Thanks for Giving

Psalm 18:1 “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.”

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!  Over the past two months, Michelle and I have traveled all across the USA sharing what God has been doing in the ministries across the Africa Region.  We have celebrated together with friends and family, renewed friendships and made new ones.  I can’t help but reflect on the steadfast love of our Father who looks down on us in love.  We are blessed beyond measure and remain content by the grace that God provides us daily.

This season reminds us to give thanks!  We would be remiss not to say thanks for all that you have given to us to help us in this ministry.  This year we have seen God’s hand through you as he has provided tools for ministry, renewed a spirit of revival and evangelism among our leadership in Africa, and helped us to equip leaders with new tools and training for evangelism and discipleship.

Let me share some stories from the field that illustrate this great gift that God has given us.  From Liberia our new orality and Jesus Film coordinator brother Jackson Nyanway reports the impact that recent story telling training has done:

Women at ELWA Church set apart Mondays & Fridays for Orality storytelling. On each of these days an individual is asked to tell a story that the group can discus.  After discussion, the session is recorded and taken to the communities to be heard in their dialects.  The people who are hearing the recordings will be motivated to join that group. Day by day this group is increasing.

   The first training held in Monrovia increased storytellers to twenty-four. We mentored these storytellers according to churches to enable them to extend outdoors for more storytelling and receiving new converts unto the Lord.  Some storytellers and champions are traveling around the city of Monrovia to teach in homes, markets places, to ride on buses,  sharing at fueling stations to discuss and learn parables of Jesus Christ our Lord, and many people are appreciating and asking us to do more that many other people will come to his vineyard for life saving grace.

   Storytellers in central district have started a radio teaching program in Sanniquelle, where everyone listens to storytelling once a week. Community members call on the radio to ask questions and answers are provided by our team members in the studio. People in Sanniquelle have expressed gratitude and pray that this program continues that everyone will be good storytellers in Nimba County.

We have seen the ministry of the Jesus Film continue to grow this year.  Today we have 340 Jesus Film teams doing ministry in 32 countries of Africa!  One of those countries is the Democratic Republic of the Congo.  Rev. Nzola Dieumerci is the coordinator for the Africa Central Field and shares this report of the new boat ministry developing on the Congo river..

   Along the Congo River, we have more than 30 preaching points and organized churches. There is no other means of transportation in that area; no vehicles or motorcycles, just flowing on the river. Our goal was to take our first trip with our Nazarene Boat Ministry. 

   It was great to have such ministry along the Congo River. Five days of ministry from 21^st – 25^th   August 2019, leaving Kindu city up to LUKENYE 150 km along the river. We had opportunity to minister to five different villages known as PEMBE LIBA, NGUMBU, LOLESONGO, BAKUMBA 2 AND LUKENYE village. In each village, we were welcomed by churches planted by the Jesus Film ministry alongside the strategy of the district leadership. This Boat ministry has really come at the right time and has made the church of the Nazarene visible along the river.

   Those villages have a large population but no other means of transportation apart from the boats, and boats without motor as you can see in the pictures. The Nazarenes were the first church to come with a motor-boat and it made the church to be more respected among the others. Nazarene Boat Ministry is unique on the Congo River said some villagers in song. 

   We organized two open air Evangelism campaigns in different places with a great number of participants. Trainings on how do an effective evangelism and a proper discipleship program were provided to pastors and upcoming leaders along the river.  We thank God for providing a free and great heart to all the facilitators and donors of such a great tool for evangelism along the Congo River. We also express our thanks to the Maniema District Superintendent with his leadership for organizing such a project.

   To God be the glory for His protection during the time of the trip and safe journey of the members who went with. The delegation was of 28 persons including men and women of God.

 We have been focused on developing discipleship materials for people groups that are based in oral cultures.  This year we have seen our orality champions faithfully train and send out storytellers all across their communities.  No better illustration of this work is Rev. Edward Ndessan from Ghana North.  This last quarter he reported the following:

Greetings to you in the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ! This is an opportunity given to me to share with you what God is doing mightily in orality ministry for these past four months in Northern Ghana.

 Last four months started from January, I was able to organize two trainings where Bible stories were told to people; February, two events; March three events and April one event. Total events for the four months are 8.  The break down are total number of people attended these gatherings. Total for January= 255, Feb 127, March = 306, April =173. Over all total number is=861.  Number of total souls won for Christ is =39.  Number of new coaches/ story tellers being developed or trained =24

The total stories being recorded in Kusaal language 28, and Moar language 10. So the total over all given was a total of 38 and the number of story discussion groups was 24.  We praise God for the work that has taken over our district.  Every Saturday women come to learn stories and then go and tell those stories in their communities.  Many are learning the stories of the bible and sharing those stories with their neighbors.  Praise the name of the living God!

We are producing bible story scarfs that the women wear and share their faith with others.  One church in Texas helped us raise $3,000 USD through their VBS kids’ program so that we could print 1,000 story scarfs in Togo. 

If you want to find out more about how to contribute this season to support these ministries,  there are several ways to get involved.  You can provide audio bibles for pastors, buy a motorcycle for Jesus Film teams, drill a well in a community and give them life giving water they so desperately need, or simply support training events that help us raise up a new generation of leaders and missionaries.  Please see the current projects list, should you choose to make a contribution.

We will spend this holiday season with our family celebrating the birth of Christ and sharing time with our parents, kids, and grandkids.  We will be back in South Africa the first week in January.  Please pray with us that our visas for South Africa will be renewed this year so that we can continue to serve on the Africa region.  Pray for Michelle as she works to equip and train new missionaries coming to the field and those being called from our African nations to serve the Lord all across Africa. 

Once again, we say thanks for your prayer and financial support.  We believe that God is helping us to reach our 2020 vision of one million Nazarenes in Africa before the end of next year 2020.  Won’t you be part of this team and come visit us in Africa?  You are welcome any time!  We wish you a very Merry Christmas and a prosperous and Happy New Year!

God bless,

Tim and Michelle