ACCI - Adventive Cross Cultural Initiatives: a Canadian mission to the world

History

JAPAN

NLL began in 1954 as a literature project of TEAM International. Along with all evangelical missionaries, Americans Dr. Fred Jarvis and his wife, Clara, were expelled from China in 1949. After relocating to Japan, Dr. Jarvis was given a used press from The Pilgrim Tract Society, and he began to print literature and distribute it on the streets of Tokyo.

In 1959 a Norwegian named Arnfin Andaas came to join them as a printer, and NLL was registered in the U.S.A. as a non-profit organization. In 1961, while a student at Mountain View Bible College in Canada, Cliff Reimer heard Dr. Jarvis speak and soon he and his new wife, Eretta, joined in the ministry effort. From this small start the New Life League work in Japan has grown into an enormous ministry. Today it produces more than three hundred tons of Christian literature a month. They now have their own board of directors and are not directly connected to ACCI.

SRI LANKA

After more than twenty years in Japan Arnfin Andaas was asked, along with Cliff and Eretta Reimer, to join a new venture team that would establish a low-cost printing facility in Sri Lanka. Today, under the direction of Tim Comer, this operation prints materials for such clients as the International Bible Society, Serving in Missions (SIM), Operation Mobilization (OM), World Evangelism Crusade, and many other well-known Christian ministries. The NLL Sri Lankan ministry’s heartbeat is for the publishing of Bibles for China. With its profits the Sri Lanka plant has recently completed 60,000 copies of the Bible in Chinese as well as 80,000 Bibles in Hindi.

Dr. Jarvis and Arnfin Andaas are with the Lord now. The Reimers are semi-retired in Canada, where they continue to serve the mission through fundraising and recruiting. In 1986 NLL was registered as a charity in Canada.

NLL CANADA BECOMES ACCI INTERNATIONAL

In 2002 leadership for NLL was transferred to a new board with Anthony Hedrick serving as Executive Director. At this time the ministry’s name was changed and its offices were moved from Panoka, Alberta to Ottawa, Ontario. ACCI continues to provide financial and human resources to NLL Sri Lanka while also expanding its missionary endeavors to include missionaries serving throughout the world in a wide variety of ministry venues.