This episode of The Go and Send Podcast features Dave Pasechnik, a pioneer of Christian radio missions who has served the Lord for decades, traveled to over 70 countries, and helped plant hundreds of radio stations around the world. Dave's story starts on a farm in rural Canada with no electricity, where a battery-powered radio first sparked his curiosity about technology — and where he first heard gospel broadcasts beamed in from a station in Quito, Ecuador.
This episode of The Go and Send Podcast features Dave Pasechnik, a pioneer of Christian radio missions who has served the Lord for decades, traveled to over 70 countries, and helped plant hundreds of radio stations around the world. Dave's story starts on a farm in rural Canada with no electricity, where a battery-powered radio first sparked his curiosity about technology — and where he first heard gospel broadcasts beamed in from a station in Quito, Ecuador.
That early spark set Dave on a remarkable path: Bible college, an unexpected job at the University of Alberta working on particle accelerators, and eventually a calling into missions with HCJB World Radio in Ecuador. There, he maintained massive shortwave transmitters and power systems, helped build a 500,000-watt transmitter designed to broadcast the gospel behind the Iron Curtain into the Soviet Union despite heavy jamming, and saw an entire village come to faith through a simple weekly Bible study.
Dave later helped lead the HCJB Technology Center in Elkhart, Indiana, where his team built cutting-edge equipment that helped launch roughly 350 radio stations across the globe. In this conversation, he shares incredible stories of God's provision and timing — including a tense encounter with armed guards in post-revolution Romania — and offers hard-won wisdom on obedience, patience, and what it really means to step out in faith for the sake of the gospel.
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Resources & Links:
00:00 -- Cold Open: "The Devil Is Trying to Stop the Gospel"
00:44 -- Introducing Dave Pasechnik: 70 Countries, Decades of Radio Ministry
02:03 -- The Tremendous Impact of Christian Radio in Missions
02:59 -- Reaching the World's Largest Muslim Country
03:41 -- Why Radio's Influence Isn't Slowing Down
04:59 -- The Draw of Local Content on Local Radio
06:06 -- Building Real Relationships Through the Microphone
06:44 -- Growing Up on a Farm Without Electricity
07:35 -- A Ukrainian Church and Early Exposure to Missions
09:14 -- High School, Trade Skills, and a Detour Into Bible College
11:52 -- Committing to Christ at Age Eight or Nine
14:49 -- Advice for Anyone Considering a Year of Bible College
17:16 -- An Unexpected Job at the University of Alberta
20:44 -- Sensing God's Call Toward Ecuador and HCJB
23:46 -- The Discouragement -- and Breakthrough -- of Support Raising
27:00 -- Leaving Canada for Ecuador With Two Young Children
28:10 -- Maintaining Massive Transmitters and Power Lines in Ecuador
29:23 -- The Day a Transmitter Went Off the Air Mid-Sermon
31:19 -- Broadcasting Behind the Iron Curtain Into the Soviet Union
33:00 -- Building a 500,000-Watt Transmitter to Beat the Jammers
39:03 -- Bible Studies, a Village Church, and a Boulder-Rolling Teenager Turned Pastor
41:19 -- Called Back to Elkhart to Lead the Technology Center
44:41 -- Building Transmitters for Missions Worldwide
46:43 -- The Iron Curtain Falls and New Nations Open to Independent Radio
48:04 -- The Vision for a "Radio Station in a Suitcase"
49:33 -- Reflecting on 350 Radio Stations Planted
51:46 -- The Remarkable Story Behind the Cape Town Radio Station
54:07 -- Romania: Walking Through Political Upheaval to Reach a Nation
58:03 -- A Tense Standoff With Armed Guards at a Government Office
59:47 -- The Providential Conversation That Opened the Door
1:02:03 -- What the Book of Acts Teaches About Stepping Into the Unknown
1:03:12 -- Learning to Discern God's Direction as a Leader
1:05:49 -- Where to Turn When You Sense God Calling You Into Missions
1:07:44 -- Missionaries and Books That Shaped Dave's Faith
1:08:52 -- Closing Scripture: Romans 12, Philippians 3, and Isaiah 6
1:11:31 -- Final Thoughts and Thanks
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