From James and Shirley Henderson
By James Henderson
LAGOS, Nigeria--Greetings from Lagos. This is an important time here--the peaceful transition, it is hoped, from military rule to civilian government.
Much could be said about Africa. God is doing so much through our fellowship. I wish I could take each of you on a tour with me to visit our churches scattered over this vast continent. I think you would love it, and you would celebrate how God is working in our midst.
As I cannot take all of you with me, I thought I would share with you a summary of my May diary. Perhaps you can get a flavor of the exciting things that are happening with your African brethren.
We have only one mission statement for Africa--simply to preach Christ crucified. Within that we have two priorities--to strengthen our existing congregations so they can be released to preach Jesus in their nations; and to explore new mission fields for the gospel. So here goes the diary bit....
Cold--winter beginning. South African council meetings at my home. Talks revolve around member input for the new constitution, the need for ministerial development and plans for the rest of year.
Bob Klynsmith, pastor of the Cape Town, South Africa, congregations, reports on ideas about church planting and discussion about a church planter's proposal to place two new churches under WCG pastoral care.
Moderate and pleasant. Meetings with ministers and leaders; sermon in Nairobi.
Discussions revolve around evangelism, the small is beautiful approach. John Amadala, pastor for Western Kenya, tells of continued growth of new groups, particularly of a large group in the Lodwar area, toward Lake Turkana.
Plans formulated for women's ministry conference in August, which would involve Uganda as well as all of Kenya.
Seasonal monsoon. Visit with small group of members. They want to become the nucleus of a mission, and we discuss with a lawyer possible registration to that end. Baptized Brian Chiang-Ty-Seng.
I rang Carlos Tavares, director of WCG mission in Portuguese. Carlos is concerned about the worsening situation in Angola and about the plight of Angolan refugees in northern Namibia.
Mentioned to him that our church in Malawi has contacted the leaders of two Portuguese speaking groups in Mozambique. (The Malawi members work with indigenous languages, and translated the Statement of Beliefs into Chikewa, one of Malawi's main languages).
Hot and humid. Pentecost weekend. Eleven hours through Nairobi to Douala, dropping off bulk copies of latest African Worldwide News for East Africa en route.
Ordained four new Cameroon ministers--now five ministers, one for each established congregation.
Visited group in Limbe near the volcanic explosion of Mt. Cameroon--lava on the road. Two hour question and answer sessions and sermons in each of four locations--Limbe, Douala, Yaounde and Makak.
Main discussions center on attitudes to polygamy and women in Africa. Jean-Jacques Ndoudoumou, president of church in Cameroon, gives updates of developments involving "Le Tam-Tam," their locally produced WCG radio program, which is widely broadcast there.
Some people who have heard the radio broadcast have been baptized. Interest has been shown from as far afield as Equatorial Guinea and Gabon. Members singing and dancing wherever I go.
Also visited the water project donated by a member of the Lyons, France, congregation to the rural Makak congregation--the laying of a water pipe to the village so members can sell water to the community.
Unfortunately the water authorities have ceased temporarily to supply water to the pipe for technical reasons.
Hot, hot, hot! After nine-hour delay at Douala airport, plane eventually arrives at Cotonou two hours ahead of schedule because of re-routing!
Discussed approaches with Atsu Dravie, resident pastor for Burkina Faso, Benin and Togo, to the bad press about the church in the adjacent country of Togo.
Visited our new mission in the Torris language in the village of Lotin-Gbedjehouin (try saying that quickly!) where each week about 50 people gather under a tree for services.
This mission began by the efforts of Gabriel Mbabou, who through his personal evangelism gathered the group together. They are trying to raise US$350 to build a hall in a field.
Atsu Dravie and I ordained Arthur Adjibodou to minister to this mission and to the Porto-Novo congregation. We commissioned a pastoral team to take care of the Cotonou church.
Heat and rain. Gabriel Ojih, area pastor for West Africa, flies from Ghana for meeting. Gabriel tells of Ghana church's funding of a missionary couple, Francis and Margaret Ablordeppey, into the Ewe-speaking area of Hohoe for six months.
Their short-term mission is to train leaders and to build pastoral structures within the six groups we have there. Shortly after their arrival, they were asked by their landlady to lead worship and devotions three times a week for a school of 50 seamstresses who have rented the first floor of the house where they live. So now they are working with seven groups.
In Lagos, two days of sermons and meetings ending in a communion service with the leaders. Ordained Michael Fatokun to minister to the Agege congregation.
Lively worship sessions. Leadership meetings include afternoon questions and answers on new covenant teachings, and a discussion on the vision for the church in Nigeria in 2005 and ideas on how to get from here to there.
Too cold! Greet kids. Pat dog. Kiss wife. Sleep!
MALAWI--Statement of Beliefs in
Chikewa language.
SEYCHELLES--Brian
Chiang-Ty-Seng, newest
baptized member.
CAMEROON--Jean-Jacques Ndoudoumou
(center) with the four newly ordained men in the
Cameroon, from left: Francois Ongba, Nbarga Mengue,
Mr. Ndoudoumou, Jean Mvondo and Victor Balinga.
BENIN--Some of the Lotin-Gbedjehouin group
underneath the tree where they worship each week.
CAMEROON--Lucy Wole points to gases steaming from the crusting lava from the
eruption of volcanic Mt. Cameroon.
CAMEROON--La Borne Fontaine water
project in rural Makak.
BENIN--Gabriel Mbabou (right) in front of field where
the new Benin group hopes to build a hall for our WCG
Torris language mission.
Copyright © Worldwide Church of God, 1999