Category: Prayers & Praises

New Bible Translation

We are excited to announce a new Bible translation planned for the Shilele language of the Bashilele people who live primarily in the Kasai river region.

Pastor Joly Birakara Ilowa (foreground on the left in photo above) of the Mennonite Church of Congo has taken the lead of this endeavor along with a team of local translators. They are working with Wycliffe Associates using the MAST program to accomplish this translation.

MAST represents Mobilized Assistance Supporting Translation, a new program which was first piloted in 2014, which empowers the global church to draft their own Bible within months rather than years.

“Our breakthrough MAST strategy is accelerating Bible translation beyond anything we could have imagined, even a couple of years ago,” says Bruce Smith of Wycliffe Associates. “It is not Westerners doing the translation work in remote areas—it’s nationals being equipped to translate God’s Word themselves.”

The MAST Bible translation workshops have seen great success with many language groups and the Shilele language is another success in the making.

Hope for Congo has made a significant investment in this project and we have other languages that are in dire need of translation and printing.

To date Hope for Congo has been able to purchase and distribute 10,000 Bibles into the hands of those who desperately want and need a Bible. This includes both pastors and lay people. Your prayers and financial support make all this possible. Thank you for partnering with us.© 2017 Hope4Congo

Making an Impact

Making an Impact
God’s ways are above our ways and His thoughts are higher than our thoughts. We make our plans but God directs our steps. Below is a partial list of how God has expanded the efforts of Hope for Congo over the last eight years.

Hope for Congo is . . .

Invested in Projects
• Bible Distribution (10,000 Bibles to date)
• Safe Drinking Water (Ram pump supplies water to Ndjoko Punda and the hospital)
• Hand Drilling Equipment
• Training for Well Drilling
• 20 Hospital Beds
• Medical Equipment
• Tools for 4 Technical Trade Schools

Joseph

Invested in People
• Academic Assistance for 8 People in Post-secondary Education
• 2 Young Men Completed Education & Ready to Serve God
1. Joseph trained in areas of mechanical and electrical technologies,
He also studied agriculture and animal husbandry
2. Daniel received a degree in Theology from the Protestant University
He has the gift of evangelism
Both young men have said yes to God
They return soon to invest their time, energy, and skills back into the community
They will represent and assist Hope for Congo directly with projects in Ndjoko Punda

Invested in Healthy Partnerships
We have been blessed through collaboration with these groups:
• AIMM
• Church in Congo
• Congo Collaboration Group
Our goal is to continue these relationships and to expand our collaboration to include other faith-based organizations. Together we can create an even greater impact over a larger geographical area and population.

You Can Partner with Hope for Congo . . .

Our Congolese brothers and sisters our able to work for themselves. What they need are tools and resources to help their community move forward in areas of agriculture, community health, education and jobs that will enable them to break the cycle of poverty.
You can help the Congolese move forward and bring hope to the next generation.
Over the coming weeks we will expand on the details of this initial outline. In the meantime please consider how you may support the people of Congo through your donations and especially through your prayers. We are asking for your help.

Prayer Requests:

Daniel
  • Ndjoko Punda – May Christ intervene in this horrific situation.
    Reports indicate battles rage between the military and the militia. People are in hiding.
  • Pray for peace.
  • Pray for an end to the evil that is causing the violence and greed.
  • Daniel and Joseph planned to return to Ndjoko Punda.(Photo above is from their commitment ceremony at the Kinshasa church, their church family throughout their education and training while in Kinshasa) Hope4Congo was able to return them safely to Kinshasa. Praise the Lord. Pray for their safety in Kinshasa where they will remain for the near term. Pray for the safety of their Kinshasa church family as well.
  • Pray for wisdom and safety of all Christians working in Congo to Change this Powder-Keg Atmosphere

© 2017 Hope4Congo

Praise & Prayer Ongoing Need

Youth in Kahemba wait for the movie after soccer clinic

The photo above shows some of the dear ones we hope will be used of God to make a difference in their country because of the difference God has made in their lives.

Prayer Request:
Tensions seem to be heating up in Congo once again. Please remember the situation in your prayers regarding the delayed election. Pray for wisdom and peace.

Read the article at the link below for additional news:
http://abcnews.go.com/

©2017 Hope4Congo

 

Lessons in Compromise

h4c-catholicsleadnegotiationsJust a brief update on the national scene in Congo: First of all, it really is a testament to the grace of God expressed in countless prayers around the world that the situation in Congo has not degenerated into a bloodbath at the turn of the new year.

A midnight deal (literally the last hour of 2016) was negotiated by the Catholic Church fathers. It has resulted in something of a road map to free and fair elections for Congo – hopefully by the end of this year (2017).

To lay the groundwork for these elections to happen the parties at the negotiating table have agreed on a shared government structure that is still being worked out. Please continue to lift up in prayer the Catholic leaders that have boldly stepped in to ‘hold the peace’, as their task is a very thorny and tricky one, to be sure.

Virtually every point of the fine print of the deal has to be further negotiated between the stakeholders as ‘the devil is often in the details.’ It’s a huge, painful, ongoing exercise in compromise. But tremendous lessons are potentially being learned in the process that could serve the country for generations to come!

Please continue to pray for these negotiations. May the participants utilize godly wisdom and exercise personal humility to find their way to a healthy lasting peace for their country.

© 2017 Hope4Congo

August CLCN Newsletter

CLCN.Mulamba.CouplePraise Report
We recently asked you to pray for Albert and Abertine Mulamba. (Click this link to refresh your memory, Look at prayer request #2.) They took an arduous journey to explore church-planting possibilities among the Batwa people. If you’ve been praying for them like I have, you’ll appreciate this update.

Charles Buller was able to speak briefly by phone with Albert. The Mulambas, along with a Mennonite church leader from Kakenge identified two villages where they were received and invited to plant a community of faith. Much work is ahead, but this is very encouraging.

Below are some excerpts from the Congo Leadership Coaching Network August, 2016 newsletter. After a three month delay Charles Buller was grateful to retrieve his passport recently. Charles and three others from his church plan a September trip to Congo.

Charles wrote:
As you may recall, my anticipated trip to Congo in June/July was put on hold given a sudden decision by the Congo government to implement a new and complicated visa application process requiring a government-recognized office in the DRC to issue an invitation with various payments, validations and verifications from numerous government offices. (If that sentence sounded long and convoluted, it reflects the reality of the situation.) All of this has been required to precede any visa application process with the Washington D.C. embassy.
Thanks to the ECC (the umbrella organization for all protestant churches in Congo), a process was implemented on our behalf that has now led to the necessary authorizations that permit us to finalize the applications on this end.

Prayer Requests
1. Please continue to pray about the tenuous political situation in Congo. Pray that cooler heads will prevail. Congo.Land.FLAGPray for God’s peace.
2. Pray for all the details surrounding Congo Leadership Coaching Network’s proposed September trip.
3. Praise for God granting the Mulambas success in the beginning steps of their church planting work. Continue to pray for them as they make the perilous return trip to Tshikapa (at least a four day journey). They’ll also stop for other ministry along the way.

Keep Up with Hope4Congo
You can receive our weekly blog post delivered straight to your email inbox. Click on this link. On the far right side of the page that opens, under the title: “Follow Blog Via Email” enter your email address in the provided space. You’ll receive news about Hope4Congo’s ministry as well as news of other ministries we collaborate with (including CLCN).

May the Lord bless you as you follow Him.

© 2016 Hope4Congo