What a blessing it was to be able to teach at Pacific Baptist Bible College via FaceTime. In one of PBBC missions classes this semester they are having different missionaries from our three teams in Southeast Asia teach. I will be teaching four times this semester, including during their “College Days.” We teach at 1:00 AM our time in Southeast Asia. So the challenge isn’t so much to keep the students awake during the lecture but the instructor. 🙂 My first two lessons are entitled, “Why Missions? Why Me?” I have been told from back home that the response to part one of the lecture was great. I am grateful that my brother Pastor Joe had a vision to reach the world and the vision continues today in spite of the fact that he is still hospitalized!

Please pray for the students of Pacific Baptist Bible College as God continues to work in many of their hearts about the possibility of going to the mission field!

As I have mentioned in a few previous updates my language tutor is named Abraham. He was given that name after trusting Christ. Abraham was already saved when he started tutoring me, but he had drifted from the Lord. So for the past few months we have split our language learning time in half and I have been discipling him. Three weeks ago Adrian and I started meeting at Abraham’s house for a time of Bible study. It is primarily a time to disciple Abraham, his wife, and his brother-n-law, but we had a few visitors for our first Bible study. We are taking the first few weeks to emphasize the importance of the Bible.

Please pray for spiritual growth for Abraham, his wife, and his brother-law Vayy and that God will bless our time together!

One young man you have heard me talk about much over the past year has been Kosal Sann. For over a year now I have been meeting with him at least once per week. Last week he married a wonderful young lady named Phalley. The wedding ceremony was great and I had the privilege to give the challenge to the couple. The reception was special. It was great to see Kosal’s unsaved father Pheap attend the reception. Pheap is still a Muslim and has had very little interaction with the family since disowning them a little over four years ago when they decided to follow Christ.

Please pray for Kosal and Phalley’s life together as a married couple and for his father’s (Pheap) salvation!

When my wife and I left for the mission field three years ago we had ten grandchildren. We just recently were blessed and our 16th grandchild was born. My daughter Jessica and her husband Pastor Joshua Aquino just had their fifth child. Little baby Emma had a healthy delivery and is a joy, not only for her parents and grandparents, but for her four siblings.

My daughter Joy and I visited Beijing China and stayed with one of our dear friends who has been in the country over 17 years and is doing an amazing work in a very difficult place. He specifically asked me not to post any names or any pictures of his ministry online, so unfortunately, we will only insert a few general pictures below. Of course, the purpose for our going to China was to continue to do research about the possibility of bringing a team, sent out of our church, to this country. It was a very helpful and beneficial visit to say the least!

China (1.4 billion people) is often referred to as an Atheistic country; the largest country in the world. It is referred to as an atheistic country for a good reason. Unlike any other country that I have ever visited, including Communist Laos, China and the Chinese people seem to be an extremely non-religious people. Unless of course, you refer to “atheism” and/or “materialism” as a religion!

One of the most peculiar things about China, at least Beijing, is that you will find very little, if any, signs of religious belief–of any kind–in the public sector. You see no temples or altars. No monks or priests. You see nobody bowing to a statue or burning incense. And I surely saw no church but the illegal one that I attended for a mid-week and Sunday service.

WHEN THE COMMUNISTS OVERRAN THIS COUNTRY IN 1949 THEY DID A THOROUGH JOB OF ERADICATING RELIGION, AT LEAST IN THE PUBLIC ARENA!

China is a country of 1.4 billion people (about three times more people than the United States) with 150 cities of over one million people (the United States has only nine). Depending on what statistics you read,  only about 3-5 percent of the population professes any form of “Christianity.” This would include Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mormons, Roman Catholics, mainline Protestants, and just about any sect that would claim to be “Christian.” In America, 77 percent of the population claims to be “Christian.”

Yet, there are only somewhere around 50 Independent Baptist churches in the entire country. At the same time, Los Angeles county (with it’s ten million people) would more than likely double the number of churches that the entire country of China has. I know for a fact that the State of California (with its 38 million people) has well over 350 Independent Baptist churches. What a painful disparity in where the laborers are located!

Please continue to pray for God’s wisdom concerning this matter of sending a team to China and that God will raise up the men and the women who are willing to go!

We thank God for your prayers and financial support. We couldn’t be here without you.

For His Glory in the Nations,

Johnny, Denise, Joy, and Sue