20 Answers to Prayer
Post-Service Debrief at Église Baptiste Bethléem
Tonight I will fly back to winter. What joy to see my family in Minneapolis, what sadness to leave my family (and 90 degree sunshine) in Yaoundé.
Here are 20 goals/prayer requests I have had for this very special time in Cameroon. You have prayed for many of these. My thanksgiving abounds! What is listed below is what we have been praying toward and laboring for. By God’s grace these have been accomplished or significant progress has been made. Every one of these are worth many words of explanation. Eager to talk to whoever, whenever.
Encourage the Tamfus, individually and in their marriage, family life and ministry.
Pray the dedication prayer for the congregation of Église Baptiste Bethléem and the commissioning prayer for the first two pastors of Église Baptiste Bethléem on Oct 4. The church is now 9 weeks old!
Successfully complete Bethlehem seminary courses on Eldership and Intermediate Greek (only two weeks left—started with zoom back in August, then 10 weeks in the classroom together; will now finish with two more weeks of zoom).
Learn as much as I can about daily life in Yaounde that will be helpful to the families from Bethlehem who are preparing to come to Cameroon long-term.
Assist in laying some of the groundwork for establishing a Print On Demand (POD) ministry (http://www.publish4all.com/) that will serve the printing and book-making needs of like-minded ministries, employing trained Cameroonian workers, bringing more theologically rich resources to French (and English) speaking Africa.
Return with professional picture and cost estimate of a multi-purpose building that will house classrooms, library, offices, dedicated space for POD, multi-purpose room for Église Baptiste Bethléem, pastoral seminars, preaching workshops, evening Master of Arts in Theology and Exegesis program, etc. (The first draft is now moving toward a second draft, cost estimates still forthcoming).
Be working on a 5 year plan laying out courses, schedule, and professors recommended for each course.
In this 5 year academic plan, we are identifying a list of textbooks that are available through Logos and then work with Logos on a pricing structure for these books that is reflective of “regional pricing and global economic considerations.” Logos has invited us to make a proposal to them.
Assist in building a comprehensive budget that will support the work of Bethlehem College & Seminary in Cameroon, provide for its faculty and staff, internships for students, the cost of the building and upkeep, etc.
Figure out a daily room and board plan and charge for guest professors and others who come to Yaounde for some kind of short-term ministry trip or vision trips for donors (we have already identified three places within walking distance that are safe, clean, and inexpensive).
Keep working on whatever is needed on the Cameroon side to raise Bethlehem College & Seminary's status from “extension site” to “additional location” to satisfy the requirements for our continued accreditation.
Secure governmental recognition of the TCT Network under which the church and school can issue letters of invitation for visas and enjoy the other rights and protections belonging to government recognized institutions. (Paper work submitted and waiting to be signed by the Presidency.)
Return with a ten year residency permit to enable the Tamfus to stay here and me to come and go without the hassle and expense of applying for single entry visas each time I come. (This has amazingly happened. The Tamfu family and I now have this permit. It’s like a green card in the US, only better!)
Solidify EEB and BCS relationship with the French Cameroon Baptist Convention. We met with their Director of Theological Education. Dieudonne and I have been granted appropriate identification cards as pastors recognized by the denomination).
Do the legwork to initiate launching two or three TLI sites. The first one will likely be through the French CBC, another possibly through another denomination with which we are building relationships and perhaps one more that is interdenominational.
Return with video footage, audio interviews, photographs and a plan for creating video and print resources for promotion of the church and school.
Raise initial funds for the establishment of an Église Baptiste Bethléem helping hand ministry to assist with emergency needs for church members, students, and neighbors. Bethlehem’s Global Diaconate Fund is seriously considering this.
To begin to learn how to read and pronounce and speak enough French to function at least at a minimal level (greetings, taxi, shopping, congregational singing of French worship songs, etc.—in process through daily work with Rosetta Stone and practice with French speakers).
Build good relationships with other missionaries engaged in theological education and church planting in Yaoundé and beyond..
Grow in wisdom about how to navigate the dangerous (and exciting!) waters of financial partnership: how to stimulate generous giving without creating situations where well-intended giving can actually hurt the people and institutions we want to serve.