In 1959, two missionary ladies visited a small village in the foothills of the Himalayas. On that day, Ruth Montgomery experienced an emotional heart-felt affirmation, leaving no doubt that God had directed Bob and her to that place of great need. After Ruth and her friend spent the day teaching the Bible and presenting the Gospel, the village women, now so curious about this strange message, asked when they would return. Ruth, knowing that the snowfall would prevent them from making the fourhour trek, had to tell them that they could not resume their teaching until after the spring. One of the older village men spoke up, expressing concern that lives would be lost during the winter, and how they longed to know more of this Jesus.
Robert Bruce Montgomery trusted the Lord while serving in the Air Force during World War II. Not long after, he felt the call of God to be a missionary. While attending Bible College in Fort Worth, Texas, he met Ruth Phillips; they married in 1947. Ruth had been a schoolteacher in rural Kansas for nine years; the prairie schools had given her a foundation and preparation for her future life as a missionary educator in the Middle East. While completing seminary, the Montgomerys founded the Bible Baptist Church in Terrell, Texas where their first son Bruce was born. In 1951, after a time of deputation, they left for the Muslim-entrenched field of Jordan. They studied Arabic and ministered for five and one half years in Jerusalem before being evacuated in November 1956 during the Suez Crisis. While in Jordan, their other three children were born: Beth, Joy, and Roy.
During their time in the United States, the Montgomerys were commissioned as missionaries by the First Baptist Church in Medicine Lodge, Kansas to the country of Pakistan. Their ministry together there spanned three decades. In the city of Muree, they spent two years studying the Urdu language. Later they moved to the seaport city of Karachi where their ministry focus remained. In 1987, the Montgomerys returned to the United States to care for Ruth’s mother. Shortly after her passing in 1996, Ruth herself became ill. In a prayer letter dated June 30, 1996, Ruth reports of ministry growth that is occurring in Pakistan during their absence and their longing to be back and teach the children of their converts. Though they had been pursuing reentry visas, Ruth Montgomery would never return to Pakistan, but witness that glorious fruit from the portals of heaven. At the age of seventy-nine, she went home to be with the Lord.
With a population of over 150 million, Pakistan is the third largest Islamic nation in the world. It is in the very heart of the 10/40 window where ninety-five percent of the world’s Unreached live. Many Christians in Pakistan face religious discrimination and intolerance, as well as social oppression. It is officially illegal for Muslims to convert to Christianity.
Closed to traditional missions, the Montgomerys’ ministry in Pakistan was challenging. Some of their chief activities included the distribution of countless tracts and other Gospel literature, establishing literacy, Braille, and sewing classes all in order to teach the Bible. The Montgomerys assisted several Baptist churches led by Pakistani nationals in the organizing of various ministries within the church. While on furlough during a mission conference, a fellow-missionary recalled that Bob showed a picture of several Pakistani men, stating that those men were his primary ministry. Bob Montgomery has poured his life into discipling and training fellow servants. The longevity of his ministry, now in its fifty-eighth year, attests that perseverance, along with zeal and Christ-like love, bear the fruit that remains.
After Ruth’s death, Bob returned to Pakistan where he is today. In a prayer letter dated May 27, 2009, he tells of his request to the Pakistani government to renew his visa. He writes, “I had no choice where and when I was born, but now I would choose to live, die, and be buried in Pakistan…my main theme is still the same, boiling it down to two words, ‘Jesus Saves’.”
