José shares his testimony during an interview with Emily Ibarra.

(April 26, 2013 - by Harold Goerzen) José* was livid. Living in the remote Andean community of Urubamba, Peru, he became filled with rage when he discovered his wife was cheating on him. He quickly concocted a plan to kill his wife, her lover and then himself. Instead, he only attempted suicide, landing him in the emergency room of the local hospital.

Recovering in his room, José wasn't in any mood to listen to the radio beside his bed. But feeling bored one day, he finally decided to turn it on. The set was tuned in to Radio Chaski, the community's evangelical radio station established by partner Bruce Maddux of Baptist Mid-Missions with HCJB Global's help a year ago.

Radio Chaski, broadcasting not far from the Inca ruins in Machu Picchu, is named after the agile, highly trained runners who covered immense distances to deliver important messages during the Inca era. The Inca Empire had an intricate network of roads and rope bridges crisscrossing the Andes.

Radio Chaski, the Christian station named after the highly trained Inca runners who delivered messages throughout the Inca empire.

Today Radio Chaski is delivering equally important messages, bringing hope to needy listeners. As the radio preacher shared God's plan of salvation through Christ, José listened intently, becoming convicted of his sins and quietly giving his life to Jesus.

"He is now very active in an evangelical church," related Emily Ibarra, a media specialist who was in Peru last month to record testimonies of people encouraged by the broadcasts aired by HCJB Global's partner ministries. "He was very enthusiastic and passionate."

Ibarra, a part-time worker at the HCJB Global Technology Center in Elkhart, Ind., who is on track to become a full-time missionary, said José was one of several people she interviewed who had come to Christ through Radio Chaski. She also interviewed listeners to a station in Cotahuasi Canyon and another in Arequipa, Peru.

We were able to interview a lot of people," related Ibarra. "One woman, saved through listening to the programs, later became a community leader and donated a piece of land to the local church."

Listener displays her new SonSet radio.

Ibarra also used the trip to give some solar-powered, fixed-tuned SonSet^® radios to local partners so they could hand them out to listeners. The sets are tuned to only pick up signals from local Christian radio stations.

"It really struck me that what people were telling me wasn't just for the camera," she related. "The broadcasts are truly part of their lives. In Cotahuasi Canyon some of the believers told me that their only companion [and source of biblical teaching] is the SonSet^® radio. People really value the broadcasts-especially those who are not literate."

"It was really cool," she concluded. "I felt challenged to see the passion of the people [for Christian radio] and to observe their dedication to the Scriptures."

*Pseudonym used to protect the person's privacy.

Source: HCJB Global