I don’t know about you, but for me, the shrill ring of the telephone at 4 a.m. is never a cause for unrestrained joy.
Just recently, a colleague called me at this early hour to tell me about a new Ebola virus outbreak. Had I checked the news yet? (At 4 a.m.—are you serious?) There has been an Ebola virus outbreak. (A what?) An Ebola virus outbreak! (Where?) In Guinea. (Is this near our missionaries?) Not yet, but Ebola can spread rapidly. (Can they get to the capital in case they need to evacuate?) No, there are already confirmed cases of Ebola in the capital, Conakry.
What to do? Tell our missionaries to sit tight, and we will join them in prayer. By now my mind was clear, so I knelt beside my bed and asked God to watch over our missionary families, our student missionaries and the rapidly growing local Adventist church family in Guinea. It was time to claim God’s promises of Psalm 91.
Over the next few days, I got a crash course on the Ebola virus. One of the most deadly viruses known, Ebola kills about two thirds of everyone it infects. There is no cure. A sufferer’s wretched final hours are beyond Hollywood’s worst nightmares. Humanly speaking, the only hope is to contain the outbreak, tragically accepting that many patients and healthcare workers will die in the process.
By God’s grace, the recent Ebola outbreak reached only a few cities in neighboring countries and seems to have been contained. Furthermore, it doesn’t appear to have reached the city where our missionary team is living.
But what about that far more serious outbreak, the worldwide epidemic of sin? Worse than Ebola, untreated sin kills everyone it infects. But unlike Ebola, there is a worldwide cure for sin! The ancient Israelites were invited to gaze upon the bronze serpent and receive healing from the poisonous snakebites. Likewise, sin sufferers worldwide are invited to look to Jesus Christ in faith as their sin substitute and with repentant hearts receive His gift of eternal life (John 3:14, 15). This is not merely international news. This is GOOD NEWS! 
Today, AFM missionaries are serving worldwide and proclaiming the Gospel of Christ—the only cure for sin! Even more than the rejoicing on earth when one Ebola patient recovers, heaven explodes with rejoicing over every sinner who turns to God (Luke 15:7). The Gospel not only promises eternal life tomorrow, but newness and abundance of life today as sinners are transformed into saints of God and given the power to live lives of victory over sin.
Thank you for lifting up our AFM missionaries before God in prayer! Thank you for sharing in the vision of the Gospel Commission so more and more sinners worldwide can receive the Everlasting Gospel and victory over the curse of sin. Truly, this is GOOD NEWS!

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