Cameroon and Chad Trip: 10/20-11/9/2023
SECOND FRONTIER MISSIONS ACADEMY (FMA)
We first made our way to Garoua in the north of Cameroon, where we spent a week ministering to fifteen Frontier Missions Academy (FMA) students and graduated them. This was our second FMA, which is proving to be the leading of the Holy Spirit, as our focus has changed to making disciples in the unreached of WACA. These FMA graduates have been trained in theory and practice to go to the many unreached, unengaged people groups, specifically the ones they researched and presented projects on to do so as the capstone of their training. They have been through a rigorous and grueling three-month training in preparation for the work before them. The tangible love, joy and unity that we were received with by the students made us cry as we entered their classroom the first time.
Over the next several days, we heard from the students and also shared ten strategies to accomplish “Project Focus 2.0,” which work in reaching the unreached we have already been doing for several years now. This was the second time that we formally presented this new focal point to some of our teams, the meeting in Benin (our last newsletter) being the first. Just as in Benin, we were shocked when the students from the six nations represented each presented to us a powerpoint proposal to reach a certain people (mostly UPG’s) in a certain area. This was the culmination of the training they had been through in the FMA. Even the 20 pastors of Garoua and Maroua who graduated from Live School at the same time as the FMA students made similar presentations to us! The season of His return is upon us. The testimonies above and the testimonies of several international ministry representatives who also are now focussed on the unreached confirm it. His return will be after Mat. 24:14 is fulfilled. Let’s get the job done, for His glory!
Mat 24:14 (NAS95) This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come.
OWLS BRING 61 “UNREACHED” FULA TO C
Among the graduates were two powerful leaders with whom we co-labor: Bernard, who coordinates southern Cameroon for us, and Tchara, who coordinates Cote d’Ivoire for us. Tchara went with a small group of FMA students on a practicum outreach in mid-October, 2023. He and his team were trying to sleep in an unfinished house. Every night some owls would roost in the rafters and make a lot of loud screeching right above their heads, keeping them from being able to sleep. The team tried to kill the owls but were unsuccessful. In trying to kill the owls the FMA students found the owls’ eggs. So, the next day, Tchara told the people that he was going to “eat the owl eggs and they would never see the owls again”. The Holy Spirit had highlighted the words of Moses to the Israelites in Exodus 14:13:
“…the Egyptians whom you have seen today, you will never see them again forever.
The (Egyptians) “owls” you see today will never be seen again!”
Even Tchara’s teammates wouldn’t eat the eggs, but Tchara scrambled them up and ate them. Witch doctors use owls to torment people in much of Africa, making people afraid of them. This whole village was tormented by the presence of owls. But after Tchara ate the eggs, all the owls left and never came back! The people were so astonished, and 61 people of the Fulani tribe came to Jesus because of this event! Hallelujah! Tchara is bold in his faith and God often demonstrates His power through him in outreaches. You and I have the same power living on the inside of us!
Another amazing testimony comes from one of the pastors who was a Live School student from Maroua. He said that there was one course that profoundly impacted him. After watching each session, he would come home and repent, asking his wife to forgive him and often his children, too. He said this repentance happened after each session of the course! He testified publically that as he went through the course, he recognized that his wife was not “the problem,” which he had thought was the case for years…but that he was! For an African pastor to publicly share this in such a setting can ONLY be attributed to the work of the Holy Spirit in his life! And then, when he finished LS he and his wife sent their children “on holiday,” in order to have a second honeymoon…at home. JESUS HAS COME TO MAKE OUR LIVES WHOLE…SHALOM! “Your Kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven“ (Mat. 6:10).
KOUMRA, CHAD
On Tuesday, October 31, 2023 we flew with Mission Aviation Fellowship to Koumra, the sixth largest town in Chad. We were told that about 100,000 people live there. Kathy thought we were going to “the middle of the bush” when she saw the landing strip with neither a building nor a control tower. There were only cow pies on and bushes all around the air strip. The town is about 15 minutes away from the landing strip.
We went to Koumra to hold an evangelism campaign, a pastors’ conference and a women’s conference. Kathy and I were both taken completely out of our “comfort zones.” Each of us had “a fight of faith” to wage on our way to Koumra. Some friends were originally going to come with us to be the keynote speakers but they had to back out, leaving us to hold the meetings with the help of our co-laborers Justin and Maimouna and all the volunteers that they had organized. CHRIST JESUS did AMAZING THINGS, and He is the GOOD SHEPHERD!
Our testimony in Koumra is a GREAT LESSON for all of us! WE CAN TRUST HIM! As Joyce Meyer has said, “Sometimes you must ‘do it afraid.” There is an element of risk in all faith, but that is how we GROW from faith to faith (Rom 1:17)! Let me encourage you. GO FOR IT! He is not out to get you; HE IS OUT TO BLESS YOU (Heb 6:14-15)!
We held the pastors’ conference and women’s conference simultaneously in different locations on the same property each morning until about 1pm and then each night we held an evangelism campaign for three fruitful days. Kathy spoke to the women about the gift of eternal life, our identity in Christ, and freedom from fear. Though she was nervous about speaking to 100+ ladies, she relied on the Lord, and the women were very blessed. Chip and Justin did an amazing job speaking to the pastors, and Chip preached at the evangelism campaign each night. Over 3,000 people heard the Word of God shared by Chip, with over 600 salvations. About 700 were reconciled to the Lord who had fallen away. Over 200 healings were recorded and more than ten were delivered from demonic oppression or possession. The pastors in the Pastors’ Conference will be the ones to follow up upon those who responded to altar calls. Please pray for this vital work to be done to make them disciples.
Each night Chip preached a salvation message followed with a message about Jesus the Healer out of one of the nineteen individual healing miracles of Jesus recorded in the New Testament. It was so AMAZING to see the Holy Spirit perform so many miracles! He has preached the Gospel to crowds on the street many times and even preached at an evangelism campaign, some 30 years ago in India, but this was the first time that he has formally been the “evangelist” at an evangelism campaign. There was an anointing of confidence in the love and power of the Lord, as the Holy Spirit worked through the “foolishness of preaching” to save and heal many! Each night the Lord gave Chip the message and Jesus confirmed the Word preached with signs following, just as in Mark 16:20. ALL GLORY TO GOD!!
There are a few healing testimonies that Jesus did that we want to share with you. On the second night of the crusade Chip ministered on Jairus’ daughter and the woman with the issue of blood out of Mark 5:21-43. Two women who had chronic menstrual cycles of several years were both instantly healed. One of them was also healed of yellow fever at the same time, and the other of rheumatoid arthritis and diabetes. When asked how they knew, both of them said that when we prayed they each started violently shaking and felt the power of God go into them, healing them! Glory to God! “Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of Christ” (Rom 10:17). These women's faith were built up by hearing the Word preached, and they experienced the GREAT EXCHANGE, His healing GRACE.
A man who had been a worship leader and a competitive soccer player had injured his leg playing soccer some time ago and could not bend it. He went down the path of the “prodigal son.” But at the crusade, Jesus healed him! He may have still been dirty on the outside, but Jesus gave him a good washing on the inside and brought him home to the flock of God! HE IS THE GOOD SHEPHERD. He goes after the one who has gone astray. No longer was his leg stiff, but he could fully bend it and put his weight on it at will! HALLELUJAH! What is even better is his confession, “I’m returning to the Lord!”
The final testimony of the evangelism campaign was from a stocky man. When Chip asked him what Jesus did for him, he told his story. Several weeks earlier, he felt that a curse had been put on him; it was like someone cracked him over the back of the neck with a log. Suddenly, he couldn’t move his neck in any direction. He said that he tried to have juju done to him to fix it. Juju is West & Central Africa witchcraft, which is a type of African traditional religion. The witch doctor tried but with no result. So, he went to the medical doctors, who gave him some medicine…AND HE GOT WORSE! Now, he couldn’t even get up! But he heard that an evangelist was coming to town and determined that he would do whatever it took to get there. He came, and JESUS HEALED HIM! He showed us that he had full range of motion in his neck! HALLELUJAH! Jesus is the best medicine! “He sent His word and healed them” (Psa. 107:20)!
Healing may occur instantaneously or happen in a process of recovery. Either way, JESUS is the healer! Just keep believing and feasting on the Word of God! ALL of God’s promises are YES. Our getting into agreement with Him releases His POWERFUL GRACE to BLESS us (2Co 1:20; Heb 6:14-20)! May the Lord be gracious to you and bless you. May He cause His face to shine upon you, that His way may be known on the earth and His salvation among ALL peoples (Psa 67:1-2). We give the Lord all the glory!