Over the past few weeks, my wife and I have been in Southern California. I have had the opportunity to preach for Liberty Baptist Church and my dear friend Pastor Ryan Thompson, and for their Grade School and High School chapel services. God is really using Pastor Thompson and his staff. We were also with our home and sending church, Pacific Baptist Church in Long Beach, preaching for the church family 3 times. I also taught and preached for Pacific Baptist Bible College, as well as, taught at Pacific Baptist School for a couple days for the 7-12th grade Bible Class, preached in two of their chapel services, and for the Grade School Chapel service. Pastor Steve Meyers and his staff are doing a great job at Pacific Baptist. The church, at least in my opinion, is as healthy as it’s ever been, in spite of the fact that my brother, Pastor Joe, has been hospitalized now for nearly 3 1/2 years. I also had the privilege to preach for our church plant, Pacific Baptist Church in Monterey Park (Pastor Kyle Beck). Pastor Beck is doing a wonderful job in Monterey Park. Very exciting to see how they are starting some new outreach programs in their community!

Along with the above, I also had the privilege of preaching for the First Baptist Church Christian school 7-12 grade chapel service (Pastor Dave Delaney). Really enjoyed spending time with these young people. My wife and I also had the privilege to be a part of the Missions’ Sunday at Canyon Ridge Baptist Church (Pastor Chris Chadwick) in San Diego. Canyon Ridge is an awesome church and Pastor Chadwick has a real heart for the mission field. It was nice to have the Vong family (fellow team members in Cambodia) with us for this special Sunday at Canyon Ridge!

Of course, being in Southern California gave us a little time with the grandchildren. Now, that’s always a blessing for both my wife and me. We even had a chance to celebrate our grandson’s birthday! 🙂

As most of you know, Lord willing, my wife and I will soon be relocating to the country of China. Our original intention was to be here in the States until the beginning of March, but it looks like we will be here six weeks longer than we had originally planned. Many have asked, “Why China?” Of course, there are many reasons and I even have posted a page on China, which you can check out by going to the link below:

https://peekingthroughthe1040window.wordpress.com/china/

Consider this for a moment: China is a country of 1.4 billion people. Depending on what statistics you believe, somewhere between 3-5 percent of the population professes to be “Christian.” Just to put that in proper perspective, 77 percent of Americans profess to be “Christian.” The “Unreached” population of the country of China is just under 186 million people, and many of these are not only “Unreached” but “Unengaged,” which means no one is looking for them and trying to reach them with the Gospel. In America, there are somewhere between 10,000 and 15,000 independent Baptist churches. Yet, in the country of China, which is almost five times the size of the United States, there are only 50-100 independent Baptist churches.

IN OTHER WORDS, THERE’S A GREAT NEED IN CHINA!

When one ponders these numbers and others like them, it isn’t long before you agree with the great Hudson Taylor who once wrote, “Can Christians in England sit still with folded arms while these multitudes in China are perishing for lack of knowledge – for lack of that knowledge which England possesses so richly?”

I encourage you to check out the videos below:

Why China from carrithelight on Vimeo.

Unreached People Groups of China from carrithelight on Vimeo.

My wife and I will be in Central and Northern California for a few weeks before I head to New England for a couple of weeks. It also looks as if the Lord has opened a door for me to make a very brief trip to the “Bible-belt” to be in a few churches.

PRAYER REQUESTS:

1. Please pray for all three of our teams in Southeast Asia [Cambodia, Laos, Thailand].
2. Please pray for our new Bible college in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. 
3. Please pray that God will open doors for future ministry in China.
4. Please pray about the recent increase in persecution in China.
5. Please pray that God will bring an increase from all the seeds that we have been planting through our preaching, teaching, reporting, and presenting these past few months.
6. Please pray for the many young people in recent days who have made decisions about the mission field.
7. Please pray that God will open a door for a future visit to some refugee camps.
8. Please pray that God will provide the necessary funds for my wife and I to relocate.
9. Please pray for my wife’s upcoming surgery.
10. Please continue to pray for my brother, Pastor Joe, and his wife Mary!

My wife Denise and I want to thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your faithful prayers and financial support. We could not do what God has called and led us to do without your prayers and without your financial support!

Johnny and Denise Esposito

God is doing some amazing things in Cambodia. Just one of the many is the dozens of young people who are being grounded in the Word of God and prepared for future ministry in Cambodia and, no doubt, other places in Southeast Asia. The above pictures are of our Bible college students in Phnom Penh and our Bible Institute students. Our team in Cambodia has had a Bible Institute for years, the Bible college just started a few weeks ago. If you are interested in sponsoring one of the college students please do let me know or you can contact Dave Board @davedebboard@gmail.com

PLEASE DO REMEMBER TO PRAY FOR ALL OF THESE YOUNG PEOPLE AS THEY PREPARE TO SERVE GOD IN CAMBODIA!

The last few weeks have been busy and blessed. God has been so very good! I had the opportunity to preach and teach a few times for Pacific Baptist Church. It’s always a real blessing to be with our home and sending church. Pastor Meyers and his staff are doing a great job with the church. He took on a huge load when my brother, Pastor Joe, was hospitalized a little over three years ago. Looking forward to teaching and preaching for Pacific Baptist Bible College and Pacific Baptist School over the next week!

PLEASE PRAY THAT GOD WILL BLESS THESE MESSAGES AT PACIFIC BAPTIST CHURCH, AS WELL AS THE COLLEGE, AND THE SCHOOL!

It’s always a tremendous honor to preach at Liberty Baptist Church in Newport Beach. Not only are they a supporting church but their former pastor, Dwight Tomlinson, is one of my dearest friends and their present pastor, Ryan Thompson, is also a longtime friend. It was a real blessing to have one of my former students at PBS and PBBC come along with my wife and I to the service at Liberty. God is working in Borin’s life about the possibility of serving on the mission field!

PLEASE CONTINUE TO PRAY FOR CHURCHES LIKE LIBERTY BAPTIST AS THEY CONTINUE TO REACH THEIR JERUSALEM AND PRAY FOR AND SUPPORT MISSIONS AROUND THE WORLD AND THAT GOD WILL CONTINUE TO GUIDE AND DIRECT BORIN KONG!

It was a real blessing to have our dear friend, Dick Baucum and his wife, at Pacific Baptist Church and with the college the next day. He was preaching at Pacific Baptist Church, which is my sending church, the same night that I was preaching for Liberty Baptist Church, which just so happens to be his sending church. The next day Dick taught for the college. After Dick taught for two hours, he, his wife, his son-n-law and daughter, and I participated in a Round Table Question/Answer time. It was great!

PLEASE PRAY FOR THE BAUCUM’S AND THEIR WORK IN CHINA, AS WELL AS FOR THE STUDENTS AT PBBC WHO ARE SERIOUSLY PRAYING ABOUT THE POSSIBILITY OF SERVING IN CHINA!

My wife and I took a week off for our 35th wedding anniversary and had a wonderful time together in Florida. I am so very grateful for a wonderful wife. On this side of heaven, she’s my best friend and has been a wonderful helpmeet. Her love for Jesus, for me, for our children, for our grandchildren, and others inspires me. While in Florida, I also had the opportunity to preach for the Lighthouse Baptist Church of Winter Park (Pastor Wruck). The response to the message was tremendous. God moved in the service and for this we are grateful!

PLEASE CONTINUE TO PRAY FOR OUR MARRIAGE, MY WIFE’S HEALTH, AND FOR GOD TO USE US AS A COUPLE TO MAKE AN IMPACT FOR CHRIST IN THE 1040 WINDOW!

It was great to meet up with the Tomlinson’s and spend a little time with them. We had lunch together (after we got the car jumped, but that’s another story) and spent time talking about the 1040 Window, China, the Barnabas1040 ministry (which he started about two years ago), and the refugee crisis. They are presently supporting 17 national pastors, including four of the men I had the privilege of working with in Cambodia and Laos. My wife and I love Dwight and Gayle. They are great friends and have a heart to do what they can in their fourth quarter of life to make a dent in the 1040 Window!

PRAY FOR DWIGHT AND GAYLE TOMLINSON AS THEY PREPARE TO LEAVE FOR CHINA IN TWO MONTHS AND AS THEY LEAD THE BARNABAS1040 MINISTRY!

It was a joy to be able to spend some time with Pastor Stokes (Berean Bible Baptist of Duarte) and Pastor Fiesco (Berean Bible Baptist of East Los Angeles) and the young people of Berean Bible Baptist Church of Duarte. Once a month BBBC has a Missions Friday and this was the third time in the past five years or so that I had a chance to speak for this special evening. They had a good crowd of young people. God moved in a special way during the invitation. Always grateful for the opportunity and the privilege to be able to influence young people for the Lord. It was also nice to be able to spend some time fellowshipping with four of my former students from Pacific Baptist Bible College. In addition to preaching and showing a video about the 1040 Window, my wife and I passed out quite a few of our books Peeking Through the 1040 Window and Keep the Dream Alive to young people who felt God might be leading them into full-time Christian service!

PLEASE PRAY FOR THE SEEDS THAT WERE SOWN, WHILE I WAS AT BEREAN, TO BRING FORTH FRUIT THAT WILL LEAD TO GREATER COMMITMENT FOR CHRIST AND THE CAUSE OF CHRIST IN THE WORLD!

It was a real treat and a privilege to be able to preach at Harvest Baptist Church in Daly City, CA for their Tenth Anniversary today. Pastor Winiel Pechardo, who started the church ten years ago, is a dear friend of ours. In fact, Pastor Winiel Pechardo pastored our Filipino Ministry for five years prior to starting the church in Daly City. When he left our church, I took over the Filipino Ministry and pastored it for five years!  The church auditorium was packed to overflowing. There were many new visitors. In fact, I was told there were 52 new visitors. As always, the music was tremendous. The response to my message was great. Nine people made professions of faith after my message. And we had a great time of food and fellowship after the morning service. I also preached for their evening service!

PLEASE PRAY FOR PASTOR PECHARDO AND THE HARVEST BAPTIST CHURCH FAMILY!

If you have been following our updates for a while, you will be very familiar with our new church plant in Steung Meanchey, Cambodia and the names Kosal, Vannak, and Man. For nearly two years, while my wife and I were serving in Cambodia, I had the privilege and pleasure to work with and alongside of these young men. These men not only love Christ, are committed to the cause of Christ, but they are zealous for reaching Cambodia for Christ. Along with other responsibilities they have serving with our team in Cambodia, they are doing a great job with the new church plant in Steung Meanchey!

PLEASE CONTINUE TO PRAY FOR OUR MINISTRY IN STEUNG MEANCHEY, CAMBODIA!

My wife and I want to thank you all, once again, for your faithful prayers and financial support over the years!

Johnny and Denise Esposito

These llamas, in the picture above, were the first thing I saw as I walked out of my room in Stockton, Missouri the first morning there. They were staring at me intently. I have a feeling they could tell I was a “foreigner.” 🙂

The past few weeks have been blessed and busy. I have had the opportunity to preach in six different churches, teach in two different Bible colleges, and preach two chapel services for a Christian Academy, and two more for the Agape Boy’s Home!

As always, it was a tremendous blessing for my wife and me to be with our dear friend Pastor Kirk Beard and his family, along with the Parkway Baptist Church family (Hemet, CA) on the morning of New Year’s Day. This is a church that I have preached for nearly every year of its existence (about 16 years I believe), other than the years that I have been in Southeast Asia. It’s a great and growing church and God has blessed them mightily!

On Sunday evening, my wife and I had the privilege to be with another dear friend and his church family. Pastor Jayson Brown, his family, and the staff of Victory Baptist Church in El Cajon, CA are doing a fantastic job or, should I say, God is doing a fantastic job through them. I always enjoy preaching for them, as well as fellowshipping with Pastor Brown and his folks!

Another good church in Southern California is the International Bible Baptist Church. They are in National City, just outside of San Diego. My wife and I had the privilege of being with them for their last mid-week service of the year. As always, they were very responsive to the message that I preached. Pastor Plata, a friend for years, has faithfully served this church family and community for many years. He even has two of his young people attending our Bible college in Long Beach. They are great girls!

While there, I had a chance to meet, or should I say, become reacquainted with a young lady named Raechel. She believes the Lord would have her serve someday on the mission field as a medical missionary. I gave her a copy of the book Peeking Through the 10/40 Window.

PLEASE PRAY FOR THESE THREE CHURCHES IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA TO CONTINUE TO REACH THEIR COMMUNITY FOR CHRIST AND FOR THE MESSAGES THAT I PREACHED FOR THEM TO BRING FORTH LASTING FRUIT!

It had been nearly 15 years since I’ve been with, and preached for, the Agape Baptist Church and the Agape Boy’s Home. What an amazing work they have going on in the middle of nowhere. Well, it’s actually Stockton, Missouri, but for an old city boy, it sure seems like nowhere. I had the opportunity to present our work and preach for the church family. My dear friend Pastor Joe Grande is now pastoring the church. For many years, Pastor Grande pastored in Bakersfield, CA and taught for about seven or eight years at our Bible College when I was the Vice-President. In addition to preaching for the church, I also preached for their Academy twice and for the Boy’s Home twice. Enjoyed spending time with long-time friends, Brother Jim Clemenson, Brother Darrell Moore, and Brother Alan Clemenson.

I enjoyed spending all day Sunday at the Heritage Baptist Church in Lawrence, Kansas. This is a tremendous church pastored by a good man. Pastor Hanks has been in Lawrence for over 20 years and is doing a great job. I also had the opportunity and the privilege to teach in their Bible college on Monday and Tuesday!

It was a tremendous blessing to spend a few days with Pastor Mike Wells and the Parkside Baptist Church, as well as the Lone Star Baptist Bible College. Pastor Wells is a pastor with a heart for missions, and especially for Asia. I believe he has made over 50 trips to the Philippines and other countries in Asia, including Cambodia. Pastor Wells has been doing Pastor’s Conferences in the Philippines on a yearly basis. I was able to preach for their church services on both Sunday AM and Sunday PM. In addition, I preached for their college and high school students and taught in their college. It was a great experience. We had a handful of students surrender to serve on the mission field during the chapel service. Met a lot of great folks. Had a really good time!

PLEASE PRAY FOR THESE THREE CHURCHES TO REACH THEIR COMMUNITIES FOR CHRIST AND FOR ALL OF THE YOUNG PEOPLE IN THE SCHOOLS, THE BOY’S HOME, AND THE BIBLE COLLEGES THAT I HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO PREACH FOR TO FIND, FOLLOW, AND FINISH THE WILL OF GOD FOR THEIR LIVES!

God is doing so many wonderful things with and through our team in Phnom Penh, Cambodia and in the surrounding Provinces. While we have had a Bible Institute for quite some time, we just opened up a brand new Bible college. This is what our team leader in Cambodia noted in his most recent Prayer Update:

“We are greatly anticipating the opening day of our Bible college this coming week! We are planning to have 7-8 full-time students and 5 part-time students who will begin classes on Monday. We are also looking forward to the Bible Institute resuming classes on Monday afternoon with 39-40 students. We have other folks who desire to take classes but are unable to at this time because of their work schedules. This term we will be offering the following classes between the College and Bible Institute: Spiritual Warfare, Bible Doctrines 1, The Book of Matthew, John’s Epistles, The Book of James, The Christian Family, and English. This is a huge undertaking for us but it is vital that we train up the next generation of national leaders.”

As far as the college, I believe they had 10-12 students for the opening day of classes. According to Brother Board, the College students will be in class 16 hours per week and serving n the ministry many hours above that. They will be serving with the new church plant in Steung Meanchey, with our church in Phnom Penh, as well as with the church in Psa Thrict. This schedule leaves them with literally no time to earn an income. While the students are NOT being charged to attend classes, they will need to come up with their own transportation, food costs, and just an additional few dollars a week. Our ministry is trying to raise $75.00 a month per student. Of this, $25 per month will be set aside for two different missions trips per year (i.e. Vietnam and Laos), as well as helping to pay for books for their classes. The other $50 will be used for their monthly living expenses.

IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN SPONSORING ONE OF THESE WORTHY COLLEGE STUDENTS PLEASE LET ME KNOW BY SHOOTING ME AN EMAIL!!!

PLEASE PRAY FOR GOD’S HAND OF FAVOR ON OUR TEAM IN CAMBODIA AND THE NEW PACIFIC BAPTIST BIBLE COLLEGE AND THE MANY LIVES WHO WILL BE TOUCHED BECAUSE OF THIS NEW MINISTRY!

Over the past few weeks, I have shown our video, “The Devils Dirty Little Secret” many times in church services, as well as school and Bible college chapels. If you’ve never seen it yet, I encourage you to check it out!

Denise and I want to thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your prayers and financial support. We couldn’t do what we are doing without you!

Johnny and Denise

Recently, I received this picture of grandma Bouenseng and a text from my buddy Vannak in Cambodia. For nearly two years he was my faithful soul-winning partner, and for close to 18 months I spent time with him and his brother Man in discipleship sessions. With the picture was a brief text that simply said, “She said hello and pray for her spiritual and physical health.”

Vannak and I had the opportunity to lead grandma to Christ about 18 months ago. I am so thankful for those who are willing to leave the comforts of home to bring the Gospel to folks like grandma who have very little, if any, chance of hearing the Good News of Jesus Christ!

PLEASE PRAY FOR GRANDMA’S SPIRITUAL AND PHYSICAL CONDITION AND FOR GOD TO CONTINUE TO USE OUR TEAM IN CAMBODIA TO REACH MANY MORE GRANDMA’S FOR JESUS!

The month of December was a busy one to say the least. We were in six different churches. My wife was in the Emergency Room twice, a Medical Clinic once, and we both had a few doctor’s appointments.  Regrettably, because my wife and I were in the Emergency Room we had to cancel our preaching at Liberty Baptist Church in Newport Beach. Thankfully, our dear friend Pastor Ryan Thompson understood and was ready to preach. I was told God moved in a special way as he preached from the life of Job. That’s what you call the providence of God right there. Also, grateful that we were able to reschedule for next month!

PLEASE PRAY FOR MY WIFE’S HEALTH AS THEY CONTINUE TO DO TESTS TO FIND OUT THE EXACT PROBLEM!

We just passed the three month mark of being back in the States. It seems like it’s been an eternity since arriving back here. While we definitely miss being on the field, it has been nice to spend time with family during the Christmas season. It has been a while (three years to be exact) since we have been with our children, grandchildren, my siblings, and their families, during this time of the year. Needless to say, it was a very special time for us.

Over the past three weeks we were able to preach for Pacific Baptist Church of Long Beach (Pastor Meyers) twice, Pacific Baptist Church of Monterey Park (Pastor Kyle Beck), as well as preach for the Pacific Baptist Grade School Chapel twice and the High School chapel once. During the High school chapel service at Pacific, I asked Brother Adrian Torres to give a brief testimony about serving on the field. He did a wonderful job. Adrian is a graduate of our high school and college. He has served faithfully in Cambodia now for about four years. He is on a brief trip to the States and returns to Cambodia in a about two weeks!

PLEASE PRAY THAT GOD WILL USE THE MESSAGES THAT I PREACHED, ADRIAN’S TESTIMONY, AND THE REFUGEE VIDEO TO STIR HEARTS FOR CHRIST AND THE CAUSE OF CHRIST AROUND THE WORLD!

During the high school chapel service, I also showed a brief video that my wife recently put together dealing with the Refugee Crisis in the Middle East. As you well know, the Refugee Crisis is heartbreaking and deserves our prayer and attention at the least. I believe God really used the video to speak to many of our young people’s hearts. You can check it out below.

Syrian Refugee Crisis from carrithelight on Vimeo.

PLEASE PRAY FOR THE REFUGEES AND FOR GOD TO USE THIS TRAGEDY TO BRING MANY OF THEM TO A SAVING KNOWLEDGE OF JESUS CHRIST! 

I also had the privilege of presenting and preaching for Berean Bible Baptist Church (Pastor Feisco) of East Los Angeles and Berean Bible Baptist Church (Pastor Reinosa) of El Monte. Both of these churches were planted over the past few years by Berean Bible Baptist Church of Duarte (Pastor Stokes). You’ll remember we were with that church family last month. I also reported at First Baptist Church of Long Beach (Pastor Delaney). It’s always a joy and a blessing to be at First Baptist Church. All of these men are doing a great job for Jesus!

PLEASE PRAY THAT GOD WILL BRING FORTH FRUIT FROM  OUR TIMES WITH THESE CHURCHES AND THAT GOD WILL CONTINUE TO BLESS THEM AS THEY LABOR IN THEIR PART OF THE HARVEST OF GOD!

While here in the States, along with reporting to many of our supporting churches and attempting to raise some additional support for our next move with Christ in the 1040 Window, I am thankful that I have the opportunity to be used by God, in preaching and counseling, to enlist, encourage, and help others who are “wrestling with God” about the mission field. In just the past few weeks I have had quite a few sit down meetings with folks who are considering going to Guatemala, Cambodia, China, and other countries of the world. One of the meetings that I was privileged to have was with eight young people from Pacific Baptist Church who are seriously considering giving their lives to serve in the country of China. I am praying that God will have His way in each of these young people’s lives!

I gave a copy of the book Keep the Dream Alive to one of the men (not pictured) who I had the opportunity to sit down with for a time of fellowship and some counseling about his future. He read the entire book that evening. Here is an excerpt from a text message I received from him the next day:

“I finished Keep the Dream Alive last night. And to be honest, I hate it! I hate it when God prods and pricks my heart. That burning sensation that convicts me, but I am so inspired and motivated to GO! Please pray for me … I truly believe God is laying the groundwork for me to GO.”

If God could use our trip to the States and the books I have written to inspire one young person to give their life to Christ and the cause of Christ it will be worth it all.

PLEASE PRAY FOR OUR TIME IN THE STATES TO BE FRUITFUL FOR GOD!

I am looking forward to a brief trip to Missouri and Texas in January. I definitely covet your prayers as I will be preaching and teaching at a few churches, two Bible colleges, and a Boy’s and Girl’s Home. No doubt, there will be a lot of young people and a lot of potential in these few meetings. On this trip, I will be giving away many copies of the book Keep the Dream Alive to young people. We will be praying that God will stir hearts for Christ and the cause of Christ. Please pray with us!

PLEASE PRAY FOR THIS TRIP!

My wife and I sincerely appreciate your prayers and faithful support.

Johnny and Denise Esposito

PS If you haven’t checked out our new website, Peeking Through the 1040 Window recently, I encourage you to check it out. Just click the link below.  

https://peekingthroughthe1040window.wordpress.com/

My wife and me with our eldest granddaughter Abigail

My wife and I want to wish all of our family, friends, and faithful supporters a very Merry Christmas! Christmas is such a wonderful time of the year. It’s a time to reflect on the incarnation of Christ. A time to meditate upon the free gift of salvation that has been offered to all. A time to remember God’s goodness in our lives. Christmas is a time to spend with family and friends who are closest to us.

Christmas, for those of us who serve as missionaries, is another opportunity to say “Thank You” to all of you who faithfully pray for us. To say “Thank you” to all of you who financially support us and make it possible for us to do what God has led us to do.  To say “Thank You” to all of you who send us encouraging emails, text messages, etc.

Rather than giving you a regular update of what God has been doing the past few weeks, we just wanted to say “THANK YOU!”

Thank you for loving Jesus. Thank you for your commitment to Christ and the cause of Christ, not only here at home, but around the world!

Merry Christmas,

Johnny and Denise Esposito

Psalm 67

While my wife and I desperately miss being in Asia, we are extremely grateful for the opportunity to report to some of our supporting churches, as well as to have the responsibility to try to influence brothers and sisters in Christ to pray for, give to, and seriously consider going to serve Christ in the area of the world known as the 1040 Window! The picture above was taken as we were leaving Cambodia, almost three months ago, heading to the States. We sure miss the folks in Southeast Asia!

My wife and I are launching a new website called “Peeking Through the 10/40 Window.” You can check it out by going to www.peekingthroughthe1040window.wordpress.com. It is a site dedicated to informing folks about the great need in the 10/40 Window, as well as inspiring them to pray for, give to, and prayerfully consider going to serve in the 10/40 Window. The picture above was taken about three months ago—while I was returning from a preaching meeting in Vientiane, Laos. That evening, and on one other occasion, I saw eight young Mormon missionaries. This is more than double the IB missionaries (American and Filipino) in the same city! There is a great need for young men and women, who know the Lord Jesus, to give their lives for the sake of the Gospel in the neediest area of the world. The 10/40 Window!

PLEASE PRAY FOR GOD TO MOVE MEN AND WOMEN TO PRAY FOR, GIVE TO, AND GO AND SERVE IN THE 10/40 WINDOW!

It was a special blessing to be with the Menifee Baptist Church and Pastor Pat Cook. I have known Pastor Cook for well over 15 years, since his high school days. He played basketball, among other sports, for the Faith Baptist Swordsmen and they were our “cross town” rivals when I coached our basketball team. Talk about some classic games. Oh, my! I had the opportunity to present and preach for his church’s third anniversary. It was a special time and they were extremely generous to us!

PLEASE PRAY FOR PASTOR COOK AND HIS CONGREGATION AS THEY ATTEMPT TO REACH THEIR VASTLY EXPANDING AREA IN SOUTHERN CA!

It’s always a blessing to be with Pastor Barrera and the Berean Bible Baptist Church in Chula Vista, CA. They are one of the first churches to ever start supporting us and have been dear friends in the ministry for many years. I am impressed with their desire to reach out to Foreign Exchange students with the Gospel message. Pastor’s kids also did a great job keeping my grandchildren, Hannah and Sammy, entertained at In-N-Out!

PLEASE PRAY FOR THIS CHURCH FAMILY AS THEY SEEK TO DO WHAT VERY FEW ARE DOING: REACHING OUT TO THE UNREACHED HERE IN AMERICA!

Another church and pastor that have been our friends and supporters for many years now is the Berean Bible Baptist Church of Duarte, CA and Pastor Richard Stokes. This is a great church and they have planted three new churches in the East Los Angeles area over the past five years. It’s always a real joy to spend time with this church family and to preach in their services. I had the privilege to preach for their Thanksgiving service. It was a tremendous night of singing, testifying, and hopefully the preaching was a blessing.  Oh yeah, their pulpit is ridiculous!!! 🙂

PLEASE PRAY THAT GOD WILL CONTINUE TO BLESS PASTOR RICHARD STOKES AND THE BEREAN BIBLE BAPTIST CHURCH OF DUARTE AND THEIR SISTER CHURCHES!

Most of you probably do not know this, but my brother (Pastor Joe) and I first started attending a Baptist church about 37 years ago. The church was Gethsemane Baptist Temple, at the time they were located in Paramount, CA. Today, the church is called Gethsemane Baptist Church and they are located in Long Beach, CA now. They have been our friends for many years and have been supporting my wife and me from almost the very beginning. It was a blessing to be with them recently and teach their teen SS class, as well as preach for their main service. Their music was fantastic!

PLEASE PRAY THAT GOD WILL CONTINUE TO USE PASTOR ELY REYNOLDS AND THE GETHSEMANE BAPTIST CHURCH TO REACH THEIR COMMUNITY FOR CHRIST!

The very first church to start supporting my wife and me was Faith Baptist Church of Wildomar. Pastor Bruce Goddard has been our dear friend and fellow laborer for over thirty years now. FBC is a soul-winning church! The week before I was with them, they had a great evangelistic push in which they preached the Gospel to over 6,000 people in many different locations in the San Diego area. It’s always a blessing to preach for these folks. They love Jesus. They love souls. And they love preaching!

PLEASE PRAY THAT GOD WILL CONTINUE TO BLESS PASTOR GODDARD AND THE FAITH BAPTIST CHURCH OF WILDOMAR AS THEY SEEK TO REACH THEIR COMMUNITY FOR CHRIST!

Well my baby, Joy, got married. Joy and Chris Ayala tied the knot on Saturday, November 26. In the picture below of the wedding party, you’ll find 4 of 5 of our children, their spouses, and 14 of our 17 grandchildren. Of course, it was a bittersweet moment for me. I am grateful for God’s goodness and grace in our family. Grateful for my daughter and her husband doing it right. And so very grateful for the fact that all five of my adult children, by God’s grace, are serving God full-time!

My wife and I, once again, want to thank all of you for your prayers, your emails of encouragement, and your financial support. We could not do what we are doing without you prayers, encouragement, and support!

Johnny & Denise

The last three weeks have been very busy. We have been in seven different churches and I have had the privilege to preach for six of them. In addition to this, my second youngest grandchild, Emma, was hospitalized for ten days. During this time period, she was in three hospitals, including Stanford for seven days. My wife and I, along with Emma’s parents, are thankful for the prayers of many and for those who helped her parents financially.

PLEASE CONTINUE TO PRAY FOR EMMA’S RECOVERY!

It was a tremendous blessing to be able to be with some of our dear friends and the churches that they have been entrusted by God to pastor. Pastor Rick Owens (Victory Baptist Church), Pastor Tim Ruhl (Pleasant Valley Baptist Church), Pastor Winiel Pechardo (Harvest Baptist Church), Pastor Art Maricle (New Hope Baptist Church), Pastor Mike Ray (Hopewell Baptist Church), Pastor John Evertson (West Valley Baptist Church), and my son-in-law Pastor Josh Aquino (Lighthouse) and their church families were a tremendous encouragement and blessing to us.

PLEASE PRAY THAT GOD WILL USE THESE MEETINGS TO INSPIRE YOUNG AND OLD ALIKE TO PRAY MORE, GIVE MORE, AND IN SOME CASES, BE WILLING TO GO TO THE 1040 WINDOW!

While doing an all-day Missions’ Emphasis at West Valley Baptist Church (Pastor Evertson), I was introduced to a few young people who had surrendered to serve the Lord on the Mission Field, including a nine-year old boy named Jack. After the morning service, I gave them all a copy of the book “Keep the Dream Alive.” Just before the evening service, Jack came to me and said he had been reading the book that afternoon and his eyes were glued to it. The next day I received an email from Jack, which said: “This is Jack Gerbitz and I just wanted to tell you thank you for the book. I loved the testimony of Pastor Esposito. I might go to China to keep the dream alive with my friend Aydin. He said he would like to go there too.” NOT BAD FOR A NINE-YEAR OLD BOY!

PLEASE PRAY FOR JACK AND OTHERS WHO GOD WILL SPEAK TO, IN ONE WAY OR ANOTHER, DURING OUR TIME IN THE STATES!

Once you have been serving on the field and grow to love a people it’s hard not to have them on your mind. There’s seldom a day that goes by that I do not think of, and pray for, our folks in Cambodia and Laos. It has been a real blessing to be kept updated on a regular basis of what is going on in Southeast Asia, especially in Cambodia. It was a joy to hear that our new church plant in Steung Meanchey is continuing to do well and to hear that the recent Youth Conference our team held in Phnom Penh was greatly blessed by God!

PLEASE CONTINUE TO PRAY FOR OUR TEAMS AND THE VARIOUS WORKS IN SOUTHEAST ASIA!

I know many of you pray regularly for my brother, Pastor Joe, and his wife Mary. We are all extremely grateful for those prayers. Very seldom do I go to a church and not have many people come and tell me they have been praying for him and his wife. With that in mind, I thought you might get a kick out of this. My brother and I are originally from Chicago and are Chicago Cubs fans, he, even more than myself. Well, this year, for the first time since 1908, the Cubs won the World Series. Pastor Joe had the chance to watch a few of the games. And I think he was a bit excited about their World Series Championship victory!

PLEASE CONTINUE TO PRAY FOR PASTOR JOE, MARY, AND THE FAMILY! 

My wife and I would like to thank you for your faithful prayer and financial support. We couldn’t do what we do without your prayers and your support.

Johnny and Denise

Over the past few years, the new president of China has been “tightening the screws” and religious persecution has been on the increase. Just a few weeks ago, a friend of ours (serving in the country about 20 years) had the church he started and is pastoring raided by the police. A couple months before that, another friend of ours (serving in the country over ten years) came under investigation and turned the work over to a national serving alongside him. And, just a month or two before that, another missionary who had been serving in the country for over 20 years was kicked out of the country. The new president has vowed to kick all the foreign missionaries out of the country by 2017.

PLEASE PRAY FOR THE PEOPLE OF CHINA AND FOR THE CHURCHES THAT ARE BEING PERSECUTED!

It has been a real blessing to be with our family, friends, and many of our faithful supporters the past two weeks. Over the past two weeks I have had the opportunity to be in five different churches. Three of these churches (First Baptist Church of Geneseo, Illinois, Faith Baptist Church of Bourbonnais, Illinois and Lewis Avenue Baptist Church of Toledo, Ohio) are supporting churches and two of them (Cross Point Baptist Church, Davenport, Iowa and Sheridan Road Baptist Church of Saginaw, Michigan) are not. It looks as if both of these churches will be taking us on!

PLEASE PRAY THAT GOD WILL TAKE THE SEEDS WE SOWED AT THESE CHURCHES AND BRING AN INCREASE FOR HIS GLORY!

While at Sheridan Road Baptist Church (Pastor Lou Jurva), it was a blessing to see a picture of the Board family on their Missions’ Wall. We are so grateful for the many years of service of Dave and Debbie Board at Pacific Baptist Church in Long Beach. And now, for many years, their faithful service in Cambodia leading our team in this needy country. By the way, the picture below is an old one. Dave Board looks much older today, but Mrs. Board hasn’t aged at all! 🙂

PLEASE CONTINUE TO PRAY FOR THE BOARDS AND THE REST OF OUR TEAM IN CAMBODIA!

One of the many blessings during this trip was to be able to spend a few days with my niece Taryn, her husband Joel (pastor of Cross Point Baptist Church), and their three precious daughters (Angelina, Eden, and Gabby). I was reminded just how good God has been to my family since saving me 39 years ago, as a young soldier in Fort Lewis, Washington. Praise God for His goodness!

I also had the opportunity to sit in on an elementary school Bible Club in Davenport, Iowa. It was a real joy to see over 40 children in attendance and to witness the staff of the school leading the students in a time of singing to the Lord and teaching of the Word of God! A couple days later Pastor Kobernat and I, after a time of soul winning, stopped by a school fair and had the opportunity to talk to the school principal for quite some time. She was even passing out invites for Cross Point Baptist Church to some of the students. 🙂

PLEASE PRAY THAT GOD WILL CONTINUE TO USE PASTOR KOBERNAT, HIS FAMILY, AND THE CROSS POINT BAPTIST CHURCH FAMILY IN DAVENPORT, IOWA!

As I mentioned above, one of the churches that I had the opportunity to be in and preach for, was Lewis Avenue Baptist Church in Temperance, Michigan. My dear friend Pastor Steve Hobbins has been pastoring the church for nine years now. He took over for his father, Pastor Les Hobbins, who faithfully served the church for decades. This is a church that has a real heart for missions in general, and for the 10/40 Window and Unreached People Groups around the world more specifically!

On a regular basis I receive reports of what is going on in Cambodia, especially in Steung Meanchey. If you will remember, after two years or so of soul-winning and discipleship in SMC, we started a new Children’s Ministry and a new church. Both of these have been doing very well! I am so grateful for the faithfulness of the Sann brothers, Man, Kosal, and Vannak, who are leading up this ministry and God is using them in a tremendous way.

PLEASE CONTINUE TO PRAY FOR GOD’S BLESSING UPON THE MINISTRY IN STEUNG MEANCHEY, AS WELL AS OTHER AREAS OF MINISTRY IN THE COUNTRY OF CAMBODIA!

My wife and I would like to thank you all, once again, for your faithful prayers and financial support. We couldn’t serve in the 10/40 Window if it were not for your financial support and your faithful prayers!

Johnny and Denise

My wife and I are in the Midwest now! Before I go any further, I simply have to say this, after living the past 3 ½ years in Southeast Asia and now back in the United States for the past 3 ½ weeks, I can honestly say, “America, you have been blessed.” In fact, blessed beyond measure!

Our first stop on this brief trip in the Midwest was at two churches in Michigan. On Sunday morning, we had the privilege to be with Calvary Baptist Church (Pastor LaFave). A young lady (Alexus) who we have known for many years, is now a member of this church. She grew up in the church that my son-in-law Joshua Aquino pastors in Central California. Below you will see a picture of her and her husband, as well as a picture of a nice note she gave us. On Sunday evening, we had the privilege to be with the Bible Baptist Church (Pastor R.G. Tharp). I had the opportunity and privilege not only to present our ministry but to preach.

We then went south to the Homecoming Conference in Hammond, Indiana hosted by the First Baptist Church and our dear friend of many years Pastor John Wilkerson. It was a blessing to see so many friends from the past, to hear great preaching, and to have the opportunity to share our burden for the 10/40 Window during chapel at Hyles-Anderson College. It really was a time of great refreshing for both of us. While at the college, two young men (students at the college) named Goishi and Brett came up to me and told me they had surrendered to serve the Lord full-time when I had preached at their home church. Goishi, who is from Michigan, surrendered to go to Japan as a missionary when I preached a missions message at his church. I also had the privilege to donate 65 copies of the book “Keep the Dream Alive”to the missions students of the college!

The picture above is a picture of the first house that my wife and I lived in after getting married 34 years ago. We lived downstairs. After the trip to Indiana, my wife and I headed back to Michigan once again. We were with my wife’s home church, Metro Baptist in Belleville, Michigan. I had the privilege to preach for them on Wednesday evening, as well as Sunday morning and Sunday evening. Over 40 years ago, my wife, as 12 year old girl, was reached through the bus ministry of MBC.

The pictures above are Pastor Vaprezsan, who started Metro Baptist Church over 40 years ago and continues to pastor it to this day. He is standing next to a man I went to Bible college with over 34 years ago. We had the opportunity to go out soul winning together on Saturday!  Also, above you will find a picture of Mrs. Vaprezsan, my wife, her mother, and Denise’s former Sunday school teacher. She taught Denise over 40 years ago.

PLEASE CONTINUE TO PRAY FOR SAFE TRAVELS AND A FRUITFUL TRIP IN THE MIDWEST!

Denise and I thank you for your prayers and financial support. We couldn’t do what God is allowing us to do if it weren’t for folks like you and churches like yours. We love you all and thank God for you,

Johnny and Denise

My wife and I have been in the States for exactly two weeks now and it’s been a busy and blessed two weeks. I am typing this from the airport in Los Angeles. My wife and I are heading to the Midwest for one month. I will be in nine different churches in four different states during that time span.

Please pray for this to be a fruitful trip!

We just concluded the Missions’ Revival at Pacific Baptist Church in Long Beach (Pastor Steve Meyers/Pastor Joe Esposito) and Pacific Baptist Church in Monterey Park (Pastor Kyle Beck). Pastor Meyers and Pastor Beck, along with their staff, are doing a great job. As always, it was a wonderful time. It was a blessing to see so many brothers and sisters in Christ who I had the privilege to labor with for 18 years. Both of the churches had great crowds, a great spirit, great singing, and a great response to the  many messages. I preached a total of nine times in seven days for the two churches!

Please pray that God will continue to bless and use both of these churches in this matter of the Great Commission!

In addition to preaching for the two churches, I had the wonderful privilege to teach a four-day intensive at Pacific Baptist Bible College and preach for their chapel service three times. It’s always a blessing to teach and preach for the college, but I do believe this year might have been better than ever. My nephew, Joseph (Pastor Joe’s eldest son), and my son Jeremy are doing a great job in the college. The students were extremely attentive and many made decisions. Many of them are seriously considering serving on the mission field!

Please pray that God will raise up many young men and women from PBBC to be faithful laborers for the great harvest fields of the world!

I also had the privilege to preach for our Pacific Baptist Grade School chapel and our 7-12 grade chapel service. My wife and I were the school administrators for almost 18 years at Pacific Baptist School and it’s always a blessing to go back and see how the young people have grown and matured.

Please pray that God will use these young people for His glory!

Of course, another blessing of being at Pacific is to be able to spend time with four of our five children and 12 of our 17 grandchildren. Denise and I have a daughter who is married to a pastor in Central California, but our other four children (three married) are staff members at Pacific Baptist. My youngest daughter Joy will be getting married in about two months, and Lord willing her and her future husband Chris will be going to serve in the needy harvest fields of China! The picture below is two of my three sons and SOME of my grandsons. 🙂

Of course, I also had the opportunity to visit with my brother, Pastor Joe, a few times while in the area. It’s great to see him smile when something funny is said and give a thumbs up concerning ministry reports. While we are definitely grateful for the progress God has allowed him to make over the past three years (he wasn’t supposed to survive the first 24 hours), we are still praying for a full recovery. We are all grateful for your continual prayers for Pastor Joe, his wife Mary, and the rest of the family!

Please continue to pray for Pastor Joe, Mary, their family, and the Pacific Baptist Church family!

Denise and I want to thank you for your faithful and consistent prayer and financial support. We couldn’t serve without you!!!

Johnny and Denise