Page 5 - BKI 15 Years 2003-2018

the remotest part of the earth.” From beginning to end,
it was evangelism. Would you expect anything less from
the One who came “to seek and to save that which was
lost?” Would He expect anything less of those who claim
to follow Him?

Les Lofquist writes, “But we have been so preoccupied with
defi ning the Gospel (which is important) and defending the
Gospel (which is also important) that we have neglected
declaring the Gospel (which is tragic). Jerry Smith adds,
“Evangelism must not be confused with church growth,
since the entire focus and motivation is diff erent. It may
result in church growth, but that is not the focus… As the
saying goes, many people are talking about evangelism
but not many are doing it.”
Pastor Tom being finger printed by a Russian
Thankfully, our Lord Jesus Christ left the comfort of heaven
to die on a cross for the souls of men. George Whitefi eld FSB Agent in Teely
and John Wesley followed the example of the Lord and left
the comfort of their own churches to proclaim the gospel to those who were perishing. J.C. Ryle writes:

For the truth’s sake, Whitefi eld and Wesley, in the eighteenth century, denounced the mere barren moral
preaching of the clergy of their day, and went out into the highways and byways to save souls, well
knowing that they would be cast out from the communion of their church. And who shall dare to say
that they were wrong?

Beginning with our very fi rst year, the Lord called us
out of our comfort zone to proclaim the gospel in the
Russian Federation. In Siberia, we slept on the ground,
on cold fl oors, on islands for our safety, on soiled
mattresses in fi shing cabins and in abandoned houses.
Three times we were personally attacked. We were
arrested, interrogated, fi nger printed and fi ned by the
local militia and the Russian FSB. However, we paid
little price compared to what the Lord did for the
souls of men. Was it worth it? With no church or gospel
witness, village after village and their students, too many
to offi cially count, heard the gospel fi rst hand leading
to three churches being established. And during twelve
years of ministry in the Republic of Tuva, it gained the
distinction of having the most evangelicals per capita of
all the states and districts of Russia.
Navajo friends on the Reservation

In October of last year, the Lord by His grace, opened
the door for us to share the gospel face to face at the 106th Northern Navajo Nation Fair. Eleven hundred Navajos heard
or received the gospel in print, among a people where less than 10% know the Lord as their Savior. In September of this
year, we were at the Navajo Nation Fair in Window Rock where nearly 1500 people heard or received the gospel in print.
This year alone, we mailed over 2500 follow-up letters, again explaining their need to turn to Christ for salvation.

At the end of our fi fteenth year, we pray that our God-given conviction and zeal for the lost would not give way to the
pursuit of personal comfort and success. We pray the Lord will continue to open doors and entrust us with the treasure
of the gospel. We pray the same for His church and missions all across the world. Regardless of what lies ahead we know
for certain, “Great is Thy faithfulness!”

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