Gary and Linda Johnson: MTW Missionaries
Gary and Linda Johnson, along with their 9 children, live in Tranas, Sweden where Gary serves with Mission to the World (MTW). Gary’s philosophy of ministry, “Find faithful men, who will be able to teach others also,�? comes from 2 Timothy 2:2. A good portion of his time goes toward locating, recruiting, training and sending young men into situations that help make them strong for the cause of building Christ’s Church.
Two Swedish university students worked at Alpine Camp for Boys in Mentone, AL for three months as a cross-cultural mission and service internship. Two Johnson boys attended the first term of camp. Another university student has committed to a one-year mentoring program where Gary will oversee him to confirm his vocational call and role in the church. The student will spend three months in the U.S. serving as a youth/diaconal intern in churches and will also serve at Chamberlain-Hunt Military Academy in Port Gibson, MS for a month. The Johnsons will host at least five youth, ages 16 years and under, who will form a diaconal team this summer. MTW interns oversee the youth as they run various activities for the neighborhood kids, a program called “Sommarkul.�? The Johnsons are looking for some young people to join them in the fall to participate in their basketball program. The next three-month program starts after Labor Day for youth who will homeschool in the morning and practice basketball in the afternoon.
Gary continues coaching basketball in the winter and baseball in the summer. It is currently his greatest contact point with unbelieving Swedes. He gets little respect as a pastor in Sweden, yet is admired as a coach of boys. He is always in need of personnel, equipment, building and field expertise and invites interested people to contact him. Gary has used baseball and basketball as a means to glorify God, develop a community network and have a platform for witness. Dance is an alternative means to that end. In March, 15 members of the Briarwood PCA Ballet Exaltation team came to Sweden to dance and interact with more than 3,000 people! As a result, 35 Swedish children want to begin learning ballet. Now the Johnsons need a teacher! If you are interested and able to teach ballet, consider a stint in Sweden helping the Johnsons develop a ballet school for children.
The Johnsons homeschool their 9 children. They are once again in the news, as the local school board voted to disallow homeschooling in this county. Their stand for their beliefs have set them apart and has created a way to share the gospel in a country whose culture is somewhat closed to the gospel.