Preacher in a Pocket
Imagine living in a village high in the tribal hills. Your house is made of bamboo. You’ve never seen a car or a crayon. Life has been fearful, filled with sacrifices to the spirits, wars with neighboring tribes, and death. Once, you heard of a great Book that carried words from a creator God more powerful than the evil spirits. You long to know more, but it is no use.
There is no copy of the great Book in your language, and even if such a treasure did exist, it would not help. You cannot read.
Despite technological and cultural advances, there are still an estimated 750 million adults in the world today who are illiterate. Some languages are not even in written form. How will those who cannot read hear of Jesus unless they literally hear of Him?
And, as the Scripture says, how can they hear without a preacher?
There are more people groups than there are missionaries to reach them, but what if a missionary could travel with a “preacher” in his pocket, a way to give and leave behind the Good News in village after village?
Source of Light has been using Papyrus audio players for several years, and has recently implemented a similar player called the Torch, which includes an LED lantern that is sturdy enough, as one website puts it, to “survive the most rugged areas of the earth.”
Audio players make a powerful impact, and illiteracy is not the only reason why. Other factors include:
Oral Tradition—60% of the world’s population is considered oral learners, meaning their preferred learning mode is oral, not written.
Visual Impairment—Over 200 million people are blind or visually impaired.
Distance/Weight/Cost—Books are heavy and costly. If a pastor has only a bicycle, or travels on foot, carrying pounds of literature can be a great burden, literally.
Storage Problems—Even if a village can get printed materials, how are they to keep them dry during the rainy season, or keep them from being eaten or torn by bugs or animals?
Cultural Norms—There are still countries where girls are not to be educated, or certain portions of the populace, such as the lower classes. Offering literacy training would not be acceptable.
At present, SLM has audio players in: Jamaica, Ghana, Ethiopia, India, Uganda, Haiti, and Togo, where they are making a difference. One man in Uganda stated, “Who are these people who have thought of the blind man like me? The word of the Lord which I hear every day from the instrument I got has encouraged my life. I had lost hope but now my life is new and I am assured of going to Heaven, my life has been strengthened every hour. I want to thank you for the love you have for the blind man.”
Pastor Sika in Togo uses Torch players to reach students in the public school system. He says, “After breakfast there is enough time that these students have fun and sometimes make dangerous games. We want to take advantage of this time for these lost souls in our schools. Glory to the Lord we have no problem with the school administration. Instead of letting these students use this time badly, we fill this void to favor the conversion of many by the Torch players that are very interesting to them. God has often touched the hearts of some who confess their sins and give their lives to Jesus.”
Possibilities abound for future impact using these small “preachers.” For Pastor Sika, the 30 new players he has received “will be used only in villages very hostile to the Gospel. In each village we will train the first five lost souls saved and hand them the devices that will be used especially during the nights. During the day the villagers go to the farms and others go fishing. The villages are more lively during the nights than during the day. So those who will receive the Torch will use the lamp of the device to visit their families or friends and by this means it can extinguish the lamp and present the Gospel through the Torch. First they will be surprised and will be more curious by listening to the Gospel and surely God will touch the hearts. Sincerely it is a very good way to reach these lost souls in hostile environments.”
For less than $70, a village can be given a piece of equipment that holds the entire Bible in multiple languages, plus lessons, on its 4GB of storage, and fully charges in 8-14 hours of sunlight. This little “preacher” will remain to evangelize and disciple long after the missionary has gone, and can give its Good News to anyone who has ears to hear. Pastor Sika’s conclusion about using audio players mirrors our own: “That will be wonderful.”
Faith cometh by hearing… —Romans 10:17
