Bringing God’s Word to the Unreached

It Begins With Training

More than 3 billion people in our world today remain unreached, because thousands of ethnic groups worldwide have no knowledge of Jesus, no church and no Christians.

This urgent reality motivates Ethnos360 missionaries like Jack and Lael Crabtree every single day. The Crabtrees are church planters in Papua New Guinea with the Wantakia people. They have walked alongside the Wantakia people for much of their transformational journey, as many have gone from being completely unreached to becoming believers functioning within a vibrant New Testament church.

A thriving church for every people: that is a vision worth striving for. 

This transition — guiding a people group from being unreached to being one with its own thriving church and having God’s Word in their own heart language — requires decades of hard work and patience and is all built upon a firm foundation of training.

This vital process for training and equipping church planters begins at Ethnos360 Bible Institute (EBI). How could one be an effective church planter without a solid foundation of biblical understanding?

Missionaries in the field with Ethnos360 — like the Crabtree family — readily recognize the importance of EBI’s preparation. 

Jack and Lael have labored among the Wantakia people for many years. They have seen many among the Wantakia people become believers with a church established and growing, and they are persevering through the long process of translating Scripture into the Wantakians’ heart language.

Jack recently reflected on the importance of their training for this work. He said, “Now that I’m translating God’s Word into the Wantakia language, I’m daily thankful for the solid foundation I received at Ethnos360 Bible Institute and recommend it to anyone who is teachable and willing to approach God’s Word from a fresh perspective. I graduated from EBI with a clearer understanding of the Bible as a metanarrative that contains an internally consistent biblical theology. I wouldn’t trade that for anything.”

Addressing a Major Need at Ethnos360 Bible Institute

To continue training and equipping missionaries like Jack and Lael Crabtree, the work at Ethnos360 Bible Institute must go on.

EBI currently faces the daunting project of replacing the building’s two 80-year-old elevators. Their unreliability has caused a number of serious situations in the past year. Some of those situations are related below.

This project will require $900,000 to complete. However, thanks to your generous partnership, more than $600,000 has already come in! Praise the Lord!

Please pray for the remaining $300,000 to come in soon so that installation can begin to address the needs that are being felt so urgently at the Bible Institute.

An Unfortunate Accident

One very cold Wisconsin morning last year, a food supply truck pulled up to a loading dock at EBI. This was the scheduled weekly delivery, but the EBI kitchen staff faced an unusual difficulty on this particular morning: both elevators were down.

This is not uncommon. Installed in 1944, eight decades of wear and tear have left the elevators all too prone to break down. Many times, students and staff simply adapt and take the stairs. Unfortunately, on this day, the malfunctioning elevators were more than just an inconvenience. The EBI kitchen staff was forced to unload thousands of pounds of food by hand and navigate the staircase one armload at a time. 

On each trip, as snow and ice were tracked inside, the metal staircase became increasingly precarious, until finally one of the men went down. He went down hard. His elbow and ribs took the brunt of the fall, and the injuries he suffered hampered him for months.

The potential for continued accidents like this needs to be addressed. For everyone at EBI, the need for reliable and safe elevators is a must. EBI frequently hosts guests on campus, with events ranging from an annual pastors breakfast to a city-wide open house. The school seeks to be as welcoming as possible to the community, and this sometimes includes hosting individuals who are unable to navigate stairs.

Staff and Students Facing Health Challenges

In addition to these occasional weather-related risks, elevators are a critical part of day-to-day life on campus, particularly for anyone facing injury, disability or any other mobility issue.

This reality came into clear focus this fall when a new teacher, Joel, joined the staff at the Bible Institute. Joel is a partial paraplegic, having suffered an accident in childhood when his legs were run over by a tractor. The resulting injuries have left Joel with lifelong challenges, his mobility significantly limited.

Joel and his family live in the main campus building at EBI, and since he requires crutches to get around, the reliability of the building’s elevators significantly impacts his quality of life. 

Other staff and students at EBI also regularly depend on the elevators. Two current students have persistent health conditions that necessitate their use of the elevator. Other students and staff have suffered significant injuries or had surgeries throughout the semester, making stairs difficult or impossible.

A Safety Concern

In addition, elevator breakdowns present another safety issue. Last year, the elevator broke down while in transit, and several students were stuck for a significant period of time. Maintenance staff were able to get them out, but the potential for a more serious situation to occur is a concern.

Costly Short-Term Solutions

Finally, the band-aid repair solutions being employed to keep the elevators operational carry a sobering reality.

First, the steep price tag. On average, EBI is spending $1,000 per month to repair and maintain the elevators and keep them functional. 

Second, current circumstances are unsustainable. The elevator company cautions that they can no longer adequately maintain the elevators, as some of the necessary parts have long gone out of production.

These are important reasons to hope and pray for funding to install new elevators in 2025.

Nearing the Finish Line!

In each of these circumstances, elevator breakdowns represent far more than just an inconvenience. Broken-down elevators are both a safety risk and a significant hurdle for staff, students and guests facing mobility issues. 

As a result, Ethnos360 leadership is prioritizing the elevators within the Revitalize EBI campaign, targeting them as the next item to be completed. Raising the remaining $300,000 and installing new, dependable elevators is a critical next step to continue providing a safe and welcoming environment at the Bible school.

The training that occurs at Ethnos360 Bible Institute is critical to the mission of Ethnos360 and is a vital component of preparing missionaries to plant churches among unreached people groups. 

Jack and Lael Crabtree testify powerfully to the difference that EBI’s training has made in their work in the field, as the Wantakia have come to Christ and are now preparing to welcome God’s Word in their own heart language.

Thanks to your partnership, you are sustaining the work of EBI, ensuring the equipping of generations of current and future students, and playing a critical role in helping Ethnos360 reach the nations.