In March regional pastor James Henderson conducted ministerial conferences in Kenya (for the Kenyan, Malawian and Tanzanian ministry), Nigeria and Ghana. He covered the future of the church in East & West Africa; pastoral competencies; new pastoral models for Africa; and ministering and evangelism through small groups.
David Bedford transferred back to the United Kingdom to take up pastoral duties there. The churches in Ghana have appreciated the encouragement Mr. Bedford has given them over the past few years, and he will be missed by the members.
Gabriel Ojih, a Ghanaian, has been appointed pastor of the churches in Ghana. He and his Zimbabwean wife, Angeline, have assisted Mr. Bedford for the past few years.
For financial reasons the Ghanaian Office laid off Patrick Larbey, who helped with transport and other administrative duties. We thank Mr. Larbey for his hard work in the past, and wish him success in finding a new position.
Also for financial reasons, we made cutbacks in the Nigerian ministry. In March we terminated the employment of Josef Forson and Emmanuel Sogbo. Emmanuel Okai's employment will be terminated in June.
This was done for economic reasons, and is not a reflection on the job these men have done. All three of them and their wives have worked hard for the church, and we appreciate their loyalty and dedication.
Eke Udeagha was appointed area pastor of the church in Nigeria, and he will be assisted by Michael Ogunlase.
Mr. Udeagha will move to the Lagos Office in early July. The plan is that local church elder pastorates (elders not employed by the church) will be set up in most Nigerian church areas, and they will be mentored by Mr. Udeagha and Mr. Ogunlase.
On Feb. 3 Mr. Udeagha inaugurated the Port-Harcourt church.
He reported: "It was a joyful day for members, co-workers and readers in Rivers State, Nigeria.
"For years members in Port-Harcourt traveled more than 80 miles a week to Owerri to worship. It was becoming increasingly burdensome financially for them to travel.
"Having services in Port-Harcourt is a relief for them. Members pay only a fraction of their previous travel costs to hire a local hall for services.
"About 120 people attended the first service. Paul Ugorji, a local church elder from Owerri, gave the sermonette, and the pastor, Mr. Udeagha, gave a sermon titled "Why You Need the Church." The congregation will meet twice a month.
"We need the prayers of the brethren worldwide for spiritual and financial labourers--prayers for growth in this congregation in Eastern Nigeria."
Gardner Kunje has been appointed the local church elder pastor of the Blantyre church, and Gray Nthinde has been appointed the local church elder pastor of the Lilongwe church. Both men have full-time jobs. Mr. Kunje works for the Malawi Customs and Excise Headquarters, and Mr. Nthinde is in real estate. Two small group Bible study areas are being developed--Mzuzu in the north and Zomba near Lake Malawi.
We have a group of around 40 people who meet in Dar es Salaam every week for the worship service. Ben Kaswaga, a chicken farmer, is the local church elder pastor.
The Ugandans said farewell to Inyambo and Mutinta Nyumbu and family. Dr. Inyambo Nyumbu, a deacon, was the main contact in Uganda for the Nairobi Office for the past three years. His departure will make communication difficult as none of the remaining Ugandan church contacts has a telephone, and the postal system is unreliable.
Dr. Nyumbu, an engineer specializing in clean water systems, and his wife, Dr. Mutinta Nyumbu, a cardio-pediatrician, moved back to their native Zambia.
We appreciate your prayers for the Ugandan members, who now find themselves in a more isolated spiritual position. Our members meet in four areas: Kampala, with its Bible study group of around 14; Fort Portal (near Zaire), with its small group of around eight; Masindi, a congregation of around 40 with its own deacon, Edward Kagoro; and Tororo, the longest established church, which, when combined with the Mbale brethren, numbers about 50.
The financial situation in Uganda is bleak, and few members are able to tithe or donate. This means that the area does not have much of an indigenous income to help support ministerial visits from neighboring Kenya, which, in turn means that ministerial visits are few and far between.
Ben Kaswaga, the local church elder from Tanzania, planned to be there for the spring Feast, and this, for some of the Ugandans, would be the first contact they have had with a minister since last September.
The members in these islands have little direct contact with the church--perhaps one ministerial visit a year. About 12 people meet each Sabbath for services and normally listen to a taped message.
Joseph Wainaina and Kagema Muriuki were appointed joint local church elder pastors of the Nairobi church, and Abraham Mathiu the local church elder pastor of Kibirichia.
During the past year several Sabbatarian groups, some loosely based on our previous teachings, have made contact with the church and asked if they could be incorporated into our denomination.
This has meant a sudden profusion of six new Bible study areas and a resultant pressure on the existing ministry, which in itself has produced growth opportunities for unordained church leaders. We plan to visit two Sabbatarian groups in Western Kenya, each with about 60 adults, before the summer.
We need to use interpreters for some of these groups as the local people are not fluent in either Kiswahili or English. For example, with a small group that meets outside Nakuru in the Great Rift Valley the discussions take place in Kikuyu. This can cause problems as Kikuyu does not contain some of the biblical vocabulary or spiritual concepts, and the Kikuyu Bible often does not follow the thoughts or expressions in the English translations of the Greek and Hebrew.
Another such group is our new congregation in Bomet near the Masai Mara where on a good day around 50 are in attendance.
Kagema Muriuki, a local church elder co-pastor of the Nairobi congregation, gave this report after his visit in January. His description of not finding people, and of people coming and going, is fairly typical of such a trip into the rural areas of Kenya.
"On Jan. 19 I left Nairobi for Bomet, a town in the Rift Valley province of Kenya. I spent the night in Kericho, the tea capital of Western Kenya, and the following morning left for Bomet township.
"Once in Bomet I learnt that our contact person, Paul Langat, had moved from the town three weeks earlier. After consultations, an acquaintance of Mr. Langat gave me directions to where he had settled down.
"I took a matatu (a bus--Kenyan public transport), and after one hour's drive alighted at a small town called Mulot. Here I was able to get another matatu to Ngirot. After further discussion I was directed to Mr. Langat's house, which is one hour's walk west of Ngirot.
"At 4 p.m. I arrived at Paul's home. I was met by his wife, uncle, mother and grandmother. Paul was in a Sabbath meeting in a neighbour's house. Later in the evening I met most of the group.
"We talked about a wide range of issues from baptism counseling to doctrine. The Bomet group has a number of members who don't speak Kiswahili or English, so I talked through Mr. Langat as interpreter.
"The church group has dedicated members who love reading the Bible. Many of them kept coming to Paul's house throughout the evening. I counseled them until midnight when we literally fell down with sleep.
"The group members come from the same locality and visit each other on a rotational basis. Each Sabbath they listen to tapes that are translated into Kipsigis by Mr. Langat.
"They appreciated the visit from Nairobi. Some are already counseling for baptism. The group would appreciate our prayers because many neighbours have shown a positive interest and want to join the group. Our members in Bomet have set a good example in their community, and it was a pleasure to visit and talk with them."
The example of Bomet is of special interest to the development of the church in Africa. It illustrates some principles to learn and apply for future first contact group situations:
1. Do not break up the group. In times past we would have told the group members to counsel individually with us and to cease meeting as a group until some were baptized.
This was counter-productive, and nowhere in the New Testament does Paul or another minister tell a worshiping group to break up. Rather we should keep the integrity of the group, and encourage them to keep on meeting.
2. Give the group the tools they ask for. In this instance they wanted taped sermons or sermon scripts, and guidelines on how to meet. If you cannot see them quickly, write to them with this information and encourage them to continue meeting--do not worry if things may not go the way you want it to--allow a degree of trust.
3. There is nothing wrong with having a fledgling congregation of prospective members. How do you think it was in the New Testament?
4. Recognize the community leader unless there is some major problem. Mr. Langat is the leader of this group. Why should we not recognize him as such and work with him accordingly?
We do not need to remove such a person from this position. He or she is not usually a threat to us and normally wants to work with us and will facilitate the church's entrance into the community. Our previous position of having to humble or vet (evaluate) such a person was often offensive.
5. Use local languages if that is what the group wants. If they don't want it, don't impose it. Let the group decide what's best, and try to fit in accordingly.
Then, of course, we need to trust the group leader, if he or she is the interpreter, to translate faithfully. Normally they do and, if they don't, it usually comes to light in the short term.
6. Note how the group functioned in the community. There is no need to remove them from the community and direct them to a larger, further-removed, church meeting. This group is having a social and redemptive effect on the local community, and to remove them unnecessarily from that community is to limit witness and growth opportunities.
7. In short, try to find the "yes" answer to most small group scenarios. Remember, these small groups are the planting of churches.
Since January several of the group have been baptized, and some will be baptized soon. In addition, we can learn from Kagema's persistence. He didn't give up in his effort to find Paul Langat. How many of us would have gone home because our contact did not show up?
James and Shirley Henderson
May 21, 1996, Worldwide News, page eight
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