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| View the pictures I took |
God is moving on the African Continent
For the past 4 years directors passionate about Brigade's message of discipling men, have traveled yearly to the beautiful country of Zambia to work with the incredible men serving in Christian ministry there at the invitation of a missions organization that saw the need for a ministry to men and CSB's unique ability to meet that need.
The first three years have been spent in building a network of pastors, establishing relationships, and casting a vision alongside local Zambian churches for how the ministry could look in a Zambian culture. This year's goal was to begin to train the trainers so that what has become known as the "EAGLES" ministry could begin to grow vibrantly and organically in the hands of Zambian leaders. Below is a short summary of their trip. We are speechless at what God chose to do, far exceeding our wildest expectations!
"Ron
Rynd, Norm Tacklind, Harold Browne and I returned August 1st to Zambia
to assist churches there in their ministries to men and boys. Our goal
this time was not only to train new men and assist new churches in
starting EAGLES programs, but also to begin to establish a Zambian
leadership team that would be able to take the reigns of the ministry.
The trip certainly had it's trials and difficulties, beginning with a
leadership meeting that did not produce any of the results we had hoped
for. I was scheduled to lead this key training session that we had come
for but in a frustrating twist of providence ended up getting
hospitalized with an infection the night before my session. Yes ... in a
Zambian Hospital! As you might imagine that's a whole other story but
you can see some pictures here.
The
men who took my place came back home deflated having accomplished
nothing of what we had hoped. Maybe we've learned something of how God
works by now because we chose not lose hope. God waited until the the
last day of our 3-day training conference where we spontaneously
decided to challenge the men there with the leadership content we'd
tried earlier in the week with the other men. We were blown away by the
men's response and the ownership they took of the ministry!
By
the end of day three committees had been formed a the urging of the
Zambian attendees, made up of all Zambian men: an administrative
committee, a curriculum development committee and a leadership training
committee. For those of you not familiar with much of African culture
this initiative and ownership of the ministry is often unusual. What an
encouragement to see such progress in the Zambian ministry!
Praise the Lord for bringing the men this far. Please continue to pray
for the leaders in Zambia. While we were sad to leave, we were greatly
encouraged by what we saw while there and we are confident that the
Lord is using this ministry to strengthen men and boys in Zambia.
Serving Christ with you,
Brian Stebick
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