Update from Africa

by Cy Stafford

   We returned Saturday a week ago and have not stopped. We had two guests, Roger Shepherd and Wayne Burger (Short Course teachers for the ACSOP) waiting on us. Each man teaches half a day and then goes out to conduct one-on-one Bible studies. The Lord added five souls to the Kingdom through their efforts and the efforts of three of our local evangelist this past week. Howell Ferguson arrived last night and began a seminar at Usa River today that will run through Wednesday. Beginning on Thursday he will conduct a seminar at Boman’gombe going through Sun. He will then head to Chimala to teach a couple of courses.

   We are also getting things ready for the two graduations coming up this Saturday. The Arusha Bible School and the Andrew Connally School of Preaching will both graduate students who have studied God’s Word for the past two years. It has been such a joy to see the change in these young men and women as they have come to know the Word of God. The good that is being done and that will continue into the future, only God knows. The influence on the growth of the Church is already being seen.

  The A.C.S.O.P. will have 24 new students arriving in the next two weeks. We have men coming from no less than six different countries here in Africa. We thank God and all who have made this possible. We have graduation this Saturday and in two weeks we have the official grand opening of the new school. I can hardly believe it when I think about where we began just six short years ago. Through the grace of God, the support of so many and the hard work of the entire Tanzania 2000 mission team, the Kingdom is spreading and souls are being saved. Thank you so much and we challenge you to continue praying for the effort and for the team.

We also have guests coming from the States for the grand opening. We have three from AL, one from TX and two of our Elders from Hattiesburg. Robert Russell will be coming back (having been here on a number of visits) along with John Galloway (this will be his first visit). [Note: Cy wrote this two weeks ago; since then, Robert and John arrived safely. We’re thankful for that good news. —Tyler] We thank God for them and their vision and wisdom in knowing the importance of Elders seeing first hand what they support abroad. Because they cared, many are coming to know Christ as their Lord and the Lord’s Church is heading in the right direction in the area of Self-Reliance. The work has been good, but there is truly much to do.

I want to close with two request; one, your prayers. We long to have Charles back in the field and also for Margaret Wechesa to have a full recovery. She had improved, but is now back in the hospital. She will return to Nairobi on Wed. for a follow-up visit and to see another doctor. Also, we need sponsors for our students. Some have already stepped up and made a difference, thank you. We still have plenty of students without a sponsor. If you are interested, contact me or Ken for more information. Thank you in advance. Keep the Faith and remember you may be the only Truth another might see. Be a light and help lead some lost soul to the Lord before it is everlasting to late. ›