Reaching the world for Christ through GotQuestions.org International - Podcast Episode 52

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Welcome to the GotQuestions podcast. A very special episode today. I want to do spotlight and highlight the

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GotQuestions International Ministry. So today, we have two of our longtime translators who are going to join us.

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We're going to be talking about the International Ministry a little bit. So first, I'd like to introduce Sivar. He is our translator from the

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Philippines. He also answers questions in both English and Tagalog. So been involved for a little over five years.

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And then second, we have Paulina. She is our Portuguese translator. And she and her husband actually runs our

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Portuguese Q &A ministry. So these are two individuals I'm very fond of who've been involved in the ministry a long time.

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So Sivar and Paulina, welcome to the show. I want to start off with the first question.

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First question is, what are some of the unique challenges of seeking to answer questions for your particular audience?

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So Sivar, why don't you start us off? Good morning, Shay. It's a very good opportunity for me to be part of this podcast, to share the

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Word of God and also to testify about the goodness of God through this ministry.

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We are able to reach a lot of Filipinos. And the unique challenges that I have experienced in seeking to answer questions for my particular audience is that, you know, the

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Philippines is a country that consists of only probably two to three percent of the population, or just a little over three percent of 100 million

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Filipinos. And most Christians here, they call themselves evangelicals or born again, but the two terms are synonymous.

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You know, there's no difference at all in our mindset. When you see somebody who is a

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Christian introduce himself or herself as a Christian, then you must ask what church membership, what is the church of membership of that person so that you can really answer his or her question accurately.

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So whenever I receive questions in GQ Tagalog Q &A,

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I'm trying to discern by reading the question, if that person is a member of a born again church or a

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Pentecostal church, you know, because most of born again here in the Philippines, they belong to the

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Pentecostal churches, and they believe in prosperity, health and wealth gospel.

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So what's the challenge for me when I answer the question is that I try my best to be very discreet, you know, very, very friendly.

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I try not to sound sarcastic. I try my best to be very accommodating, not in a sense that I tolerate their belief system, but, you know, applying the principle of becoming wise as a servant and gentle as a dog.

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So that's the most challenging aspect of my ministry here in the

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Philippines. And also, she noticed that I have this experience that I answered a question from a member of a mega church here in the

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Philippines, you know, mega churches are predominantly

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Pentecostal in their beliefs. And so when

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I answered the question of this member of a mega church here, she asked me to develop my answer into an article.

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And so after the article was posted on GQ website, I received many negative feedbacks from the leaders, not only from members or sympathizers, but leaders of this mega church, which is by the way, this mega church features a pastor preaching prosperity, sort of health and wealth gospel.

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So in his video, he thought that the reason why the

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Philippines, our country is poor, is not because of corrupt politicians, but because of Christians who are not giving their tithes.

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And so that video receives many negative comments from other evangelicals.

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So there's an existing animosity already between some evangelicals and their church.

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And so when I answered that question, of course, I interviewed several pastors who are affiliated with this mega church, and they confirmed that that is what they teach.

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They are not pure prosperity gospel church, but actually a mixture of evangelicalism and Pentecostalism, just like Evangelikostal.

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We call that Evangelikostal. And so that's one of the unique challenges that I have faced in answering questions in God Questions Tagalog.

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And also another unique challenge is when Roman Catholics ask questions about the veneration of saints, praying to Mary, praying to the saints, and other

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Roman Catholic beliefs. So it's a challenge also to present the truth to them without sounding sarcastic or uncaring.

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So also there are also questions that are not really honest questions, but the questioner just solicits or solicits affirmation for their sinful lifestyle.

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Or some others are just looking for debate. So when you answer them back, when they answer you back, they will ask questions again, and then they would invite like in a debate form of exchange.

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So that's what I have several of the challenges that I have experienced,

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Shane. Yeah. So Siva, that sounds very familiar to me.

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You deal with a lot of the same stuff we do in answering questions in English. So Paulina, what about you?

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What are some of the unique challenges of seeking to answer questions for Brazilians?

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Bom dia! Olá! Thank you so much for having me here.

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It really is a privilege to share a little bit of the background of what happens in our branch of the ministry.

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I'm very thankful for the opportunity. We wouldn't say that there is like a unique challenge, other than the fact that answering

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Portuguese questions, we're receiving questions from speakers in four different continents,

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South America, North America, Europe, and Africa. So it's very important to us to understand not just the

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Brazilian culture, because we're from Brazil. You mentioned my husband and I work together in the ministry.

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So it's not just understanding the Brazilian culture, but we also try to understand where everybody writing in is coming from, so that we can apply, give answers, and apply it to their situation,

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God's Word to their situation, so that it's relevant, so that they understand it well.

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And so it isn't necessarily a unique challenge. I think probably every language has to do that to a certain degree.

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But that is something that we do need to keep in mind as we interact with a lot of people from many different countries and different backgrounds.

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You know, there isn't exactly a particular challenge with the overall question that we receive, with the questions that we receive.

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But I would say that one of the challenges is because the internet is not widely available, like all over Brazil, for example, which is where most of our questions come from.

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So when we look at the map of where the answers are coming from, we can tell that it's the more urban areas where people have more access to the internet.

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And so we pray that that's something that will change, so that people from all over Brazil, not just like the main urban cities, can have access to the internet and have access to this ministry.

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So it is something that we do notice that, you know, not everybody has access to it.

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And so that is a unique challenge that we know that people that we might otherwise be reaching, we don't, or we don't yet, because of the difficulty in having access to the internet.

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That's one of the unique things about a ministry like GotQuestions, is since we're internet -based, we only have access to people who have access to the internet.

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So in some countries, that's a very high percentage. In other countries, it's not so much. But thankfully, that's growing and growing.

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And I think, last stat I heard, there's some over 4 billion people in the world with reliable access to the internet.

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So that's exciting to hear. It is indeed. Exactly. So I know both of you have kind of answered this question to a certain extent already.

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But how would you say questions from Brazil or from the Philippines are different from the questions that people ask them here in the

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United States? Well, from speaking with some of our GotQuestions English volunteers, we would say that there is not a whole lot of difference in like the majority of the questions, like as far as culture, or as far as like, addressing a certain

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Bible passage, or understanding something, or current events. Although, like I mentioned before, it's important for us to be aware of the current events in the world, so we know what they're talking about.

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But the main difference I would say that we have encountered is that Portuguese questioners are less combative.

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I know both of you have mentioned, oh, there's a lot of debate going on. You know, sometimes people ask questions with like,

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I just want to debate. And even though there are there is some of that in the Portuguese community, there's definitely it sounds like a lot less than in Portuguese than in the other languages.

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I think questions from the Philippines are more emotionally charged than questions from the

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USA. We have a saying here in the Philippines, you know, that Filipinos don't care how much you know, unless they know how much you care.

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So you need to be very, very careful when addressing a false belief, or when answering questions that can hurt

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Filipinos. You know, they're very sensitive.

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Perhaps it is because of our culture, having been colonized by Spain for over 300 years.

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And actually, we have this still this kind of mentality, what we call colonial mentality.

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And so even when when they ask questions, they tend to be more divisive when they were answered in a manner that goes against their opinion and their belief system.

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And so that's why, you know, in the Philippines, it's very hard to really get a high, you know, high rating for your answer.

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Because if they feel that you are somehow going against their belief, they would base their rating according to what they felt when you have answered his question or her question.

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So that's why we really still have this insecurity, racial insecurity, financial insecurity being a third world country.

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So that's it. That's how I see, that's how different answers or questions and answers from Filipinos and from other different parts of the world.

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So next question for you two. What are some examples or testimonies of the impact that GotQuestions .org

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is having in, on the people in your country? And Sibar, why don't you go first with this one? I received several messages from faraway provinces in the

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Philippines. They are ministering to locals there in their barrios, in their hometowns, in the provinces.

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And they say that they use the GotQuestions Tagalog in their evangelistic ministries.

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They also use our Tagalog articles. They make it like a book for their church education program.

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So they use it actually as a curriculum for their church education.

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So GotQuestions really is a very, very helpful tool for pastors, not only for pastors,

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Christian educators, even in Bible colleges. Now I also received, actually, I've learned about GotQuestions when

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I was still in college, in Bible college. And honestly, I use

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GotQuestions to answer my professors. So thank you,

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Shea. I owe you my degree. No, I'm just joking. Yeah, I use it.

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And when I was in Manila, when I was already ministering here in urban poor areas of Metro Manila, I came across with this

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Compassion International Ministry. And so I applied for a position in a local church here, and they have me as their teacher in Compassion Ministry of their church.

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And so I've learned from GotQuestions that GotQuestions promotes

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Compassion International. And so I became interested to become part of GotQuestions.

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Actually, I remembered that I sent an email indicating my interest to become a volunteer question answerer.

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And I didn't receive a reply for almost, I think, over two months.

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And so I followed it up. And then I finally got accepted.

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And then Shea, one time,

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Shea told us in our chat group, our group in GotQuestions writers group, that he needs a translator in Tagalog.

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And I was there. And I told him, you know, I can translate from English to Tagalog.

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And he said, Really? So I've been here for,

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I think, one year or more. And so I told

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Shea I can translate the English articles to Tagalog.

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And so I remember also this unique experience. Now, when somebody from Japan sent me a message via messenger, because from time to time,

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I post the Tagalog articles on my Facebook wall.

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And I remember that I post this article in Tagalog about suicide.

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So this lady from Japan inquired about my surname and my hometown.

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I don't know why he inquired about that information. So we didn't recognize each other at first.

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But it turned out that we are cousins. And we have known each other when we were still teenagers, as we live in the same barrio.

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And she told me that because of that article that I have posted on my wall, before she was contemplating to commit suicide.

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Just after my post, she said that that article helped her to overcome the temptation.

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And so she messaged me. And the rest is, you know, history.

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She is now, we are now communicating with each other. And she is now inviting me to come over to Japan and to do ministry there.

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And she also became a Christian. So I also received many messages, email, in Q &A, also in Facebook messenger, that they are thankful for our ministry.

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They are thankful for our ministry. And so they, some of them, they became Christians through GodQuestions.

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Because they have read some articles, and they were, there were, you know, former atheists, some of them.

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Then when they, when they have read our articles about atheism and about the existence of God, somehow, those articles have helped them to really inquire about Christianity.

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And so it's countless, you know, it's countless. Even our church members, they say that they are always browsing our website whenever they have questions.

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So they just browse our website and look for answers. And so, you know, you can't measure the impact of GodQuestions ministries to us here in the

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Philippines. So thank you, thank you for this great blessing from God.

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Thank you, Siva, for the encouragement. So Polina actually went on a trip with her and her husband to Brazil with compassion.

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So there's a lot of connections between you two. So Polina, what are some, some testimonies you've heard recently of just how

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GodQuestions Portuguese has had an impact on people in Brazil?

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I loved what he said, that there is no way to really measure how the ministry is impacting so many people.

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Praise the Lord, we usually average at least one answer a day, where a person simply writes to thank us for the answer we sent them, which helped them better understand a topic or a portion of scripture.

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Many others have also written back and specifically shared how we helped them during a very hard time of their life, or how

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God used them to find a solid Bible teaching church.

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Like, we get a lot of requests, like, we live in this place, and people will say,

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I live here, and in such and such city, I want to find a church that teaches the

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Word of God, and I don't even know how to start. So we've, we've been able to contact other people and contact, we have a list of contacts that we try to reach out to, to get help in that area, so that we don't send them to just the first church that we find on the internet, but that we know that is a solid

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Bible teaching church. And that has been a blessing, because really, that's the goal, right, of the ministry is to help people a lot of times come to the

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Lord to understand, to be able to ask their questions, to grow in their faith.

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But we don't want it to stay online. Our goal really is for them to find a local body of believers, and grow and be discipled and have that fellowship in person.

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So that really is wonderful for us when we get those questions, because we know, it's a blessing to know that they're serious about taking their faith and their walk to the next level.

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And so that's always encouraging. Let me read one here that, of course, was in Portuguese originally, but that I translated that we received recently.

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Hi, I don't want to ask a question, even though I have several. So I'm sure those questions will be coming. I just wanted to thank you for the biblically based answers you add to my daily life.

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I believe you received much praise and now mine, what you guys do is amazing from God.

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And congratulations, may God continue to use you. And that truly is a blessing.

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And I have also, we have also received a lot of emails and comments about people that say, like,

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I'm struggling with this, or I'm struggling with, like, for example, you shared about somebody struggling with suicide, and maybe they wouldn't seek help face to face.

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But what's so unique about this online ministry is that people don't have that kind of, generally speaking, don't have that kind of wall, don't have that kind of fear.

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Don't hesitate as much to say, this is what I'm thinking, this is what

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I'm really thinking, I need you to help me understand what the Bible says about this.

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And so we have like a backdoor, so to speak, to the to their true thoughts.

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And we pray that the Lord keeps using this to reach people in a way that other ministries might not to at first.

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So we're very thankful for this opportunity, and how the Lord has used it already in so many ways to help, to encourage, to edify, to share the gospel, to build up, to bring people to the

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Lord, to help the ones that already know the Lord to grow. And so it's like, like he said, there's no way to measure, because it's just so amazing how the

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Lord is using this, and we're very thankful to be a part of it. Thank you for sharing that.

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And so the final question for the two of you, and both of you have already kind of hinted at what you're going to say with this one, but what do you enjoy the most about serving with GotQuestions .org?

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And Paulina, you go first. I forgot who was going to go first. What we enjoy, and I say we, because my husband and I talk about the ministry all the time.

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We share all the time, the articles that I'm translating, what's coming next, the content, the questions that we're getting.

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And so when I say we, I'm speaking for him as well. And one of the things that we enjoy the most is we are doing, we're involved in the

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Lord's work. Whether it is sowing the seed for somebody that's just seeking the truth about the true

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God, about the God of the Bible, whether it is sowing the seed and then praying that they'll come to salvation, or edifying a believer that is growing and that is reading and that has questions.

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And so we can, it's a true source of joy to know that the

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Lord's work will not, is not void, is not in vain, and God's word will not return void.

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And I think of something that I wanted to share is out of Isaiah 55 .10.

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It says, And it's also, like for me, also when

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I'm translating the material, I enjoy translating it.

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It's like such good content. I grow when I'm reading it, when I'm translating it.

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And not only is it like the Lord's work, it's so refreshing to be a part of the ministry that is faithful to the word of God and that cares about, that is not wishy -washy or that doesn't follow the prosperity this, prosperity that, but like is so faithful to what the scriptures teach.

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And as I'm sure you know, there is, the internet has a little bit of everything.

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And so it's just encouraging to know that we are a part of something that is, that truly loves the

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Lord, that is seeking to share his word, that is seeking to be faithful, that is seeking to reach out to people, that is seeking to help people come to salvation, that is seeking to help people, be used of the

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Lord to help people grow. And in such a unique, modern way through the internet, that's just amazing what the

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Lord can do. And it's, we are so thankful to be a part of it and to see how the

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Lord has used it, has used this ministry to bless so many people.

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We are just so thankful to be able to see it and be a part of it. So thank you,

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Paulina. And Sivar, how about you? I enjoy everything about the questions.

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I enjoy answering questions, everything, recommending questionnaires to churches near their place of residency.

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You know, I enjoy also developing my answer to a questionnaire into an article.

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I know that I will be in for trouble, but in a good way. Also, I enjoy interacting with those who are following the

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GotQuestions FB page because I've made an FB page for GotQuestions and they are sending messages there.

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And whenever I have time, I answer them one by one or I direct them to the

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GotQuestions Tagalog website. So, you know, this unique opportunity to be of service to our

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Lord, wherever I travel, I can just open my computer or my cell phone and start answering questions.

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There's no busy time for me because I enjoy my ministry with GotQuestions, even if I'm already sleeping late.

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Every night I can go to my computer, I can just open it and, you know,

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I enjoy answering people who are searching for the truth, searching for God and for peace and for salvation, looking for love, especially the love of God.

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And I enjoy showing the love of Christ through my answers to their questions.

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So, I really can't express my gratitude to God for bringing

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GotQuestions to the Philippines and for having me as part of this great ministry.

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And for that, thank you. Thank you very much for that opportunity to serve with you in GotQuestions.

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This has been the GotQuestions podcast with Paulina, our Portuguese translator, and Sivar, our

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Tagalog translator. Hope this has been encouraging to you. It's the GotQuestions podcast. GotQuestions.

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Bible as Answers. We're out to find you. Bible as Answers.