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2015 Summer Newsletter

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A few months ago 20 Coptic Christians from Egypt were killed mercilessly by ISIS rebels. Their stories of unwavering faith in the face of death were remarkable. They have a great cloud of witnesses, though, as examples. Our Lord walked the dusty road to Calvary, and 10 of his apostles were martyred.

In the lives of these heroes of the faith, and in the lives of many today, such courage has carried on through the ages. Unwavering faith shines through during immense struggle. In this issue of our newsletter we pay tribute to one of our own heroes, Marsha Bacon. Marsha valiantly fought cancer that ultimately took her life. Yet the impact of her unwavering faith during the last months of her life not only touched people in Joplin, but in Nairobi, Manila, and around the world! Unwavering faith is also demonstrated in the progress reports we share from Manila, Chiang Mai, Bobo- Dioulasso, and Gonaives (just these city names should indicate GNPI’s global footprint). Blended with these stories of impact is a practical tip in considering how to multiply the assets of our own families for the future.

The stakes are high as we accelerate global evangelism through media and technology. However, unwavering faith, boldness, and generosity make all the difference.

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Todd Beaverson, member of Timber Lake Christian Church in Moberly, Missouri, recently visited our Joplin office for NOMaD training before his trip to Haiti. Todd used the training to teach six students, ranging from ages 16 to 34, basic media production skills.

Todd offered this encouraging insight about the impact of project NOMaD, “One of the things about the NOMaD program that I began to realize during my class time is the fact that the impact of this program will never be known in this lifetime. How many videos will be produced? What will they be about? Who will see them? How will their lives be changed? These are some of the questions I realized I would never have answered, but I also realized that’s okay. One person plants, another waters, but ultimately it is God who gives the increase. All I can hope for is that the tools and knowledge that I left there can produce fruit.”

We praise God for the unwavering faith of partner churches, like Timber Lake, who want to empower others to spread the Gospel in their own cultures! To help train more NOMaD teams, visit www.gnpi.org/donate and type “project NOMaD” in the donation comments section.

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Our goal at GNPI-Philippines is to produce excellent, culturally relevant materials and partner with Christ-centered churches and organizations. As part of our partnerships, we share materials we’ve produced and train people in production. Produce. Partner. Train. These past few months, we were able to do all three!

Recently, we went to a church in Malolos (about 20 miles away from our office) to present the ministry to six ministers and their wives from several nearby towns. Four of the six pastors signed an on-the-spot partnership agreement to use our materials responsibly and pray for GNPI-Philippines on a regular basis. We told them the materials were theirs to use free of charge, and they really couldn’t believe it at first. We left DVD copies of more than 30 Asin at Ilaw lessons, WWJD episodes, Worship series, and the All Things New movie. A few days later I got a note from one of the pastors that they were planning to use All Things New in an upcoming evangelistic event.

My husband, Bert, and I also traveled to Quezon, about 80 miles away. The trip involved some rough roads, but allowed us to reach 14 churches that had gathered. When Bert gave them Bible study materials, their faces really lit up! They were

hungry for materials, and they felt they had just received a windfall. We pray the seeds we’ve scattered will bear fruit in due time.

Then, I did a video production workshop for 30 Christian high school students at the request of our local academy. I designed a one-week course for them, following the course outline for project NOMaD, and I asked our former staff member, Nonie, to speak about camera techniques, lighting, and audio. It was definitely fulfilling to see the kids on fire to tell their own stories on video.

Meanwhile, we are producing two more episodes of WWJD. Some of the newest episodes are Career or Calling and Social Media Addiction. We are also working on a new series, Say It Forward. These short videos allow respected Christian professionals to bring their experience and perspective to discussions of relevant social topics. The weekly online series offers a godly perspective that can lead to positive change. We plan to produce the first five talks this month.

Thanks again for this opportunity to be working hand in hand with you all. To read more about our team at GNPI-Philippines, please visit www.gnpi.org/newsletter.

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A few years ago GNPI set out on an ambitious adventure to produce a digital life of Christ series that could be used to reach people around the world in their heart language. The project, known as The Global Gospel (TGG), is definitely represented well by its title. Once completed in the world’s 25 most widely spoken languages, TGG will have a potential audience of 3.6 billion people!

We’re nearing the home stretch on these top 25 languages. In fact, 21 of the top languages have been completed or are in some part of the production process. Many have been fully funded, and some we have produced with no funding, trusting that God would later provide.

As of May 3, three languages don’t have any funding yet. Our prayer is that God would raise up special partners with a heart to reach the unreached, especially the large percentage of people who don’t

know Christ and can’t read. These visual presentations of Jesus could change their eternal destinies. Pray today about whether God might use you to fund one of the languages featured here.

These languages reach beyond the thousands of DVDs already distributed in places like India. As each is completed, they’re made available on the Internet for free download. In addition, GNPI recently introduced The Global Gospel App, available as a free Android download. (The iOS version is coming soon.)

The best is yet to come as GNPI will next extend TGG beyond the top 25 languages. In fact, nearly 50 additional languages are at some point in the production process. Stay tuned as we near the end of the beginning for The Global Gospel and continue taking the Message of Jesus to the ends of the earth!

The End of the Beginning

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GNPI continues to supply Solar Kits to Christian workers around the world. More than 400 Solar Kits have been distributed to missionaries and national evangelists in approximately 50 nations.

Currently, GNPI secures components and assembles Solar Kits in our offices in Joplin and Damoh, India. Due to a recent, generous grant, a third workshop is underway in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Tom Silkwood of GNPI-Thailand was excited to hear funds had been committed for the project. Tom said, “Praise the Lord! I have always loved GNPI’s dedication to provide the regions of the world with tools designed to work in those regions.”

The impact of Solar Kits is rapidly spreading on multiple continents. GNPI-Uganda’s Jesca Naavah is receiving positive responses from evangelists who use Solar Kits from a “lending library” they’ve set up there.

“The Solar Kit program has been a very favorable means for spreading the Gospel,” Jesca writes. “Through qualified evangelists, whom we also train to use the Solar Kits, we have been able to witness how the program has changed many people’s lives and broken down

religious boundaries. We have seen Muslims and non-Christians accept Christ.”

Tom Brane, a Christian Missionary Fellowship worker in west Africa, reports that about 30 kids were present when the Christian film started, and the crowd gradually grew to about 250 people. Tom says, “Most stood for more than two hours with their eyes glued to the movie, which was projected on a white sheet, nailed to the mud wall. When Jesus rose from the dead, everyone cheered.”

“I looked up at the stars while the movie was playing, and I couldn’t help but rejoice that the Good News was being proclaimed (thanks to you) here in Bobo-Dioulasso,” Tom said. “The God of the universe is at work in people’s hearts and minds, and who knows the impact?”

Your support makes it possible for GNPI to provide these tools for ministry. For more details about these stories, please visit www.gnpi.org/newsletter.

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On February 3, 2015, we lost a beloved friend and coworker, Marsha Bacon, to colon cancer. God has a plan for everyone. When Marsha’s story was being written, she never imagined herself moving away from her family in Indiana in 2004. She said she didn’t even know where Joplin was. Yet, it was here that Marsha fell in love with the ministry of GNPI and gave us the wonderful privilege of knowing her.

Marsha loved being our communications coordinator. She got to see, hear, and read all the stories from our regional centers and NOMaD teams. When she told these stories to us, often times her eyes would be filled with joyous tears and amazement at God’s love and grace.

We wanted to honor Marsha’s desire to glorify God, so we are highlighting some of her favorite stories, music, and photos.

To see a link to each story go to gnpi.org/newsletter.

Thank you for praying, attending, and giving at our 2015 Vision Night events. More than 450 people heard from Dr. Sergei Golovin and gave more than $110,000 to support the ministry of GNPI. Please stay tuned for more information about next year’s Vision Night - a celebration of 40 years of ministry. To see a recap of the Vision Night events, go to gnpi.org/newsletter.

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In middle school most of us learned subtraction produced a remainder and addition, a sum.

It turns out our trusted math teachers must not have known about a planning tool that not only adds to the benefits your family receives from certain assets, but actually multiplies the impact of assets in the future.

Since the late 1960s, families and individuals have been utilizing charitable remainder trusts (CRTs) to make particular types of assets have an impact far beyond what you learned in math class.

If you’d like to learn more about CRTs, start by watching a short FAQ video GNPI produced with The Steward Partnership last year. To watch the FAQ video, go to gnpi.org/newsletter. You can email us at [email protected] or call 417-782-0060.

You now have the option of setting up a direct deposit that goes straight from your bank account to ours, right from our online donation page! Just navigate to gnpi.org/donate, and select EFT as your payment type. These gifts can be deducted from your account one time, annually, quarterly, or monthly. If you would prefer a different frequency or a specific date for the transaction to take place, just give us a call at 417-782-0060, and we’ll be happy to help with that.