Global lockdowns put a squeeze on the Amazing Facts Center of Evangelism (AFCOE) Africa evangelistic training. The full, three-month course last took place at the end of 2019. But in January 2022, our core leaders returned to Africa and announced it would begin accepting applications for a new full course. Applications began pouring in.
The team originally budgeted for 25 student sponsorships, thinking they might get another five or so who would be self-sponsored or who would find their own benefactors. That would give them around 30 full-course students and perhaps a dozen more who would attend the Sunday iShare training sessions. But as applications for youth and young adults poured in, they quickly stretched the budget to accommodate 35 students.
But more applications came in—not just from Uganda and Kenya, but also from South Sudan, Ethiopia, and the Congo. So, they prayerfully stretched the budget again to take in 50 students. In the end, the AFCOE Africa full-course students in Uganda began on January 23 with 53 students—the largest group in its history. Praise the Lord! And that didn’t include the 23 additional iShare students who came on Sundays to learn principles of personal evangelism. Thank you for helping make this possible.
One full-course student is a former Anglican pastor. He gave up his district and a promotion to bishop one year ago in order to follow Bible truth. Three things came together to bring him to a decision to join God’s remnant church: The Amazing Facts Bible Study Guides, the book The Great Controversy, and listening to an AFCOE Africa evangelist on the radio. Near the end of last year, his wife also was baptized and joined him in the truth.
God stretched the budget and the faith of the leaders, who were happy to see this energetic group of young people passionate to learn how to share the love of Christ with others. Thank you for being a part of Amazing Facts’ work in Africa. More than 2,100 precious souls were baptized last year as a direct result of your support. God is good—all the time!
“With such an army of workers as our youth, rightly trained, might furnish, how soon the message of a crucified, risen, and soon-coming Saviour might be carried to the whole world!” (Education, p. 271.)
Sister Ludia
Kedowa is a small town located in Western Kenya where AFCOE evangelist Amos and his partner Eugine have spent the past six months conducting Bible studies and holding two evangelistic meetings. More than 30 people have been baptized, and a new church has been planted. Both old and young have responded to the gospel invitation.
Ludia, a 75-year-old grandmother, came to the first series of evangelistic meetings. At first, she came to a health expo to receive a screening and learn how to improve her health. What began as a search for a remedy to her physical health led to a discovery for her spiritual health!
For many years, Ludia had been searching for a church that teaches Bible truth. Though she was 75, she still hadn’t given up searching. She told Amos, “I have attended so many churches before you came here, but I couldn’t find the truth in any of them. In fact, one of the churches that I started attending kept changing its name each Sunday. Finally, I got so frustrated that I resolved not to attend any more Sunday churches.”
When the Prophecies of Hope series came to her area, Ludia attended each day and was amazed at the clarity and simplicity with which the Bible’s prophecies were presented. The presentation of the Bible Sabbath topic especially fascinated her, and she resolved to become a Sabbath-keeper. Near the end of the series, Ludia decided to be baptized and join the remnant church.
After her baptism, however, Ludia wondered how she would be able to attend church. The closest Sabbath-keeping church was more than four miles away. She had no car or means of transport, and a roundtrip walk of nearly nine miles on Sabbath was too much for a woman her age.
Then Ludia heard that there would be a second evangelistic series in a couple months and that the meetings would be conducted in a new church that was to be built right near her home. She was delighted and attended all the follow-up meetings from the first series—and then attended the second series of evangelistic presentations as well.
She told Amos, “I thank God for bringing you people here, first to minister to our physical needs and then to meet our spiritual needs. I am so happy for the light that has been shone into my life.”
God is abundantly blessing your co-laboring work with Amazing Facts in Africa! You share in the harvest!
Jesus Loves the Little Children
Grandma Ludia and the other adults were not the only ones interested in learning the truths of the Bible as a result of the meetings in Kedowa. It is common in Africa, wherever evangelistic meetings take place, for curious children to come listen and learn.
While Amos preached to the adults, Eugine conducted an evangelistic program for the children. Large numbers of them accepted the messages and put into practice the truths of the Bible that they were learning. Those who were able to obtain permission from their parents were baptized.
But the story doesn’t end with the children. Many of the parents have been amazed at the transformations that they have seen in their children. Now there are fathers and mothers who are open to learning more about the teachings of God’s last-day church from the Bible!
Currently, more than half of those attending the new church plant are children. It’s wonderful to see them come early every Sabbath to eagerly help in any way they can. Even though these precious children did not grow up with a Sabbath-keeping background, they have eagerly accepted the truths of Scripture and are striving to live and worship God according to what they have learned from His Word.
Praise God for the lambs being led into Jesus’ fold through your generous support of Amazing Facts!