A Grace-Filled Beginning
I am enjoying a grace-filled beginning to my 3 months in Cameroon. After a delayed visa and two COVID tests, I arrived safely in Cameroon on Sept 24. I began teaching the next Monday. What a joy to be face to face in the classroom with these men and then to hang out in the Tamfus backyard after classes. This godly group of men hungry for God’s word and a heart to shepherd God’s people and reach out to those who don’t know Christ is already a blessing and encouragement to me.
Today we witnessed an answer to a prayer we have been praying for a long time. Years ago when Dieudonne was a “Steller Cellar Dweller” we would dream together in our basement and pray together about his return to Cameroon. As he finished TBI (the apprenticeship training program that evolved into Bethlehem College & Seminary), then his PhD at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, then his season of pastoring at Jubilee Community Church, he and Dominique returned to Cameroon with a passion and a plan to plant a church and to start the BCS extension site in Yaoundé, the nation’s capital. Dieudonne spent his first year back transforming his street French into solid French. Dominique was already fluent in French. Together they started the extension site and also recruited a church launch team. Finally this morning, Église Baptiste Bethléem, had its first public worship service. Several of his students have played important roles as part of the launch team. What an amazing apprenticeship opportunity for them and what a blessing for the church to have this calibre of men and their wives assisting with the church plant.
If you want to be encouraged, here is a link to one of the moments that encouraged me the most in Pastor Dieudonne’s message. It’s only a minute long but it will give you a taste of the kind of preaching that will characterize this newly established church. We are uploading the entire service to Youtube but after 24 hours only 34% of the upload is complete! The upload should be complete in a couple more days. I’ll try to post it on Facebook. It’s worth listening to this inaugural worship service from start to finish.
Your genuine interest and Spirit prompted prayers and financial support are playing a vital role in this Kingdom work. Please pray for the completion of my support-raising for my role as Director of Theological Education in Cameroon. I’m about 60% of where I need to be for my long-term full-time commitment to the work in Cameroon.
Seeing the church launched and the seminary in full-swing and living with the Tamfus for this season only confirms to us the importance of what God has called us all (including you!) to be a part of—whether it be giving, praying, or going.