Utter E-Mission November 2006

Hello to you all from a beautiful 70 degrees at 10:30 in the morning! It’s supposed to get close to 80 today and the rest of the weekend. We are truly enjoying a great spring so far. I know I shouldn’t be rubbing this in, as some of you have already experienced snow in your cities, but I just couldn’t help it.

Well, Lynne’s sister, Lori, just left this past Monday after almost two weeks visiting us here in Argentina. It was her first time down here, and I think she really enjoyed her stay. We had a great time showing her the sites and being able to drive about 5 hours from here to stay 1 block from the Atlantic Ocean. We rented a little cabin and enjoyed a couple of days at the beach! Jacob had a blast showing off his Aunt Lori. We’re so thankful that she was able to come down here and spend some time with us. It made Lynne’s birthday even more special to have her sister with her.

Brian has been busy with work. He hasn’t traveled too much, but does have a trip or two planned in December. The radio ministry continues to experience tremendous growth and our team, even though having to be streamlined to meet budget constraints, is still doing an awesome job. Video and television are booming. Weekend recording will begin in the next couple of weeks for the Mujer Valiosa, “Valued Woman” half-hour television program. We have two pilots now filmed and have been showing them to groups of women, and the response has just been incredible. We have great expectations that the Lord is going to do something awesome with this show.

Lynne is getting back into the swing of things after being away for vacation while her sister was here. We all spent vacation time together, but she was away before that for a Women’s Conference for the Cono Sur (Southern Cone) field she works for. The field is getting ready to have a Holiness Campaign. Dr. Deihl, our responsible General Superintendent will be speaking and pastors, district superintendents and lay leaders will be coming from the four countries represented by this field – Argentina, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay. This is promising to be an incredible time together.

It also seems probable that we will be having more puppies around Christmas time. Jacob is absolutely thrilled! We don’t know how many Lucy is having, but we’re fairly confident that she’s going to have some. She’s just a few months past 4 years old, and Max is about 1 ½ years. We’ll keep you all posted! Anyone want a boxer pup? ☺






From Esperanza.net October 2006

“I am very anxious. I have a 14 year-old daughter. Because of my work I see her only once a month. My daughter needs me with her. She feels very alone. At this time, I don’t have an alternative. I am left with little hope.” Dina, 38, Chile

“I need strength and hope to keep going in this world.” Margarita, 41 Venezuela

“I want to know how to be a ‘valuable woman’. I want to learn to be a woman of wisdom. I have low self esteem.” Carmen, 45 Chile

“I need spiritual peace.” Daniel, 45 Colombia (Listening to the radio in a taxi)

From the Trenches October 2006
(Actual testimonies from local WMB radio ministries in South America)

“Juana lives in Pampahasi, Bolivia and was looking for some music to listen to when she came across the program ‘Levantando Vuelo’ (Taking Flight). She heard host Anette Moreno sharing on the topic ‘Love, love, love’. The words touched her heart and she began to cry while listening that her life has value. She called the radio station for counsel and ask that the team visit her in her home. Her parents are separated and she lives with her mother. She feels that she needs to talk to her father and this angers her mother. Her mother doesn’t want her to talk about her father and if she continues she will stop paying for her education. She had thought about running away, but when she heard the program she called the radio for help. We visited her that afternoon after the program. That afternoon she accepted Christ as her Savior. We continue to visit with her and she has begun attending the Church of the Nazarene near her. We are continuing to pray for her mother.”

- From Raul Chipana Vargas leader of the WMB Program “Levantando Vuelo” (Taking Flight) in La Paz, Bolivia.

“We received a visit from Lucero, who is one of the disc jockeys on Radio Caribeña. He told us that he listened to the program and enjoyed the messages that we shared. He shared with us that he wanted to change his life and he promised to visit the Church. We also had two teenagers from the Province of Cutervo call requesting a secular song. We explained that we are playing music about Jesus, so they said they would listen. They called back saying that they enjoyed the songs. We were able to share more with them. We receive calls like this all the time and it reminds us of our mission to reach the lost.”

- From Romaín Sosa Torres leader of the WMB Program “Génesis” (Genesis) aired now on secular Radio Caribeña in Jaén, Peru.

Prayer Requests
1. Please pray for Brian’s family as his uncle Jim recently passed away. Please remember his Aunt Jeanine and their daughter Nicky. He’d been sick for quite awhile now, but it’s still always hard to deal with.
2. Please remember Myriam Pozzi, Content Manager and Producer of Mujer Valiosa. She’s been having some anxiety health related issues. She has to try and minimize her stress level. We all know how difficult that can be.
3. Please remember Lynne’s boss, Juan Jose Zani in your prayers as District Assemblies have begun and he will be doing a lot of traveling.
4. Please remember the Holiness Campaign that will take place on the 17th, 18th and 19th of this month.
5. Please remember all those involved in the television production of Mujer Valiosa that will begin to take place soon. This is a very time consuming process and very tiring.

Our next furlough is April – June, 2008. We have already begun to fill a lot of these dates with some district tours. If you would be willing and like to have us speak in your church, please contact us soon so we can figure out a time when we can come. We’d love to see as many of you as possible.

Brian Reports: Sending Out An S.O.S. To The World

What really defines “cutting edge” communication technology? Blackberry…Blogs… Video Blogs…Text Messaging…My Space…You Tube? To some it might sound like a form of cryptic code or maybe even Mr. Spock speaking Vulcan. To your average American teenager, it is their ‘lingo’, or more importantly, their life. They have classified the current teen generation as the connected generation. They are connected, communicating at all times from anywhere and interfacing with each other. Their “technology” is this ever-changing, rapidly moving fluid “thing” that is hard for us Baby-buster, Gen Xers to fully comprehend. So, we ask our children and they give us the ‘wikipedia googlefied’ explanation that confuses us even more.

In the 3rd or even 2nd world of South America that “cutting edge” comes a little slower. Not much, mind you, but enough to let us catch our breath once in a while. For communications in South America, it is partly about staying on the “cutting edge” of technology, but also staying on the “cultural edge” in understanding who is the audience, where do they live and how do they communicate. World Mission Broadcast is currently known for three areas of broadcast ministries: radio, television and Internet. These are all an integral part of the cultural fabric that makes up our world and has now more than every connected us together. But what happens to those not yet connected? The unreached?

We are called to reach the unreachable; to use any and every means possible to share Jesus Christ. So, staying on the “cultural edge” sometimes takes us back to not so much of the “cutting edge.” You see, in the early 1970’s when we all had longer collars and wider ties a new “cutting edge” technology called a Phonemate Answering Machine offered you the ability to record phone messages on reel-to-reel tape with a machine weighing more than 10 pounds. Then, in the 1983 when a doctor from Japan figured out a way to digitally record those messages, everything changed. Our ties became thinner and looked more like a sock and we left messages after ‘the beep.’

It is that same ‘old’ technology that is on the “cultural edge” in Brazil. Brazil, by many standards, is very “cutting edge” in technology. You can surf the Internet on your laptop from the city of Manaus in the middle of the Amazon and watch the World Cup Soccer tournament on your high definition television, IF you are connected (or reached). But millions are not. So, using ‘old’ technology to stay on the “cultural edge,” the Church of the Nazarene in Brazil began the S.O.S. Answering Machine ministry.

Each day S.O.S. ministry teams throughout Brazil are recording new answering machine messages. However, it is not your typical…“Not here, leave a name and number” kind of message, but a concise message of hope to someone reaching out for help. The telephone numbers are printed on business cards, stickers, flyers, anywhere they can get the number out in front of the public. God has used this antiquated technology to reach out those disconnected (or unreachable) offering hope in the form of Jesus Christ.

Felipe’s life was collapsing all around him. His marriage was at the point of divorce. His work at the office was suffering and he was looking for escape through alcohol and drugs. One morning as he was walking to his bus stop, he found a dirty business card blowing around his foot. He picked up the card and it said, “There’s hope. Call now.” Felipe called the number on the card and hear a short message about peace in the middle of chaos. He left a message where someone could contact him. An S.O.S. counselor called Felipe’s cell phone and was able to share and pray with Felipe. Today, Felipe and his wife have restored their marriage and he and his family are active members of the Church of the Nazarene.

Gabriella was in an abusive relationship with her boyfriend when she saw a small sticker on the wall of a convenient store. It said, “Help is waiting. Call today.” Gabriella called and left an address asking for someone to visit her. A team of S.O.S. counselors visited with Gabriella in her parents’ home. Gabriella heard for the first time in her life about true love and what a real relationship could be like. She prayed to accept Jesus sitting at the kitchen table. Today, she sings in the choir.

Whether they are classified as disconnected or unreached, God calls us to reach them through any means possible. Riding the wave of “cutting edge” technology while staying focused on the “cultural edge” around us is what allows God to work through the ministries of World Mission Broadcast throughout the globe. Thanks for helping us send out an S.O.S. to the world.