Document

Our Purpose & Passion“‘For from the rising of the sun even to its setting, My Name will be great among the nations, andin every place incense is going to be offered to My Name, and a grain offering that is pure; for MyName will be great among the nations,’ says the Lord of hosts.” - Malachi 1:11

The chief end of all mission work is the Glory of God. Our greatest concern is that His Name be great among thenations, from the rising to the setting of the sun (Malachi 1:11). We find our great purpose and constant motivation,not in man or his needs, but in God, His commitment to His own glory and our God-given desire to see Him glorifiedin every nation, tribe, people and language.

Although HeartCry recognizes the great importance of sending missionaries from the West to the unevangelizedpeoples throughout the world, we believe that we are led of the Lord to support native or national missionaries so thatthey may evangelize their own peoples. Therefore, we seek to work with godly men and women of integrity and visionin the unreached world to help them evangelize and plant Churches among their own peoples.

Our Principles* While we recognize that the needs of mankind are many and his sufferings are diverse, we believe that they all

spring from a common origin - the fall of man and the corruption of his own heart. Therefore, we believe that thegreatest benefit to mankind can be accomplished through the preaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and theestablishment of churches that preach the Word of God and minister according to its commands, precepts, andwisdom.

* Every need of this ministry will be obtained through prayer. We may share our missionary vision with others andeven make known to them the specific tasks which the Lord has laid on our heart to do, but we may not raise supportthrough prodding or manipulating our brothers and sisters in Christ. If this ministry is of the Lord, then He will beour Patron. If He is with us, He will direct His people to give and we will prosper. If He is not with us, we will not andshould not succeed.

* We intend to never enlarge our field of labor by contracting debts. This is contrary to both the letter and the spiritof the New Testament. In secret prayer, God helping us, we will carry the needs of this ministry to the Lord and actaccording to the direction that He gives.

* We will not compete with other biblical mission agencies, but use the resources that God has given to us to work inpartnership with them. If the Lord directs, we will sacrifice our own goals and resources that other mission worksmay be helped and the Kingdom of God increased.

* In meeting any need, those of us who are supported financially by this ministry will be the first to sacrifice all thingsnecessary for the advancement of His Kingdom.

* We will not measure the success of this ministry by the amount of money given, Bibles distributed or nationalmissionaries supported, but by the Lord’s blessing on the work.

* Our Goal is not to enlarge ourselves, or to become a key figure in the Great Commission, but to be faithful andobedient stewards by the grace that is given to us. That men may see our weakness and glorify God for His strength;that they may see our inability and glorify God for His faithfulness.

6 Missionary Slavic Spataru: Reaching Saulof Tarsus: The situation in the middle east isvolatile to say the least. Nevertheless, theGospel of Jesus Christ continues to demon-strate that it is truly the power of God forsalvation of the Jew first and also the Greek.

12 Missionary Joseph Lamptey: HeartCrymissionary Joseph Lamptey and his lovelywife Rebecca are planting churches in thecountry of Ghana, West Africa. Read theirtestimonies.

14 Missionary James Lamptey: HeartCrymissionaries James and Eveline Naadu joinhis brother Joseph in planting churches inGhana. Read their testimonies.

.

16 Missionary Daniel Amoo. Brother Danieland his family is the third HeartCry mission-ary family in Ghana. They are winning soulsand planting churches to the glory of God.Read their testimonies.

18 Missionary Samuel Ahmed Brother Samuelwas the first missionary supported byHeartCry on the continent of Africa. We arepleased to report that he and his family arepersevering in the work of plantingchurches among the Muslims of northernNigeria.

Hallowed be Your Name!Your Kingdom Come!

Your Will be Done!

From Israel toAfrica

Where In The World is HeartCry?HeartCry is currently supporting seventy-two indigenousmissionaries in thirteen countries on four continents.

Asia

Africa

Eastern Europe

Ghana ZambiaNigeria

Burma (Myammar) India Nepal

Serbia

RomaniaMoldovaUkraine

Middle East Peru Paraguay

Israel

South America

And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority hasbeen given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and makedisciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Fatherand the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that Icommanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of theage.”

Matthew 28:18-20

From theDirector

Dear Friends,

It is my great hope and prayer that this issue ofHeartCry finds you growing in the grace of Christ. Hereat HeartCry we are all doing well. God has brought usthrough another year and given us hope to look for-ward to the next with great expectations.

As I look back on this last year, I have one regret.I do not wish to have worked harder, or dedicated moretime, or been more efficient. My one great regret is thatI did not believed God for more. So many times we arecaught in that trap of unbelief that hides itself in piety.We believe that God “can” do all things, but we are notreally sure that He is “willing” to do anything. In theScriptures I have found certain promises that are a con-stant motivation for me to step out and step off thecomfortable cliff of human possibilities and fall into thehands of the God who can and will carry me farther and

Director Paul Washerpreaching the Gospelin the National OperaHouse in Bucharest,Romania

higher than I could have ever imaginedpossible.

“For the eyes of the Lord move toand fro throughout the earth thatHe may strongly support thosewhose heart is completely His.”

II Chronicles 16:9

“To this end also we pray for youalways that our God will countyou worthy of your calling, andfulfill every desire for goodnessand the work of faith with power.”

II Thessalonians 1:11

These Scriptures will not allow compla-cency. They call us to venture from theharbor and sail through unknown seas.They promise that God will go before us,behind us, and beside us all the way.

We should not think that we want tobe used of God more than God wants touse us. There are so many people who arealways asking God to use them and theyseek counseling to determine the secretto being used. This is something I simplycannot understand. I have found, as oneold saint use to say, if a man makes him-self usable, then God will wear him out.

There are so many open doors before us. So manyopportunities to do missions. I have come to believethat God is so very willing to demonstrate His glorythrough us, but we must step out in faith and trust thatHe will catch us and carry us on His wings.

The first of January marks the beginning of a newyear, that like the years before it, will be gone soonerthan we think. It is so important that we seize the dayand take every opportunity as a gift from God. May thisyear, be the year that you and I give ourselves morefully to the things of God. Let us study the Word withrenewed zeal. Let us seek God in prayer with renewedpassion. Let us believe that the God of Creation is notonly able, but willing to show His glory through ourlives and ministry.

Your brother,

Paul David Washer

The following report comes from HeartCry missionarySlavic Spataru who preaches the Gospel of Jesus Christamong the Russian and Romanian Jews of Israel. We haveentitled this report “Reaching Saul of Tarsus” because, atthis very moment, many of the most zealous religious Jewshave gathered together with one ominous purpose - to putan end to the preaching of the Gospel among the Jewishpeople of Israel. Like Saul of Tarus, these men are extremelyzealous for their ancestral traditions and they are persecut-ing the church of God beyond measure and trying to destroyit (Galatians 1:13).

The Christian reaction to such persecution is clearlyrevealed in the Scripture. First, we are to turn the othercheek, bless those who curse us, and pray for those whopersecute us. Secondly, we are to preach the Gospel, even tothose who hate us for doing so. The truth has not changed.The Gospel is still the power of God for salvation to every-one who believes, to the JEW FIRST and also to the Greeks(Romans 1:16).

Please pray with us that some of these Sauls of Tarsuswill become 21st century Pauls. The same Lord of Glory whoapprehended Paul in the midst of His rage, still reigns fromHis sovereign throne and will accomplish all that He hasdecreed. He is the Lord of missions and He will make HisName great among the nations!

Paul David Washer

Two months have past since my last report and so manyimportant things have happened here in Israel and through-out the entire world - to nations as well as individuals. Oneimportant event is so quickly followed by another that itseems impossible to find time to meditate and give meaningto what is happening. The events have become like a dreamfrom which everyone wants to awake. They act as a reminderto warn us of how short our life truly is and how near theLord’s coming may be. Since we are His servants it is ever soimportant that we are faithful in the work and faithful in theLord’s service.

Thanks to the Lord and your faithful prayers, we con-tinue to do evangelism in the city of Jerusalem and her sur-rounding towns and villages. We are suffering much opposi-tion and at times things are very difficult, but we are notdiscouraged because everything is in the Lord’s hands andHe has absolute control of everything from the smallest indi-vidual act to the mighty movements of nations. Every day weare learning to trust in Him and to rely solely upon Hisstrength. He is teaching us more and more how to lay all ourburdens, needs, and fears into His strong and mighty hands.As the Scripture declares:

“...casting all your anxiety on Him, because Hecares for you.”

I Peter 5:7

ReachingSaul of Tarsus

The Wailing Wall - Jerusalem

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do notlean on your own understanding. In all your waysacknowledge Him, and He will make your pathsstraight.”

Proverbs 3:5-6

In the past two months we have seen the Lord’s bless-ing on the work and much fruit. Many people from Jerusalem,Kiriat-Gat, Beit-Shemesh and many of the new, smaller settle-ments that are not yet on the map, have responded to ouradvertisements that we ran in a magazine for Russian Jews.In each advertisement we share the Gospel and offer a freecopy of the “Jesus” video. We include our phone number sothat people may call us directly. We also put the same adver-tisement in every mail box in the cities of Kiriat-Gat and Maale-Adumim. The strategy is very effective because we do notsend the videos by mail, but we deliver them personally tothe person making the request. This gives us an open doorthrough which we can preach the Gospel. By God’s strength,we visited about 300 families in Kiriat-Gat, and 200 other fami-lies in Jerusalem and surrounding areas. Besides the Russianspeakers, there are also many Romanians who have re-

sponded to our ad about the “Jesus” video. They are mainlypeople who come to Israel to earn money for their familiesback home. We do not have the Jesus Film in Romanian, butfortunately, most of the Romanians also speak Russian. Inaddition to the film, we are also able to offer the people manygood books in Romanian. Many of the workers have takenthem back to Romania in order to share them with their friends.In spite of all this work, there is still much more to be done.

We have received many positive calls and many thatwere not so positive. Often people call us only to curse usand our work and to threaten us that if we do not stop badthings will happen to us. For the last few months, there hadnot been much persecution or conflict from the religious Jews,but last week the fires of opposition began to burn brighterthan ever. The Orthodox Jews wait for us at the gates of ourchurch and when we enter or leave, they offer us their litera-ture denouncing Christianity and blaspheming the name ofChrist. In the past, they used Isaiah 53 and gave many argu-ments to prove that the chapter is not speaking about theMessiah. They do not use this method much any more be-cause their arguments are so weak. Now they are handing

Jesus said,“You search theScriptures becauseyou think that inthem you haveeternal life; it isthese that testifyabout Me; and youare unwilling tocome to me so thatyou may have life.”

John 5:39-40

out material that is rude and slanderous in order to prove thatJesus and the New Testament are anti-Semitic. Every time Itake their leaflets into my hands and study them, I am re-minded of the words of Hosea, who writes:

“My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge…”(Hosea 4:6)

Because of the persecution and constant opposition,very few people come to our meetings. The people are fright-ened of the Orthodox Jews and afraid that they might losetheir Israeli citizenship. Regardless of the fear and the unwill-ingness to count the cost, we observe in many a genuinespiritual hunger for the truth and real desire to search for theonly Bread that can fill their emptiness inside. We believethat God’s Word and the work of the Holy Spirit will one dayawaken their hearts and souls. The Lord will accomplish thework He has started. Because of this, we are constantly vis-iting those interested so that we might explain to them theway of salvation. Please, continue to pray for us, for the

people, and for this work.We praise God that our young people are able to help us

tremendously in evangelism. They have learned a great dealabout soul winning and its importance. Our youth meetingsare not centered around entertainment, but around Christand the need to serve Him.

We were all sad to hear about the tragic events inAmerica. We face terror like this almost every day here inIsrael. We understand how you feel and maybe you under-stand a little better how we feel. May the Lord comfort youand strengthen you! May He protect you from any harm!Thank you for everything.

With love from Israel,

Slavic Spataru

Ps. 91

The following is a translation of one of the leaflets writ-ten against us that religious Jews are handing out in thestreets and in front of our meeting place. Even if youhave a very limited knowledge of the New Testament,you will quickly be able to see how they have grosslytwisted the Scripture, especially the words of our LordJesus Christ.

DEAR JEW!For 2000 years, Christian missionaries have been

chasing after us in order to take us away from our rootsand turn us to Christianity. They use all kind of ways tomake us believe in their “holy” book, the “New Testa-ment.” Let us see what is written in the New Testament:

1. Anti-Semitism“…the Jews, who both killed the Lord Jesus, and theirown prophets, and have persecuted us; and they please notGod, and are contrary to all men” (1st Thessalonians 2”14-15). Jesus proclaimed that Jews were the children of thedevil (John 8:44).

2. On destroying familiesJesus said: “For I am come to set a man at variance againsthis father, and the daughter against her mother, and thedaughter in law against her mother in law. And a man’sfoes shall be they of his own household” (Matthew 10:35-36). Jesus said: “If any man come to me, and hate not his

father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren,and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be mydisciple” (Luke 15:26).

3. Wars and ViolenceJesus proclaimed: “Think not that I am come to sendpeace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword”.(Matthew 10:34; Luke 12:51). Jesus said: “But thosemine enemies, which would not that I should reign overthem, bring hither, and slay them before me” (Luke 19:27).

4. The Fire of InquisitionJesus said: “If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as abranch, and is withered; and men gather them, and castthem into fire, and they are burned”. (John 15:6).

5. Cursing the Jewish NationJesus told to the Jews: “That upon you may come all therighteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood ofrighteous Abel…” (Matthew 23:35).

It is only a small part of the horror that the so-called“New Testament” is full of. Can a Jew accept this seri-ously, and moreover, believe it?

JEWS! Reject the “good” preaching of the anti-Semiticmissionaries!

With love, Yad Le Achim(Heb“ Hand to Brothers”)

Blessedare you when people insult you and persecute you, andfalsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.

Jesus

Please pray for the safety of those Christians who arenow in a very difficult situation. Religious Jews have renewedtheir attacks against the Christians and especially againstthe missionaries. Right now a group of anti-Christian Jewhave gathered in Holon, near a small Messianic congrega-tion. They shout against the group during the church ser-vices and break the windows with stones. This persecution

PRAYER UPDATEFrom Israel

is the result of our work with the “Jesus” video. Many Mes-sianic congregations from the different cities and townsaround Jerusalem have united together in order to share thevideo with as many families as possible and to preach tothem the Gospel. Many families have responded to the Wordthat has been preached, and this has resulted in great oppo-sition and more aggressive tactics by those who oppose us.In the past, the religious Jews only sent their people into ourchurches in order to gather information and take pictures ofbelievers, but now they use stones. Please, pray for them.Pray that these “Pauls” will see the light of the Messiah andbecome zealous for the truth.

With love from Israel,

Slavic Spataru

HOW TO PRAYFor Israel &the Nations

FatherThe harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. How

shall they believe in You whom they have not heard? Andhow shall they hear without a preacher? Please, sent outworkers into Your harvest. I offer myself and My family. HereI am! Send me! (Matthew 9:37-38; Romans 10:14-15).

FatherI intercede for all those who have gone out into the

world proclaiming the Gospel. I pray that You may open up adoor before them and that they may make the most of everyopportunity to preach the Word clearly and with power. Lettheir speech be seasoned with grace and may their lives be abeautiful adornment to the Gospel (Colossians 4:2-6).

FatherI pray that You may give the nations as an inheritance to

Your Son. Draw Your elect from every nation, tribe, peopleand tongue. Cleanse them from all their filthiness and from alltheir idols. Give them a new heart and put a new spirit withinthem. Remove their heart of stone and give them a heart offlesh. Put Your Spirit within them and cause them to be care-ful to walk in Your statutes and observe Your ordinances. ForYours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.(Psalm 2:8; Ezekiel 36:24-28; Matthew 6:14).

In the Nameof Jesus Christ

Slavic Spataru and hisfamily serving the Lordamong the Russian andRomanian Jews ofIsrael.

I first met brother Slavic Spataru and his family severalyears ago during a cold and snowy winter afternoon in north-ern Moldova. I had been on the road for several days visitingour missionaries in Romania and then we turned northwardand crossed the boarder into Moldova. I can still feel the coldwind that blew that day as we waited for hours outside theimmigration office while the soldiers reviewed our passports.The wind was almost as cold as the Russian speaking sol-diers who attended us.

When we finally passed the boarder, our director in East-ern Europe smiled at me and said, “Now you are going tomeet a good man. I like Him very much. He is our best mis-sionary in Moldova. His name is Slavic Spataru.” After a fewmore hours of traveling, we finally arrived at a humble, butquaint cottage made of brick and wood. As we walked to thedoor and made our way through the snow, a tall, slim manwith a face that seemed to light up the yard, stepped from thecottage. He brought us quickly into the house, took our coatsand led us into a little room filled with the laughter of his wifeand two little children. They seemed to glow with their father’sjoy.

As we talked through the night, I could see that this wasan unusual man of God. He was full of joy and humor, butcarried with him a deep sense of the call to preach the Gospelto every creature and to make Christ known among the na-tions. Once he looked at me with a wide smile and said, “Youknow brother Paul, if I had met you six years ago, I wouldhave had to kill you because I was a tank commander in the

Russian army. Is it not wonderful what Jesus has done? Hehas saved my soul and now I do not have to kill you!”

During the next two years, I began to realize that my firstimpression of Slavic and his family was correct. He stoodhead and shoulders above all the other missionaries inMoldova. He was a gifted preacher and was willing to do justabout anything to get close to people so that he might preachto them the Gospel. He even began a Tae Kwon Do class in anearby school so that he might witness to young people.

At the end of two years, brother Slavic and his wife(They are Russian Jews), were granted citizenship in Israel.Immediately after receiving the notice, Slavic contacted me inthe United States and informed me that he must resign as ourmissionary because he would be moving to Israel. I immedi-ately replied to him that we wanted him to continue on as aHeartCry missionary in the country of Israel. He wrote meanother reply and explained that he did not feel it would beright to be supported as a missionary until he knew exactlywhat the Lord wanted him to do. He turned down the supportand traveled to Israel almost penniless.

Eight months after arriving in Israel, Slavic wrote to in-form me that the Lord had called him to work with a group ofBaptist missionaries from London, England, and that he wouldappreciate any support that HeartCry might give him. After athorough investigation of the missionaries from England withwhom Slavic would be working, we decided that it was God’swill for us to provide full support. We have never been disap-pointed in our decision.

Paul David Washer

AfricaGhana, Nigeria

In association with the ministry of Dr. Solomon Owolabiof Nigeria, West Africa, HeartCry has begun to support threechurch planting teams in the country of Ghana. One of theseteams is led by Joseph Lamptey and his lovely wife Rebecca.In the following is found their testimonies and one of theirmonthly reports. We hope that it will be a blessing to you.

“But by the grace of God I am what I am,and His grace toward me did not provevain; but I labored even more than all ofthem, yet not I, but the grace of God withme.”

- The Apostle Paul I Corinthians 15:10

The above verse of Scripture is an accurate summary ofwhat the Lord has done in my life, and it is upon this gracethat I rest my hope that the Lord will continue to use me in theministry. Above all things, I thank God for giving me Hisprecious Son Jesus Christ to die for me and to rise again formy justification. I became a child of God in August of 1975.Before that time, I had always believed that I was a Christianbecause I bore a Christian name, was a baptized and con-firmed member of the Anglican Church, sang in the choir and

served mass at the altar. I was clearly self-deceived, trustingin my own useless works and silly religious rituals. I was lostin my sin, and although I did not understand it, God wasconstantly bearing witness to my lostness through my rest-lessness - I had no peace because there is no rest for thewicked. Finally, when I gave up all hope of finding life and joyand peace in my dead religion, I turned to the world andpursued worldly pleasures. I thought that education, suc-cess, and an honorable reputation among men would satisfymy soul and give me the peace for which I longed. It tookvery little time to discover that once again I was wrong. Theworld could not give me the peace I desired.

Finally one day, my brother and one of my close friendsinvited me to a Baptist Church in the city of Accra. After afew visits to the Church, the pastor, Dr. Solomon Owolabi,preached a message on salvation which changed my entirelife. It was the first time I had heard the Gospel preached withclarity. He spoke about my sin, and the dangers of judgmentand hell; he spoke about Christ’s death on the cross of Cal-vary; he spoke about the wrath of a holy God poured out onthe sinless Christ in my place; he spoke about Christ’s resur-rection and eternal triumph over death, hell, and the grave;he spoke about repentance from sin and dead works; he spokeabout faith in Christ and Christ alone for the salvation of the

Joseph &Rebecca LampteyMissionaries in Ghana

greatest sinner’s soul. I was struck down with terror and joyat the same time. I ran down the aisle of the church and criedout for Christ to save me. At that moment my life was changed.The peace I so often longed for flooded into my heart. I didnot know it then, but the Holy Spirit was applying Romans5:1 to my life in that very moment:

“Being justified by faith we have peacewith God, through our Lord JesusChrist.”

After God’s work of salvation in my heart, Pastor SolomonOwolabi visited and encouraged me to be baptized and to beactive in the things of the Lord, especially in Soul-Winning(Matthew 28:18-20).

As time passed, I continued to serve the Lord faithfullyand was active in all the services and ministries of our church.Regardless of the amount of service I preformed as a laymanin the church, I was not satisfied. I soon began to feel God’scalling in my heart to go into full-time ministry. I realized thatI could no longer do any work except the Lord’s work. I mustadmit that initially I was very afraid, but my pastor SolomonOwolabi prayed for me and encouraged me. By the grace ofGod and the encouragement of mypastor, I responded to the Lord’scalling and cried out, “Here am I,send me, send me (Isaiah 6:8).

From 1981 to 1985, I pursued adiploma in Biblical studies at theGhana Baptist Bible Institute di-rected by my pastor. He taught ustwo very important things: theWord of God and Soul-winning.After graduation, I married my wifeRebecca. She was a seamstress bytrade and a faithful member of theLabone Baptist Church in Ghana.At the time of our marriage in December, 1986, she had beena Christian for fourteen years, an active member in her church,and a faithful soul winner. At the present, we do not have anyof our own children, but we are trusting that the Lord will oneday grant us children. We do have two little girls, ages 9 and12, who are living with us. They have no family and so mywife and I are caring for them

After graduation, the Lord led my wife and me to startthe Ringway Baptist Church. From 1987 until I left the work toanother man in 2000, we baptized 150 new converts. Duringthat time, I also worked with Challenge Enterprises of Ghana,a Christian organization dedicated to social work in Jesus’Name. I also worked as a counsellor and a prison chaplainfrom 1987 to 1997.At the present, the Lord is leading me to

plant two new churches. One church is located in South-West Mcarthy Hills on the outskirts of the city of Accra. Theother is located in the central region of Ghana about 100kilometers south of the city of Accra. I also believe that theLord is leading me to help other men to start churches inAnum-Apapam in the Eastern region of Ghana.

It is my prayer that the Lord will grant me the grace tocontinue to be available and useful for His service. I desire toplant churches and to be busy in the work of Soul Winning.Please pray for my wife and me that the grace that God hasbestowed upon us will not be in vain, but that we will laborfor Him with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength.

Report from PastorJoseph Lampty

We rejoice greatly because of God’s faithfulness to us.Our Good Father continues to protect us and perform greatand mighty things through us. As we serve the Lord, the

power of the Holy Spirit continuesto work in our churches. Manyhave been convicted of their sinand made to realize their great needof Christ.

At the present, we have anaverage attendance of fifty adultsevery Sunday. We also have thirtychildren between the ages of fourand eleven attending our Sundayschool. The adult Sunday schoolattendance has reached about fortypeople. We have a new believer’sclass, a class for those who do not

speak English and a marriage class.Presently we have ten people who are studying in prepa-

ration for their baptism. On the average I invest about threemonths teaching and preparing each new convert so thatthey might be strong in their walk with the Lord and becomepowerful soul winners.

During the month of August we had fourteen conver-sions. They were all people who were invited as a result ofour soul winning and visitation programs. I also rejoice in theLord because three young men in the church have been calledby the Lord into full-time Christian service. It is my hope andprayer that they will begin to attend our Bible college in Sep-tember. We praise God for His faithfulness and all that He isdoing through our Lord Jesus Christ.

I was struck down with terrorand joy at the same time. I randown the aisle of the church andcried out for Christ to save me.At that moment my life waschanged. The peace I so oftenlonged for flooded into my heart.

In association with the ministry of Dr. Solomon Owolabiof Nigeria, West Africa, HeartCry has begun to support threechurch planting teams in the country of Ghana. One of theseteams is led by James Lamptey (Joseph’s brother) and hislovely wife Eveline Naadu. In the following is included theirtestimonies and one of their monthly reports. We hope that itwill be a blessing to you.

The story of my life begins not with my birth, but yearslater. It began as a day like any other in the month of August.The year was 1975. I was a student in the secondary schooland an active member of the Anglican Church. Since child-hood, I had devoted myself to the religion and ritual of mychurch. My end goal was not the glory of God, but a deepdesire to fill the deep vacuum in my life and find some sort ofhappiness for my soul. My religious activity eventually be-came an endless downward spiral. The more I tried to pleaseGod through my obedience and devotion to ritual, the more Ifailed and the deeper I sank into misery. I was tortured by

fearful thoughts of hell that would not be silencedin spite of my “Christian” baptism and “Holy” con-firmation. I had no victory over sin and had no peacewith God.

In spite of all my deception and hypocrisy, theLord had mercy on my miserable soul. On a day likeany other, a close friend invited me to a Gospelcrusade organized by Dr. Solomon Owolabi. Thatnight was the first time in my entire life that I heardthe Gospel preached with such power and convic-tion. After the message, an invitation was given bythe preacher. I hesitated, but finally yielded to thecall of God. I gave my life to Christ that day andbecame a new creature. The misery of my soul wasreplaced with peace and joy unspeakable.

After my conversion, by God’s grace, I becamevery active in my church. The Lord allowed me towork in several different ministries. I was an AdultSchool teacher, Youth President and Song leader.Finally, in 1980, I felt the Lord’s call into full timeministry. In 1981, I resigned my job and enrolled atthe Ghana Baptist Bible Institute here in Accra. Thefounder and director of the school was Dr. SolomonOwolabi. The same man who was preaching theday of my conversion. I graduated from the BibleInstitute on the 13th of January 1985.For the next two years of my life, I worked along-

side of Dr. Owolabi in planting a church. Then in 1987, I wasled of the Lord to go and plant a Baptist Church in the East-ern part of Ghana in the town of Akosombo. At the presenttime, I am pastoring this church and starting other satellitemissions in the area. If it is the Lord’s will and He tarries in Hiscoming, I hope to plant a new Bible believing Baptist Churchin the Greater Accra Region of Ghana in the near future. Myconcentration would be in the towns and villages.

I am married and have three godly children. The name ofmy wife is Mrs. Eveline Naadu Lamptey. The names and cor-responding ages of my children are Gloria Naa Koshie Lamptey(12 years), Ethel Odarkor Lamptey (10 years) and JonathanOdartey Lamptey (6 years). My wife Eviline is a caterer byprofession, and all my children are in school.

God bless you.

James Lamptey

James &Eveline Naadu Lamptey

Greetings in the wonderful name of our Lord and Sav-iour Jesus Christ. I am trusting and hoping that you are doingvery well in the Lord. It’s with great joy that I send this reportto you. This past month has been a memorable one and quitehectic. But by the grace of God we have made it through andrejoice in the kindness He has shown us.

This past month, I travelled to Nigeria in order to partici-pate in a three day National Pastor’s Conference. It was orga-nized by Dr. Owolabi in Ogbomoso. There were pastors whoattended from the countries of Nigeria, Ghana, Benin, andTogo. It was very edifying and very challenging. Since theconference, I have been motivated to win more souls forJesus. I have no doubt in my mind that God did touch usduring the conference and that it will bless our churches.

On our return home to Ghana, we were confronted bymany trials and hazards. We were almost stranded in thecapital city of Lagos. The driver of the bus tried to deceiveme and my family and force us to pay extra money that we didnot have. He threatened to leave us and our luggage on theside of the road. We were greatly afflicted by this trial, but bythe grace of God we arrived home safely

As we seek to build the kingdom of God, we are boundto face many challenges from the world and much oppositionfrom Satan and his wicked host of angels that inhabit thisworld. Recently, my next door neighbor, who is known to bea very powerful witch doctor, sought to kill me through hissatanic powers. The opposition was so fierce that I almostlost heart and gave up the work of God. It was a time ofstruggle like none I have ever known, but after intense prayerand fasting the Lord gave me the victory. I did not win thevictory for myself, but the Lord gave me the victory throughHis own power and grace. The Lord caused the witch doctorto go mad and leave town. Since this has happened, theunbelievers are very afraid of the power of our God, but thebelievers are greatly comforted and strengthened in their faith.Glory to God!

The grace of God has been very abundant on me forwhich I am grateful to God. May I take this opportunity toexpress my gratitude to the HeartCry Missionary Society forstanding with us in prayer and for your faithful financial sup-port.

Report from PastorJoseph Lampty

As we seek to build the king-dom of God, we are bound toface many challenges from theworld and much oppositionfrom Satan and his wickedhost of angels that inhabit thisworld. Recently, my next doorneighbor, who is known to bea very powerful witch doctor,sought to kill me through hissatanic powers. The opposi-tion was so fierce that I almostlost heart and gave up thework of God. It was a time ofstruggle like none I have everknown, but after intenseprayer and fasting the Lordgave me the victory. I did notwin the victory for myself, butthe Lord gave me the victorythrough His own power andgrace. The Lord caused thewitch doctor to go mad andleave town. Since this has hap-pened, the unbelievers arevery afraid of the power ofour God, but the believers aregreatly comforted andstrengthened in their faith.Glory to God!

Daniel Amoo & Family

Daniel Amoo is another of our HeartCry missionariesin the country of Ghana. Like Joseph and James, brotherAmoo is working as a church planter in association withDr. Solomon Owolabi. The following is his testimony and amonthly report.

I am grateful to the Lord for I know that it is only by Hisgrace that I stand and am able to testify of His saving powerin my life.

My life in Christ began in 1976, during my first year attechnical school. A friend of mine invited me to accompanyhim to hear a series of evangelistic messages at the BaptistChurch where he attended. It was there that, for the first timein my life, I heard the message of salvation. Dr. SolomonOwolabi of Northern Kaneshie was preaching and I couldnot resist the words that were coming from the Word of God.They seemed to be directed only to me.

Though I had always considered myself to be a veryrighteous man, that day I realized I was nothing before theLord, a sinner under wrath awaiting the day of my sentenc-

ing. The sermon I heard that night, made me miserable theentire week. I could not escape the words that I had heard.The message kept ringing in my ears. Each time I consideredwhat I heard, I felt the menace of death all around me. I re-turned to the church the following Sunday looking for somerelief, but my misery only became worse. When the call camefrom the pulpit to repent of sin and trust in Christ, I could nothelp myself. I had to obey, to cry out to the Lord to removethe misery in my heart. When I came forward, the pastorsmade me understand from the Scriptures that I was a sinner,and that without Jesus Christ, I was doomed to hell. Thatday, I cried out to God in prayer. I asked Him to forgive all mysins and give me the life of Jesus. At that very moment therewas a release from my terrible misery and I knew withoutdoubt that I was saved. My life was transformed and joyflooded my heart because I knew that I was reconciled withGod and that I would one day be with Him in heaven.

Ever since the day of my conversion I have loved thethings of God and had a strong desire to serve Him. Not longafter my conversion, I was baptized by pastor SolomonOwolabi and became a member of the church. Immediately, Istarted helping the Children’s Sunday School. I had a burn-ing heart for lost souls and spent much of my time visitingand sharing the Gospel with my friends. I thank the Lord forusing my life to reach out to many with the saving knowledgeof the Gospel.

Four years after my conversion, I became the Youth Sun-day School Teacher and a Counselor of new converts. Mywhole life was dedicated to the Lord’s work. I constantlyvisited the Junior High Schools and shared the Gospel withthe pupils - a ministry that I continue until this very day. Itwas also during my fourth year as a Christian, that the Lordcalled me to enter into ministry full time. It was somethingthat I desired, but I was very afraid to undertake such a min-istry. I was making a lot of money in business and I was afraidof the poverty I would have to endure as a minister of theGospel. After a struggle with my fears, pride, and unbelief, Ifinally submitted to the Lord’s will and enrolled in the Theol-ogy department at Ghana Baptist Bible College. My trainingwould demand the next three years of my life.

After graduation, the Lord led me to Pokuase Baptistchurch, where I pastored for 13 years. The work was noteasy. There were many challenges, but the Lord was faithfulto build His church according to His will. At the moment, thechurch has one hundred and twenty baptized members. WhileI was pastor, we developed several different outreach minis-tries for the purpose of evangelizing the surrounding vil-lages and we now desire to plant churches in these placeswhere there is no Gospel preaching church. Please pray for

us that the Lord will give us the direction that we need. I amnow planting two different churches in the towns of Mayeraand Fise.

Please pray also for my wife. She gave her life to the Lordin 1984 and was baptized in 1985 in the same church where Iwas saved. When we married in 1990, she took over the teach-ing of the children’s Sunday School in the church where Ipastored. She has always been a great help to me in theministry. At the moment, she is overseeing the Ladies’s fel-lowship and signs for the deaf in the choir. We have beenblessed by the Lord with two boys by birth and one specialboy that we adopted.

Please, pray for my family and me. May the Lord richlybless you.

Your brother,

Daniel Amoo

Dearly Beloved,

Thanks be to our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ for Hisgrace that keeps us going forward in spite of the trials andgreat struggles that the called must face in this world. ByGod’s grace, the Pkuase Baptist church is growing and soulsare being saved. The members of our church are workingvery hard in all our outreach ministries to the villages aroundPkuase where there are no Bible believing churches. In theupcoming year, we hope to give ourselves even more fully tothis important work.

Please pray with us with regard to the following: (1) Ourbeloved brother Gray Dzimado who is studying under Dr.Solomon Owolabi in the theological institute in Nigeria. (2)Our church building project. Currently, we are working on thefoundation. (2) One of our members, Joseph Agbemefa, isseeking to discern the Lord’s will with regard to full timeministry. (3) That the members of our church might becomeeven more involved in the Lord’s work. (4) That the Lordwould open up a door for us to reach out to the people whoare deeply involved in occultic acts.

His Servant,

Daniel Amoo

Report from PastorDaniel Amoo

A Word on Nigeriaand Ghana

When I first visited West Africa, I wasamazed at two things: The great number of“Christian” ministries, and the scarcity ofministries and churches that were evenremotely biblical. It seemed that every cityblock and ever kilometer of even the mostremote rural road had a sign advertizing somesort of ministry. The names given to most ofthese “churches” and “para-churches” wererather spectacular. The “Church of Power,”“The Camp of Supernatural Life,” TheMinistry of Prosperity and Healing,” “TheJesus Church of Miracles.” The promisesmade by these ministry groups were no lessspectacular. Mostly they guaranteed wealth,health, power, and prestige. I was amazed thatmore than a few churches advertized them-selves as “The church where you can becomesomebody important.”

When such declarations made by these“Christian” ministries are compared with thepagan and animistic beliefs of the nativereligions of Nigeria, it is clear that there is verylittle difference. They have the same end orgoals - financial prosperity, physical health,and power manifested in prestige. There islittle or no mention of such things as humility,servanthood, death to self, sacrifice, divinediscipline as a means to godliness or doing allthat is to be done for the glory of God.

Please understand. I have lived on themission field long enough to appreciate anychurch or ministry that is preaching theGospel of Jesus Christ as long as they staysomewhat in the bounds of historical Chris-tianity, but there are so many “Christian”churches and ministries in Africa and aroundthe world that are nothing more than paganreligions with a “Christian Baptism.”

Africa is not “Christianized.” There is asgreat a need as ever to support men andwomen who will plant biblical churchesagainst which the gates of hell cannot prevail.

Paul Washer

We thank God for His love and kindness that constantlywatches over us and guides us in His paths of righteous-ness. Our Lord is good. He helps us in our weaknesses and isa strong fortress for us in times of trials and persecutions.

My ordination took place on August 5th, 2001 inOgbomoso, Nigeria. It was a wonderful time in the Lord and Ibelieve that God was truly glorified. Dr. Solomon Owolabiand several other godly men led the ordination and theirgreat desire was to have a meeting that honored the Lord andwas a pleasing act of worship before Him. It is such a privi-lege for me to serve the Lord as a church planter and a mis-sionary. Who is worthy? Who is sufficient for these things?I was a sinner worthy of wrath, but now I am a child of God!Praise His Name! Praise His Name forever.

As I reported earlier, there was a man in our village thattried to commit suicide by drinking poison. In the hospitalroom, I witnessed to him and he confessed Christ as Savior.In the days that followed, he showed genuine signs of con-version. He was very sick, but he had hope in his heart that

he had never known before. I am sad to report that he hasdied. His body was not strong enough to survive the effectsof the poison. I am not God and cannot know the unknown,but I believe the man is now standing in glory as one moreexample that God is powerful to save. Please pray for hisfamily. I rejoice to announce that they were greatly affectedby the changes they saw in this man’s life after he confessedChrist as Lord. At the present, four of his children are nowattending our church.

We thank God for our members that are dedicating them-selves to soulwinning. It is a very difficult work, but it is theheartbeat of our church. In these modern times, people seemto be too busy to give an honest consideration of the Gospel.Many are willing to stop and listen for a few moments butthey have no time to consider what we are saying with anyamount of gravity. Many keep walking when we give them atract and others listen for a few short minutes and then ex-cuse themselves. Please pray for us because many times wefeel ignored and other times we feel that we are preaching topeople who have only itching ears. Pray also that the Lordwill protect us from those who get annoyed and angry whenthey see us preaching the Gospel.

In spite of all the opposition, God has been blessing ourdoor to door soul winning. In the last few days, two people (aman and a woman) have surrendered their lives into the armsof Jesus. They have not yet been baptized, but we are visit-ing them and teaching them the Word so that they mighttruly understand the hope of our salvation.

We thank God for His love over us. He has taken goodcare of us and has protected us as we preach the Gospel ofHis Son. We also thank you for the money that you have sentfor the building of our church. We had no money to build andwere meeting under a tin roof supported by old wooden posts.Our walls were made out of old cloth bags that we had sowntogether. We did not know what to do because we had nomoney and the Muslim authorities were constantly threaten-ing us that if we did not build on our land they would take itaway from us. Because of you, we are building and our en-emies are amazed at what our God has done through you. Weunderstand that the entire $10,000 came from one church. Wewant you to know that you are an indescribable blessing tous. We may never meet you until heaven, but you are in ourthoughts and in our prayers. One day when you get toheaven, you will see a large group of Africa people waitingfor you to thank you for what you have done for us.

In closing, we want to send our warmest greetings anddeepest gratitude to all of you who work at the HeartCryMissionary Society and all of you who provide the financialsupport for the wonderful works that are done. We praiseGod that you have raised our support and thus enabled us to

Samuel & EsterAhmed

be more effective in our service to the Lord in West Africa.We also want you to know that we have been praying for allof you since the terrible incident of September 11th. We mournwith you that many thousands of your people were ruth-lessly killed by men who have no conscience. We hope andpray that the Lord will protect you, your families, and yourchurches from such terrible acts of violence.

In Christ’s vineyard,

Samuel Otaru Ahmed

dered my life to Him. Brother Ahmed used to visitme every week. I tried to avoid him, but he wouldalways find a way to catch me. If I told him that Idid not have time to listen to him preach to me, hewould smile and give me a tract to read. I tried toinsult him and did everything in my power to showhim that I destained him and looked down on him,but he always responded with kindness. Finally,when I knew that I could not escape him, I decidedto visit his church. I thought that if I made onevisit he would leave me alone, but things turnedout differently from what I expected. When I ar-rived at the church, God began to work in me.When I heard the Gospel preached, I could notresist. I had to give my life to Christ. I had to goforward, I could not turn back.

One of the greatest things, I have learned frommy salvation is that we must persevere in our pur-suit of souls. If brother Samuel had been like mostpastors, he would have given up after my first strongrejection of him. But he did not give up. He en-dured my insults and kept coming after me until Iwas safely in the fold. I would encourage every-one who wants to win souls to imitate the patienceand endurance of my pastor.

Samuel and Ester standing with some of the boys from Ester’s Sunday School class. There are many young children whocome to the Sunday morning Bible class, but there are countless others who are unchurched. At this moment HeartCryis helping with the construction of a facility that will increase the churches ability to do outreach.

A Testimony toPerseverance

The following is a testimony from Miss Alaba Adams.She was converted under the ministry of brother SamuelAhmed. The account of her conversion is a wonderful illus-tration of how the man of God must not only preach theGospel in the pulpit, but must pursue souls one on one.

“I used to attend different churches at my ownconvenience. I was not faithful or devoted to theLord, but through the unrelenting pursuit of Pas-tor Ahmed, I came to know the Lord and surren-

HeartCry Missionary Society

c/o Waldo Baptist Church6970 Waldo Church RoadMetropolis, IL. 62960

Non-Profit Org.U.S. PostagePAIDBrookport, IL.Permit No. 10

What part of “GO” do you not understand?Matthew 28:18-20

Email: [email protected]

Veteran MissionarySolomon Owolabi whooversees the HeartCrymissionaries in Nigeriaand Ghana