September 2, 2008

John and Beccy Rodli, AGWM personnel in the Azores, through their efforts to establish an English-speaking church, are ministering to people who need Jesus. Many of these people have been deported from the USA and Canada. Their lives have been filled with crime, violence, rejection, bondage and pain. In one afternoon service, all those who came except one had spent time in prison. For the most part, the Rodlis don't know the full story of their lives. In most cases it is too painful and shameful for them to share. They do know that one committed murder, another shot his wife, one almost beat a man to death, one is an arsonist, another a former strip-tease club manager, and each one has faced the bondage of drugs and alcohol. For some it is still a colossal struggle that they don't always win. Nearly all have lost their families and live with the pain and remorse of having destroyed relationships and love.

But Jesus can make all things new and give hope and life where all has been lost. The Lord has opened the door to the Rodlis to serve and minister to people who desperately need the hope of the Gospel. The work is sometimes overwhelming but the Rodlis are faithfully presenting Christ as the answer to the deepest needs of humanity.