Category Archives: Ministry

Pastor Training

Pastors’ Graduation

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Graduating Pastors

By Ted Miyaki

I have been a week in Tonj. The days accelerate and what seemed like a long time to be here is already almost passed. Probably because the days are so full – even the “down” days.

One of the main reasons for my coming was the pastors’ graduation from the Bible School. What a celebration of God’s faithfulness and a lifting up of Jesus’ name! Local and regional officials from churches and government came. How nice to be greeted by the deputy governor “in the name of Jesus Christ”! I was particularly touched when he describe how the ministry has helped Tonj…he was nearly in tears.

The pastors are a remarkable bunch. All 1st generation believers from pagan backgrounds (one was groomed by family to become a witch doctor). Most were saved during the war as it scattered men in the army to far regions where they received the Gospel and in turn brought it back home or to wherever they were assigned. Many of them were made pastors and leaders with no Bibles, no training, and some with only second grade education. One said he used to just tell the church amusing stories since he knew nothing of the Word of God.

So their appreciation for three years of going through the entire Bible was incredible. Part of the length was due to the fact that all had to learn English so they could read the Old Testament (no OT in local language). Their grasp of the centrality of the Bible in Christian faith and practice is remarkable. In meetings with the pastors, they kept thanking and thanking IDAT, their teachers and the supporters back in the US. You would have thought they had been given a million dollars – in their minds probably more than that.

More than what they learned about Scripture, I was impressed and inspired by their testimonies of how the Word of God and the school changed their LIVES. One, a former soldier, said he was a fighter (he was as big as Michael Jordan) always “boxing” people. He was his own god – now Jesus is his God and he is a lover. Another testified how much he loves his wife now and he wants to help other Sudanese men love their wives – that was pretty sweet coming from a guy who was at least 6′ 4″!

They are SO eager to go out (some have already planted churches in outlaying villages) to teach, preach and disciple. I was honored to be able to pray with and for them, to send them out in Jesus name.

I was especially humbled to meet the main teachers over the 3 years, servant-teachers, a missionary couple who have served in foreign fields for almost 40 years. They love the pastors like their own sons, and they endured so much to graduate them (35 started, 13 finished). Theirs was truly a labor of love. They have inscribed letters of Christ on the hearts of these men. The pastors could not stop thanking Joe and Nancy. May God richly bless them as they must move on from Tonj.

Ministry, Pastor Training

Sudan Church History

Prof. Dr. Bernd Brandl teaching students

“And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” – Matthew 24:14

IDAT Bible school opened two weeks ago. The Bible school students were privileged to have a professor of Church history who visited them for two days. Prof. Dr. Bernd Brandl had come all the way from Germany.

Church history for Africa dates back to a few decades after Christ was risen when some of the disciples came to North Africa, to places such as Alexandria in Egypt. Churches were established and later the gospel spread up the Nile river to a region around the present Khartoum.

Later these places were conquered by invading armies that scattered and destroyed the congregations. The churches died partially due to isolation from their mother churches and lack of strong leadership, this being a good lesson to learn for present day church leaders.

Ministry, Pastor Training

Bible School Update by Losee’s

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“Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.” – Mark 16:16

Nancy

My husband and I are excited again to be here in Tonj to teach the pastors. They were at the airstrip to meet us when we landed.  Monday, our first day of class, began with a song as I entered the classroom and then we prayed together and thanked the Lord Jesus Christ that we were all back together again.

We are finishing Manual 10, the last manual of the BTCP Curriculum, Missions Evangelism Discipleship. Yesterday was one of the best days I have had in the classroom since we started the Bible School three years ago. Part of the daily lesson was for the student to prepare and orally give his personal testimony.

I was privileged to listen to all of the pastors’ personal testimonies of how they became born again. It was truly awesome to learn that everyone of them are “first generation” Christians. Each pastor said that their parents were not believers, they were idol worshipers and involved in witchcraft. The wonderful part was that when they became a Christian and were baptized they returned to their homes and witnessed to their families and their families accepted Christ and they too became believers and were baptized. I was reminded of how the Philippine jailer and “all his household” was saved in Acts 16:25-34.

Joe

My husband, Joe, and I are teaching four sessions each day, starting at 9:15am and ending at 5:30pm. The pastors are there each morning ready to start with smiles on their faces and with a song to greet us.  We are so blessed to be a part of this training of the pastors.  We truly thank IDAT for the awesome work they are doing here in S Sudan and that they have allowed us to be a part of it.

Joe and Nancy Losee

Medical Clinic, Ministry

Prayer Request

Babies

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart;” – Jeremiah 1:5

Few days ago a woman brought her child to our clinic. Wut Manyuon Deng, seven days old was borne at home with a protrusion of intestines and other abdominal organs through the abdominal wall at the umbilicus partially without skin cover. The protrusion is 12 cm long and 6cm diameter at the end containing the intestines.

Medically this condition is called an omphalocele and it affects 5 out of 20,000 births. The problem is lack of complete development of the fetal abdominal muscles during pregnancy leaving a defect that allows herniation. This is the second case seen at our clinic within this year.

One of the amazing things in this particular case is that even with the culture of so much belief in witchcraft; the mother of this child was among the few who reported not to have gone through a witch doctor before coming to our clinic. She had heard  about our clinic a number of times and opted to seek first care with us.

We thank God that they came early enough and the child was not having any life threatening complications. This precious child needs specialized surgical correction of the defect as soon as possible. As we find out where this will be done, Please pray for:

  1. 1. God’s provision of enough funds-the parents has no money.
  2. 2. Patience and hope for the family.
  3. 3. No health complications.
  4. 4. Wisdom for the doctors involved.
  5. 5. Successful operation.
Ministry

Kids games in Tonj

Kids

“Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” – Matthew 19:14

While the Olympics were going on in London, we started our own Kids Games Olympic style for the kids in Tonj and the surrounding areas of Tonj. As you can see from the Photos not as flashy as the Olympics but these children had fun playing, and heard the gospel with open heart. Gabriel, Emmanuel Part of our Medical staff,  together with Donato and Santino and Albino form a team to go from village to village to conducting kids games.

Their main objective is to encourage the kids that they are important in the society no matter where they come from or family background. Many of them think that they are less important than others because they do not have nice clothes and shoes. This makes them not to attend Sunday school.

The games also create a good relationship between the children and their trainers. They will grow knowing that they have big brothers who care for them. They are taught how to respect each other and their parents. They are also taught to have discipline and work hard in school (though only a few of them go to school). Most of these kids do not have a chance to come to church on Sunday. Their parents discourage them by telling them that is not important. The children who come to the Sunday school in our church have a chance to play all these games.

After playing games in the villages all the participants are given shoes and this encourages them and boosts their self esteem. Their parents come to cheer them and Gabriel addresses them. He advises them to teach their children the word of God and to respect each other so they will grow up as good children.

We have been having heavy rains often and this has hindered Gabriel and his team from going to the remote villages. In future they are planning to go to even more remote villages.

Emma