Take an Urdu Bible by Roseleen Macdonald

George and I were going to a convention in South India but before leaving the Lord had said to me, “Take an Urdu Bible”. Urdu? I thought. There are not many Urdu speakers in the south. We put the large Bible in our cabin luggage, rather than the tin trunk in the plane’s hold, just in case there was a Pakistani we met on the journey. However, we did not meet the person the Lord had told us to give the Bible to on the journey or during the conference. Our last few days in India were spent in Chennai — known then as Madras. As we walked into the ELS (CLC) HQ, an elderly gentleman was there as another guest, wearing the typical blanket over his shoulders of a north Indian. “That’s him”, the Lord said. The man was so amazed. He had been a shepherd but was now a village pastor serving thousands of miles north of where he sat that day. He was longing for an Urdu Bible of his very own. Writing this all these years later, what a joy to remember how God wonderfully answered that shepherd pastor’s prayer.

The First-ever Burmese Study Bible

“A Study Bible for new believers in the Burmese language is desperately needed!”, shared Jacob Mung with British author Martin Manser in 2013. Martin and his co-author/editor, Mike Beaumont, began developing the study notes and helps for this Bible. Both men were very aware of the discipling needs of the Burmese people due to their strong connections with the nation.  In 2015, the final ‘English’ version was completed and handed over to Jacob and his team to begin translating. It will be published In 2017—so watch this space!

CLC France’s New Warehouse

When Marks and Spencer closed all their shops in France, one of their suppliers of peaches had to sell its depot next to peach orchards just south of Montélimar. This happened in 2007, just when CLC France was looking for a new site for their HQ and warehouse as their current one was too small.

We saw God’s provision in so many ways! The old location, with housing, was sold and all our team members where able to find new housing in the area. We were able to buy the warehouse with extra land— some of which we have used for an extension. Permission was even granted from the Mayor to operate in an exclusively agricultural zone! Alterations to the building were carried out and now we are located on a main road with great visibility instead of being hidden among the trees up a hill between two villages. We lift up grateful hearts to God!

James Cooper shares their Miracle from God during a  Very Difficult Year

We wish to thank the Almighty God for those lives that were impacted through our products and services during 2014 – a year which also had its challenges. Sales were not encouraging during the first half of the year, and then there was an increase in the number of Ebola cases; people were dying, everywhere with between 75 to 150 deaths daily. Our government and medical health authorities were overwhelmed. To reduce personal contacts, all schools were closed indefinitely, and Government agencies sent all of their non-essential employees on compulsory leave. Foreign-owned businesses were also closed and their owners left the country.

Then the miracle happened – our daily sales in the shop increased! Whether it was because people wanted to be close to God during those trying times or not, we started having customers come into the shop every day and making huge purchases. Since then, our sales continue to be encouraging, and we have many new customers.

 Marge Almack Remembers Finding ‘The Castle’!

On Thanksgiving Day in 1950, my family went for an afternoon drive. My Dad, Ken Adams, had been asked to work with the WEC USA leader to find a new property for the growing ministry. He had heard about a place affectionately referred to as ‘The Castle’, that just might be big enough. It was once the summer home of a wealthy Philadelphia socialite’, but it was in pretty bad shape. Unfortunately, it had been abandoned for a few years and only thieves and looters had been visiting recently. As they pulled up, my Mum, Bessie, hardly wanted to get out of the car as things were in such a state of disrepair with all the windows missing. My Dad however, popped out, looked around and said, “Bess, this place has possibilities. Let’s see if any of the doors are open.” Gently pushing a side door open, Jan and I, loving our father’s adventurous spirit, went running up the stairs to the second floor of the building to explore. We came to a rapid halt on discovering a man with a rope hiding in an alcove. He was obviously up to no good. I screamed for my Dad and the man ran off and disappeared.
The Lord gave us (WEC/CLC) the entire property with 66 acres for the amazing price of $60,000, and this once run down ‘castle’ ultimately became the joint home of CLC and WEC and has been the US headquarters location for over 60 years now.

Changing the World, One Book at a Time by Dave Almack

A man who looked older than a typical college student approached our Urbana booth and noticed our CLC logo. He stood back for a minute and then approached me and said “CLC- I Love Corrie ten Boom”. He then shared the rest of his story. He had been in prison not long ago and was now looking to see what God might want to do with the next season of his life. While in prison, he had written to us looking for some free books. One of our team members sent some books, including ‘Prison Letters’ by Corrie ten Boom. He said that these books had changed his life and that this was one of the ways that God had turned things around for him. He was so grateful and we were so blessed— what a divine appointment!

CLC Wholesale Relocation by Eddie Olliffe

2015 proved to be an important and crucial year for CLC Wholesale. The long- awaited move of the CLC Warehouse took place over the UK’s bank holiday weekend at the end of August. God has been so faithful, and we have been utterly amazed at His goodness. We were able to find, purchase, refurbish and move to a new warehouse, all in the space of a few short months. We had previously been prevented from going ahead with the purchase of another building but, in early 2015, we located a sizeable 2,800m² facility near Chester in the north-west of the UK, just across the border in Wales.

Everyone rose to the occasion. The CLC retirees, especially those living in the area around the previous warehouse, encouraged all those involved in this move, and the team felt lifted and empowered by the prayers and love of those who had gone before. Despite the many, many challenges (which included the installation of a completely new computer system), CLC Wholesale was active again by early September. We had a very good trading period leading up to Christmas and managed to remain ahead of the previous year’s sales figures, despite the gap in trading due to the move at the end of August. God is truly faithful and clearly went before us. Sola Deo Gloria – all glory to Him.

From Russia with Love!

Natasha, a member of the CLC team, was married in 2015. The testimony of her fiancé, Michael, is a testament to God working all things to His Glory. He and Natasha first met in hospital where Natasha’s mum was recovering after she had been hit by a car — driven by Michael. Throughout the process of treatment and the automatic police prosecution, the CLC team and Natasha’s church prayed that God’s hand would be seen in this situation. The result: Michael came to Christ, Natasha’s mum is now walking again and a romance has blossomed. God is good!

TV Publicity for CLC

For one week in May (1975), a Billy Graham programme was relayed on television at 10:30pm each evening. At the end of the programme, the telephone number of CLC Barquisimeto was flashed on to the screen and viewers were invited to ring for a free book or for help and advice. Cynthia Harbert (manager at the time) reported that over 250 telephone calls were received during the following days from many parts of the city.
(Floodtide Sept/Oct 1975)

From Witchcraft to Christ by Vere Babona

A church bookstall was opened by CLC on the remote island of Misima, Milne Bay Province, in 1994; it continued for about six years under the care of a local man, Linden Butuna. In 2000, CLC opened its first bookstore in Alotau (the capital of Milne Bay Province). Jack Edwards, from the Boroko shop, was called in to manage CLC in Alotau. One day, he was invited to an outreach programme in a village called Wavar. It was during these two nights of outreach that a well-known local witch gave her heart to Christ. Alotau is known for its witchcraft practices, and it is a matrilineal society where women have more authority, and witchcraft practices keep many people captive. This breakthrough has spread through the community, and the power of Christ has broken the stronghold of witchcraft, although remnants remain, and witchcraft practices continue to decline to this day even though our shop in Alotau closed in 2012. God’s voice continues to be heard, for one plants the seed, another waters it and yet another reaps the harvest.

Thank you Jesus, for our partners!

Over the last 75 years we have been blessed by God with some incredible opportunities to partner with these Gospel-focused teams, as well as many others, including you, our readers.

Your prayers and support have enabled us to spread the Good News of God’s love to both urban and remote communities all around the world!

Thank you for being such a vital part of our ministry. Together we can change the world, one book at a time!

Healed for a Purpose by Sandy Sanderson

When I offered to CLC to work in North India, I was told that my arthritic hip excluded me from service overseas, but I would be considered for work in the UK. From acceptance into CLC in 1949, I had been receiving treatment for my arthritis but at the UK Annual Conference in 1956, that and other things changed!
The speaker for the devotional sessions was Ivor Davies of WEC who shared something of the Revival in the Congo… not the blessings… but the cost! As he told of the working of the Holy Spirit within the mission and local church, the agenda and timetable were ignored as people got right with God and with one another. There was confession, restoration, restitution and healings — mine among them. When Ivor and Pa (Fred) Whybrow laid hands and anointed me, I knew immediately that I had been healed. Someone said. “The Lord turned us upside down, but He brought us down the right way up!!” CLC was transformed, and so was I.
Later, when my mobile outreach ministry involved travelling throughout the UK in a trailer caravan all the year round — reaching out through market stalls and agricultural shows in all weathers — I knew that without the healing in 1956 I would not have been able to cope physically. The Lord does all things well.

The Planned sale…that was Cancelled!

About ten years ago, the owner of the bookshop building in Benin told me that he had decided to sell the building. That is when our CLC team united in prayer, together with some pastor friends. A few weeks later, the landlord came back to see me with the following words: “A group of Muslims came with a suitcase full of money to buy the building but something told me not to sell it. I obeyed the voice that spoke to me. I am no longer going to sell the building”. Glory to God!

Several years later, the owner of the property died. Just after this, a mafia gang comprising of lawyers and family members of the owner took the legal inheritors of the building to court with the intention of seizing the building. The inheritors then asked me to support them in prayer. So, that is what I did, together with a pastor friend, for some time. A few months later, the inheritors won the case and they came to thank me. Our God hears our prayers!

Making an Impact in Malolos City by DeeDah Macinas

We had been looking for a good bookstore location in Malolos City, and it was not an easy job. After looking at various places, we finally went to a shopping mall that was still under construction! We walked around the site and saw a place we thought would be good for CLC.

We then met with the administrator who told us that the space we were interested in had been reserved for a Philippine Games and Amusement company and a deposit had been made to secure the reservation. Romualdo Macinas, Director of CLC Philippines, responded by saying, “Ok, but we will still pray about it.” He then went on to explain that “Whatever we do has an impact on other people. If it happens that you accept the gaming people, what influence or what impact will that have on the whole community? People will learn to gamble, some will rely on gambling to support their lives, and children will learn to play games of chance. What a pity! CLC is a very special kind of bookstore. We are here to serve God through books. We are introducing people to God.”

After two weeks, we received a call from the administrator, “Mr. Macinas, the space is yours.” Truly an answered prayer and, since 2010, CLC Malolos has been one of our best selling bookshops.

CLC Canada Begins Publishing

Canada launched a publishing project in 2014, starting with Josh McDowell’s book, More than a Carpenter. At the time, CLC Canada wrote: “Imported books in French normally work out very expensive for CLC Canada and our customers – the version of the book from France sells for $39.99 but we can sell this edition for $14.99! This shows that it would be a good long-term strategy and investment to do more publishing ourselves.”

Since then, three other books have been published with at least another four on the way!