How shall they hear?

Don Richardson

Upon entering a chapel service at Prairie Bible Institute, Don Richardson was a run of the mill college student, barely out of his teens. Leaving the service that morning however, Richardson was a man headed of all places, to the Sawi headhunting tribes of Netherlands New Guinea.

Answering that specific call in 1955 would seem absurd to the average suburban family in the 50s. Yet Don knew his mission: no matter how immense the barriers were, he would preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ to a place where wild jungles, cannibalism, and bloodshed ran rampant. With a young bride and a seven-month-old baby at his side, Don first set foot on the Sawi lands. Mud, sago thorns, tangled vegetation, leeches, crocodiles, malaria, dysentery, and hepatitis viruses were not the most ideal conditions to settle a new family. However, it was a constant reminder of the problematic task he and Carol Richardson had in front of them.

The couple's first struggle was conquering the language. Not only did Sawi have an intricately complex vocabulary, but it also had 19 tenses for every single verb. With 8-10 hour daily learning sessions, Don was able to become proficient in the dialect. The next obstacle involved the actual Sawi people. Richardson became baffled as to how the villagers could comprehend a Savior who gave His life for them. But then came an unlikely event that would spawn a crucial analogy.

Around this time, three villages were in constant battle. Presented with the threat of the Richardsons leaving the area, the Sawi people came together and miraculously decided that they would make peace with their hated enemies. Ceremonies commenced that saw young children being exchanged among opposing villages. One man in particular ran toward his enemy's camp and literally gave his son to his hated foe. Observing this, Richardson writes: "if a man would actually give his own son to his enemies, that man could be trusted!" From this rare picture came the analogy of the Father's sacrifice of his own Son. The Sawi were beginning to understand.

Following the incredible event came legions of villagers converting to Christ, a translation of the New Testament in Sawi, nearly 2,500 Sawi patients being treated by Carol, and the creation of the world's largest circular building made strictly from unmilled poles as a Christian meeting place. Armed with beautiful memories and a sense of accomplishment, the Richardsons left the Sawi people, only to minister to yet another tribe, the Yawi of Iranian Jaya. By 1966, about 20 of the fiercest Yali tribesmen were converted.

Don's chronicles of the numerous adventures he experienced in these foreign lands are documented in his bestsellers Peace Child, Lords of the Earth, and Eternity in Their Hearts. Richardson's story is unique in that he produced revolutionary ideas of ministering to people while still adhering to those tactics that apostles like Paul in the New Testament used. His principles seem new and innovative, yet are inherently based on God's word. With this approach, Don was able to see thousands come to Christ.

Click here for Class audio