THE SEAS ARE TREACHEROUS, the destination uncertain. Upon arrival in a strange city, refugees wait in crowded camps with only what they could carry as earthly possessions—thousands have made this journey from their homelands, looking for a better life.
Driven by war, famine, persecution, and hopelessness, more than 1.6 million people have arrived by sea on Europe’s shores since 2014. Many come from Syria, Afghanistan, and Iraq, along with those from Africa. While world leaders struggle to meet the needs of such a great migration of peoples, the urgency for many is just to stay alive.
As God looks down at the suffering, He sees individuals, not numbers. In His eye is a precious soul He created and for whom He gave His greatest gift.
As God’s instruments of love in this world, Christians must take up the challenge He has placed before them. Putting aside racial and cultural differences and seeing these displaced ones through the eyes of the Savior, we must offer them the Bread of Life and the Living Water—and we must do it with a loving acknowledgment of their physical needs. This is being done by believers in Europe—from the shores of the Aegean Sea in Greece to the northern cities of Scandinavia—with World Missionary Press as an active partner.
The IL SOGGIORNO Center for Refugees and Migrants is an evangelical center for holistic ministry to Afghans, Pakistanis, and Bangladeshis in Rome, Italy. The center has received WMP Scripture booklets (primarily How to Know God) since 2000.
As the immigrant population grew, new doors opened to share the gospel. The Waldensian church in Rome asked for Scripture booklets to give out with clothes for the poor and helpless from Africa and Eastern Europe. They would like to give out Biblically-based booklets as well when people they talk to are willing to learn about the gospel.
Requests from this group in Italy began to reach WMP almost weekly. A local church south of Rome needed booklets to reach 10,000 Punjabi speakers in their town. Then, “The number of people coming to Rome is increasing,” wrote Andrew D. “We have Eritreans to reach. Please send Scripture booklets in Tigrinya.” Ten days later he requested booklets (Tigrinya, Amharic, Bengali, Urdu, Persian Farsi, Dari, Somali, Hindi, Punjabi, Arabic, French, and English) for outreach to refugees in Sicily who had arrived through North Africa.
And then a succinct, heart-felt email: “Without WMP we would not be reaching thousands of Central Asians, South Asians, and Africans in both Rome and Sicily.” And more recently, “Praise the Lord, we are encountering so many nations here in Rome now.”
In the past year WMP sent 110,526 Scripture booklets to Italy. A distributor in Naples who orders regularly has received 12,450 Scripture booklets in the past year. “We are involved in a church planting project in Naples, and where we work there are foreigners,” wrote Luca I. “We are reaching out to the community by doing a weekly book table and giving out free Christian literature, including your booklets, which are really appreciated when people see that it’s written in their own language.” Their most recent order included booklets in eleven languages.
Nadia A. in France touched the very heart of the matter when she asked for a small quantity of Scripture booklets in 14 languages. “These are all [for] the communities I have come to meet in my neighborhood asking for God. . . ,” she wrote. “I asked God to guide me to a way I could hand [out] His Word. Then you came. Thanks for giving the world a chance to know and reach God easily.”
A great majority of people coming into Europe from Syria and Afghanistan come through Greece. A ministry in Athens wrote, “We have a day center for persecuted Christian refugees in Athens, Greece, which we are currently preparing to open. We have a quiet room/study for refugees to read and study both the Bible and Greek and English. These booklets will be used in this library, both to help recent converts and also to help with practicing reading Greek and English.”
Another group of believers in Athens is from Iran; they are working to reach Arabs in Greece, Germany, and Turkey with the Word of God. They requested boxes of booklets in Farsi, Arabic, and English.
From Charles K. in Switzerland: “We are embarking on a massive evangelization in the city of Geneva and beyond, and every place the soles of our feet shall tread upon. Geneva is teeming with people of different nationalities and religious beliefs. In view of this and the Lord’s imminent coming, the onus is upon us to gather together whoever believes, for the Kingdom of our God. To do this we need materials. We shall therefore be highly grateful if you will supply us with booklets in different languages: English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, German, etc.”
And then there are reports to which we can only say, Praise God! It is His doing.
According to a report from Turkey, “Refugees are assigned by the government to cities across the nation, and believers among those placed in B___ have found each other and have formed a lively congregation. Pray that the joy and truth in the lives of these believers will overflow to the Turks around them. This province has very few known Turkish believers and has been hard soil for Christian workers.”
As immigrants move northward from Italy and Greece into Scandinavia, requests for Scripture booklets in multiple languages are coming from Norway, Sweden, and Finland. Ingrid B. wrote from a city in Sweden which has 600 refugees, “They stay for a while, and there are newcomers every week. We want to give booklets to everyone we meet in their own language.” A 20-foot container of booklets in 39 languages is ready to leave for Finland, where WMP’s national coordinator busily provides booklets in an increasing variety of languages.
When God raised up World Missionary Press to provide His Word in the languages of the world, He knew that someday people who spoke only their national language would have opportunity to share the gospel with someone who did not speak the same language. By granting WMP the privilege and means to print Scripture booklets in 346 languages, the opportunities can become encounters, and the precious seed of God’s Word can be planted.
[You can help provide God’s Word for refugees in Europe. Every donated dollar provides for the production of 27 powerful Scripture booklets in the many languages needed. An investment of $25 will reach 675 people; $100 will touch the lives of 2,700 people; $1,000 will impact 27,000 people with the transforming Word of God.]
Meet the Team
Curtis R.
Information Technology Associate
I’ve known about World Missionary Press ever since I was a child. My mother was friends with Ruth Goodman and her mother, Rose (co-founder of WMP), back in high school, and over the years I heard a lot from her about what WMP was doing. I grew up in a good Christian home, and every Sunday my parents would take my two older sisters and me to church.
While I was at Taylor University majoring in computer science, I was part of a volunteer team of two faculty and ten students from the Computer Science Department who traveled to Hong Kong, where Operation Mobilization’s ship, Logos Hope, was stationed. Our job was to develop a new internal website for the ship. That three-week trip helped me decide to be involved in missions.
I still needed to complete a summer internship as part of my graduation requirements when I heard that WMP could use an intern for their computer department, so I decided to apply. That summer I was blown away by what WMP was doing, and when the chance came to be hired after the internship, I joyfully acc
epted.
I’ve been at WMP for four years, mostly fixing computers, servers, and printers. I also do some audio/video recording, network administration, systems administration, and some software engineering. The best part of working at World Missionary Press is the people. Everyone is glad to see you. Even when things are going wrong, they still maintain a positive and prayerful attitude.
I have a lot of interests, but not anything that I feel would be classified as a hobby. I like to listen to music, read books, play board games, do research on philosophical and technological topics, and I appreciate many forms of art.
WMP Partners Around the World
Antonie B. — South Africa
Over the past 20 years World Missionary Press has provided 13 million Scripture booklets (including 1.5 million pieces of literature currently in transit) to a major partner, Every Home for Christ South Africa. For many of those years Cor and Aléta R. served as EHC’s national directors, working closely with WMP. Since taking on the responsibility of national director of EHCSA, Antonie B. continues the effective partnership with WMP.
WMP: Please describe your background and current ministry.
Antonie: I was born in 1975, the first of two brothers, with a father and mother who served the Lord through the way they lived their lives. My parents were called by God to be intercessors and prayer warriors. Even though we grew up poor, I had the opportunity to experience God’s provision on a daily basis.
My parents recalled that different pastors prophesied over my brother and me many times God’s call to the ministry to work for Him. After high school I worked seven years as supervisor for a metal manganese company before I finally answered God’s call in 2001 and enrolled in a Bible college. While a student, I was active in the local church and volunteered in the administration office of the college. I completed a course in Music Ministry and successfully completed my ministerial training. I also worked with youth in a faith mission for more than fourteen years.
When the opportunity came along to get involved in the ministry of EHCSA, I immediately knew this was what I wanted to do. After praying and seeking God’s will, I accepted the position of Project Manager. The fruit of God’s calling was evident, and today I serve as national director of EHCSA, working with churches all over South Africa.
WMP: How long have you been involved in distributing WMP literature?
Antonie: I was introduced to WMP when I started working for EHCSA in June of 2013 and began distributing WMP’s literature.
WMP: How does the availability of free literature affect evangelism in your country?
Antonie: Bibles are extremely expensive, and copyright laws on the Bible make it impossible to leave anything with individuals reached through the gospel. The 2-in-1 Way to God/Help From Above booklet has helped us in South Africa to bridge this problem. The different languages available help each person read the message of Jesus Christ in their own language, making this material a vital ingredient in our outreach operations. The fact that we can provide churches and individuals with these booklets for free has empowered and motivated churches to effectively participate in home-to-home campaigns with tenacity and motivation. People who receive the booklets are excited to have something in their hands to read.
WMP: How effective are the topical Scripture booklets in your country?
Antonie: The fact that the booklets are Word-based makes them very effective. Nothing is taken out of context. Many pastors have told me of waiting many years to have something to aid them. Many read a booklet until it literally falls apart. The booklets give believers confidence to share their faith more boldly. We connect and interact with other ministries in South Africa, providing these booklets to them as well.
Many of the Scripture verses quoted in The Way to God booklet are used in our evangelism and disciple and prayer training, reinforcing our teachings. Many do not have Bibles, and the booklets help them read the Scriptures and understand the Bible better. I believe in teaching and preaching the Word of God. It is the Word that changes people’s lives, and God graciously uses us despite our shortcomings. I have experienced first-hand how the Word has impacted people’s circumstances and changed their communities.