Two Reviews: If God Should Choose / Hostage

by Kristen Stagg / Nancy Mankins

We marvel at the faith of the ancient martyrs, but do we recognize those of today? Read these books about modern Christians who forsook all for the sake of Christ.

TWO BOOK REVIEWS:

If God Should Choose: The Authorized Story of Jim and Roni Bowers. By Kristen Stagg. Moody Press, 820 N. LaSalle Blvd.,Chicago, IL 60610, 2002, 224 pages, $16.99

Hostage: The Incredible True Story of the Kidnapping of Three American Missionaries.
By Nancy Mankins, W Publishing Group, P.O. Box 141000, Nashville, TN 37214, 2001, 242 pages, $14.99.

—Both books reviewed by Ina Mae Brooks, freelance writer about national and world missions, Christianity, family life and living successfully with a disability.

We marvel at the faith of the ancient martyrs, but do we recognize those of today? Read these books about modern Christians who forsook all for the sake of Christ.

For five years Jim and Roni Bowers were missionaries with Association of Baptists for World Evangelism (ABWE), sharing the salvation story with Peruvian villagers. They and their son Cory lived on a houseboat, using it to reach isolated communities.

On April 20, 2001, ABWE pilot Kevin Donaldson, flew his float plane over the Amazon River. Jim and Roni were returning to Iquitos with Cory and their new baby, Charity. A Peruvian Air Force plane closed in and circled them as Kevin radioed Iquitos’ tower. Suddenly, Kevin cried, “They are killing us!” Shots ripped the plane, hitting Roni and Charity. Smoke filled the cockpit as Kevin dove for the river.
Tragedy struck an innocent family, because safeguards built into the Peruvian/US Drug Flight Interdiction of December 1994 had, over time, eroded.

Cory and the men climbed out of the plane into the water. Then Jim pulled his wife and baby free. Roni and Charity were dead, and Kevin was critically injured. Peruvians first accused Jim of drug running and then acquitted him.

The chapters, which cover two stories each, begin with events leading to the airplane tragedy. Tension builds until Jim is acquitted. Then readers meet Jim and Roni as they were before and after joining the Peru boat ministry. The Bowers’ family narration concludes with the climax of the court proceedings. The final chapter covers Roni and Charity’s memorial service and tells readers that currently Jim and Cory live in North Carolina where he pastors a Spanish-speaking church. The book concludes with eulogies for Roni and Charity presented at their memorial service.

Dave and Nancy Mankins, missionaries with New Tribes Missions (NTM), served the Kuna Indians of Panama in the village of Pu’curo for seven years, sharing God’s love and translating their dialect into Scripture.

On January 31, 1993, guerillas invaded the homes of three missionary families and led Dave Mankins, Mark Rich and Rick Tenenoff into the jungle. The three men were kidnapped by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Columbia (FARC) and held for ransom. Less than 24 hours later, a mission pilot brought their wives and children to safety. Nancy Mankins, Patti Tenenoff and Tania Rich accepted their mission’s no-ransom policy and worked with dignitaries, hostage experts and former hostages to obtain release for their spouses.

The hostage’s wives collaborated to record the exact events of the men’s abduction by FARC. The kidnapping and flight from Panama took a few hours. Last proof of life came in 1993. But the missionaries’ journals account for years of experiences in a new culture and villager benefits from God’s work. The final chapters show the survivors’ nine-year struggle without their loved ones.

While the book’s format is a bit frustrating—chapters are not the same length or style—this is a compelling story of loss highlighting the impact of the linguistic and gospel work with the Kuna Christians. Today, Kuna Christians continue the linguistic project.

Mankins concludes, “God has not given us the answers we wanted, but we have seen him work mightily in our hearts and lives. Tania, Patti and I have, by God’s grace, persevered through this race that was set before us. We are ‘looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith’ (Hebrews 12:2 KJV)” (p. 240).

Check these titles:
Curry, Dayna and Heather Mercer, with Stacy Mattingly. 2002. Prisoners of Hope: The Story of Our Captivity and Freedom in Afghanistan. New York: Doubleday.

Beamer, Lisa, with Ken Abraham. 2002. Let’s Roll: Ordinary People, Extraordinary Courage. Wheaton, Ill.: Tyndale House Publishers.

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