Thailand left its mark on all who attended the Consultation on Evangelism last year at Pattaya. But it was not the beautiful resort town and its luxurious facilities for vacations and conferences that left the most indelible memories. Rather, it was the ragged clothes, squalid shacks, barbed wires, the crowded mass of humanity, the callous disinterest of the guards, the distended bellies of young children, and the dull eyes of hopeless parents that etched themselves unforgettably into our minds. But alongside these tragic images lie other memories that broadened our understanding and sharpened our consciences. Few things we heard in Thailand contributed so much to the latter as the message of Stan Mooneyham in which he stated succinctly and brilliantly what many of us had thought for a long time. We share that message with you in the hope and prayer that it will move you as it moved us who first heard it.
Harold Lindsell reminds us again of just how badly we have fallen down on the job of getting out the gospel. If America turns from mission sending into a mission field, it will not be the first nation to switch roles in this fashion. The ancient church of southern Europe carried the gospel into central Europe, and central Europe in turn took it to Scandinavia and Ireland. In the medieval world, a flourishing Irish church carried the gospel back across the channel to the decadent church on the Continent. And in Reformation times, Geneva and Wittenberg became centers for the spread of the gospel to all of southwestern Europe until it was stamped out by the Inquisition under Torquemada and his successors.
God is able to raise up new witnesses when ancient churches wither and die. There is growing evidence that he is doing that in our day. And out of this ebb and flow has risen a new healthy partnership of equals in the mission of the church. Aminiasi Qalo recounts the work of his fellow Fijian missionaries in Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, New Hebrides, and in Australia where Fijians minister to white Australian churches.
George Gallup provides some disturbing figures regarding the use of alcohol, and Russ Pulliam discusses whether alcohol is a disease or just plain sin. Both Gallup and Roy Hatfield offer suggestions on what the church can do about this problem.
Finally, Richard Dinwiddie reviews choir selections for Christmas, with practical suggestions of quality inspirational music for your seasonal programs.
