Ghana's Future Looks Strong...

Greetings to all of our brethren throughout the world who are anxiously awaiting the return of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. While I spent the end of the year 2010 reporting throughout the U.S., the work was continuing in West Africa. My travels took me to congregations in Colorado, Texas, Arkansas, Missouri, Kansas and Oregon. I truly enjoyed the fellowship with our American brethren as I expounded upon all of the wonderful progress that has been made during 2010, and the plans we have for the future. In this report, we would like to highlight these accomplishments and then look forward to the hopes we have for the upcoming year. With your help we are moving forward! 

Looking Back at the Year 2010  

The year 2010 was filled with challenges and accomplishments as the Lord’s Kingdom is continuing to be edified and expanded throughout West Africa. Leaders were trained, Bibles were distributed, and the gospel was preached. With your help, the church is becoming stronger and stronger in northern Ghana and throughout West Africa. 

The Tamale Institute of Biblical Studies (TIBS) completed their second year of operations during 2010. At the end of the year there were 15 students who had finished seven quarters of instruction. The school went through many growing pains during 2010 and has become a stronger institution as a result of these challenges. TIBS solidified their relationship with the Bear Valley Bible Institute through a visit from Bob Turner of Denver Colorado during the year, and the curriculum is being adapted to meet the needs of the congregations in northern Ghana.   

In addition to the teachers that reside in Tamale, the school has engaged numerous instructors from southern Ghana to teach various courses. This has allowed the school to draw upon the significant amount of Biblical knowledge and maturity of the church in southern Ghana.   

The Tamale Institute of Biblical Studies continued their significant building plans with the raising of the foundation and walls for around 8,000 square feet of covered space for student lodging, classrooms, guest rooms, a library and computer room, and offices. This structure was ready to be roofed at the end of 2010.  

The congregations in Tamale continued to grow in maturity as some of the leaders in the church participated in the school of preaching as board members and instructors. The Tamale East congregation was able to complete the roof on their building and is now worshiping in the new structure. Members of the congregations in Tamale, and the students at the school of preaching continued to work with the village congregations in this predominantly Islamic area. They also participated in evangelistic campaigns to build up the church in Tamale, and other areas in northern Ghana during 2010. 

The church in northern Ghana has continued to strengthen the church in neighboring Togo and Burkina Faso through support of preachers, planning, and evangelistic campaigns and other assistance. They have also played a role in edifying the school of preaching in Kpalime, Togo through coordinating a relationship between that school and the Bear Valley Bible Institute of Denver. 

There has been much assistance with physical needs in the area of distribution of Bibles, Bible literature and tracts, construction of church buildings, and assistance with other resources during 2010 that has strengthened the church throughout West Africa. With your help, the church in northern Ghana and throughout West Africa was edified and expanded during 2010!  

Looking Forward to 2011 

2010 was an exciting year for the growth of the work in northern Ghana and throughout West Africa! 2011 promises to be even more fruitful than before. Many plans are being made to continue and expand the work that has begun and we would like to look at some of those plans in this section. 

The first class of fifteen students at the Tamale Institute of Biblical Studies is scheduled to graduate on June 25 of 2011. In May of 2011, twenty four new students are scheduled to begin the two year course. The applications have already been received and the students interviewed and accepted. The training of these Christian leaders will greatly benefit the leadership of the church in northern Ghana. 

With your help, the building project at the Tamale Institute of Biblical Studies is scheduled to continue in 2011 with plans for roofing, plastering, painting and bringing in electricity and water to the structure. It is our prayer that by the end of 2011 the structure will be providing the necessary accommodations and classrooms to train preachers and leaders for the church in this part of the country.   

Additional programs are being planned at the school of preaching in Tamale not only for the training of preachers but also for the training of leaders in their indigenous languages. We hope to have these programs in place by the end of 2011. 

The Bear Valley Bible Institute is hoping to continue to expand their efforts throughout West Africa. Effort will be made so that the schools in Tamale and Takoradi in Ghana will be streamlined and become more effective and efficient. The schools in other areas of West Africa will also progress with a new coordinator and the implementation of planning in those areas. We plan to keep on expanding our vision throughout West Africa so we can continue to train leaders and preachers in this part of the world. 

Campaigns are being planned for 2011 to evangelize Tamale, other areas of northern Ghana, and northern Togo. At least three cities have been targeted for new church plantings where no church exists at the present time. Additional campaigns are being planned to edify and evangelize existing congregations in northern Ghana. Significant time will be spent over the next few months to strategize and implement these plans for the growth of the church in this part of the world. 

Other church leaders throughout the country of Ghana are also looking at ways that we can edify the church in this part of the world. The church is facing many challenges just as they did in the first century with many members failing to understand the truth about the Lord’s church as taught in the word of God. This lack of knowledge is causing some congregations to stray away from the truth. We are attempting to develop a plan of teaching through seminars, classes, distance education, radio work, publications and other means that will help to stop this movement away from the doctrine of the Bible. If members come to understand the unique and distinct characteristics of the church, and the need for Biblical authority in worship, church leadership, and other areas, then they should be able to stand firm against any teachings that are contrary to God’s inspired word. 

Financial Support 

We want to thank all of the supporters for their contributions to this exciting work in West Africa.  Without you, this effort would not be possible. All checks need to be made out to: 

Mountain Home church of Christ 
For: West Africa Mission 

And mailed to:  

Mountain Home church of Christ 
380 North College Street
Mountain Home, AR  72653 

(Please note this is a new mailing address) 

Any questions can be directed to the church office at 870-425-4330.

Or you can contact Steven at: 

Email:  samtnhome@yahoo.com  

Steven Ashcraft 
P.O. Box TL 925 
Tamale, Northern Region 
Ghana, West Africa   

Please email Steven if you would like to receive this newsletter by email.  

Thanks So Much,  

With Christian Love 

Steven Ashcraft

A Short Course To Graduation...

Greetings to you from Visakhapatnam in the precious name of Jesus Christ our Savior.  By the grace of God we are all doing well and hope the same with you.

Bob, hope you are good time traveling to Honduras, I bet it is really exciting to attend a graduation ceremony which is certainly an accomplishment.  

Short Courses:                                      

Our mission is to equip the next generation evangelists to seek and save the lost in India. This mission is also carried out by the students of the school. Certainly these two short courses equipped these evangelists with more courage and content which is very beneficial to accomplish their mission. Short courses we had scheduled from 24^th Jan till 4^th Feb went really well. In fact our brethren from Bear Valley left one day earlier which has given time for us to catch up with the due work and complete all the assignments on time. Brother Garry Fallis and Jerry Bates have done a marvelous job teaching two subjects each. Our undergraduate students have been really blessed to learn a lot from both the subjects brother Jerry has taught. One of them is ‘Leadership.’ Indeed it plays a very vital role in the growth of the Church in India, in fact it is a big time lack among Indian brotherhood. You believe it or not, our students have complimented this course and the way Jerry presented and the material as well. Second week class is about the ‘Preacher & his work’ We studied in great length about this subject especially emphasizing the practicality of preaching. We learned preachers’ main mission should be, just preaching. At the end of the class Jerry was asking the students how much beneficial is these two courses for their preaching profession. They marked it high. When he asked about how many people they brought to Christ in last 6 months, the total we had is 34. Jerry remarked at their evangelistic efforts being full time students. We had only 9 students out of the 10 regular students were present during this session. VJ's daughter is not feeling well. She had some problem in the eye for which she is taking doctor's treatment. They had spent good two weeks learning new subjects one of them is about 'Preacher' They truly learned something which would enhance their knowledge of preacher-hood.

God answers prayer

“Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective” James 5:16-17

Rama Rao is one of our undergrad students who was married a year ago. Good news is his wife is pregnant. He was present during the two weeks of short courses we had recently. During the second week he had a call from his home town that his wife was expecting a child that day. So he rushed his home town and for the goodness sake we all heard from him the Lord blessed them with a baby girl. Couple of hours after that we had a shocking news that she is bleeding and it couldn’t be stopped. She started losing strength. Doctors in their home town recommended her to a doctor in the city which is about 80 kms far from their home town. So we all bow down and prayed to our God for His mercy. She was brought to the hospital in the town (Visakhapatnam), while they were on that way she said she doesn’t have any hope to live any longer, so he started crying. God has been good to her, as a result of our prayers doctors get hold on her condition and it took a complete day for her to overcome this life risk. We are thankful that our Lord answered our prayers and blessed her with good health and healthy child. 

Graduation Exercises: 

We are excited about the upcoming first graduation exercise ever we had since the establishment of the Bible school in Visakhapatnam. We are so excited and requesting you brethren to come and solicit your gracious presence during this most exciting event in the history of Churches of Christ in this area. There is never been a full time Bible school established in this eastern region of the state of Andhra Pradesh. If there is one it has never produced this number of graduates who have been trained for two complete years. It is truly a greatest accomplishment which we achieved together. It is time for us to celebrate and elevate the school program so that it will bring congregations together as a result we shall have more congregations involved in this Bible school program. Hub school concept will be more appealing and will be successful when we have more congregations getting to know about this program it will certainly makes them a part of the glorious Lord’s work. We request you to kindly consider blessing us with your gracious presence on this very special day in our lives. 

This is the last quarter for 16 students who will be completing their course. I am currently teaching Elementary Greek which will be completing by the end of March. 

We have the list of students with their names written as they wanted them to be printed on their certificates. I will mail them in my next email. We thank all of you for your prayers and thoughts which is giving some amazing results in the Lord's work here. Please convey our greetings to the supporting congregation and to the Elders at Bear Valley Church of Christ. We are thankful to brother Steve Wiseman & Ralph Williams who have done a great job, along with the Lake Houston Elders for continuing their monthly support to run this School. 

Talk to you later,

Your brother in Christ,

John Dean and Samuel Raju Muppidi

Jimmy and Tanzania?

Greetings Fellow Workers, 

We continue to remember you all in our prayers, thanking God for His Church and our salvation in Him. We thank you all for your part in God's mission work through the TZ2000 mission effort. We solicit your prayers as I make plans to return to TZ on the 22nd and for Stephanie and her mother. Exel will have surgery on the 16th and if the Lord wills, they will return to TZ sometime in March.

Below is a wonderful story of God's plan unfolding and changing the lives of many through His grace and mercy and by the obedience of His saints. 

“Jimmy And Tanzania” 

No, Jimmy’s not from Tanzania, he never traveled there but he did hear a lot about Tanzania.  And as I reflect on our time together and how I got to this moment in my life, Tanzania did play a huge role in Jimmy obeying the Gospel.  I always heard from those that went on mission trips that it would change your life and indeed every year I travel to Tanzania, something happens that indelibly changes my daily walk with God.  I could write a chapter or two on just those experiences but this story is about Jimmy.  We had just returned from our third trip to Tanzania and it had been a couple of months and I was literally having withdrawals from not having a bible study.  I talked with Rod Minor, our minister of evangelism, and he told me he had a study set up but at that time he was overwhelmed and if I could take it, it would certainly help him.  Little did I know how it would be a pivotal point in my life.  I began the study with Jimmy, his uncle, already a Christian and a cousin but from the first study, you could tell Jimmy was yearning for the truth.  After a few weeks of the Jewel Miller Video’s, Jimmy thought he was going to have his knees replaced.  Although he was only 51, Jimmy had already had a pretty rough life.  He told me he had served two stints in California Prisons for selling drugs, was a recovering alcoholic and after having been burned in a car accident that left him severely disabled, he was still addicted to prescription pain killers.  So we changed the study to one I had been using in Tanzania, “Back to the Bible” chain reference that was originated by the Northwest Church of Christ in Lawton, Oklahoma.  And here is my confession; I had fantastic bible teachers throughout my formative years, but the one thing I had never been taught was a method to actually teach the essentials of salvation, and for me, this one just hit home and was the method I needed to use.  Back to Jimmy; Jimmy was eager, after the first half and we finished with the need for baptism.  Jimmy wanted to put Christ on in baptism.  He did, week after week, as we continued to study, he would read his Bible all week and when we met, he wanted to read from his Bible and ask a number of questions.  Because of his disability, he couldn’t drive but he was regular in his attendance.  A couple from church would pick him up, several miles north of town, and bring him in for services.  It was the end of the year and we had missed a couple of weekly studies and the couple got the flu and Jimmy had missed a couple of weeks.  I don’t know why but I got up and was getting ready for church on January 10^th and I thought of Jimmy and wondered if he needed a ride.  I don’t know to this day why I thought of him but I did and after a simple call, I was off to pick him up.  From the minute he was in the car, I could tell he was agitated and throughout our conversation, Jimmy was struggling with a lot of issues in his personal life.  I assured him church was the best placed to be and he agreed.  I mentioned the fellowship meal was after services and he said on the way that he just wanted to go back home because he needed to make some important decisions.  As I was greeting people at the back after services, Jimmy caught me; you could tell he was different; calmer, more in control and a little at peace.  Worshiping God can do that for you.  Jimmy had decided to stay for dinner. During our conversations that morning, Jimmy told me he wanted to do two things; he wanted to learn the Bible well enough so he could teach others that had been in similar circumstances the love of God and he wanted to see his mother, who was very ill in California.  He just needed a little help to get to Missouri, where his daughter could drive him there.  The church paid the bus ticket and Jimmy was gone that night.  I’ll never see Jimmy again.  Jimmy never made it to California, he passed away during then night of February 5^th and coincidentally his mother passed away that same night.  Jimmy’s not with us on this earth but I am convinced he is with his Father in Heaven.  No struggles with drugs, no temptation to drink and he’s not fighting the constant infections and pain he lived with for so long.  It was Jesus’ sacrifice and God’s grace that saved Jimmy, but it was my experience in Tanzania that helped me share the love of God with him. We read the Great Commission in Matthew 28 and Mark 16 but are we acting on it?  Are we teaching our children and grandchildren how to live the Great Commission, Deut. 6:4-9.  For me, it took going to Tanzania to get enough confidence to teach it in my own backyard. So sad but yet so true.  But, as I reflect on that fateful Sunday, and that lone phone call that would give me my last few hours with my Christian Brother Jimmy, James 4:17 still floods my mind, “Therefore, to one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, to him it is sin.”  I wonder how many Jimmy’s will come into our life that we miss.  What will it take for you to share God’s love? (As reported by Brad Whinery, one of the Elders serving the Second & Adams Church in Elk City, OK).

To God be the glory, great things He continues to do! 

In Him,

Cy

INCREDIBLE...

This is the best word I know to use in describing the news about Extension Training. Each week the reports continue to arrive on my desktop about growth in the Lord’s kingdom. It is exciting to report and, frankly, it is incredible.

I will let the reports speak for themselves. I want to encourage you to take a few moments to read each report and the news from each location. As the Lord continues to bless this work, I know the reports will grow in enthusiasm. 

While there is always more to do than we have time to get done, we know the steps we have taken in the past year are the foundation for a powerful year ahead in 2011. Your help continues to make this work possible and for this reason we give thanks to our God for each of you.

Coordinator Updates

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

Gary Fallis and Jerry Bates have returned from Visakhapatnam, India where they have been working with the Visakha Valley Bible College, one of Bear Valley’s Extension Schools.

Donnie Bates is in Honduras. You can read current information about his trip at the following address: /donnie-bates-reports/2011/2/4/danli-honduras-february-4-2011.html

Howell Ferguson’s report is located at the following address: /howell-ferguson-reports/

Garry Hill, working with the Chimala Bible Institute, sent the following report for January.

Chimala Bible Institute opened its doors with 28 students on January 17. The Chimala School of Preaching and Chimala Bible College have been combined in partnership with the Chimala Mission and Bear Valley Bible Institute of Denver. We are now authorized to offer the Associate degree and the Bachelors degree for our hard working students.

The start of a new school year is always exciting and new students and old were greeted with the new opportunities to study God’s word with new curriculum and programs. I moved to the mission with Rebecca Benson to start the school year. Rebecca will be the Librarian and Dean of Women, teaching the research classes at the school and ladies classes in the villages. We immediately began preaching in the village churches on the Lord’s Day and are excited about working with many of the struggling congregations around the mission. We are looking forward to the many evangelistic opportunities this year.

Our students are receiving a well rounded education with opportunities for practical experience. This past weekend several teachers and students went on evangelistic campaigns. Also Ezekiel Harrison, one of the CBI instructors, and Rebecca taught two large children’s classes at area congregations. Brother Hill spoke in chapel twice and preached at the Mbeya, Uturu and Chimala A congregations.

Please pray for us as we continue the Lord’s work here in the southern region of Tanzania.

Garry Hill

Extension Reports

Planting The Seed In Arusha: This post contains two reports. One from Cy and Stephanie Staffort and from Jimmy Gee's family. It shows the progress of the work in Arusha.

Planning The Future Of BVBIU: The report from Ukraine explains the efforts being made for the future.

An Exciting Future For Cambodia: Phanat explains the events of the past month in view of the future ahead for the International Bible Institute of Siem Reap.

Cambodia Grows: Chann Lork reports on the growth in Cambodia.

The Church Storms A City In Nigeria: This is worth the read. Take my word for it.

CBIW Recognition: Cameroon continues to be a hot spot for news in the Lord's kingdom.  

Final Thoughts

What a great week! Nothing is more encouraging than to read reports of the work students are doing to bring about growth in the kingdom. God is truly blessing the work around the world.

Thank you for understanding and having the vision for this work. Your support financially, your prayers, and your ability through service keep this work growing and successful. I cannot express my appreciation enough for your diligence and dedication to training men to preach the gospel. I will have more next week. 

God bless

Bob

Cambodia Grows...

Greeting from the Siem Reap church of Christ.

It's my honor to share some news which happened recently for work in Siem Reap, Cambodia.

Things are going well here including Takam, Leang Dai. We had one young lady baptized on Sunday last week and we have another one from Hannah's hope baptized this morning. Praise the Lord for two more souls being added into His church.

We also participated to help the brethren at Takam to rebuild the road up there since it was destroyed during the flood in rainy season.

All in all we are doing alright and we ask you to continue to pray for us and the work in Cambodia.

In His service

Chann

CBIW Recognition...

Dearest in Christ,

The students of CBIW records another baptism in Wotutu as the sister you see came for visit but was introduced the gospel and she embraced the gospel and was baptized.

It is another opportunity for us in CBIW to say hello and God’s blessings to you and your family .We strongly believe you are doing well in all that you do. Your family here in CBIW is doing great and we keep appreciating God for all that He is helping us through you to realize here.

The news in CBIW is making us to be happy daily. All the programs for the week including extra curricular activities went on well like the launching of the NATIONAL YOUTH DAY CELEBRATION In Cameroon was good and the students took part, they have been chosen to be part of the choral singing and match pass to commemorate the reunification and achievements in our country. CBIW is the only higher institution in our community and the only Bible training college, thus making headline news in the government.

The news from student’s performance for the first test is really great; we pray they continue in that manner for these two years of studies.

The students are doing well in health and other wise, they are developing as the weeks are unfolding, we are happy about their developments and we pray God help them through.

This week we had a number of visitors to visit the students. Unbelievers will pass around as they go to their farms, some will return with ripe bananas and fruits to help these young preachers.

Another happy moment took place on our campus as a sister came to visit the students and brought them food. She arrived our campus at exactly 3:09 with a flask of plantains and vegetable for the students. Many Cameroonians are excited about this training in Wotutu. That is why even though with hardship some still sacrifice time to come and encourage our students in any way. More will be seen when they will become mobile for evangelism in different congregations all over the country.

Shows the students this Sunday 6/2/11 eating one of Cameroonian dish call CORN CHAFFA sister traveled 75 kilometers away to visit the students in Wotutu and she brought food for them. You can see some of them raising their right tomb up which is one of our ideologies that  WE ARE NOT ALONE. They enjoyed and offer special prayers to the sister for her safe return. She will pass the night with the director’s family and continue her journey tomorrow.

VISIONS

The students will travel again out for another campaign to church of Christ Munyenge some 57 kilometers away from Wotutu. They are invited again for Bible lectureships, house to house evangelism for 3 days. Please commit them in your prayers for safety and success of that campaign.

Remember the students as they will start writing long courses exams for this first semester on the 24/2/11. The short  courses lecturers from the US will come and continue for two weeks and the first semester will draw to an  end. The students go for mission work to different congregations as for one week and the travel to their homes for one week for vacation. They will return on the 4^th of April for the second semester.

APPRECIATIONS

We appreciate God daily for the wonderful work He is doing for us here in CBIW. Both the staff, students and Wotutu congregation are doing great.

We thank you for your prayers and support to keep this vehicle (CBIW) which is a strong tool of evangelism moving. We pray that God continue His blessings in your life, that of the church where you worship and your family in Jesus name. AMEN.

We are still in need of materials for students research like BIBLE COMMENTARIES, ENCYCLOPEDIAS AND OTHER BOOKS TO HELP ALL OF US HERE.

Stay bless till next time. God directs you to the best directions.

Elangwe Esowe Greg

By His grace director CBIW  

The Church Storms A City In Nigeria...

We thank God today. One Pastor of a denomination heard the gospel through our radio program and stumbled at the gospel tracts of the mission printing distributed during burial ceremony some where at Ikwo side of Ebonyi state. There he traced the church and eventually got baptized into Christ instead of a denomination.

When this information was revealed during our meeting with the Preachers in Ebonyi State yesterday, some brethren(3) and I agreed and decided to visit the Pastor's church. A brother handled moderation and Songs while I handled Sunday school, Sermon, Giving and communion. It is good to hear that all the members (Nine-9) present today were baptized into Christ. That excludes the Pastor who was baptized before today.

I am glad to state that the Lord's church has increased by one today in Ebonyi State. My team and I shall visit again next Sunday to follow up the work. Arrangements to train the Pastor in the Truth as he desires and to build up the church are going to be the collective efforts of the churches of Christ around that area of Ebonyi State. The Pastor and the new church including the entire community need our prayers. We wish to storm the city with the gospel as the door has been opened.

Reuben in His Service.

Planting the Seed in Arusha...

Greetings Fellow Workers:

Stephanie and I thank you, for your continued prayers, words of kindness and concerns, and for your continued support of the TZ2000 mission work. We are indeed blessed beyond measure and are thankful for being part of God’s family. 

I am currently in Ft. Word, iced in! I will be heading back to OK this weekend, sharing God’s mission effort in TZ with others. From there I will head to TN for the Freed lectureship, then back to Hattiesburg to meet with the KW Elders, then on to Warner Robins, GA, then to Hoover, back to Hattiesburg and then fly out on the 22nd for TZ. 

Much of my travels this year have been without Stephanie, who is staying with her mother as she recovers from her accident and who is to have surgery again next week. Please remember them both in your prayers.

Below are three short reports from three of our graduates. I thought you would enjoy, be lifted up and see yet again the power of the Gospel in able bodied, trained evangelists!

“Hello brother Cy

It is our hope that you and your family are doing good back to us we are doing good we traveled through Longido to Engarenabro we did evengelism  five souls obeyed the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ in Ngarenabro in Longido there is classes which is going on even in Ngarenabro we have people who are very close to be baptize in kioga we are doing good classes are going on also we are trying to restore the backsliders.....yours in Christ.  

DAVID BAYI

Need: Communion Trays - Bibles 500 @ $5 = $2,500

These are the reports I received from Benard and Charles of their work during the year 2010.

BENARD KAGAG

1. I conducted 9 Seminars.
2. 7 Gospel meetings.
3. 3 preachers Bible Classes.
4. 2 New planted churches.
5. 16 Restorations.
6. 21 Baptisms.
7. 14 school visitations.

CHARLES OGUTU

42 - baptisms

17 - Restorations

2  - Churches planted

6 - Gospel meetings

3 - churches restored to N.T doctrine”

I close with two challenges: 

1. Communion Trays (at least 12 sets)
2. 500 Bibles (English and Ki-Swahili)

We need some communion trays for some of the new Church plants. If you have used ones or would like to purchase new ones, let me know and I will send you a mailing address to send them to. 

If you would like to purchase Bibles please send the funds to Kensington Woods to be transferred to TZ, with a short note for the purpose of the donation. 

We thank you all and pray God’s richest blessing be upon you in the coming year as you serve Him faithfully. 

In Him, Cy & Stephanie

To our Supporters, Family, and Friends, 

We are very happy and appreciative that Chad Wagner and his father, John Wagner, came here on short notice, answering the "Macedonian Call" when one of our teachers was unable to make the long trip.  Chad will be teaching Advanced Biblical Exegesis and Church History at the ACSOP and John, an electrician, will be busy working as a handy-man with Elly (our building and maintenance supervisor for TZ 2000).

Emmanuel Mwizerwa, a graduate student, preached on the topic of brotherly love this morning at Kisongo.  Trena’s Genesis class studied the first half of chapter six.  The subjects we discussed were (1) the all-seeing eye of God, vs. 5 (2) walking with God, vs. 9 and (3) God's deliverance of the righteous.

On Friday, Trena studied with new converts, Katherine and Therasia concerning "How Do We Know the Bible is From God?"  These very attentive ladies were almost "sitting on the edge of their seats" and hanging on every word.  They asked good questions, one being, "Are there any other 'Bibles' out there that God has written?"  It is a real joy to teach people who are so interested. Katherine's friend, Agnes, joined us about half-way through.  She is not a Christian yet, so we agreed to also study separately with her Saturday evening. 

On Saturday, a total of fourteen ladies attended the monthly 2-hour Child-Training class.  Trena was very encouraged by the attendance and by the fact that four ladies arrived early.  The remainder showed up only 15 minutes later (big improvement).  Laughing and learning at the same time, we used a large Pooh Bear as the "mtoto" (child) being trained.  The goal is to lay a foundation of biblical principles and show practical ways to train children to obey.

Our study with 23-year-old Agnes went well.  She and her husband "Burtwell" are expecting their first baby in April.  When she lived in Mbeya she attended the Lutheran church. She was asked several questions, one being "why do you want to study the Bible?"  She replied, "to find out more about God so I can follow Him."

For the past few months, a Catholic lady has "set up shop" up the hill from our house.  Bus loads of gullible people arrive at her place about twice weekly for prayer and for personal "blessings" ...all for a price, of course.  It's a great opportunity to hand out tracts and set up Bible studies with people coming and going who are searching for spiritual guidance.

Our deep appreciation is extended to you for your love, prayers, interest and support of this fruitful work.  It truly is a privilege to work on the TZ 2000 team and to live in Tanzania, East Africa.  Have a wonderful day! 

Because He Lives,

The Jimmy Gee family

Planning The Future of BVBIU...

Greetings, dear brethren,

Hope you are doing well. January was a very productive month for us and we accomplished everything that had been planned. We thank God for your support and your prayers.

Trips to the Churches of Christ & potential students.  

On January 2 my wife and I visited our friends (Valeriy and Julia Kachuk) in Kharkov and worshiped with Kharkiv Church of Christ (Alekseevsky district). We have very good relationship with the preacher of this congregation and hopefully next year we will have a student from Kharkov. His name is Vlad. Please pray for him.

On January 22 we went to a rehabilitation center that is located in the village of Malomihailovka in Dnepropetrovsk region (they work with alcoholics and drug addicts). The center had been established by church of Christ Christians. Our purpose was to tell them about the Institute and invite people who were seriously interested.

Also we have plans to pay a visit to Church of Christ in Petrovsky district of Donetsk. It’s one of the largest congregations in Ukraine that has its own eldership. They are looking forward to seeing us and would like to hear about the Institute and its work.   

Also I was contacted by two more church of Christ members. One of them is a young lady from Russia. Her name is Julia. And the other one is a guy from Kramatorsk whose name is Yury. They’d like to join the program beginning next school year. Please pray for them too.  

Work at the Institute. 

Everything is fine with the Bible program. During this month the first year students had Joshua, Judges, Ruth and these were taught by Alexander Rodnaev who is a preacher in Krasnoarmeysk. Now they are studying 1 and 2 Samuel  taught by Viktor Semikoz and the Book of Isaiah taught by Andrew Zhuravlev.  

The second year students had 1 and 2 Thessalonians that I taught and The World Religions taught by Albert Bagdasaryan. At present they are having Prison Epistles. All of our instructors have Master Degree from Bear Valley.

We rent a gym for our students. We play soccer and volleyball there. Not only our students but the young people who come to the Central Church of Christ in Gorlovka go there too. I think it’s a very good evangelical strategy and also a bonus for us in attracting new students.  

Heating And Utility Bills

This year we can’t use our heating fully, the prices on electricity in Ukraine went 30% up. We are still using electric fans and convectors in the classrooms. Practically all utility bills went 10-20% up (the land lease, water bill, taxes on the workers in the building). 

Work In The Lord’s Vineyard

One of our students leads the worship service at his house in Dimitrov. His name is Roman Kamaev. Please pray for him and the future of the church in this city. My family is fully involved in the work of Central congregation in Gorlovka. We are trying to encourage the brethren and be useful in all spheres of service. I like to work with the preacher (Andrew Zhuravlev). I think we are a good team. Last Sunday my wife Vera taught the Ladies’ class – it was her debut.   

Thank you again for the prayers, patience and care that you provide for us. The students and I give our regards to all of you and we all are really looking forward to Howell, Denton and many other brothers (if it’s God’s will) coming to Ukraine.   

“For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise” (Hebrews 10:36)

The need of having the Bible Institute in Ukraine.   

At present the mission that is being accomplished by the Bible Institute can not be underestimated. First of all, we constantly get together with the preachers who hold on to the sound doctrine. Secondly, we train men with the right understanding of the Biblical doctrines. Thirdly, we are trying to influence the liberal movement that is present in Ukraine. And fourthly, we are enlarging the circle of communication and spread the right doctrine. 

I think these are weighty factors for the God’s work in Ukraine, just like Paul wrote in 2Tim. 4:2-3. The work needs to be continued with all the responsibility before the Lord. 

If you have some comments or wishes please let me know. Also I have a request: if you have some important books that we need to have in our library please send them to us. We will find a way to have them translated.  

May the Lord bless you, 

Your brother in Christ, 

Dennis

An Exciting Future For Cambodia

Greetings brethren! It is my honor to share some wonderful news about the work of Christ in Cambodia for the past month. We are having a great start to the new year and are praying that you all are too. God has blessed the work here in so many ways and I would like to share those blessings with you so that you can rejoice with us. 

First and foremost, I would like to thank brother Joe Hickey and the congregation at Portal Way for their continual demonstration of love for the work here. Joe is such a wonderful Christian example to the churches here in Cambodia. I thank God for great leaders like him in the Lord's church. He is definitely a great example of an elder and inspires many of us to want to be qualified to be elders in the future. It's fitting that he taught 1 and 2 Tim/Titus as a short course, because he is a living example on what it takes to be an elder in the Lord's church. We will miss him as he will depart tomorrow night. 

We are able to purchase land for the church in Takam village due to its growth. We hope to build a Christian school in the future over there and teach God's word along with basic education that the villagers lack. We pray that God will provide the resources needed for such a goal. 

The picture left is a sewing machine that Joe Hickey and family purchased for the home. We will train Sopen how to sew and she will in turn train the others. They will be able to make clothes for the children themselves! 

This month we had a total of 4 new souls added to the church! Glory to God for such a bountiful increase! Hannah's hope also took in and saved another infant. We thank God for that great work and its influence. This is Sopen (Hout's wife) and Chanrith (our newest edition to HH). He is 7 weeks old and was severly malnourished when we took him in. He is doing a lot better now and we look forward to raising him up in the admonition of the Lord!

Saran and Ussa got married on the 20th! Darat and Saray are next in line, their wedding date is set for April 1st. It's encouraging to see Christians marrying Christians in a Buddhist country. We are starting a wonderful foundation with these students. The future looks bright for Cambodia if we can continue to use God's word to guide us in all of our choices, not just choosing our spouse. I am so blessed to be a part of this wonderful work. I know that Saran, Ussa, Darat, Saray and anyone else will have a wonderful marriage if they stick to God's Word for guidance! I wholeheartedly believe that because its happening before my eyes in my marriage! God is so good. 

The church in Siem Reap will host its second annual lectureship in the month of March with the theme, "Giving diligence to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace" from Eph 4:1-6. This program will give our staff the opportunity to learn, gain experience, and grow at the same time teaching others to do the same. I will give more details concerning this activity as it approaches. 

This is our new brother in Christ with Sokchea at Leang Dai village. It's very rare to have a man at Leang Dai so this was truly a blessing from God. Sokchea can now teach and train him to help in leading worship services!

 This is Yao, our newest sister in Christ. She came to Christ by way of Hannah's Hope's influence. She is a neighboring child who came in to study with our orphans for a few months before she decided to follow Christ.

The work continues to grow and be exciting. We really look forward to this new year and pray that God will continue to bless this work. Please continue to pray for us as we continue to keep you in our prayers.

Phanat

Me, my beautiful daughter Katesana (8 months), and virtuous wife Chakriya in front of the Hannah's Hope's new playground set!

Freed Hardeman Lectureship...

Next Sunday marks the beginning of the 75th annual Freed Hardeman Lectureship at Freed Hardeman University. The lectureship provides opportunities on a number of levels.

First, and foremost, the lectureship is designed to present the sound truth of God’s word. Several faithful men throughout the brotherhood are assembled to speak on various subjects. This year’s focus is “Proclamation and Promise: Major Themes in the Minor Prophets.” The subjects are handled in a manner to present the truth powerfully and lovingly.

Second, the lectureship affords opportunity to connect with brothers and sisters in Christ from around the world. A time of reuniting with others gives a glimpse of how incredible heaven will be when we are united around the throne of God. While the lessons are powerful, the singing is incredible. It makes me look forward to gathering around the throne of God.

Third, the lectureship opens doors to share the work of the Bear Valley Bible Institute of Denver. Training men to preach in Denver and 15 other locations around the world is one of the most exciting works on earth. The more we can inform others of this work, the more exciting it becomes for everyone.

Finally, the lectureship makes it possible to learn about the work in the Lord’s kingdom in other locations. It is encouraging and uplifting to hear of the great ways God is working through His people, both domestically and internationally.

I want to invite you to join us at the Freed Hardeman Lectures. Stop by the Bear Valley booth and visit. We look forward to seeing you there. 

The reports from the extension schools are listed below. I always enjoy reading about the work in this program. Please take a moment to read through the reports turned in. It has been another exciting week.

Coordinator Updates

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

Gary Fallis and Jerry Bates are now in Visakhapatnam, India to work with the Visakha Valley Bible College, one of Bear Valley’s Extension Schools. Please remember them in their travels.

Donnie Bates is now in Honduras. Read Donnie's latest report.

Extension Reports

Evangelizing Cambodia: The report from Cambodia continues to show growth.

Short Courses Begin in Visakhapatnam: John Dean shares a report about the classes in India.

Campaign In Cameroon: The Extension in Cameroon just completed a successful campaign. Read brother Elangwe's report. 

God Gives The Increase In Arusha: Jimmy and Trina Gee continue to report great news in Arusha. 

From Persecution to Opportunity: Read Willie's report about the continued efforts in Togo.

Final Thoughts

I feel compelled to apologize for the length of the reports each week. However, at the same time, I can hardly believe how awesome it is to read about the work around the world. I know you feel the same.

I am thankful for all of the men who are laboring in the kingdom, who love sharing the progress of the work. I share in the excitement and it charges my batteries to know their diligence and success. Thank you for communicating so adequately and frequently. 

I also want to thank each of you for taking time to read the reports and share them with others who can benefit from knowing about the work. Thank you for your support of Extension Training. I look forward to sharing more each week.

God bless

Bob

From Persecution to Opportunity...

Center for Biblical Studies, Kpalime, Togo

The following report from Willie Gley continues to remind us of the difficulties the men who are in school face in standing true to the gospel.

In my last report I mentioned the difficult situation in which David finds himself as a preacher. His former boss was angry with him for leaving the church that brought him to Akpadape about nine years ago. He was evicted and warned not to have anything to do with the church. Later, David was 

summoned to appear before a judge in Kpalime, his crime was that he left the church and has taken some members with him to Church of Christ.  The judge referred them to the chief of Akpadape to resolve the conflict. The two parties appeared before the chief but he also concluded by 2.

Saying it was not a crime to leave one church for another. The surprising thing was that, the chief became interested in knowing more about the Church of Christ and therefore requested some literature to read. Now, we are contemplating organizing an open air preaching in the 

village. During my visit in December for the end of year program, I visited the chief’s palace to meet the chief and the elders of the village. The meeting was cordial and the chief expressed his appreciation for the Church. David has now been summoned to appear before his former Church council in 

Lome the capital of Togo. I will inform you of the outcome. 

Willie Gley

Evangelizing Cambodia...

Greeting in behalf of the church in Siem Reap

I am exiting to write you this report, after reading some news and leadership which posted by brother Bob Turner that helped me to grow more as a leader.

There is some news that happened recently in Siem Reap, such as Takam now. The church there owns a piece of property that can be useful for the villagers over there and villages around. We as the local people and local members of the church at Takam appreciate brother Joe Hickey and brethren from his congregation who helped to get this property as the church at Takam requested, in purpose to build another small building to have separate classes between adult and children. As some of you may know, we have children at Takam much more than adults and it is a little bit difficult for them to study together. Now children are meeting at one of the members house, but her house is small and cannot keep all the children and the owner worries about her house that soon will break down. That's why they requested this and I think it would be a benefit for the church up there and especially the gospel can reach more and more people at the villages around. Lord willing we can build up the school there for children (this is just my opinion). We need to talk about this with the brethren in Bear Valley to see what we can come up with this situation. 

The work of evangelism is going alright. Last week we went to join in a wedding of our students down to Svay Reang next to the border of Vietnam. Everything went well, but Phanat's car got a flat tire three times when we were on the way back, which is amazing to me. This is also the first time for me to experience something like that. 

Concerning the school, I'll let brother Phanat let you know more about it. 

All in all, everything is doing okay here in Siem Reap, Cambodia and I am very appreciate to you all for your support and prayers, encouraging also your love for the work of God in Cambodia.

May our mighty God bless you. 

I love you all brethren.

Chann

Short Courses Begin In Visakhapatnam...

Greetings to you in the precious name of Lord Jesus Christ, our Savior.   We are all doing fine, having a great time during these short course classes.

Gary Fallis & Jerry Bates arrived on Saturday at 1 pm. I came from Skinner's Garden to pick them up and drop them at the hotel.  Sunday, they both worshipped with the congregation that meets at the school. Jerry preached a good sermon from Luke 5 about how to become real disciples of Christ. Except 4 students who worship here, everybody else went to their respective places to conduct worship services. 

Sunday afternoon they did not have much to do, so they took rest to get ready for next day class.  

Monday, our students and faculty have given a great welcome to both Gary and Jerry.  We had all the students present for both classes. They are going on well. Today we had 18 undergrad students and 16 of them are regular. We have 9 graduate students present.   

Our undergrad students are having great time during the Leadership class taught by Jerry bates. He is doing great job teaching the subject of 'Leadership'  This class is very practical which our students are enjoying. I bet this would help them a lot to do serious work on making themselves as leaders.  

They had a nice stay at the same hotel. Since they have to come to school each day to teach the classes, I am driving them back and forth everyday. It is taking 45 minutes to travel one way to pick them and 45 minutes to bring them to school. We pray that our Lord will open doors so that our brethren would have a facility to stay in the school premises, which would help us to save lot of time and money.  Hope things would workout for good.  

Thats all about the short courses until today....more as the days progress. All our students, faculty and staff send their greetings to you.  

In Christ,

John Dean Muppidi

God Gives The Increase In Arusha...

Hello Fellow-Workers,

Our neighbor Katherine was baptized into Christ!  If we understood correctly, she had previously studied with Jacob Jensen and Stephanie Stafford (many months ago) before studying with me during the past 5 weeks. We are thankful for the good foundation of knowledge that was laid before my studies with her. The titles of our lessons were "Seeking God,", "Finding God," "Jesus---The Way, The Truth and The Life" (2 lessons) and "Jesus---The Way to the Church." We never asked her if she wanted to be baptized...only presented her with the Truth. It is a thrill to study with "spiritually hungry" people and be a part of the TZ 2000 Mission Work.

The new Christian, Therasia and Trina met to discuss which topics she would like to study. She believes the Bible IS the Word of God but is curious as to how we have it. Trina plans to use the book "How Do You Know the Bible is From God" by Kyle Butt, M.A. as the basis for our study. We very excited and plan to invite other new Christians. Therasia lives with her husband, Peter, and 1 year old daughter, in a very small, 2-room mud hut. Afterwards she showed us their small corn field, stating that if rain didn't come soon their efforts would be in vain. Last week, while Therasia and Peter were attending church services, someone brought their cow over to eat from their corn field. We told her not to let that discourage her from attending (Matthew 6:33).

To update you on Lembris and Rosemary (new Christians):  Rosemary continues to be faithful despite family problems. Lembris has missed several services and needs our prayers. We will continue to study with them as long as they are willing. Thank you for allowing us to be here and spread the Good News.

Our monthly Child-Training class is scheduled for this Saturday and we hope the attendance remains high. These mothers are interested in knowing how to train their children to live godly so that future generations will walk in Truth. We feel humbled and privileged to teach this class…which also reminds us of our personal duty.

Some of the graduate students of ACSOP have begun to arrive. We busy finalizing things for the new incoming undergraduate class (presently twelve students) who will begin their studies on February 14th. Lindsey and Abigail will be taking the Genesis course (taught by their father) on Mondays and Wednesdays.

We are enjoying good health and very warm days with very little rain. When rain is scarce, we have to buy water ($28 for 2,000 liters or, when available, $50 for 10,000 liters). What we are mainly paying for is the fuel required to deliver it. This extra expense is irritating because we have already paid the yearly fee (required in advance) due to our being on the government water line. There is no refund for the absence of water...you pay but you don't always get what you pay for. When our landlord paid (quite a bit) to hook this house up to the government water line, it was in our agreement that our rent would be raised. Previously we just had to depend on rain water and we bought water every month. Now our rent cost is higher and we STILL have to buy water in the dry season. Stay tuned for next week when I harp on the electrical outages and the high cost of petrol to run the generator! All that aside, Tanzania is a great place to live and work! 

On a very, very sad note, Matthew's physical therapist (Stephen) died recently due to drowning in the ocean. Stephen, about 30 years old, was married and had a newborn. His death as a non-Christian has broken my heart and has been a painful reminder  that "today is the day of salvation.” TODAY, ask an unsaved person if he/she would like to study or simply invite them to services. Stephen was a great person...but now must suffer eternally. Oh, the regret of not being more diligent to share the Good News with him.

In Christ (our only hope for salvation),

The Gee family

Campaign in Cameroon

Dearest in Christ,

It is amazing to say hello to you and to all those around you this moment.  We are excited about your welfare. We are appreciating God for you and your family because of all that you do for the gospel of Jesus.

Your family here in CBIW is doing great. We thank God for His care and providence to us and the work He has entrusted in our hands.

Brethren, you can’t imagine how time flies. CBIW is already one month in existence and we are thankful to God for the work so far, which is becoming interesting daily to our students and the staff. Students are all up right in health and their morality for this past month that we spent together. It is our prayer that all we planned to do keeps going smoothly so that we shall always have opportunity to appreciate God.

The studies keep exposing our students to the realities of the Ministry of Christ. It sounds very wonderful for them as they confessed, they shall never regret their Divine calling into the ministry of preaching to save souls (PROV 11:30).

Last week was characterized with a test from all lecturers just for us to see how far our students are able to absorbed the knowledge. Next week we shall mark the script and we shall really see the realities of our findings. Just wait as we shall share that with you.

Thursday, after school the students and I embarked on a trip which is marked in history as our first missionary journey to MALENDE church of Christ. This is a congregation which was established above 30 years ago but it is still a baby at that age.

We used the other hired van till we reached our destination safe and sound. The students set for work as they stormed the village. You can see brother Norbert and brother Muofo Bernard preaching to this couple for house to house evangelism. Other students where scattered all over the village. This was the time for us to put into practice our school motto, EVANGELISM IS OUR MISSION, AND OUR MISSION IS EVANGELISM.

Mulango baptized another convert. We really appreciate God for blessing our efforts of evangelism to help that weak congregation with 8 souls and 4 restoration and more than 20 prospects who came for worship this Sunday but need to be baptize. The work really is great but few laborers,(Matt 9:36-38). What shall be the fate of the church which has been strengthen to that level? The students are back in school. Who will conserve these souls and nurture them to maturity? There is no preacher. That is our worries.

You can see our students being happy for the first outing which was fruitful both physically and spiritually. The host congregation, even though in that state, gave food stuff  like plantains (bananas), garri, and cooking oil to the students. This will help feed the students for some weeks.

The host congregation appreciated CBIW for the wonderful work and the revitalization of their spirits  and prays that CBIW administration think about them daily, and should do everything possible to transport a student on weekends to come and help them while they will help in feeding the student when ever he is around. The question to this appeal is difficult for CBIW because of finances.

The congregation also offered a special prayers for CBIW and Bear Valley and all those who are in partner to see that this work keeps moving because the school will do great things in Cameroon in the area of evangelism and demolishing all strong holds of the devil.

The student’s commitment for evangelism was a strong tool for growth and also a way of attracting other young men who have shown interest to come to school to be trained. But I have encouraged them to stay focus till 2013 for the next intake. We are happy because we see our prayers answered with glory to His name.

The presence of CBIW in this lectureship created a strong hope for the future of the church in Cameroon. Many congregations will need them in their areas to help, just like the Macedonian call to Paul. We are willing to go far and near, but we presently have no strong financial means to meet up with all this invitations. The nature of the congregations here is pitiful. They are not capable to help us financially to help them. That is a stumbling block for the work, but we are trusting God to take it off our way.

Mile fourteen congregation came crying that we should come over to their place and dismantle denominationalism in February, ending before the school goes for break for the first quarter in March. We have accepted, but we still put all our trust in God to support us with any means for us to go and do His will. Soul saving is our business.

We continue our classes normally again, as we enter another week full with activities. We pray you will always remember us and see how you can push this work ahead.

Stay blessed and stay safe and sound. We do appreciate you for all you are doing for us. Please continue because we lack words to appreciate your gestures towards us. Do your best to tell others about this work. I am very excited that God has given the power to serve, and I am happy with all that He is helping me to accomplished. Please, you are the tool in His hands. God bless you, the church and your family. 

Elangwe Esowe Greg

By His grace Director of CBIW

Changes In Chimala...

Changes of a wonderful nature recently began with the work in Chimala. Previously, two schools of preaching operated at the Chimala Mission. The Chimala School of Preaching (CSOP) is a nationally operated Tanzanian school taught in Swahili. The Chimala Bible College (CBC) is a Bear Valley Extension taught in English to students from Tanzania and Malawi.

Beginning this month, these two schools will come under one umbrella as one Extension for the Bear Valley Bible Institute of Denver. The Extension will be known as the Chimala Bible Institute (CBI). Both sides of the program will still exist, one taught in Swahili and the other in English. This approach will allow students from southern Tanzania and northern Malawi to learn in their own languages.

Garry Hill will serve as the Administrator for the Chimala Bible Institute. Several local men will share administrative and teaching responsibilities within both sides of the work. Howell Ferguson will continue to coordinate the Extension. Rebecca Benson will assist Garry in some of the administrative responsibilities, serve as the librarian and dean of women. A complete report is included below with all the development news. Please take time to read about the exciting news. Bear Valley is excited to see these two schools come together and serve as one extension for the Bible Institute.

Coordinator Updates

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

Gary Fallis and Jerry Bates are now in Visakhapatnam, India to work with the Visakha Valley Bible College, one of Bear Valley’s Extension Schools. Please remember them in their travels.

Extension Reports

Powerful Preaching In Nigeria: Chad Wagner reports about the work in Nigeria, including information about the Extension in Abakaliki. Please read his report.

Chimala Reorganizes: The full report explains all the details about the latest changes in Chimala.

An Interesting Week In Arusha: Take a moment to read the news in the Gee's report.

Work Extends In Cameroon: The outreach of the new school in Cameroon is making an impact in several ways. Read the latest report.

Impact In India: John Dean explains the latest development with the work connected to the Visakha Valley Bible College in India.

Exciting News At ITL: This is worth the read. Byron and Hawatthia report about news of a van for the school.

Final Thoughts

I know the reports appear to be getting longer with each passing month in the Extension Work. It is exciting for me to see the flow of communication improving with those who are serving as coordinators, administrators, directors, teachers and everyone connected overseas.

As each report brings news of the activities in each location, we grow in our understanding of the work. For everyone receiving the Weekly Report, you are beginning to see the magnitude of what is taking place around the world. I am so thankful to have a part in such an awesome mission.

I think my favorite quote of the week is the motto for the Cameroon Bible Institute of Wotutu,  “Evangelism is our mission, and our mission is evangelism.” Now there is something worth chewing on. This should be the focus of every Christian in every country on every continent in the world. It certainly lines up with the purpose of Extension Training. Thank you for being a partner with us and sharing in this work.

I pray God will richly bless you all.

Make a great day.

Bob

An Interesting Week In Arusha...

Dear Co-Laborers:

As some of you know, Jimmy has been in the states for 2-3 weeks and that is why there has been no report from us.  It was certainly not due to a lack of activity.  

First of all, a member named Zeno had been studying with his wife, Sophia, for some time.  She had also attended some of the services of the church.  After further study, she was ready to put on Christ in baptism last Sunday.  What a wonderful day!

Trena’s study with Katherine is going very well. One of her questions was "Will Muslims go to the same Hell as other sinners?" That was an easy question to answer. Her neighbor is interested in studying and asked to join us next week.  Also, a new Christian named Tarissa, the wife of Peter (see, Peter did have a wife!) requested further study in order to strengthen her faith.  How many people have asked you to study the Bible with them this week?  This past year? 

Right before Jimmy left to go to the states, a 5000 liter water tank was stolen from the school.  It wasn't the first time items had been stolen. Several of the Tanzanian staff decided they would play detective and get to the bottom of the case.  They sent out some "local private eyes" and found the water tank at a wealthy man's house.  Long story short, the man was in the habit of knowingly buying stolen goods from these thieves.  A week after his arrest, he was in court facing the Tanzanian representatives of the ACSOP.  Because the judge assigned was going very "soft" on the accused, the representatives from the school accused him of taking a bribe from the wealthy man.  The judge immediately excused himself from the case and the accused decided to settle out of court.  He returned the water tank and agreed to pay all the expenses (from paying fuel for the vehicles to paying the "private eyes") involved in the case.

While Jimmy was gone, Trena awoke one morning to find a snake (2 ft long...may not seem long to you but it was to Trena!) making its way into the bathroom. Our guard earned his entire months' salary just for killing that snake!

We have two visitors here from Texas:  Stan and Carol Crowley. Stan conducted a seminar yesterday on the Fundamentals of the Faith, preached at Arusha this morning, will do personal evangelism this week, plus teach our class at Kisongo on Wednesday night.  If you will come and visit, we promise to keep you busy!

By next Saturday the graduate students should be here ready to start class on Monday the 31^st. Jimmy will be teaching Old Testament Criticism and Chad Wagner of Arkansas will teach Advanced Biblical Exegesis the next week. After that, Chad will teach Church History to the incoming class of undergraduates. They are supposed to start on Monday, Feb. 14. Jimmy is looking forward to the new class and school year. Thanks for all you do to make it possible for us to be here!

In Christ,

The Gees

Work Extends In Cameroon...

Dearest in Christ,

It is amazing to share with you over there. We bring you God’s grace and best of life, as we share with you from the big CBIW family. We thank you for your prayers and concern over this family here in Wotutu, Cameroon.

We are still excited over what is happening here in CBIW. We still stay focused over our mission which is to monitor our student’s performance and to equip them well for the great task of planting and nurturing congregations around the country.

The school is planning for outreaches which will make Christians feel the impact of the school in their different congregations. We are also enhancing the spiritual formation and academic development of the student’s hard work and practice of worship. They are not allowed to preach now in the Wotutu congregation and during chapel, but after this first quarter they shall be giving opportunity to do so.

We thank God for the past week as all that was on the agenda went on well. The lecturers were all on time to carry on with their lectures and the students were ready on their part to receive lectures with open hearts.

In this picture, director brother Elangwe Esowe and two other students sit on a bike set to travel to Tole congregation for Bible studies. The bike is the means of transportation now, but we are believing in God for a school Bus which will help in many ways for our campaigns as we shall start fully after this first quarter to meet up with the focus of the school which is EVANGELISM IS OUR MISSION, AND OUR MISSION IS EVANGELISM.

We are also thankful to God for the French students who are coping well with the studies in English. They are here in the school because we are having the vision to start up a French department of CBIW upon their graduation, so that CBIW will be able to reach out to the whole nation and neighboring French speaking countries.

CBIW is doing great things as the news keeps flowing over the country. We are having visitors on a daily basis come and visit the school and attend chapel service and some spent vital time listening to lectures. That is what we prayed for and it is happening the same way. Glory be to God.

The week was not the best with the student’s health but we appreciate God as everything is under control. This coming week is a week characterized with lectures and test. We want to see how far the students are acquiring the knowledge.

Students received back from lecturers’ assignments papers and it is really encouraging. It brings joy into the hearts of the four lecturers that the students are really on the right track with the studies.

This picture shows the students on the road, keeping fit. They do sports every Saturday to help the studentskeep fit.

Please, we appeal to you to keep us in your prayers as the students will be going for their first outing this weekend for Bible lectureship in the Malende congregation. It is about 32 kilometers from Wotutu. They will be there with the director from the 27 Jan to the 30 January, when they will return to the school. This outing will give ample opportunity for students to do house to house evangelism for three days and worship with the congregation on Sunday. It is another way to expose the school to other Christians and to also prepare their minds for student’s individual campaigns in March at the end of the first quarter.

We wish you the best as you continue your prayers and support for this great work in Cameroon. Stay blessed in all that you do for the Lord.

The greatest worry now in the school is that we do not have a canteen and students are not allowed to leave the campus to any where to buy some basic things. We hope to put that in place with the shortest possible time.

By his grace director

Elangwe Esowe Greg

CBIW

Chimala Reorganizes...

Garry Hill and Rebecca Benson moved to the Chimala Mission on January 15, 2011 to operate the preaching school aspect of the Mission. The New York Avenue elders, as overseers of the Chimala Mission, have given Bear Valley Bible Institute of Denver (BVBID) permission to run the preaching school. New York Avenue church of Christ still finances the majority of the school’s budget. Garry is the school’s Administrator and functions as Academic Dean under New York Avenue and BVBID. Rebecca works as the Administrative Assistant, the school Librarian, and the Dean of Women. Howell Ferguson is the Stateside Coordinator under BVBID.

Chimala Bible Institute (CBI) successfully started on January 17, 2011 at 7:45 AM. CBI’s two departments were formally the Chimala Bible College and the Chimala School of Preaching. They are now the English and Swahili Departments, respectively.

The English Department has 13 students, 7 first years and 6 second years. Peter Kamatula is the Director of the English Department.

The Swahili Department has 14 students (half are first and half are second years). Joseph Haongo is the Director of this department.

Six prospective students from the Congo, who are living in refugee camps, have expressed an interest in attending the Chimala Bible Institute. They wish to learn more about the Bible and methods of preaching so they can return to their war-torn country and preach the gospel. Also we found out this week that ten students per year have been slated to come to CBI from the Tanzania Bible College in Dar-Es-Salaam. Brother Hill and Sister Benson already have plans to travel across the country and to Malawi to recruit new students. Our current student capacity is 50 students. We want to be able to expand our capacity to correspond with the interest to attend CBI. Last year alone at least 10 to 12 students were denied the opportunity to study at the Chimala Bible Institute because of lack of funds.

We have had one meeting on the general operation of the school and one meeting on the evangelism aspect of the school. The first meeting resulted in three basic principles:

1) Keep things the way they are as much as possible.

2) Continuing education is required for all teachers.

3) Form 4 will be required to enter the bachelor’s program starting next year.

We will also be working on the curriculum to make sure that all degrees offered are equal to the degrees offered at Bear Valley in Denver. We will be creating curriculum for an Associate’s degree. This degree will most likely take place through the Swahili program as it is not as intensive as the English program.

Another exciting development in the improvement of quality in training at CBI is the introduction of the Master’s program on April 25^th. We are already at our maximum of 15 students that we can enroll in the Master’s program. Seven students are currently on the waiting list. Interest is rapidly growing in the Master’s program and is exceeding our current resources.

Rebecca will be spending an inordinate amount of time organizing and cataloguing the library. She will also teach an intense course concerning library research and how to write research papers. Rebecca will also help the students improve their English so they can go on to the Bachelor’s program if they so desire. Women’s classes will further be incorporated to teach female students about women’s responsibilities and abilities in the church and evangelism.

The students will be widely involved in evangelism, teaching Bible knowledge classes at the primary and secondary schools, and improving the CBI campus. We have plans to repair buildings, build more desks and chairs, convert one of the classrooms into the chapel room, create a new sign, and remodel the dormitories. Student representatives were selected from each department and specific teachers were selected to take care of the food and dormitory requirements.

We also discussed the need for a tardy system. We want to make sure students are earning the classroom hours corresponding to their degrees. Teachers will be responsible for taking note of absent and tardy students and reporting them to the secretary for entrance into each student’s record. A new student database will be created containing detailed information on each student.

A new faculty hierarchy was created and is attached. In addition to that is a list of positions and their specific responsibilities. Each faculty member will be given a copy of these two sheets so that everyone understands their responsibilities.

The meeting about evangelism began with the 2010 report. Joseph, as director of CSOP, was in charge of evangelism last year. He reported there were 267 baptisms and 161 restorations. This year evangelism will be a cooperation between the two departments and under the direction of Joseph and Peter. Each weekend, a group of students will go out to a different village to participate in door-knocking campaigns and preaching the gospel. Seminars this year will include the Bible Cup, the Gospel Chariot, and a ladies’ seminar, among others. Students will be highly involved in the Gospel Chariot, which will take place July 18 through August 28. We will be expanding our radius to include more churches. This will result in the need for more space to house visiting congregations.

We will be meeting about dormitory improvements at the beginning of next week. Currently two million shillings (about $1500) are available for these improvements. We want to be able to build a new dorm and convert the oldest dorm into a combined dining and kitchen area. We also want to make study areas available at the dormitories, either in the form of a gazebo or desks and chairs in the rooms or both.

We are very excited about the improvements coming to the new Chimala Bible Institute.