Sampson is More than Numbers

Tim Yeager
Birmingham, AL
Chief Information Officer

The year has started off strong! We are seeing a steady pace of Student activity and new Study Helpers joining and teaching. You may have noticed the Student Board getting lower. As of this posting, the general board in English is just over 1,000, and a few months ago was over 5,000. This is good news because you answered the call. You are adopting Students, making connections and sowing the seed. Student registrations have continued to be high, and we can continue looking for new advertising markets to reach more lost souls. Keep adopting Students. Keep sowing the seed of God’s Word. God will cause growth. We must remain faithful because you never know who your loving gesture will touch. Read further to learn about Samson.

In January 2023, we saw the following activity:

Registrations

• Online Lessons
  • Web Students: 4,166
  • Postal Students: 400
  • WBS Lite: 8,625

Online Activity

• 16,951 quizzes graded by Study Helpers
• 17,173 quizzes submitted by Students
• 9,949 adoptions were made

Samson is More than a Number

Today I would like to introduce you to one of my Students, Samson, from northern Nigeria. I adopted Samson in November of 2022. Samson, at first, was very slow in his studies. Sometimes weeks would go by before I would hear back. He was having phone problems by breaking or losing it. When a couple of weeks passed, I sent Samson a check-in message to see how he was doing and if I could pray for him. His response broke my heart. Here is our conversation, and perhaps can be a way for you to check in on your Students:

I wrote, “How are you doing? I have not heard from you in a while, but I know you have had phone problems. Please let me know if there is anything I can pray for you in your life and family.”

Samson said, “Truthfully, I haven’t been studying. I’m good. Seeing your text makes me feel better. Hardly any people check up on me, so I will do better now.”

Samson was a young man feeling alone, but we are connected through WBS Online. After completing “This is Good News”, Samson wanted to be baptized. It took a few weeks, but brethren in the area were contacted, met with Samson and he was baptized into Christ.

However, Samson was not the first Student I adopted. He was in a round of one hundred Students I adopted in November. I encouraged each one and did one check-in message. That led to a few active Students and two now baptized. Soon, I’m going to do another round of adoptions.

We know we will have eternity to meet all the new brothers and sisters in Christ who came to this Life through World Bible School. Don’t give up … even when your current Students don’t respond, keep Sharing Jesus!

Are you an online Study Helper? If not, apply today so you can help teach the Gospel to Students just like Sampson by clicking HERE.