, through a T-shirt, a seed of love and compassion would be planted inside a small, poor boy—leading him to go back and serve the Lord in the very place where hopes and dreams used to be nonexistent? Through CAMA’s efforts, true hope was shared with the hopeless—turning my life from meaningless to meaningful.
It is estimated that between 1975 and 1993, when the camps finally closed, roughly 100,000 Khmer, Lao, Hmong, and Vietnamese refugees came to Christ. Through the work that was done to meet both physical and spiritual needs, many received aid, and many came to experience hope. Many came to know the love of the Lord, and many chose to accept His gift of salvation.
As a new refugee crisis unfolded after the Vietnamese army’s invasion of Cambodia, CAMA was asked by UNHCR to begin special border operations to provide medical services to civilians in the Khmer Rouge areas. CAMA responded, and its first teams entered Cambodia on the backs of elephants. At a refugee camp known as Site 8, CAMA established a camp hospital and provided the refugee residents there with nursing and healthcare training—all while providing presentations of the gospel. When the camp closed in 1993, a number of these health-care workers returned to Cambodia and became a part of the leadership core of new churches. By the end of 1979, over $4.7 million had been given through CAMA to care for those in need. As relief pro-
gramming took place within the refugee camps, CAMA began to pioneer development projects—initiatives such as CAMACrafts, which created opportunities to earn an income through the sale of handicrafts—to help others get back on their own feet by supporting themselves. Job training became a part of coming alongside the displaced in addition to relief. Over time, CAMA would transition from providing just relief to also promoting development and from providing aid inside the refugee camps to also serving within the same countries from which the refugees had fled. As initial needs were met through relief, development work would begin to empower the hurting to meet their own needs by enabling them to utilize their God-given talents and local resources. The suffering and impoverished were pointed to Christ as they were fed, clothed, and cared for and as they took their own steps forward out of brokenness.
By 1983, CAMA had sent international workers to serve in Europe and other parts of Asia to continue assisting Southeast Asian refugees. The skills and strategies learned in Thailand would be used to help other refugee crises in places such as Lebanon and Jordan. In 1984, as starvation threatened to kill thousands in Burkina Faso and Mali, CAMA developed and implemented a famine response plan. In 1990, CAMA began one of its largest relief projects as it came alongside refugees in Guinea who had fled from the Liberian Civil War. During the 1990s, as local relief and development agencies associated with the Alliance national churches within Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso, and the Republic of Congo began to emerge, CAMA international workers partnered with them in their desire to share the gospel in both word and deed by providing training and mentorship.
CAMA kept growing as it continued to extend Christ’s compassion through relief and development work. In 1999, CAMA began assisting war-affected families with relief in the Balkans. After the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, CAMA sent international workers to serve the hundreds of thousands who were left to rebuild their lives. In 2005, Hurricane Katrina
Watch CAMA’s documentary at cmalliance.org/video/cama-50
became CAMA’s first major disaster response in the United States, marking the start of a nearly two-decades-long partnership with local Alliance churches to serve those in need of relief stateside. During the Syrian refugee crisis, CAMA began providing relief in 2012 by partnering with a local Alliance church and by establishing a community center for refugees and a school for Syrian children. In 2019, CAMA started meeting the needs of both Venezuelan and Rohingya refugees as international workers arrived in Colombia for the first time and as international workers in Southeast Asia began providing medical aid and discipleship. When the COVID-19 pandemic struck in 2020, CAMA responded in partnership with the Alliance World Fellowship by providing food packages, cash vouchers for living expenses, employment opportunities such as producing face masks and selling hygiene products, and other forms of assistance to those who had been left in need. In 2022, CAMA helped Church Ministries of The Alliance hire a disaster response coordinator to
equip the U.S. Alliance for overseeing stateside relief responses. When Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, right at the start of the conflict, CAMA partnered with local pastors throughout Ukraine to empower the local church to share the gospel and provide relief.
Time and time again, relief has opened doors to areas and people in desperate need of Christ’s redemption. As people have dreamed of a better life, CAMA has come alongside them by listening to and initiating conversations about the struggles they face. CAMA has helped communities to assess what strengths and resources are already at their disposal and then empowered them to solve the problems that they’ve identified through development—all while encouraging local ownership through investment in local solutions guided by local leaders and local churches. By pointing to Jesus all along the way, CAMA has given people the chance to recognize and respond to the value God sees in them, leading to lives being transformed and communities being restored.
Opposite: When Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, CAMA partnered with local Ukrainian pastors to empower the local church and provide relief.
Now, in 2024, CAMA is celebrating 50 years of relief and development ministry as a nonprofit organization. In total, 62 CAMA international workers and 12 global partners are currently running over 30 projects in 19 different countries. Through their work, CAMA is coming alongside the broken with disaster relief and community development, and the Lord has been faithful to transform lives and restore communities throughout the world. Because of the compassion and generosity of the Alliance family, we are serving as your hands and feet to “the least of these,” reaching into the hard and hurting places with holistic gospel presence and responding to poverty and injustice— turning relief into belief and bringing about eternal and lasting change. However, this world remains utterly and undeniably broken—and will be until Christ’s return. Poverty in all its forms will persist. People will continue to cry out for justice each day. The needs are overwhelming and will only keep growing. But Christ came to redeem. As we step into the next 50 years, CAMA is committed to partnering with our Alliance family to keep extending Christ’s compassion to the hard and hurting places through proclaiming the gospel in both word and deed. Together, we will continue to see lives be transformed and communities be restored through the power of the gospel and the love of our Lord Jesus Christ.
is CAMA Services’ marketing and communications specialist. An Ohio native, she received her bachelor of arts from Capital University after double majoring in creative writing and professional writing. Sonata’s heart is for helping others better share their stories.
My name is Samira,* and I was angry—so angry. My husband, Ismael, became a follower of Jesus, and this forced us to leave our home country in the Middle East. His friend was arrested by local authorities because of his faith, and Ismael thought we would be next. So, he took me to Indonesia where we have been refugees for several years.
Not long after we arrived, an Alliance international worker visited us and asked what he could be praying to Jesus for on our behalf. I defiantly challenged him, saying, “Pray that I become pregnant! With twins! And pray that the twins are a boy and girl!” So, the worker prayed. Three months later, I found out I was pregnant with twins, and when I gave birth, it was to a boy and a girl. It wasn’t long before I also became a follower of Jesus.
The Alliance worker helped Ismael get his online theology degree, and now both Ismael and I are ministering to refugees like us from other countries in the Middle East. We want to move to the West, but until then, we will stay as long as Jesus wants us to stay, and we won’t stop telling others about Him.
*All names changed
by Lori and Chelsea, CAMA workers
n 2014, the Ebola virus devastated Guinea. As our CAMA Services team responded to the outbreak, we began to work with Jérémie, a local Alliance pastor with a deep love for the Lord and a desire to see Guineans overcome generational poverty and embrace self-sustainability. Alongside Jérémie, we started to care for the widows and children of those who had died from Ebola. This work gradually and unexpectedly grew into the Guinea Agropastoral Project (GAP), a holistic ministry initiative that seeks to transform the agricultural and animal husbandry practices of local farmers as we demonstrate God’s
love and care to them and their families. GAP encourages Guineans to recognize the blessings God has placed in their community and the environment. Once they understand the value of their local resources, Jérémie and our CAMA team guide them to provide sustainable income for their families.
Although rich in natural resources and agricultural potential, Guinea is pervaded by malnourishment and food insecurity. With limited financial resources,
We desire for all who are hungry and hopeless to find sustenance, sustainable livelihoods, and hope that overflows to those around them.
many families are forced to decide who is worthy of medical care and a primary education. Each year, they experience “hungry months” as they run through food reserves from the previous year’s harvest and await their opportunity to reap a new harvest. They live just one crisis, illness, or drought season away from catastrophe. Thanks to your prayers and generous support of GAP, struggling Guinean families are receiving education on regenerative farming practices, consultations on current farming projects, and recommendations for culturally appropriate technologies that can be used to increase harvests. Our aim is to guide, encourage, and demonstrate God’s love in tangible ways—or, as we call it, “agricultural discipleship.” Our connections with local families create many opportunities to share the gospel, and what better way to build relationships than by cultivating His creation with beloved friends and neighbors!
Even with the progress we’ve made, there’s still so much more work to do as we pursue our shared dream for the people of Guinea—to progress “from the begging bowl to the breadbasket.” This means we desire for all who are hungry and hopeless to find sustenance, sustainable livelihoods, and hope that overflows to those around them.
Shortly after we began working with Jérémie, a village donated over 30 acres of land to him. They believed that having him as a neighbor would bring them benefit and blessing. He has since developed this land into a thriving experimental farm where he demonstrates culturally appropriate and innovative farming and animal husbandry practices. The farm keeps expanding,
and in recent years, he has added holistic family development and farming seminars. Initially, local farmers were reluctant to try new methods. Now they are doing something we never expected—paying their entire cost of travel and room and board for these trainings. They come expecting Jérémie’s teaching to improve their lives.
Jérémie has also expanded his impact through a biblically based, family-focused seminar on development. It has been very well received by local churches. Even non-Christians attend the seminars, acknowledging that the value of Jérémie’s teachings motivates them to set aside their resistance to biblical ideas.
Since the Ebola crisis, the prayers and giving of the Alliance family have enabled Pastor Jérémie’s vision to evolve and expand across the country. From helping vulnerable families impacted by the crisis learn how to best use fertilizer to provide extra income and put more food on the table, the work has expanded into a multifaceted ministry to empower Guineans economically, physically, and spiritually. At Macenta, the original GAP site, nearly 1,000 men and women have learned how to feed and support their families by growing crops and raising animals through sustainable, God-honoring methods. Hundreds more have attended development seminars associated with local churches. In more and more parts of Guinea, the gospel is being proclaimed and demonstrated to those who desperately need to understand God’s love for them.
God has blessed our team with four couples who have training and experience in agricultural development, discipleship, and women’s and children’s advocacy and mentorship. To display the full range of possibilities for Guinean agriculture, we are seeking to establish a demonstration farm in each of Guinea’s four climate zones. So far, we have farms in various stages of development in three zones. These farms also provide holistic opportunities to meet the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of each family member. The entire family must be involved for sustainable development to succeed. CAMA Guinea is partnering with a local pastor to create a new GAP site near Conakry, the capital city. This local church plans to establish an agricultural farm, a retreat center for pastors, a refuge center for local believers facing persecution, and a care center for vulnerable women. We will be consulting with the agricultural and discipleship initiatives on this farm.
This year, our team is also preparing to launch new work in the mountainous regions, where we will have the opportunity to advance the gospel among Guinea’s largest people group. Many of this group are subsistence farmers and consider themselves torchbearers for the
majority religion. By using biblical principles relevant to the culture, we aim to share our knowledge and experience in agriculture to build relational bridges that awaken desperate, isolated, and lost people to their need for the spiritual nourishment only Jesus can provide. For nearly 10 years in Guinea, CAMA has woven the gospel into our work to see lives transformed and communities restored. These outcomes will always be at the heart of our dream for the people we serve. Guinea is a country rich in resources, but the people are starving in every conceivable way. They are lacking food and suffering from preventable problems. They are chasing religion but have no hope. We long to see many Guineans choose Jesus. With your con tinued generosity and prayers, we will empower Guineans to better provide for their families, overcome physical and spiritual poverty, and, in turn, empower others to do the same.
Many farmers in Guinea lack the tools and knowledge to overcome food insecurity. They also lack the spiritual nourishment only Jesus can provide. Through your gift to the Guinea Agropastoral Project, you will equip farmers to provide for their families. You will also create opportunities for CAMA workers to proclaim and demonstrate God’s love among people long denied gospel access. To meet the holistic needs of struggling Guinean families, visit cmalliance.org/give; select “a project you love/Find a project”; and type in “CAMA - Guinea Agropastoral Project.” Learn more about Alliance strategic projects throughout the world in need of your prayers and financial support by accessing the 2023–24 Strategic Giving Opportunities Gift Catalog at cmalliance.org/gift-catalogalliance-strategic-projects/ or by calling toll free (866) 443-8262.
The Tegalalang Rice Terrace in Bali, Indonesia, abounds with layered rice paddies, maintained by the traditional Balinese subak irrigation system and the farmers who have taken care of the fields for generations.
A year of experiencing God’s provision and waiting for more
The Alliance has always been united by a common purpose—to carry the good news to all the world, bringing gospel access to the world’s hardest places and our own backyards. In this unique cultural moment, we want to remain rooted in the pioneering work that has always defined us, taking intentional steps toward God’s call rather than shrinking back or veering off course. In a time of uncertainty, God is at work and on the move, and we want to move with Him—now.
So, at Council 2023, the Alliance family courageously committed to seeing our All of Jesus for All the World vision furthered in our neighborhoods and the nations through five strategic goals over two years, until June 2025. The first year of this now. initiative has passed, and we are proud to report the progress accomplished.
As of the C&MA Board of Directors meeting at the end of June, 54 new international workers have been appointed since Council 2023. This number just exceeds the set goal, which has been a cause for much praise to our Lord of the Harvest. We have prayed earnestly for God to raise up more laborers for the harvest, and He has answered! Additionally, as of June, 41
applications are already in process to consider for the 2024–2025 fiscal year.
Two of the new workers approved by the Board are Meng and Mai Thao, who have been preparing for the mission field for 10 years. For the last two of those years, Meng has worked faithfully at the National Office with the IT team. Meng and Mai have felt the Lord calling them to serve in Udon Thani, Thailand, and hope to deploy in summer 2025.
God has answered our prayers abundantly by providing two new open doors for missions advance this year. One opportunity is located in Indonesia, where workers are already on the ground. The other open door is for a new Envision site in Manchester, England—a university city that has rapidly diversified over the last two decades where there are many opportunities for discipleship and cross-cultural ministry.
Looking to next year, there are three more potential open doors—one in Europe, one in Africa, and one in Asia/Pacific. Pray that God will continue to bring clarity, wisdom, and further openings among the world’s hardest places.
Opposite and below: On December 7, 2023, National Office staff and other Alliance family members gathered to consecrate the property of One Alliance Place with a time of worship and prayer.
As of June 2024, 49 new church expressions have been established since Council 2023. This includes several multisite locations as well as new affiliated churches. There are also 69 new plant projects in the pipeline, with churches and individuals actively seeking God for direction in planting new churches. Please pray that God will bring peace and discernment.
We are also praising God for the significant number of non-majority culture churches included in these numbers!
During their February meeting, the C&MA Board of Directors affirmed the mission and purposes of the relocation of the National Office to Reynoldsburg, Ohio, and that several of the goals of the project—such as missional engagement of the community and access to the Alliance family—are already being lived out. However, in an inflationary season with high construction costs, it has become apparent that the size and scope of the new office building and the 14-acre campus needed examination and change. Because of these factors, the Board prayerfully decided to authorize a redesign process for Alliance Place.
In the intervening months, the Board has met twice weekly to pray for God’s direction. And after prayerfully
considering all options, at the June Board meeting, the Board approved the pursuit of one specific design that moves toward a redesigned campus with an updated building concept. The Board will review the architectural plans as they become available this fall. Upon approval, we anticipate that construction will begin in early 2025.
The Board has a sense that this change is actually an opportunity to fulfill our vision with better stewardship and at a lower cost. On the pause in construction and redesign process, C&MA Board Chairperson Hazael Morrell says, “This moment of pause has been from God. We have sought God’s face in our weekly prayer meetings; this is not a Board exercise as a simple fiduciary decision but has been a confirmation of the Lord’s voice for this vision of the project—a divine delay.”
The Alliance has finished in a place of strength and in the black with the annual budget at the end of the 2023–2024 fiscal year. Many elements have contributed to this reality—including a significant estate gift, which was a pivotal blessing to the Great Commission Fund (GCF). Careful cost management, a strong Great Commission Day Offering, and efforts from Alliance Missions to cascade surplus designated funds to the undesignated GCF have also played a vital role. We are rejoicing in God’s provision. Please join us in praying for abundance and Spirit-led generosity among our Alliance family, as well as continued faith and trust in Him who supplies our every need.
Uruguay has a history of secularism dating back to the early twentieth century. According to a 2023 article by the Associated Press, more than half the people identify as “nones”—atheists, agnostics, or others who are religiously unaffiliated. By embracing secularism, the country has become a place without hope, with the highest rates of divorce, alcoholism, and suicide in all of Latin America.
Amid this darkness, the little light of joy that we bring to our community is received with such overwhelming need. Although our unsaved friends and neighbors are resistant to the gospel and our Christian beliefs, they want to be with us—whether at our Passover seders, Thanksgiving dinners, conversation groups, birthday parties, or open houses. During the past year, we have seen God use our ministries to draw people closer to Jesus. They let us pray blessings at our meals and pray over them when they are sick. Estela* said at our Thanksgiving dinner, “I believe in God because of you two.” Her partner, Jaime, said his agnostic heart is more open to spiritual ideas. Pray for increased openness to the gospel.
*All names changed
based on a report from Alicia, an Alliance international worker serving with aXcess
While serving at Bongolo Hospital’s eye clinic, my wife, Wendy, shared her faith with a glaucoma patient. Aya* said she follows the majority religion but added that we can still love one another. Wendy agreed and asked if Aya wanted to hear a story from the Bible. When she said yes, Wendy shared the story of Jesus calming the storm. Aya said she’d like to hear more stories. Just before she was released from the hospital, we received audio Bibles from Samaritan’s Purse. We gave one of them to Aya. She was so touched and thankful that she started to cry. Please pray for Aya and her salvation.
*Name changed
—Eric, an Alliance international worker serving with aXcess
Exhausted after hosting 30+ youth in our house, Patty and I sat down to watch TV when a young woman showed up at our door. Grace had been kicked out of her apartment with no money and nowhere to go. She prayed for help, and the Lord brought me to her mind. Grace once attended our Team Joshua youth outreach, so she knew where I lived and had walked over 15 miles to our house. She arrived hopeless and tired. After a meal, Grace was ready to learn how to surrender her burdens to Jesus, and she received Him as Savior. She is living with us temporarily and growing rapidly.
Grace was never nurtured in a loving family. Finding Jesus and being discipled daily has had a huge impact on her life. She is looking for a job and has joined several healthy discipling communities that will be “family” for her long after she leaves our home. Praise the Lord for how He has been working in Grace’s life. Please continue to pray for her.
—Barry, an Alliance international worker serving with aXcess
In addition to performing eye surgery at Bongolo Hospital’s eye clinic, Wendy has opportunities to share about faith in Jesus with her patients like Aya.
From around the block to the ends of the earth
Meredith A. Hoffman, in February. Meredith is involved in CAMA and English as a second language ministries.
BLACK FOREST ACADEMY
Paul and Lydia Ericks and family, in March. The Erickses serve with aXcess in Germany and are involved in dorm parenting.
CAMBODIA
Christina D. Her, in February. Christina serves with aXcess and is involved in language and cultural study in addition to finances and field bookkeeping.
Jean Paul “JP” and Judith “Judy” Schultz, in April. The Schultzes are Envision site coordinators.
Darrol J. and Kimberly Prusia and family, in February. The Prusias serve with aXcess and are involved in church planting, a coffee roasting business, and teaching karate and English.
Maritza Cumba, in February. Maritza serves with aXcess and is involved in leadership development and church ministries.
SENEGAL TEAM
Keith G. and Krista J. Ellenberger, in February. The Ellenbergers serve with Envision as site coordinators.
Michael J. and Valerie J. Stephens and family, in February. The Stephenses serve with aXcess and are involved in church planting and development ministries .
Pierre M. Allegre, institutional chaplain, Alliance Northwest District
Reynaldo Andino, volunteer chaplain, ACM Cruce Davila, Barceloneta, P.R.
Kevin R. Astorino, pastor of next generation ministries, Maple Ridge Church, Sunderland, Mass.
Souhel S. Awabdeh, senior pastor, Arab Evangelical Alliance, Madison Heights, Mich.
Barry L. Baker, pastor, Calvary Alliance Church, Cincinnati, Ohio
Ronald G. Belsterling, nonAlliance assignment, Mid-Atlantic District
Celine Bower, executive pastor, San Jose (Calif.) Chinese Alliance Church
Oscar M. Briones Silva, assistant pastor, Encuentro Con Jesus Church, Birmingham, Ala.
David J. Cary, prison chaplain, Alliance Northwest District
Joshua Cheng, special assignment, San Diego, Calif.
Douglas E. Coleman, lead pastor, Hope Community Church, Hudson, Ohio
J. Todd Cothran, pastor, CrossLife Community Church, Charlottesville, Va.
Garth D. Crundwell, director of spiritual services, Village Church Shell Point, Fort Myers, Fla.
Deborah L. Dean, hospice chaplain, Alliance New England, South Easton, Mass.
Tung Do, lead pastor of English ministries, Seattle (Wash.) Chinese Alliance Church
Luz M. Faria, volunteer chaplain, ACM Cruce Davila, Barceloneta, P.R.
Daniel E. Forney, lay pastor, Carman Road Community Church, Schenectady, N.Y.
Michael W. Gabler, youth pastor, Mosaic Church, Henderson, Nev.
Michael Gilmore, youth pastor, The Awakening Church, Murrieta, Calif.
Steven C. Grace, pastor, Palm Coast (Fla.) Bible Church
Michael W. Green, pastor, First Alliance Church, Lakeland, Fla.
Reece R. Guiton, associate pastor, Community Church Big Bear, Big Bear Lake, Calif.
Simon K. Her, assistant pastor, Family Alliance Church, Fresno, Calif.
Giang T. Ho, pastor, Vietnamese Grace Alliance Church, Beverly Hills, Mich.
Bradley J. Janiszewski, student director, Eagle Church, Whitestown, Ind.
Limian Jin, church planter, Oasis Church, San Gabriel, Calif.
Chengguang Jin, pastor, Gospel Mission Alliance Church, McKinney, Tex.
Roger A. Kamstra, special assignment, The Alliance South
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Timothy M. Kelman, chaplain, Metropolitan District
Paul A. Kham, pastor of Cambodian congregation, Celebration Church, Santa Ana, Calif.
Matthew A. Lutz, pastor, Boone (N.C.) Living Room Church
Duane J. Mabee, interim pastor, Elizabethton (Tenn.) Alliance Church
Breaden Mangham, associate pastor, Alliance Community Fellowship, Montrose, W.Va.
Rafaela I. Martinez, director for outreach and multiplication, The Alliance Underground, Bloomfield, N.J.
Nairmen Mina Camilde, elder, ACM Sinai, Mayaguez, P.R.
Jessica Mitchell, pastor of spiritual formation, Alliance Tabernacle, Brooklyn, N.Y.
Cher T. Moua, church planter, Hmong District
Phillip S. Neville, pastor, Florence (Ky.) Alliance Church
Hector D. Olavarria, assistant pastor, ACM Quebradillas (P.R.)
Alyonushka D. Pavlova, children’s director, Heart Church, Gig Harbor, Wash.
Steven E. Phillips, special assignment, The Alliance South
Mark A. Porter, pastor/evangelist, South Pacific Alliance
Marcelo I. Realpe, lead pastor, The Alliance Underground, Bloomfield, N.J.
Kenneth W. Rice, special assignment, Alliance Northwest District
Eduardo Rodriguez Ruiz, elder, ACM Sinai, Mayaguez, P.R.
Samantha R. Tait, coordinator of care and counseling, Crosspoint Church, Temecula, Calif.
Mark M. Thao, pastor, 4 State Hmong Alliance Church, Neosho, Mo.
Marc D. Trujillo, pastor, Cherry Tree Alliance Church, Uniontown, Pa.
Olaf P. Valli, church planter, Alliance New England
Souk Vang, senior pastor, Tulsa (Okla.) Hmong Alliance Church
Jonathan Vizcarrondo, director for outreach and multiplication, The Alliance Underground, Bloomfield, N.J.
Earl J. Wade Jr., assistant pastor, Trinity Christian Chapel, Sewell, N.J.
Scott G. Wessell, pastor of discipleship, The Gathering, San Diego, Calif.
Michael C. Xiong, pastor, Hawaii Life Church, Pahoa, Hawaii
Touhoua Yang, assistant pastor, Tulsa (Okla.) Hmong Alliance Church
Alliance Northwest District, Ewnat Absari Evangelical Church
Chula Vista, Calif., Good Neighbor Alliance Church, 2164 Yew Ct. Unit #1, 91915
Fort Lee, N.J., The Dreamers Community Church, 1625 Palisade Ave., 07024
Glendale, Ariz., Mosaic Church, 20412 N. 41st Ave., 85308
New Rochelle, N.Y., Sound Hope Community Church, 148 E. Main St., 10801
Sabana Hoyos, P.R., La Alianza de Factor Arecibo, PO de Factor Arecibo, PO Box 1625, 00688
The Dalles, Ore., The Dalles Evangelical Church, 1001 E. 12th St., 97058
Vancouver, Wash., Vancouver Arabic Healing Church, 1824 NE 124th Ave., 98684
Westerville, Ohio, Columbus Arabic Church, 75 E. Shrock Road, 43081
Worcester, Mass., Worcester Metropolitan Vietnamese Alliance Church, 1411 Main St., 01603
Kenneth Young Alers, volunteer chaplain, ACM Cruce Davila, Barceloneta, P.R.
Kari Analco, Deaf ministry coordinator, Christ Community Church, Omaha, Neb.
Jonas Alexandre, outreach coordinator, New Covenant Alliance Church, Ocala, Fla.
Woowun Chung, missionary, Dongsan Alliance Church, Little Ferry, N.J.
Larry E. Dyson, pastor, Alliance Family Fellowship, Dover, Del.
Neldhy Elie, assistant pastor, Bethel Haitian Alliance Church, Nyack, N.Y.
Freegainson Exantus, assistant pastor, Bethel Haitian Alliance Church, Nyack, N.Y.
Daniel Federick, pastor, The Refuge Church, Bremerton, Wash.
Nickolas A. Fox, college personnel, Crown College, St. Bonifacius, Minn.
Christopher L. Freeman, pastor, Western PA District
Christopher Her, youth pastor, First United Hmong Alliance Church, Denver, Colo.
Jett L. Hone, Greenhouse resident, Fairhaven Church, Dayton, Ohio
Joseph T. Kelly, interim pastor, Community Bible Church, Portage, Pa.
Kathryn Kelly, director for outreach and multiplication,
At Shell Point® , you’ll enjoy a fulfilling lifestyle where you can explore, worship, learn, grow and even continue to serve. And with new additions to our campus, like Tribby Arts Center, a sparkling centerpiece for the arts, and the state-of-the-art Larsen Health Center, you can rest on a firm foundation, knowing that your needs will be taken care of – both now and in the future.
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Shell Point is located in Fort Myers, Florida, just minutes from the islands of Sanibel and Captiva.
The Alliance Underground, Bloomfield, N.J.
David Kim, youth pastor, Risen King Alliance Church, New City, N.Y.
Henson Moua, assistant pastor, Alliance Bible Church, Coon Rapids, Minn.
Kiet T. Nguyen, assistant pastor, Vietnamese Alliance Church, Wheaton, Ill.
Van T. Nguyen, local church ministry, Grace Alliance Church, Milpitas, Calif.
Ji Heon Oh, education pastor, Blessing Church, Paramus, N.J.
Narin Phuong, assistant pastor, Hacienda Heights CEC, Pomona, Calif.
Jennifer Price, director of women’s ministry, The Grove Community Church, Riverside, Calif.
Sandra Ramos, volunteer chaplain, ACM Cruce Davila, Barceloneta, P.R.
Andrew Rieck, youth pastor, Fairhaven Church Springboro (Ohio) Campus
Trisha A. Rindels, family ministries director, Christ Community Church, Rochester, Minn.
Jeffery J. Simpson, associate leader, City of Light, Elmira, N.Y.
Leon K. Vang, assistant pastor, Family Alliance Church, Fresno, Calif.
Lauren I. West, Greenhouse resident, First Alliance Church, Columbus, Ohio
Blong G. Yang, assistant pastor, Family Alliance Church, Fresno, Calif.
Brian Pratt, December 10, 2023, Majestic Pines, Mahtomedi, Minn. Brian is the senior pastor.
Lucas Jeffrey Baumann, February 27, 2024, Rocky Mountain District Office, Billings, Mont. Lucas is the children’s pastor at Fellowship Alliance Church in Columbia Falls,
Mark Little Elk, April 7, 2024, Cass Lake (Minn.) Alliance Church. Mark is the senior pastor.
The following ordinations took place April 12 at the Spanish Eastern District Conference at Iglesia Alianza, Randolph, N.J.:
Weaving together insights from faith, science, and medicine, Reverend Dr. Stephen Ko reveals the marvelous ways in which our physical and spiritual health can prepare us to become instruments of God's healing in the world.
Neil Alicea Velazquez, Iglesia ACyM de Morristown (N.J.). Neil is , ACM de Jennings, Bronx, N.Y. Eliezer is the pastor.
Fabio Jesus Florez, ACM Iglesia Casa de Oración, Brandon, Fla. Fabio is the pastor.
Jorge Enrique Garibello, Iglesia ACyM Haines City (Fla.). Jorge is
Alison Ibanez, Iglesia Alianza, Randolph, N.J. Alison is the youth
Pedro Luis Marquez, Iglesia Alianza El Shaddai, New Britain, Conn. Pedro is the pastor.
Joshua Medina, Second Avenue Church, New York, N.Y. Joshua is the pastor and is a U.S. Army chaplain.
Alexis Rolon Santiago, Iglesia ACyM de Arlington (Va.). Alexis is the assistant pastor.
Timothy T. Chen, Metropolitan District
Michael C. Gerhardt, Northeastern District
Duc T. Huynh, Vietnamese District
Ronald D. Lord, South Pacific Alliance
Stephen T. McCord, Alliance Northwest District
Gregg W. Marston, Central District
Timothy G. Roth, Alliance Northwest District
John F. Soper, Metropolitan District
Philip A. Strong, Ohio Valley District
Floyd R. Wheeler, The Alliance South
Glenn Zimmerman, Alliance Northwest District
Ruth Fraser (Davidson) Lawrance
June 19, 1922–August 29, 2023
Born in Toronto, Ont., Ruth received her education in Toronto and worked at Evangelical Publishers for several years. She studied for a year at Western Canadian Bible Institute in Regina, Sask. (now Ambrose University, Calgary, Alta.). In 1949, she married James Jessiman Lawrance.
For over 50 years, Ruth faithfully served as a pastor’s wife in C&MA churches in Canada and the United States. These included congregations in Lamont, Alta.; Thunder Bay, Ont.; Brandon, Man.; Fort Qu’Appelle, Sask.; Savage, Mont.; Boise, Idaho; and Wetaskiwin, Alta. Upon retirement, James and Ruth returned to Savage and filled several interim pastoral positions in Montana. In 2007, they moved to Regina, Sask. Ruth was predeceased by her husband in 2007 and died at the age of 101.
Ruth is survived by children Carolyn, Sharon, and David; 8 grandchildren; and 26 great-grandchildren.
Norman E. Allison
July 24, 1934–November 27, 2023
Norman was born in Asheville, N.C. On August 17, 1958, he married Judy Willyard. They attended Toccoa Falls (Ga.) College (TFC), where Norman received a BA in Bible and missions. Later, he received a master’s in cultural anthropology from the University of Beirut and a PhD in cultural anthropology from the University of Georgia. Norman taught at TFC for 32 years and was the director of its School of World Mission. In that role,
Norman prepared hundreds of men and women to communicate the gospel with cultural awareness and sensitivity to the needs of people around the world. For over 60 years, Norman played an influential role in Christian missions. As C&MA missionaries for 10 years, Norman and Judy worked in the cities and remote villages of several Middle Eastern countries, sometimes having running water only once a week. During their ministry, they found themselves in the middle of the Six-Day War and met the king of Jordan. As an educator, Norman applied anthropological concepts to mission strategies in an innovative way that helped Toccoa Falls College develop one of the country’s leading evangelical missions programs. In retirement, Norman pastored a small church in northern Georgia, where he and Judy saw more lives transformed by the gospel.
Norman is survived by his wife; children Mark, Kathy, and Heather; 11 grandchildren; and 11 great-grandchildren.
Paul Hull
November 15, 1933–December 31, 2023
Born in Boston, Mass., Paul attended Ithaca (N.Y.) College for one year. In 1953, he joined the U.S. Air Force and served with the Air Force Band and Singing Sergeants for four years, entertaining troops around the world. In 1956, on one of those tours in Greenland with the Women’s Chorale from George Washington University, Paul met Suzanne “Suzy” Berry. They married on June 8, 1957.
Paul and Suzy became born again in the early 1960s and joined the Lutheran Church in Southern California; in 1972, God called them to missions. The couple trained with Wycliffe Bible Translators in Oklahoma and Mexico (1972–1973). In 1974, they were assigned to West Africa and were to be stationed in Sierra Leone for three years. But the Lord had other plans. After only one year in West Africa, God called the Hulls to full-time pastoral ministry. The family returned stateside and moved to Lancaster, N.H., so Paul could attend White Mountains Seminary (1975–1976).
Following seminary, Paul pastored Julian (Calif.) Bible Church (1976–1979). Then the family moved to San Antonio, where he was the assistant pastor at the Alliance Bible Church (1979–1984). He later pastored Word of Life Bible Church in San Antonio (1984–1992), Community Bible Chapel in Pleasanton, Tex. (1992–2000), and Atascosa Christian Fellowship in Jourdanton, Tex. (2002–2007). Paul was also a regional team leader in the C&MA’s Southwestern District (2007–2018).
Paul loved to teach, but he was known more as a caring shepherd to the churches he led. He also sang at
special events and holiday concerts, served as a prison chaplain, and was a voice for the lives of the unborn.
Paul is survived by his wife; children Laura and Tom; 10 grandchildren; and 14 great-grandchildren.
Lena Mildred Ross
November 27, 1928–January 14, 2024
Lena was born in Corning, N.Y., where her parents attended the C&MA church. Soon after she received Christ in 1946, she heard Him calling her to full-time Christian service. Lena’s passion to serve God was evident when she organized and taught a Bible class for underprivileged children. To prepare for overseas ministry, she enrolled in the Missionary Training Institute (later Nyack [N.Y.] College), where she met Emerson Ross. Although he did not share her calling to overseas ministry, she accepted his marriage proposal. They married shortly after graduation and began their first pastorate at a rural church in Pennsylvania.
For over 42 years of ministry, the couple served together in 11 other Alliance churches while Lena enjoyed an active ministry in the Alliance Women’s prayer fellowship. After retiring in 1993, Emerson and Lena served 12 short-term interim ministries in various cities throughout the United States, culminating in their full-time work in Hawaii. Since moving to Shell Point Village (now Shell Point Retirement Community, Fort Myers, Fla.), they enjoyed serving the Chinese Christian Gospel Church in Naples, Fla. The two were married for 73 years.
Lena is survived by her husband; daughters Marilyn, Carol, Bonnie, and Jeannie; 11 grandchildren; and 24 great-grandchildren.
Gene Carol Olsen
December 3, 1924–February 26, 2024
Born in Webster, S.Dak., Gene attended Simpson Bible Institute (now Simpson University, Redding, Calif.). Later, she enrolled in Wycliffe’s Summer Institute of Linguistics at the University of Oklahoma. Gene returned to Simpson to teach linguistics and attended Seattle Pacific University, where she was also a student teacher. She received her master’s degree in crosscultural communication from Wheaton (Ill.) Graduate School.
Gene began her 40 years of C&MA ministry in 1952 when she arrived in West Africa to begin her work in linguistics. The following year, she met Walter Olsen, a widowed missionary serving in Côte d’Ivoire. They married on August 3, 1953, and Gene
relocated to Côte d’Ivoire. Her ministry there included the translation of the New Testament into Baoule. On July 4, 1976, Gene and Walter were awarded medals by Côte d’Ivoire’s government. Walter was the father of Betty Olsen, a C&MA missionary nurse who was taken captive during the Vietnam War. In the same attack, several Alliance missionaries were martyred. Betty, along with missionary Hank Blood, died during the inhumane trek through the jungle. Her unwavering courage and forgiveness of her captors was an inspiration to her fellow captor, Mike Benge, a USAID worker. He lived to share Betty’s story, which was published in the book No Time for Tombstones, by James and Marti Hefley.
In addition to her ministry in Africa, Gene taught at St. Paul Bible College (now Crown College, St. Bonifacius, Minn.), where she became the first female missionary in residence appointed by the C&MA. She also taught at Bethel College and at the Toronto Institute of Linguistics, preparing new missionaries for language study. After Walter died in 1980, Gene returned to Côte d’Ivoire to teach at Yamoussoukro Bible Institute and began translating Theological Education by Extension materials. In 1995, she returned to the States and lived in Monroe, Wash., where she was involved in a variety of outreaches.
Gene is survived by children Marilyn, Eric, and Rebecca; 5 grandchildren; and 3 greatgrandchildren. Her son Mark died at age 17 following an accident.
Ronald “Ron” Paul Clason
October 5, 1933–March 24, 2024
Ron was born in Long Island, Kans. He married Donna LeFavour on August 25, 1951. Ron attended Simpson College in Seattle, Wash. (later Simpson University in Redding, Calf.), where he sensed God’s call to serve those seeking spiritual guidance.
For over 43 years of C&MA ministry, Ron shepherded congregations across the United States, serving in Bloomfield, Mont. (1955–1956); Granite Falls, Wash. (1957–1961); Roseburg, Ore. (1961–1966); Cody (1966–1968) and Greybull, Wyo. (1966–1968); Hibbing (1973–1980) and Northfield, Mont. (1980–1990); and Withee, Wis. (1990–1999). Ron’s ministry extended beyond the United States, reaching the hearts of many in Lusaka, Zambia, where he served after his retirement. He was also a man of prayer, often seeking the Lord’s guidance in the quiet hours of the night.
Ron was predeceased by his wife and grandson Scott; he is survived by children Gordon, Alan, Carolyn, and Stephen; 7 grandchildren; and 17 great-grandchildren.
November 24, 1931–April 5, 2024
Born in Lincoln, Neb., Myrtle served at a Hopi Indian reservation during high school, which helped her understand the desperate plight of impoverished people without hope. After hearing God’s call to serve Him in Africa, she attended the University of Nebraska and Grace Theological Seminary. On April 22, 1960, Myrtle married Robert “Bob” Overstreet, who was also called to Africa.
Myrtle and Bob were pioneer missionaries, working in an area that had never seen white people. They established a mission station in a spiritually dark and desperate area of 600 villages. The couple walked daily around the location, praying for the people who viewed these strangers with suspicion. They began launching trips into the villages with a medical team and the JESUS Film Project.
Myrtle was able to connect with women and children by creating a curriculum and teaching them literacy. Upon completion of their studies, the students received their own Bibles. Many doors and hearts opened to the gospel through Myrtle’s tireless care and teaching as she discipled the new believers, many of whom became leaders in the growing church of her host country.
In 2000, after over 40 years of ministry in Africa, the Overstreets retired from formal missionary service but continued to serve in various ministries in Lincoln, Neb., then later in Burnsville, Minn. After suffering a stroke in 2019, Myrtle was less able to serve but remained devoted to her husband, children, and grandchildren.
Myrtle is survived by her husband; children Becky and Randall; 8 grandchildren; and 4 great-grandchildren.
Sandra Price
November 5, 1937–April 8, 2024
Born in Ashland, Ore., Sandra gave her life to Jesus as a young girl. She attended Westmont College in Santa Barbara, Calif., where she met Roy Price. They married on August 27, 1957, and enjoyed 66 years of marriage.
Sandra served with Roy in Youth for Christ, Santa Barbara, Calif.; Williams and Portland, Ore.; Arbor Heights Community Church in Seattle, Wash.; Pittsburgh, Pa.; Wadsworth, Ohio; and the International Church in Saigon, Vietnam, which was the last pastorate before the fall of Saigon on April 30, 1975. Upon returning to the United States, they served in Louisville, Ky.; Paradise, Calif.; and Monte Vista Chapel, an independent church in Turlock, Calif., after which they retired. Sandra was a supportive, gracious, and loving pastor’s wife.
Sandra is survived by her husband; children Steve and Cindy; 4 grandchildren; and 3 great-grandchildren.
Anna Louise “Anna Lou” (Boehr) Amstutz
August 31, 1928–April 14, 2024
Anna Lou was born in Tientsin, China, and attended Grace College of the Bible (Omaha, Neb.). She received her RN degree from Bethel Deaconess School of Nursing in Newton, Kans. Anna Lou then served as the campus nurse at Fort Wayne (Ind.) Bible Institute, where she received her bachelor’s degree in missionary nursing. On June 12, 1954, she married Jonathan Amstutz in Omaha, Neb.
Alongside her husband, Anna Lou served with the C&MA as a missionary and nurse in India for 23 years in Maharashtra State. Their last mission post was at Maharashtra Bible College, Bodwad, Maharashtra (1968–1977). Upon their return from missionary service in 1977, Anna Lou was a registered nurse with Adams County Home Health (1978–1996).
Anna Lou was predeceased by her husband; she is survived by children Tim, Steve, and Priscilla; 6 grandchildren; and 3 great-grandchildren.
Richard Charles Kropp
May 2, 1941–April 16, 2024
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., Richard received Christ at a Billy Graham Crusade at Madison Square Garden. After hearing about the five missionaries martyred in Ecuador, Richard dedicated his life to missions, hoping to take the place of one of them. He attended Nyack (N.Y.) College (1959–1964), where he received a BS in missions and a BA in philosophy. He earned his MDiv in theology from Fuller Theological Seminary (1964–1967). While at Nyack, he met Janice Taylor, who was also called to missions. They married on June 29, 1963.
During 46 years of C&MA ministry, Richard served a church in Glendora, Calif. (1968–1969), and was a missionary to Japan (1969–2005; 2008–2013). There he taught at the Bible College in Hiroshima and was involved in church planting in Kyoto, Hiroshima, and the Greater Tokyo area. In Kyoto, Richard and Janice launched the Shalom Center, a new initiative that taught English and the Bible and offered other varied ministries, including cooking classes and youth meetings. With only one C&MA church in the city of one million, Richard established a second Alliance congregation. He later served as field director and was a church leader in Kotesashi, Yachio City, and Sengendai, where he and Janice launched the Sharon Rose Café and Gallery. Richard is survived by his wife; children Karl, Todd, Alan, and Donn; and 15 grandchildren.
Adapted by Alliance Life staff from an article written by C. C. Olenhouse, originally published in October 1950 in The Pioneer, a publication produced by the Indonesia Mission of the C&MA.
Years ago, a missionary went up the Kayan River here in west Borneo where he found Dayak people bound by tribal customs, animist worship, and sin. He faithfully preached the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, but no heart seemed open to receive the message. Some openly opposed the entering of missionaries, and the door seemed closed. No doubt the missionary felt discouraged; no doubt he spent much time in earnest prayer.
Over 10 years have elapsed, and this writer, with Brother Marion Allen, has just made a trip to that same area up the Kayan River. Arriving at a trading center called Nanga Mau, we held two services. A few Dayak people were there, and on the second day, one man came to us and said, “I am one of you.” I asked what he meant and again he said, “I am one of you; I have entered also.” Then I knew he was trying to explain that he believed in Christ as his Savior. Praise the Lord; how our hearts rejoiced! We asked how he had heard the story, and it was then he told of the missionary who had come years before. He said that at the time he had believed but had not told anyone. He had been wanting to hear more ever since. Needless to say, we jumped at his invitation to speak in his village. During the conversation, we learned that just recently he had become chief over 12 villages, a total population of almost 2,000. As we went up the Inger River, he sat on the bow of our boat watching out for rocks and logs. We could not help noticing the expression of joy on his face. The good seed had been planted in his heart, and it had begun to sprout.
There was plenty of excitement in the village when we arrived. The women were pounding away at the rice, getting it husked early; the children were scooting around under the longhouse catching the hens and chicks for the night; pigs were being fed, wood was being chopped; everyone was in a hurry. Soon there were streams of them coming up from quick baths at the river, and the evening meal was away with in short order. We treated the sick according to their various pains and symptoms, and by that time the crowd was gathering.
At first, many stood off at a distance, but later they all drew in closer in order to hear the old, old story more clearly. We watched the chief as we talked and often noticed that he smiled and nodded his head as he heard again some familiar part of the message that had so impressed him years before. My, what hungry hearts we found! Before we left, they begged us to return soon and teach them, even promising to build a house for a missionary or native pastor who would settle among them and tell them more. The Lord certainly worked a miracle to open that closed area. You must have been praying, friends! Things like that do not just happen. Prayer changes things still; so, let’s keep on. The good seed was planted before; it was watered with the missionary’s prayers and your prayers; and now God gives the increase.
Brother Allen has now gone back to Kayan to occupy that area, so continue in prayer. We believe that soon you will be hearing that the seed has grown up and started bearing fruit for the Lord of the Harvest.
Editor’s note: According to the Encyclopaedia Britannica, the Dayak people have steadily adopted Christianity since the mid-twentieth century and are now majority Christian.
You can receive a tax deduction and make a gift that pays you income for life! Like other Alliance donors, Andrew found that a Charitable Gift Annuity (CGA) is a great way to make a gift and get additional annual income. A CGA pays you income for life at rates between 5% and 10%, based on your age, and a portion of your payouts are often tax-free. Any remaining gift amount will continue your legacy with The Alliance. You can make your CGA gift with cash or non-cash assets like stocks and mutual funds.
If you are relatively healthy and expect to live well into your 80’s or 90’s, a deferred CGA might be a great option. A deferred CGA enables you to decide when future payouts will start, possibly when you anticipate a need for additional income. Orchard Alliance, 8595 Explorer Drive, Colorado Springs, CO 80920 / 866.824.4172 / orchardalliance.org Charitable Gift Annuities (CGAs) are issued by Orchard Alliance (Orchard) or as agent for The Christian and Missionary Alliance (the C&MA). Orchard or the C&MA, respectively, is responsible for and liable for the CGAs that are issued in their individual names. The Christian and Missionary Alliance issues annuities in the states of NY, NJ and CA.
For more information, scan the QR code, call us at 866.824.4172, or email service@orchardalliance.org.
This is what the Kingdom of God is like—a man scatters seed generously in a field. As time passes, God works underground to make the seed sprout and grow. When lives are transformed by Christ, the harvest comes bearing fruit, with enough seeds to plant the next field. God’s people sow, pray over, and harvest empty, neglected fields and then move on to others, and others—until there are no more empty fields. Until all the world hears and our King returns.
