Participants:
Series Code: JFAN
Program Code: JFAN000148S
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00:00 (uplifting music)
00:21 - [Natalie] Hello and welcome to Jesus For Asia Now. 00:24 I'm Natalie Wood 00:26 and my husband John is here with me today. 00:28 We are going on Part 2 00:30 of our inspiring journey 00:32 with publishing in Cambodia. 00:34 Hello, love. 00:35 - [John] Hi, darling, 00:35 how are you? 00:36 - [Natalie] I'm doing well. 00:37 - [John] Awesome. 00:38 - [Natalie] I'm looking forward 00:39 to the rest of the Rogers' journey. 00:41 - [John] That's exciting, isn't it? 00:42 To see God moving, 00:43 like He does such evident miracles. 00:45 - [John] Right. 00:46 Can you fill us 00:47 in a little bit what people might have missed 00:48 if they didn't see the previous episode? 00:50 - [John] Sure. 00:51 In the previous episode, Part 1, 00:53 we learned about the Rogers who were inspired 00:55 by the desperate need for literature in Southeast Asia 00:59 and how they had decided to go over to Cambodia. 01:02 Originally, they were going to go to Thailand, 01:03 but they ended up in Cambodia, 01:05 and how property was provided for them. 01:08 And they had to like clean out a house, 01:11 and then they had to order equipment, 01:13 and they were unsure about how it was gonna go. 01:15 But during a faith camp, 01:17 they were able to connect 01:18 with the audience over Zoom 01:21 and said that they either had the $50,000 package 01:25 that they could get 01:26 or the $150,000 package that would allow them 01:29 to print much more and like book sizes very easily. 01:33 - [Natalie] Right, and much more cost effectively. 01:35 - [John] Yeah. 01:36 And someone donated two to one matching grant 01:40 of $100,000. 01:41 And within a couple days 01:43 of that matching grant coming in, 01:45 they had the other 50,000. 01:46 So they almost immediately had $150,000. 01:51 - [Natalie] Right. 01:52 - [John] So then he went and looked at online 01:54 and found some equipment in Europe 01:57 to purchase some printing equipment. 02:00 But during shipping, 02:01 the sender and the receiver didn't realize 02:04 that there were two ports 02:07 and one port went through vie Vietnam 02:08 and two of the four containers got stuck in Vietnam. 02:12 - [Natalie] Right. 02:12 - [John] And I remember 02:14 when we were talking to him and he says, 02:15 "Well, there's only a couple days left, 02:17 only a few days left until the cutoff deadline is 02:21 and if we don't get the container by then, 02:23 then we just have to start all over, 02:25 look for new equipment." 02:27 And for some reason, 02:29 the very last day of the possibility of it being received, 02:33 it showed up in the dock. 02:35 - [Natalie] Yeah, one of them. 02:36 - [John] One of them, yes. 02:37 - [Natalie] Yes. 02:39 And the other one came through also, 02:40 although there was no cost for one of them 02:42 and nobody knew how it got there. 02:44 And the other one, 02:45 there was a little bit of- 02:47 - [John] There was a $20,000 fee for the second one. 02:49 He didn't know how he was gonna pay for it, 02:51 but for some reason, 02:52 somebody in the middle of the night messaged him and said, 02:55 "I felt impressed to donate $20,000 for shipping." 02:58 - [Natalie] Yeah. 03:00 - [John] And so these are the miracles that we saw 03:01 as the equipment was coming to his place. 03:03 Now, this first video 03:05 that we're gonna show is him talking about, 03:07 "I've got equipment coming, 03:09 where do I put it?" 03:10 - [Natalie] Right. 03:11 So let's watch that now. 03:12 - [John] Okay. 03:13 (gentle music) 03:22 - I had the equipment ordered and coming. 03:25 So now you have to have a place for the equipment. 03:28 And so I started looking at building it 03:31 and how big to build it and how to build it. 03:35 Here, they don't use wood. 03:37 They do for some houses 03:38 but most of what's done is either concrete or metal. 03:42 So I ended up going the route of a metal building. 03:48 The metal siding is actually a sandwich panel. 03:51 So that means that there's a metal sheet on the inside, 03:54 about four inches of insulation 03:57 and then a metal sheet on the outside. 03:59 And that's the siding in the walls and the roof. 04:03 The building is 12 meters by 18 meters. 04:11 It's big enough for the equipment that I wanted 04:14 with a little bit of room to grow, 04:16 as well as room to store books 04:20 'cause that's actually one of the needs, too, 04:21 is most of the missions don't have room to store books. 04:29 Just a brief look at the equipment 04:32 I have the three commercial size printers. 04:36 And I can actually have it 04:38 so that it prints all the different pages for a book, 04:40 not just like one page of just one kind. 04:44 So once I print a book block off of the printers, 04:49 usually you'd print two of them on a sheet 04:51 since it's a a half sheet, 04:53 so that would go to a paper cutter 04:56 which I have a large guillotine cutter 04:58 and you would trim it in half. 05:01 And then from there, 05:02 it would go to the perfect binder. 05:04 And you'd put it in the machine, 05:06 which clamps it, 05:07 puts glue on it, 05:09 and then takes the cover that you've printed, 05:11 and we'll laminate those covers. 05:13 And those come in, get scored, 05:16 glued together. 05:18 And then you have your book, 05:19 but it's not trimmed. 05:21 So you actually then need to trim the top, 05:23 the front and the bottom. 05:24 And for that, 05:25 we actually have a three knife trim 05:27 that has three blades for cutting books. 05:30 So you run it through that machine 05:32 and then that will go into a shrink wrapper 05:35 that will wrap it. 05:38 But if you had like a booklet, 05:39 it would come off the printer, 05:41 and then it would've to be folded. 05:44 So we have a paper folder 05:45 that can fold it down into eight-page signature. 05:49 So then you take those 05:51 and you can put those onto the machine 05:53 that I have for saddle stitching, 05:55 and it will staple them. 05:57 And then those need to be trimmed as well 05:59 through the three knife trim. 06:04 With these current printers, 06:06 with kind of rough estimates, 06:09 having two machines constantly working 06:12 on printing the books, 06:14 we could produce about 500 books a day. 06:19 And as it's printing, 06:21 you can then actually start the other processes. 06:24 So from the beginning 06:27 to the end of, say, 06:29 printing like 5,000 books, 06:31 it'll take probably about three weeks. 06:33 And that's for a normal like 120-page book. 06:38 But as that's going through, 06:39 you can start another project coming through behind it. 06:49 - [Natalie] It's so nice 06:50 that he's got all of the pieces of equipment 06:52 for each stage of the printing. 06:55 - [John] Yeah. 06:56 - And that as one set finishes 06:58 he can start the next set going behind it. 07:01 So it's not like one has to go 07:03 all the way through the process 07:04 and then the next one can go all the way 07:06 through the process. 07:07 That helps to save a lot of time. 07:09 - [John] 500 books a day. 07:11 That's amazing. 07:12 - [Natalie] That's beautiful. 07:14 It's wonderful. 07:15 - [John] Yeah. 07:15 - [Natalie] We're gonna see 07:17 in the next video how God started preparing his heart 07:20 to do this work. - Okay. 07:27 - The story that Jesus told of the man 07:31 who went to get bread at midnight 07:35 from his neighbor has meant a lot to me 07:39 and has actually been the story 07:41 that I hold as really the one that is my role 07:47 because I don't have bread. 07:49 And as you think about it, 07:50 I didn't have the money to buy the equipment to make bread. 07:54 And bread is the word of God. 07:57 So I didn't have money to buy it. 07:58 I don't even have the skill to translate it. 08:01 So in some ways, 08:02 to acquire this bread to give it, 08:05 I have to go ask of my neighbor. 08:08 And as you consider, 08:11 the one who journeyed 08:12 and came to him came on a long trip. 08:16 And if he had had sufficient bread all along his journey, 08:22 he wouldn't need bread at midnight. 08:24 He could wait till breakfast. 08:27 And as we talk about Christ coming, 08:32 we talk about it being a morning, 08:35 and that currently, 08:36 the world is engrossed darkness, 08:39 it's midnight. 08:41 And we're looking forward to that glorious morning 08:43 when Christ comes. 08:45 And breakfast is that meal that we have with Him. 08:49 But as you think about the people here in Southeast Asia 08:54 and you think back in their history, 08:57 they haven't had sufficient, 08:59 they haven't had all of the resources, 09:03 the literature that the US has had, 09:06 that Europe has had. 09:07 And so to say, 09:08 "Oh, just wait until later," 09:12 they're gonna perish 09:14 because I need bread now. 09:16 And in this parable, 09:17 that's the point. 09:18 The point is, 09:19 the bread is needed at this late hour. 09:22 It's not needed later, 09:24 it's needed at midnight. 09:27 And so he goes and he asks for three loaves of bread, 09:31 but the friend doesn't get up right away. 09:37 He says that he's in bed already 09:39 and that he's not going to get up, 09:42 but the friend keeps asking. 09:44 And in some way, 09:45 that's the point of this story 09:48 for me is that God wants me to keep asking 09:53 because in this story, 09:55 it says that at his opportunity 09:57 or at the fact that he was continuing to ask the friend, 10:02 the neighbor gets up. 10:05 But in this case, 10:06 if the friend had no care, 10:11 he would've given him only three loves. 10:14 But the friend gets up 10:16 and the Bible says that he gave him all that was needed, 10:20 so it's more than three loves. 10:23 And as you think about that, 10:25 Christ is moved with compassion. 10:29 And He doesn't give just what's asked for, 10:32 He gives all that's needed. 10:34 And I've also thought about this, 10:36 the guy's asking for three loves of bread. 10:38 He doesn't ask, "Give three loves of bread 10:42 so that we can eat." 10:44 He says, "Give three loves of bread 10:46 for the one that journeyed." 10:48 When I print a book in Khmer, 10:50 it's not for me. 10:52 I can't read it. 10:53 If I print a book in Thai, 10:55 I still can't read it. 10:56 The bread isn't for me. 10:57 The bread is for these people here. 11:02 So God finishes this story. 11:04 He doesn't leave it hanging. 11:07 He leaves it satisfied 11:10 that He will arise and give them. 11:13 And that's His words. 11:14 It's His story. 11:16 And I want to see that 11:18 for the people here in Southeast Asia. 11:23 - [John] That's beautiful. 11:25 The Bible really comes alive 11:27 when you go into the mission field 11:29 and you start doing what Christ was doing 11:31 and reaching the lost. 11:32 - [Natalie] Just you have 11:33 to think about the tool that that is. 11:36 the opportunity that that is the blessing that that is. 11:39 - [John] Mm-hmm. 11:41 A lot of times, 11:42 we talk about finishing the work 11:44 and that God will finish the work 11:46 whether we are part of it or not. 11:48 And I think about that a lot. 11:50 It's like, okay, well, 11:52 if we don't engage with His work, 11:55 He will find a way to finish the work. 11:58 But what about the people today 12:01 that are dying without the gospel? 12:03 What about them? 12:04 If we don't do our part, 12:06 some of them will not have the opportunity 12:10 and they'll never have the opportunity. 12:12 And so that just gives such an urgency 12:15 to the gospel commission. 12:17 There's not a lot of time left, 12:18 but also there's not a lot of time left. 12:20 Not, there's not a lot of time left 12:22 until the second coming. 12:23 But there's not a lot of time left, 12:25 let's say, for someone that's gonna die next week 12:30 that has never heard the name of Jesus, 12:33 not just has heard it and decided against Him, 12:36 but has just never had the opportunity 12:38 to hear the name of much less His story. 12:40 And so that's what gives us that sense of urgency, 12:43 is we're not doing this just for a program. 12:46 We're not just trying to have a good outreach program. 12:50 This is saving lives 12:52 for eternity. - For eternity. 12:54 - [Natalie] And it's more than we have this equipment now. 12:57 It's what's gonna be printed there. 13:00 So we have a video about that. 13:01 - [John] Okay. 13:09 - So as I look at the goals 13:11 of providing bread for Asia, 13:14 it goes into many different areas. 13:16 One that we all think of, 13:18 first of all, 13:19 is like Ellen White's writings. 13:21 What's happening with her writings? 13:23 Can they read them? 13:24 Do they have them? 13:25 And so in that area, 13:28 several of the countries have some of the books, 13:33 but even though they have some of the books, 13:35 the books are not readily available to them. 13:37 So the goal is to make sure that some of these books 13:41 that they already have are readily available 13:44 as well as in translating more of them. 13:50 But then it goes into other areas. 13:52 Like for myself, 13:54 I grew up on mission stories. 13:57 I heard about Eric Behr 13:59 and read stories about different missionaries 14:03 like Hudson Taylor. 14:04 and then, of course, 14:06 the more children's mission story books 14:09 like that Norma Youngberg did 14:11 of "Nyla and the White Crocodile" 14:13 and "Taught by a Tiger" 14:15 where it shows the thinking process 14:17 and the struggle of those that are here 14:20 and how to accept Christ. 14:22 So it's not just story books. 14:25 It's story books that inspire them to be missionaries, 14:28 story books that teach them 14:31 about what it is to give your heart to God, 14:34 story books that show the importance of the Sabbath. 14:38 That's something that people here struggle with. 14:41 And so having the encouragement of stories 14:44 of other people that have struggled through that 14:47 and how God has worked, 14:49 not necessarily to make it it all peaceful, 14:52 but has worked 14:53 through the difficulties will help give them hope 14:58 to hold on. 15:02 One of the other areas 15:03 that is not as readily available is Bible studies. 15:09 I mean, the US, 15:10 we think of, oh, Bible studies, 15:11 we'll just go to the ABC 15:12 and choose one of the 10 that are there. 15:15 And that's the one you're going to go study. 15:18 Here, there may be only one. 15:21 And is there really a copy 15:23 that's actually in stock that you can have? 15:26 Not really. 15:27 I mean, the states, 15:28 we have Bible studies focused for children, 15:29 we have Bible studies focused on prophecy, 15:31 we have bible studies that are geared 15:33 for group discussions. 15:36 I'd like to see that here, too. 15:41 Schools need curriculum. 15:44 They need workbooks, 15:46 they need textbooks. 15:48 And most of them are just done in black and white. 15:51 So you get a color science book, 15:54 and they go and they make a copy of it 15:56 in black and white. 15:57 So having something that is good 16:01 and presents the subjects in color if needed, 16:05 I think that would be helpful to the schools here. 16:11 My focus is Southeast Asia, 16:14 so that includes Cambodia, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, 16:21 those ones primarily. 16:22 And it's not just that God provides books 16:26 in those languages, 16:28 but that He actually provides the freedom for those books 16:32 to go into those countries, 16:34 that He provides the people 16:36 that will help distribute the books in those countries. 16:39 And so I believe that as God has led this far 16:43 that He will continue to lead and open the doors 16:47 for the books to actually get into the people's hands. 16:50 And then once the book's there, 16:52 God's not done 16:54 because spiritual things are spiritually discerned, 16:56 which means God needs to work upon their hearts 16:59 and as they read it, 17:01 that they will understand it and accept it. 17:10 - [John] And that's where people in the Western world 17:13 already established believers can really enter 17:16 into his work, 17:17 into the Rogers' work is through prayer 17:21 because all those things that he's trying 17:23 to do is a spiritual thing. 17:25 And prayer is a big part of opening up the doors 17:30 for the gospel to go forward. 17:31 And he can do the physical printing, 17:34 and the distribution is a big challenge. 17:38 There's not a large team of literature evangelists 17:42 in all the different countries that he's talking about. 17:44 So there's not a really well-developed distribution network. 17:48 So we might end up with 2,000 books sitting 17:51 in a warehouse for five years. 17:53 We don't want that, 17:54 especially when we can print 500 books a day. 17:56 - [Natalie] Right. 17:57 - [John] So developing 17:59 that distribution network is a a really vital need. 18:05 And if anybody knows of somebody 18:07 that's really into that kind of thing 18:09 and can help develop that kind of network, 18:11 that door is open. 18:12 And what's beautiful about doing that kind of work 18:15 in area like that is that right now, 18:18 almost nothing's being done. 18:20 So if somebody comes in and does something, 18:23 that's something in place of nothing. 18:28 - [Natalie] Right. 18:29 In the next video that we're gonna watch, 18:31 Kenton and Rachel both share some of the challenges 18:34 and some of the blessings 18:36 that they're experiencing in Cambodia. 18:38 - Thank you. 18:40 (gentle music) 18:48 - The most difficult thing 18:49 that we've had to deal with is talking with people. 18:54 Even if they speak just a little bit of English, 18:56 it's still not enough to convey ideas 19:01 and really to converse 19:04 because our Khmer is very small, too. 19:06 So it's like putting language 19:10 through a very small straw. 19:17 - I didn't think culture shock would bother me. 19:20 And for a while, 19:21 I don't think it really did. 19:23 But when things compound on each other, 19:27 you have the uncertainty. 19:28 You don't know what's gonna happen next, 19:29 and you're waiting, 19:31 and you're stuck in an apartment. 19:33 All of these things pile up, 19:35 then little things start to irritate you. 19:37 And I did feel some stress at that point. 19:42 For my children coming to Asia, 19:44 I don't think there was near as much culture shock, 19:47 if you wanna say, 19:48 they just took it in stride. 19:50 But I think I've seen two things 19:53 that have been a big blessing for them. 19:56 I would say 19:57 the first one is the environment here is not Christian. 20:00 And although that brings challenge, 20:03 they also realize that they're not here to fit in. 20:10 The second part is interaction with nature 20:14 and people who think differently than they do, 20:16 that they never would've gotten back in the States. 20:19 And it makes them realize 20:20 that America isn't the whole world. 20:26 - There are several areas 20:28 that I've had spiritual growth in. 20:30 As I think about it, 20:32 the primary one would be dependence. 20:35 Oftentimes, I think, "Oh, I can do this 20:38 or I can do that." 20:39 But here, just like with the language difficulty, 20:43 it's not a guarantee that I can go to the store 20:45 and even buy something, 20:46 even the other side of things, too. 20:48 When I do do something 20:50 and then I feel like I did it, 20:52 that feeling of I did it then swells up 20:54 with a little bit of pride 20:56 and that I did this. 20:59 And then realizing, "No, I couldn't do it. 21:04 It's not me, 21:06 it's God that's led this far." 21:08 But then I'm also thankful for the times 21:11 when God asked me to trust Him 21:15 because there's things I can't do at all, 21:17 I can't even help with. 21:20 And so it's like placing those things in His hands 21:22 and saying, "Lord, this ones, 21:24 I don't even know 21:25 if there's anything I can do in this." 21:28 I've seen several times in this whole process 21:34 with relating to government, paperwork, 21:37 and business issues with the government 21:41 that God's worked in that are beyond 21:44 what I could do anything in. 21:46 Then with also like importing the printing equipment. 21:50 Also, there's been things in there 21:51 that I can't make anything happen, 21:55 but God made them happen 22:00 - For me, I think the awareness of the, 22:04 I don't know, 22:06 the darkness of this place compared to America 22:09 and how much Satan thinks this is his territory. 22:11 So you feel sometimes way more the battle 22:17 than you would back home. 22:19 I guess, it keeps you focused, 22:22 it keeps you on your knees. 22:25 If you get lazy, 22:26 all of a sudden, 22:26 there's a big problem. 22:28 You have to be praying for your kids 22:30 and praying for your husband. 22:31 And that's where the daily growing 22:35 and learning is for me right now. 22:41 - So there's been some days 22:42 where, of course, I wake up, 22:44 my list of to-dos is long. 22:47 And they seem like, 22:50 if you wanna say mechanical things, 22:52 like they're tasks that you just go through and you do. 22:55 And there's some days 22:57 when I just start working on them 22:58 and by the end of the day, 22:59 you're exhausted and you're going to bed. 23:02 And I go to bed and lay there 23:03 and realize I think I missed the most important thing. 23:09 God has said that He wants 23:11 to have us place the issue before Him. 23:15 He wants us, 23:17 through prayer, 23:18 to actually become more open for His working. 23:22 Also, He wants us to give Him praise. 23:25 The same praise that I gave Him yesterday is fine. 23:28 He wants to hear that even today 23:33 - Coming here with children, 23:36 of course it's more complicated. 23:38 Traveling with children is more complicated. 23:41 But even if what I do every day is 80% 23:47 what I did back in the States, 23:49 the same household duties 23:51 and teaching the kids and everything, 23:54 I believe coming is worth it. 23:56 - Everything that's needed, 23:57 He's promised to give it, 23:59 the wisdom, the financing, 24:02 the people that you're supposed to connect with. 24:05 He gives all of that, 24:07 and I'm very thankful to that. 24:15 - [John] That's beautiful. 24:16 And it's so neat to see people 24:17 that step out of their comfort zone, 24:19 step out of the known, 24:21 and enter into God's work in a foreign land. 24:24 And they start to see all these insights 24:27 and understandings of the world 24:28 and how God works. 24:30 And I think every church needs a foreign mission field 24:33 because it helps us to prioritize what's really important. 24:37 - [Natalie] Well, they shared 24:38 with us also their greatest need. 24:41 So let's play that now. - Okay. 24:49 - I see myself as a helper. 24:51 I don't see myself as the one who's doing this project. 24:55 This is God's project. 24:57 From when we came here all along, 25:00 He's taking care of us. 25:02 I don't see it as me having to go raise money 25:06 for these things. 25:08 I see it as this is what God needs to provide for this. 25:14 And are there times when I worry about it? 25:17 Yes, there's times when it becomes a burden. 25:22 But at times, 25:23 I may be worrying about one bill or one thing 25:28 when I'm not even able to comprehend all the other things 25:31 that I should be worrying about, too, 25:33 but God knows about those. 25:35 He's working on providing those. 25:37 And so I need to trust Him with all of this. 25:47 Money is not the most important thing. 25:49 There's been times when I've prayed, 25:50 "Lord, don't give me money. 25:53 That's not what I want. 25:55 I don't want You to give me money 25:58 without wisdom to go with it, 26:00 without the answers that I need to go with it." 26:04 Because I've found that money can go very quickly 26:09 and money doesn't always solve the issues. 26:11 And sometimes money can't solve the issue. 26:14 So to have prayers of people 26:16 that God will give the needed answers, 26:19 the needed wisdom is the greatest need. 26:23 But then you have other needs of people to help, 26:29 people to talk to about even like counsel. 26:32 So my biggest need is prayer. 26:36 Second is people, 26:38 people to help, 26:39 people to connect with, both. 26:41 - [John] I think that's profound. 26:44 The biggest need is prayer. 26:45 I have seen some ministries that have a lot of money, 26:49 they don't get anything done. 26:51 And then other ministries with almost no money, 26:54 but a lot of faith, 26:55 independence on God, 26:56 they get a lot of stuff done. 26:59 It's nice to see ministries that have both. 27:01 - [Natalie] Yep. 27:02 - [John] They get tons done. 27:03 - [Natalie] Yep. 27:04 - [John] But the key, 27:05 I think the greatest need obviously is the Holy Spirit 27:08 and the prayers of people 27:10 that lift them up to the Lord 27:13 that has all wisdom 27:15 and can see the end from the beginning. 27:16 - [Natalie] Right. 27:17 And I just also wanna highlight 27:19 that he asked for people, too. 27:21 - [John] Yes. 27:22 - [Natalie] So praying to God for people to help him, 27:24 people to do the translation, 27:26 people to do the other jobs that are needed to be done. 27:30 - [John] Mm-hmm. 27:32 - [Natalie] There is a need for people, godly people. 27:34 people that God chooses to be a part of it. 27:36 - [John] Yeah. 27:37 And technical people, I'm sure, 27:38 to run all that equipment. 27:40 - [Natalie] Yeah. 27:41 - [John] So there's a lot of needs there, 27:42 a lot of opportunities. 27:43 - [Natalie] Right. 27:45 If you would like to be involved in this project, 27:47 please contact us at Jesus for Asia, 27:50 PO Box 1221, 27:52 Collegedale, Tennessee, 37315. 27:55 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 28:06 on Jesus For Asia Now |
Revised 2023-06-14