The Higginbothams

 

Missionaries to the Native Americans of North America

 

Halito! Hello!    Spring 2024

Spring is here and we are thanking God for seeing us through the winter months. I say “seeing us through” because we’ve had quite a bit of sickness this winter and early spring, but are finally on the rebound. We are now preparing for the months ahead and the road before us.

Imagine how it would be living in the USA in 2024 and the Bible you are holding is printed in French. You couldn’t read it. It wouldn’t have passages marked by your father or grandfather unless they were of French heritage. Many Americans have an English Bible that’s been handed down and it’s marked with precious notes from a relative or mentor in the faith. For most of us reading this newsletter, the ability to read the Word of God has changed our lives. In April, we were able to attend the Native American Camp Meeting in Great Bend, Kansas. It’s a meeting for Native missionaries, or missionaries working with Natives, to come and share their work and burden.

One of the blessings that has been coming to fruition in the last couple of years is the ability to get the Bible, or parts of the Bible, printed/reprinted in several tribal languages. Most tribes have NO BIBLE in their language. This is most likely because the government sent the children to boarding schools and wanted them to assimilate English. God gave a language to each tribe and they are now realizing what has been taken from them. These Bibles are being printed as parallel Bibles, for instance, Ojibwe and English, side by side. They can be used by the tribe to teach the language. The missionaries that labored in the 1800s translating and printing Bibles for the five civilized tribes, (Choctaw, Cherokee, Chickasaw, Seminole, and Creek) gave the tribes a great light! These five are considered the most Christian of the 574 federally recognized tribes in the US. When we first went to the Choctaw reservation in Mississippi years ago, I remember seeing the grandmothers bringing their Choctaw Bibles to church and reading from them. These copies didn’t even contain the entire 66 books! How different the reservations would be if this light had been available all across North America. We’ve given thousands of ENGLISH John and Romans, but giving a Native American a parallel John and Romans, in their language, is received more quickly.

Maybe the time has come for this light to shine to more than the five civilized tribes. Please pray for those involved in the translating and printing. This is an expensive endeavor. For some people or churches in America there is no shortage of money, but unfortunately there is a shortage of time. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. (Psalm 119:105)


We have meetings coming up in May and then start the summer work. We look forward to seeing you as we go to your area of the country. We just realized we have been in our field of service for 40 years!! Wow! Thank you Lord, for Your Grace and love that has enabled us to sew the seed of the Gospel for 40 years.

Thank you, co-laborers, for your love, prayer, and support these many years.

In HIM, The Higginbothams, Mrs. Shirley, Elena, and Daniel           (A printable PDF version is available here)
 

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Dear friends and supporters,  Fall 2023

 

As we bid farewell to the warm days of summer and welcome the crisp air of fall, we want to share with you the abundant blessings we have experienced on the mission field. Our recent trips to the West and Northwest have brought us closer to various Native American communities, where we have witnessed the power of God's love firsthand.

 

Our journey began in the West, where we embarked on a mission to work among the Navajo people of West Gallup and Crownpoint, NM. The harvest of souls was ripe and plentiful as we engaged in a week of Vacation Bible School and Evangelistic meetings. We are thrilled to report that several individuals were saved, and one of the new converts was baptized. The Navajo community exhibited great enthusiasm and a hunger for spiritual growth plus the church was filled every night. We rejoice over the team of 47 Choctaws and Cherokees that labored arm in arm to reach these people and obey the Great Commission. What a blessing to missionaries that have labored for years in the field to see the Lord raising up tribes to reach tribes!

 

Moving northwest, we arrived at Fort Hall, ID. We found the members of Faith Baptist Church excited, and we were ready to participate in their Vacation Bible School program. Their commitment to spreading the Gospel was evident when the tribe changed the rules and decided not to allow visitors (Christians) to knock on doors for VBS. So, the church members got the word out themselves resulting in just as many kids attending as when we knocked on doors ourselves! We had a successful week with the Shoshone-Bannock tribe, Hoopers Creek Baptist Church. Missionaries, Brother Joe and Mrs. Lela Copley, taught on the battlefield of the mind. Elena and Daniel had the privilege of sharing object lessons with all the children, showing how the enemy fights, but victory comes through the Lord Jesus Christ. We ended the week with a young lady receiving Christ as her Saviour. Praise the Lord!

 

Our journey further continued to the Kalispel reservation at Usk, WA, where we attempted another week of Vacation Bible School. The tribe decided to shut down the building they had allowed us to meet in and we had to leave, but glory to God for the time we were allotted! Sometimes it’s a stronger witness to be kicked off and respond in a Christ-like manner. The whole episode probably spread like wildfire through the reservation! Lord willing, next year we will see the Lord work in this tribe.

 

However, as we continue to spread God's word, we must address an urgent need. Our trusty companion, the 2013 Ford van that has tirelessly transported us to various mission fields, has recently hit a remarkable milestone of 300,000 miles. While it has served us faithfully, there is a pressing need for a new van to ensure the continued success of our mission work. We trust that the Lord knows our needs and will provide a solution in due time.

 

Upon returning home in September, we went to AR and Concord Missionary Baptist Church for their fall revival. The Lord came by and the altars were full. The week ended with a young man giving his life to Christ.

 

As the turn of winter approaches and since our return home in late September, there are numerous tasks to catch up on from weeks on the road. This week, however, we are blessed to be part of Native American Men and Women Bible Conference at Grace Indian Baptist, Talihina, OK. A time to encourage God’s Native American people to put their hand to the plow and labor for the Master.

 

In conclusion, this summer has brought a bountiful harvest of souls on the American mission fields. We have been blessed to witness a growing hunger for the Gospel among the Navajo people, and also blessed to have worked among the Kalispell, and the Sho-ban people this summer. We praise God for an encouraging revival at Cowlitz Way Baptist (Kelso, WA) and the fellowship with our dear friends at Yaak Community Church (Yaak, MT), Foundation Baptist Church (Coeur d’Alene, ID), Old Paths Baptist (Hays, KS), Grace Navajo Baptist Temple (Gallup, NM), Chi Ho Tso Baptist (St Michaels, AZ), and, First Landmark Missionary Baptist (Highland, AR). We are grateful for the love and support we receive from all our supporters, and we thank you for standing by us in prayer and encouragement.

 

May God's love and grace surround you in these last days before He comes!  Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. Hebrews 12:2.

 

In Him,

The Higginbothams; Mrs. Shirley, Elena, and Daniel   (A printable PDF version is available here)

 

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Dear Supporting Churches,                          Spring/Summer 2023

We hope this newsletter finds you in good health and high spirits. We wanted to take a moment to update you on our recent spring trip back east and the time we spent visiting supporting churches. We are truly touched and grateful for your continued support and encouragement.

In late February to early March, we faced some unexpected challenges when the rear differential of our van needed to be replaced and worked on in Paris, TX. In April, during our stay at Bristol, TN, it had to be rebuilt the 2nd time. Thank you, Lord, for Brookside Baptist Church in Bristol letting us stay and pointing us to the right shop! Then again in May, while at a revival at Levelcross Baptist, Levelcross, NC, it had more problems with the same issue. We had to leave it in the shop at Bristol, TN for two weeks, and utilize the mechanic’s rental discount to continue our journey to Woods Hole, MA, where we rode a big ferry over to Martha’s Vineyard.

Our time on Martha’s Vineyard allowed us a rare opportunity to meet with the Wampanoag Tribe and hold a three-day meeting inside the historic Aquinnah Community Baptist Church. Established in 1693, this is the oldest Native American Baptist Church in North America. The original wood framed building, built in 1698, was moved to its present location, “up the hill” in 1850. We met with missionaries; Gerry Locklear, Glen Holman and sidekick, Vic, , Larry & Regina McKinney, & Joe, Lela, and Mya Copley, for a three-day meeting and were blessed with a chance to sing, testify, and preach to the congregation. It was a great time to spread the Gospel and encourage the church to keep on keeping on till the Lord’s return.

The next Sunday, back in America, our family and Bro Gerry, visited Mashpee Baptist Church, also part of the Wampanoag Tribe. Daniel had the incredible opportunity to preach in the historic old church, which was a truly humbling experience. While in Rhode Island, we saw the grave of Adoniram Judson, missionary to Burma in the 1800’s, Daniel stood behind the pulpit where Wampanoag Native, Blind Joe Amos, preached the Gospel to his people, and we saw a plaque for Stella Abiah Ryan, a Wampanoag lady that went to Donga Sudan, Africa in the early 1900’s as a missionary. It seems America has come so far, but now fallen so far. With our time there over, we left the Wampanoag people and headed back to Bristol. We were relieved to finally have the van repaired and hurry back to Oklahoma.

With our return to Choctaw Nation, we had two days to catch up on yard work, unload and reload the van and start the month of June with VBS at Grace Indian Baptist Church in Talihina, OK where Daniel preached one night and a young boy accepted Jesus into his heart. We moved on to Indian Baptist Missions Camp at Canadian, OK. It’s a family camp where the workers try to provide a VBS experience for the kids as Elena taught teen girls, we worked with the music, help run sound, worked with the crafts, and Daniel spoke in the Men’s Missions hour.

The end of June saw us at VBS/camp at Springhill Presbyterian Choctaw Church. It was a great week of teaching about putting on the whole Armor of God. We truly thank God for all He has done and feel blessed by His Presence in our journey.

We are home now preparing for the big trip west. Please keep us in your prayers as we hope to make the trip in our faithful, old van that has almost 300,000 miles on it since it was given to us in 2014. We praise the Lord for the help to cover expensive costs by friends in Randleman and Greensboro area. Also, friends at Brookside Baptist Church in Bristol, TN are helping with the newsletter from now on. Thank you all in Jesus Name.

We thank our friends at West Park Baptist, Jacksonville, FL for their faithful help, printing and mailing our newsletter for over 40 years. They were the 1st church to put us on for monthly support, helping with repairs and tires for the “old bus”, buying Bibles to be given out, and praying so faithfully that God would save sinners where we minister. May God bless those involved for your faithful service to Him!

In looking back over the past three months, there were other churches we went to and others saved. We thank God for the ability to go and help people, love them, and warn them. You may be reading this and say, well not many are coming or not many are being saved, but it’s really up to God to give the increase. He just told us to “Go ye”. (Mark 16:15) And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. Once again, we want to express our sincerest gratitude for your unwavering support and encouragement. Let’s continue to work together until Jesus comes and we’ll be so glad we were faithful.

In Him,

The Higginbothams, Mrs. Shirley, Elena, and Daniel    (A printable PDF version is available here)