Proclaim! International

 
     DOMINIC                           ED                     LESLIE & SCOTT

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DOMINIC BIJAN    Germany
Professional musician combines his skills with passion for evangelism

Dominic was for more than 20 years a professional musician.  Then he met Jesus Christ through the witness of a fellow German musician while auditioning for a new band.  His life changed dramatically.  He quit doing drugs.  He became a faithful member of an evangelical church in his home town of Freiburg, in the Black Forest region of southern Germany.  God gave him Claudia, a wonderful Christian wife .

           

Chris and Greg, Proclaim! International missionaries and leaders of the band, The Outlanders, live just down the road from Dominic.  Through a mutual friend they met and discovered a shared love for music and, more importantly, for the Lord.  Dominic was one of the worship leaders in his church, but over the years he had become restless.  The source of this unease was a growing desire to use his considerable musical talent in the cause of evangelism.  In the worship band there was little opportunity for this.  Dominic soon found himself rehearsing with The Outlanders.  The Moldova tour was ahead.  Was this the opportunity he had been praying about for the past eight years?  “Yes!” was the response of Claudia and his church leaders.  Dominic applied to Proclaim Germany, was appointed to serve with The Outlanders on the Moldova team and trusted the Lord for the support he would need to make the trip.  Dominic fit into the team musically and spiritually and had the joy during the October tour of personally leading several Moldovans to a profession of faith in Christ. Now he is making plans for further ministry with Proclaim.

I am forever thankful to God for the wonderful experience that I had on tour.  It was a privilege for me to be there.  God used us to reach many people with the good news; during the tour 18 young people called on Jesus to be their Savior!  There was a super atmosphere as the band and team worked wonderfully together.  - Dominic

ED STEPHENSON    Alabama
World class jazz saxophonist returns for 12th Proclaim! tour

Ed  has played saxophone since he was five years old, and professionally while still in his teens.   But when he decided on a career path, the field of engineering won out over music as a more stable option.  Still he continued to be seriously dedicated to music, playing as a free agent and eventually leading his own band.

The faith Ed had from a young age became more firmly grounded when he and his wife joined a church that challenged them with solid biblical teaching and missions involvement.  In time, his commitment to missions grew from praying and giving into a desire to serve directly.  But it was connecting with Proclaim! musicianaries John and Diana Bowers at his church’s missions conference that sparked insight into what God had been preparing him for.
 

Soon after that he was invited to be part of a Proclaim! evangelistic band in Belgium and France.  Ed fondly remembers that first tour in 1995 as  “a cold, uncomfortable, sleep depriving, life changing experience, during which serving God became the central focus of life, a new experience for me.”
 

 Now 13 years later, a musicianary himself, Ed has just completed his 12^th project with Proclaim!  as a member of Sax 4^th Avenue in Peru.


I believe that God gives us gifts, talents, intellect, and faith to use for His glory.  All my years of playing and performing in a secular world have given me sufficient skill to be of value in a band of very good musicians to draw people to hear us play.  All my years of gaining understanding of the love and mercy of God through Jesus Christ have prepared me to share and encourage non-believers to seek Him for salvation with boldness that is surprising even to me.  So, because He has given me this combination of gifts, I would be disobedient not to go as I am called, wherever there is a need for my particular talents. And PROCLAIM! is God's instrument by which He calls me.  - Ed

  LESLIE & SCOTT JONES   Florida

Mother and son serve Proclaim and national workers in Peru

Leslie and her son Scott from Jacksonville, Florida, were already in love with Peru and had some facility in Spanish after having served there at a camp and school on two church mission trips.  Add to that experience hours of labor at Proclaim!’s fund raising garage sales and service to our Jacksonville based team.  So, a heart for Peru, knowledge of Spanish, servant spirit . . . they were naturals to join us in a support role on the Sax 4th Avenue team to Lima, Peru. 

In that capacity they provided essential practical service to the team, like shopping for and preparing meals, photographing, and helping set up and take down equipment, allowing the musicians to put maximum focus and energy into their ministry. Beyond that, they were a spiritual encouragement to the team and warmly reached out to local church members as well as unbelievers. 

When people ask:  “I’m not a musician; is there anything I can do on a Proclaim! tour?” The answer is:  You can make all the difference!

 

Leslie’s reflection on the Sax 4th Avenue concert at a women’s prison in Lima:

 

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