Let me begin by saying thank you. I so appreciate the way you have stood with me in this ministry by your prayers and words of encouragement as well as your sacrificial gifts.
In the last 6 months we have added 12 new cities and stations here in the United States and one in Vancouver, Canada.
We have also signed contracts to place our programs on Spanish television that reaches 67 million Hispanics right here in the United States, and 17 Spanish-speaking nations in Central and South America. All together they reach over 500 million new people.
By faith we have taken these networks and will begin airing our programs on November 2nd.
God has opened these doors, and I am very glad that many of you have said you want us to get the gospel to these people. They have never seen a ministry like ours that answers their questions and defends the Christian faith.
We know that to reach around the world with the message of hope and salvation through Jesus Christ, we cannot use our own power. Instead, we have you standing beside us, and we have the strength of the Holy Spirit. A Christian ministry trying to reach millions of people is a God thing. And He says it is “Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit” (Zechariah 4:6).
People Receiving Audio Bibles Continue to Increase
According to the latest report we have received from our partner Faith Comes By Hearing, there are now 10,724,816 people in listening groups regularly interacting with God’s Word as a result of your gifts.
That’s over 10.7 million people who might never have heard of Jesus’ sacrificial love for them except for the fact that you sent Audio Bibles to these people who are now in groups listening to the Audio Bibles you sent. Further, half of them have also received Jesus into their lives. You have reached a lot of people. God is using your gifts to change lives.
Knowing the Historical Facts About Jesus
Today many teenagers, college students, and young adults are leaving the church because they say they don’t believe in God. They claim they have never heard persuasive historical evidence about Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection in church.
That is why we invited Dr. Gary Habermas to answer the question, “Did Jesus Literally Rise from the Dead?”
Dr. Gary Habermas is considered the world’s foremost expert on the resurrection of Jesus. In this series Dr. Habermas details twelve facts about Jesus’ resurrection including:
1. Jesus died by crucifixion; 2. He was buried; 3. His death caused His disciples to despair and lose hope; 4. Jesus’ tomb was found empty on the third day; 5. Jesus appeared to His apostles; and 6. to over 500 people at one time.
This is important information that you need to know to share with non- Christians friends. As the apostle Peter states, “Always be prepared to give a defense to everyone who asks you the reason for the hope that is in you” (1 Peter 3:15).
Please visit our online store for this important series, along with another series we did with Dr. Habermas, entitled “The Evidence for the Historical Jesus,” in which he focuses on the historical evidence in 1 Corinthians 15:1-8 that lays out who the eyewitnesses were to Jesus’ resurrection from the dead. Both series, all 11 TV programs with Dr. Habermas, are available on DVD for a gift of $98.
Science for Grown Ups with Dr. Stephen Meyer
This month we will begin a new series with scientist and philosopher Dr. Stephen Meyer. We will talk about his new book, “The Return of The God Hypothesis,” in which he reveals the new scientific evidence from cosmology, paleontology (the fossil record), DNA (found in your own body), and the Big Bang (or the Beginning of the Universe). We will explore why this new scientific evidence today strongly points to an intelligent, all-powerful God who created everything.
Dr. Meyer will explain why the arguments of the New Atheists today are false. They are asserting in national publications and university classrooms that religious beliefs have always stood in conflict with scientific evidence.
We’ll talk about the new scientific evidence that show the universe had a beginning, that the universe is expanding, and that the universe is extremely finely tuned to allow for human life to exist on our planet.
We’ll explain how evidence in cosmology, paleontology, and even in our DNA compels belief in a super intellect behind everything that exists. And we’ll make a strong case that the intelligence behind these facts sounds a lot like the all- knowing God that we read about in our Bible.
Along with the 9 programs in this series, we are also making available 3 extremely helpful documentary films that will show you, and especially the high school or college students in your life, the intricate scientific evidence known today.
New Spanish Outreach
God has opened new doors to our television program. We are moving forward at high speed to get ready to begin airing our programs on the Spanish networks. Spanish translations are being done on every program, and then our programs are being re-edited to fit the new broadcast requirements. To do all of this we are putting together a network of new staff members that will be essential for this new outreach.
We earnestly ask you to pray for us. Also, please pray that God would provide the funds for the new airtimes in the different countries. Also pray that God will send us just the personnel we need to accomplish this task.
Go Into All the World
I just returned from speaking at the funeral of a dear friend of this ministry who recently went home to be with the Lord. He has been a supporter of this ministry for many, many years. With his family, we feel his loss deeply on a personal level.
He gave to our ministry because he loved to see people get saved. He wanted to do all that he could to fulfill Jesus’ command to “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation” (Mark 16:15).
I know many of you feel the same. I want you know that Darlene and I, as well as our staff, appreciate all you are doing. We pray for you every night.
Continuing to reach out to those who have not yet heard.
John and Darlene