Gary grew up in Jackson, Mississippi and came to know the Lord in high school.  Upon graduation from Belhaven College, Gary worked in Sweden with Athletes in Action Baseball as a player/coach.  He joined MTW in 1988 and developed a sports ministry in Sweden through 1992.  Linda, a native Swede, grew in her faith while an exchange student in Mississippi.  Gary met Linda in 1989 and the were married in 1992.

The Johnsons returned to the U.S. where Linda finished her degree in English/philosophy at Belhaven College while Gary received an M. Div. at Reformed Theological Seminary.  During seminary Gary also served with Reformed University Ministries and as director of international student affairs at Belhaven College.  Gary was ordained and served as assistant pastor of Westminster PCA in Atlanta until their return to Sweden in 1999. The Swedes that the Johnsons have discipled have now planted their first church and established the first Presbyterian denomination in Sweden’s history.  The team is promoting church planting in key cities, along with classical Christian education, a Reformed campus ministry, and pastoral/theological training.

Our second church planting effort in Stockholm is bearing fruit (and babies)! The Westminster Fellowship was originally mostly singles. Several married last year, and we are seeing the first wave of babies (3 in 2009). These transitions have led to a stronger conviction and desire to become the second Presbyterian Church in Sweden. This group meets weekly for bible study and fellowship, and has added a monthly worship service led by our Tranås pastor David Bergmark. Pray for their growth in grace! Linda and I are aiding a third church planting effort in Jönköping.  Matteus Özdemir is a Reformed Baptist of Turkish descent. He and his wife Johanna believe they are called to plant a church that focuses on those of Middle Eastern culture. We attend bi-weekly and pray for this young couple who wants to serve the Lord. Pray for them as well!

Home schooling problems (from their latest newsletter)
“We are daily reminded of the Swedish socialist system where the family is not considered the core unit of society. Naturally there remains the right for the family to exist in Sweden, but it is re-defined and scrutinized under the ever-watchful eye of “big brother”-the Swedish State. It is the state that decides what is best for the children, not the parents. It is the state that regulates what the children will learn, and not the parents.”

We are experiencing a real threat to our family in our current battle for the right to home school our older children. A Swedish family recently had their child removed as they planned to relocate outside Sweden.  The Swedish police stormed the plane to take the child as they were leaving the country.  You can get more details about this tragedy: http://www.hslda.org/hs/international/Sweden/default.asp. As we prepare to travel to the U.S. for 6 months (Nov.-April) we must be very careful not to demand our rights. We must ask permission to take our children and likely promise to put them in school. They will decide for us what is best for our children. If we fail to get their approval, the same type of confrontation with Swedish authorities could happen to us. Pray that we will be protected as we stand our ground."

This year's conference theme is "Declaring the Mystery of Christ" and is drawn from Colossians 4:3. Being
one of his prison letters, it is likely that the Apostle Paul penned it during his first imprisonment in
Rome, where he spent at least two years under house arrest. The approximate date would be A.D.
60. In this particular passage, Paul is asking the Christians in theColossian church to pray that God would be pleased to open a door
for him (and for Timothy) so that he could proclaim his message-the message of the mystery of Christ- and that he would be enabled to
proclaim it clearly so that it would be easily understood and savingly embraced. Now, as to
the nature of the "mystery of Christ" which he desires to faithfully proclaim, he explains it earlier
on in this same letter. He says,

"I have become its (the church's) servant by the commission God gave me to present to you the word of God in its fullness-the mystery that has been kept hidden for ages and generations, but is now disclosed to the saints. To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. We proclaim him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ.” (Colossians 1:25-28 NIV)

Well now, as we consider our mission ministry here at IPC—one that encompasses the whole
world—it should be our ongoing prayer that Almighty God would be pleased to open doors
for our message as well, so that in the year 2009 and beyond, we too may faithfully and clearly
proclaim the mystery of Christ. And, for sure, that ought to be our sincere prayer for our missionary
guests at this year’s Missions Conference. Now then, let me briefly highlight those very special missionary evangelists whom we support and
who will put substance to this key upcoming event in the life and ministry of our church. They encompass church-planting and campus ministries here in the states, a church–planting work in
Heidelberg, Germany and the theological preparation of ministers in South Africa.

Our keynote speaker will be William Traub, coordinator of Theological Education and Training for MTW, Europe. His current project is working with Sebastian Heck on plans for the church–planting effort in Heidelberg, Germany. He will be accompanied by Mr. Heck who is the initiator of Reformation 2 Germany, an effort to establish a Presbyterian and Reformed Denomination in that country. Both of these men were profiled in last month’s IPC Messenger under the heading, “Meet Our Missionaries” by Glenn and Julie McDougall, and they will also be profiled in your conference brochure, along with our other missionary guests. And since that will be the case, let me say just a few words about the others.

Michael Gordon, Campus Minister at SCAD, is a graduate of Mercer
University and Covenant Seminary. Before coming to Savannah, he
served for five years as an Associate Pastor at Grace and
Peace Fellowship in St. Louis. He and his wife, Christine, have two
children.

Jonathan Beane, Campus Minister at Armstrong Atlantic State
University, is a graduate of the University of South Carolina and
Covenant Seminary. Before coming to our city, he spent three years
as an Assistant Pastor at West Boca Presbyterian Church in Boca
Raton, FL. He and his wife, Janelle, also have two children.

Stan Armes, a graduate of Covenant College and Seminary,
is serving under MTW at Port Elizabeth, South Africa, where he
teaches at the Bible Institute Eastern Cape—preparing ministers
to serve in their respective African countries. He and his wife, Donna,
have three daughters.

Michael Kytka, a graduate of Covenant Seminary, is a PCA church-planter in Forest Hills,
Queens, New York. He and his wife, Roseann, have two children.

As in the past, mission offerings will be received during the course
of the conference (special envelopes provided). This year those offerings will be earmarked
for the ongoing work of our Reformed University Fellowship
ministries at SCAD (Michael Gordon) and Armstrong Atlantic
State University (Jon Beane). Please give generously to these
vital student labors.

The schedule of events will parallel previous years, and a brochure detailing those events, along with
a cover letter and sign-up sheet, will be sent to your homes. As was
the case the last four years, we will meet at Point Pleasant for the
Thursday and Friday night free catered dinners and programs. And,
as usual, the Friday WOC program and luncheon and the Saturday
morning Men’s Prayer Breakfast will be held at the Savannah Golf Club.
We need accurate counts for all four events, so please make use
of the sign-up sheets. The Sunday evening service will occur in our
Sanctuary, followed by a free meal in fellowship hall.

Well, there it is in a nutshell. Our annual conference serves to
highlight IPC’s extensive involvement in missions at home
and abroad and provides a great opportunity for you to become
well-informed so as to pray, and encourage and give with
understanding and zeal. Please pray for safe travel for our guests and
for the unqualified success of the conference. Again, please set
aside the dates and plan now to participate wholeheartedly.

We arrived in Trujillo on Saturday and were met by our missionary hosts,
Allen Smith and Dale Ellison. Trujillo is a city of one million people. It is
marked by contrast. There are nice hotels and restaurants, and there is
poverty as abject as that witnessed in the poor country of Haiti. It is also a
city in which the work of the gospel is vital and active-as we witnessed
during our week there. After checking into the Hotel Paraiso we enjoyed
lunch with the other missionaries the Ebys and Carrikers, saw a few sights
along the coast and did a little shopping. Each evening of our trip we
enjoyed dinner with the missionary families-usually in their homes, but in a
couple of restaurants as well.

Sunday was, of course, dedicated to worship and rest. Sunday morning we
worshiped at the Wichanzao (barrio or neighborhood) church with the
congregation of Pastor Juan and evening at the Larco church with Pastor
Jaime. Lunch was with the Bill Bradfords and the interns who mostly teach at
the San Agustin Language Institute.

On Monday the work began in earnest. A neighborhood medical campaign
was held at the Arevelo church in which Drs. Mullins and Huffman treated
many patients (with the aid of translators-either interns or missionaries or
Alonzo Ramirez who traveled in from Cajamarca to spend the week with us).
Each morning we were led in a devotional by either a missionary or local
pastor and a beautiful lunch was prepared for us each day by the ladies of
the Wichanzao church. The construction team did work each day either at
the clinic at Wichanzao or the church at Arevelo. There was a public transportation strike on Tuesday so we all worked at the Wichanzao clinic all day to avoid being on the roads during the strike. We walked up to a very poverty-stricken squatter's community called Clementina. The people live in
shacks and have no amenities besides a water hose shared by the whole community. There is a chapel there made of poles and palm fronds. After a Peru Mission medical campaign in that barrio, the people asked for a church so this small chapel was constructed. Services are led there by an intern from the Wichanzao church. I was impressed with the breadth of ministry
carried out by our missionaries in Peru, encompassing medical, language
institute, micro-loans, a woodshop business all supporting the primary effort
of church planting and reformed worship. It's a beautiful model and one in
which the Lord is doing great things. The rest of the week was taken up by
two more neighborhood campaigns and another day at the Wichanzao
clinic. Dr. Mullins delivered two evening lectures - one at the college and
one at the medical school in Trujillo. Many encouraging conversations were
had with the missionaries and Peruvians we were privileged to work with.
Perhaps the best thing about these short term trips is the mutual
encouragement that is fostered. It's exciting to be involved in hands on
ministry of this kind and reassuring to see that the support money from IPC
to missionaries in Trujillo and Cajamarca is well used. This report is very short and from my own limited perspective.

Please talk to those others who participated in this trip.
I'm sure you'll be encouraged to participate in some of our future efforts. Thank you for your prayers.