Search and Rescue in the South Pacific
//Special Report: International RHEMA
Have you ever read a Bible verse many times and then one day have it change the course of your life? That’s what happened to Kelly and Pattie Duininck. After the Duinincks graduated from RHEMA Bible Training Center in 1992, in the course of time Acts 1:8 came alive to them. They saw themselves in this verse, or more specifically, in the uttermost part of the earth.
“You can’t get any farther from Jerusalem than the South Pacific islands,” says Pattie. “It’s completely on the other side of the world, and these are the places we’re called to.”
There are over 3,000 islands in the South Pacific and many of them are very difficult to reach. “The Lord sent us to the remote islands of the South Pacific,” says Pattie. “We’re on a search-and-rescue mission. We’re strategically searching for islands that have never been reached with the Gospel of Christ.”
Prayer Focus» Pattie is believing God for more people to partner with her in reaching the South Pacific. For more information, log on to www.kellyduininck.org. Fast Facts» Ninety percent of RHEMA South Pacific’s graduates go into full-time ministry. |
Samoa May
In October of 1996, Kelly Duininck attended a Kenneth E. Hagin Holy Ghost Meeting. During a time of prayer, he heard himself praying out “Samoa May.” As he sat back in his chair, a vision to reach the South Pacific unfolded. The Lord told him to “raise a standard in the Word of God in the South Pacific.”
The following May, Kelly took his pregnant wife and 3-year-old daughter to Apia, Samoa. The country was still recovering from back-to-back cyclones that had devastated its islands.
In two weeks the Bible school was miraculously set up. Although the Duinincks were told there were no available phone lines or post office boxes in Apia, they got a phone line and a post office box. They started from scratch and built the school. Curtains were sewn, and chairs and a pulpit were built.
Samoa isn’t like America. If you want something, you have to build it. The stores just don’t carry a lot of merchandise. And if something is shipped in, it’s three times as expensive as it would be in America.
That first year 10 students graduated. The following year the school doubled. The Bible school started in a little corner of a building and later grew into an entire complex—including classrooms, student housing, and a dining area. In 1999 the Duininck’s Bible school joined the international network of RHEMA schools.
Fighting the Fight of Faith
After 10 years in Samoa, Kelly felt like it was time to launch out to other islands. That same year he was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s disease and was told he had six months to live. For two years Kelly and Pattie valiantly fought. During that time, the Duinincks never yielded, never lost hope, and never wavered in their faith.
They continued moving forward in ministry. “I have learned how to function at 100 percent capacity in ministry with all hell breaking loose personally,” says Pattie. “We didn’t stop fighting and we kept pushing forward.”
In the midst of their battle for Kelly’s life, they received miraculous provision to purchase and retrofit a 100-foot ship, which they christened Uttermost Witness. At the same time, Kelly talked to Pattie about starting a church they would call All Nations . He never talked about death and kept planning for the future. He had no intention of dying. But on April 22, 2008, when Kelly went to sleep, he slipped out of his body and went home to be with the Lord.
Always Moving Forward
After Kelly’s death, Pattie knew she was to continue in Samoa. As she explains, “I checked in with God, and He told me I couldn’t quit. God’s plan to raise a standard in the Word of God in the South Pacific didn’t change now that Kelly was gone. God’s will for the South Pacific is established and it needs to happen.” The Lord’s direction for her next steps were crystal clear: Run the school, get the ship to Samoa, and start ALL NATIONS.
RHEMA South Pacific
Since the school’s inception, approximately 825 graduates have passed through its doors. They’ve come from near and far—most from the South Pacific islands and others from as far away as India, South Korea, and Canada.
Although the two-year program is great for individuals who plan on working in a helps capacity, others desire more indepth training. To fill that need, RHEMA School of Ministry was born. The curriculum prepares the apprentice ministers to become missionaries, traveling teachers, and pastors.
Third-year graduates who feel they are not quite ready to go into full-time ministry can do a fourth-year internship. These students work full time at RHEMA South Pacific and help in all aspects of ministry—from working with the teens and children to doing special cultural dancing and singing. Part of Pattie’s expanding vision is to plant a church in each of the 30 major island groups in the South Pacific. Graduates from the intern program are handpicked to fulfill this vision.
Uttermost Witness
Uttermost Witness has been busy since its arrival in Samoa. It was first used to deliver food, water, and medical supplies to victims of the earthquake and tsunami that hit the Samoan Islands in September 2009.
Samoa is made up of 11 islands, and the island of Manono could only receive aid by boat. Uttermost Witness was the perfect ministry tool to fulfill this need. The ship maneuvered a mile offshore while small boats came out to be loaded with supplies to be delivered to the people of Manono. RHEMA South Pacific and Kelly Duininck Ministries continued distributing tsunami aid for an entire year after the disaster.
Uttermost Witness took the 2010 School of Ministry class to Savai’i, the largest of the Samoan Islands. There the students remodeled and refurbished a church in two weeks. Afterward, a three-day crusade was held on board the ship for local pastors who were taught faith, healing, and how to be led by the Holy Spirit.
Pattie took Uttermost Witness to Pago Pago, the capital of American Samoa, on two separate occasions. A leadership conference was held aboard the ship for approximately 50 local pastors and ministries. At that time, doors were opened for RHEMA South Pacific to minister anytime in the high schools in American Samoa. On the return evangelistic trip to Pago Pago, 1,600 people were born again.
All Nations
ALL NATIONS began as crusade services held every Friday night. During those services and others held after the official start of the church, over 1,500 people have given their lives to the Lord. Many people have been healed of everything from tumors and cancer to deaf ears and diabetes. At one service a man was healed of a flesh-eating bacterial infection!
ALL NATIONS CHURCH officially launched on May 6, 2011. And as in the Book of Acts, the Lord is adding to the church weekly and people are continually being miraculously healed. (Read more about the launch of ALL NATIONS CHURCH at www.khm.com/pacificrim.)
There are some people the devil just shouldn’t mess with, and Pattie Duininck is one of them. Since Kelly’s death, she is unwavering in her resolve to finish the race she began with her husband. “I’m running for two,” she says. And she’s doing whatever it takes to reach every lost soul with the Gospel in the South Pacific.