a whirlwind of activity
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Greetings Remnant Body of the Lord Jesus Christ, dear friends, and to whomever else may stumble upon this post. Grace, mercy, and peace be unto you from the Most High God and the one like the Son of man who comes with the clouds of heaven (Daniel 7:13). The Jews killed Jesus because He claimed this passage for Himself (Matthew 26:4). They were wrong; He proved He was Messiah when He rose up from the dead; and soon, very soon, He will come again, this time with the clouds of heaven: “and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him” (Revelation 1:7).
‘Tis a whirlwind of activity here in Nepal as we enter the homestretch of our time on this particular tourist visa platform. And thankfully: "The LORD hath his way in the whirlwind (Nahum 1:3). May 30th is our projected day of departure, and there is much yet that remains to be done. It seems we have little time to reflect upon the past and/or contemplate future plans; therefore, this post must, of necessity, prove uncharacteristically brief.
Since my last update of March 14th, Ricky and I have made a fruitful journey to Bangladesh; and Paul Langford, an old friend and martial arts instructor, has come to Nepal and safely returned home. Lamjung John has joyfully taken possession of and put to use a brand-new 1/2-mile hailer brought to him from America. A large amount of Project Jagerna material has been printed: 20,000 second edition Nepali Gospels of John and 25,000 Nepali-language Gospel tracts. And, preparations have been made to welcome two bold street preachers from California (Kevin Borden & Kenn Lightsey) who arrive tonight. We rejoice in anticipation of what the Lord is going to do these next two weeks as we intensively labor in partnership with these dear brothers. Please pray for us.
Again, the recap must remain brief. Thanks for all your prayers concerning our labor in Bangladesh, a true uttermost corner of the earth. The time was very fruitful, and the Lord, on one occasion, miraculously delivered Ricky and me from an angry Muslim mob who sought to beat us in response to distributing Gospel tracts. Ricky lost his backpack full of tracts and had his shirt was literally torn from his body, and I received a couple of punches to the face; but like Jesus on the brow of the hill outside Nazareth, we were able to pass through the midst of them and go our way (John 4:29-30). God was a true refuge in those moments. And, by the way, the aggressors weren’t imams or terrorists; ‘twas a crowd of normal, average Muslims displaying the core of average, everyday Islam in line with the clear teachings of the Satanic Quran (i.e. hatred of Jesus Christ, a love for violence, and savage malice toward Christian “infidels”). Notwithstanding, for four days on the streets of Dhaka, a city of 15 million people, we enjoyed an “open door of utterance to speak the mystery of Jesus Christ” (Colossians 4:3) without real hindrance. By God’s grace, we targeted four university campuses with open-air preaching and the distribution of Bangla-language Scripture portions. The preaching spurned numerous in-depth conversations with English-speaking students concerning the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and many heard the truth. A couple days after we went “fishing” on the campus of Jagannath University in Old Dhaka, some people were killed there as a huge riot broke out between students and local shopkeepers. Riot police set off tear gas and all kinds of crazy stuff. Divine Providence obviously allowed the Gospel to go in ahead of the madness; and thank God that we didn’t get caught up in the mayhem. Also, what a joy it was to preach Jesus right there in the vicinity of Dhaka University’s Jagannath Hall where the Pakistani Army, while carrying out Operation Searchlight, massacred students and teachers on the black night of March 25, 1971 (one in a long list of genocidal atrocities that the United States government willfully ignored). With grass growing over the mass graves in the backdrop, we had an interesting conversation with a local man who remembered the incident. He claimed that Bangladeshis are only 10% corrupt while Pakistanis are 90% corrupt. I asked him, “Do you think Almighty God sees a difference between 10% and 90% corruption?” Such quickly bridged to the Gospel and obvious signs of conviction on this man’s face. Please pray for his salvation. Wow, the smell of death, thirty years later, still lingered in that dark place.
If there were a portal between hell and earth, it would have to be in the Sadarghat neighborhood of Old Dhaka along the Buriganga River. But, glory to God, He allowed Ricky and me to shine some light down there. We actually hired a boat taxi to take us out on the Buriganga (a true ecological disaster; you definitely do not want to fall into that water) where we preached in the open-air to the hoards of boat-taxi passengers, barge-workers, and people gathered on the trash-laden shores. From a rickety and very wobbly wooden skiff floating atop a river of toxic sludge, we distributed 300 Bangla-language Lukes & Johns. People were shouting to one another: "They're giving away Injil-Shareefs" (i.e. Muslim term for the New Testament Gospels), and folks would come running, some into the water. Other crowded boat taxis would turn around and pull up beside us, sometimes broadsiding our skiff; and a plethora of hands would be outstretched across the water. Later, we distributed another 300 Gospel tracts in some South Dhaka back alleys: scary places where lots of Muslim eyes were watching and wondering what in the world two white people from America were doing walking alone in their neighborhood. People literally chased us down to get tracts. 'Twas a glorious afternoon in one of the world's most hellish and filthy dumps. Many heard and received the Word of God, and we encountered no trouble or hostility. The LORD is good and greatly to be praised.
After four long days on the streets of Dhaka, it was a blessing to make a lengthy journey to a village area in southwestern Bangladesh. There, we conducted a two-day sunup-to-sundown training for local pastors and new believers. About 25-30, from both Muslim and Hindu backgrounds (some of which have encountered real persecution for the cause of Jesus Christ) came to be taught in the Word. I felt awkward as some of these, who know real persecution and have truly hazarded their lives for Jesus Christ, should have been teaching me, not the other way around. Nevertheless, God’s grace was sufficient as the sessions provided sound teaching on topics such as: aspects of genuine Christian discipleship, the differences between the Bible and religion, using God’s general revelation and the law in evangelism, and the power of the Gospel as seen in the life of the Apostle Paul. I hope to have some of these sessions up for your listening enjoyment on FPGM’s podcast real soon. Ricky and I were truly blessed to be amongst these people: to fellowship with them, to eat with them, to sleep with them, and to worship with them. Oh, it was sultry hot and terribly humid; the mosquitoes were a plague; and Ricky made numerous visits to the squatty-potty as he battled a fierce bout of giardia . . . but, none of it seemed to matter. We were with God’s people, and we all were taught of the Holy Spirit through the Word. Amen.
Back in Nepal, Paul Langford arrived, carrying two of the half-mile hailers purchased by a faithful church in California. It was a whirlwind week with one of my best earthly friends as we did some preaching and distribution on the streets of Kathmandu and at a few Hindu/Buddhist religious sites. We also joined a team of faithful Nepali brothers, including Bishnu and Lamjung John, at a large festival in the Tanahu District. Paul and I had intended to put on a martial arts demonstration so as to draw a crowd for preaching, but this didn’t quite pan out and actually proved unnecessary. As multitudes exited the festival in the late afternoon, nearly 1,800 Gospels of Mark and more than a thousand Gospel tracts were freely distributed as Lamjung John tested out his new hailer and we joined him in preaching the Gospel in the open-air. The next day, we targeted some unreached villages in the Kaski District on the far side of the Seti River, going house-to-house and distributing around 350 Scripture portions. At one home, a group of women gathered, including an old woman who claimed to be 108 years old. They listened as Bishnu clearly set forth the Gospel message. This trip also allowed us to supply a couple of village laborers with materials for evangelism. So, in one week, Paul got a complete tour of Kathmandu and made a jaunt into the village.
Unfortunately, days of characteristic haze meant that he came and went without seeing the Himalaya, a true shame. Moreover, the martial arts demonstration that had been planned at a nearby school fell through as Nepalis are the world’s worst at making plans and then sticking by them. Nevertheless, it was a good time; and the fellowship with an old friend was more than invigorating ahead of the short time we have remaining in this corner of the world. Paul arrived safely in North Carolina last night; glory to God.
In 2012 alone, the LORD has been gracious to have allowed the distribution of 9,580 Project Jagerna Scripture portions and close to double that amount of Nepali Gospel tracts. One of the first things on our agenda once the boys arrive from California is to go to the local press and pick up the 20,000 Gospels of John and 25,000 Gospel tracts just completed. SOLI DEO GLORIA. Please continue to pray for God’s provision in this project. As He provides: we print; we distribute; and we supply local laborers. Year 2069 on the Nepali calendar begins on April 13th. It is our prayer that we can distribute 100,000 Nepal Scripture portions in the 2069. So, help us God.
There are a few specific things that you can help us pray about:
Please pray for the next two weeks of labor with the brethren from California. I anticipate a lot of open-air preaching and completion of our circumnavigation of Kathmandu’s Ring Road with the “Are You Ready?” cross. We also hope to make a run into a village area so as to conduct an evangelism training for local brethren. May the Lord grant us favor; and may many continue to hear the Good News of Jesus Christ in this surprisingly open third-world country.
Our tourist visas run out at the end of May. We have no choice but to leave Nepal and return to the States. The cost of airfare for Ricky and a family of five is enough to make one’s head swim. We are looking at a price-tag of around $5,000. Please pray for the Lord’s provision in terms of plane tickets.
It’s going to be a long-shot to complete our Project Jagerna translation work on Matthew and Hebrews and get an order into the press to print these editions before we leave Nepal. Notwithstanding, we are praying for this.
We need to make one more journey into Nepal’s remote Far West before we depart. Pray that God brings this together.
I will need a job when I return to America, something that will allow me to faithfully continue in my role with Full Proof Gospel Ministries. My family and I will not be able to subsist in America on what FPGM alone provides. We are already starting to pray for this provision.
And, as always, please pray “that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel” (Ephesians 6:19).
Concerning Bangladesh and recent outreach in Nepal, I could go into so much more detail unto the glory of God, but there’s no time. I trust the video clips posted below will tell more of the story. Thanks for your love, prayers, and support. We rejoice to know that so many faithful believers are holding the ropes, and we look forward to the day that we can fellowship again face-to-face.
Until then, go serve your King with boldness!
The Boyd Family & Ricky Springer