"We are tired, but our hearts are full. . . Our church is realizing what it means to be a friend of the community. People are learning to be the hands and feet of Jesus to their immediate neighbors. This is how the Kingdom of God will grow!"
In Tanzania, God is moving in mighty ways. Word is spreading about the unity that can be found across churches that were once bitterly divided, and the information is traveling not by social media, but by people whose lives have been changed. Pastors from as far as 80km away want to know how they can be a part of the church conferences that Vickie Njogu (our Field Director) is organizing. It is incredible to witness how God is moving among the local church in Tanzania!
In December, Vickie and her team also held a soccer tournament for their community. The tournament hosted 9 teams from villages around Moshi and included Christians and Muslims. Pastor Glorious Shoo, the pastor from Francis and Vickie's church, was able to attend and minister not through preaching, but through presence. His church, Kilimanjaro International Christian Center (aka KICC) helped organize the entire event in collaboration with friends from several other awesome organizations in Northern Tanzania.
But even after a successful soccer tournament with hundreds in attendance, our Tanzania team did not slow down. On December 18th they hosted another multi-church conference, with FIFTEEN NEW pastors in addition to the 30 we already partner with. There were over 500 people in attendance and 150+ children. Many pastors canceled their previous plans when they heard there would be another conference because of the life-changing impact these conferences have had for them.
In the month following the conference, a few of the pastors shared how it changed their ministries. Before, the pastors were divided, even cruel to one another. They forbid their members from attending these neighboring churches and prayed evil for one another. But at the conference lunch, they were invited to sit together and converse, and in that day, the Holy Spirit moved in a mighty way.
Now, these pastors invite one other to preach at their churches. They have thrown out anger over denominational divides and have embraced one another. Where there was once a spirit of opposition among pastors, there is now a spirit of honor and restoration, appreciating one another as brothers. And the movement does not end here. Our Tanzania team is planning more pastors conferences for 2022 and the revival spreads among the local churches every day. It is such an exciting time to be a part of the Church in Tanzania!