Participants:
Series Code: MTS
Program Code: MTS002606A
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00:08 A missionary couple endures a turbulent time in Cambodia.
00:12 An engineer helps build churches in Peru, 00:15 and the sights and sounds of Panama, 00:17 all this and much more coming up next. 00:53 Hello, and welcome to Mission 360°. 00:55 I'm Gary Krause. 00:56 Today's program is coming to you 00:58 from Panama City in Panama. 01:01 Panama, of course, is famous for the Panama Canal. 01:03 And I'm actually standing at the southern entrance 01:06 to this canal, the Pacific Ocean side, 01:09 and it stretches some 80 kilometers 01:12 across to the Atlantic Ocean. 01:14 This revolutionized transportation 01:17 because before this canal was built 01:20 ships had the arduous journey 01:22 of having to travel down the Pacific Coast, 01:24 all the way to Cape Horn, around Cape Horn, 01:27 up north to the United States, Northeast to Europe. 01:31 And travel time was cut tremendously, 01:34 transportation costs cut, incredibly, 01:37 and of course it came with sacrifice 01:39 the French started building the canal 01:41 back in the 1800s, 01:43 but they had to stop 01:44 because of engineering difficulties 01:46 and because so many men were dying on the job. 01:49 The United States completed the canal in 1914. 01:52 We'll be learning more about Panama 01:54 and mission in Panama on this program, 01:57 but first up let's travel to Cambodia 01:59 to learn the story of a missionary couple 02:02 who faced many challenges. 02:18 During the 1970s 02:20 it was a turbulent time in Southeast Asia. 02:22 With ongoing war in Vietnam and Cambodia. 02:26 Two young missionaries fresh out of college, 02:29 arrived in Cambodia to establish new mission work. 02:32 We got married. 02:34 And right after the honeymoon, 02:36 we came to Phnom Penh, Cambodia, 02:38 which was our mission field for five years 02:42 or so we thought. 02:44 And we set foot on this building, 02:47 which was supposed to be our honeymoon suite. 02:52 The first floor was the classrooms. 02:56 Second floor will be more classrooms, 03:00 plus the church. 03:01 Then the third floor will be the apartments 03:04 for the five student missionaries 03:06 that came from America to work here to teach English. 03:11 So the sign in front will say, 03:13 SDA English Language Institute. 03:18 On the fourth storey, 03:20 you will see the balcony that just above the flag, 03:24 and that's the place we spend a lot of time praying 03:27 because in those years, we had frequent blackouts. 03:33 We could see during the day, 03:36 F-111 Fighter Bombers coming from an angle, 03:40 swooping down, and then going up again. 03:43 And before going up, 03:45 you could see rockets being fired from the plane, 03:48 up and down, up and down. 03:50 They came in waves. 03:52 So there was the military campaigns, 03:54 and then on top, on the fourth floor, 03:58 many a times we claim Psalm 91. 04:01 "You shall not be afraid of the danger by night, 04:06 nor the arrow that flies by day." 04:09 We said, "Lord, You have promised, 04:12 we shall not be afraid of the B-52 Bombers by day 04:18 and the rockets that flew by night." 04:22 You know, the rockets were very dangerous. 04:27 And so I told my wife, there's nothing to worry about. 04:30 When you hear the sound, you are okay. 04:33 And when you don't hear the sound, 04:35 either you're alive or you're dead. 04:38 Just one of those two options. 04:39 So we're dependent on the Lord a lot 04:41 on that fourth floor balcony. 04:44 And one night, 04:46 we heard a lot of rocket fires in the cities. 04:51 So we went to the fifth floor, and we looked down. 04:55 Almost the entire outskirt of Phnom Penh was on fire. 05:00 So we said this is it. 05:02 This is it. 05:03 Whichever direction you look everywhere, 05:07 the fire. 05:10 GT, Ivy, and the student missionaries 05:13 were evacuated to Vietnam. 05:15 But their story didn't end there. 05:17 They prepare to return to Cambodia 05:18 and face new challenges. 05:27 I'm in Panama City in the country of Panama. 05:30 And my guest is the President 05:32 of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Panama, 05:34 Pastor Jose de Gracia, 05:36 thank you so much for joining us today. 05:39 Can you please describe for me the territory of Panama 05:42 where the church is operating? 05:47 Panama extents 75,000 square kilometers 05:53 with more than 4 million people living in the country. 05:58 Panama is mostly a cosmopolitan country, 06:02 all nationalities live in Panama. 06:05 It's a melting pot. 06:07 Many people are attracted here because of the Panama Canal. 06:13 When you look around you see many kinds of people. 06:18 And that's a good thing. 06:21 We love each ethnicity, 06:23 and we can live together in peace. 06:28 This is also a country with religious liberty. 06:33 We can preach, 06:35 we can hold church services in public squares. 06:40 Wherever we want, we can preach the Word of God, 06:43 and there's tolerance. 06:47 Now, what are the major challenges 06:51 that you face as a church here in Panama? 06:56 Our greatest challenge is to reach the city. 06:59 On average, 200 to 300 families 07:02 live in each of the buildings behind us. 07:06 Our greatest challenge is to know 07:09 how to bring the Adventist message 07:11 to the people in the city. 07:15 So we carefully plan to reach to people 07:17 who live in these apartment buildings. 07:23 There are more than 2 million people 07:25 in the capital city of Panama. 07:28 That's half of all the country's population 07:31 in one city. 07:37 Big challenge. 07:38 Big challenge. 07:40 So, Pastor, what sorts of things 07:42 are you doing in the city to try to reach the people? 07:48 We're working to start small groups 07:50 inside each building, 07:53 meeting people and making friends 07:56 with the residents in the apartment complex. 08:01 We hold weekly meetings and recreating strategies 08:04 to reach the entire population, 08:09 through initiatives like 08:10 feeding the needy with missionary soup. 08:16 We also have the missionary taxi ministry 08:19 and other creative outreach initiatives around the city. 08:27 So can you tell me an experience of somebody 08:31 who has been influenced by the taxi ministry? 08:39 So we have a taxi ministry. 08:41 Every Adventist member 08:43 who owns transportation vehicles in Panama, 08:46 have a label that says 08:48 safe taxi Seventh-day Adventist Church. 08:55 When a passenger enters the taxi, 08:58 the drivers play a CD or a cassette tape 09:01 to welcome the rider. 09:03 The message says welcome Mr. Passenger. 09:06 You have gotten into a safe taxi, 09:09 an Adventist taxi. 09:13 We want to encourage you to love Jesus 09:15 and study His Word. 09:18 Then a message of inspiration plays 09:21 to leave a positive impression on the passenger's mind. 09:26 On Fridays, the last taxi ride is free of charge. 09:30 This way the driver has an opportunity 09:32 to explain that the Sabbath begins after this last ride. 09:41 The Sabbath. 09:43 Yes, it's free of charge because of the Sabbath. 09:47 So the Adventist taxi drivers tell the passengers 09:50 this ride will cost you nothing 09:52 because I've dedicated this ride to God. 09:56 And they go out of their way to help passengers 09:58 with heavy luggage and suitcases 10:01 like carrying them to their door. 10:03 Then the driver waves goodbye and explains 10:06 that they're going home to enjoy the Lord's Day. 10:10 Oh, very nice. 10:12 Now, Pastor, I know 10:13 that Christ's method of ministry 10:15 is very important to you. 10:17 Why is Christ's method so, such a priority? 10:25 Sister Ellen White explains 10:27 Christ's method is the only one that gets true results. 10:32 Christ's method is the best approach, 10:35 that's why pastors, laymen, elders, deacons, 10:39 every member here 10:40 is emphasizing Christ's method of ministering. 10:44 To befriend people, supply their needs, 10:47 show love and sympathy 10:49 and only then we can invite people to follow Jesus. 10:55 Then people come to church 10:57 and stay to receive God's blessing. 11:01 This is our emphasis here at the Panama Union. 11:06 Wonderful. 11:08 So what are your hopes for the future of the church 11:11 here in Panama? 11:14 My hope for my country is to preach the gospel quickly 11:18 that Jesus may come soon. 11:22 To preach the gospel to four and half million people 11:25 is one of the greatest challenges we have. 11:29 But in the end, I want to shout with my church. 11:33 We have finished the gospel preaching in Panama. 11:37 That's my hope. 11:38 That's my challenge. 11:39 That's my passion, 11:42 to work until the gospel's finally preached to everyone 11:45 in all of Panama. 11:50 Gracias, Pastor. 11:51 Thank you for sharing with us today. 11:52 Thank you. Thank you. 11:54 Viewers at home, please pray for the church 11:56 here in Panama pray, 11:57 pray for the pastors, the leaders, 11:59 and the church members, 12:00 and pray for this challenge here of Panama City. 12:04 People there who need to hear the good news about Jesus. 12:06 We'll be right back after this break. |
Revised 2020-03-21