By Carson Foushee Each country celebrates Christmas a little differently. Japan has inherited many traditions from the West, but there are also some that are uniquely Japanese. Like in America, shopping malls are full of beautiful Christmas trees as shoppers seek gifts for loved ones with familiar English seasonal songs playing in stores. Christmas lights, … Continue reading
By Mary VanRheenen What does my brother’s backyard in Iowa have in common with Romanian Roma working in Germany? Both involve picking fruit. While I was visiting my brother, I enjoyed picking raspberries in his extensive raspberry patch. And while I did it, I thought about Florien and other Roma who contract to pick raspberries … Continue reading
By Marv Knox A 2017 meeting in a Spanish city hall typifies Michelle and Matt Norman’s ministry in northeastern Spain. By that time, they had been Cooperative Baptist Fellowship field personnel in the semi-autonomous region of Catalonia about four years. Their progressing proficiency in both the Catalan and Spanish languages had enabled them to develop … Continue reading
By Gennady Podgasiky Since the war in Ukraine started on February 2022, we visited Ukraine twice: the first time in August of 2022 and the second time in April of 2023. Both times the fighting was raging on the eastern and southern fronts of the country. There was an uncertainty about when and how this … Continue reading
By Rick Burnette “But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!” (Amos 5:24). In the Misión Peniel kitchen at 3:00 p.m. June 1, I’m alone, sorting eggs donated by an area farm. The building is typically buzzing on Thursday afternoons when the Cultivate Abundance staff and Misión Peniel team organize … Continue reading
By Mary Generally, I make it a practice not to engage in the game of “What if . . .?” You know the one. What If I had done this instead of that? What if I had said this and not that? It’s closely related to the game of “I wish I had . . … Continue reading
By Carson Foushee One of the blessings of our work as field personnel with CBF is the partnerships we have with congregations across the Fellowship. This is especially true of the Encourager Churches with which we have covenantal partnerships of support. First Baptist Church Dalton, Ga, is one such congregation. A month before the pandemic … Continue reading
By CBF field personnel Suzie Hope is what motivated most of our ancestors to leave their countries of origin and seek a better life in the United States. That impulse to find a haven continues for people of faith in many parts of the world. Over the past several years, we have experienced this personally. … Continue reading
By Grayson Hester “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden…In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:14-16) When God created the heavens and the earth and proclaimed “let there … Continue reading
By Marv Knox When guests drop in at Brooke and Mike’s home in Southeast Asia—and that possibility on any given day is better than 55 percent—they’re likely to find a place at the table for the next meal. That’s because Brooke, Mike and their children provide hospitality to students across Asia and around the world … Continue reading