John Corey Equips Liberian Pastors

In past posts, we referenced John Corey and MP3 players that Bill and Judy Slater carried to Liberia. Liberia is rebuilding spiritually, and John Corey is on a mission to rebuild Liberia spiritually by training English speaking pastors using expository messages (from his pastor Scott Gilcrist) on key books of the Bible. The bar is high if a pastor desires to join this program, which uses the MP3 players. According to John,

In order to qualify to receive a player a pastor is required to first read the book of Romans 20 times and to copy it word for word into a notebook. When he is presented with the player he must agree to listen through the 109 messages on Romans as taught by Scott Gilchrist of the Down Town Bible Class. He is then encouraged to do the same with the Gospel of John and then each of the books on the player.

Can you imagine your pastor doing this, and what an impact it would have on him and his preaching? Bill and Judy were able to deliver a supply of MP3 players to Pastor Jeremiah F. Kollie, who is the ECUL Todee-Careysburg District Chairperson. In a recent letter to his supporters, also posted on his church's mission blog , he wrote the following exciting report.

Dear Friends,

Imagine pastors throughout Liberia reading the book of Romans 20 times, copying it into a notebook, and then listening to an exposition of Romans in 109 messages, and doing the same with John, Acts, Eph., Phil., Col., 1&2 Tim., 1&2 Peter, 459 30-40 minute expositions, with Genesis, Luke and Rev. possibly to be added? I visualize 1000 pastors and leaders in Liberia and 10,000 and more among other English speaking emerging church countries doing exactly that.

Since 2005 I have been taking mp3 CD players with messages of our pastor, Scott Gilchrist, to Liberia and giving them to key pastors. I upgraded last year and this to an electronic mp3, 4gig player to give to other pastors Since returning from Liberia late Feb., I purchased 40 more of these players at prices from $15-20. But it gets better. A business man, who is connected with our church, living in China and participating in our project, can purchase the players there and deliver them to us for about $8-10 each or even lower. We are expecting the first shipment of 100 by the middle of May with Scott's messages on the above books already preloaded. We are still researching for the best product and pricing, however. Join in prayer that we will come up with a very durable player to meet this need.

Scott's messages are broadcast on various radio stations in America, and have been on ELWA in Monrovia Liberia since 2004 and for about 3 years in Ghana under the name of Down Town Bible Class (DTBC), the radio wing for Scott's ministry. He has taught for many years in the Portland Art Museum under this same name. This class is cross-denominational and designed for any who can come on Wednesdays at 12:15 - 12:45. About 150-175 attend it weekly.

Kolahun leaders

We have set up a project in Liberia that once a pastor or key church leader has read the book of Romans 20 times and copied it in a notebook word for word, he will be presented with a mp3 player containing the above mentioned 459 messages. They are encouraged to read the other books 20 times and copy them as they listen through them. Scott doesn't begin to study a book he is going to preach on until he has read it about 50 times. He has hand copied the whole Bible exactly as it appears in his own Bible, line for line, page for page. Over the last few years he has encouraged us to copy books, and many are doing so. Why not try this yourself? (Deut 17:18-20) He's back to copying the NT again. I asked those I was training in Liberia this past January and February to copy Philippians during the week that I taught it. Several gave testimony that it helped them to understand the context of verses they often quoted. Few pastors have ever read through the New Testament and many haven't even read through very many books. So this is a big leap for them.

Moses Paye "I am having a wonderful time reading Romans the 20 times. It is a great spiritual experience for me. It is so encouraging, reading and playing the messages of the book (Romans). I am enjoying it so much, and am teaching it in my church in a Bible study. Two years ago (15 months) when you were here you challenged us to read through the Bible. I have been doing that and am almost finished now. It has been a new experience for me. I am so glad. This has helped me so much to focus on just one book. So wonderful. Pray this program will open for many others. People see me with the phones in my ears and ask me about it. Then I have to tell them all about it and how wonderful it is. When I get up in the morning I read and at night time I read and any other time I can get I am reading Romans. I am encouraging the people of my church to be reading it. I am telling people about it everywhere I am going."

He was very encouraged that we are opening this up to all pastors who will do it. He said it would be so helpful to the pastors of Liberia. He felt that it would strengthen them and help them to understand good doctrine and to teach good doctrine and not just any kind of things that come to their minds. He repeated over and over again how valuable this is and how happy he is about it.

Moses is one of our lead pastors in associated with SIM international mission). A very godly man. His wife had a near death or death experience a year ago, after an operation to repair her intestines with complications of Typhoid and where her intestines perforated in many places. None of the doctors expected her to survive, and almost immediately after the surgery was finished her blood pressure dropped to zero, the doctors left her, changed their clothes, and two left the hospital. A nurse stopped in from time to time, but there was no response, but then she came again and saw her toe wiggle. Moses and the chaplain had been in a room and praying through all this time. His wife had seen herself leaving and felt she was on her way to heaven, but was told strongly by someone in front of her to go back. She tells that she knew she had gone a long way and didn't want to go back, and felt afraid to go back but because the one in front of her was so strong in his command to go back, she turned around to go back. She has totally been restored, and when I asked Moses how she was doing, he said she is in normal strength. She is an OR nurse and had worked and is working in the same room where she had been left for dead, and where God brought her back. Her story has had a deep impression on many.

Thanks for your participation with us in the gospel. Jesus IS COMING SOON!

John and Jeanette

For more information about the MP3 project, visit http://mp3project-mp3.blogspot.com/, or if you desire to support this project send your contributions to:

DBC - MP3 Project

14605 SW Weir Road

Beaverton, OR 97007/