The EBI Vision

Volume 6, Issue 2, August 2001

Record Sales Year!

Nehemiah 2:18 says, “And I told them of the hand of my God which had been good upon me….” Rejoice with us as we praise God for His good hand upon us! EBI’s fiscal year came to a close June 30th, our most successful year ever. Sales exceeded the previous high by 16%; total income by 24%. One of the major factors in sales was the tremendous success of the Ministry Enrichment Program. Support from churches and individuals also significantly increased our total income.

God Blesses the Ministry Enrichment Program

In the spring of 2000, EBI sent out its first pastors’ libraries. Since that time we have supplied over 200 such libraries to needy pastors. These have been paid for by over $30,000 given by caring individuals and churches. We have received several notes from donors expressing how God worked in hearts, and the funds donated far exceeded the expectations of the Sunday school class or the missions project. One Sunday school class wrote that they hoped to raise $150, enough for one library. Their final gift exceeded $1,200. Praise God for the way He has blessed this project.

The responses of the recipients of these libraries have been equally encouraging. Because most of the recipient pastors are very poor, they never had any hope of having a set of books like the ones in these libraries. Missionaries presenting these books to the pastors reported tears of joy, as well as disbelief that these books were really theirs. Many reported having a prayer of dedication.

However, the program is not over. There are still many pastors who need these books. If you have not participated in providing a basic library for one of these pastors, we encourage you to get involved. A gift of $150 provides 26 Bible study books. Many of you have had the joy of being a part of this effort. Consider doing it again. A description of this program can be found on the reverse side of this publication. Pray that many more will participate in this project.

Our New Appearance

During the first week of April, a work group from First Baptist Church of Elyria, Ohio descended on EBI. After dividing into two groups, they tackled two major projects. The first was their primary focus, painting the exterior of the building. In about three days they had the building looking like new. The second project was the construction of three new rooms on our second floor. This proved to be the more time consuming effort because every piece of flooring had to be custom cut due to the positioning of the floor joists. However, the very capable carpenters and electricians overcame this obstacle and had the three rooms framed and wired and ready for drywall by the end of the week. Praise God for the hard work of this crew.

Once this crew was gone, our general contractor completed the construction project. One of the rooms is an office for a staff member. The other two rooms are editing rooms. One has already been put to use, and the second will be placed into service in August. Because of the nature of this construction, we were also able to make an informal meeting area from some unused space.

With the completion of the painting of the building, we were able to replace old, leaky awnings with some new, attractive ones. We also added several new ones, including one over the loading dock and a drive through covering over the front entrance. Those making deliveries during our rainy season are very appreciative. Praise God that all of the costs of these improvements have been paid for out of the generous gifts to the building fund.

Print Shop Suffers from Sales Success

Our print shop continues to be backed up by the need for reprints, as well as our new publications. We still have only one printer who is responsible for all aspects of the printing operation. We are very thankful for the hundreds of hours our volunteers work assembling and binding our books. However, please continue to pray that God will send us someone who can help in the print shop on a regular basis.

Junior Level Sunday School Materials

After years of talking about the development of the Junior level Sunday school materials, EBI is getting ready to publishing it’s first quarter of lessons. Through the work of editors Margaret Tolosa and Joan Stephens and the long hours put in by Richard Meyer getting everything formatted, the first set of lessons should be printed by the end of this year. These materials differ significantly from our other Sunday school materials. Extensive use of color will be evident. There will be many helps and ideas for the teacher included in each lesson. The student materials will also use more color. Because of the continuing requests for these materials, we anticipate an immediate demand. However, the back up in the print shop could delay the publication of these materials. Pray that we will be able to have the first two or three quarters available no later than Spring, 2002.

Ministry Enrichment Library

Library content (all in Spanish):

1. Wiersbe N.T. commentaries (12 volumes)*
2. Elemental Theology, Bancroft
3. Old Testament Moody Bible Commentary
4. New Testament Moody Bible Commentary
5. Complete Bible Concordance, Denyer
6. Vine’s Expository Dictionary (one volume)
7. The Student Bible Atlas, Dowley
8. The Charismatics, MacArthur
9. How to Prepare Bible Messages, Braga
10. A Guide for Organizing and Conducting a Baptist Church*
11. Doctrine of the Local Church, Jackson*
12. Biblical Basis for Baptists, Brown*
13. Adult Sunday School Manual*
14 Junior High Sunday School Manual*
15. Willmington’s Guide to the Bible or Unger’s New Bible Manual
(* EBI publications)

Retail value of these 26 volumes = $330

EBI’s program: $150 donation from individual or church in the States; $20 contribution by recipient pastor or his church, if able to afford it. Shipping costs paid by EBI.

Qualifications of recipients:

1. A Spanish-speaking pastor active in the ministry.
2. A Baptist by his demonstrated ministry.
3. A national, having demonstrated need (need, not age, the factor).
4. Recommended by a cooperating missionary (an active customer of EBI).
5. Asked to contribute $20 towards the library (may come from pastor’s church).

Donations may be sent to EBI, designated for the pastors’ libraries.