“To preach the gospel in the regions beyond you . . . .” (II Corinthians 10:16) In December I saw 206 come to the saving knowledge of Christ in several different regions of Southeast Asia. My main goal of introducing the new program Teaching All Nations was taught to 15 different men working in “regions beyond” in Thailand, Cambodia, and Myanmar.
I traveled to Hua Hin in South Thailand to meet with Brother Tim Shook and TEAM Thailand. Brother Shook asked me to preach twice on Sunday. I preached with great liberty there, and we rejoiced to see 5 saved and 4 baptized.
The following weekend I traveled to Cambodia and had the privilege to teach in a national church to a group of young people who have surrendered their lives to serve the Lord. Pastor Sihok has a Bible institute of 14 young people, and he plans to begin using the TAN material in 2015. Pastor Lomer DelaCruz has a ministry close to the Vietnam border and is building a new Bible college there to train nationals. Brother DelaCruz has started many Baptist churches in Cambodia. Please pray for him to complete the new building soon. His dear wife Grace is having some health issues and must return to the Philippines for a time to have surgery.
After preaching for Pastor DelaCruz, we went 10 km across the river to a house church, which was started 2 years ago. We started the meeting about 4:00 p.m., and people just kept coming. At the end of the day, there were over 400 people in the front yard. Many heard the story of the birth of Christ for the very first time, and many were saved. Praise God for missionaries who preach the Gospel!
I preached the Wednesday night Bible study for Pastor Arold while he was away fulfilling some obligations to renew his visa. I was also invited to preach for my good Thai friend, Pastor Prawn, at Grace Baptist Church in Rangsit. Brother Prawn has been faithful to preach the Gospel for over 10 years.
Word came again that the final funds would be needed within 10 days to secure the container of Bibles in India. After 2 weeks of making unsuccessful attempts to obtain the $5,600 needed, my wife made a call to get a personal loan via family. Arrangements were made to wire the funds to our account. The same day it was obtained, she received a call from Pastor Chad Owens in Corsicana, Texas. He said he had some friends who wanted to help us with shipping Bibles. Praise the Lord! Jackie successfully made the transfer of funds to Missionary Andy Long, knowing that it would take several days to go through the transition. At the same time, Pastor Owens was making the deposits into our account to cover the cost of the personal loan. God is so good! Our funds had been depleted, but everything was paid. The last week of December, Pastor Owens called again to inform us that funds had been given to ship another container. Praise the Lord!!!
The need for Bibles around the world will one day end, but for now . . . the need is GREAT! We praise God for folks who still care, who see the need, and want to help. One neighbor asked my wife, “Is it worth all this trouble? Do they appreciate it?” Jackie showed her pictures of the conference held in Nagaland of the thousands of people in attendance. “Yes, they appreciate it! Yes, it’s worth it!”
I pray that you and your family had a wonderful Christmas and will have a great New Year ahead. We will continue in the year ahead to help every believer in Southeast Asia to receive a copy of the Word of God in their own language. Thanks to everyone who has been a part of this ministry in any way!
If a man dies in Southeast Asia and goes to Hell, let him have a copy of the Word of God in his hands, so he will be without excuse.
We love you!
Bob Bowen
Philippians 4:13
PS. Lord willing, I will return to Southeast Asia the last week of May and stay another 5 weeks. That’s nearly 20 weeks away, and I have many open dates on my schedule. If you know of a church that is planning a missions conference during the next few months, I would like to know. There is no such thing as a church that is too small. I am willing to travel anywhere possible to make Christians aware of the need for Bibles worldwide. I am giving God my life to make sure those in Southeast Asia who have never heard the Gospel or seen a copy of God’s Word will have that privilege before it is too late.
If I can be of service to you in any way, please let me know. You can contact me at 219-718-7772 or at bobbowen@www.fbmi.org. I would love to send another 2 containers of Scripture before the end of the year.
Thank you for caring about the 800,000,000 souls in Southeast Asia.
