In the Season 1 finale of The Go and Send Podcast, hosts Mike Tapia and Cody Hall sit down with Lowell Wertz, a career missionary whose story spans decades of service in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Tanzania. From building ham radios in his bedroom as a teenager to coordinating a medical response to a cholera outbreak and launching a network of radio stations in East Africa, Lowell’s life is a powerful testimony of enduring obedience—even in the face of danger, loss, and uncertainty.
Lowell recounts dramatic moments: evacuating his family under gunfire, leading crisis relief efforts, repairing X-ray machines and radio towers, and founding Joy in the Harvest, a ministry that now employs dozens and impacts thousands through radio, feeding programs, and leadership training. Through it all, Lowell has clung to one thing: the call of God.
This conversation is for anyone wondering what long-term faithfulness looks like, how technical skills can serve the Kingdom, and why the call of God is always worth it.
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00:00 – Intro to Lowell Wertz: Missions, Radio, and Decades of Service
02:00 – Growing Up in a Christian Home and Early Exposure to Missions
04:00 – Building a Ham Radio Station as a Teen
06:00 – Talking With Missionaries From the Jungle as a Kid
08:00 – When God Called Lowell to Go
10:00 – Raising Money and Going to the Congo at 19
12:00 – Culture Shock and Promising His Shoes for an Antelope
14:00 – Wrestling With Calling After Returning From Congo
16:00 – Meeting His Wife Claudia and Preparing for the Field
18:00 – How God Confirmed Her Call Through a Bible Note
20:00 – Ten Years of Preparation and Biblical Training
22:00 – Returning to Fix Congo’s Radio Network After a Missionary’s Death
24:00 – Getting His Pilot’s License and Unexpected Flight Assignments
26:00 – Claudia’s Rough Arrival and the Hardest Part of Missions
28:00 – Near Starvation, Hidden Generosity, and Culture Clash
30:00 – Fixing a 75-Year-Old X-Ray Machine—God Shows Up
33:00 – Cholera Outbreak, Government Pressure, and Staying Faithful
36:00 – Flying IV Fluids to Save Villages
39:00 – “This Is Evangelism”: A Village Opens to the Gospel After Relief
41:00 – The Evacuation of Missionaries During Armed Conflict
44:00 – Escape by Plane Under Gunfire—and God’s Protection
47:00 – Starting Over in the U.S. and Questioning What Comes Next
49:00 – One Final Missionary Letter and Six Months Later, Back in Africa
51:00 – The Birth of Joy in the Harvest
52:00 – Feeding Programs, AIDS Education, and a Homemade Radio Tower
54:00 – Training Pastors and Building Unity in the Local Church
55:00 – SonSet Solutions’ Crucial Support for Radio Joy
56:00 – Advice to Future Missionaries: Treasure and Protect Your Call
57:00 – Final Encouragement: If You’re Called, Go—And Don’t Look Back
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Website: https://www.sonsetsolutions.org
