Three Million GLOW Tracts Distributed in Bolivia

Each year a GLOW mission trip takes place in a different country, but the goal is the same: to spread God’s message to the people living there. This year’s GLOW mission trip took place in Bolivia on March 17-25. These mission trips, which began in 2015, focus on handing out GLOW tracts; normally about one million tracts are given out each year. This trip was the largest ever, with a total of three million tracts distributed throughout Bolivia.

The team consisted of 33 missionaries, mostly from the U.S. but also from a number of different South American countries, including Chile, Colombia, Brazil, Peru, and Uruguay. They stayed at Bolivia Adventist University in Cochabamba, Bolivia, where the Bolivian Union is also located.

“Our missionary team focused on giving out 250,000 tracts while we were there, and we did it in Cochabamba,” explained Nelson Ernst, director of GLOW ministries for the Central California Conference. “The other 2.75 million tracts were given out at the same time by the rest of the church members who were dispersed throughout Bolivia.” The tracts given out focused on topics such as the Sabbath, what happens when you die, and how the Virgin Mary points to Jesus.

“We had a lot of great testimonies from this,” added Ernst. One of the most exciting of these was a group of men who began an altercation in one of the markets where the team was working. The team was moved out of the area for safety reasons. “But one of our team, who is in his fifties and is very outgoing, felt like he needed to go to those people and give them tracts.” At first the group was hostile, but when they realized what he was trying to do they changed their tone and were receptive, even asking for more literature.

Bolivia was one of the most responsive countries visited so far. People often read the GLOW tracts on the streets, and even asked for more. There was also a strong emphasis on prayer during this trip. Pastor Jerry Page, who was conference president when GLOW was started, gave devotional talks on prayer and encouraged prayer walking.

This mission trip is an annual event that moves to different locations each year. The next mission trip is planned for Japan from March 22-30 of next year.

By Brennan Hallock

Ireland Mission Trip Brings Healing to the Community

The Central California Conference has become more connected with Ireland and the Adventist churches located there in a few different ways. One of these was a mission trip that took place April 12-22. This mission trip, which had a profound impact on the Irish communities in several cities, was led by Pastor Carlos Garcia.

Pastor Garcia was put in contact with the pastors in the cities where they were scheduled to visit. These cities included Tralee, Cork, Limerick, and Galway, all in the southwestern part of Ireland.

“I asked them the basic question on a Zoom meeting,” said Pastor Garcia. “I asked, ‘What is it you folks are needing and wanting as we go preach?’ To our surprise, they requested that we come and help them with the topics of spiritual healing, emotional healing, and mental healing because of all the post-pandemic situations they’ve been having there in their country.” This caught his attention and was a challenge because the churches were not looking for someone to teach about doctrines.

A group was put together to address this need. This group included Robert Wilcox, Kelly Wilcox, Lisa Placensia, Norma Villareal, Kay Pavdin, and Carlos Garcia. This team of six shared the pulpits in the Irish churches. The response was positive, and the attendance was amazing. This was partly due to the Irish churches implementing an impact mission project prior to the team arriving. The Irish churches spent the Sunday before the meetings distributing clothes and books to the local community, inviting them to the meetings. “We met several people attending the meetings just by doing the initial contact,” said Pastor Garcia. “Never minimize or take for granted the distribution of literature. There were immediate results. In fact, we met a pastor’s wife who’d left the church and came back because of this.”

Pastor Garcia said he learned a lot through this mission trip. He added that the need to pray for all the displaced families in Ireland has made it a big mission field. Those who are stuck there include many refugees from African countries and Ukraine. “They might have to make it their permanent home,” he said. “Those people from around the world need our prayers.”

By Brennan Hallock