I would like to thank you very much for all your prayers and support. I would also like to apologize for not writing an update in the last few months. I am very sorry for not being good at this. Thank you very much for being patient with me and still continuing to pray for me.   

In the previous email, I had mentioned that the school would be closed for Christmas break and that I would be going home during the break.  The Lord opened so many opportunities for me to share the Word at many different places during that time. As I departed from the school and was heading home, I was privileged to share the word at one of my uncle’s church. It was nice to see how the Lord had orchestrated this. It was his birthday. They had invited a guest speaker but he could not make it. Since I was there at the service, the Lord gave me the opportunity to share at the church and also to pray for the ministry there.

A few students and my brother and sisters accompanied me while I was on my way back to my home town. None of them, besides my brother, had seen the palace and the tallest church in the state. Since it was in the same place where my uncle resides, we had a chance to visit the palace, the zoo and also the church.

The next day we had a family gathering in one of my aunt’s house. All of our relatives meet together at least twice a year and we share with each other what the Lord has done in our lives. It was a blessed time as we heard from every family member how the Lord has led them throughout the year.

In the month of December, I was privileged to share the Word at many different places. During the first week of December, I was privileged to share at one of my uncle’s church. I shared from Genesis 3:15 and how the prophecy has been fulfilled through the birth of Christ. After church, many people said that they had not observed the Scriptures in that way before.

I was also privileged to travel with my parents and share at an Evangelical church on the 31st of December. My dad shared the Word at the 2018 service and I shared on the 1st of 2019 at Midnight.

I was also privileged to share at one of the Calvary Churches. Pastor 6* had invited me to share at the outreach. This took place on the street where the houses of some anti-Christian group leaders are located. As the Word was shared people listened to the Gospel from so many different places.

Some heard from their roof tops and others heard standing in front of their houses, and still others by sitting on their motorbikes, as the believers gathered and heard in the event area. The Lord always has a way, even in the toughest areas, for His Word to be heard. Two days later, Pastor JE shared that people came to him and said that the were blessed by the Word and the event. Glory to God alone for choosing us to do His work!

Sharing at a Memorial Service

One of our Bible College student’s father went to be with the Lord in the month of December. His mother went to be with the Lord four years ago. I was not able to attend the funeral as I was sharing the Word at a different location when I heard about the death. However, I was able to go and visit the student and spend time with him on the day of the memorial service. I cannot forget how he reacted when he saw me that day. There were many people who came. They all shared how good this man was. Many pastors had come and they shared that this man was the one who brought the Gospel to this area twenty-three years ago. He had also discipled several young people to share the Gospel.  The Lord gave me an opportunity to share the Word at the memorial service. People were comforted to hear the hope we have in Christ. I also reminded them that this man shared the Gospel and that now it is our duty to go out and share the Gospel to the ends the world.

After the month of December, I started to get busy making arrangements for an open air meeting. This will be our 14th annual meeting like this. In-between making arrangements, I was also doing other things including: making arrangements for my cousins wedding, attending a friend’s house inauguration, and sharing the Word at many other places.

   I also had to make arrangements to have other leaders take care of things, since I was supposed to head back to the Bible College. We were about to begin our 3rd semester. After a few days, I went back and continued the work that still needed done. In between all of this, my father got sick and needed to be taken care of. Praise God–his health recovered quickly!

Now, the time had come for the annual open-air meeting to begin! The Lord brought people from many villages, towns, cities, states and also some from overseas! When we first began ministry in this area, there were 108 villages that had not heard the Good News. During the past 14 years the Lord has opened doors for us in over 53 of these villages! Some of the villages have only one family member that is saved. There are a lot of difficulties that people face due to the step of faith. There are many Methodist churches in this area but the people have not been taught the Word. This is also an area where there is a lot of Catholic influence.

At our place (church) we have a cross as a land mark. There are some baby Christians who come there and light candles due to their former practices and influences. We do not entertain this. We talk to people to influence them when they come to our monthly prayer meetings. However, people who come do not come to just spend time without purpose. They come here because this is the only place where the Word is shared in the radius of 160 miles. This year we had over 7000 people who came and heard the Word. This was also the very first year where we had men’s Bible study and women’s Bible study at two different places. The Lord used His people to minister to them. After the meeting, people who returned to their homes have called us and expressed their joy. They were satisfied by the Word. The Lord provided for the Bible College students to travel, and they were also privileged to be a part of the open-air meeting.

After all of this, I came back to the Bible College and started to teach the book of Genesis. Our school has grown from having 2 students to now having 21 students. This semester we have 10 1st semester students. It has been great to hear stories of how they got saved and also on how they have heard of the school and are a part of it. The Lord, through His Word from the book of Genesis, has been speaking to each one of them in many different ways and they are being set free from all the false beliefs that they have had from the past. They are very attentive and they ask great question. It is amazing to see how the Lord has been transforming the lives of some who have had a very bad past. Not all times are exciting and filled with joy, there are times which are tough, but the Lord always has a way in the midst of all that.

Also, in my last newsletter I had mentioned that my computer has not been working properly and that my files were deleted. The Lord has provided for me an ipad this semester. I thank you for your prayers.

The Lord has done great things and it is all because of His grace in my life. I thank each one of you for always being willing to pray for me.

Thanking you,

Yours in Christ,

Pastor 4*

*Names have been changed or omitted for security reasons.