First Stop on Book Release Tour!

On Sunday, November 7, I have the privilege to preach at First Baptist Church, Matthews, NC for their morning worship services. Senior Pastor Greg Dills is a good friend, and I am thankful for his invitation and for entrusting me with such an opportunity. First Baptist Matthews is a warm, exciting fellowship, and I am looking forward to a great time of worship with them.

This will also be the first official stop for my book release! Unshakable Joy in Uneasy Times is now available for purchase and I will have plenty of copies with me during our visit at FBC, Matthews.

We have many good, dear friends in the Charlotte/Matthews/Waxhaw/Indian Trail/Monroe areas, and Summer and I hope to see you all on Nov 7!!!!!!!!!

If you would like to purchase a copy of Unshakable Joy, you may do so by logging on to www.crossbooks.com, click on “bookstore,” and search “Wil Owens.”

Myanmar and India - 2011!

India is one of our favorite trips to make and after several years away, we are headed back in 2011. The trip will be around 13 days in length sometime in the month of October. We are currently working with our mission partners in India to confirm the best dates.

The trip will consist of two primary missions. First, we will travel to Myanmar and visit Emmanuel Ministries (www.emmanuelmission.ning.com). While there, we will conduct a graduation service for the seminary students and visit the believers, orphans, and students. Second, we will travel to India and visit Hopegivers International (www.hopegivers.org). While there, we will take part in their pastor’s conference. Other ministry opportunities will include teaching Bible students, caring for their orphans, worshipping with the saints, and any evangelistic opportunities the Lord may open for us. As always, we will plan specific ways in which we will be a blessing to the believers during our stay.

What makes this trip so special is that both of these ministries are on the frontline of reaching the unreached with the Gospel! You will meet, encourage, and fellowship with believers who daily face incredible challenges, persecutions, and joys! This will be a remarkable, unforgettable journey.

Please begin to pray now about joining us on this exciting, lifetime opportunity. The trip will cost approximately 3,000.00.

First deposit: Feb 1 - 500.00 (this determines exactly who is going)

Second deposit: April 1 - 1,000.00 (airline tickets will be purchased. no refunds after this point)

Third deposit: June 1 - 500.00 (travel will be secured at this point)

Final Balance: Aug 1 - 1,000.00 (meals and lodging will be secured at this point)

Stay tuned. More details will follow as soon as we lock down the dates!

The Gospel Shaking Myanmar!

Report from Myanmar: “There is the heathen family in Josiah Mission field. They often sacrificed under a big tree into the jungle with bringing a hen and with all their

family members. One day the devil have bound one of their daughter who is 23

years old during their sacrifice under that tree. Suddenly she jump up and

tried to beat her parents. If she could not beat her patents, she shout and

fell down to the floor. At the time her parents were full of frustration and

they brought her by a rope to the pillar of their home.

After that her parents approached Josiah and said him that we heard that you

are a teacher of Christian. So one thing we are challenging you that if you

can heal our daughter, we would accept your teaching about the Savior and

become Christian?

Josiah said I am not the healer but God. Josiah fasted three days for her

healing. After that he brought her with her parents and under a big tree

into the jungle. Josiah laid his Bible on her head with his hand and pray to

the Lord and the power of God is revealed in her life and she immediately

restored. She returned at home with praising God and great joy. The news of

her has shaken this region.”

The Lord has also given Josiah a helpmate and companion. Pastor Joseph recently performed their marriage!

Buy a Cow, Support the Gospel!

With each mission trip, Search And See takes on a new project in order to make a lasting impact for the Gospel in the areas we visit instead of visiting for two weeks, coming home to the USA, and forgetting our friends and fellow believers.

This time, our desire is to sponsor the 15 pastors of Search And See Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda. During our visit, we conducted a Pastor’s School for these dear men. It was evident to us that they needed training, which we were delighted and humbled to give. However, it was also clearly evident that they needed help in order to care for themselves, their families, and their churches. If their immediate needs were met, they could study the Word, minister to the flock, and evangelize the lost without the constant distraction of trying to find the next meal. We believe if we support these pastors, we will be supporting the Gospel in three countries throughout Africa.

This will be a twofold effort. First, we want to purchase a milk cow for each pastor and his family. The pastor will be able to sell the milk at the market, and in this way, make sure his own family has sufficient food. The cost for each cow is $400.00. Thus far, the team purchased 3 cows while we there and since the team has been back home, sufficient funds for 3 more, close to 4, have been raised.

That means - only 7 more cows to go and we will help each pastor feed his family.

Second, we want to raise sponsors for each pastor. You can sponsor a pastor for $60/month. These funds will provide for the other needs of these pastors such as clothing, school fees, necessities, etc.

The pastors’ names are John, Caleb, Whittman, Garrison, Arthur, Jacob, Conrad, Kennedy, and Moses. From Tanzania, the pastors’ names are Phillip, Bosco, David, and Geoffrey. Two pastors from Uganda were unable to attend the school.

If you can purchase a milk cow for one of these pastors, please send your $400 donation to Search And See, PO Box 1304, Paintsville, KY 41240.

"Unshakable Joy in Uneasy Times" Available NOW!!!

My latest book has just been released from CrossBooks. You can follow the link below or go to www.crossbooks.com, select "Bookstore," and search "Wil Owens."

http://www.crossbooks.com/BookStore/BookStoreBookDetails.aspx?bookid=59329

Enjoy!

Book Review: The Rage Against God

The Rage Against God: How Atheism Led Me to Faith. By Peter Hitchens. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2010.

If I were to sum up my response to Hitchens’ work in a few words they would be “fascinating” and “a little disappointing.” Let me explain.

Fascinating. Hitchens explains how the cultural nationalism of post war England pulled him and his entire generation away from the church and toward atheism. It is a gripping analysis of history and culture that is frighteningly prophetic of the drift now taking place in America. I was captivated from the start.

In the same vein, Hitchens details how his experience with a godless society, specifically his time in Russia during the fall of Communism, pointed him back to the church. This was an equally intriguing account. There probably is no greater argument against a godless view of the world than its resulting consequences on the culture that embraces it! History is replete with examples. Atheists are armed with excuses. At the end of the day, however, the darkened void and empty soul of a culture with no higher authority argues vehemently against itself!

A Little Disappointing. Hitchens attributes the initial prodding back to faith to his viewing of Roger van der Weyden’s famous polyptych The Last Judgment. What struck him was that the look on the faces of those headed for Hell seemed strangely familiar to his own and that of his generation. He never has gotten over the chill he felt at the impact of thinking what if he were among the damned. When this experience was coupled with his personal observation of atheism’s cruelty, he was on his way back to faith. The large missing piece though is Christ. Hitchens is too silent on the most crucial subject and object of “the faith.” If he does indeed love Christ, and therefore, loves the Church, I really wished he would have expressed this loud and clear. I am not calling his conversion into question. There is no doubt the man’s desires, attitude, direction - life - has changed! I only hope that eventually he will center discussion of his conversion more upon the Judge (Christ) than the Judgment.

Having said that, let me be loud and clear concerning Peter Hitchens. I respect and admire him tremendously for the stand he is taking. He knows the Bible. He debates on behalf of the Bible’s claims. He is forthright, pleasantly honest, and extremely courageous. Furthermore, as his career attests, he is a brilliant writer.

In arguing against atheism, which entails opposing his brother Christopher, Hitchens has truly and winsomely set forth looming questions to which atheists have not been able to provide sufficient answers. Atheists cannot answer the history question, why are atheistic societies so evil and cruel? Atheists cannot answer the moral question, why do they borrow their morality from Christianity if Christianity is fundamentally wrong? Now, atheists do give answers to these questions, they are just not good ones!

I am thankful for Hitchens, his testimony, and the contribution he is making to the Church and for the Church. I do pray his brother and many more who have abandoned the idea of God will be awakened out of their spiritual slumber by His grace and for His glory as was their former comrade, Peter Hitchens!

17 Year Dream Come True and Much More!

I just returned home from another overseas mission and there is much to tell. In 1993 I traveled to Kenya and spent two weeks in the home of Pastor John Musiikhu. Most of the people I met during my stay had never seen a white man before. Most of the people I met during my stay were phenomenal believers who were willing to walk miles barefooted to worship the Lord under shade trees. The Lord put it in my heart back then to see them have a church building of their own one day. 17 years later, just last week, I stood in that church building and helped dedicate it to the glory of God. A dream come true after 17 years. To say the least, it was one of the more incredible experiences of my life.

But there is so much more to tell about this trip......

1. We had a tremendous Pastor’s Conference. For six days, we taught 12 of their 15 pastors (four of them traveled from Tanzania to be there)! Each day we presented them with a gift. The first gift was the ESV Study Bible, which they used for the remainder of the conference. Glenn Peters taught each day on how to study the Bible using the inductive study method. During this time they were taught everything from how to use the cross reference to asking fundamental questions of the text. Peter Copeland taught on the basics such as how to have a quiet time and teaching them what was in the Study Bible and how to access it. I taught all week on expository preaching. The other five gifts were four more books and a new shirt and tie. These guys devoured every thing we shared!
2. We conducted a VBS for the children. Everything was included; crafts, snacks, games, and Bible lessons. The majority of the team participated in this effort. There were an average of 100 kids each day.
3. We held Bible classes for the men and women. They listened eagerly, asked great questions, and spent time in prayer. 2 men received Christ during this time.
4. We worshipped with them on Sunday. The service was to begin at 10:30. Due to a flat tire and a sick driver, we arrived at 12. Everyone was there and waiting. The service was over at 2! The Lord led me to preach on suffering because we observed enormous suffering all around us, especially poverty. Their eyes and ears were locked on to every single word. They didn’t budge an inch on those wooden pews the entire time. I spoke from Colossians 1:24. There is no other way to describe this except amazing!
5. We conducted an open air crusade on a hillside Sunday afternoon. As soon as we arrived, the rains came. We were drenched to the bone, and so were they, but after the rains ended, the service was held. Many received Christ and the ministry hopes to have a church, school, and orphanage there soon.
6. We went door to door. Most afternoons, after the rains, we would go to a new village, split into teams, and visit in their homes. Most homes were two-room wooden frames covered in mud with tin roofs. We witnessed to them and prayed for their needs. During these visits, five people prayed to receive Christ.

The reception we received when we arrived at the church and at each home was overwhelming! They spoke often of how blessed they were to host us, but as with all mission trips, we were the ones who were truly blessed!

In the days ahead, I will be sharing more about the trip, photos, and ways for you to get involved in helping us support this ministry. Their desire is to reach all of Africa with the Gospel!

Many of you supported this mission with money and material donations. Many more supported this mission with prayer! I and the whole team are so grateful. Your support enabled us to fulfill this mission. Your prayers carried us through this mission (some, including me, had to overcome sicknesses, at one point, unknown to us, we were literally stuck in a volatile area, and we sat through a small earthquake one morning during our team devotions)! I told you this was an incredible trip!!!!!!!

I cannot express how much I appreciate the work and spirit of every member of this team. Every team I have led has been good. Some have been excellent. This team falls in the second category. Thank you Glenn Peters, Rita Owens, Sam Chapman, Cookie Chapman, Charlie Owens, Peggy Owens, Chip Hughes, Jan Haney, Corey Haney, Susan Poole, Laura Blue, Kathy Caldwell, Mary Lou Byrum, Jean Matthews, Peter Copeland, and Judi Skaggs! You guys were fantastic!

To God be the glory! Great things He has done.