Youth Help Build African Churches

It was a whirlwind trip for members of a short-term youth team from Salem (Oregon) Alliance Church. Because our work is based in West Africa, we wanted to give them a snapshot of ministries there. That meant many miles of travel—about 1,300 in two weeks, to be exact.

The team assured us the journey was worth it as they heard international workers share their hearts for the lost. The youth also observed a variety of creative methods to reach out to those around them with the love of Jesus.

The ministries to which they were exposed were numerous—medical care, fish farming, kids’ outreach, serving young women at risk, orphanage work, church planting, Bible schools, and teaching English.

One international worker couple organized an afternoon at a community center where students come to learn English. The ultimate goal is to develop relationships that open doors to share Christ.

At the community center, the team split into groups of two. Each pair organized an English game, with students rotating every 20–30 minutes to the next class. There was a lot of laughter and conversation.

“As usual, Salem Alliance sent an excellent team,” the worker said after our visit. “Our students loved the English experience. What really impressed us was seeing how each visitor greeted the participants on their way into the center—they communicated a spirit of friendliness that people here deeply appreciate and which uniquely gives us opportunities to share the gospel.”

The short-term team from Salem Alliance prayed over the city of Bamako, Mali.

Following their time at the center, the Alliance worker took the team members up a hill overlooking the city. As we gazed over this bustling metropolis of roughly 2.5 million people, amid the constant blare of taxi horns and the towers of the majority religion’s houses of worship in every direction, he told us that fewer than 2 out of every 100 people believe in Jesus. Of the remaining 98, many probably do not have a connection to someone who can tell them about Jesus.

The team then spent time praying over the city, asking God to reach and redeem these lost people and that His powerful work would extend to regions beyond the city.

While in Burkina, the Salem team helped to construct two open-air churches in villages with recent church plants. One of these was in the village of Sayaga, where Pastor Francois recently moved to begin work among a group of 30 new believers.

After the team left, Francois reported that three new people had accepted Christ one Sunday. The following Sunday, 50 new believers showed up at the church as a result of evangelism that had taken place during the preceding weeks. The congregation grew from 30 to 80 in less than a month after the open-air facility was constructed.

The Holy Spirit is at work. We look forward to hearing further reports of how God will move. If history continues to repeat itself—as it has in the Kenedougou so far—that group will grow and soon start planting churches in surrounding villages.

The students’ hearts were touched deeply during their time in West Africa. “One of my most memorable experiences during my time there was the day we spent helping with the English camp,” Madeline Bahner said.

“I had an amazing time talking and laughing with all the students, most of whom were of the majority religion. It opened my eyes to the truth that God loves these people and wants them to love Him, yet they chose a different path. It made me want to do something—even simply praying. Prayer is powerful, and that was one of the main things I took away from this trip.”

—by an Alliance worker, serving in Burkina Faso

Pray

Join the Alliance family in praying for our international workers in West Africa and worldwide, who are taking the good news to some of the most spiritually dark places on earth. Use the Weekly Alliance Prayer Requests to assist you.

Learn More

Read about the various ministries of Salem Alliance Church in the September 1 issue of Alliance Life magazine.

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Give to the Great Commission Fund (GCF) and support Alliance workers, like the Obergs, who are creating access to the gospel where none previously existed.

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