27 groups and counting!

The Stranger Videobook

(Editor’s note: Many retired people have time on their hands. How can they use their time to be effective ambassadors for Christ? Here is Kevin and Seana’s story.)

We met an elderly couple who had recently ordered two cases of The Stranger on the Road to Emmaus. Kevin and Seana* were retired, but they were putting their time to good use by getting involved in a ministry that helped new international students settle into their city. Kevin and Seana helped the students find accommodation and get furniture. They showed the students around town, and even helped them find supermarkets that stocked familiar foods.

Continue reading “27 groups and counting!”

Thank you!

Building fund donation

Earlier in the year, we had a family of nine attend one of our TERM Seminars. Their children ranged from early teens to early 20s and they were very excited at the end of the seminar because they now felt equipped to share the gospel.

Just the other day, the family came by our office for a visit and surprised us when they presented an envelope for our building fund. The father told us they had pooled together what each had wanted to give. They all wanted to have a part in helping. We were very touched by this gesture and their generosity.

In the time since embarking on this building fund project, we have been moved by many of you who pray alongside with us or help us financially. We thank the Lord for each and every one of you. Would you please continue to pray that the Lord will work a miracle that will enable us to purchase the building.

We’ve been praying for nearly a year

"The Stranger on the Road to Emmaus" DVD

Here is a story from our archives. It’s from June* who works in a pregnancy resource centre.

We are a small Pregnancy Resource Centre and we’ve spent nearly a year praying for the right tool to use as a consistent, easy-to-understand, starting point in sharing the Bible with our clients. We have gospel bracelets that serve their purpose in the counselling rooms, but wanted something that would enable us to spend time with our clients and give us opportunity to build relationships.

To make a long (but interesting!) story short, the Lord led us to The Stranger on the Road to Emmaus about one and a half years ago. We’ve incorporated it into our “Points Program” by giving each client a book and workbook (and Bible if they don’t have one). We run group Bible study classes at our centre where we watch The Stranger DVD and discuss questions and answers in the workbook for two hours each week. We do this over a nine-week period. Typically, we run two Bible study sessions a day!

So again I say thank you. “The Stranger on the Road to Emmaus” has been an answer to our prayers!

As June discovered, we designed our tools so that any believer can use them to share the gospel. We are happy that June and her team were able to make good use of the book, workbook and the videobook.

(*Name changed as per GoodSeed policy.)

 

TERM Seminar at Owen Sound, Ontario

Word of Life Bible Institute Our next TERM Seminar will be at the Word of Life Bible Institute at Owen Sound, Ontario. If you’d like to have a refresher on the gospel, or if you have a desire to lead others in a gospel study, join us at our seminar. Our method is very transferable: you’ll be able to teach as you’ve been taught, and you’ll be able to teach others to lead as well. Learn more or register.

New Canada store

GoodSeed Canada StoreWe’re pleased to announce our new Canada store. Our aim was to make it easy to use on a computer, smartphone or tablet.

Near the top of each page, you’ll find the main categories:

‘Tools to give away‘ contains all the books and DVDs that you can give to friends and family.

‘Tools to guide a course‘ contains all the tools to help you lead a course or study.

‘Training‘ lets you register for upcoming workshops and seminars.

We hope you’ll find the store easy to use. Do message us if you encounter any problems.

New Canada store: http://ca.goodseed.com

 

I want your “Be Ready” box!

"Be Ready" Box

A “Be Ready” box is any box packed with a variety of GoodSeed books, DVDs and audiobooks. When an opportunity to share the gospel arises, you can dip into the box and pull out an appropriate translation or book and give it to the person you’re speaking with.

One of our staff members was teaching at a church in Arizona and he explained that as ambassadors for Christ, we ought to be ready to share the gospel whenever the opportunity arises. He explained how to pack a “Be Ready” box for the car and home.

Continue reading “I want your “Be Ready” box!”

“By This Name” is now available in Mongolian!

"By This Name" in Mongolian
By This Name in Mongolian

We’re excited to announce that By This Name is now available in Mongolian! The title of the book in Mongolian is “ЭMMaЙ T0CROHbI 3aMД TaapaЛДcaH YЛ TaHЙX XYH.” The literal translation is… “The Stranger on the Road to Emmaus.” Confusing? Well, it just so happens that the content of “By This Name” is most appropriate for Mongolia, but the translators found that the title of “The Stranger” resonated better with the locals as their culture has been heavily influenced by a nomadic lifestyle. So, we took the content of By This Name and married it with the title of The Stranger on the Road to Emmaus.

Continue reading ““By This Name” is now available in Mongolian!”

Stolen!

Photo credit: Jon Collier on flickr(Editor’s note: Here is a rather quirky story from our archives.)

In 2000, we were getting The Stranger on the Road to Emmaus translated into French. Lillie,* one of people helping on that project, told us that her husband’s copy of the book was stolen from his office!

Several months later, Lillie and her husband traveled to attend their son’s wedding. They brought along with them three copies of L’Homme sur le chemin d’Emmaüs. During the time they were with their family, their car was broken into and all three copies of the books were stolen too!

Lillie managed to laugh it off and said that if she ever hears of a criminal coming to know the Lord after reading The Stranger, she’ll know where he or she got the copy. When she related these two incidents to her Bible study group, they thought that the book must be really special if people were willing to steal it! They asked to study the book together.

We never know what happens when a book explaining the gospel gets into another person’s hands. Whether he (or she) received it as a gift or he stole it, our prayer is that he will read it, understand it and believe.

(* All names changed as per GoodSeed policy.)

 

Photo credit: Jon Collier on flickr

 

More passionate about sharing the gospel

Tools designed to share the gospelIn March, two of our staff members conducted a seminar about sharing the gospel. One of the couples that attended wrote a note:

“Both my wife and I left feeling revived and more passionate about sharing the gospel.

“I shared my experience from the seminar and we are going to start a Bible study group with a few of our leaders and core members using “The Stranger on the Road to Emmaus.” We will offer a few classes over the summer and in the fall to our members. The members of the first two studies will lead the fall classes.

“We have been looking for ways to better disciple our people and encourage them and equip them to share the gospel…. We will be using this study as a platform and starting place.”

Whenever people get excited about sharing the gospel using our tools, we thank God that our ministry is able to help believers fulfill the biblical mandate of being ambassadors for Christ. Pray with us that this couple and their church will be able to share the gospel with many.

 

“The Stranger” now available in China

Heavenly Stairways Webstore

We’re excited to announce that a local Chinese publisher is now printing and selling the Simplified Chinese edition of The Stranger on the Road to Emmaus… in China! (And with a new cover too.)

In our continued effort to make our tools available to anyone anywhere in the world, we’re glad to see that people in China are now be able to order the book from a local bookstore called Heavenly Stairways.

If you have friends in China, let them know the The Stranger is now available to them in the stores and online: The Stranger on the Road to Emmaus in Simplified Chinese.