Juba For Jesus Mission Follow-up: He Sets The Captives Free

Jaba prison inmate Charles Olili Philip

Below are a couple of testimonies from the Juba mission. Praise the Lord for what He did in these men’s lives, and let’s keep the follow-up process in our prayers.

Tomorrow, 9th November, marks the two month countdown to the 9th January 2011 referendum which will determine the status of Jaba's proposed independence from the north. Intensity is increasing in Sudan, and they desperately need the prayers of the worldwide church at this time.

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I met Charles and Sadic after interviewing a handful of prisoners who mainly wanted to protest about the conditions in the Juba prison. They had been selected by the prison colonel, who very kindly stood with us in the inexpressibly sweltering sun in the middle of the prison compound, providing some sort of security through his presence. Crowds of white clad prisoners sat tightly pressed against the wall seeking the small ribbons of shade, and watched curiously from around the perimeter.

Understandable though their complaints were, we wanted to hear about the impact of Stephen Lungu and his team who had visited the prison a week earlier. They had returned to the mission base excited, certain that the Lord had worked in many hearts. Through the prison colonel, we asked the on looking prisoners whether any of them wanted to share how they had found the AE “Juba for Jesus Mission.”

There was unsteady confusion as a large crowd prisoners approached, and encircled us completely. It could have been an intimidating experience, but strangely the vibe was more that of a school yard of inquisitive students – something had affected these men. Charles had been first to attract our attention, standing immediately and waving to us, and he stood in front of the others, most of whom were only there to listen.

Charles was 32 years old, and was married with 5 children. He shared that he had been baptised as a young child, and had been taken to church by his father. Despite being a church goer, he had never really understood the gospel or the bible well, and when he eventually joined the military at fourteen years old, he wasn’t interested in hearing from the Lord or reading His word.

Charles had been a driver for the army and during that time, he had started growing and taking drugs. One day he was caught under the influence and in possession of drugs, and was subsequently sentenced to 10 years imprisonment. He had been in prison for 2 years when Stephen Lungu and the young AE Foxfire evangelists visited.

Fellow Jaba inmate Sadic Taban.

Charles was struck by Stephen’s testimony – someone who had been abandoned as a child and who had lived on the streets, and slept under the bridge, and yet God had helped him. Charles reflected upon his own life, and realized that he had sinned, just as others had. But he told us earnestly that “the love of God is there in Jesus Christ, who forgives sin”…, and he had dedicated his life to be a new Christian.

He was genuinely excited as he told us about how this moment had impacted his life. His enthusiasm, in light of another 8 years in prison, was telling. Charles had started to read his bible again and wanted to start a church. He had started sharing with his fellow prisoners that life in Christ is a good life, translating for them from English to Arabic. He also expressed a concern to reach “those outside” (of prison) with the good news about Christ. He knew that if he was in trouble he could call on the Lord who would help him.

His remorse was obvious. Charles said that the he and the prisoners all needed forgiveness because they broke the law, and he freely apologized to the government for contributing to disorder in Sudan.

Charles was accompanied by Sadic, a young man of 26 years. He was also married, and had two young sons. His story was heart wrenching and I was struck by the joy and lack of resentment with which he told it. He had been sentenced to life imprisonment after being found guilty (possibly unjustly) of murdering a man in a motorbike accident. Although he protested his innocence of the crime which brought him to prison, he openly admitted that he had never gone to church because he preferred to go places which were more consistent with his promiscuous lifestyle.

Sadic explained how he had given his life to Christ after Stephen Lungu’s message, and had been saved from “the way of death”. He now enjoyed reading the bible, and had joined the prison prayer group. He went on to explain that registration for the prayer group had increased significantly after the Juba for Jesus mission event because of the number of men who had been saved during that time.

Charles and Sadic had found freedom despite imprisonment, and new meaning despite seemingly hopeless futures. They were so thankful that African Enterprise had brought the gospel to the prison, and had shared hope in Christ with those who were suffering. They encouraged those supporting the ministry to continue, because they were greatly blessing others. We ended our time with Charles and Sadic in prayer, heads bowed, in the sweltering heat and surrounded by hundreds of imprisoned men who also, we pray, will hear about the grace of God through them.

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Lausanne World Congress 2010: Michael Cassidy Report, Pt. 1

Welcoming the Lausanne delegates to Africa.

Very Dear Praying Friends in South Africa, across Africa, and in the Global Church,

This is the first installment of my report on the recent Lausanne Congress:

I. Overall Summary

Well, the third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelisation has been, come and gone. Did I say gone? I did, but I don’t really mean that. No, not really gone, but certainly GONE FORTH! Because from 2010 Cape Town people from almost every country in the world have gone forth with new zeal, energy, determination, motivation, and biblical conviction to take the Gospel afresh to every corner of the globe and to be witnesses as per Acts 1:8 in our Jerusalems (i.e. where we immediately are), our Judeas (the areas round about where we reside), our Samarias (the people with whom we normally have no dealings) and to the ends of the earth. And to do it recognizing that it can only be done in the power of the Holy Spirit and in faithfulness to God’s Word.

A closing press release described the Congress as “Perhaps the widest and most diverse gathering of Christians ever held in the history of the Christian Church.” 4,200 delegates (the 250 Chinese delegates never made it) from 198 countries were present. The Congress connected also to 650 global sites in 91 countries. Then there were 100,000 more participants, from 185 countries, visiting the Congress website. So the participation went well beyond those in Cape Town.

We were thankful that in spite of malicious attacks bringing down the Congress website in the first 48 hours, the battle in cyberspace was won by Congress IT boffins who got it all going again.

Incidentally there were also observers there from the Vatican, The World Council of Churches as well as Eastern Orthodox Churches.

The closing press statement also contained the following statements:

“’Our vision and hope was firstly for a ringing affirmation of the uniqueness of Christ and the truth of the biblical gospel; and a clear statement on evangelism and the mission of the church – all rooted in Scripture’, said Lindsay Brown, Lausanne Movement International Director, in his closing address. ‘The evangelical church has rightly put an emphasis on bringing the gospel of Jesus Christ to every people group, but we have perhaps been a little weaker in our attempts to apply biblical principles to every area of society, and to public policy: to the media, to business, to government. We need to engage deeply with all human endeavour – and with the ideas which shape it.’ The Congress included an Executive Leadership Forum and a Think Tank for leaders in Government, Business and Academia. ‘There is a groundswell of conviction’, said Mr Brown, ‘that greater concerted effort is needed to apply biblical truth in these arenas.’”

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City Info Spotlight: Cape Town, South Africa

The location of Cape Town, South Africa.

QUICK FACTS

- Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa (pop. 3.5 million), and the largest in land area.

- Cape Town is the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape, as well as the legislative capital of South Africa, where the National Parliament and many government offices are located.

- Cape Town is hailed as one of the most beautiful cities in the world as officially recognised by Forbes. National Geographic has also listed Cape Town as one of the most iconic cities on the planet and "Places of a Lifetime."

- Cape Town is Africa's most popular tourist destination.

- Cape Town is one of the most multicultural cities in the world, reflecting its role as a major destination for immigrants and expatriates to South Africa.

HISTORY

There is no certainty as to when humans first occupied the area prior to the first visits of Europeans in the 15th century. The earliest known remnants in the region were found at Peers cave in Fish Hoek and date to between 15,000 and 12,000 years ago. Little is known of the history of the region's first residents, since there is no written history from the area before it was first mentioned by Portuguese explorer Bartolomeu Dias in 1486.

Vasco da Gama recorded a sighting of the Cape of Good Hope in 1497, and the area did not have regular contact with Europeans until 1652, when Jan van Riebeeck and other employees of the Dutch East India Company (Dutch: Verenigde Oost-indische Compagnie, VOC) were sent to the Cape to establish a way-station for ships travelling to the Dutch East Indies, and the Fort de Goede Hoop (later replaced by the Castle of Good Hope). The city grew slowly during this period, as it was hard to find adequate labour. This labour shortage prompted the city to import slaves from Indonesia and Madagascar. Many of these became ancestors of the first Cape Coloured communities.

Jan van Riebeeck arrives in Table Bay in April 1652.

During the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic wars, the Netherlands was repeatedly occupied by France, and Great Britain moved to take control of Dutch colonies. Britain captured Cape Town in 1795, but the Cape was returned to the Netherlands by treaty in 1803. British forces occupied the Cape again in 1806 following the battle of Bloubergstrand. In the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1814, Cape Town was permanently ceded to Britain. It became the capital of the newly formed Cape Colony, whose territory expanded very substantially through the 1800s.

The discovery of diamonds in Griqualand West in 1867, and the Witwatersrand Gold Rush in 1886, prompted a flood of immigrants to South Africa. Conflicts between the Boer republics in the interior and the British colonial government resulted in the Second Boer War of 1899-1902, which Britain won. In 1910, Britain established the Union of South Africa, which unified the Cape Colony with the two defeated Boer Republics and the British colony of Natal. Cape Town became the legislative capital of the Union, and later of the Republic of South Africa.

In the 1948 national elections, the National Party won on a platform of apartheid (racial segregation) under the slogan of "swart gevaar". This led to the Group Areas Act, which classified all areas according to race. Formerly multi-racial suburbs of Cape Town were either purged of unlawful residents or demolished. The most infamous example of this in Cape Town was District Six. After it was declared a whites-only region in 1965, all housing there was demolished and over 60,000 residents were forcibly removed. Many of these residents were relocated to the Cape Flats and Lavender Hill. Under apartheid, the Cape was considered a "Coloured labour preference area", to the exclusion of "Bantus", i.e. blacks.

Camps Bay as seen from the ascent to Lion's Head.

Cape Town was home to many leaders of the anti-apartheid movement. On Robben Island, a former penitentiary island 10-kilometres from the city, many famous political prisoners were held for years. In one of the most famous moments marking the end of apartheid, Nelson Mandela made his first public speech in decades on 11 February 1990 from the balcony of Cape Town City Hall hours after being released. His speech heralded the beginning of a new era for the country, and the first democratic election was held four years later, on 27 April 1994.

Nobel Square in the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront features statues of South Africa's four Nobel Peace Prize winners - Albert Luthuli, Desmond Tutu, F. W. de Klerk and Nelson Mandela. Since 1994, the city has struggled with problems such as HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, a surge in violent drug-related crime and more recent xenophobic violence. At the same time, the economy has surged to unprecedented levels due to the boom in the tourism and the real estate industries.

[View the full Wikipedia entry on Cape Town by clicking here.]

Lausanne World Congress 2010: Facts & Figures

• Cape Town 2010 - The Third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelism
• 4,200 delegates from 198 countries
• Daily main plenary meetings, workshops, Bible studies (Ephesians) , worships...all designed to inspire and challenge everyone to our role in evangelism
• Congress verse: II Cor 5:19 "God in Christ, reconciling the world to himself"
• Congress Theme: The Whole Church, Taking the Whole Gospel to the Whole World.
• Take 20 mins. when you can and watch an amazing video on the history of Christianity by clicking here
• Daily issues discussed around tables - Truth/Reconciliation/World Faiths/Priorities/Integrity and Partnership
• You can see full reports on the Congress including a the Cape Town Commitment at: http://www.lausanne.org/cape-town-2010

• Mission Africa Before The Congress
• 21 events in 13 countries
• 890 services in these events
• Over 480,000 attending
• Over 58,000 making commitments to Christ
• A 3 min video report by the Scott Dawson ministry can be viewed by clicking here

• Mission Africa During/After The Congress
• Info booth open for duration of Congress, assisting with many enquiries
• Distributed 3,000 reports/flyers
• Written up in the Lausanne daily newsletter
• National report written in Christianity Today, which you can read at: http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2010/octoberweb-only/51-11.0.html
• 180 people attended two special lunches to learn about future ministry partnerships modeled after Mission Africa
• Brief report about Mission Africa given to the entire Congress on the Friday Night Plenary Session
• A full page about MA included in the final commemorative Lausanne Cape Town newspaper
• 43 Countries officially submitting requests for Mission Africa type ministry partnerships including 21 African Countries and India / Russia / USA / France / Brazil / Venezuela / Philippines / Singapore / Latvia / Sri Lanka / Mexico / Grenada

[Note: Mission Africa was created for a one-time set of missions leading up to Cape Town 2010, but since then, many have asked if it will continue so that they can participate as a host or international team. Please pray that the Lord will guide the Mission Africa Leadership Team (Michael Cassidy, Blair Carlson, Songe, Eliot and Scott Lenning) on how to take the steps forward if the Lord wants to continue to breathe life into this ministry.]

Lausanne World Congress 2010: AE's Involvement

Doug Birdsall (Executive Chair Capetown 2010) introduces AE reps
Michael Cassidy, Esme Bowers and others.

We have all arrived back safely from the Lausanne Congress in Capetown, though I think most of us are still reeling from the experience. It is very difficult to describe the magnitude and richness of this event, involving such a diverse gathering of Christians leaders from around the world. AE played a key role in many aspects of the Congress, both in presentation and behind the scenes. Below are some basic facts about our involvement in Lausanne Capetown 2010.

African Enterprise’s Involvement in Lausanne:

• Michael Cassidy (Founder of AE) both welcomed delegates to Africa during the Opening Ceremony and made closing remarks at the Closing Ceremony. He was also the Chairman of the Mission Africa Committee.
• Esme Bowers (Chair of AESA Board) is the Secretary of the Board of Directors of the Lausanne Movement and presented the final gift to Doug Birdsall, Executive Chair of the Capetown 2010 Committee
• Antoine Rutayisire (Chair of AE Rwanda) gave a presentation at a Plenary session to all delegates on Reconciliation. His comments regarding the situation in South Africa were quoted in a National newspaper (The Sunday Times) after a press conference. His session can be viewed at http://www.lausanne.org/cape-town-2010
• Songe Chibambo (Pan African Missions Director) co-directed “Mission Africa” with Scott Lenning, and presented to both the general gathering of delegates as well as smaller meetings regarding the fruit of Mission Africa
• Miles Giljam (AESA Team Leader) was the Communications Manager for Christian and secular “non-African” media covering the congress, as well as attending sessions as a delegate
• Leonard Kiswangi (DRC Team Leader) and Sindiswa Matyobeni (AESA Broadcast Director) assisted the Lausanne Media team with radio broadcasts and interpretation throughout the congress. Leonard also attended as a delegate.
• Team Leaders Samuel Asante (Ghana), Geoffrey Byarugaba (Uganda), Jean Kalenzi (Rwanda), Grace Masalakulangwa (Tanzania), Mel Mesfin (Ethiopia), Tom Otieno (Kenya), Enoch Phiri (Malawi), as well as staff members Janet Mwendwa (Kenya), Bernard Sachie (Ghana), Barbara Watt (AESA) and Enock Kagya (Tanzania) participated as delegates and a number of them held responsibilities as table leaders.
• AE Board Chairs and members Jennifer Musiime (Uganda), John Reyolds (USA), Zolile Mlisana (AESA), John Senyonyi (Uganda), Frances Mkandiwire (Malawi) participated as delegates. John Senyonyi also facilitated the Africa night for the general gathering as well as the regional gathering for East Africa.
• Thirteen indomitable foxfires and their co-ordinators served as stewards and IT personnel, working extremely hard to ensure delegates knew what to do and where to go! Hloni Letuka (AESA) also served as an assistant on the Mission Africa Booth.
• It was also wonderful to meet up with AE “associates” and friends Anne Coombes (UK), John Beckett (Aust), Stephen Mbogo (Kenya), Monica Chokhotho (Malawi), James Kato (Uganda), as well as many Mission Africa evangelists who we’d partnered with and Christians leaders from Liberia and Sudan whom we have worked with over the past couple of years.

During such a wonderful time of connections and reunions, sympathy started going out to the introverts amongst us – there wasn’t much “quiet time”!!

- Vanessa Khlentzos
(Pan African Communications,
African Enterprise)

[You can view more photographs from Lausanne by clicking here.]

Lausanne World Congress 2010: Off To A Great Start!

Opening ceremonies get underway with a Scripture reading.

Things are going really well here in Capetown and the contributions of our AE guys are significant and outstanding (if I may comment in true “objective” reporting style!). The over 4000 delegates from almost 200 nations here in Capetown include over 30 AE staff, board members, and Foxfires, as well as numerous other people who have been staff or board members in the past. We are involved in almost every aspect – as speakers, stewards, organisers, media, delegates and Mission Africa representatives. The attached photos only represent a few of those involved as I am still searching for many of the others in this sea of people!

The program is full, intense, varied and multicultural. We have heard many incredible testimonies about the Lord’s work around the world in various ways. He certainly has been VERY busy! We spent some time praying for China, which prevented its 200-strong delegation from attending. Michael C. today described to us that he has just heard one of the most powerfully miraculous testimonies ever from an Iranian believer. We look forward to hearing it tomorrow at an AE gathering. Many of these testimonies are bittersweet as they involve the death of family or loved ones who died for the sake of bringing the gospel to others. These testimonies and the penetrating talks on Ephesians have certainly provided a challenge for those of us who work in nations with relatively open doors to the gospel.

Over 4000 delegates representing almost 200 nations.

It has been fun singing worship in the seven Congress languages, though as Africans or those who have been influenced by Africa, many of us are wishing they would allow more than 15 minutes of singing each session! The pace at which we are pushing through the program, and the challenging topics covered in the evenings has meant that everyone was well and truly ready for the rest day today!

I think it would be fair to say that everyone at the Congress feels very deeply the immense privilege of participating in this gathering. We feel history is in the making! We hope that many of you are able to also participate in some way through the Globalink site, and encourage you to do so if you are able. You’ll see an interesting news release below about the Globalink site which was inoperative for a while—we found out yesterday that it had been maliciously hacked but I understand that it now back up and running!

On a different note, please pray for our prayer coordinator Jean Van Rensburg who is currently in hospital and is quite unwell. She has marshaled pray-ers for AE ministries and personnel around the continent for many years, and we also need to support her in prayer at this time.

- Vanessa Khlentzos
(Pan African Communications,
African Enterprise)

Looking Forward to Lausanne

The Third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelisation opens in a few days time, in fact next Sunday, October 17th in Cape Town. Roughly 4,500 delegates from some 200 countries will be participating. Interestingly enough, this is the first major World Christian Congress where the majority world of blacks, browns and yellows will be the majority.

Some very intellectually capable and spiritually anointed speakers will be addressing the gathering and there will be a huge amount of interaction amongst everybody with all the plenary talks coming into the vast main auditorium of the International Cape Town Conference Centre to people who will be seated around hundreds of tables holding six to eight people each. Thus after each presentation there will be serious dialogue and interaction between delegates around their tables and findings will be listed and come forth from the participants to be shared with the whole Congress and/or inserted into the records afterwards for world circulation. There will be tremendous worship and many opportunities for extended prayer.

There will be quite a goodly AE representation there from around Africa and Esme Bowers, Chairperson of AE South Africa and Dick Miles, also on our SA Board, have been deeply and extensively involved in the Cape Town Planning/Steering Committee. They have done terrific jobs and we are proud of them. Also, Miles Giljam, recently inducted as the new AE SA Team Leader (more in a moment) is also a key component of the Congress Communication team which will be relaying its message by assorted means around the world. We are very thankful and I know are going to be much blessed into the future by Miles’s extensive gifts in the arena of Christian communications.

As mentioned in my last news cum prayer letter, the Congress will be extended to hundreds of thousands of people around the world via the over 600 Global Link satellites in 93 countries.

- Michael Cassidy
(AE Founder)