Participants:
Series Code: JFAN
Program Code: JFAN000083S
|
00:01 (inspirational music)
00:22 - Hello and welcome to Jesus for Asia Now, 00:24 I'm Natalie Wood and my husband Jon is here with me 00:26 as we explore a little more of Bangladesh today. 00:30 Hello, love. 00:31 - Hi, darling. 00:33 - You know we wanna talk some more about Bangladesh. 00:36 And we wanna talk about opportunities. 00:38 - Yes. 00:39 - So let's start with the story. 00:41 What is the story for us today? 00:43 - [Jon] Yeah, so we're going into a new country, for us. 00:46 New methods and new approach. 00:49 - Right and you know Mrs. White says every true believer 00:52 is born into the kingdom of God as a missionary. 00:54 - Correct. - So every believer 00:56 is a missionary, no matter where they are. 00:58 Wherever God plants you, 01:00 that's where you're to be a missionary. 01:01 - Yes. - And we don't 01:02 think about it that way. 01:03 So many times we think about, as going some far distant 01:06 jungle with a pith helmet and all that stuff, 01:09 but we're to be missionaries. - We're the missionaries 01:12 and they are the converts. 01:13 - Right. 01:14 - [Jon] Often we don't 01:15 give them the identity of being missionaries also. 01:17 - [Natalie] Right. 01:18 - And, but that's very important to do. 01:20 - Right. 01:21 So, today we're gonna talk about our friends, 01:23 the Filipino missionaries, 01:25 and they went to Bangladesh. 01:26 - Yes. 01:27 We were able to sponsor them. 01:28 We saw them, they went one year and we liked what they did, 01:31 so we sent them back mainly to drill Wells for us 01:35 because we have some funding for Wells. 01:38 We had some funding for Wells and we saw such a need there 01:45 and the Wells were so inexpensive that we drilled 13 Wells. 01:47 - Right, and that's-- - while we were there 01:49 that months. 01:50 - And there was such great need for that. 01:52 - Yes. 01:53 - And so we wanted to enable them to go back, 01:55 but they didn't just go to drill Wells. 01:58 - [Jon] Right. 01:59 - They also went to do medical missionary work. 02:01 - Yeah their main focus actually was medical missionary work 02:03 because they're nurses and while they were there 02:06 the first time they discovered this opportunity 02:09 and need for Wells. 02:10 And so we said let's drill these Wells 02:13 as you do this medical missionary work in 02:15 the village that the well is being drilled in. 02:18 The main focus was the medical missionary work, 02:20 but they were able to do the ministry for the people in 02:22 the villages and then leave a gift that would last 02:25 the rest of their lives. 02:27 - Right. 02:28 Well we have a video about the medical missionary work, 02:30 so let's start there. 02:31 - Okay. 02:32 (zealous music) 02:49 - [Lyndielle] Doing cross cultural mission 02:51 has really made me grow, 02:53 and also I can see how I can be a great blessing 02:56 to those who are in need here. 02:59 - [Nell] I decided to go to foreign missions 03:01 because I wanted to know about, 03:04 how God deals with different cultures. 03:09 - [Lyndielle] This is already my third time here 03:10 in Bangladesh and we've been visiting roughly 03:14 10 to 12 villages here 03:16 and we do basic healthcare. 03:19 And we also do health education to the people 03:23 and as much as possible, 03:24 we also help in coordinating with a deep well projects. 03:29 (soft music) 03:30 - [Nell] When you went to the villages, 03:32 I saw that the people are thrilled to see our new faces 03:35 like foreigners 03:37 and I am also very thrilled of their reaction. 03:43 I saw that they were happy 03:44 seeing new people from different land. 03:47 (ambient music) 03:48 - [Lyndielle] They were really grateful about 03:51 the medical service, 03:53 about living with them 03:56 and even just playing with the children. 03:59 They were so happy. 04:01 But at the same time I can see their daily grind 04:05 and they are really in dire need of health care here. 04:10 (zealous music) 04:12 - So most of the people here, 04:13 they don't really go to the hospital 04:17 for them to have their health checked. 04:19 And for the many here, 04:22 it wasn't their first time to have 04:25 their health being attended. 04:27 So I would really invite any medical personnel from all over 04:33 the world to give their time here 04:36 and do their service to the people. 04:40 - [Nell] As a nurse, I can't really say that 04:42 I can offer a lot, 04:44 but I believe that little is much when God is in it. 04:48 But here I want to give all, 04:50 like teach them everything I know, especially about health. 04:54 (zealous music) 04:56 - I'm not really sure 04:57 if I made a difference here, 04:59 but I know that I have given my heart in what I do. 05:04 I have given my time, my resources, 05:06 and I know that God will take care of the results. 05:11 - [Lyndielle] Despite the economical wretchedness 05:13 of the country. 05:14 I still have so much hope for Bangladeshi people that 05:18 their concerns will be made known 05:20 and will be heard in the world. 05:22 (ambient music) 05:54 - That's really awesome. 05:56 - I know. 05:57 - [Natalie] They went and they shared, 05:58 and they were showing them how to wash their hands properly. 06:01 They looked like they were giving them gifts of soap 06:03 and things like that. 06:04 So not just going 06:05 and checking them out and physically helping what their, 06:09 you know, medical issues, 06:11 but also trying to help them to understand cleanliness 06:13 and ways to be healthier as well. 06:16 - Yes. 06:17 The training was a big part of it. 06:19 - [Natalie] Right. 06:20 - Yeah, but they were so professional. 06:22 - Right. 06:22 - In the work that they did. 06:23 - Right, and you could tell, 06:25 they cared about the people, 06:27 but not only that, 06:28 the people could tell that they were being cared for. 06:29 - Yeah, and the people really appreciate, 06:31 you could see that in their faces, 06:33 how much they appreciated the time that 06:35 they invested in the people. 06:37 - [Natalie] So while they were in the process, 06:38 they were traveling from village to village doing 06:40 the health ministry and training 06:43 and then they would do the well. 06:45 And so there was the whole combination at the same time, 06:48 but yet they discovered something about these churches 06:51 because they held some of their health trainings 06:53 at church locations. 06:55 - Yes 06:56 - And what did they discover? 06:58 - Well, I don't know how to say this, 06:59 but they found a lot of churches that 07:02 had been built 20 years ago that were no longer functioning. 07:07 They were empty. 07:09 - So it wasn't because the church was broken down 07:11 or something? 07:12 - No, the churches are in good shape. 07:13 They're well-built. 07:15 But the story is that after the churches were built, 07:18 the Bible worker pastors were funded 07:22 for a certain amount of time and then that funding, 07:25 none of that project finished. 07:27 And the local church couldn't absorb the budget 07:32 for the pastors to continue working there. 07:35 And so the churches eventually all the... 07:38 Well, you'll find out the story, 07:40 but those church members went back to no longer meeting 07:46 or meeting another other denominations. 07:49 - Right. 07:51 We've got some video talking about that coming up. 07:53 - Yeah. 07:54 - We wanna start with a church that did have people at it. 07:57 - [Jon] Right. 07:58 - And so let's watch that video now. 08:00 - [Jon] Yeah. 08:01 (soft music) 08:24 - This church is established in Chophra village. 08:28 (speaking in foreign language) 08:31 And Bangladesh. 08:33 Today we are very happy that 08:34 you have come to visit our church. 08:37 We can see the church member, 08:39 we can see the children. 08:41 And this church is started in 2000. 08:44 Nowadays there are many members 08:48 but it is matter of sorrow that 08:50 nowadays there is no any regular pastor, 08:54 we are still praying to God that 08:58 if there is one regular pastor 09:01 then he may take care of all the children, 09:04 all the community people 09:06 and hope God will listen our prayer. 09:09 We don't know when this is answer will come, 09:12 but we believe and you have seen this situation. 09:16 There are many members, 09:18 but because of, 09:19 you know they're taking care of us nowadays kindly. 09:22 Not all these people are coming in that church, 09:24 but if we believe that if one pastor come 09:27 and everyday care and everyday talk with us about 09:32 the message of God, hope that all 09:35 the members will be regular. 09:36 Now they are not regular, 09:38 they are coming sabbath day only few 09:42 because of you know that there is no any regular pastor. 09:49 - I'm very happy when I saw that most of 09:53 the community people came here to learn 09:58 about health messages as well as our religion, 10:04 as well as the gospel preaching. 10:07 They hear you eagerly. 10:11 We saw in their face they have thirsty 10:15 to learn about true God. 10:19 And I observed here that a majority community people 10:26 came here to listen and I'm very hopeful about this church. 10:33 - I am also the student of SDA church. 10:37 I have studied now I am grown up 10:38 and now I am serving to God. 10:41 But I'm praying to God always, 10:44 especially for the children so that 10:46 they can be also like me 10:48 and they can bear the witness of God among 10:53 the country among the world. 10:56 I believe that if we get one regular pastor 11:00 that everything will be changed. 11:02 (zealous music) 11:20 - So the church was full and it was full 11:22 because they were doing the medical mission that day there. 11:25 - Right. 11:26 That's how many people could come to the churches. 11:27 And in the past when they had regular services, 11:31 that's how many people used to attend. 11:33 But now the church doesn't even open on Sabbath. 11:36 - Right. 11:38 And so during this medical mission they discovered this need 11:40 and they saw how eagerly the people were listening 11:45 and all of that, so-- 11:46 - [Jon] Willing to learn now what we discovered, 11:48 there are 24 of these churches and out of the 24, 11:52 only two them are functioning. 11:54 - Wow. 11:55 - [Jon] So there's 22 churches that have, 11:59 I mean, nothing's happening there. 12:00 - Right. 12:01 - [Jon] Which is, you know, that's how, 12:03 at the very beginning of Jesus for Asia, 12:05 we found churches that were closed in South India. 12:08 - Right. 12:09 And so we went down there and we were thinking, 12:11 man, it's better to revive a church, 12:13 start a church rather than having to build one. 12:16 - Right. 12:16 The building is already there. 12:17 - But it's not functioning, 12:18 so it's all locked up. 12:19 And so it just come in and do revival, plant. 12:24 And this is the secret of our success in South India 12:28 is that we not only did the revival, 12:30 but we made sure a Bible worker was at every church. 12:33 So that they continue to grow, 12:36 and now 12 years later, we go back there 12:38 and we see it just. 12:39 - Right and they have planted new churches 12:42 and they are wanting to build new churches 12:45 and stuff like that - And schools and everything. 12:46 You know, it's just a, you can see the life, 12:49 the stories that come out of that place are amazing 12:52 and we love it. 12:53 And so I'm excited about this. 12:55 I wanna get a team together of like 2020 team 12:59 evangelistic crusade and go and start something 13:02 again in this area. 13:04 I've never visited there myself, but I wanna do this. 13:07 - Yeah. 13:08 And then they discovered that their translator Biphul. 13:12 In his home village, his church was also closed 13:14 and he had a great desire to open that church. 13:17 - Yes. 13:18 - And so they asked if we would hire him as a Bible worker. 13:22 And so we've been able to do that. 13:24 And once he found out that 13:26 we would hire him as a Bible worker, 13:27 he was very joyful and he went and opened his church. 13:32 - Yeah, now this church needs a lot of work, 13:34 but at least he opened it, 13:36 and he's having regular meetings there every week. 13:39 - Right. 13:40 - [Jon] And now this guy had a good job. 13:41 He was an accountant in a school 13:44 and he was doing well supporting his family and everything, 13:47 but his heart was really into the ministry. 13:49 - Right. 13:50 (piano music) 14:14 - [Natalie] In Biphul's district there are 24 churches, 14:17 two of which were still open 14:18 because they have a pastor 14:20 or the district pastor is near the church. 14:24 15 years after it was closed, 14:26 on this Friday, Biphul with the help of a visitor 14:29 and local church member cleaned 14:31 the church in preparation for the Sabbath. 14:34 (zealous music) 14:42 After the church closed 15 years ago and their pastor left, 14:45 church attendance started decreasing 14:47 and then later on the conference just close the church, 14:51 Biphul's family started worshiping in their home 14:54 with no one to teach them, 14:55 their spiritual growth was very slow. 14:58 (soft music) 15:05 Now that Jesus for Asia hired Biphul 15:07 as a full time Bible worker, 15:09 this church will be able to grow 15:11 and the gospel will be given to the people. 15:14 This is the third church that is now open out of 15:17 the 24 churches in their district. 15:19 (soft music) 15:27 One of the most effective ways to reach 15:29 the community is by providing free education. 15:33 There is a three room school building 15:34 just beside this church. 15:37 60 students were attending this school. 15:39 Parents of the students attended church on Sabbath 15:42 and then when the church closed 15 years ago, 15:45 the school was also closed. 15:47 (ambient music) 16:01 Right now Biphul is going from house to house 16:04 to give Bible studies and invite old SDA members 16:07 to attend on Sabbath. 16:09 While waiting for the fund 16:11 for rebuilding of the school facility, 16:13 the church is beginning again. 16:15 (zealous music) 16:27 - It's so wonderful to see this church open again 16:29 and to see that young man that has such a burden 16:32 for his community to know Jesus. 16:34 - Right. 16:35 And what an exciting opportunity it is 16:38 to help in this way 16:40 and also to think about when we can reopen the school. 16:43 - Yes. - What a blessing 16:44 that will be. 16:46 - Yeah, that school is gonna be a huge opportunity 16:48 to make a difference in that 16:50 community with those kids going there. 16:52 But we need more than just an opened school. 16:55 We need to have a plan where we can bring information, 16:58 bring the knowledge of the gospel, 17:00 bringing a knowledge of Christ 17:02 and health and all the other different things that 17:04 a normal child needs 17:07 to make sure that those things are being taught in there. 17:10 - Right. 17:11 - To make a lasting impact, 17:12 not only for the church, but for the community, 17:14 for the nation. 17:15 - Right. 17:16 So we will need more work? 17:17 - Yeah. 17:19 And involvement from other countries as well. 17:23 That have the opportunities to low, you know, 17:25 the education to know. 17:27 Cause these are really poor people, 17:29 they don't have much education, 17:31 have much access to decent education. 17:34 - Right. 17:35 - So the school itself has pretty run down. 17:38 So he was giving me a list of needs 17:40 of how to get the school back together, 17:43 and one of the main first needs is a motorcycle, 17:46 so they can go to town and get provisions for the school. 17:49 They also need things like desks 17:52 need to repaint the school and fix it back up, 17:55 clean it, you know, do some repairs and things like that. 17:58 They also would like to provide a lunch 18:01 because a lot of these families are so poor, 18:03 the kids don't get enough food, 18:05 and so they struggle with learning throughout the day. 18:07 - Right. 18:08 And we've seen that in India 18:10 and we've seen it in the Philippines. 18:12 What a huge part food can play. 18:15 Malnutrition plays a huge negative detriment to education, 18:22 - Yeah, especially the kids that menorah when they, 18:24 you know, falling asleep during school just because they, 18:28 didn't get breakfast and they don't have lunch-- 18:31 - And always sick and at least one child every, 18:35 dying every year. 18:36 - Yeah, it's sobering, 18:39 but it's such an opportunity to make a difference. 18:41 - Right, and we know it will make a difference. 18:43 - Absolutely. 18:45 And so we're excited about this school opening 18:47 all these things to build that church back up into 18:49 the knowledge of our Lord and savior Jesus Christ. 18:51 And by God's grace, 18:53 soon as soon as the funds come in to do this work. 18:56 - [Natalie] Right. 18:58 Well we did see another church that is not able 19:01 to be opened yet and this one needs more repair. 19:04 - Yeah, and with this one, 19:05 we got to meet the original pastor of the church. 19:08 - Okay. 19:09 - [Jon] Yes. 19:10 (zealous music) 19:11 (water pouring) 19:34 - Somebody used this church for drying rice and others. 19:43 (speaking in foreign language) 21:14 - [Biphul] There is another church, Baptist church. 21:18 They'll go Baptist church on Sunday. 21:25 (soft music) 21:31 They have a pastor, church pastor, 21:34 his name is Abinash Debsharma. 21:38 Before, 15 years ago, the pastor worked here, 21:45 5 years work here. 21:48 (speaking foreign language) 22:18 (ambient music) 22:22 - That's really sad. 22:23 You know, it breaks my heart to think of these people that 22:26 are uneducated and they don't have a pastor 22:29 and he's now working full time trying to support his family. 22:33 And so he's not nourishing the church members. 22:35 And so they're falling away. 22:37 Some went back to their Hindu religion 22:39 and some went and became Baptist 22:41 because at least there they have a church. 22:43 And so that longing for church fellowship 22:47 is very clear. 22:50 - [Jon] Yeah. 22:51 - This is so sad for me because I did not worship regular, 22:58 I want to regular worship and continue to worship. 23:05 I want all of our village members come worship day 23:11 and we will get worship together. 23:16 My wish, I want again, to open our church. 23:23 - I think one thing that it's hard to, 23:25 for us to grasp is that in some of these countries, 23:28 the level of poverty that exists, 23:32 I know in Cambodia, 23:33 I don't know what the situation here in Bangladesh is, 23:36 but it's probably not as good as in Cambodia. 23:38 The average tithe per member 23:40 per active member 23:42 in Cambodia - In Cambodia 23:43 - Is $34 a year. 23:45 - Yeah. 23:47 - And so with, I mean, that's less than $3 a month. 23:52 - Yeah, so you think about how, 23:55 why doesn't the Bangladesh mission 23:57 just support these pastors and make up the difference, 24:00 but they're probably not getting 24:02 the level of tithes that would be needed. 24:04 - Exactly. 24:05 And so this is a huge challenge. 24:07 And so this is an area that there's an opportunity 24:11 to upgrade the village by education, 24:15 by faith in God, 24:17 and teaching those really fundamental things. 24:20 A lot of people say, 24:22 why don't you just help the people? 24:25 You know, by some humanitarian kinda work. 24:28 But we found that bringing the gospel 24:31 is the best humanitarian work you can do. 24:34 - Right. 24:35 And they went there with the medical mission 24:37 and they're planning to go back 24:39 with medical mission once they can. 24:42 And we gave them Wells in many of these areas. 24:44 So we're doing the humanitarian as well, 24:47 but it's to open the doors and to help people 24:49 to remember that this is from the God that loves you. 24:53 - Right. 24:54 Because in many religions 24:55 it's the religion or misconception of God that 24:58 really holds people back from gaining an education, 25:02 from making changes in their lives 25:04 that will benefit their society and themselves 25:07 and their families. 25:08 As well as even the permission to do such a thing. 25:11 There's some religions that you cannot change. 25:14 You have to, the definition of a, 25:17 if you want to move on to the next afterlife, 25:20 you just have to accept all the suffering 25:21 that comes your way as as a good, you know, just accept it. 25:26 And so there's no permission allowance to change 25:29 and upgrade your family and your life 25:32 because it's built into the religion. 25:35 - Right. 25:36 - [Jon] So when you give somebody Jesus Christ 25:38 who values you, 25:41 and says, my dream, the dream of God, 25:44 the dream of Jesus is to see you become 25:47 the best you you can be. 25:50 That gives God joy, 25:52 that all of a sudden it's like, 25:53 Oh, you mean I can make better choices? 25:57 You mean I can-- - Different choices. 25:59 - Get an education? 26:00 I can, you know, it opens a whole world 26:03 of opportunity to people. 26:05 - Right. 26:06 So we're looking forward to giving them this opportunity. 26:08 - Yes, absolutely. 26:09 - We are praying and hoping that 26:12 the Lord will enable us to open 26:14 the rest of those churches and to be a part of that 26:17 uplifting and up building of the church in Bangladesh. 26:20 - Absolutely. 26:21 As well as opening that school again. 26:22 - Right. 26:23 - [Jon] One of the young people that's joined 26:26 JFA organization is she's getting her masters in education. 26:32 - Right. 26:33 - And so this has been a longterm prayer of ours, 26:36 over 10 years, praying for somebody with focus 26:41 and a heart for education to help build up 26:43 these small rural communities that need it. 26:48 And that's been her passion. 26:50 Actually the same time I was praying for this, 26:54 she was given a dream and moved her towards this direction. 26:58 So God's doing miracles for these people. 27:01 - Right. 27:03 Well, I'm looking forward to hearing 27:04 the results that come from these things. 27:06 - Yeah, I'm looking forward to just getting involved 27:09 and I wanna go visit there. 27:09 I wanna go meet those people. 27:11 I wanna see the churches. 27:12 I wanna see God's kingdom grow. 27:16 - Right. 27:18 A bunch of Bangladeshis in heaven would be wonderful. 27:21 (laughs) 27:23 - They'll all have to speak English though. 27:24 - No they won't, 27:26 we'll learn whatever language God wants us to learn 27:28 because He can untie our tongues. 27:30 - Yeah, that would be a miracle. 27:31 (laughs) 27:31 - [Natalie] Yes it will. 27:33 Well thank you for joining us today 27:35 to learn more about Bangladesh and it's needs 27:37 and opportunities. 27:39 Please, pray for these people, 27:41 these dear people in Bangladesh. 27:43 And also, if you would like to help financially 27:46 you can contact us at Jesus for Asia, 27:49 PO Box 1221 27:51 Collegedale, TN37315. 27:54 Call us at 423 413-7321 27:59 or visit our website at jesus4asia.org. 28:03 May God richly bless you, 28:04 until we see you next time on Jesus for Asia Now. |
Revised 2020-05-18