Information on contacts and efforts in DRC (Congo)

SEMINARS: One of the pastors from Congo who has visited Brazil, and has attended our other seminars in Africa, has traveled extensively through the wild eastern part of the country, including rebel-controlled areas, spreading Maranatha’s teachings and holding small seminars and evangelistic campaigns.  The conditions are very difficult. In addition, pastors from other parts of the country (including two from Kinshasa, the capital on the western coast) have attended seminars in Kenya and in Brazil.  We have not yet sent pastors from America or Brazil to Congo (DRC), but we hope to do so in the future.  When we do, we would probably focus on Bukavu, near the border of Rwanda, or Kinshasa, on the opposite end of the country.  We have pastors and churches in both places who are learning and implementing Maranatha’s approach to Christianity.

CONTACTS:  We have several contacts (pastors) in CONGO (DRC) who are currently corresponding with us regularly, have attended seminars, and consider themselves to be integrated into the larger Body of Maranatha churches.  In addition, our churches in Burundi have planted groups just across the border in Congo (in Uvira and other places), and those members are close enough to Bujumbura to attend our seminars there.

SPECIAL PRAYER CONCERNS:

·         The pastors from Congo who are embracing the Work are diverse both geographically, and in terms of previous church involvement.  Both of these factors make it especially important to develop close teamwork and cooperation between the pastors and churches, so that there will be no competition or disunity.  There is a particular need to pray for unity, humility, love, and teamwork among the pastors there.

·         Pray for those pastors who are unemployed and are seeking jobs to support themselves.  Also, pray for the safety of the brethren there from violence and disease.  Pray for the Lord’s provision for the churches to have necessary buildings, equipment, and other essentials.

·         The contacts in Congo have been asking persistently for a seminar there for more than two years.  The civil disturbances and riots have forced us to postponed visits there.  The conditions in parts of Congo also make seminars there terribly complicated and expensive to organize.  Arranging travel for African pastors to Brazil – or for our pastors to visit there – is also very complicated and expensive, as flights must pass through other African countries first before arriving there, and visas are difficult to obtain.  Pray for the Lord to open doors for us to have seminars there. 

·         TRANSLATION of more of our teaching materials and videos into FRENCH and SWAHILI.