The Hand Of Our God Has Been Favorable To Us...

There are several reports this week to read, so I will not labor long over other events from the previous week. However, I do want to mention the powerful weekend at the annual Bear Valley Bible Institute staff retreat. The theme of the weekend was The Hand Of Our God Has Been Favorable To Us based on the text of Nehemiah 2:18. The lessons provided an encouraging foundation of how God has blessed His work through the Bear Valley Bible Institute. Another lesson focused on and challenged us to Rise Up and Build and the weekend concluded with a lesson encouraging a call to action, Put Our Hands To The Good Work.

Over the weekend the staff from the Bible Institute in Denver, along with the various staff within the Extension Program came together for a few days to focus on the past year’s progress within the various schools where Bear Valley is privileged to work with some of the greatest men on earth. The event included the wives of these staff members and just over 50 were able to share in the wonderful experience. 

While we enjoyed the various reports and lessons, the weekend also gives us an opportunity to take an afternoon to discuss several areas dealing with how we can improve the overall approach and work of the Bible Institute and Extension Program. The “brain storming” was encouraging as ideas were considered to help improve the structure of the organization and approach to each of the schools and works implemented by graduates.

One final thought about the retreat is worth mentioning. These few days together provide a great forum for each staff member to develop a greater relationship with others who are involved in the overall work. Four new couples were able to attend who are connected in one way or another to the Extension Program. The mutual love for the Lord and His work could not help but be seen in the lives of everyone who attended. We laughed together, cried together, prayed and sang together, all to the glory of our great and awesome God!

We all look forward to this time and next year’s theme already has us anticipating next year.

Now on to the other reports...

Coordinator Updates
Reports from the coordinators are now located on the website, under Staff Reports. The address is /extension-schools/

The most recent news from Steven Ashcraft about the work in West Africa can be found by clicking here.

Extension Reports 

Short Courses Set To Begin In Cameroon: Short course instructors have arrived and are ready to begin their classes. The work began with preaching for the local congregation.

A New Class Begins In Cambodia: Excitement is high as a new class of nine students begin their preparations in the word of God in Siem Reap.

Church Updates Show Progress: With all the challenges in Chimala, various updates from the local congregations continue to show progress.

Committee Planning The School In Paraguay: The diligence of the church in Paraguay is preparing for next year’s first class in the Theological Academy of Paraguay.

Students Preaching Out In Uganda: As the students gain confidence in their training the fruit of their labors among local congregations is being seen.

Two Arrive And One Leaves The Work In Arusha: The powerful nature of the work in Arusha is found in the number of those who love to visit and share in the great work.

A Census and A “Do-Over” In Tanzania: A recent census in Arusha, Tanzania had the Gee family thinking TIA, but there is also incredible news to read. 

Final Thoughts
First, I would like to thank all the men and women who traveled to Denver to share in the retreat. There is no doubt in my mind everyone came away from the retreat uplifted about the ways God has blessed us in this work. Second, I want to thank all of you who read the report and continue praying for the development of training preachers around the world. Third, I want to express appreciation to each individual and congregation who has a vision for Extension Training. Your vision for the work is demonstrated in the sacrifices you make to help the financial needs of the work. So much is being done and there is so much to do, but thanks to everyone who is part of this team effort, God is blessing our work to His glory.

God bless
Bob

A Census And A "Do-Over" In Tanzania...

Dear Fellow Workers,

QUOTE OF THE WEEK: "One man with courage makes a majority." --Andrew Jackson 

"BLESSED BE THE DEAD WHO DIE IN THE LORD...so that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow with them." (Rev. 14:13) Elizabeth McCutchen, whom we became acquainted with at Zachary Church of Christ in Zachary, LA passed from this life yesterday. She was one of the nicest people we have ever known. Elizabeth and her sister, Maxine, were quiet a pair and we enjoyed many laughs with them! As a strong and generous supporter of our TZ work, Elizabeth was an encourager and quietly did her good deeds. We know her family will remember her with joy and she will be missed greatly. 

NO HURRY IN AFRICA: Last Sunday we returned home quickly to await the census takers (in Swahili, the "sensa"). About 5 pm, a "sensa" worker asked us to remain at home tomorrow morning (Monday) until 8 am until the person came to count us. Two days later, on Wednesday, a census worker arrived and recorded our names, ages and our country of origin. A few days later someone else from the census office came, not knowing we had already been counted. At the risk of sounding cynical, we don't expect this census to be real accurate. 

LET'S SCRATCH IT AND START ALL OVER AGAIN: Another government issue concerns the residency permits.  All resident permits have been cancelled and everyone is being asked to reapply all over again and turn in all new documents. Can anyone spell F-U-N?  ha/ha 

NEW CONVERTS CLASS: Approximately 15 people listened as Jimmy taught concerning the memorization of Scripture as a help to have the Bible in our minds. Two new converts (Rehema and Nice), along with their families, will be moving this week to Kikatiti (near Usa River) to work on a farm. Lindsey and Abigail are especially disappointed these two young girls (early twenties, this is young in TZ) are leaving our neighborhood. However, jobs in Kisongo are scarce and people must eat. Jimmy has already looked into getting them in communication with the local congregation.

NO TRANSLATER, NO CLASS: Paulina's mother, recovering from eye surgery, became very sick last night and Paulina was not able to be at services today and translate for Trina. Lord willing, the Ladies class will resume studying Genesis next Sunday when Paulina returns. The ladies joined the men's class where Ahimidiwe continued his study of the book of Acts (and also preached). Stuart counted 99 in worship today.

KISONGO BIBLE SCHOOL begins the 2nd quarter tomorrow. Classes offered will be "Introduction to the Bible, Part II" (taught by Jimmy), "The book of Job," "Matthew," "Bible Geography," "Reading and Writing Swahili" and "English." Because flyers were posted around town advertising the English class, a lady came inquiring about them and stayed for Bible class today.

KENYA SCHOOL OF PREACHING: Forgive us if this sounds weird, but the TZ 2000 Mission Work reminds us of an old horror movie called "The Blob" (maybe an episode of "The Twilight Zone") which was viewed when young (keep reading before you cancel your support ...ha/ha). If you saw the movie you will recall this big rubbery-liquid black "blob" going all through town growing bigger and bigger as it traveled, affecting everyone in its path. No one could control it or stop it because it had a mind of its own. The bigger it became, the more powerful it was. In a strange sort of way, we see similarities to the growth of the TZ 2000 Mission Work here in East Africa! It is exciting news that, sponsored by the Charlotte Avenue church of Christ in Rock Hill, SC, the Kenya School of Preaching is scheduled to open its doors in October! This school is the result of the efforts of Bear Valley Bible Institute, Mike Reese, Keith Kasarjian and the Charlotte Avenue elders. Charles Ogutu, valedictorian graduate of the ACSOP class of 2007, will be the director of this school. And, almost all instructors scheduled to teach are ACSOP graduates. We believe we can safely claim that this type of growth was beyond anyone's expectations. To God be the glory that a graduate would help establish a preaching school in another country so soon after graduation.

ACSOP STUDENT SPOTLIGHT: Isaac Richard Mwangonde, a Master's student, is married to a Christian, and has three girls. After growing up in a Presbyterian family with an alcoholic, polygmous father, Isaac was honored as the valedictorian when he graduated with his B.A. several years ago. While his home congregation is in Mbeya (southern TZ), he preaches about 60 km from there at a new church plant consisting of two members. Isaac was taught the Gospel in Malawi during his secondary schooling when a member of the church visited and distributed tracts. This church member was also allowed to teach Bible to the students. Isaac was baptized in September of 1985. "Greek" was his favorite undergraduate course and "Criticism of the Old and New Testaments" were his favorite post-graduate classes. Isaac loves the ACSOP library facilities.

LET NO ONE DESPISE THY YOUTH: Lindsey and Abigail recently left to conduct their regular Sunday studies at the homes of Grace and Nice today. As their mother, Trina is more than thrilled at their maturity and love of lost souls at such a young age. All four older girls also enjoy preparing meals for new mothers or people with sickness in their families (and had occasion to do so twice this past week). Speaking of Nice, a former Muslim, she changed her Muslim name to "Nice" when she joined the Pentecostal church. Thankfully, she is a New Testament Christian in the church that Christ purchased (but doesn't need to change her name again).

KARIBU (welcome) ... to Adam Miller (returning worker) and newcomer Scott Baggett who arrived this past week! They have been doing campaign follow-up work in Kwa Mrombo. Today they worshipped in Moshi where they will work for the rest of the week. We appreciate their hard work and dedication to the church in Tanzania.

THE ANNUAL TANZANIA LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE is scheduled for October of this year. The Bible character/topic assigned to Trina was "Abigail" and her contribution to the Kingdom. She is looking forward to learning more about her through study and teaching the ladies about her life and characteristics so we may emulate her strength and courage. 

"May the Lord of peace Himself continually grant you peace in every circumstance. The Lord be with you all!"  2 Thess. 3:16. Thank you for your support! 

In Christian Love, 
The Jimmy Gee family

Two Arrive And One Leaves The Work In Arusha...

Greetings Fellow Workers,

We continue in prayer on your behalf, trusting the Lord is blessing you as you bless the lives of others. We thank you for your prayers on our behalf. God is answering in a grand way.

Today was a special day in the fact we were blessed with the opportunity to worship with our brother and sisters in Christ at Moshi. Adam Miller taught a powerful lesson from the book of Titus and Scott Baggett preached a lesson that drew our attention to the love of God, the great sacrifice of Christ and our need for salvation found only in Christ.

Adam and Scott worked with our brother Charles Heberth at Kwa Mrombo Friday and Saturday. One soul was restored and another added to the Church by our Lord. We are blessed beyond measure by such men who come and partner with us in the “seeking and saving of the lost.” Adam and Scott will work with Josephat and others in Moshi this week. Please remember them and their efforts in your daily prayers this week.

I received a short note from our brother Gasper today sharing the good news of one soul being added to the Kingdom at the new church plant at Kamba ya Chui. God continues to give the increase as His faithful servants continue to serve Him. We are indeed grateful for the privilege we are so richly blessed with, being able to work with such godly men.

One such man is David Bayi, the evangelist working with the Kioga congregation. When David was a student at the Andrew Connally School of Preaching the need for a new church plant was presented to the class. He volunteered to walk up Mt. Meru three miles every Sunday and Wednesday was in school and continues today. This congregation began meeting in a small 6 X 8 foot goat shed and today is a congregation of over 100 souls. Yes, with God all things are possible.

Please remember David in your prayers, he is battling malaria and typhoid and is very ill.

We also ask that you remember Caitlin Middleton in your prayers as she begins her journey home tomorrow after a three month stay here in TZ. She was very active, doing much good while here. Several have obeyed the Gospel through her teachings and many more have been touched by her efforts. We say thank you to her parents for “a job well done.” May our Lord bless His Church with many more young people like our sister Caitlin, a “doer of the Word.”

In closing, please remember Stephanie, Granny and I as we travel to Nairobi to take Caitlin to the airport, and for me to meet with 18 evangelist from the Nairobi area. My purpose will be to meet and get to know these fellow workers and to share with them the good being done at the ACSOP. As we continue in our recruiting of faithful men, training them in the Word, and sending them out to be God’s instruments for the good, so that East Africa and the world,  have hope!

In Him, Cy, Stephanie, Granny & Caitlin

Students Preaching Out In Uganda...

Dear brethren,

It has been a good day here in Busia. The Lord is continuing to bless us. The Uganda School of Evangelism will be ending its long course on the 20th of September 2012.  The churches here where our students visit have started picking up and there is hope of growth. 

Joel Kizoto and Edwin Mang'eni are now riding their bikes from school to Bukalikha church of Christ and many people who had stopped attending church service are now coming. Andrew Wanyama is now going to Haboomi and they have reported that the church have grown from 10 to 14 attendance. John Macho, our graduate from Kenya, is working with Genguluho church of Christ in Namayingo District and the attendance there has also grown from 11 people to 18 attending every Sunday. Ema and Edith are also reporting that the Namungodi church of Christ has also started having some restorations. 

We need your prayers so that these brethren may have places of worship. May the Lord bless you all as you serve Him. 

Yours
Francis, Margaret, Paul, Susan and Edith Mawa Wechesa

Committee Planning The School In Paraguay...

Good morning brethren! 

I pray this finds all of you in the grace and peace of our Father.

It brings me great joy this morning to provide you with an update to the development of the Bible school here in Paraguay. The men of the congregation have appointed a committee that meets twice a week to work out the development of the school. For the past several weeks, they have prayed, labored in thought, and discussed in great detail as to what the mission statement of the school should be. They want it to be very clear, Biblical, and concise in order to properly develop all other aspects of the school. Last night, they decided on the following mission statement:

"Nutrir el corazon de hermanos fieles con las palabras de la fe y la buena doctrina, en amor, para que sean capaces de cumplir con el mandato de nuestro Señor Jesucristo" (Mateo 28:19,20 y 1 Timoteo 4:6).

Translated directly: "Nurturing the heart of faithful brethren with words of the faith and the good doctrine, in love, so that they may be capable to fulfill the mandate of our Lord Jesus Christ" (Mt. 28:19-20; 1 Tim. 4:6).

They believe this transmits the proper idea that they want to accomplish within the school. I, personally, am very pleased with the focus they have and with maturity they have exhibited in developing this mission statement. They simply want to be pleasing to the Lord, actively working in His kingdom, but not go outside the boundaries of His commandments. What a great understanding!

In addition to this great news, I also want to inform you that the elders at Palm Beach Lakes church of Christ in West Palm Beach, FL have agreed to be what we call, the "Stateside Financial Administrators" for the school. They have agreed to the commitment of being involved in this work of the church in Paraguay by simply maintaining stateside contributions, regular communication with the church, and traveling to Paraguay at times in order to assist. Another great blessing!

Things are coming together, brethren! Most importantly, the Paraguayans themselves are developing this school in the form that they desire. To God be the glory! 

Have a blessed day!
Troy Spradlin

Church Updates Show Progress...

Let's Start Talking Party
As you know, we have a group here from the Let's Start Talking program. The group comes from Texas. They teach English using the Bible. They recently had a 'party' for their readers. Anna was a leader at the party leading the activity, "Hokey Pokey." Of course, none of the Africans had ever done the hokey pokey. It was quite fun to watch.

We have received word that our shipping container has arrived in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania off the ship and awaiting all of the final approval of paperwork. We are hoping to have our container on Monday of next week. We are praying that our house gets finished painted before our furniture arrives.

Area Churches of Christ Update
Lyambogo Church of Christ got new benches. They had some but they number of local kids filled all of the benches. It is good to have extra room to fill those benches! 

We visited the Mbuyuni Church of Christ on Sunday Morning. We took along with us Don and Sue Logsdon, the LST group, and our family. So, when we all got there, we filled the building with 'mzungus' and natives! 

The Gospel Meeting at the Tukuyu Church of Christ resulted in five baptisms. 

The Gospel Chariot was in Ubaruku this past week with lessons each day on the Church of Christ. I visited the meeting on Friday. While there were many people there at the meeting, there was many more out a ways from the actual meeting. They could hear easily because the truck carries loud speakers so there was quite a crowd. I am also proud of all of the area congregations which came together all week to support the meeting in Ubaruku. There was one baptism on Friday. There were several people who signed up for Bible Studies.

We attended the Mission Church of Christ yesterday. 

Secondary School Update
In March of this year, the secondary school at the mission suffered a serious blow when fire took a large portion of the school girl's dormitory. There were no injuries, but the dorm was seriously damaged. We have worked diligently to restore the building to be able to house students again.  You can see the updated pictures in our report site. The bunk beds are currently being built and are scheduled to be completed by the time the secondary school girls return to school on September 9.

The primary and secondary school is currently on school break for a national census where everyone is to return to their homes to be counted. 

Wagner Family Update
We are settling into our lives here in Chimala fairly well. We are suffering some 'cultural stresses' due to the differences we experience here, but all-in-all, things are going well. Jonah has discovered a new natural talent for science!

A few of us went to Matema Beach on Saturday with the LST group. I have traveled to several places and I think that the drive south from Mbeya to the Malawi border is one of the best in the world. The road down to the Malawi border was nice, but when we turned off the road to head to the beach - the road was ROUGH! We had a few obstacles as well.

When we finally arrived, the beach was fantastic. Lake Malawi is a large inland lake which has fresh water. This is the lake which is the point of contention between Malawi and Tanzania. Tanzania claim half of the lake, but Malawi claims the entire lake. The problem arose when they discovered oil and gas under the lake. The question became - who owns the resources? There was discussion of war between the two countries, but both country's leaders have assured everyone that there will be nothing like that.  

The beach itself is fantastic. There were a few tourists there but it was mostly open. We had lunch at the Lutheran Mission center at Matema Beach. We ate chicken and chips. There is also a large problem at the front gate of the mission. I'm just glad it's not our container!

Chad Wagner 

To see the report with pictures included, please click here.

A New Class Begins In Cambodia...

Greetings from the church in Siem Reap!

I am very happy to write some of my thoughts in here and to be able to know that there are people who cares about this work as much as I do. I appreciate all of you who come by every now and again to see how we are doing here in Siem Reap. 

After graduation, we normally take a month off for students to go home and for the staff to rest for a bit. Our 2012-2014 school year will commence on Sept 3rd. We have 9 new students confirmed as of right now but we expect a few more late comers. We are excited about the upcoming school year and new minds to mold by the word of God. 

Yesterday, I called a leadership meeting to discuss the present and future work of Siem Reap. We had a fruitful 2 hour meeting to revisit our goals and plans to be the example church of the third world country. We are taking small steps to becoming autonomous and I am so glad to be a part of this movement. We want to be the church that's found in the Bible, doing Bible things by Bible ways, and autonomy is one of those things! I am glad to see that we have a core who believe in this and are willing to sacrifice to see it happen. 

We ask that you continue to keep us in your prayers as we strive to be the church that's found in the New Testament! Please come by next month to see our new students and check out our new school's curriculum! See you next time. Below is our teaching schedule for the 1st quarter, you can find the rest at the "school" button on our website.

1ST YEAR 1ST QUARTER
Sept 3rd- Oct 12th
8:00-8:45 How to Study the Bible- Phanat
9:00-9:45 Genesis- Darat
10:00-10:20 Chapel
10:30-11:15 Matthew- Phanat
11:30-12:45 LUNCH
1:00-1:45 Rosetta Stone English Course- Chann
2:00-5:00 Vocational Training/Volunteer/Work/School 

Oct 15th- Nov 23rd
8:00-8:45 How We Got the Bible- Phanat
9:00-9:45 Exodus-Darat
10:00-10: 20 Chapel
10:30-11:15 Mark-Darat
11:30-12:45 LUNCH
1:00-1:45 Rosetta Stone English Course- Chann
2:00-5:00 Vocational Training/Volunteer/Work/School 

Phanat

Short Courses Set To Begin In Cameroon...

Dearest in Christ,

Accept greetings from the staff, students and members of the Wotutu congregation. How are you all? We do hope you are doing great in all that you do for the Lord. We are doing great here and rain is still on here seriously.

The students of CBIW finished their long courses exams without any problem. They are set for the short courses starting this week and will take them two weeks as they will just transit to their campaign in 17 different villages and one among those villages will be for a new work to start. Please keep that vision in your prayers.

God answered our prayers as we prayed for the safe arrival of our short course instructors. Minister Brandon Michael Watson from Greenville, Texas, is a youth and family minister in his congregation. Keep him in your prayers for this is his first time to come over to Africa. He was taught during our adult Bible class today.

We also appreciate God for taking some students out for weekend evangelism and their safe return on campus, getting ready to start their short courses tomorrow.

Minister Robert Prater, a long time missionary in the African continent, but based now in Germany, came to teach in CBIW the book of Hebrews. We shall benefit lots from his experiences in the field for years. Keep him in your prayers to be safe, healthy and to accomplish his mission here.

Brother Prater preached for the Wotutu congregation during our Sunday worship. His sermon “Making Your Calling Worthy” was great as 7 first time visitors benefited.

As the youth and family minister in his home congregation, the children in our congregation naturally saw that spirit in Brandon. Without being told many of them jumped up to his body after worship as it is part of our practices to always greet one another and embrace them at the end of our worship.

The young congregation in Mbanga is moving ahead as the young converts (7 of them) received a copy of the Bible both in French and English, but this is a French speaking community. Keep the work in your prayers so that as we continue to penetrate the hearts of many with the saving message.

Plans
1) Keep the students in your prayers as the start short courses tomorrow.

2) Keep the village of Menji in Lebialem division as we plan to take the gospel there. It will be the first time the church of Christ will be there to preach. It is a vast community, that if we succeed to establish a congregation there, then the gospel will spread like wild fire to the other communities.

3) The Batoke work is still on the pipe line. Keep it in your prayers.

Appreciations
Many thanks to God for using us the way that fits Him to accomplish His work here in Cameroon. Our sincere thanks goes to you for your great prayers and support to make this work. Thanks and God bless your endeavors in life through this week and always. Do your best to share this report with others around you. God bless you as you do so.

Elangwe and family
By His grace Director CBIW

Extension Schools Are Growing The Kingdom...

A number of reports this week share information about the current efforts of training men to preach around the world. A few of them discuss recent campaign work where a number of souls obeyed the gospel. The news is so exciting as men who are trained in their own language go out and teach the gospel to their own people. As the program continues to grow, more souls will be touched with the power of the good news.

We serve an incredible God. I wish sometimes there was enough space to share the ways He has blessed the lives of each individual within the Extension program, or even personally. However, space and time would not permit. Suffice it to say the news we could all share is worthy of the joy God has given to us through His son, Jesus.

Classes continue to go well in Denver as the new class of 13 students make their way through their first quarter of studies. They are doing well and it is exciting to have an opportunity to share in teaching them about God’s word. They are a very mature group of students and seem to have a drive to learn and prepare themselves to take the gospel to the lost.

This week nearly all the extension staff, along with the staff in Denver, will come together for the weekend to discuss the past year of work in the Extension program and the Denver campus, as well talk about plans for the future. We hope to examine areas where we need to be working to improve and develop a greater approach. We will discuss the various problems that exist and how we are going to address these areas. At the same time, we will dream about the future and what God will do through us as we seek to please Him.

Please pray for all who will be traveling and the purpose for which we are coming together. May God be glorified through the work being done. 

Now on to the other reports...

Coordinator Updates
Reports from the coordinators are now located on the website, under Staff Reports. The address is /extension-schools/

Extension Reports 

Students Prepare For Final Exams In Cameroon: Another quarter draws to an end and students are about to take their final exams. Short courses will begin the following week.

Graduation And The Future In Cambodia: The second class of students recently graduated in Cambodia. As they enter the field to work the future looks bright.

Campaigns Helping The Work Grow In Togo: A recent campaign near Kpalime, Togo shows how successful the work is for the students at the Center For Biblical Studies.

Student Involvement Produces Fruit In Honduras: The students in Danli, Honduras are showing the fruit of their labors in reaching the lost.

East Africa Gospel Meeting Is Fruitful: A number of congregations came together for a powerful Gospel meeting and 12 obeyed the gospel. 

An Hour A Day...Keeps The Devil Away: How important is studying the Bible? This week’s report from the Gee family explains, along with much more news from Tanzania. 

Final Thoughts
Thank you all for the generosity and sacrifice you are willing to make for the development of this work. There is much work ahead, but we know our God is great and He will bless our efforts for the cause of Christ. In fact, He already has through each of you. You are truly a blessing to my life and the lives of so many others on this earth. Somehow it just seems heaven will be a little sweeter because of the souls who will be there as a result of your efforts.

God bless
Bob

East Africa Gospel Meeting Is Fruitful...

Dear brethren,

We have not sent this report on time because we were away from Busia as from 6th August 2012 to 15th August, and when we came back we had some problem with power at our home in Busia. 

East Africa Gospel meeting was held in Mwanza. When we were planning to leave for Mwanza, brother Mose Orora a preacher of the church of Christ died on 4th August and was supposed to be buried on 7th August. Moses was a member of Babadogo church of Christ in Nairobi before he joined East Africa School of Biblical Studies in Kampala where he graduated in 2010. From School he decided to go back to his village in Kisii, Kenya and planted a congregation. The congregation was still very young and he was the only person with a Biblical education and for that reason his burial could be taken over by the friendly denominations which would give a bad image for the gospel of our Lord and his church. We requested his family to hold on his burial until we finish the Mwanza gospel meeting so that the team from Nairobi and Uganda would help with the burial. They agreed with us and his body taken to the mortuary until 13th August and we went and buried him on 14th August. 

The meeting in Mwanza went very well. 23 congregations attended from Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Congo. In the morning after breakfast we went in groups of 3 to 4 people house to house. The total people who attended were 60 in number. After lunch we went for the seminar in the church building that is from 2 to 4:30 daily and then went outside in the church compound to preach using public address system for whoever could hear. I was the one preaching for four days, from Wednesday to Saturday. 12 people were baptized during these days and many will be, as brother Kusupa Isack and Elias are doing the follow up. 

The next gospel meeting will be in Nyahururu, Kenya on the 12th August 2013 God willing. We pray that more people attend. Continue praying for us so that the gospel meeting continues to be there until Jesus comes again. 

Yours
Francis, Margaret, Paul, Susan and Edith Mawa Wechesa

Students Prepare For Final Exams In Cameroon...

Dearest in Christ,

Accept greetings from the staff, students and members of the Wotutu congregation. We do hope you, your family and the entire church is fine.

The past week in CBIW went on well and God is blessing our efforts to prepare men to preach the saving message and also to evangelize our world to win souls for His kingdom.

One of our students, Eddie Samuel, was happy to exhort a brother who came to the campus to ask question after listening to our Back to the Bible early morning program.

Brother Napoleon obeyed the gospel in Wotutu congregation. For the past weeks we are witnessing lots of obedience from the young class of people. We pray these young people will penetrate their respective families with the truth and many will obey.

This weekend students went out to young congregations for nurturing. They all return with pleasant news about the growth of the work. The youngest congregation in Mbanga keeps experiencing growth as many will open their doors in that community to listen and ask reasonable questions about their beliefs.

The long courses are coming to an end as we start writing the third quarter exams tomorrow. Keep the students in your prayers.

Through the Wotutu congregation, the leaders and the staff of CBIW started the distribution of the Teacher’s Bible in Cameroon. This is a project of brother Roger Dickson in the Africa International Mission based in South Africa. The distribution goes to only preachers of the gospel and many do appreciate the great work that the brother has accomplished.

Next week Monday, the 3rd of September, all schools in Cameroon will resume. This period is the most difficult period in Cameroon as parents are struggling to see how their children will go back to school. The orphans in our congregation and the underprivileged keep their eyes on God again this year for help if they must go back to school. 

Plans
1) We shall welcome two short courses instructors this week, one from Germany a long standing missionary in Europe and Africa, brother Prater, and brother Watson, from the USA, who are coming to help train men to preach the gospel. Keep them in your prayers for safe travels.

2) We are preparing to carry out another campaign with few students to a virgin area in Lebialem division, which is a big town and the heart of Roman Catholic denomination. The gospel is for all, so keep us in your prayers as we make plans to exploit and expose the kingdom of darkness.

3) After the short courses we shall send out students to 17 different villages for campaign.

Appreciations
We thank God for helping us with all our endeavors and also you for availing yourself for God to use you as part of our work here. God bless you and watch over you.

Do your best to share this news with others.

Elangwe and family
By His grace director CBIW

Graduation And The Future In Cambodia...

Dear Brethren,

I am excited to inform you of our recent events happening in Siem Reap. We had our 2nd IBISR's Graduation for the class of 2010-2012, with our stateside coordinator Wes Autrey as our guest speaker for the event. It was a successful graduation and the students enjoyed the charged that they've received from brother Wes. 

We appreciate all the support from our brethren overseas in helping us to become autonomous. We thank God for your love and generosity and faith in us. Of the 8 graduates, 5 of our men will go out and serve God in their respective areas. Pheap and Hokly will work in the Tonle Sap area in the floating village, while Sam and Reaksa will go to Bos Krolanh village and start a new work there. Lon will head back to his home village of Takam and be the full time minister there. We look forward to seeing these graduates produce good fruits for the Lord in their labor. We ask that you keep them in your prayers as they embark on their journey ahead. 

The class of 2010-2012 is special in the sense that none of these men will receive support from overseas. We are implementing our plan of becoming self supportive as soon as possible and these will be the first ones. The local church here will help support these men along with their own hands finding other sources of income part time. Please remember them in your prayers as they will be faced with many temptations concerning their income and livelihood. 

Phanat

Please click here to see pictures of the graduation and students.

Campaigns Helping The Work Grow In Togo...

Steven and Willie left Accra on Saturday, the 11th of August and returned on Tuesday the 14th of August. The objective of the trip was to deliver a new copier to CBS, worship with the Nyiveme church of Christ and to discuss the needs of CBS. During our visit we had the opportunity to teach the Bible class and preach. 

Denominational Preacher forced to resign
Piere, a couple of weeks ago was preaching for a denominational church in Avetonu, near Kpalime. He heard of the teachings of the Church of Christ and decided to investigate. Upon visiting the church, he was handed a tract which addressed the issue of the differences between the Old Testament and the New Testament. After carefully studying the tract, he decided to teach his congregation, and this was the beginning of his predicament. He was accused of teaching a false doctrine and subsequently summoned to appear before the council of elders and the founder of the Church. As a result of the incident, he was asked stop preaching. On my recent trip, I met Piere when he came to worship with the Nyiveme congregation. Cephas is seriously teaching him the way more perfectly. Lets continue to pray for Piere Kanyika.

CBS News
Students and staff of CBS conducted a two day door knocking exercise at Kpadape near Kpalime. There were 11 preachers who participated in this outreach program. Several tracts were distributed and many contacts made. As a result of the exercise a family is visiting and engaged in studies. David is making all efforts to reach out to all the contacts in Kpadape. The future of the church looks very bright. All they need is permanent place of worship. Two men were baptized recently.

Brethren are considering starting a new work in s village called Atiyi. Initial contact has been made and the village chief has offered a place for the church to build a meeting place. 

The Nyiveme church now has a membership of 43. The congregation is involved in home bible studies with a couple of prospects. 

The radio program has continued with Cephas and Jean doing the preaching. Several continue to make contact and extend an invitation to the Church of Christ to plant a congregation in their villages. Truly, the brethren have more than they can handle now. God is using the radio program to reach many.

CBS Interview
The interview date was on the 17th of August. I arrived in Kpalime at about 10 pm on Tuesday the 16th.  The interview started at 9 am with entrance exams in the French language and later a couple of Bible questions were presented to test their Bible knowledge. 

There were 22 persons present but only 17 passed the exam and interview. Three brethren will be added later to bring the number to 20.  

Out of the 20 who will start classes in September eight (8) are from the church of Christ and 12 are denominational “pastors” and leaders. If we can’t get them to sit and listen to the truth preached to them, we have devised this strategy to teach them in our classroom.  We are using CBS as evangelism too. Our track record shows that this has worked twice. Our goal is to convert all of them by the end of the first year. The interview ended at about 6:30 pm.

Beme campaign for Christ
Seventeen (17) left Kpalime on Friday morning at 9:30 am for Kpele Beme. The campaign was scheduled to begin on the 19th of August and end on the 21st. We used my car to convey the PA system and some of the preachers. The preachers who had bikes used them to convey other preachers. We arrived there in about an hour, and quickly had to visit one of the elderly men in the Beme congregation, who led us to greet the chief. After that, we paired and went into the town to conduct Bible studies.  

There were 154 contacts during the two days of personal work from house to house and in the market places. There was public preaching each night. During worship on Sunday, there were a few visitors among whom one was baptized. The church now has several prospects to keep the preacher and members busy till the end of the year.

I did the preaching that morning using Romans 8:28 to encourage both Christians and visitors.  Since the Beme congregation does not have a meeting place and were using someone’s living room, we decided to rent a canopy. Provision was made to provide two meals each day during the campaign.

CBS re-opens on 12^th September
We have decided to start 2011-2012 academic years on the 12th of September. We are grateful to the Gabriel Oaks Church of Christ for their commitment to the process of training these men to preach the gospel of Christ. In spite of the financial crisis worldwide, they have remained committed, and for these we are thankful. 

Willie Gley

Student Involvement Produces Fruit In Honduras...

The following report is from Neri Irias. He shares news from each of the students who are preparing themselves for the work. 

Enrique Figueroa
I am collaborating in the church in Coyolar where the opportunity is afforded me to preach the days of assembly. Together, with the preacher, we are working hard in evangelism and have baptized this month five people, the names of whom are:

Edin Rafael Rodriguez

Felicia Danubia Vazques

Rixy Hernandez

Justa Rufina Chacon

Geferson Chacon

All these were baptized July 23. We are studying with nine people. We are teaching them about baptism now that they wish to know more about this theme so as to obey the Gospel. We ask your prayers for our new brethren and for the contacts that we have so that they can obey the truth. God bless.  

Jose Cruz Lopez
During this month I was assigned to work with the youth of the church together with brother Hector (Viera - djb). We are meeting every Friday. We invite the other youth to the youth meetings. Also I was assigned themes to preach. The themes are related to the church and its work. Also, I am going out to do evangelism each Saturday from 9:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. Sundays I participate in different things, whether it be leading singing, preaching, leading prayer, directing the communion service or collecting the offering.  The brethren keep me active in the work of the church. Also, together with a brother, we are visiting a sister that was baptized last month, but who has not attended the assemblies and this even though the church has visited her and other brethren, as well. The problem is that her mother exerts influence over her and does not permit her to go to the assemblies, but we are working on this. Sundays in the afternoon, together with brother Nery, or other brethren, we go to visit the brethren who are sick, for prayer and they also participate in the communion. 

Jose Antonio Caceres
God bless you all, brethren. I appreciate your help and the opportunity that you give me to be able to study at IBH. I am very happy with all that I have learned and am sharing with my brethren of the church. I am helping brother Oscar Morgan (IBH graduate - djb) in the place of Empalme de Trojes. There on Saturdays we go out to evangelize and we have many studies with people. We are following up on some studies, but so far we do not have baptisms since the people of this place are very hard of heart. Sunday I help the brother (Morgan) in the preaching and the songs. Also, we visit the brethren to encourage them and study with them in their homes. 

Gustavo Reyes
Greetings, dear brethren. The first Sunday in the congregation of Cuyalí the opportunity was given to me to direct the first prayer and serve the fruit of the vine. In the afternoon I went together with a brother to visit a sister who is sick to pray for her and encourage her and serve her communion.  

The second Sunday the opportunity was given to me to teach the Sunday class of the children.

The third Sunday I was assigned to lead singing, the first prayer and direct the Lord’s Supper. Later I went to the community of 24th of December of El Paraíso to help brother Porfirio where I preached the theme: Things that Cause Division.  

The next two Sundays I directed the communion and the songs. Also, I went to visit the sick brethren that could not assemble to pray and encourage them. The days of the week I cannot assemble since by night I go to school to receive classes. God bless.  

Porfirio Gonzales
I am helping the church (congregation) of El Carmen in the assignments that they have given me, collaborating in the preaching. On Sundays in the afternoon I go to the community of 24th of December where there are six brethren and we always have six visitors and five children; in total we assemble 17 on Sunday afternoons. Saturdays I go out to evangelize and have had several studies with people. 

Jairo Irias
May the Lord bless you, brethren. In the church at El Zarzal (where IBH is located - djb) where I am collaborating, we go out each Saturday to do the work of evangelism. I have had some studies with members of the denomination “United Pentecostal Church.” I am studying with a youth over the deity of Jesus and we have clarified certain wrong things that they believe about baptism and the gift of speaking in tongues. We go, also, to visit discouraged brethren with the youth of the church. I have preached some themes related to the church according to the schedule of preaching at the church at El Zarzal. I am visiting the brethren that live in Los Robles and I solicited the help of the congregation so as to be able to there whether on Wednesday or Friday, teaching the brethren and holding meetings in that place.

Neri

An Hour A Day...Keeps The Devil Away!

Dear Supporters, Family, and Friends:

QUOTE OF THE WEEK: "Failure is only the opportunity to begin again more intelligently." -- Henry Ford

THE BEAUTY OF GOD'S CREATION: There are many beautiful things about Africa especially  the landscape and beautiful flowers. To us, beautiful scenery has both a calming and inspirational affect. 

EAST AFRICAN GOSPEL MEETING: Below is an excerpt from Cy Stafford (Director of TZ 2000): ". . . the Gospel is having its way here in East Africa. Sean and I were privileged to travel to Mwanza last week to take part in the East Africa Gospel meeting. On the way we stopped in the city of Babati to meet with eight of the local evangelists to promote the Andrew Connally School of Preaching, encourage them, and . . . challenge them to a greater zeal and work in the Kingdom. Our time at Mwanza was insightful, encouraging, and very edifying. With the presence of 60 evangelists from four different countries, preaching and teaching God’s Power, the results were amazing . . . 12 souls added to the Kingdom. Sean addressed the men of the good being done through the ACSOP (packets of information and applications were left there).  In the southwest part of Kenya... we met Mike Reese and his team who had come to work with the Ahono congregation (sponsoring a youth camp). The last word we received was that over 30 of the 200 plus youth had obeyed the Gospel."

HAPPINESS IS....thinking you have eaten the last jar of Welch's grape jelly (from the states) and finding two more!

ANOTHER BAPTISM . . . but of the canine sort. Abigail asked our guard, Deo, to dip her dog Oliver in some flea medicine. Deo didn't understand the word "dip" so half-jokingly we said "baptize" him because we wanted most of his body immersed. Later Stuart told us that Deo literally DID baptize Oliver, holding his mouth closed and quickly dunking him under (having applied flea medicine on other dogs before, we thought he knew not to get it in Oliver's eyes, nose, or ears.) Abigail is thankful her dog survived.

SERMON ON THE MOUNT: Abigail organized a girls' devotional on Saturday evening on top of a hill not far from our home. Caitlyn Middleton (has been working here for a few months) agreed to speak. Her topic, "Climbing the Hill of Christianity" was very appropriate and well presented to the nine teen-age girls attending. The girls played a couple of games and enjoyed Heather's chocolate oatmeal cookies!

WHY DID THE CHICKEN hide under the coffee table? We don't know but it startled Abigail when she walked in Grace's house for a Bible study last Sunday evening.

AN OUNCE OF PREVENTION is worth a pound of cure! I am seriously considering beginning a "Child Safety and Wellness" course due to the many people who come to us asking for transportation to the clinic for accidents/sickness regarding their children (and other relatives) and asking us to pay the bill. We want to help them (and are sympathetic for their situation) but much could be avoided if preventive care, proper supervision and proper teaching were practiced. 

A DAY IN THE LIFE! If you are not familiar with the phrase "domino effect" please come to Africa so you will understand completely. Awhile back we needed water for a vase of roses.   Since no water was coming from the faucet, we asked the guard to turn on the switch for the pump (so water could be pumped from the ground storage tanks up to the tower tank so water could flow into the house). However, the pump was not working and he did not know how to fix it. He called our main guard (at his house) on the phone. While talking, the phone minutes ran out, so we borrowed Lindsey’s phone. The main guard arrived about 30 minutes later, found the tools and repaired the water pump. In about 20 more minutes there is water coming from the faucets. All of this to simply put some water in a vase! This is a short "domino effect" . . . you may remember another report about the day(s) of the water truck breakdown right in the middle of our open gate, couldn't drive vehicles in or out, finally the water truck was repaired and the water was placed in the tanks. As the large truck was leaving, it struck a low-hanging electrical wire, severing the connection to everything including the water pump so we could not pump up and use the 10,000 liters just purchased and had been waiting on for two days. (ha/ha) We know the "domino effect" happens everywhere but, from experience, it seems to happen more here.

AMERICANS ASK QUESTIONS in a strange way (or maybe it's only us). We will frequently ask an English-speaking Tanzanian a question with a "negative" word in it. For example: Trina may say, "you're not attending school today?" To which they (if they are not attending school today) will answer correctly and say "yes" (meaning, it is true that they are not attending school today). However, we are expecting them to say "no" (meaning they are not attending school today). So around and around we go. Americans would say, "no" and then usually add, "I'm not attending school today" for clarification. If we remember to ask the question without the negative and just say, "Are you attending school today?" then the communication flows much better!

ACSOP NEWS: Sean Hochdorf was sick last week, so Jimmy used Sean's class hours to finish his course on Jeremiah and Lamentations. Therefore, Sean will begin his class on the Minor Prophets this week using Jimmy's class hours to finish his course before the term ends. Cy Stafford continues teaching Personal Evangelism to the second-year students. Each week they have instruction on one day and then, for their class-time the next day they go out and practice what they have learned. The second-year students are scheduled to graduate on November 24.

STUDENT SPOTLIGHT: Gerald Chuchuba, the oldest student in the second year class (67 years old), is a joy to know and is so enthusiastic! Anyone who visits the ACSOP remembers this tall, talkative and friendly man who never meets a stranger. Mr. Chuchuba was educated in Catholic seminaries and was previously employed as the head master of a school. Married, with nine children, he frequently requests prayers that his children will obey the Gospel. Pascal (one of the first two Christians in the Ushirombo area), Yusufu Mdaki and John Hall (former TZ missionary) taught him the Gospel. Mr. Chuchuba says "preaching and bringing lost souls to God has been my zeal since my youth." Having taught many the (true) Gospel, his favorite topic of study at the ACSOP is "evangelism" and he loves "collecting teaching and learning material" in order to build his library. Mr. Chuchuba plans to preach in Ushirombo, Bukombe District in the New Region of Geita, Tanzania after graduating with his BBS degree in November of this year. 

"WE'RE AMOEBA FREE!" With the same enthusiasm as Dave Ramsey's radio show listeners who call in and shout "We're Debt Free," we make this announcement (and hope to remain this way)!

"AN HOUR A DAY...keeps the devil away!" quipped Heather, after our discussion of how just one hour of daily Bible reading can help one build a strong spiritual foundation. The value of a day cannot be underestimated.

WE WELCOMED BACK Ahimidiwe (local preacher at Kisongo) after  three weeks of traveling.   All men and women joined Jimmy's New Convert's class (topic was "The Importance of Bible Reading) this morning because Ahimidiwe was too tired to teach the Men's Class and Paulina wasn't able to translate for the ladies class due to her asthma. Stuart counted 129 in our circle outside where we shake hands!

PRAYERS ANSWERED: Rosemary gave birth to a beautiful baby girl and both are doing fine!

KISONGO BIBLE SCHOOL begins their second quarter on September 3rd (designed for the "person in the pew.") Also, we are happy to report that the men of Kisongo "took the ball and ran" with Jimmy's suggestion that a "Reading and Writing" class be conducted for both members of the church and the community who are illiterate in their own language (Swahili). The aim is to enable church members to read their Bibles and serve as a community outreach program. The teacher is also willing to teach English to any who desire to learn. 

"THE LORD SAID TO MOSES, 'TAKE A CENSUS..." (Num. 4:1) Kisongo church members (including us foreigners) were encouraged to "cooperate with the government" and go home quickly in order to be counted when the "census takers" came. If you are not counted then you must report to the "Ten Cell" leader (man who is over ten houses in the neighborhood) similar to how the Israelite leadership was organized (Exodus 18:21).

LOVE AND APPRECIATION is extended toward every one of you for your dedication to the souls in East Africa. We will end this report with the same closing that Terra Gobble used recently in an encouraging email to us . . .  

Working for Him with You, 
Jimmy, Trina and Family

The Future Of Training Preachers Looks Great...

The new class of students at Bear Valley have completed their second week of studies and they all seem to be doing very well. The beginning of a new quarter with a new class of students is always an exciting time in Denver. I know the same measure of excitement exists in all the Extension Schools as well. There is just something special about training men to preach the gospel of Jesus.

With the start of a new quarter and class in Denver also comes the start of several classes of students around the world. The developments within the Extension Program continue to bring exciting news about the work of training men to preach. 

The Kenya School of Preaching in Kisumu, Kenya will soon begin their first class of 20 students in October. The Liberia Bible College in Monrovia, Liberia is set to begin a new class of 20 students in September. The Southwest School of Evangelism in Ibadan, Nigeria will be completing classes for the current class of students and will begin a new class of 25-30 students over the next month.

As Bear Valley is privileged to partner with these new locations, we are also excited about the continued development of each school where we have opportunity to share in the work of training preachers. With the addition of the new locations, and the prospective enrollment for the Theological Academy of Paraguay in March 2013, there will be close to 350 students around the world who are involved in preparing themselves for ministry in the Lord’s kingdom.

If we add the 30 students in Denver who are preparing themselves to preach the gospel, the future looks wonderful for reaching the lost with the gospel of Jesus Christ. For each of you who are involved in this program, I know it is as exciting for you as it is for me.

Now on to the other reports...

Coordinator Updates
Reports from the coordinators are now located on the website, under Staff Reports. The address is /extension-schools/

Extension Reports 

Extending The Frontiers Of Missions: A recent trip to Zambia was focused on missions. Brother Elangwe is now back in Cameroon and the work continues to grow.

CBI Teacher Loses A Child: While the work grows in Tanzania, there is sadness as one of the instructors lost his young daughter to kidney failure.

Back In Africa: The Tamale Institute of Biblical Studies is busy about the work as Tony Johnson is now back in Ghana to work with the school.

12 Souls Added and God’s Saints Are Persecuted In Tanzania: The work is growing in Arusha, but one new Christians is being persecuted. Pray for this man.

Challenges Of Traditional Tanzanian Life: Life in Africa, while quite common in everyday occurrences to Tanzanians, would shock most Americans. 

Final Thoughts
On a final note, several of the extension staff will be traveling to Denver next week for our annual retreat / meeting. The few days we are together at this time each year provides a wonderful opportunity to discuss a number of significant areas concerning the program of work at Bear Valley. We also have opportunity to be encouraged by a number of great lessons, uplifted by reports on the current situation of various areas within the program, and share in some of the greatest fellowship I know....

Thank you for all you do to help in the development of training preachers. I am praying for you each day. May God bless you richly.

Bob

12 Souls Added And God's Saints Are Persecuted In Tanzania...

Greetings Fellow Workers,

Hard to imagine it has been three weeks since our last Short Report! Busy, would be an understatement. We pray all is well on your end and that you are having as many opportunities as we are to glorify our God and touch others with the saving message of the Gospel. God is good all the time!

I begin with a request for your prayers on behalf of our new brother Gaudence. He and his wife, along with four others obeyed the Gospel during the campaign at Maji ya Chai. He and one other older man (who also obeyed) were working with over 50 widows and orphans. Ever since he obeyed, leaders from his former faith have been persecuting him and his wife without mercies. This past week they went as far as trying to have him literally run out of town. William, the evangelist for the Lord’s Church that meets at Maji ya Chi, has spent hours and even days defending Gaudence and the Truth of God’s Word. This group of “so-called christians” are now in the village of Maji ya Chai spreading rumors and slandering William’s name as well as the name of the Church. When folks do not have the Truth, it sometimes comes down to this. Please pray for Gaudence, his family and the new Church plant that meets in the village of Ngurdoto.

On the “brighter side,” the Gospel is having It’s way here in East Africa. Sean and I were privileged to travel to Mwanza last week to take part in the East Africa Gospel meeting. On the way we stopped in the city of Babati to meet with eight of the local evangelists. Our purpose in meeting with them was to promote the Andrew Connally School of Preaching, encourage them, and hopefully in some small way, challenge them to a greater zeal and work in the Kingdom.

Our time at Mwanza was insightful, encouraging, and very edifying. With the presence of 60 evangelists from four different countries, preaching and teaching God’s Power, the results were amazing. I spoke with Isaac (the local evangelist) today and he gave me an update; two more souls obeyed today bringing the total to 12 souls being added to the Kingdom. Amen, yes, God is good all the time. Sean was given the opportunity to address the men of the good being done through the ACSOP. We handed out more packets of information and applications.

We then made our way to the southwest part of Kenya where we met Mike Reese and his team who had come to work with the Ahono congregation who were sponsoring a youth camp. The last word we received was that over 30 of the 200 plus youth had obeyed the Gospel. Amen, Amen, God is good all the time.

A long journey to be sure, but a most rewarding one. We thank our families who are always supportive in our absence and we thank you, our friends and supporters for your prayers, making all this possible.

The students are back. Jimmy, Christopher, Isaac, Sean and I are teaching and God continues to bless His work here in TZ. I close with much more to say, but I will close! We are praying God be with you all in your faithful service to Him and to all those He brings your way.

P.S. To all my friends, brothers, and sisters in Christ who are at the PTP lectureship, you are in our prayers and yes, I MISS NOT BEING THERE! :(

In Him, Cy, Stephanie, Granny and Caitlin

Extending The Frontiers Of Missions...

Dearest in Christ,

Greetings from the staff, students and members of the Wotutu congregation. We do hope you are doing fine in all that you do.

Some CBIW students, wore their new T shirts for house to house evangelism in Wotutu so as to follow up many questions that keep coming to us through the radio program of 4:30 am, though our waves do not pass through AM or FM signal. Keep this work in your prayers.

I am happy to make known to you what is making news in our work here in Wotutu, CBIW. I traveled, by His grace, to Zambia for the conference organized by the churches of Christ in Zambia with the theme EXTENDING THE FRONTIERS OF MISSIONS. Thanks very much for your prayers for my travels. I returned safe and sound.

The work here in Cameroon is moving on well and we do appreciate God for His great help.

I came back home to meet with brother Sakwe Mulango, one of our students having a new born baby, as the Lord blessed the wife, sister Jennet, with safe delivery of a bouncing baby boy, one of our lecturers, Itali Ignatius, was also blessed with a new born baby girl, and that is his first child. Keep them all in your prayers for the babies to grow healthy and to fear God and keep His commandments.

In Zambia I talked about the work in Cameroon to some participants off normal schedules. Right behind me was the banner with the theme.

The organizing committee made a program for all the representative nations to parade on the stage with their flags, one of which was the flag of our nation Cameroon.

A total of 22 nations of the world came to Zambia for the conference, 20 from Africa. Above 30 participants came from the USA because the highest number of missionaries in Africa are from the USA. A special prayer was offered to God for using the USA to expand the shores of His kingdom on earth. One person came from the St. Vincent Island and the Grenadines.

After the conference, we waited to catch our flight back home in Mapepe Bible college. We used that opportunity to share the gospel to those we met in that community and this young sister listened to my exhortation keenly while the baptistery was getting filled for her baptism directly behind us.

Sister Fortune, a Zambian, accepted baptism and was baptized to wash her sins away. Keep her in prayer to continue growing so that many in our Baptist background will also obey the gospel.

A young 13 year old, who has just passed entrance into the secondary school, followed our program and has been attending our children’s Bible class every Sunday. She obeyed the gospel yesterday in Wotutu. We pray she will be able to help those around her know and follow the truth. A total of 3 souls have been added to the church here in Wotutu, as I was away, and 6 souls added in different congregations as our students continue with weekend evangelism.

Appreciations
We join in giving thanks to God for you who avail yourself to the Lord to be part of our ministries. The CBIW is doing great work in our community. My wife and some other sisters in the congregation organized successful holiday classes, and because of that they are praying and looking into the possibilities for the nursery and primary school (elementary) to continue. That will be the first and only Christian school in our communities. Please keep it in your prayers for the Lord to do something.

Thanks for your prayers and support. Please share this with others. God bless you.

Elangwe and family
By His grace director CBIW

CBI Teacher Loses A Child...

Dar es Salaam
We had two people from the LST (Let’s Start Talking) team that was scheduled to leave. So, we loaded up and drove for two days to Dar es Salaam on the Indian Ocean so that they could catch their flight. Well, the drive there was nice until two glow plugs decided to go bad on the engine. One began knocking very loudly and we pulled over. We didn't have another part so we made due with what we had. We started driving again and not even 5 kilometers down the road another glow plug went bad. We pulled over to repair that one as well.  

Where we were stopped had no cell phone service, but the view was fantastic! 

While we were there at Dar es Salaam, we attended Sunday morning worship at the Mbagala church of Christ in Dar. This is the second time I had worshipped there. The building was full of adults and children and the service was very encouraging. Also, while we were there, they had two baptisms. It took 2 hours to fill the baptistry but we stayed and visited with the brethren there.

While I was in Dar es Salaam, I took the opportunity to learn more about the city. It is a quite large city which is one of the fastest growing cities in the world. Since I have 5 girls back home, I wanted to find something that would be a taste of home for them. Well, I did at the Milmani City mall. It doesn't have all of the name stores we have in the states, but it does have shopping, eating, a cinema, etc. I'm going to bring the family to DAR soon so that they can visit this place and do some shopping.

Quick Updates

• The Hospital is undergoing some renovations. The central gazebo has a wooden pillar which supports the thatch roofing. The pillar was rotten and was about to fall. We are in the process of tearing down the old and putting up the new.
• We went to the Kibaoni church of Christ on Wednesday. The congregation was strong several years ago, but today it is very small. We attended the congregation to visit with them and encourage them. 

Funeral for a CBI Bible Teacher's Daughter
On Friday of this week, Xavery Ngullo's 2 1/2 year old daughter died of kidney failure. She was laid to rest today (Saturday). There were two car loads of people from the Chimala Mission to go to Xavery's home village for the funeral. The whole of the village as well as many others attended the funeral -- some 200-300 people.  

Residence Permits
While I am working on the resident permit for Cheryl Body, our new missionary, I received an email from the US embassy in Dar es Salaam. The Tanzanian government has cancelled all current resident permits. We have until December 31 to file for a new resident permit.  

When we arrived in Tanzania, we were forced to pay $700 for 'visitor's visa' to enter the country. We didn't need thembut were forced to pay them. That was a very unexpected expense. We had already paid $550 for our famiy's resident permit. Now, we will have to pay another $250 for another resident permit.  

While there are challenges to the work in Chimala, we are ready to meet those challenges with the Lord's help.

Chad, Rena, Anna, Laura, Micah, Chandra, and Jonah.

To see Chad’s full report, along with the pictures, click here.

Back In Africa...

On July 4 I made it back to Africa, landing at the Kotoka Airport in Accra, Ghana after a 23 hour journey. Joining me on the trip was Jack Dodgen, a student at Bear Valley Bible Institute in Denver who is scheduled to graduate in December of this year. Jack, who is a member of the North MacArthur church of Christ in Oklahoma City, came for the month of July in order to teach two classes at the Tamale Institute of Biblical Studies. Upon arriving we were greeted by Steven Ashcraft, Bear Valley Coordinator for West Africa, who would be our ride and our guide until we reached Tamale.

Our first full day in Ghana was spent getting supplies, changing US dollars for Ghana cedis, and trying to set up a Ghana bank account. With the exception of the bank account, the day was successful. I found out I cannot get a bank account without having a local utility bill in my name, so I will have to figure out a different way to manage finances while I am here. Fortunately I brought enough cash that it will not be an issue for a while.

After a day in Accra we headed up the coast to visit with some of the preachers working in the Central and Western Regions, as we worked our way toward the West Coast School of Preaching in Takoradi. We also took the opportunity to teach classes and preach at local congregations on Sunday morning. After visiting with the staff and students in Takoradi we headed north to the city of Kumasi.

Our main purpose in Kumasi was to look for a vehicle for me, thanks to generous donations from the Wilkie family, Front Range church of Christ, H. & Betty Henderson Foundation, and many members of the Greenbrier church of Christ. After discussing the matter with Steven we made a deal, if he left his 4 wheel drive with me when he was out of the country (which is most of the time now) than I would use the money raised for a vehicle to buy a “mini-bus”, the local name for a 15 passenger van, that we could use at the school to transport students on campaigns and visiting teachers from Accra to Tamale. We spent a day in Kumasi checking all the car lots we could find, but failed to find an acceptable bus in our price range. Rather than buy something that was less than we needed we will continue to look for the right vehicle. It may take a couple of months, but it should not be an issue until Steven returns for a visit next January.

We finally arrived in Tamale on our sixth day in Ghana. It is good to be back at the school again and to get reacquainted with both the staff and students. There were some changes of course, as three of the students I remembered have left the school for various reasons, but the 12 returning students were excited to get started on their second year of studies. One additional student was expected, but the beginning of the term found him suffering from a very bad case of malaria. He attempted to come back during the third week of classes, only to have a relapse. It is our prayer that he will be able to rejoin his class during the next term in September.

Once arriving at the school, Jack and I began our teaching assignments. Normally an instructor will teach one four hour class two to three days a week. However, since Jack and I were going to be the only teachers for this term it meant we had to double up our workload. To further complicate matters, Jack had to be leave for Accra to catch his flight back to the U.S. in 16 days, giving him just 11 school days to teach over 80 hours of material. So, for nine of the 11 days Jack taught both morning and evening classes in order to get everything completed before he headed back to the U.S.

It was great to have Jack here, and his help was greatly appreciated. Once he left it was just me, so I got to experience teaching double classes every day for the remainder of the quarter. I can assure you that I will not take on teaching three classes in the same term again! Despite the workload, all is going well and I am looking forward to the end of the term this Friday, when the students will head home for a couple weeks and I will catch my breath!

Evangelism Report: During the break between terms Stephen Ashcraft will be returning to Tamale and will join me and two of our students for an evangelistic campaign in Sinkasse, Togo. The students, Joseph Molsak and Nichema Jacob, are from villages on the Ghana side of the border near Sinkasse, and belong to tribes that are closely related to those who live on the Togo side of the border. Since Togo is a French speaking country the campaign will also be relying on help from preachers in Togo, especially from a preacher named Fidele who is working in a recently planted congregation in the city of Dapaong. The goals for this campaign include bringing the church to Sinkasse with the planting of a congregation, and to encourage the cooperation between Christians in evangelistic work on both sides of the border.

A second campaign is being planned for October in the Bimbila area of Ghana. Two of our students are originally from this area, where there is no church of Christ. This campaign will be for the purpose of planting a congregation in the area, which the students will go to work at after their graduation.

Evangelism also happens at the school on a regular basis. I recently met a young man at the market, who after finding out I was teaching at a Bible school expressed an interest to learn more, and a study has been set up. Another young man has been studying with the school’s assistant, Jacob Yeboah, which resulted in his baptism this past Sunday. With your help we are making a difference in this part of the world. Please keep our efforts in your prayers.

Thank You!
Whatever I am able to do, it is only because of the many people who make it possible. While I am the one who gets to see the results of the work, it truly belongs to each and every one of the following congregations and individuals who have offered their support or encouragement for the work in Ghana during the past two months.

Greenbrier church of Christ (overseeing congregation); Colony church of Christ, Harding Street church of Christ, Sue Shumate, Bobby and Jackie Sims, Aubrey and Donna Allensworth; Mildred Priest; White Oak church of Christ; Front Range church of Christ; H. & Betty Henderson Foundation; Virginia Heilen; Brian and DeAnn Wilkie; Rachel Wilkie; Jack Wilkie, Anna Wilkie, Joe Wilkie, Glen and Colleen Elliott; Ron and Joann Boatwright; David and Beverly Woody; Wade and Gary Maverty; Verple Baker; Kevin, Amy, Cody and Cassidy Barley; Carol Shadell; Jim and Martha Bell; Ratis and Dorothy Yeager; Judy Williams; Herb and Dorothy Tatum; Mary Mix, Jimmy and Floyma Sutterfield; Larry and Linda Harness; Linda Ray; Rod and Cindy Wilson; Del and Love Hines. And special thanks to Foster for lending me his bed when I get to visit Greenbrier!

Did you know?
As a non-resident of Ghana I can only stay in the country for 60 days at a time? For this reason I will also be working in Togo and Burkina Faso until I can arrange for a resident alien permit (which allows a person to stay for one year at a time.)

That it is estimated that only 20% of the homes in Ghana have private toilet facilities? Fortunately, I am one of the 20%!

Contact Information

Mailing Address:
Tamale Institute of Biblical Studies P.O. Box TL 925
Tamale, Northern Region
Ghana

Ghana Phone - 011-233-0248216622 

E-Mail - anthonyjohnson2010@gmail.com

Tony Johnson

To see Tony’s report with pictures, please click here.