Our chief operating officer joins the team for the first time in the show’s new format, sharing some of his personal journey to missions after 30 years working for Maranatha. Growing up in a missionary family, there was a certain expectation that Kenneth would do something for missions. But at a certain point he decided he wasn't going to follow suit. His career trajectory was set for high-level federal work in Washington D.C. until Maranatha’s president asked him to consider working for Maranatha. After struggling for weeks with his future, he gave it to God and ended up choosing Maranatha.

The rest of the group shares their paths to working at Maranatha and remarks how God leads each person to the mission at the right time. The panel also discusses how working for Maranatha has impacted their own children, how their international experiences have changed the way they serve in their home churches, and even how the mission has enhanced what it means to be a Seventh-day Adventist Christian for them.

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Our country director for North America and Zambia makes his second appearance on the show, this time with our group of hosts in the new format. He shares stories from his time in Africa that he never told in Episode 1, explaining why he loves the continent so much, and some of the differences in people groups and languages between some of the countries there. The panel talks about what it means to be a missionary, whether you’re serving abroad or at home.

David recounts camping in the African bush, explains how he learned local languages, reflects on how he’s handled periods when the work was hard, and talks about tough decisions to stop drilling for water at certain well-drilling sites. In our rapid fire question round, hear David’s favorite and least favorite African food dish, favorite African safari park, the African animal he’s most scared of, which African animal he thinks he can take down, and his favorite “Inside Missions” host to travel with. He also shares why Maranatha’s work in North America has such an impact on the places we serve, and the volunteers who assist.

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** NEW FORMAT! Going forward our TV producers will be regulars each episode, discussing a wide variety of topics related to missions, and sometimes bringing guests into the conversation.**

What’s it like being a television producer in the mission field? Go behind the scenes with our “Maranatha Mission Stories” producers from the moment they get the assignment, all the way through capturing the images and stories that bring the mission to your screen. What goes into the planning of a media production trip before flights are even booked? What kind of logistics need to be fine-tuned before the team lands on the ground? The group discusses what happens when the best-laid plans don’t materialize, interviewing people who speak a different language, and balancing the need to show challenging conditions while not perpetuating inaccurate stereotypes, and yet still honoring the people and cultures we’re visiting.

We also talk about why we always tell stories through the eyes of individuals, how covering a volunteer project is different from filming an episode on the challenges of a country or region, and how interview subjects have impacted us personally.

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Our country director for Peru and Paraguay returns as the show’s first repeat guest after an abbreviated first appearance in Episode 5. Elmer shares how the work in the Amazon jungle region of Peru progressed since then, and talks about his new responsibility in also overseeing Maranatha’s work in Paraguay, including the anticipation of leading Maranatha’s teens-only mission trip, Ultimate Workout, in summer 2025.

Having established Maranatha’s efforts from scratch in four separate countries, Elmer explains how the organization first enters a country to start the work. He recalls his first years of service as a 20-year-old in Mozambique, including the construction of 1,000 churches, and the lifelong relationships he formed. He opens up about his journey in missions with his family, from spending time away from his new bride as a newlywed for two months in Angola, to his kids living in several countries already in their childhood. He concludes by sharing how Maranatha has impacted his life and what he’s learned about God through his 18 years of service with Maranatha.

TV episode on the work in Iquitos, Peru: https://watch.maranatha.org/videos/the-gospel-in-the-jungle
TV episode on the work in Paraguay: https://watch.maranatha.org/videos/mms11e43-1

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As Youth and Pathfinder Director for the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Northern California, Eddie has decades of experience taking youth on mission trips around the world. He recounts his first experiences with Maranatha, talks about the importance of doing a pre-trip site visit, and explains how he broke his neck in Costa Rica. He shares how he has grown as a leader, his goal for youth on these projects, and how he’s seen prayer literally influence events on his mission trips. Eddie shares his response when people question why the conference should do mission trips at all, and explains how a short-term mission trip can impact a community well beyond the project.

TV episode on the Kimogoro Adventist School (segment starts at 13:51): https://watch.maranatha.org/videos/mms11e30

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As Adventist Review’s senior news correspondent, Marcos has traveled the world covering stories for the Seventh-day Adventist Church, and has the unique experience of coming to the mission of Maranatha via journalism. Early in his time at Adventist Review, he was asked to cover the dedication of a Maranatha-built sanctuary in Cuba. He went, and was impressed with the dedication of Maranatha volunteers, donors, and staff. Since then, he’s been on more assignments involving Maranatha, and talks about the excitement of gathering unexpected stories in the mission field, and how God brings specific people into his path to help tell each story.

Marcos reflects on his time at the Kajiado Adventist School and Rescue Center in Kenya, a long-term project for Maranatha from 2018-2024. He shares how he and his family were moved by their experience serving the Maasai girls there who had escaped child marriage and female genital mutilation. As a journalist, he talks about how hard it is to not let these stories impact you personally, and how his exposure to Maranatha has expanded his view of missions.

Marcos’ first experience with Maranatha at the dedication of the Cardenas Seventh-day Adventist Church in Cuba led to several articles for Adventist Review, two of which you can read below:
https://adventistreview.org/news/after-decades-of-prayer-adventists-dedicate-largest-church-ever-in-cuba/
https://adventistreview.org/news/we-want-jesus-to-come/

Watch the final TV episode featuring the Kajiado Adventist School and Rescue Center in Kenya, which includes the dedication of this campus Maranatha spent six years transforming: https://watch.maranatha.org/videos/mms11e50-1

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What is it like to produce a television program in another country? Maranatha’s media production manager Leo Macias and communication specialist Sidney Needles debrief their recent trip to India. Come behind the scenes and learn how TV is produced in the field, and hear about specific challenges these two faced while filming across multiple states in India. Sidney describes her role as a field producer, and Leo explains how professional camera equipment makes a difference in filming.

The two talk about their first stop in the state of Andhra Pradesh where they filmed a water well story. Sidney describes the challenge of conducting interviews through a translator, Leo explains the task of asking locals to authentically demonstrate their daily routines for filming, and spells out why the time of day can make a huge difference for shooting. Leo and Sidney also talk about the food they ate throughout the trip, what the bathroom situations were like, and describe the scene of two church dedications.

After Andhra Pradesh they traveled to the state of Mizoram and the Pine Hill Adventist School, where they interviewed students who escaped civil war in neighboring Myanmar. Leo and Sidney reflect on the reality of being mere miles from conflict, recount a trip close to the border to film a water well story, and discuss how they know TV trips are successful.

Here is a completed TV episode from the trip: https://watch.maranatha.org/maranatha-mission-stories/videos/mms11e61-1

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Maranatha’s chief operating officer talks about his earliest impressions of Cuba from the mid-90’s, how Maranatha got involved, some of the challenges of the Seventh-day Adventist Church there back then, and how Maranatha worked to construct or renovate more than 200 churches on the island over the years. He shares what it’s been like to build rapport and work with Cuba’s Minister of Religion long-term, the challenges of having periods of abundant government project approval, followed by seasons of restriction, and why Maranatha chose to stay committed to the country through it all.

Kenneth talks about the Adventist seminary constructed by Maranatha, and its impact on the Adventist Church in Cuba and beyond. The guys discuss the current state of the country post-COVID, and how the pandemic negatively affected everyday people and the Adventist Church, including the seminary. Kenneth explains how the idea to send critical aid to the people of Cuba was hatched, how it was pulled off using shipping containers. He talks about how passionate the church members are in Cuba, how influential Maranatha’s work has been to them, and the latest projects going on, including the first volunteer project in years.

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