Mission’s Philosophy

The Alexander’s have been on the field of Brazil for over 30 years. Their ministry in Brazil involves church planting, discipleship, music conferences, administrating a small Bible College for nationals, counseling students and couples from their church, traveling with ensembles, and holding Bible studies for married students. They have also been involved in publishing and recording conservative Christian music in Portuguese and making it available to believers across Brazil.

Jason and Heather both received Christ as their personal Savior as children of GFA missionaries–Rick and Shirley Armstrong and Bill and Glenda Davis. During their high school years, Jason and Heather each had a growing burden for the mission field as they served alongside their parents at home. Then during their college years at Bob Jones University, the burden continued to grow as they both served in Mission Prayer Band and in their local churches.

After graduating from the university in 2004, they served for six years on the Dean of Students staff while they pursued graduate degrees. Jason and Heather were married on May 15, 2010. Their desire is to join the ministry team at Universidad Cristiana de Las Americas (UCLA) in Monterrey, Mexico.

UCLA was founded in 1998 as a ministry of Tri-City Baptist Church in Blue Springs, Mo, and Genezareth Baptist Church in Guadalupe, N.L., Mexico. As the first Christian liberal arts university in Mexico, UCLA is preparing the next generation of Hispanic Christian leaders academically and spiritually through quality higher education and church planting missions. God burdened Jason’s heart for the ministry at UCLA as he saw the need for Christian higher education in Latin America through his parents’ ministry to Hispanics in California. Jason and Heather have two children, Ana Sofia and Matias Andrew.

Todd and Kathy met at Bob Jones University and worked one summer together at The Wilds Christian Camp and Conference Center as counselors. In the summer of 1993 they were married and graduated from Bob Jones University in 1994. Todd graduated with a degree in Bible, and Kathy graduated with a degree in elementary education.

After Todd did an internship at Calvary Baptist in Simpsonville, SC, he felt like he needed more practical training for ministry. They moved to Concord, NH, in 1995 and gained ministry experience as members of Trinity Baptist Church in Concord, NH.

In 1997 they moved to Clymer, PA, where Todd began teaching on the secondary level at Calvary Baptist Academy. The Lord then led them to Trinity Baptist in Williston, VT in 2001, where Todd continued teaching history and Bible on the secondary level. In February of 2004 the Lord called them to missions, and they began deputation meetings in October of 2005. Todd and Kathy have four children: Andrew, Isaac, Emily, and Paul.

During their first term Todd led a church planting endeavor in the city of Ndola and taught several classes in a Bible college where he was able to mentor men in the classroom and in the field.  Though able to work in the city and in a formal setting Todd has always had the yearning to work in a bush setting. After surveying the country they moved to the Eastern Province of Zambia in 2011 to focus on a rural church planting ministry.

Their first order of business upon coming to the province was to work on language study and learn more about the culture. God in His wisdom allowed them to find a home right away which was owned by one of the local Chiefs. This relationship led them to his area of Mnukwa where he is Chief to more than 15,000 people. The area is vast and is made up of over one hundred villages. While scouting the region they realized there was a great need for Bible preaching churches. Some of the temporal problems the people face are poverty, disease, lack of education and literacy, witchcraft, polygamy, and alcoholism.

In September of 2013 while partnering with Grace Dental and Medical Mission the Beaman family began ministering in the village of Chijayezo. A dental clinic was set up under a tent and many people had the opportunity to be ministered to with the Gospel and with much needed dental care.

After the team left Todd began a weekly Bible study situated under a tree. During this time he interviewed everyone that attended. No one could give a clear testimony of salvation outside of those led to Christ in September.On December 1st of that year they had their first church service and Calvary Baptist Church was initiated.

A year later in September of 2014 through the gift of an individual the church buildings were completed. This allowed Todd to focus on the building up of the people through discipleship. In late December people were invited to come and watch the “Jesus” film. Over 200 attended and many accepted Christ as their Savior as a result. Week long discipleship courses and other block courses have also been taught in the village.

Outside of teaching the people the Bible the Beaman family endeavors to spend time with the people working side by side on church projects. Some of the tools they use in their efforts include a literacy program, a first-aid station, a well for the people to draw water, and other areas of community service. In July of 2015 they will be starting a 12 step program to fight alcoholism and other addictions and behavioral problems.

On Good Friday of 2015 the first Baptism service was held. Thirty-Five souls were baptized and added to the church. Easter Sunday followed with the first communion service. Attendance varies, but on any given Sunday nearly one hundred people are ministered to.

The burden of the Beaman family is to continue to reach farther into the bush with the Gospel. There are thousands of villages that have no Gospel witness in the Eastern Province of Zambia alone.

Ironwood is a home missions ministry using the unique aspects of the camping ministry to reach young people for the Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen families, and serve local churches. It is a place of decision in the areas of salvation, full surrender and a consistent Christian walk.

As a missionary radio station, the Caribbean Radio Lighthouse broadcasts the good news of God’s Word to the islands of the Eastern Caribbean. Located on the tropical island of Antigua, and operated by Baptist International Missions, Inc., the station has been used by the Lord to strengthen local churches by teaching and encouraging individual Christians through sound, Bible-based programming. Reaching from Eastern Puerto Rico south to the northern Windward Islands, this AM station covers over twenty islands with a population exceeding one million. FM reaches a growing Spanish-speaking audience in Antigua and nearby islands. The Lighthouse brings biblical teaching to islands not reached by any other evangelical radio station which conforms to the fundamental doctrines of God’s Word.

Matt and Kelly have been working full-time with CampsAbroad since May 2001. As a mission arm of The Wilds Christian Association, CampsAbroad specializes in helping missionaries and nationals establish self-sustaining Christian camps based on a biblical philosophy. Over the past several years they have had the privilege of cooperating with missionaries in Alaska, Australia, Brazil, Cameroon, Canada, Dominica, Germany, Ghana, Guam, India, Kenya, Mexico, Moldova, Okinawa, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Romania, Russia, Tanzania, Ukraine, Uruguay, Venezuela, Zambia and other countries. They continue to maintain relationships with these camps that have been assisted in the past. In the future, they hope to begin promoting CampsAbroad among established missionaries, increase trip volume by sending out multiple teams, develop a website to promote the ministry and disseminate resources and experiment with establishing centralized base camps to train nationals in a particular region of the world.

The Lord has uniquely prepared Matt and Kelly Collier for the ministry of CampsAbroad. Matt Collier grew up at The Wilds Christian Camp. Kelly grew up in a Christian home and with her father being a career army officer, spent most of her childhood overseas. Matt and Kelly both graduated from a Christian university in 1997. From there they moved to Missouri, where Matt attended seminary and graduated with a Master of Divinity degree in 2001. During those years, the Lord opened up many opportunities to travel and work with camps around the world. In 2000, The Wilds Board of Directors saw the need for a ministry to help camps internationally and voted to establish CampsAbroad, a mission arm of The Wilds, as a resource for missionaries and nationals seeking to use camping to reach young people. Since 2001, the Colliers have represented CampsAbroad in the U.S. and have also been privileged to travel all over the world, consulting and ministering with young people in over 40 countries. The Lord has given Matt and Kelly three children: Gabe, born in March of 2005; Jeriah, born in September of 2010 and joining the Collier family in March of 2012; and Levi, born in December of 2012.

Jeremy and Caroline were both blessed to grow up hearing the gospel and were saved before their teenage years. As they trained at Bob Jones University, (Jeremy as a missions major, and Caroline as a nurse), their hearts were increasingly burdened for missionary service in a rural, third world country. In 2009, while preparing for his summer internship in Papua New Guinea with the Randy Smith family, Jeremy met Caroline who had served at a medical clinic with Jennifer Pearson in PNG the summer before.

They were married in the summer of 2011 and both graduated from BJ Seminary in 2013. In the fall of that year Jeremy had the opportunity to return to PNG for a survey trip in preparation for beginning career service with his family. He had opportunities to preach, go on a bush mission trip with national believers, minister musically, help with hands-on projects, and observe the Bible school ministry. Through this trip the Lord gave both Jeremy and Caroline confirmation and a fresh vision for church planting work in PNG.

They are excited to be able to work in Kiari alongside the Smiths, Owens, and Karen Hall. Jeremy will be heavily involved in helping to train the nationals through the Bible school, as well as provide a support role in preaching, music, evangelism and manual projects. Caroline will minister to the ladies and children through Sunday school, special classes, and other church ministries.  Isobel Hope joined the Dion’s family in May of 2014, and William Fraser joined their family in February 2016.

Matias and Kristine have been serving with EMU International since June, 2009. Matias has been instrumental in the establishment of a 4-year Bible College in the capital city of Montevideo, Uruguay. F.E.B.U. opened its doors for its first semester of classes in March of 2014. Matias is the director of the college. He and Kristine are also involved in other aspects of EMU’s ministries in Uruguay, and both Matias and Kristine teach at the school.

When Clay Gibbons was six years old his family was invited to a vacation Bible school by a faithful man of God and member of a local Baptist church.  At the end of that night’s service the Gospel was presented, and Clay responded to the invitation. His soon to be youth leader led him to the Lord. Not long after, his family also accepted Christ, and they started attending church there faithfully. As Clay grew up the Lord put a burden on his heart to serve people and eventually that sharpened into a desire for ministry.

After preparing at Bob Jones University and Bob Jones Seminary for ministry, Clay began to ask the Lord where he should serve. When the door shut on a few other options the desire for missions in England rose to the top of his heart. Clay had always had a keen interest in the UK. Clay and Danielle are now convinced of the Lord’s leading for their family to serve in the United Kingdom.

Danielle was saved attending summer camp at The Wilds while in middle school. After a powerful evening service she went back to her room and lay on the top bunk thinking of the sins she had committed and realized that she was in desperate need of a Savior. That night Danielle asked God to forgive her sins and save her soul, and He did! After her junior year of high school she offered God her life for full-time ministry, not knowing exactly what that would look like. Following this dedication she was able to attend a year at a Christian school, and there she learned about Bob Jones University where she attended after high school graduation. The United Kingdom, specifically England, has been a serious interest in her life since childhood. The Lord has turned that fascination and interest into a desire to serve and minister to a spiritually needy people.

Clay and Danielle met in 2004 at Acorn Ridge Baptist Church when Danielle began attending with her family. They began dating in 2005 after Clay finished his first year at BJU and Danielle graduated high school. They were married in North Carolina on June 14, 2008.

In December of 2012 the Gibbons were able to take their first trip to England. They stayed with Pastor Martin Wickens, who pastors Brimpton Baptist Church in Brimpton, England. They greatly anticipate and look forward to serving in England. Clay and Danielle have two children, Eloise and Emory. They covet your prayers as they begin the exciting journey of deputation.

After deputation they plan to begin their ministry in England by assisting Pastor Wickens at Brimpton Baptist church by preaching, training, and evangelizing. Their long-term goal is to plant a church in an urban area such as Reading or London and to begin or assist in the training of faithful men to become pastors.

Todd and Sarah Hudson arrived in Vienna, Austria, on November 6, 1997. As pioneer missionaries for GFA, their first tasks were acclimating to the new field, learning the language, and laying the groundwork for church planting. The church plant began with one young Austrian man on July 25, 1999.

The weeks and months that followed created a strong nucleus that led the church to develop a statement of faith, choose a name (Immanuel Bibelgemeinde), and incorporate as a Baptistic independent Bible church in early 2001. The church has outgrown three meeting places and has now purchased a building in the heart of Vienna.

In the autumn of 2003, the church prayerfully began an outreach to the English‑speaking members of Vienna, which serves as a headquarters for the United Nations as well as OPEC. The church currently runs two morning services each Sunday-one in English and one in German.

Todd and Sarah have four children, Nathaniel, Kathryn, Claire, and Benjamin.

I was born on September 12, 1950 in Chin State, Myanmar. Even though I was brought up in a Christian family, I accepted Jesus Christ only when I was 24 years old, that was in 1974.

I graduated with Bachelor of Science (B. Sc.) in Physics in 1972. I had worked with several Oil Companies from 1974-1995 as a geophysicist.  When I acknowledged a clear call from God to serve Him as a full-time minister, I quit my job in early 1995 and prepared to serve the Lord wherever He would call me.

In July 1995, my brother in law, Dr. Thang and I started a Seminary, “Grace Baptist Theological Seminary,” at Yangon, the former capital city of Myanmar. In the same year, we also started a Fundamental Baptist Church, “Grace Baptist Church”. In 1999, God opened a way to study at Bob Jones University, in Greenville, South Carolina. I graduated from there with Master of Divinity (M.Div.) in 2004. In May 2015, Bob Jones University honored me by conferring on me an honorary Doctor of Divinity (D.D.).

Since 2003, I have joined Open Door Baptist Missions (ODBM), as a national missionary. When I went back to Myanmar in 2004, I continued my ministry with my brother in law. In addition to the existing Seminary, we started an under-graduate course, Bachelor of Theology (B.Th.) under my care.

Summer is always a time for having mission trips within and without the country, Myanmar. In addition to the ministries of the seminary and the church, I am also helping some local mission agencies by conducting seminars, trainings, and evaluating the works of their missionaries.

My wife, Niang Lun Cing, and I are blessed with three children, Khai, Vung and Nuam.

En Khan Kham

Ken and Nancy Kirkland joined the Lighthouse staff in 2005 and are missionaries with Biblical Ministries Worldwide. Following several short-term mission trips to Antigua, with both work teams and family members, God led the Kirklands back to the island as career missionaries. Ken is the Administrative Assistant, fulfilling a variety of duties, and is our computer technician. The Kirklands are members of Maranatha Baptist Church in Jennings Village, Antigua. Ken has served as deacon, helps with music and audio, and teaches a boys’ Sunday School class. Nancy teaches the Ladies’ Sunday School class and Junior Church. They have a strong outreach ministry in their village through Bible Clubs, VBS programs, discipleship classes, and in their local primary school. Ken and Nancy grew up in Michigan and are thankful for the influence of their Christian parents. Nancy earned a B.A. from Cedarville University in Social Work and Counseling, and Ken has a B.A. from Grand Rapids Baptist College in Music. Ken served in full-time ministry for 25 years as a Christian School Teacher, Music Director, and Assistant Pastor before coming to Antigua, while Nancy taught for several years in a Christian school and was the Guidance Counselor at Cross Lanes Christian School in West Virginia. Their commissioning church is Cross Lanes Bible Church, in Cross Lanes, West Virginia.

Both John and Becky grew up in missionary homes; John in the Middle Eastern country of Lebanon, and Becky in Japan. Both received Christ as Savior from sin at an early age and had a burden to serve the Lord in some way in the future. They met while students at Bob Jones University and were married in 1980.

For 5 years following marriage, John and Becky worked in a church ministry in Charleston, SC, but were praying for the Lord’s direction to go to the mission field according to His will. After a summer ministry trip to Japan, God burdened their hearts to return as full time missionaries, which they did in 1987. Following some years of language study and gaining experience in the church Becky’s parents had started in Japan, John and Becky started another church plant in the Tokyo suburban town of Moroyama where they currently live.

Presently, another missionary family with their mission board, Biblical Ministries Worldwide, are working with the Knoxes and helping continue the ministry while they are on furlough. Several people in the church plant are also serving in various ways. One goal in the near future is to see this ministry become independent of missionary leadership and for other church ministries to be established in surrounding communities.

While preparing for missionary work, Robert (a native of Poland) met his wife, Janelle, who was studying TESL in preparation for missions. Robert and Janelle have returned to Poland and are involved in a wide range of ministry. They have planted Bethel Baptist Church in Krakow. Out of this church flow various other ministries: college and career, teens, children’s ministries, summer VBS camps, jail ministry, ladies’ and men’s Bible studies, and a monthly Bible institute. The Lord has also allowed them to help open the first Christian dormitory in Krakow.

Atan was born on the island of Mindanao in the Philippines to an unsaved family. God wonderfully used an aunt to bring him to the local Baptist church, where he heard the Gospel and came to know Jesus as personal Savior. God gave Atan many opportunities to share his faith with unsaved family members and secular college classmates. He also served in his local church by teaching Bible clubs, handling the music ministry, teaching VBS, preaching and teaching Sunday school, discipling new believers, and going to rural areas to share Christ.

Atan was called into the ministry while he was studying in a secular university. His involvement in soulwinning, preaching and teaching Bible studies at University Baptist Church was used by God to impress upon him God’s call to the ministry. God began making His call clear to Rachel shortly after she trusted Christ as her Savior at the age of 4. She grew up on a farm in Pennsylvania. After Rachel was saved, she enjoyed many opportunities to share Christ through personal witness and through her local church ministries of public school Bible clubs, VBS, juvenile detention center, Sunday school, and seeing God work on several mission trips.

After graduating from BJU in 2007, God called Rachel to serve for five years with GFA as a short-term missionary in the Philippines, teaching music at Bob Jones Memorial Bible College. She taught music to many students, who in turn used what they learned in their own local churches.

Rachel especially loved the street children in Manila and had the opportunity to go to needy urban areas and teach Sunday school and Bible clubs to street children. She also had a burden for the largely unreached tribal people, and this led her to spend much time working with local believers to seek to reach the unreached for Christ.

In 2010, Rachel and Atan served on a musical mission team to a remote island. Here God began calling them to serve Him in the Philippines together. In 2012, they were married at Limerick Chapel in Pennsylvania, and Atan began his training at Bob Jones University. They are convinced that God is calling them back to the Philippines to serve Him once again.

Joel and Sarah were both blessed to grow up in godly homes and having a heart for ministry they both attended Bible college at Northland Baptist Bible College. They met while serving on a local church ministry together. It was during college also that the Lord brought Joel and Sarah in touch with Bibles International and gave them a burden to serve in this crucial area of missions. Toward that end they moved to Greenville, SC after being married in 2006 and Joel enrolled in the Bible Translation program at Bob Jones Seminary.

Since that time Joel and Sarah have been members of Cornerstone Baptist Church and have enjoyed serving in a number of ministries. As a culmination of his Master of Divinity degree in 2012 Joel was ordained to ministry through the commendation of Pastor Gary Reimers and the leadership of Cornerstone. Joel and Sarah are blessed to have five children; Hannah, Will, Kara, Sam & Laura.

The Wagners are sent by Cornerstone and have been serving in Yangon, Myanmar since 2015 as a Translation Consultant with Bibles International.

In the late 1960s God brought a dedicated group of Christians together led by Ken Hay. Steps of faith helped them recognize that there was a great need for a camp, but this group had very few resources. In God’s timing, the group was given access to sizable funds at very low interest. It was a faith venture all the way that had begun when Ken and his friend Dr. Walter Fremont prayed for a quality Christian camp in the Southeast area of the United States 10 years prior to its founding.

The group discovered a ruggedly beautiful 810-acre tract of land just over the North/South Carolina border in Transylvania County, North Carolina. The money was used to purchase the land and begin construction. It was hard to imagine a “new, young” camp with such a nice property and facilities. It was also hard to imagine a camp so desperately dependent on God and the kindness of God’s people to simply make it financially through a first year.

Along the way God has allowed the ministry to expand its reach in ways beyond comprehension. Thousands of families and churches have been encouraged in the critical area of Christian music through our music ministry. From 1987 until 2004 The Wilds had an incredible opportunity to minister to over 35,000 campers through The Wilds of the Rockies located near Kremmling, Colorado. In 2001, CampsAbroad became the official missions arm of The Wilds, providing camp training and materials to over forty foreign ministries at no charge. Then, in our fortieth year, the Lord answered nearly 10 years of prayer and opened wide the doors for us to begin a camping ministry in the Northeast. The Wilds of New England, located in Deering, New Hampshire, currently offers several summer weeks of teen and junior camps.

From three weeks of camp and 250 campers during that first summer of 1969, to year-round camps hosting over 20,000 campers per year, The Wilds has been here to assist local churches to reach the youth and families of our nation for forty-plus years!