A Missionary’s Story：Ｎathan Williams – 3

While I was still in elementary school my parents helped arrange a missions trip for our church.  Mostly youth, some adults, and a few children traveled for eight hours in an old school bus to a small church in Turtle Mountain Indian Reservation, North Dakota.  We went there to help my father’s next older sister Beverly (ref Foundations article) and her husband Jerry with building maintenance projects at their church.  Mornings were filled with painting walls, pulling weeds, cleaning, and light carpentry while afternoons and evenings were spent conducting VBS and worship services.  Admittedly there was only so much I could do as a child but it was a great opportunity to learn that church and missions work included a lot more than just singing and preaching.  During this time I learned about the weekday work at a church and the impact that relationships have on an overall ministry. Most of all I saw the passion my uncle and aunt had for communicating the Gospel to a community that had been trapped in sin for many generations.

They pastored that church for many years, raised up a Native American Indian to be the pastor, and eventually turned it over to him.  Next they took teaching positions at Central Indian Bible College investing in the lives of many other people until their retirement.  Patience, tenacity, and excellence were hallmarks of their ministry.  They were never in the limelight nor did they seek it, however as they faithfully served Jesus in relative obscurity many people became Christians and others were prepared for ministry.

My family regularly prayed for missionaries in various countries around the world but especially for a few missionary families in Africa, South America, and Asia. These three families were cousins of mine and we were concerned about their life, ministry, welfare.  News about such matters regularly came from other relatives but it was always special to hear directly from my cousins while they were itinerating in the US.  These two channels of communication opened my eyes to some of the realities and struggles of missionary life.  Through these conversations any romantic notions of missionary life died and I understood that hard work, prayer, and perseverance are requirements for the Gospel to be spread around the world.

This lesson was further taught by another great influence in my life, Vern MacKinney, my mother’s brother.  He began as the Head Clerk of the US A/G Christ Ambassadors (Youth Department), helped establish Speed-the-Light, and later served as the National Speed-the-Light Coordinator.  Speed-the-Light (STL) was a program created by the US A/G which challenged teenagers to give financially toward missions equipment needs.  My uncle Vern wrote many articles and coordinated special programs that promoted giving toward missions.  Here are some photos commemorating STL projects that he supported and/or led (photos used by permission – US A/G Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center)

After seeing the chart above some people might ask, “Where did all that money go?”  “Was any of it used to spread the Gospel in Japan?”  Good questions!  I have some fun answers.

Thanks to STL offerings, Assemblies of God missionaries around the world and many churches received vehicles, machinery, or money to purchase those items. That was true for Japan too.

The STL 25th Anniversary booklet (1969) contains other examples of items that STL offerings provided for missions work in Japan.

As you can see in this clip from the STL 25th Anniversary booklet STL offerings even blessed the Japan A/G at a national level.