Jonathan leaving for TZ and KE on June 7 + ECLEA updates

 JMM and Maasai leader Boniface Kugotha

Boniface Kugotha, whose picture is above, is the Maasai leader I met at the Biblical Stewardship TOT in Nairobi whom I mentioned in my first report from Kenya. I thought you might like to see him.

Upcoming trip to TZ and the coast of KE
The time has been blasting by, and I have been very busy, since I returned from Kenya on May 5. I leave again on June 7, less than 1 1/2 weeks away. I will be spending 2 1/2 weeks in Tanzania and will finish in the Mombasa area of Kenya. While in TZ, in addition to our teaching, I will be having two meetings with important bishops from different churches and places in TZ. These meetings could prove to be very important in opening many doors to working with different churches in TZ. Please pray for this. I am scheduled to get back to Appleton on the afternoon of July 4, after a short visit with our son David in Arizona.

ECLEA websiteThe ECLEA website (www.eclea.net) is now up and running, although it is still under construction. New material in the process of being added. In that regard, I have revised most of my teaching books and given them the new ECLEA logo. They will be uploaded to the website soon. Check it out.

My blog: updatesThis blog is located at: http://jonathanandnancymenn.blogspot.com/. There is a link you can click under my name and picture on the ECLEA website to access it, or you can bookmark it. I always post reports of my teaching trips to East Africa on the blog along with pictures.

ECLEA's future is looking good
I am very excited for the future of ECLEA. While I was here I met with the head of Converge Great Lakes Short Term Ministry Initiative. I think (and hope) that this will pave the way to a great expansion of ECLEA's outreach and impact. Please pray about that as well.

I want to thank you all again for your prayers and financial support, without which we could not be doing what we are doing. As always, I will endeavor to send you a report from the field. God bless you, Jonathan

Report from Kenya: Part 2

 George Kariuki teaching at Murang'a

 Small group discussion at Murang'a

 Embu TOT group

Here is a report concerning the rest of my April-May time in Kenya.

Misikhu, KE: Biblical Interpretation TOT
The TOT on Biblical Interpretation was the first time we had done that particular course. It was hosted by Bishop Justus Wafula. I recently received an email from Justus in which he commented concerning that course, "Jonathan I really appreciate the new lesson you did with us. Biblical Interpretation was new to us but I really understood it better. May God touch you all who may sponsored the conference. Some of us from local areas have been problem to get skill we are getting. You are real changing the life of many people.May God bless you."

Malaba, KE: Biblical Theology TOT
We traveled to the the far western town of Malaba, on the border with Uganda, where we were hosted by Isabellah Inyele, parish priest and special assistant to Bishop Zakayo Epusi of the Anglican church of Kenya (ACK). There we did a TOT on Biblical Theology for a group of Anglicans and Pentecostals. The group of 14 participants interacted well and, I think, began to see how the Bible fits together in a new light.

 Murang'a, KE: 1 Timothy Conference
We then returned to central Kenya where we taught through the book of 1 Timothy for approximately 66 pastors and other church leaders. George Kariuki, Bob Mwangi, and Thomas Mwai Ng'ang'a all taught with me. I always make sure to have at least one and, hopefully, more than one good African teachers for all pastors conferences. These gentlemen are excellent teachers and themselves have been leading all-African pastors conferences and TOTs for some time now.

Embu, KE: Biblical Theology TOT
We concluded this trip in the eastern region town of Embu with another Biblical Theology TOT for approximately 28 participants. Most of our courses are geared toward the TOT format in which I try to stimulate as much discussion and Q&A as possible. In this case we had huge discussions regarding the true nature of the Gospel, "words versus deeds," the "prosperity gospel," the nature and place of miracles, and other issues.

This was a productive trip.

Report from Kenya

 Biblical Stewardship TOT in Nairobi, KE

Biblical Interpretation TOT in Misikhu, KE

 Bishop Zakayo Epusi addressing Biblical Theology TOT in Malaba, KE

I returned from Kenya on May 5. Here is the report I sent "from the field":

It is the rainy season here in Kenya. But so far, while it has rained heavily every night, the days have been pretty good. Here is what has been happening so far:

Nairobi: Biblical Stewardship TOTWe had an enlightening and very good TOT on biblical stewardship in Nairobi with about 24 participants. Among the participants were 6 very enthusiastic Masaai pastors, one wearing traditional Masaai dress, whom I had not met before. They were there because some of the good African teachers I had worked with had done an all-African conference in Masaai-land and had invited them to this TOT. Everyone, I think, saw in a quite powerful way how Christianity not only is designed to change us from the inside-out but also is designed to give us a holistic approach to life. In other words, when we have Christ, our values and outlook on everything changes: Christ affects our relationships with people, what we do with our money, our bodies, our environment, etc. In prior conferences, I had stressed how Christianity applies and relates to all of these areas. In this one, it came home more to me how these are all just aspects of a fundamental inner and holistic change.

Murang'a: Biblical Theology TOTI took the matatu to Murang'a in central Kenya. The biblical theology TOT for about 40 participants was eye-opening and challenging. The first day we spent much of the time talking about the relationship of God and evil, and going over the overall biblical storyline. After that, the course was largely devoted to showing how Christ and the church fulfill all of the Old Testament "types" and "shadows," such as the temple, the covenants, the festivals, the sacrificial system, etc. Many pastors here do not have a good understanding about these fundamental matters. We had lots of good questions and discussion. Also, I was amazed at the practical and pastoral implications of these things. I think and hope that this will prove to be very helpful to these good pastors and, through them, to their people.

Misikhu: Biblical Interpretation TOTI am now in Misikhu, western Kenya, in the middle of a biblical interpretation TOT for about 20 participants. This is the first time I have done this particular course. It is generating lots of good discussion on a host of issues. Biblical interpretation, of course, has integral and important implications for application and for such subjects as biblical theology and eschatology. We have had lots of questions and gotten into good discussions on all of those areas. Change is coming, slowly by slowly, to the pastors and churches.

Thank you for your continued prayer and support. God bless you, Jonathan

Report from Rwanda and Burundi

In January and February I spent three weeks in Rwanda and Burundi, mostly in Burundi. I inadvertently neglected to update this blog, so here is my report on that trip now (BTW, I am leaving for Kenya at the end of this week):

                                                        Expository Preaching class

                                                          Devastated central market

                                                          Frederic Harerimana teaching

                                                        Nestor Bukuru and his church

Expository Preaching
We did round 3 of expository preaching in Kigali, Rwanda with 14 students. Actually, it was round 3 for some, but about half of the students were new, so it was round 1 for them. It demonstrated the importance of doing this more than once. One round 3 student said, "Now it is all clear." We focused on two passages: Ezek 36:22-32 and John 7:37-39. The preaching and critiques are always a highlight. We divided into two groups for the preaching: I took one and Theophile Rugubira took the other. All of the preachers in my group were new, so many of them fell back into the old ways much of the time, but the critiques were helpful. Fortunately, we had sufficient time for me to preach one of the passages, so they were able to see exactly what I was advocating. That proved illuminating. Also, the students themselves expressed the desire to get together every two months or so for preaching and critiques on their own, in their own primary language. That will facilitate learning and understanding, since in most cases English is their third language.

Bujumbura, Burundi   
I took the 6 1/2 hour bus ride to Bujumbura, the capital of Burundi, located at the top of Lake Tanganyika, the deepest lake in Africa. Here it is Florida-like: mid-80s and lots of semi-tropical vegetation. At the African leaders strategic planning summit in Kigali last November, I had talked about the importance of setting up indigenous committees/structures in each of the East African countries, for accountability and continuity purposes. The Burundians have done that. Frederic Harerimana is the chairman, along with Francois Sebagabo, Venat Bagabo, Nestor Bukuru, and Bonaventure Haringazi. We want to do things right here.

We will be doing three 1 Timothy conferences and one TOT, all in suburbs of Bujumbura. We have just finished the first conference, with about 20 participants. It went very well. Frederic did translating for me and taught three of the units. Venat and Nestor also taught. The bishop of Eglise Emmanueliste du Reveil Church hosted. He is an enthusiastic proponent of what we teach (he has been a participant in the past) and gave a testimony concerning the impact that the teachings have had on him and his people. I also preached in his church last Sunday.

A Tragic Loss    
About a week ago the central market in Bujumbura was burned to the ground. It appears to have been a well-planned arson. It has not yet been announced who is responsible. This is a terrible tragedy, especially for such a small country as Burundi. I was informed that the central market was home to countless small businesses, did the equivalent of about $5 million in business each day, and that about 5000 people worked there. Everybody and everything was totally wiped out. There were also a few deaths. In addition to the great personal losses, this will have significant economic repercussions throughout the country and for the country' s economy. Please pray for the people and peace of Burundi.

 Kanyosha and GatumbaWe did two 1 Timothy conferences in the Bujumbura suburbs of Kanyosha and Gatumba, before about 47 participants. Venant Bagabo, Nestor Bukuru, Frederic Harerimana, and Francois Sebagabo taught along with me. Developing good African teachers is particularly important in a country like Burundi where very few people speak English (the national language is Kirundi). The conferences went well. At the conclusion of the Kanyosha conference one of the pastors, Samuel, told us how my discussion of the so-called "prosperity gospel" in connection with 1 Timothy 6 had spoken very directly to him. He had been told by a "prosperity teacher" some years ago that if he continued to preach and teach the gospel as he was doing, he would never be able to live in a big house in an affluent neighborhood of Bujumbura. I am happy to say--and he is happy to say--that he has remained faithful to the real gospel of Jesus Christ and now sees from the exposition of the Scripture why that is so vitally important.

TOT in Bujumbura
We conducted a TOT on 1 Timothy for 15 participants at Francois' church in Bujumbura. Since 1 Timothy is written primarily to leaders, its impact on individual church leaders is always front-and-center at the pastors conferences. However, at this TOT, our discussions brought home to me, in a way I had not appreciated before, how the entire book is challenging the churches in order to get the leaders to ask themselves and reevaluate how they "do church" and why they do things the way they do. Specifically, what does the "church as a family" (1 Tim 3:15; 5:1-2) and "church as pillar and support of the truth" (1 Tim 3:15) imply for how we do church, our priorities, and what we focus on?

We talked about many issues along these lines. Sometimes the discussions became quite animated, and at times they spent some time debating in Kirundi rather than English. All this is good, and I hope that some of the pastors saw a little bit about how bound many of us are to our own traditions, and also saw the great potential the churches have for making a real difference in their people's lives and in society if changes are made. This is particularly important given the burning of the central market and the financial devastation that resulted to many people. The churches, despite their own relative poverty, should play a prime role in restoration.

Final Thoughts
There has still been no announcement concerning who is responsible for the fire. Please pray for Burundi and for the revival and re-prioritizing of the churches. I preached at Nestor Bukuru's church (the walls of which are made of papyrus reeds). My Burundi leaders will be developing a strategic plan for our work in that country. I probably will return to Burundi in the late summer. It appears that we will have the opportunity to do five days with all of the pastors of a particular denomination at that time. So, there is potential that we can make a significant difference in this beautiful and challenging land.

Thank you for your prayers and financial support. I will keep you advised of developments. God bless you, Jonathan

Return from East Africa

 Baboon by the road in Tanzania

 Jonathan bringing Stanley and Livingstone together in Ujiji, TZ

 Leaders' meeting participants in Kigali, RW

Two days ago I returned from East Africa. The following is a synopsis of the last part of the trip.

Katoro and Mwanza, TZ
We did biblical stewardship conferences in Katoro and Mwanza, TZ.  Katoro struck me (and the rest of my crew [Dickson Laizer, Joram Ibrahim, and Godfrey Ongiri]) as spiritually "hard ground." We had not been to Katoro before. It was hot, dry, dusty, and dirty. We did have fish soup for breakfast at what appeared to be the one OK restaurant in that town (Mama Nasoro's). I thought it was somewhat discouraging, and the pastors all seemed to be a a very low level.Godfrey Ongiri will follow-up, so I hope that good will come of it.

Mwanza, which is located on the southern end of Lake Victoria, was also somewhat discouraging. It did not seem to have been particularly well organized. There were only about 32 participants at the stewardship conference, and the majority of them were not pastors (but were elders, deacons, worship leaders, wives, and others). The teaching went well. Godfrey is from Mwanza, so should be able to follow-up fairly easily.

Kigoma, TZ
The situation was considerably different in Kigoma. The stewardship conference was well organized. In Kigoma there is a good inter-denominational pastors fellowship--so we had pastors and leaders from all denominations, Pentecostal and non-Pentecostal. There were even a few Roman Catholics. We had over 75 participants, and they purchased about 90 of the Biblical Stewardship books. This group was enthusiastic, asked lots of questions, and appeared to learn a lot. It is an area I certainly want to return to. 

Kigoma itself is located on the shore of Lake Tanganyika. It used to be the transit point for the Muslim slave trade. The Muslims (who have enslaved far more people than Westerners ever did) would kidnap the Africans from central Africa and force them to march across the continent to the east coast, where they would then be shipped to the Middle East and other points. Kigoma has a very high Muslim population. I had not realized it, but Ujiji (just outside of Kigoma) is the place where Stanley met Livingstone and uttered the famous line, "Dr. Livingstone, I presume." On our last day there we visited the site where that occurred.

Kigali, RW
This trip ended with an important meeting in Kigali, RW of top people from all of the countries of  East Africa with whom I work. Dr. Frank Cummings led a two-day strategic planning summit meeting. We even had three representatives from the newest country in the world, the Republic of South Sudan. Most of the participants never had attended a strategic planning summit before. We focused on our mission and vision, our strengths and weakness, and ended by developing the beginning of an action plan. This was designed, in part, to help the Africans to develop a sense of "ownership" of this mission.

The meeting was successful. I just received an email from Ernest Mwilitsa of Kenya. He echoes the sentiments that others who were at the meeting also expressed:

>>We thank God for using you to give us that good opportunity to meet our fellow labourers in the Lord. Matters discussed were very important to us and the future of EPI. It is our prayer that we continue to have such meetings every year.

From the look of things, that is a real milestone and road map to our future.I believe with such exposure many people will work hard to make EPI a success. You might not know the impact of EPI in East Africa,
but I want to assure you that it has transformed many ministries.<<

Back Home
I have much work to do now that I am home. Frank is on his way back home even as I write this (he led a two day advanced biblical counseling workshop in Kigali after the summit meeting ended). Later in the year I will post a year-end summary. God bless you all.

Field Report from East Africa

Kitui, KE conference participants

 TOT in Eldoret, KE

Dickson Laizer and Joram Ibrahim

 

 The following is the report I sent from the field while I was in East Africa recently:

I am now in Tanzania in the process of doing four conferences on biblical stewardship. Next up will be an important meeting in Kigali, Rwanda, of about 25 leaders from all over East Africa, including Southern Sudan.

Kitui and Eldoret, KenyaI began this trip in Kitui, KE, about 200km east of Nairobi. I had never been there before, but the groundwork had been laid by good all-African teachers. That, of course, points up the importance of equipping the indigenous pastors and church leaders, so that they can teach this material well to others.

George Kariuki, Robert Mwago, and I did a biblical stewardship conference to about 36 participants. The number was fewer than had been anticipated, primarily because it is planting season in Kitui. The fact that such seasons may vary slightly from area to area even in the same country is something we need to take into account in scheduling.

The conference itself went well. We were transported and assisted by Bishop Nicholas Mulea. The host pastor, Rev. Syslvester Kiema, is part of an inter-denominational pastors fellowship that includes several of the participants. He encouraged me by saying that they would be meeting to discuss how to implement what we had talked about in the conference. That is vital.

From Kitui we took the long bus ride to Eldoret in western Kenya. There, George, Bob Mwangi, and Dickson Laizer and Joram Ibrahim of Tanzania all taught a biblical stewardship conference, while I led a 1 Timothy TOT for about 14 pastors. We had spirited discussions on a host of important issues facing the church. We raised issues that generally are not thought about too much. People were challenged. I think it will make a difference. I hope so, because in my view the church, as the embodiment of the gospel, is the last, best (and only real) hope for humanity and our different societies. But to realize that hope, the church needs to change and start applying the gospel in ways that it clearly is not doing now.

Musoma, TanzaniaMusoma, along with my other Tanzanian venues, is near Lake Victoria. As I write this, we have finished a stewardship conference with 30 serious and committed pastors and an important bishop. They were challenged in many areas, and I think all see the need for change and for much greater involvement of the church in "real life."

Please pray for them. I am now in Mwanza, TZ. We have a 3-hour trip early in the morning to our next venue. Also, please pray for the strategic-planning summit coming up in Kigali in less than 2 weeks. I will report again after my return home. God bless you, Jonathan

Report from Tanzania

TOT group in Dar es Salaam, TZ

 Queueing for lunch in Chamwino, TZ

 Randy Pizzino teaching in Magugu, TZ

The following is the report I emailed from Tanzania during my recent trip to East Africa:

Greetings from Tanzania. It has been a good trip so far. Began with a 1 Timothy conference in Magugu, between Arusha and Babati. I was joined by EPI's new full-time staff member, Randy Pizzino. Randy was a pastor for 41 years before joining EPI. He taught well, and also experienced the joys of eating copious amounts of pili-pili!
    
Chamwino. Randy left us after the Magugu conference to return to Nairobi, from which he would be going to Uganda. I took the 6-7 hour bus ride to the central TZ city of Dodoma, one of the seats of the government. From there we went to the nearby village of Chamwino, which is also the site of government offices, and thus a strategic place. We held another 1 Timothy conference. After the small group discussion time, which focused on the issue of the church as a family, the participants were so moved and convicted that they had a spontaneous time of repentance before God. They also firmly resolved to form an inter-denominational pastors' fellowship, and begin working together in practical ways to show the love of Christ within their community. This could bear great fruit in the future, particularly as the government spends more time in the Dodoma-Chamwino area, and sees real Christian fellowship and concerted, loving action.

Dar es Salaam. We arrived in the coastal port city/national captial of Dar es Salaam for an TOT on Biblical Theology. The participants are seeing the connections between the OT and the NT, the fascinating ways in which the OT pointed forward to Christ, and how the NT fulfilled the entire OT, often in surprising ways. My friend and EPI-TZ coordinator Joram Ibrahim remarked at how powerful this is (and I agree). 
 
Dickson Laizer. One of the issues I have had to deal with is the organization of EPI here in TZ. One of my co-national coordinators was not fluent in English, which prevented me from communicating well with him. Consequently, I asked Dickson Laizer, Secretary-General of Grace Evangelical Church to be the EPI-TZ national coordinator. Dickson is a good man, experienced in teaching leaders, with a passion to do so and a true pastoral heart. I think he is God's answer to this situation. Randy recognized that this was a good choice, and I just received an email from one of the other TZ coordinators to the same effect. Knowing Dickson as I do, I think he will be able to work well with the others in the TZ leadership team, and help move EPI forward in TZ. I am looking forward to the future here, as the Tanzanians are getting well-organized, with some good and competent people.

Zanzibar. I am now in Zanzibar in the middle of a marriage conference. I pray for God's blessings on you, and will report back to you after I return home in mid-July. Best regards, Jonathan