Horn of Africa Report
We thank God that the work of the School of Christ continues to grow and strengthen in the Horn of Africa. The countries that make up the Horn of Africa are Ethiopia, Eritrea, Somalia, Sudan, and Djibouti.
Ethiopia has suffered dramatically from a Civil War in 2020 and 2021, so we were excited to travel there to see the work personally. We were able to visit some of the new churches planted through graduates of the School of Christ in Ethiopia and Djibouti.
In every church we visited, we found pastors truly hungry for the Word of God, living as Disciples of Jesus Christ. The pastors trained through the School of Christ continue reaching out and planting churches in difficult regions. God is with them, and we saw firsthand the new disciples that have come to know Jesus Christ within the last two years. Our emphasis over the last few years has been to train disciples through the School of Christ and send them out to witness as missionaries, plant new churches, and pastor those churches.
The possibilities for sharing the Gospel in these countries are significant. It was a great blessing to finally meet some of the pastors living the Life of Christ and seeing God move in the fields that are white to harvest. Many shared great testimonies of what God has done in their lives. Brother Clendennen talked about the quality of men that God would put together to work for Him. I often think about his statement as I travel to meet with these brethren. Many left good-paying jobs to go as missionaries into these difficult areas and plant churches. Many of these churches planted by SOC graduates are the only church in the entire region. These men are called by God, and they know the great need for their own country to receive the teachings of the School of Christ.
I was privileged to see again a brother that I had not seen in almost five years. He was put in prison in 2013 for preaching on the street. While in prison, he led thirty-three people to the Lord and started a church within the prison. After his release, he continues to pastor these new converts in prison. The Lord has also used him to plant two new churches in Djibouti. It was wonderful to see and visit again.
The churches in Sudan and Somalia continue to grow despite challenging conditions. Continue to pray for the underground work in Eritrea. We plan to run a SOC School in each of these countries in 2023. Pray that God will give us boldness and grant us great signs and wonders that the name of Jesus Christ will be glorified in these places, and souls will come to the saving Knowledge of Christ.
We continue to run schools in Ethiopia under the direction of Pastor Samuel. This country is our stronghold and launching pad into the rest of the countries that surround Ethiopia.
Thank God for the financial support of the School of Christ for the work in this part of Africa. We continue to run Schools and train church planters in the same manner that we were trained to do so by Founder B. H. Clendennen. We are seeing the hand of God at work in this area of the world.
Please earnestly pray for our brothers and sisters in these countries. Indeed, the fields are ripe to harvest, and we have workers called by God, who are going into the fields to labor.