AUSTRALIA & NEW ZEALAND

Reach Beyond Australia and Reach Beyond New Zealand, along with its international partners, are collaborating to develop a new internet radio ministry to the people of Pakistan.

Set to launch in mid-October, Sachai Radio is the brainchild of Reach Beyond New Zealand’s Bob Arend.

This Urdu language radio station will broadcast the message of Jesus Christ to the people of Pakistan directly to their mobiles phones, computers and smart TVs.

“Sachai Radio is an app-based radio station which utilizes a completely cloud-based server and station infrastructure,” said Bob. “Anyone with an internet connection and a device like a tablet, smart phone and even smart TVs can listen to this radio station. It’s like traditional radio, but on the internet.”

Urdu is the national language of Pakistan. It is also spoken in parts of India, Bangladesh, Nepal and the Middle East. In Pakistan alone, there are 100 million Urdu speakers from 290 people groups.

A joint project between Reach Beyond New Zealand and Australia, along with Pakistan’s Gospel Youth Mission, Sachai Radio’s programs will originate in Pakistan but will stream from New Zealand. Gospel Youth Mission is especially known in the Faisalabad region for its sports evangelism programs, featuring ‘Kabaddi’ tournaments (a popular local game). Through this program, many have come to know Jesus Christ and His unconditional love for them.

Beyond sports and broadcasting, Gospel Youth Mission also actively reaches out through children's Sunday school programs, live drama, village video screenings, and a Bible literacy correspondence program.

“Cloud based and app-based radio is making it possible to spread the Gospel to areas that are culturally and politically difficult to access. All you need is the app,” said Bob.
Please pray for this exciting new joint initiative, as it is hoped that many more Christian internet radio stations will utilize this cost-effective method of broadcasting.

ECUADOR AND SPAIN

After months of prayer and paperwork, we celebrate the creation of two new independent legal entities: Voz y Manos (Voice and Hands) in Ecuador, and Misión Evangélica Puentes de Vida y Esperanza (Bridges of Life and Hope Evangelical Mission) in Spain.

As the world becomes more complicated with tighter regulations on how you can send and receive workers, Reach Beyond has been looking to expand options in key areas of the world. These new entities will create more opportunities as we work together to proclaim and demonstrate the Gospel among the unreached.

In Ecuador, Voz y Manos will help us mobilize and send Ecuadorian missionaries wanting to serve internationally. We rejoice at what God is doing in the Latin American Church and through the legacy we have in Ecuador. We are excited to see how God is building on that legacy and sending the next generation of missionaries from Ecuador. Ecuadorians are particularly poised for fruitful ministry among Muslim and Arabic populations. Because of Arabic influences on the Spanish language and culture, Latin Americans can more easily assimilate, learn Arabic and gain access to serve.

The new Puentes organization can now receive missionaries in Spain. As other global missionary organizations are establishing themselves in Spain, this Spanish entity will give Reach Beyond opportunities for greater collaboration overseas.

While international law might not be the most exciting part of doing missions, we are thankful for the doors that God continues to open and the way He is preparing us for future work.

ENGLAND

In addition to sending missionaries and resources overseas to reach the unreached, Reach Beyond UK also has a thriving ministry at home in Bradford, England. The Millside Centre provides tools and programs for the community’s vulnerable population, including many refugees and unreached people.

This summer, the Centre provided their first ever summer program for children and young people. The Millside Summer Mix offered five weeks of food, fun and creativity, designed especially for kids who receive free school meals and would go without during the summer break. Events included “cook and eat” workshops, dance sessions, arts and crafts, youth cafe, creative writing and radio production.

Other programs also included personal coaching for women who have experienced domestic violence, a mentorship and support group for men and various family programs. They also offered English language clubs, help with resumes and employment skills, and refugee and asylum seeker support from the British Red Cross.

GREECE

In July, a team from Reach Beyond went to the Greek island of Lesbos to minister in the Moria refugee camp. The team was a unique mixture of people coming together for a singular purpose: to serve and love unreached people living through tragic circumstances. Yet, among the uncertainty, frustration and boredom in the camp, the Lord is at work in powerful and exciting ways.

The Reach Beyond multicultural team included a missionary in Romania, a missionary in Spain, missionaries and staff from the U.S. office, and Ray and Kitty Everett, missionary appointees fundraising to live and work on Lesbos. There were two main goals for the trip: to work with Remar, an organization tasked by the Greek military to run the food distribution line for women and families, and meet with and learn from other Christian organizations working with refugees on the island to determine how Reach Beyond can best provide future support.

There were many profound and life-changing experiences for the team. In particular, the team enjoyed getting to know the refugee volunteers who helped Remar distribute the food. One of the volunteers was 13-years old. He was from Egypt and was in the camp with his dad and younger brother. The group learned that his 13th birthday was about to happen, so they decided to have an impromptu birthday party to help him celebrate. For 20 minutes the group of about 10 refugee volunteers, along with our team, danced, sang, cried and celebrated life together, shunning cultural differences and the stressful reality of their lives in the camp. Lindsey recalled, “We all started singing, ‘Happy Birthday,’ and then he started crying, his dad started crying, and we all started crying because it was such a sweet and significant moment. Even the women already lined up early for the lunch distribution were crying. They couldn’t see what was happening, but they could hear it. The celebration continued with music and a dance-off between the birthday boy and his brother. I don’t know what his 12th birthday was like, or what his 14th birthday will be like, but it was such an honor to be a part of his 13th and to bring joy, love, and celebration to his special day.”

Reach Beyond’s work on Lesbos is truly an international effort: missionaries and church partners from Romania, England, Canada, New Zealand and the United States have all gotten involved. The next team from the United States will go in October to work to solidify partnerships, expand our connections, and bring alongside new people and churches to get involved. A New Zealand team is planned for November, and we hope to soon be able to send the Everett’s back to Lesbos to coordinate ongoing teams and projects.

SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA

Last quarter, we told you about an opportunity to work with a local pastor from Togo to plant a radio station in his community. Thanks to the generosity of our donors, we were able to raise the funds needed for all of the studio equipment, plus a 300-watt transmitter and broadcast antenna, which is now up and running! The station’s reach includes some of southern Burkina Faso and northeast Ghana, but it will mostly be focused on unreached villages in northwestern Togo. The partner’s heart is to use this radio station to reach into communities where he is already working as an evangelist. We are praising God for this new radio station and praying that many lives will be transformed.