The Open Door

I request your prayers for me as I prepare to preach a revival at the First Baptist Church of Kotzebue, Alaska. First Baptist of Kotzebue is located approximately 30 miles north of the Arctic Circle on the western side of Alaska. This church has a rich history of ministering to Eskimos and others.

First Baptist Kotzebue has started numerous churches across the Arctic over the years. Four of these churches are still mission churches under the watch care of First Baptist. They are located in Kiana, Shungnak, Ambler, and Kobuk. All are located along the Kobuk River.

The pastor of FBC Kotzebue is Dr. John T. Forrester, who is formerly the associational missionary for the Middle Association located in Sylvania, Georgia. John served as associational missionary for Middle Association from 1997 through 2004. During the time of Georgia’s partnership with Alaska, John took numerous groups from the Middle Association to do work and ministry in Alaska, and God used those experiences to touch his heart in a lasting way.

In November of 2004, John and his wife, Terri, were commissioned as missionaries by the North American Mission Board in a commissioning service at Mountain Park First Baptist Church. Since that time, they have been faithfully serving the Lord in the Arctic region.

The church website reports “life in the Arctic is very different than in the lower 48. In the wintertime it gets very cold with temps down to –40 and wind chills even colder at times. We also have some dark days with December 21 being the least amount of sunlight. Many people suffer with depression, especially during the winter months. Alcohol and sexual abuse are also big problems.

“Things are really expensive in the Arctic since everything needs to be flown in or come in by barge in the summer. For example, gas is $3.50 a gallon, milk is about $8 a gallon, and food in general is usually 2-3 times higher up here. There are no roads coming into Kotzebue or the villages. Most travel in the villages is done by snowmobile in the winter and 4-wheel ATVs in the summer.”

Serving the North American Mission Board as a Regional Church Starter Strategist above the Arctic Circle has been a different experience for John Forrester. In the wintertime, he spends many hours on a snowmobile traveling to and from the four mission churches that are located up to 220 miles away from his home.

John said, “There are no roads coming in or going out, so my transportation to the villages is either by plane or by snowmobile in the winter.” John travels up to 12 hours by snowmobile to reach the most distant church.

His love for the Eskimo people gives him motivation and stamina. “When I first came up to the Arctic of Alaska, I caught a vision and a love for the Eskimo. I saw that many have serious needs and the only thing that can help is for Jesus to lead their lives.”

According to John Forrester, most of the 3,100 residents in Kotzebue, Alaska are familiar with the name of Jesus, but most are not committed to Christ. On any given Sunday, less than ten percent of the population attends church.

John says, “Many Eskimos feel that before they can come to Christ, they have to be perfect. They know they are not perfect and therefore feel they cannot come to Christ or even to church.”

Please pray for me as I preach messages about God’s amazing grace, His power to forgive sin, to give us a new life in Him, and the promise of eternal life to all who receive Jesus. My prayer is that we will have a remarkable, transforming revival experience that will leave a lasting impact upon Kotzebue, Alaska.

I encourage you to pray for John and Terri Forrester and for their son John Mark as they serve in the unique region north of the Arctic Circle. How thankful I am for Georgia Baptists who are willing to listen to the call of God to missions, and leave their comfort zone in Georgia to go to an area unlike anything they have ever experienced in order to proclaim Christ.

I anticipate a great blessing in spending time with John, Terri, and John Mark Forrester during the Kotzebue, Alaska revival. My prayer is that the Lord’s name will be praised and that lives will be eternally changed.