“And He gave some, apostles; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ. Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.” – Ephesians 4:11
Pastors’ church planting conference May, 2013.
Jesus, the Builder of HIS church and the author and finisher of our faith, is after our spiritual maturity. He’s after yours and mine… and He’s faithfully committed to continuing the good work He began in us, in order to bring that maturity to fruition.
A time of worship.
No parent would ever want his children to stay babies. His delight, joy, and fulfillment is in seeing them grow, develop, becomes responsible, and pour into others from the gifts that have been developed in them. The greatest satisfaction our Father must have, is when He sees us apply what we’ve learned and then, in turn, give to others what we have received from Him.
The spiritual hunger is great!
To experience this growth is to eat spiritual “meat” instead of drinking only milk throughout our lives. This is maturity, and maturity causes us to multiply and duplicate our faith, character, and knowledge of God and His ways.
One of our partners from the U.S. team speaks to the Sudanese pastors.
I pray that you, too, will be challenged in your own homes, churches, neighborhoods, and jobs with your children and families to “make disciples” of each one that God entrusts to you in relationship. One-on-one discipleship as well as group training, mentoring, and other forms of impartation are some of the ingredients for growing babies into adults, along with accountability, faithfulness, stewardship, encouragement, loving correction, and so much more. The goal of this maturity is that one day they too will disciple those around them. (2 Timothy 2:2) Thus, the Kingdom expands! Multiplication is how God works – with 30-, 60-, and 100-fold returns!
More teaching and training!
We have served alongside the vision of US teams to train leaders and plant churches throughout South Sudan, and we are currently following up on seeds planted, truth imparted, and resources given.
On my way to follow up with the dear pastors who came to the training in May.
During our most recent follow-up at the end of November, I was in Juba meeting with the pastors who attended the Pastor and Leadership Training Conference hosted last May by our friends from the US. 350 pastors attended and were equipped, empowered, blessed, taught and trained in so many truths about church planting and growth. The conference was wonderful, and the pastors were refreshed. They went home with resources, tools, and fresh vision.
My transportation.
As Favor of God continues to help our US friends with follow-up on the training in Juba, we have seen wonderful fruit in these dedicated indigenous pastors, both men and women. They are determined to see the Lord Jesus rebuild and restore their nation. Already fifteen new churches have been planted with more going up even as we speak.
Dedicated pastors gathered in a follow-up discipleship session!
Please pray with us, as the Lord of the Harvest has asked us to do… for laborers in His fields. (Luke 10:2) As we’ve said in Gulu to our Bible school students, “Pray prayers that you are willing to be part of the answer to.” This means we “back it [our prayers] with our lives.”
Please pray for these brothers and sister in Christ, who have dedicated their lives to spreading the Gospel and building His Kingdom!
As we reach Gulu and into South Sudan to train pastors and plant churches, will you too join with our team on the ground as intercessors who will “back it with your life?”
Please watch this interview with Pastor Morris, one of the dear South Sudanese pastors who attended the training!
Challenged by love,
Carole
