Dear Family and Friends,
April’s leadership training in Nanyuki, Kenya was similar to previous conferences. The day began with several delegate testimonies; a practice we repeat each morning. When Haran stood before the delegation and bared his soul, we were caught off guard by his honest, intense story.
At age eight, Haran was punished by his father for misbehaving by hanging him from a tree. Three hours later, Haran’s grandmother found him still hanging from the tree and unconscious. Miraculously, he was not physically affected, but emotionally he was scarred. He shared that as a result of the event, he struggles with insecurity and fear. After hearing the talk on Family Priority, Haran made a vow to be the best husband and father to his family and to train his leaders in this key principle.
Globally, families are disintegrating, and we want to help stop this decline. At Catalyst For Africa, we believe ministering to leaders and their families will turn the tide on broken and dysfunctional relationships. Focusing on families will have the greatest impact on our African communities.
Family Priority
We continually focus on teaching our four core values: Intimacy with God, Integrity, Stewardship, and Family Priority. In every leadership conference we host, the greatest need seems to turn to Family Priority. Pastors and leaders are desperate to not only teach the material to their communities, but also to live it out in their own lives. There is a deep, heartfelt cry to see God transform families.
We are thankful for the exciting ministry taking place this year, and are looking forward to a fruitful second half of the year. I am grateful for my U. S. based colleagues who joined me in these journeys: Jeff DeJarnett, Michael Gannon, and Charlie Brewer. By God’s grace and your faithful support, we traveled to Senegal, Kenya, Ethiopia and Nigeria where we ministered to hundreds of leaders. While we trained leaders, God used our team to create a spirit of unity and collaboration with our African brothers and sisters.
Please join us in praying that God will move mightily throughout the continent of Africa because our African leaders are training up new leaders to live out these four core values. Together, we are changing the world in Jesus’s name, one relationship at a time.
BIG EVENT SCHEDULED FOR FALL 2016
We’re celebrating 3½ years of ministry. We believe it’s time to invite ten of our key leaders from 7 African countries to Atlanta, Georgia for a strategic planning conference. We’re also making plans for our colleagues to share their vision and passion with local churches throughout the U.S. We need to raise over $30,000 to cover our 10-colleagues’ airfare and stateside expenses. Even though it is a large sum, we believe the impact these leaders will have on the church will far outweigh the costs.