When the opportunity arose for Pastor Bobby John to open a Crossroad Bible Institute satellite campus in Malaysia, he and mentor Paul Tan (director of CBI Singapore) were determined to make it happen. Hard to get permits to work in the prisons? No problem—John brought the CBI program to halfway houses in the meantime. Only two Instructors? John recruited and trained a dozen more.
Of course, some challenges were more daunting than others, such as bringing the CBI program to Serendah Prison, a government-run rehabilitation center where people with serious drug addictions serve their sentences. When confronted with the high rates of illiteracy in Serendah Prison, John and his team of Crossroad volunteers refused to give up. Instead, they started visiting the prison each month to verbally teach the CBI lessons, assisted by pictographs on a whiteboard when possible.
This verbal approach to CBI lessons has proved to be very effective. At one of the sessions, the volunteers saw eighteen prisoners come to Christ. These new disciples are now “growing well in the Lord,” says John.
And the ministry is growing well too. CBI Malaysia, which is now in four rehabilitation centers, is looking to expand into five more centers as well as other prison facilities over the course of the coming year. They will also oversee their first Tier 2 students this summer.
As CBI Malaysia continues to grow, meeting and overcoming obstacles by the grace of God, John requests prayer for an office space where the ministry can run with greater effectiveness. “We are still young and have a long way to go,” says John, “and every day must be one for our Lord and only for Him. May the Lord help us to have a great year in 2015.”