New Church Completed in Tipitapa

NICARAGUA According to missionaries Oscar and Tammy Gaitan, the new church building in Tipitapa is complete. The structure will be dedicated on the first Saturday in February. The church in Tipitapa is one of several missions under the leadership of the Gaitans visited by Wyatt's mission team during the summer of 2005. Funds given by members of Wyatt Baptist Church were used to construct the building.

Missionaries Visit Wyatt

Filomeno Kakilala and his family visited Wyatt on January 8. During the morning service, Bro. Kakilala shared his vision for reaching Filipino people in Hawaii.  The Filipino population is the fastest growing ethnic group within the islands.  After casting his vision, Bro. Kakilala challenged the congregation from God's word.  At the end of the service, the people of Wyatt gave an overwhelming offering to Filomeno and his family in support of their mission work.  You can email the Kakilala family at fkakilala@hotmail.com.

Answers to Objections to Going into Missions

The following is taken from a missions challenge by Dr. John Piper at Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, MN on November 2, 2005.

1. “I am not smart enough.”

“Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe.” (1 Corinthians 1:20-21)

“Consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise.” (1 Corinthians 1:26-27)

2. “My body and my personality are not strong enough.”

“But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.” (2 Corinthians 4:7)

“[Christ] said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” (2 Corinthians 12:9-10)

3. “I am not a good speaker.”

“Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.” (1 Corinthians 1:17)

“Moses said to the Lord, ‘Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue.’ Then the Lord said to him, ‘Who has made man's mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the Lord? Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak.” (Exodus 4:10-12)

4. “I am afraid of the horrors I read about in the newspapers.”

“Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore (katartisei—“mend” or “repair” your horribly disfigured body when the lions in the coliseum are through with you), confirm, strengthen, and establish you.” (1 Peter 5:8-10)

5. “I am afraid I won’t be fruitful”

Your responsibility is not to be fruitful but to be faithful.

“And [Jesus] said, ‘The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground. He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows; he knows not how. The earth produces by itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. But when the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.” (Mark 4:26-29)

“I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth.” (1 Corinthians 3:6-7)

6. “There is plenty to do here.”

True, but there is a division of labor and God calls some to MISSIONS, not just evangelism. The difference is seen in Romans 15:19-24:

“So that from Jerusalem and all the way around to Illyricum I [Paul] have fulfilled the ministry of the gospel of Christ; and thus I make it my ambition to preach the gospel, not where Christ has already been named. . . Now, since I no longer have any room for work in these regions . . . I hope to see you in passing as I go to Spain.”

How could Paul say there was no room for work when there were millions in that region to be evangelized? Because evangelism is not missions.

7. “I am not married.”

The best spouse is found on the path of obedience. “An excellent wife [or husband!] who can find? She [and he!] is far more precious than jewels” (Proverbs 31:10). The finding is exceedingly hard. It will happen on the road of obedience.

8. “I fear that when I get there it might turn out I made a mistake and will come home with shame.”

Which is worse, shame for having endeavored to follow Christ in missions, or fear to venture? Shame before others for making a mistake will not hurt you; it will humble you and can make you more useful in a new situation. But fear will make you useless everywhere. Consider Ecclesiastes 11:4 and what it says about risk: “He who observes the wind will not sow, and he who regards the clouds will not reap.” Meaning: without taking the risk of sowing when the seed might be blown away and reaping when the rain might ruin the harvest, you will starve.

"The Barnabas Touch"

The following editorial is from BMA Missions director Grady Higgs.  For more information on BMA missions, go to www.bmaam.com.

 10/21/05   With our lips, we all say we want to make an impact for Christ, but the question that sometimes pierces our hearts: are we living it? Are we sharing the love of God with other Christians and non-Christians?

The Bible gives us many examples of men and women who didn't deny others the extraordinary experience of seeing God in action. One such man was Barnabas. Studying Barnabas, we see this man who was of the tribe of Levi and the nation of Cyprus, whose name meant "Son of consolation." What an impact he made on Biblical history as he brought Saul of Tarsus to the apostles following his conversion to Christianity. Those around him described him as a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith as he worked alongside Paul. Besides all this, he was a great encourager to the children of God wherever he went. There's no doubt about it: Barnabas had the touch of God and he used it to make an impact on his world.

When we meet Christians like Barnabas, we never forget the indelible touch that they leave on our lives. God loves to use people who are willing to exude this love to powerfully impact lives around the world.

Barnabas didn't only use his encouraging touch toward believers, but he guided unbelievers as well. We read about him as an encourager, mentor, soul-winner and as a generous man who loved God and sought to serve Him by serving others. What an inspiration!

Just think what an impact this one, early church leader made on thousands of God's children as he taught them to think about others more than themselves. His life serves as a constant reminder that we are to pour our lives into others for the glory of Christ.

In this issue of the Gleaner, we want to introduce you to our newest ministry: "The Barnabas Touch." Through this ministry, we hope to emulate the life of this great man of God by enlisting BMAA pastors and church members to get involved in touching lives for Jesus on the mission field.

It has long been the desire of the Department of Missions to enlist our pastors and church members to use the gifts God has given them to encourage and minister to men and women of God working around the world on our mission fields who are in need of "The Barnabas Touch."

We believe it is imperative that our pastors and people offer themselves to God to go to a mission field for a short term to invest their time, talents, spiritual gifts and training into the lives of our national missionaries.

Most of our national missionaries have little opportunity, if any, to be trained and equipped to "rightly divide the Word" and pastor effectively the churches to which God has called them. Will you be the one who give them "The Barnabas Touch?" Will you be the one who helps them grow spiritually.

I hope you will pray about this opportunity and be open to God's calling to share His blessings on the mission fields. Barnabas was one man who encouraged thousands. What can you do to help struggling national pastors or entire congregations which need encouragement?

The BMAA Department of Missions will facilitate these "Barnabas Touch" trips for the purpose of giving our pastors and people the opportunity to go and mentor our BMAA national pastors and church planters.

Those who become a part of "The Barnabas Touch" will have the wonderful opportunity to:

                              Evangelize the lost.
                              Encourage the American missionaries.
                              Educate the national pastors.
                              Expand the vision of our churches.
                              Excite the congregations.
                              Embrace the Great Commission.

As a participant of these ministry trips, you will have opportunities to: preach the Gospel, participate in training conferences for national pastors, witness to hundreds of people, show the JESUS film and see many people repent of their sins and trust Jesus as their personal Savior.

The Department of Missions will schedule, plan and facilitate each mission trip. We hope to host at least four trips each year.

Our first "Barnabas Touch" ministry trip is scheduled to leave November 29, 2005, for the nation of Romania. This trip will provide the opportunity to encourage established churches, educate Romanian pastors, share the Gospel and possibly to participate in planting a church in a village where there is no Gospel witness.

We believe that all BMAA pastors ought to go on at least one mission trip, and allow God to use them to extend "The Barnabas Touch." You'll find out more about it at the Missions Symposium, September 27-28. Pick up a brochure that explains this ministry, and contains information concerning "The Barnabas Touch" trips planned for 2006.

What an opportunity to impact our world for Christ! What an opportunity to shrae what God has given you with others! Will you be Barnabas to someone?

New Churches Planted In Nicaragua

The following is a recent email from missionaries Oscar & Tammy Gaitan. 10/3/05 

Dear Brothers and Sisters:
We have a lot to share about what God has done in the last few months. My wife, Tamy, has been a great helpmate and we are very happy to know that our daughter Lidia Sarai is now 20 months old. God has blessed us greatly in our home and each one of the ministries God has allowed me to work in.

FIRST GRADUATION AT THE BIBLE INSTITUTE

For this trimester, our enrollment is 26 students. We have 12 students from other churches and 14 from the Center of Life in Catarina. We are excited about having our first graduation at the Bible Institute. Bro. Guillermo Balmaceda is one of the graduates who has been sharing with me his desire to open an action center in the city of Matagalpa. Bro. Ramon Potosme, is in his first year and has assumed the responsibility of the mission in San Juan del Sur. The mission has had several problems; please include this place in your prayers. Bro. Sergio Chavez, another graduate, is working and helping in his action center and Kid's club in his community of Pacaya. Bro. Noe Martinez, travels on the weekends to the mission in Managua, helping his brother Carlos Martinez, who is in charge of the mission in the capital city. God is touching each of the students and not waiting until graduation to serve the Lord.

BAPTIST CLINIC: THE GOOD SAMARITAN

Lately, the doctors have redoubled their work since we have been inundated with sickness. The young , 9 year old daughter, Meyling, of our church treasurer, arrived on Monday at the clinic and was seen by Dr. Abraham Zúniga. Two more days and they would have had to amputate her leg. Immediately the doctor sent her to the hospital in Jinotepe. Dr. Alexander Navarrete took her in his car to the hospital. The next day had surgery and now is stable. Her parents are grateful to the clinic for the help they received. This month we had 295 patients.
I am thankful to God and to the association for supporting us with this ministry and for providing us with the medicine. The Good Samaritan is a light in this town, where the people are here to be seen clinically, but also know that we always want to share with them the healing of the soul through the message of Jesus.

2 NEW MISSIONS

Saturday, October 1, opened the month with a beautiful baptism at the Mission Centro de Vida in Tipitapa. I had the privilege of baptizing these candidates with the ordinance of our Lord Jesus. Three people decided they wanted to be baptized. Some of the people from the mission in Managua attended the service. The people are very happy to have received an offering from the church in Houston to buy the land that will soon be their new church building site. The mission in Managua has had some positive decisions and we hope that next year will be able to open a second action center in the capital city. The mission of San Roque, had two saved last month. The people of the mission of El Recreo has finished the construction of their new church building, and although there are a few more things to do, like the floor, they are having services in their new building. For next year, we have two new missions that we will be helping officially. These are: San Marcos, Bro. Salomon Gaitan (son), and El Vijague, Bro. Pedro Torrez. For the month of November, we have a special end of the year fellowship for all the Pastors and their wives where we will have different activities planned.

YOUR PRAYERS:

Thank you to every brother and sister and each church that has supported us with prayers and offerings to continue the Lord's work in Nicaragua. I am sharing with you some of our needs, hoping you will make it a matter of prayer and support.

1.- The necessity to extend the clinic hours to morning instead of just Monday- Friday afternoons. Children's weighing equipment, nebulizers, dental equipment, file cabinets, and fans.

2- Materials for the Bible Institute. For the past two years, we have been using school materials, but for the next year, they are moving to new facilities. We will have to have new desks and white boards. We also need our own library. We need books and resources for the library.

3.- Please pray that God will provide me with a vehicle, since it is vital for me to move around the country.

Your brother in Christ, Oscar Gaitan.

CONGRATS to Wyatt's First GO! Scholarship Winners

The first GO! Scholarships were awarded on Sunday, and the winners were all smiles. The following three Wyatt members were selected to receive scholarships that cover 50% of the cost of their 2006 mission trips:

Britt Har, Team Ukraine: $1200

Mark Stringer, Team Nicaragua: $425

Kathy Sullivan, Team Nicaragua: $425

To read their essays, click here.

Applicants who did not win the scholarships were each awarded $100 mini-scholarships. In total, GO! Scholarships contributed over $2500 to eight mission team members.

Over $2900 was raised for the GO! Scholarships since the Ministry Now campaign kickoff in March of this year. The remainder of the money in the GO! Scholarship plus money collected until August 1, 2006 will be given to cover miscellanous missions expenses. Money given after that date will go to the 2007 Go! Scholarships. If God provided over $2900 in the past 4 months, imagine what could happen over the next year!

Missionaries Witness Eight Saved

The following is taken from an e-mail recieved from Filemeno Kakilala.

Hawaii 3/8/06

Aloha. Praise the Lord, we finally arrived in Hawaii last week. We were pretty worn out from the long travel from Little Rock to Walla Walla, Seattle, then to Hawaii. The moving of our household goods took a toll on our bodies that our first week in Hawaii was spent getting well from fatigue, shingles, and Chicken Pox. We're praying that the shingles and Chicken Pox don't hit all of us. God is good to give us strength and grace. We have just been notified by the Missions Office of the love gift from Wyatt Church given during our visit there. Due to the beginning of the year accounting the Missions Office had to hold the funds for obvious reasons. We are hoping to get the love offering soon to recoup from our initial payment / rent and deposit to get housing here in Hawaii, and it shouldn't be too long to receive it. The Missions Office is good to account for all love offerings received, and help pay for our travel and moving cost. For now we are "camping out" until our stuff arrives in Hawaii on a slow boat. This week the Lord has blessed us with 8 professions of faith through personal evangelism. To God be the glory! Thank you for your prayers and support. It's encouraging that Christians like you are with us in Hawaiian Missions. God Bless You.

The Kakilala family visited our church on January 8, 2006.

Missionary Wife Murdered

From the Baptist Missionary Association Missions Department Website: www.BMAAM.com

Honduras, February 2006

"Look out, we're going to get you ... we will end your life." Those were some of the threats made by telephone to Juan Francisco Hernandez, pastor of the BMA Church in Azacualpa, Honduras. These threats, made over a period of about nine months, were fulfilled Friday night when they took the life of his wife, Elga Guisell Aguirre, 36 years old, in front of their five year old son. Information reveals that Juan had suffered three attempts from which he miraculously escaped. The situation worsened one day when he was driving from Azacualpa toward Sula in the church bus. Three men fired on the vehicle from the roadside. The second incident occurred on the highway between Macuelizo and Azacualpa, where the church is located, when the occupants of a white car pursued him. Again he managed to escape. Following that incident the situation seemed to settle down. He even traveled to the U.S. to visit some churches. Everything appeared to be normal, but about a week ago the threats resumed. This past Wednesday the pastor escaped death for a third time. The attempt occurred on the road between Azacualpa and Sula when the ambulance he was driving was fired on again leaving 12 bullet holes, most in the front windshield. Elga's death is mourned throughout BMA mission work in Central America and Mexico. For many years, she has been an assistant and teacher in the Bible Institute serving with several missionaries. Bill and Jeannette Gibson have worked very closely with Elga and Juan. The church in Azacualpa has experience dynamic growth under their leadership. The Sunday before her death more than 500 attended Sunday School and worship. Educatodos, a continuing education program, was another of Elga's visions to help many students who did not have a chance to get their grade school or high school diplomas. She had also taught in area public schools. Her latest project was the Morning Star Kindergarten, a bilingual school in Azacualpa. A pastor's wife, a devoted mother, a gifted teacher, an excellent administrator -- Elga was a dear friend to many in the Lord's work and the community. Her death will be a great loss. Missionary Gibson describes her as his "right arm." He adds, "She had worked for our mission for over fifteen years, most of that time with the Bible Institute. One day she told me that the Bible Institute was her real passion in life."

Mission Day Videos Available Online

Hopefully you had a chance to be a part of the wonderful missions fair on August 6, Missions Day. Bro.Grady Higgs, our BMA Director of Missions, spoke at both the morning and evening service, inspiring us to realize the importance of missions in our association, our church, and our day-to-day lives. After the morning service, the mission teamstand other volunteers worked at our first ever missions fair.

This fair was specifically designed to challenge us here at Wyatt to take an active role in missions throughout the world today. All of us here at Wyatt were challenged to "get involved" in missions within our church. Booths were set up that gave information about future trips, ways to be involved in missions, and statistics concerning missions throughout the world. Bro. Grady also had a booth set up that gave members a chance to join the BMA's intercessory prayer force—a program within the Department of Church Ministries that encourages all members to pray everyday for missions and for all BMA missionaries.

In order to watch the videos, make sure your computer has the latest version of Quicktime or Windows Media Player installed. The Quicktime player can be downloaded for free by clicking here.  The Windows Media Player can be downloaded for free by clicking here.  The videos may take 1-2 minutes to load.

Get Involved Video     Quicktime      Windows Media

Ukraine 2006 Video   Quicktime      Windows Media

Nicaragua Video        Quicktime      Windows Media

Two More Churches Join Operation 750

Recently Mount Union Baptist Church and First Baptist Church (Springhill, LA) have voted to participate in "Operation 750." Currently 4 churches are raising money for Oscar & Tammy Gaitan's Nicaragua Work Fund. This is 1/3 of the goal! Praise God for his blessings and pray for eight more churches to join this important project. For more information on "Operation 750," click here.

"Operation 750" Gains Momentum

God continues to bless the fundraising efforts of "Operation 750." The project has already been adopted by one church and many more are anticipated to follow. In October, Wyatt voted to sponsor the effort and on November 5th the church collected a generous offering in support of it.

"Operation 750" is designed to raise work funds for Nicaraguan missionaries Oscar & Tammy Gaitan. The Gaitan's have been unable to travel to the United States for fundraising since the adoption of their daughter, Lydia. The paperwork necessary to secure a traveling visa for Lydia has been difficult to process.

For this reason, churches are asked to adopt 1 month out of the year to raise and contribute $750 for the Gaitan's work fund. For more information about "Operation 750," contact the church office at info@wyattchurch.com or by calling 870-862-2619. To download an "Operation 750" facts sheet, click here.

Church Approves New Mission Pursuits

On Sunday Evening, October 1, Wyatt approved two new mission endeavors. First, the church will organize and support a new campaign called "Operation 750" to raise awareness and funds in South Arkansas churches on behalf of Nicaraguan missionaries Tammy and Oscar Gaitan. Second, the church voted to pursue a spring trip to Espabel, Nicaragua in order to provide spiritual and health instruction in the jungle. More information will be available soon.

Missions Day Was "Eye Opening"

On Sunday, August 6, Wyatt emphasized world missions. Bro. Grady Higgs, executive director of the BMA Missions Department, preached two challenging messages.

Members of Wyatt's Nicaragua and Ukraine mission teams shared testimonies of God's work overseas. After the morning service, a Mission Fair displayed world evangelism efforts through exhibits, videos, and brochures.

Journal Excerpts From 2006 Mission Trips

Britt Har, Ukraine

Every morning when I wake up and go upstairs there are so many youth sitting around the church reading their Bibles. It's so inspiring to see their dedication to the Lord and to see how much they value the Word.

I really have enjoyed our small group times. I have learned so much more about our team members and it's been awesome to hear how they are being blessed by the people at camp.

At 6:33 a.m. on Mondays, Slovik has a prayer group that meets. We got to meet with them on both of the Mondays. Hearing them pray is such a great experience. So many of the youth are so devoted to prayer and it really helps you see the power of prayer.

Mark Harmon, Nicaragua

I love fried cheese sticks, but I found out cheese sticks are definitely not the same all over the world.

Be prepared if the missionary tells you, "it will only be a 20 minute walk". The 20 minute walk into El Riego ended up being a 2 hour bus ride, 1:30 minute flat bed truck ride and a 1 hour horse ride.

It was refreshing to see how the church at Catarina is impacting their city. Approximately 1/5 of the population at church on Sunday. Also, the city council asked Oscar to be present at the council meeting. They wanted his input on health issues of the city.

Pastor at Los Lamas had been the pastor since the church begin. He had never receive a salary from the church. He said, " there are 52 homes in this area," and when asked if he visited these homes, he said he had been in all 52 of them. I felt guilty when I thought about the homes around me that I've never knocked on the door.

The discipline of the people to the Word was amazing!

Wes Taylor, Ukraine

I've been here less than 24 hours and I'm already so thankful for what I have at home in the United States. I don't want this trip to only be about making me realize how blessed I am. I know it's going to do that even much more than I thought. I also want to make a difference in the lives of some of these youth. I want them so see Christ in me. Had a great evening service and fellowship. Sang choruses and I recognized 2 of them so I sang in English; God of Wonders and Blessed Be The Name of the Lord. That was an incredible experience!

If you walk around, drive around this country, the city, this neighborhood, you get the impression that this is a poor destitute country. Dirt streets, unkept yards, fences made out of anything. Things on the outside look like they probably did 50 years ago. But on the inside of homes, the churches, etc. things are beautiful and modern. Ukrainians seem to be more concerned with what is on the inside than what is on the outside. We Americans are sometimes more concerned with how things look on the outside. We can definitely apply this to our lives. Am I more concerned with what people see on the outside than I am with what is on the inside? Many times I would have to say Yes. I want to have the Ukrainian attitude.

Mark Stringer, Nicaragua

Even though the Nicaraguans are very poor people ( wealth) they are some of the richest people(spiritually) I have ever been around.

Even though the Nicaraguans don't have many worldly possessions they are laying up their treasures in heaven.

The Nicaraguans are very concerned about their neighbors' final destination ( heaven or hell ). How many of us are concerned and pray regularly and weep about or neighbors and families final destination?

Team Nicaragua Hits The Ground Running

The following is an excerpt from a recent Team Nicaragua email:

We can not describe what our day was like today. We were told that there would be a 2 hr. bus ride, 30 minute truck ride and 30 minute walk. That 30 minute walk turned into 1:15 minute walk up the side of a mountain and through river bottoms. Pretty tough for our group, but we made it and were able to finish their roof, do a puppet show, Alex pulled 15 teeth, and Oscar baptized 3 adults in a river.

Team Ukraine Arrives in Kiev

July 15, 2006, Kiev

The seven member mission team from Wyatt to the Ukraine arrived in Kiev at approximately 5:30pm (9:30am CST).  At 8:30pm, they will board a bus to travel twelve hours in route to a youth camp in the Crimea.  Missionaries Andre and Laura Kanaykina estimate 80 students will attendt the camp.   About 40% of the students profess Christ as savior.  The remaining students are regular vistors to youth meetings.  The camp will be an excellent opportunity to share the gospel and encourage fellow believers.  Please pray for Team Ukraine as they travel and minister this week.