“Somebody needs to care enough to bring the Deaf to the feet of Jesus!”Joe Kotvas – Pastor/Missionary

Matt McKendree 

I was born in 1979 and born again in 2000. I was raised as a non-religious Mormon, steeped in their overall tenet of good works; yet I knew I could never be that good. From ages 11 to 18, my innocence was lost as I indulged in almost every form of drugs, alcohol, and worldly pleasure one could find.

The day came when a young man named Darrell Marshall asked me if I knew that Jesus is God. I was sure that if anyone was God, Jesus would be Him, but I was not sure. Within a year of being asked that question, continuing a friendship with Darrell, and searching the Scriptures for myself, I came to see that the Mormons were a lie, the Bible alone was truth, and only by Jesus Christ and His shed blood for my sin could my soul have any hope of Heaven. I knelt down with a tract of John and Romans that Darrell had given me. In a midnight hour, I cried out to God, confessed my sins, repented, and asked God to save me from sin, self, and an eternity in the Lake of Fire. I had been crying tears of pain, but when I got up; my tears were tears of joy, for I had been saved.

In 2002, Pastor Joe Kotvas of Efata Deaf Ministries visited my home church in Leesburg, Georgia. I do not remember much of what Bro. Kotvas preached, yet while he showed his presentation about Efata, my heart was moved for the Deaf. Since I had been saved, God had been dealing with me about doing something for Him somewhere in the world. At that moment in my home church, I knew God wanted me to step out on faith and go confirm His will that He wanted me to work in Efata Deaf Ministries.

After that service, I asked Bro. Kotvas if he needed any help. He said, “Yes, we always do, but don’t be in a hurry. Come and visit for a week and pray about what God would have you to do.” After I fasted and prayed for one week, I told my Pastor that I knew I had to go to Peru, but I didn’t know how I was going to get there. My Pastor explained that I should go for one week with a construction crew from our church. I went to Peru in 2002 with the construction crew and determined to stay there. Pastor Kotvas told me, “No. Go home for now, then come back for three months.” So from May – July 2003, I worked in Efata.

Efata Deaf Ministries consist of a Deaf Baptist Church with a hearing ministry, a Deaf Christian School, and a home for Deaf children. During those three months, the Lord led me to seek a multitude of counselors, to be open to whatever He wanted me to do, and to preach Christ to the Deaf in Peru. Pastor Kotvas counseled me to go to Oklahoma Baptist College, so I could “have my rough edges knocked off.”

In July 2006, the Lord brought Sarah and I together. I graduated from OBC in May 2007. We were married on August 10, 2007. The Lord did a wonderful job of matching us up with the same love for missions and the same heart for the Deaf.

In January 2008, Sarah and I were able to take a survey trip to Peru. During this time, God expanded our vision for our future ministry there. We will have the opportunity not only to work in Efata with the Deaf, but we will also have the opportunity to train national pastors and help establish deaf churches all over Peru and perhaps even in other countries of South America.