Category: Solar Mission

“I graduated from Volta School of Evangelism in Ghana in September of this year. I am now preaching in Cured Leper’s Village. I am from Togo but came to Ghana due to the civil war. When I arrived in Ho, the capital town of Volta Region, I saw these lepers and decided to stay with them and help them. Brothers from the  Church of Christ met me there and converted me. After graduating from the School of Evangelism I became their preacher. The solar player is one of the best gifts I received. The solar player is helping a lot in preparing my sermons and lessons. The songs empower us and make the worship exciting. I am asked to preach in three congregations and am now helping two brothers to become leaders.” – Doga Kofi Degbe Peter, Ghana “The solar player has been a blessing to my life and ministry. It is very useful to me in so many ways. It has become my best library. It helps me to prepare my  Bible lessons for church with understanding. It is now helping me to teach the book of Corinthians, as I am one of the teachers at Volta Bible College. I have 10 preacher students in this class. Thanks and God bless you for our love for God’s work.” – Bright Agbesi Datsomor, Ghana “On behalf of the preachers I have distributed the solar players to, I want to say big thank you to brothers and sisters for their generosity… to have solar players  for us....

A few years ago, Donna Barbour was on the back patio of her home in the Texas Panhandle when she was struck in the neck by a stray arrow that, by all logic, should have killed her, but instead would eventually save her life. The narrow point arrow was shot toward the north by a young neighbor practicing with a powerful compound bow, but the missile ricocheted, went back south, across a couple of fences, through bushes, trees and hanging baskets. It lodged in the right side of Donna’s neck. The arrow penetrated the quarter-inch space between the jugular vein and the carotid artery without nicking either. Donna was airlifted to the hospital with an arrow protruding from her neck. The arrow was safely removed in surgery, but the CT scan revealed that she had a brain tumor, which would be fatal if not removed. A later scan revealed a brain aneurysm that likewise would have been deadly. Donna believes (and who could successfully dispute it) that divine providence guided that arrow in its highly unlikely trajectory to reveal the hidden dangers which would have taken her life if not treated quickly. Donna is a faithful Christian and a member of the Sunray Church of Christ, a very generous Solar Mission partner church that promotes periodic special contributions to send Solar Players around the world. Donna and her husband Ed participated in the donation efforts each time the opportunity was presented, but she was looking for a way to do more. This year she sent her amazing...

In Nigeria, the name C.A.O. Essien is as legendary and familiar to our brethren as Alexander Campbell is to those who know about the Restoration Movement in the United States. Essien requested a Bible correspondence course from a church in Nashville, Tennessee, in 1950 and began to preach the Gospel he had learned. When two missionaries from southern Africa, Boyd Reese (father of World Bible School President, John Reese) and Eldred Echols, were sent to investigate, Essien had already baptized more than 10,000 people, planted dozens of congregations, and started a school of preaching. The Biblical revival movement that began with a truth-seeker in the village of Ikot Usen, Nigeria, has spawned an evangelistic explosion in Nigeria that has resulted in nearly 4,000 congregations of Churches of Christ. Emmanuel Essien is the nephew of C.A.O. Essien and currently serves as the director of the C.A.O. Essien Bible College, a partner school of Sunset located in Ikot Usen, birth place of the modern movement of the Church of Christ in Nigeria. Recently, Brother Essien used the Solar Players we had provided to convert two men, both of whom are now training to become gospel preachers. The gospel legacy continues in Nigeria with tens of thousands of New Testament Christians and dozens of preacher training schools, including four associated with Sunset International Bible Institute. More than 1,100 Solar Players have been distributed to leaders in Nigeria since 2015. After 5 years, most of those Solar Players are still preaching the Gospel in one of the most receptive mission...

When we began the large distribution of Solar Players in 2014, Zimbabwe was one of the first recipient nations. Our partner school, Mutare School of Preaching and its director Nhamo Marunga, led the way in helping us to put over 900 Solar Players into the hands of the right people in one of the most receptive nations in our world. After six years, most of those Solar Players are still preaching and teaching the gospel. Recently brother Marunga said this: “When the Solar Player project started, we did not know that a global pandemic would come. We have used the Solar Players in evangelism, Bible classes, preacher training, leadership workshops, prisons, and hospitals, far and wide. In Zimbabwe, we were not spared from the pandemic and lock downs. Families are now able to listen to the songs, Bible lessons, sermons, and Bible readings from their Solar Players. What a blessing.” Most of us in the US have been blessed to have church services, Bible classes and worship songs streamed into our homes via Internet as we “shelter in place.” Few people in Zimbabwe and other third-world countries have that opportunity.  But in the providence of God, about 13,000 precious souls in over 70 nations have Solar Players loaded with the Sunset curriculum, WBS courses, family resources, gospel hymns, and the entire Bible. We are hearing from Christians all around the world who are saying “thank you” to generous American donors who provide Solar Players to help their families worship and grow spiritually in isolation.  Meanwhile at...

10,000+ Solar Players Delivered Supported by almost 300 churches & over 1,700 individuals 4 Languages Reached 5 Continents Reached Over 50 Countries with Solar Players Churches Established Around the World Kingdom Impact – IMMEASURABLE Thank you to all who have been a part of the Solar Mission. In five years, God has done some amazing things. When we look back at all that God has done through the Solar Mission, all we can say is “Hallelujah, to God be the glory.” Every supporter has been an extremely vital part of this mission. From those individuals among you who gave for part of one solar player, to those congregations who give each month, this mission would not have gone anywhere without all of the parts of the body of Christ working together. We have been so encouraged by the reports from Barry Smith (mentioned in the previous update) and others who have taken the solar players and made them an integral part of their ministry. All of these successes and all the calls from around the world compel us to keep going with a new mission. The current Solar Mission has a dual focus; we will be distributing 3,000 solar players over the next two years, in Creole, to the nation of Haiti and to the Portuguese-speaking world including Brazil, Mozambique, and Angola. The purpose is to reach out to the needs of one of our closest neighbors in Haiti and to reach the 5th most spoken language in the world, Portuguese. For the past few years,...

The Philippines have a population of over 105 million people according to the most recent United Nations demographic studies.  Over 50 million Filipinos live with infrequent or limited electricity and some have no access to electricity. This makes it an ideal place to distribute solar powered audio players from Sunset. These players have hundreds of hours of materials from Sunset and other ministries, hymns and the entire audio Bible that Filipinos can use to learn from, teach and use for Bible studies, classes and even worship. Sunset representatives distribute these players to trusted preachers and church leaders in the country, train them in how to use them, have them fill out a registration card and then turn them loose to evangelize and teach their family, friends and neighbors. These are provided to them free of charge. We depend on Christians and congregations in the United States to provide these players. For $500, a Christian individual or congregation can provide these players to a soul winner in the Philippines. With a battery designed to last for 10-12 years, it is a great investment.  Learn more at here. The grandmother and granddaughter you see on the calendar represent so many who need to hear the Word of God in the Philippines. Some cannot read the Bible and some do not have electricity. They all have access to the sun and can charge these solar players and listen to the Word of God and biblical teaching. This plan for teaching the lost of this world has been hugely successful...

Please rejoice with us as we celebrate a significant milestone in the Solar Mission. This summer the 10,000th solar player was placed in the hands of Ed-Mark Delacion, in the Philippines. Ed-Mark is a young professional, living in Manila who plans to use his solar player to establish a church in his home village. He also has a second solar player to help him continue to study while he is working in Manila. When he returns to the village, the studies can be deeper and more beneficial, as the young Christians grow in their knowledge and depth of insight. Training a New Generation One of the goals of the Solar Mission in the Philippines is to help train the younger generation. Filipino leaders have expressed the need to provide a deeper biblical knowledge to the younger generation who are growing more and more in the Philippines. Jay Dee (pictured below with his friend, Ed-Mark) has been using his solar player already and confirms that the solar players help young professionals who don’t have an opportunity to attend Bible college “to participate in the mission work.” He is so happy that the solar player “is essentially a Bible school in itself.” Continuing to Train Through Innovation Meanwhile, reports continue to come in from around the world from the first 9,999 other solar players. Paul Crites with Amor Sin Temor (Love Without Fear) is a missionary in Guatemala. He has already distributed the 20 solar players he was given and is hoping to receive more. He has developed...