The Archie and Sarah Mayhew Story, an excerpt from Into the Darkness, the 75-year history of Free Will Baptist International Missions.

Creative Forces

Sarah Mayhew laid the Bible on her bed. She was finished reading through the New Testament for the first time, at the age of 26. With her whole heart, she desired to belong to the Jesus she grew to love as she read each page. She asked Him to be her Lord and Savior, and prayed for her husband, Archie, to be saved, too. Three weeks later, Archie also bowed his knee to Christ after reading through the New Testament. Within two years Archie felt God’s call to preach and to missionary service.

Archie enrolled at Free Will Baptist Bible College. With a family to support, he entered night school. By God’s grace and the Mayhews’ teamwork, Archie graduated, and the family left for the mission field in 1969.

The Mayhews spent their first year in Lausanne, Switzerland, studying the French language. An innovator at heart, Archie saw an opportunity for the gospel before ever reaching Ivory Coast. God gave him the idea for a tape ministry, with readings of the New Testament recorded in French on audiocassettes and distributed worldwide to French-speaking communities. It proved a tremendous success.

The Mayhews continued creative approaches to evangelism when they reached Bondoukou, Ivory Coast. While studying the Koulango language, they started a Sunday school and worship service in their home near the marketplace. Despite opposition, they slowly won the hearts of the villagers around them.

They returned from their first furlough with a renewed emphasis on village evangelism. Utilizing the cassette tape ministry, they traveled from village to village preaching the gospel. When it was time to move on, they left tapes of the messages for the new converts. “We only hear the missionaries once,” one of the men said. “With the tapes, we can listen again and again to the message, and understand it better.”

Archie also teamed with an African pastor to record 16 messages in Koulango, to be broadcast over radio in Abidjan. Then God gave the Mayhews another creative outlet for ministry. They opened a reading room in Tanda (pictured above), where nearby students were welcome to come and read a wide assortment of Christian literature. “God sent us these students,” Sarah said. “We just made ourselves available to answer their questions and give them directions on how to find Christ. We are standing and witnessing the salvation of the Lord.”

In time, God led the Mayhews to focus on training African leaders to reach their own communities for Christ. Archie enlisted help from supporters in the States by coordinating prayer warriors with specific villages. They eventually returned stateside where Archie pastored several churches and served on the Board of Foreign Missions.

After a brief battle with colon cancer, God took him home at the age of 71.

About the Story: The Mayhews’ story is an excerpt from Into the Darkness, a beautiful volume celebrating the 75th anniversary of FWB International Missions. The 196-page book is filled with short, compelling stories of those who yielded their lives to share the gospel with people who had never heard of Jesus Christ.

Order the Commemorative, Limited Edition for $500. This book includes 32 additional pages of content, DVD of historic footage, an exclusive invitation-only reception with missionaries and international visitors at the 2010 National Association of Free Will Baptists in Oklahoma City, OK. Visit www.fwbgo.com.