Bitten by Cobra
01 Bitten by Cobra
2025
Next year will mark 30 years that I have worked in South Sudan, and 28 years training frontline chaplains. The first five years that Vicky and I were in the country, it looked like there was very little tangible fruit for all the labor. Vicky asked me, “Should we still be here?” I told her, “If we leave, it will never change.” So, we persevered and now the fruit is everywhere.
General Mamur, whom I prayed with to receive Christ in 1999, is considered the greatest general in South Sudan. He was just promoted to four-star general, and it is well deserved. I was honored to be the best man in his wedding, and Vicky was the maid of honor. General is truly one of my closest friends and the greatest warrior I have ever met—truly a King David figure.
In December 2012, we had an attempted takeover of the South Sudan government. Rebels knew to successfully take the nation they would have to kill General. I was in Russia at that time, and it was about midnight that Vicky called me and said that General had called his wife and told her he was in a battle. I knew if General was killed, the nation would be lost. Vicky told me that Maria, General’s wife, was in tears. I told Vicky that I had to get off the phone and call my senior chaplain in the capital Juba. I contacted my number two man, Lino, and told him to gather every chaplain in Juba and get to General’s headquarters and counterattack. I told them not to value their own lives, that the fate of the nation was at risk.
Lino gathered about 20 chaplains and raced to the headquarters. As they were approaching General’s location, the enemy directed its fire at our men. They could tell because the enemy was shooting tracer rounds. A tracer round has a glow that looks like fire following the bullet. When Lino and the men got to the gate of General’s headquarters, dead bodies were in the road. The men went in to reinforce General and set up mortars. The enemy was firing from two different positions when General gave the order. The men sent two mortars into one location and one into the other. The battle was over. When I called General at 4 o’clock in the morning, I asked, “How are you doing, General?” And he said, “I am here with the men you sent, my brother.” General, on many occasions, has given me large gifts, and I told him I could not take the gift. Everyone in South Sudan wants to be his friend because they know he has money. General said, “No, my brother, God has ordained in this life that you and I are to be brothers.” He then said, “You are my church, and if I want to give to my church, I have the right,” which is a pretty good argument. General has a three-story house, and the top floor is for when Vicky and I come.
I NEVER WANT MY PRAYERS HINDERED BECAUSE OF COMPROMISE.
“If we leave, it will never change.” So, we persevered and now the fruit is everywhere.
Right now, all the chaplains are coming in from the field and the frontlines. Recently, we lost two more chaplains. While we consider this a loss, we have peace knowing it is a graduation to heaven. In recent months, I have thought much about heaven and what it will look like when I arrive. I know that when I get there, 75 of my men will be waiting to welcome me home. I think about sitting with them at the banquet table alongside men like Paul the Apostle, and the other great men and women of our faith. I believe we will remember the days of old when we served the Lord together. But in this life, I remind the men that this is our one chance to serve the Lord, and if we miss it, we will not get a second chance. The men tell me they love when I share about the next life and all that is to come.
In April, we will start Class 12 for a new group of chaplains. We will take between 75 and 100 new cadets. We have not had a class in the last five years because so much was required to carry out operations in Afghanistan and Ukraine. But we need replacements for the ones who have fallen.
This month, all the chaplains will come in for re-equipping and rest from war. For a couple of weeks, we will feed them as much as they can eat—most will have lost 20 to 30 pounds. I have a cow slaughtered every day to feed them because they need the protein to rebuild bodies that have broken down under harsh conditions.
The first week, when the chaplains arrive, doctors and nurses care for them. Many are sick with malaria or typhoid fever. Last year, one of the pastors told me he saw a chaplain with a 103-degree fever; he was running and carrying an IV. He asked him what he was doing out of bed. The chaplain smiled and said, “I do not want to miss the Bible Study!” Then, with IV in hand, ran into the sanctuary.
Much has happened in the last month. The chaplains I previously mentioned, who have gone home to be with the Lord, are Chaplain Santino Lual (C00068) and Chaplain Timothy Alamin Botrus (C00138). The reason I share their numbers is that it tells you how long they have served and what class they graduated from. Santino was in Class 2, which graduated in 2000. Timothy graduated from Class 3 in 2002. Both men served for almost 25 years and never did anything to bring shame to the Lord’s name.
Timothy’s brother shared Christ with him after a missionary from London had shared with him. Timothy said that when his brother shared, he gave his life to the Lord. In a short time, he knew he wanted to serve as a pastor. Timothy died from illness, serving on the frontlines.
Santino came to Christ in 1994. He was one of our older chaplains— possibly in his 60s. The reason he did not know his exact age is that in his tribe, birthdays were not remembered. Santino was open about his past life—he said he was a drunkard and fornicator, but also a very miserable man. He shared that one day he saw people going to church and followed them. After hearing the Gospel, he surrendered his life to Christ.
About a year ago, a cobra bit Santino. He served as a medic and was moving through swampland during operations when he was bitten. He did not even see the snake, so it could easily have been one of more than 20 different deadly snakes. Unfortunately, he was deployed deep in the bush, and the enemy was between his unit and friendly forces. Had we known that Santino was bitten, we would have made every effort to rescue him, but they did not even have radio communication. The bite did not kill him outright, but the poison started a downhill spiral. His body grew weaker until it finally took his life.
The lives of both these men were marked by courage and sacrifice for Christ. They went through some of the heaviest fighting of the war.
The lives of both these men were marked by courage and sacrifice for Christ.
In the early days of the war, the military had no money for equipment or food, and soldiers hunted and foraged for food. They had no canteens, so they collected water with used artillery shells. They had no uniforms and were often barefoot. I remember when we received a donation of clothing. When we opened the boxes, we found about 2,000 used Pepsi-Cola uniforms. The shirts had white and blue stripes with the Pepsi logo, and the pants were bright Pepsi blue.
This was in the early days of the ministry when we lived month to month, praying for God’s provision. One military commander came to see me and asked for help clothing his men. I told him we did not have the money or military uniforms, but we had 2,000 Pepsi uniforms. I showed him the uniforms, and he gladly accepted them. We clothed two battalions with those uniforms, and the men were happy to have them. Many had been in rags, and the Pepsi uniforms were well-made. I do not know how well they served as camouflage, but we never heard a complaint.
You will need to read to the end of this story to understand the point I am making. About a year ago, I met my mother at Denny’s for lunch. When I arrived, a woman walked in with a small puppy. When my mother arrived, I told her about it, and she went to look. The woman said that the puppy had been hurt and that she could not keep it because her dog attacked it. My mother asked what she wanted for it. The woman said, “You can have it if you want.”
The first couple of months, the puppy was nervous. If you knelt to pick her up, she would run and shake. But she loved playing with Vicky and our dog. Sometimes, we picked her up for a play day with our dog and drove her to our home. On the drive over, if she saw something she did not understand, she would become afraid. Then she would tuck her head between Vicky’s arm and chest so she could not see. Once her eyes were covered, she would stop shaking.
Now that she is a year old, she is a changed little puppy. When I go to see my mother, she runs to me and wants to be held. It takes her about 15 minutes to settle down because she is so excited. Her name is Lilly. If Vicky and I are out working in the yard, Lilly stays with us the whole time, playing. At night, when Vicky and I go to bed, our dog sleeps with us and has from the time he was a puppy, so we allow Lilly to sleep in our bed also. Once she gets on the bed, she gets under the covers and wants to be right beside Vicky or me. She also wants me to put my hand on her until she falls asleep, which I do. When I get up in the morning, her tail is going 100 miles an hour, and she wants to be held or play fetch.
Now to the point: I am heading to Africa and then Israel. I recently shared the story of the young girl who lost her entire family. Her nose is scabbed over, and I asked Luke if she had been shot. He said no—he thought it was from a grenade or other blast. She is now in a hospital in Jerusalem. I saw her being interviewed, and the nurses caring for her are kind, but you can tell she is afraid. She is only eight years old.
We all feel compassion for a hurt, frightened puppy. People even give to programs for neglected and abused animals—which I have no problem with. But as believers, we need the world to know that we will do what it takes to protect and care for women and children.
Luke told me about a young man from a foreign country who said, “Do you know why I want to be a U.S. citizen.” He then said, “Because if you go missing, someone will look for you.” As Americans, we are blessed to live in a nation where most value life, while in many other countries, they do not. In Syria, the current government is murderers and wants to kill everyone who does not follow their perverse beliefs.
In recent weeks, I have received many videos of Islamic militants killing for no reason but to serve their perversion. I shared a photo two months ago of an entire family that was murdered. I was also sent photos of the aftermath. You could see the women had been raped before being killed. I will not go into detail, but it was horrific. I will not release the images unless needed as evidence.
What if you came home one day and were told your entire family was dead—father, mother, children, and your grandparents. It would be a great shock for any person, but that is exactly what happened to Hala. She is the eight-year-old who has lost everyone in her family, including the families in her neighborhood.
It is the 29th of September that I am writing to you. I am at the airport in Los Angeles, heading to South Sudan; from there, I head to Israel. I want to do everything in my power to make sure little Hala is cared for and will pay whatever it costs to get her adopted into a family that will love her.
I told Luke that I did not want to go the extra mile for these people—I want to go an extra 50 miles. Another woman, in her late 20s, shared how her entire family was murdered. She is beyond broken and has no one to grieve with. Far Reaching Ministries will do everything possible to help her. Jesus said if a man asks you to go one mile, go with him two.
With Afghanistan, it was in the news every day, and believers gave generously, but Syria is not in the news, and most have forgotten how the people have suffered. We are asking all of you to go the extra mile with us to save the Druze, Alawites, Christians, and Kurds. Currently, we are working hard to bring food, medicine, and emergency evacuations for those willing to leave.
I wish with all my heart that the children of Syria, when afraid, like Lilly, could hide their eyes in their mother’s arms and make the boogieman go away. But in Syria, monsters are real—and come to kill.
Far Reaching Ministries utilizes the services of men of God who are former Special Forces. Men who have trained both for the physical and spiritual battles. Strong believers who can say what King David said because of how God prepared and trained him.
“He trains my hands for battle”
I pray that I would never value my life above a child’s life. For all the Halas of the world, let us pray and live lives worthy of the Master. I never want my prayers hindered because of compromise. Heaven is close in my heart– I can feel it coming.
Wes Bentley
Far Reaching Ministries
Old, Alone, Scared and Unloved
As we have previously shared, Pastor Fedor has a church in Odessa, Ukraine, with 200 elderly grandmothers and grandfathers who have been abandoned and often robbed of their homes. These people are afraid and have no way of caring for themselves. The heart that I believe the Lord has for these people is that in old age, they will not have to live in fear, worry about where their next meal will come from, or if they will have to live in the streets. Far Reaching Ministries wants them to know that if they become ill, believers will take them to the doctor and make sure they get proper medical treatment. Most importantly, they will not die alone and scared but will be loved and cared for by the body of Christ.
You can sponsor a grandmother or grandfather for $25, $50, $75, or $100 per month. Though automatic debit is the preferred method, all donations are needed.
Syria Rescue
Syria is facing an immediate humanitarian crisis with the rise of Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) into government power. HTS is a radical Islamic military faction progressing out of al-Qa’ida. Designated as a Terrorist Organization by the U.S., HTS has initiated a violent and widespread campaign against Christians, as well as ethnic cleansing. There are numerous ongoing reports of door-to-door attacks, wide spread rape, and mass executions.
Sunni extremists are engaging in systematic ethnic cleansing, violence, and atrocities such as sexual assault and killings. Far Reaching Ministries (FRM) is urgently working to address the targeted killings of Christians, as well as violence against women, children, and the elderly.
FRM has launched an Emergency Response Mission requiring $1.5 million to $2.5 million for rescue operations, safe housing, and the critical support needed.