AUGUST 2022
LFTL.AG.ORG | MEN.AG.ORG
Light for the Lost provides evangelistic resources for missionaries and missionary partners through five platforms: print, audio, video, internet, and technologies.
WORLD EVANGELISM BY ALL MEANS NECESSARY!
Words
FROM RICK eaders can be inspirational. But people ultimately CHOOSE whether they will follow or take action.
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In 1962, when American president John F. Kennedy declared America would put men on the moon, he did not hypnotize the American people. They didn’t get behind their president reluctantly or
blindly. Rather, they responded to his dream because they also wanted to see the goal accomplished. However, in 1962, the technologies to go to the moon were not yet invented. They didn’t exist. Kennedy spoke in faith that the American people would accomplish the goal. The rest is history. When the Lord declared in
Mark 13:10 that His story will be told in every nation His disciples CHOSE to follow, obey, and GO. The mission is not yet finished, however. Billions still need to hear. Thankfully, we don’t have to wait for the necessary tools and resources to be invented. We have everything we need! We have the Living Word of God, the Holy Spirit, and we have the wealth of heaven at our disposal. Also, we have technologies of every kind available to us. This issue of 360 Spotlight is about two special resources: internet technologies and apps. Because of your faithful giving and support, we can utilize these resources for rapid evangelism in places that are extremely gospel resistant. Thank you for choosing to obey the Lord’s command and helping LFTL take His message to the nations! Rick Allen National Director Men’s Ministries/LFTL
n a gospel-resistant country, a group of Christians meets secretly in an apartment for prayer, fellowship, and Bible study.
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But there are no Bibles. If these believers were caught with a physical Bible in the room, or on the way to the meeting, they would face terrible consequences—public abuse, loss of their job, criminal charges, or even divorce by unbelieving spouses. But even without Bibles in the room, they can STILL study God’s Word! How? A simple online Bible study app “platform” developed by Assemblies of God missionaries and funded by LFTL. The platform is called Pattern, and it enables missionaries to create special Bible apps and programs used by churches described above.
Secret believers like these Iranian men utilize Pattern apps for Bible study and evangelism. Using their cell phones and tablets, underground believers can download these specialized apps and use them to study Scripture and Bible lessons. This is how there can be a “Bible study without a Bible” in the room. If the door opens and a non-believer walks in, everyone can turn off their phones. If it’s the police performing a raid, they can delete their apps quickly by touching a special button. Pattern developers Jeff and Pam Gregory, and Nolan and Kami Sanders, (all missionaries) use LFTL funds to create Bible study apps for churches in a variety of languages (English, Arabic, and Farsi, for example). Also, they demonstrate Pattern for underground church leaders. Word about Pattern is spreading rapidly!
LFTL funds help Pattern developers provide secure, specialized Bible study apps for underground churches.
When you give to support LFTL this is just one of the many ways you help resource
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Continued from previous page missionaries and missions partnerships for evangelism! Thank you for your support! See page 4 for a testimony from Jeff and Pam Gregory that illustrates how Pattern helps reach and disciple people in gospel-resistant cultures. Dan Kersten is Director of Communications and Development for LFTL and Men’s Ministries. He was a ‘missions journalist’ from 2004 to 2018. Email Dan at dkersten@ag.org or call 417.862.2781 ext. 4174. He would love to hear from you. 417.862.2781 ext. 4171
Amazing tech! People in atheistic nations also learn about Christ through Pattern apps.
The following testimony comes from missionary Jeff Gregory who works with believers in gospel-resistant countries to connect them to evangelism and discipleship resources via internet technologies and apps. “In a country extremely hostile to the gospel, Lydia* has been faithfully sharing the faith and life she discovered in Jesus. Through her, dozens of people have started following Jesus and meeting in secret home churches. Using Pattern apps, Lydia is now able to teach Bible studies and Scripture to these groups. “One group is especially careful, as they are under police surveillance. Cautious about carrying a physical Bible to meetings, discipleship is difficult! The
apps they use contain many different Bible studies. “Each one contains a scripture, questions, and a guide to direct the group through a gathering. One house church member exports the PDF, shrinks the size of the page, prints it, folds it up into a small shape, and then discretely carries it into the meeting. Later when he unfolds it, the believers can have a guide to help them, the scripture text, and the encouragement to keep sharing Christ with others.” *name changed
NOLAN AND KAMI SANDERS
JEFF AND PAM GREGORY
AG Missionaries Pattern Developers
AG Missionaries Pattern Developers
“We couldn’t be more grateful for how LFTL has repeatedly empowered us with the funds needed to seize the opportunity to use cutting edge technology in cutting the frontier of the never reached places! “The incredible need of the billions without Christ still stirs us and we are willing to do whatever it takes to see them reached. With printing difficult, expensive, and illegal [in many countries] we looked to the ‘paper in their pocket’—their mobile phones. “Because of these special apps, believers are being discipled to share Christ and the church is growing faster than before!”
“We are incredibly grateful to Light for the Lost for partnership on this project! “One of my missionary colleagues says, ‘Mobile technology is the most significant missiological development of the past 200 years!’ The fact that we can provide evangelism and discipleship content—securely, and in the most hostile countries on earth—is testament to the power, reach, and effectiveness of mobile technology in missions.”
PATTERN: BIBLE STUDY, EVANGELISM TOOLS FOR UNDERGROUND CHURCHES
CELEBRATE THE LIGHT 2023 ANNOUNCEMENT! In one year, we will launch Celebrate the Light 2023, a two-part media presentation highlighting LFTL partnerships with missionaries in two countries: Guatemala and Albania. The stories and visuals you’ll see in these videos will be powerful. Both nations are significant examples of how LFTL helps resource missionaries for evangelism in challenging places.
COMING NEXT MONTH…
FIRST PRIORITY MIRACLE CHALLENGE 2022 Believing for something never before seen in LFTL history. We can’t wait to share it!
FALL MEN’S EVENTS! Connect with God and with other men! Camps, conferences, retreats, missions trips.
VISIT https://men.ag.org/Events
or check the Men’s Ministries app, for your local men’s events this fall.
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417.370.6280 To receive a digital version of the LFTL© 360 Spotlight, sign up at lftl.ag.org or email request to lftl@ag.org. 360 Spotlight is the official voice of Light for the Lost, an evangelism missions focus of the Assemblies of God. National Light for the Lost Director: Rick Allen; Editor: Dan Kersten; Designer: Josh Thomassen. LFTL may be reached at 1445 N. Boonville Avenue, Springfield, MO 65802. Please feel free to visit our website: lftl.ag.org or send us an email at: lftl@ag.org. If you are a missionary or missions partner that utilizes Light for the Lost funds and would like to send us your story, please email us at lftl@ag.org.
© 2022 by Gospel Publishing House, 1445 N. Boonville Ave., Springfield, MO 65802. All rights reserved.
