God's Word in Audio - Testimonies
Faith Comes By Hearing associats gather information and testimonies about what God is doing in and through Audio Bible listening programs in heart languages around the world.
Audio Bible Excites the Church
In Paraguay a local pastor is using the Audio Bible as part of his radio broadcast. One observer stated, “When people heard his radio program, they asked ‘who is preaching in Guarani? Whoever it is knows how to preach’! People are desperate to hear the Word! When they hear the Word miracles happen and churches are planted. Thank you for joining with us in preaching the Word and planting churches!!”
The Bible in Guarani
The Bible Society of Paraguay started Faith Comes By Hearing (FCBH) listening sessions using the Audio Drama New Testament in Spanish and Guarani. Both are official languages of Paraguay. Spanish is used in government and business; Guarani is spoken by 90% of the population. The FCBH program in Nivacle was added later allowing the Audio Bible to reach 94% of the population. Reaching the people in their native language has stimulated wonderful developments like the following story.
A Hunger for the Word
In one Nivaclé-speaking church, the pastor started playing the Faith Comes By Hearing New Testament before the Sunday morning service. When he stopped the Audio Bible to begin the service, the 100 people present began to protest, saying that they wanted to continue listening. So they listened through the morning and decided to stop for lunch. Then they continued listening until dark, stopping only to eat supper.
As it was nearing bedtime, the pastor said, “OK we’re going to stop now. It’s late and it’s time to go home.”
The people reluctantly agreed to end for the night, but wanted to start again first thing in the morning. The pastor refused, saying, “Tomorrow is a work day and you need to go to your jobs. Come back next Sunday and we’ll continue listening through the New Testament.”
By the following week, word had spread like wildfire through the community and more than 500 people showed up at the church to continue listening through the New Testament! Like the previous week, they started early in the morning, stopping only for meals, finishing the book of Revelation around sundown that night.
This church listened through the entire New Testament in two consecutive Sundays! The pastor praises God for the gift of the Audio New Testament in Nivacle, which the people receive as a gift from the Lord.
Testimony From Tacumbu Prison
“I know that before men I am incarcerated for a crime I committed but I know that before God I am free and ready to serve and praise Him.” These are the words from from Alberto, a prisoner from the penitentiary in Asuncion, Paraguay.
Those words were uttered in response to the materials from Faith Comes By Hearing and the great impact they are having in his life. He states,
“I can’t put a price on everything this is doing in my life. We are listening to the material during our early morning devotions. There’s three men in our cell and after we wake up we are ready with our Bibles so we can follow the readings that are broadcast throughout the penitentiary. There are days when we don’t even go to eat breakfast because we don’t want to miss the presentation over the loudspeaker."
Prisoners Set Free at Vinas Cue
Alfredho is aware that some of the poorest of the poor languish in prisons alone and forgotten. Some time ago, Alfredho with some of his friends, visited Vinas Cue, a military prison.
Alfredho’s initial impression was of a very pleasant looking place, until they crested a hill. Before him, he saw a fenced area
"like a concentration camp. There, surrounded by sheds and houses we saw the military prisoners, in the middle of the yard, without any shade for protection.”
He explained that men of all military rank were being held for a variety of infractions. Many had been there for years without having their cases heard. He said,
“they were a defeated lot, entirely without pride or pretense based on who they once were.”
Alfredho and his friends prayed with the men and gave them the Audio Bible and other study materials. Six months later, Alfredho got a call from Captain Aguero, one of the men who had gone with him to the prison. Alfredho says,
“He told me he had been working with them using the material we brought. After listening to the Audio Bible, the prisoners began praying that God would work in their lives and in the lives of their families. They also prayed that the military courts would attend to their cases. Many of them had been there for years without having their cases heard. Some were able to see their families only once or twice per year.”
Their hope was renewed through Bible listening and their prayers were heard. In six months time, out of 25 prisoners, 14 have been released! The courts miraculously began hearing and resolving their cases. Some have been given conditional freedom due to their good conduct these last few months.
The prison directors have requested that the daily Bible listening program continue as they have seen radical changes in the prisoners since the program began. Those prisoners who were released also accepted Christ in their lives, thus receiving a double freedom.
