July 2010

URGENT UPDATE REGARDING JOSEPH SCHNEIDER
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ROLWE's purpose is to bring the message and hope of Jesus to those who have never heard it before. Our priority is to reach the unreached, the persecuted and the poor. To achieve this, ROLWE has committed to:

• Preach, teach and demonstrate the Gospel and all its provisions in Christ
   
• Reach the unreached people of the world by going out into new territory
   
• Use creative means such as music, mime, drama, dance and painting to proclaim the Gospel
   
• Give energy, resources, abilities and time as an investment in the fulfilment of the Great Commission of our Lord Jesus Christ
   
• Demonstrate the love of God by caring for the whole person; body, soul and spirit, through humanitarian aid and microeconomic development
   
• Assist believers in their quest to know God's love and to be established in the Word so that they can live a life of faith
   
• Reach out to all people with the love of God and encourage and strengthen fellowship expressions of the Body of Christ, equipping them for the task of world evangelization

There are two distinct regions where ROLWE is currently working, Manipur and Myanmar.

Manipur

The state of Manipur is located in North East India, near the border of Myanmar . It is a 'closed' area to foreigners due to tribal conflict and terrorist activity. Special permits are required to enter this area of India . Our workers are local pastors and evangelists who are strategically involved in church planting; evangelistic outreach; leadership training; children and youth ministries; and relief and development work.

ROLWE began working in Manipur in 1996, after Joseph Schneider was introduced to the area through Rev. Minthang Suantak Vaiphei, a pastor of Vaiphei Christian Church (VCC).

Since that time, ROLWE teams have visited Manipur several times each year. ROLWE works with VCC to reach unreached tribal groups by preaching in churches and in villages, visiting schools, holding crusades and establishing churches where none exist. Several schools have been funded and built by ROLWE to educate financially disadvantaged children. ROLWE also supplied laptop computers for the translation of the bible into the Vaiphei language. The New Testament, Proverbs and Psalms translation was completed in 2002. The translation of the whole bible was completed in 2004.

The primary focus of ROLWE's ministry in Manipur is evangelism and church planting with a secondary focus on micro-economic development and education.

Myanmar

The Golden Land , as it is known by some, is bordered by India and Bangladesh in the West, China in the North East, Laos and Thailand in the East and Malaysia in the far South. It is a land stripped of its natural beauty by the indiscriminate cutting down of trees by the authorities. The roads are poorly maintained and difficult to traverse. The people are friendly but ruled by a military government.

ROLWE has worked amongst tribal groups in Myanmar since 1990, teaching and preaching the Word of God in many villages. ROLWE also preaches in established churches to reach the unreached people groups of Myanmar . Teams regularly visit to encourage churches and their leaders. The people of Myanmar face many challenges and it is our privilege to bring the love of God to them.

The primary focus of ROLWE's ministry in Myanmar is evangelism as there are many unreached villages.

History of ROLWE

ROLWE has always been used by God to open doors to 'closed' countries so that other ministries could follow without fear. ROLWE is rich in experience and grateful to God for having been used to reach unreached people groups in many countries around the world.

China

After a specific call from God, ROLWE started work in China in 1983. Several ROLWE teams went to China to do street witnessing and distribute literature about Jesus Christ. We never hid the fact that we were Christians that had come to China to help people understand the good news of the Gospel. The people were hungry and ready for some good news from the western world. They gladly accepted the literature and bibles that were distributed by different teams over the years.

For 15 years, ROLWE organised teams to visit universities, schools and kindergartens in China . Performing on stage in many cities over the years left a legacy for others to follow. One ROLWE delegation (70 people) made history when entering China in 1987 as they were the largest group of westerners to enter China since the Cultural Revolution. People from 19 different churches in Australia and Hong Kong combined to perform a production called "Spindles and the Lamb". This production portrayed the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. The Chinese Government made 1,200 government officials watch the production resulting in many more invitations to different cities.

In 1988, many requests were made by the Chinese for ROLWE to send teachers from Australia and overseas to teach English at universities.  This enabled ROLWE to send born-again teachers to different places throughout China . ROLWE, to this day, still provides teachers to China.

Russia

The first invitation to Russia came in 1991 from East European Mission in Frankfurt , Germany . A team from 11 different countries had gathered to form a convoy leaving for Russia , as East European Mission had organised to send relief aid to many Russian-occupied Baltic countries.

Several weeks after ROLWE's entry to Russia , the Berlin wall came down, allowing us more freedom to travel. At the time, there were many prisons in Russia full of both political and law-breaking prisoners. ROLWE visited many of these prisons with the help of Mission of Mercy, which was organised by Russian and Ukrainian pastors. Preaching and teaching in the prisons saw many turn to Christ. Some of these men later became pastors who are now leading churches in Russia .