Church Planting Movement in Liberia, West Africa




Liberia is on the West Coast of Africa. The North is predominantly Muslim and the South has a Christian majority, but most of those are nominal Christians. Christianity came with the freed slaved who established a Republic here. Later Liberia expanded to include animistic tribal groups so there is a real mix of religions, cultures and world views. My purpose for going was to come alongside a church planting movement there, evaluate their training, preach at their conference and spend time with Dave and other leaders. Please read the God-sightings after the pictures. God is so gracious.  

God provided a powerful generator so we could cpontinue after dark. It lit the whole compound and allowed us to use the sound system for worship.

The girls aged 7 to 13 had the job of getting water from the well. Some of them pushed huge containers in wheelbarrows. Others carried buckets on their heads.

The children and classes in the morning and played together afterwards. No organized child care but everyone looked out for the kids (collectivitic society).


The EFC of West Africa compound is just a mile from the ocean in Monrovia. The countryside is lush and beautiful.

David Kiamu with two co-founders of the EFCWA.

The trainees honored me with a surpise gift! - and african shirt that is worn by elders. They bought it themselves.

Childrens' classes

Children worker training, women's classes and discipleship training took place at the same time we were working with church planters.


The leaders met for their annual conference.

A nurse offered a free health clinic in the afternoon. The common problem was malaria.

I enjoyed preaching to such a great group. It grew from about 150 the first night to twice that during the commissioning service for the Kiamu family on Sunday.

R to L - David and Lucy Kiamu with their three girls. Their three boys were standing on the other side of Dave.

I made several new friends. This young man, Rufus, is an assistant poastor and Bible school student who has a vision of decentralized pastoral training centers all over Liberia.

The Red Light District of Monrovia


 

Church planting team leaders for Liberia

From Jan 10-16 Gene had the privilege of joining one of the members of his global church planting team, Dave Kiamu on the occasion of the annual conference of the Evangelical Free Church of West Africa. Dave and I had a couple days of coaching and learning. Five movements are working together in church planting unreached people groups. We met as a team before the conference started.

Dave and Lucy invited me to come and participate in their commissionning as Church Planting Director for ReachAfrica. I had been wanting to see first hand the church polanting movement and get to know Dave and his family better. I find that coaching is much more effective when you understand a person's context of ministry. No better way to do that than to spend time there and share in the ministry!

David Kiamu led four days of training for church planters. It is called Multiplication Church Planter training because the DNA of the churches planted and the planting process are simple and reproducible. I participated as coach and helped with questions. Dave has put together a facilitation team of 5 who took turns presenting.

Many prayed and God worked in powerful ways:

• One trainee said to the others (in Africa they usually give certificates of training completion but there were none prepared): "You would like a certificate but we haven't done anything yet. We were chosen especially to receive this training so that we will plant a new reproducing church and train others. Let's do that and then maybe we deserve a certificate."
• My luggage didn't make it through. But earlier, when I confirmed my flight, an agent suggested I take 2 extra sets of clothes and my essentials on my carry-on bag. It turned out the next flight was 2 days later so I was forewarned and made out OK.
• The heat was 90-95 degrees F and the days long, but the Lord gave strength to preach every night, coach church planters, and participate in the training. I didn't even get one headache or stomach ache!!!
• I had to scramble to adapt my messages to an oral-culture audience made up primarily of youth. I felt the Lord telling me to use a narrative style and a strong call to discipleship and missions. God gave unusual freedom and supernatural strength in preaching.
• The church planters had a wonderful sacrificial and pioneering spirit. Most have other jobs to support themselves and many have to leave their families for months to plant a church in an unreached area. Several shared how they had suffered during the war but the Lord had preserved them and they promised to serve him.
• The five movements divided up the counties of Liberia and each chose key cities to plant church planting training centers.  One of the conference resolutions was for each existing church to plant a daughter church in an unreached area every year. It doesn't seem like a realistic goal... but I love their passion for reaching the lost!
• Their track record backs up their kingdom ambition. We were celebrating the 10 anniversary of the movement. In 11 years, 17 liberian churches have been planted and a missionary sent to Sierra Leone. That missionatry was present and he shared how three churches have been planted in Muslim communities in Sierra Leone. Amazing!
• I made some wonderful new friends who are "young African lions" for God.