40 Years behind the Lens: Bob’s Favorite Shots

Bob Bushong, Support Staff, 

with Rachel Elwood, Support Staff 

January-March 2016

I’ve been with WGM since 1975 in a number of roles, but one of my favorites has been field photographer. I’ve gotten to see and record some amazing things: history in the making, faces that will never leave me, and testimonies of God’s great love. It’s been great to see how God can use my camera as His tool to tell His story.

Meredythe Scheflen took us to this overgrown sugar cane field near Santa Cruz, Bolivia, and insisted that one day it would be a university. She served tirelessly as a missionary in Bolivia for decades, and today, Bolivian Evangelical University is the largest private university in Bolivia with over 2,000 students enrolled.

MORE: Go to www.ueb.edu.bo to learn more about the ministries at BEU.

I felt like a real daredevil, practically hanging out of this Cessna to take photos of our Wings of Peace aircraft. This photo is especially meaningful because a few years later, WGM went through one of the most difficult chapters when a plane was lost in flight, along with its seven passengers.

GO: 

Through compassionate, education, family, and 

youth ministries, WGM Bolivia is reaching out to those aged 29 years and younger with the love of Christ. Discover how you can help share Christ’s love in Bolivia at www.wgm.org/bolivia.

It was a privilege to watch Dr. Ernie Steury work with patients at Tenwek Hospital in Kenya. He was the first missionary physician at Tenwek and truly laid the groundwork for it to become one of the leading missions hospitals in East Africa.

GIVE: While Tenwek’s medical services are patient-fee funded and usually affordable, these services are also made possible through donations from ministry partners like you. Donate at www.wgm.org/tenwek.

One of the best things about having taken photos on our fields for so long is that I’ve seen nationals develop into strong leaders. Reuben Lang’at (right) was doing his student missions internship to the Maasai people when I took this photo in the 1980s. He is now a WGM board member.

PRAY: Pray that the Lord will touch the hearts of qualified personnel to partner with WGM’s vital educational ministries around the globe. Training pastors, church leaders, and missionaries for Africa is a wonderful privilege.

I will never forget this little girl. She and her sister were

about the same ages of my own two daughters at the time, 

and I remember thinking how easily their lives could have been flipped, and it would have been my own kids who were struggling to draw water from a well.

GIVE: Poverty affects both the people of Bolivia and the church’s ability to serve. World Gospel Church of Bolivia needs funds to support pastors, improve church buildings, and fund missions. Partner with World Gospel Church of Bolivia through giving at www.wgm.org/wgc-bolivia.

Prayer Calendar: January 24-30, 2016

I’ve been with WGM since 1975 in a number of roles, but one of my favorites has been field photographer. I’ve gotten to see and record some amazing things: history in the making, faces that will never leave me, and testimonies of God’s great love. It’s been great to see how God can use my camera as His tool to tell His story.

Pray that the Lord will draw qualified men and women to partner with

educational ministries around the globe. 

Weathering Hurricane Mitch

Weathering Hurricane Mitch

Marion Lewton, Retiree
January-March 2016

When natural disasters occur, pictures help us better understand the severity of the tragedy. That was true in 1998 when Hurricane Mitch hit Honduras. In this reprinted article from the March/April 1999 Call to Prayer, retiree Marion Lewton shares her travel story to El Sembrador, a school for underprivileged boys in Honduras. Marion served with her late husband, Gene, in Kenya for 35 years and at WGM headquarters for seven years.

How fortunate, or unfortunate, we were to be in Honduras, Central America, with a Men With Vision work team when Hurricane Mitch hit! My husband, Gene, had been asked if he would direct the work team because the former director had not been able to go. We were glad we were free to help. Rain began falling Sunday night, October 25, and continued day and night for a week.

The pictures tell a better story than many words. Devastation was all around us. Many thousands of people lost everything—homes, belongings, and family members. What sorrow and sadness enveloped the nation of Honduras. Villages and families, homes, and possessions slid down the mountainsides, never to be seen again.

Most of the farmland along the river bottom at El Sembrador will have to be worked with a lot of fertilizer and topsoil to bring it back into production. Many trees were taken out by the roots and washed downstream. The farm lost its banana plants and cocoa trees. Yes, there will be many days, weeks, and months of hard work for everyone.

The school year usually ends the middle of November in Honduras. However, the president declared all schools closed and said there should be no graduation celebrations. A special meal was served for all of the students and staff at the farm school and the graduates were recognized, but they did not do the traditional march to receive their diplomas or have parties. All of the students understood. There was too much sorrow. Everyone had heavy hearts. This will be a year to be remembered by all.

It has been wonderful to hear of the many organizations, Christian and non-Christian, that have gone to Central America to help rebuild. Tons of beans, corn, rice, medicines, and clothing have been sent.

Rebuilding homes, bridges, and farmland will take years of work. God is at work. The churches have banded together and are helping the needy. This could be the beginning of real revival. God will bring victory and blessing out of tragedy.

El Sembrador has weathered this storm and God has truly blessed this ministry. With God’s help, more than 7,000 students have been ministered to through its programs.

GIVE: Help students continue to flourish in Honduras through the El Sembrador Sponsorship Program. Learn more about choosing a child to sponsor at www.wgm.org/elsembrador.

Prayer Calendar: January 17-23, 2016

Hurricane Mitch devastated Honduras from October 23 - November 9, 1998. El Sembrador weathered the storm, thrived in the rebuilding years following, and God has truly blessed this ministry.


Thank God for the ministry of Escuela El Sembrador that provides education and vocational preparation to underprivileged boys in Honduras.

From Inspiration to Involvement

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Jared Gleason, Support Staff
January-March 2016

As I browse social media or flip through a magazine, photos stick out to me the most. Most of the time I’m not even reading, but waiting for the next photo to catch my eye, prompting me to read whatever story or post accompanies it. Do you find yourself doing that?

Photos are fascinating because they can elicit so much emotion and inspiration, especially pictures that involve ministry and missions. You may think, “Wow, that’s an amazing ministry that is going on in Albania,” or “I would love to serve like that some day.” And that thought might be the last time you think of it. My prayer is that that would not be the case.

Are you brave enough to change your inspiration into involvement? I challenge you to actually respond. Don’t just click “Like” on Facebook and move on to the next photo. Don’t just flip the magazine page and read the next article. Take action. Ask questions. Learn more. Share with others what God is doing around the world and in your heart. Or, if you are up to a real faith challenge—go and be a part of it.

Going is a big step, but it is a step worth taking. Through Christ, people’s lives are being transformed and communities are being changed. You can be a part of what He is doing. And then you’ll be the one sharing photos, impacting others’ lives, and, Lord willing, inspiring them to be a part of missions as well.

As you are inspired by missions photos in this magazine, online, or wherever they may be, pray about how God may use those photos to prompt you to become involved. If He prompts you to seek out an opportunity to serve, WGM has many ways that you can do that. Maybe it’s going on your first team, maybe it’s serving for a summer, or maybe it’s beginning a career in missions. It could also mean being an advocate for missions in your small group, church, or community.

No matter what God is asking you to do, I’d love to talk with you and help your inspiration become a reality.

ACT: Connect with Jared today at recruiting@wgm.org to determine the best way God can use your skills and talents in missions.

Prayer Calendar: January 10-16, 2016

"As I browse social media or flip through a magazine, photos stick out to me the most. Most of the time I’m not even reading, but waiting for the next photo to catch my eye, prompting me to read whatever story or post accompanies it. Do you find yourself doing that?" ~Jared Gleason, from the article From Inspiration to Involvement

Ask God to help you move from simply being inspired by missions to being involved in missions directly. 

Prayer Calendar: January 1-9, 2016

Happy New Year from all of us that work on the ministry of The Call magazine! As we enter a new month, we also embark on our first issue of 2016. I'm sure God has many things to teach us over the next few months so it is with good reason that we pause and focus some prayer on this missions prayer point that brings us back to WGM's roots and our humble beginnings in China.

PRAY for continued fruit in China from the seeds that were planted in the early days of WGM’s ministry.