Celestin Musekura is President and CEO of ALARM, our African partners. He sent the below letter to supporters this week, and it gives some great insight into last week’s conference (which included three other Watermark men) as well as the larger work of their ministry.
My dear friends and partners:
Greetings from Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi, Kenya! I am on my way to Burundi to join our Staff to facilitate the Pastoral Leadership Training Institute (PLTI) this week. I got to Nairobi on Saturday evening after Todd Wagner (Senior pastor of Watermark), Rick Howard, and Chad Pinson spent a week with me in Kenya and Sudan. In Kenya, Todd and I were speaking to 600 church leaders and pastors of the Africa Gospel Church during their annual leadership conference. We were privileged to teach on Servant Leadership, Conflict Resolution and Reconciliation. Rick and Chad were in Juba two days before Todd, and I joined them for the last two days of training the Police and Military Chaplains.
In Juba, we had about 115 Chaplains from Police, Military, Wildlife, Prisons, Fire Brigade, and Hospitals. The focus was on basic Bible study, servant leadership, conflict resolution and reconciliation. It is always a great joy to see these leaders get excited and commit themselves to leading well in their lives, families, and communities. We thank God for the privilege to empower and equip His servants with tools and skills that are enabling them to transform their communities. The new nation of South Sudan needs more prayers as they struggle to move from a rebel-led nation to a democratic and independent one. We will appreciate your prayers for us and for the ALARM Sudan staff.
While we were in Juba, Sunday and I met with our north Sudan (Khartoum-based) ministry Coordinator, Rev. Hassan Shawgi. (Sunday is our former Coordinator for the Khartoum office now serving in the Juba office). I had invited him to come down to Juba to update us on the situation of the church in north Sudan after the independence.
The reality is that after most of Pastors and church leaders from South Sudan returned home before and after the independence of South Sudan, the church in the north has been without shepherd. Those Christian Arabs who took over the leadership are not trained theologically and biblically. They have no leadership skills. To make the matter worse, many of them are being threatened by the Khartoum security agents and being told to return to Islam and close all churches. Rev. Shawgi asked us to pray for the believers in north Sudan and to provide accelerated training for those who have taken over as church leaders. The main areas of need are: basic Christian doctrines, church leadership/administration; evangelism & discipleship, church planting, and peacebuilding/reconciliation. Three major centers in the north have been identified as training locations.
Rev. Shawgi talked also about the suffering of many black people and especially Christians from the Nuba Mountains who have been displaced and are hosted in churches and homes of believers in and around El Obeid, since the Khartoum government did not want to have a camp of displaced people in the north. The pastors and believers from the Nuba Mountains who have survived the persecution and killings need Bibles and physical/relief assistance. He asked for prayers that blankets will be found as the cold season begins this month.
Please keep these brethren in your prayers. We ought not to close our eyes to the poor, hungry, naked, and persecuted brethren! Pray for these brethren and exhort your friends, church, congregation, and community to remember the suffering and persecuted as if they were sharing in their suffering.
Thank you for your prayer and support. Grace to you.
Celestin
group of young men, the first child I met was Dominc! He is a great kid – bright, speaks good English, loves his friends well – but has had an extremely difficult life. Our sponsorship has allowed him to continue in school and therefore given him opportunities to develop his obvious leadership gifts. I can’t wait to see how God is going to use this young man!
led, one head of household was 13 years old. As we were discussing Romans 3:23 and the sin each of us has committed, one of the boys replied, “I’ve killed people.”
