Sue Sprenkle

It was just a normal meeting of some Zambian pastors and a few workers from Christian organizations. When Randy Windham stood up and handed a sign-up sheet to the person next to him, they had no idea that ministry as they knew it was about to change.

Prison ministry. Sports ministry. Developing national missionaries. The dreams discussed around the table were big. International Mission Board missionaries Matt and Gretchen Clay saw the passion rising as the group of pastors and lay ministers figured out ways to introduce their North African neighbors to the Gospel. But the Clays didn’t have the resources to invest at the deep level needed by their brothers and sisters in Christ.

Michaela Knippers grabs the bulky virtual reality goggles off the desk and tightens them onto her head. Her husband, Justin, is already strapped in and waving his hand in the air to scroll through different maps he sees through the goggles.

The new college student stared at his class schedule, then looked over at the woman he calls “Mom” with an excited smile. International Mission Board missionary Angela Dawson could feel Skye’s pride of being the first person in his family to go to college. She looked at the college freshman in his new uniform and did what all mothers do on the first day of school — take a million pictures.

OKLAHOMA CITY (BP) – Like most boys at Southern Hills Baptist Church, 6-year-old Ethan Gee wanted to win the penny war against the girls.

RICHMOND, Va. (BP) -- The 2023 Lottie Moon Christmas Offering received a big boost Nov. 1 toward meeting a hefty goal of $200 million for international missions. Paul Chitwood, IMB president, received a check for $4.84 million from the Joy Ledbetter Trust. It was the second-largest individual gift in the history of the International Mission Board.

When Adela Huezo recruits a team of short-term volunteers, she’s honest about everything. She tells of the stifling heat of West Africa and long days of work.

The prayer team walked quietly through an affluent Paris shopping district. They prayed for workers in the high-end shops advertising joy through retail therapy. The team kept walking past the famous French cafés and into an upscale neighborhood.

The lanky teenager stood off to the side, watching a group of strangers move from house to house among his community in Togo. He studied them handing out a tiny pamphlet, chatting with people and then bowing their heads. He couldn’t hear the Gospel message they shared — because he was Deaf — but by their actions, he determined they were Christians.

The news was good. So exciting, in fact, that it was hard to keep it a secret. The chief officer of the Zambian women’s prison, a local believer, pulled the visiting International Mission Board missionaries into his office. He looked around conspiratorially, burst into a huge smile and said four women who attend their weekly Bible study would soon be released. They’d received a presidential pardon.