In early 2005, the pastor of a church near Suva, Fiji became frustrated with the slow progress of his new church building. The three year old construction consisted of a building frame. You see, wood and other materials were purchased in small quantities as the church could afford them. Some weeks it was only one board and other weeks it was nothing.
The pastor got some advice to write a letter to the churches in his denomination in Fiji asking for help. As the pastor wrote the letter, he felt he should address the letter to God and not to the churches. He placed the letter asking for help with this building project in his Bible, telling no one.
While watching The Discovery Channel, a man in Kansas learned about the islands of Fiji. While watching the show, he felt God wanted to do work somewhere in Fiji. The only problem was he did not know anyone in Fiji. He looked up the contact information of a missionary via the Internet.
Before the contact came, the missionary in Fiji had driven by the slowly developing building for years. The missionary had not met the pastor of the church but one day, God spoke to him about helping with the building project. Next thing you know, an American in Kansas contacts him to find out where a team of people could work in Fiji.
When Jimmy and DeAnna learned about the opportunity to go to Fiji, they immediately knew God wanted them to go. During the several months it took to put the trip together, the man who first decided to go to Fiji ran into several obstacles. Every time an obstacle arose, we prayed and sought out ways to make sure the trip happened.
We were taking on two projects. One project involved adding a new addition to an existing church for Sunday School space. The other project involved adding a roof and floor to the building frame of a new church. The day we arrived in Fiji, we went to the site with the framed building and knew it was the right project. Incidentally, this visit provided the first time the missionary met the pastor of this particular church.
When looking over the job site, we knew the roof and floor could be finished much faster than the allotted week. We asked the pastor to get prices for siding. The next day, Jimmy challenged the team to give more money for the project to purchase siding for the building. Every member of the team stepped up. Enough funds came in to purchase the siding and the primer/paint needed for the building.
During the course of the week, the Sunday School addition finished as planned. The new church building progressed much further than the pastor, members of the church and people on the team thought possible. The pictures show the area the people met in before the new building and the progress made on the new building.
This incredible experience points to the greatness of God. Only God can read a pastors letter no one else knows about, impress the heart of a missionary and call people from the middle of the USA to meet the need without any of the groups of people ever seeing each other before this event. Another example of God’s ability to bring details together; the sermon Jimmy preached to the congregation on Sunday spoke to the exact topic and direction the pastor is leading the church in. We serve an incredible God who deserves all of the glory.
All of the people in both churches treated everyone wonderfully. Even though we met for the first time, we felt like a part of the family.
