Attaining the Vision
“We have been doing church the wrong way; thank God we are discovering the truth to do it right.”
Our Liberian associates, led by Joshua Nador, held their first Building Healthy Leaders seminar near Mount Barclay on the outskirts of Monrovia. This training was a direct result of the initial ConneXions training that Joshua had given there.
During the five-day seminar, one of the participants began to tear up as he told them how he had held a vision to unify leaders and ministries in his nation, but was at a loss for how to approach this goal. As he encountered the principles in the training, he began to see clearly how applying them would help him move forward.
“For 20 years I have had a vision for bringing unity to the community, especially the churches. This training has given me understanding and tools that will help me move forward towards attaining this vision! We have been doing church the wrong way; thank God we are discovering the truth to do it right.”
After this, the team traveled by plane to Harper in Maryland County on the far southern tip known as Cape Palmas. Joshua had first encountered church leaders in Harper while doing a survey for a cell-phone company there. The Lord put a burden in his heart for the churches of this town, so a few months following he returned at his own expense and began a dialogue with several of the leaders who expressed a yearning for training. This training was a fulfillment of that original vision.
Harper, once a hub of the political and economic elite, has become a place of depression at every level. One of our Leader Care team members reflected:
“As I encountered the sights and sounds of the streets of Harper, I could hear in my mind the words of the many prophets who had warned of the desolation that comes from turning from the one true God. The once opulent structures that reflected human power and ambition were eroding away from neglect and force of nature. Buildings that once housed those with wealth and power are now inhabited by squatters and drug addicts. Perhaps this is even an image of what has happened in many churches, where human vision and ambition has usurped God's own vision for His Body, His beautiful Bride and glorious Temple.”
As the 40 participants became exposed to principles of Healthy Church and Healthy Leaders, God began to break down barriers, launching new relationships among no less than nine senior pastors of churches from a variety of denominations. Leaders who had never shared or prayed together were glowing with joy. Many confessed that before they had felt they could never admit feeling weak or failing in different areas of their lives, but now they no longer feel alone.
“The teaching is going to my soul.”
“What we are hearing is church. What we are doing is not.”
“I know I am called by God. I needed understanding on HOW to do the work of the ministry. The teaching has helped me by showing me not just who called me but where I am to start as a servant leader.”
Following the training in Harper, the team headed to the town of Bahn in the mountains of Nimba County. While Joshua was visiting Bahn last year, he had heard stories of their many struggles and learned the leaders there were hungry for training. He told them about the ConneXions Model and that he hoped to return to train them in the future. While our coming was anticipated, they had to overcome skepticism to come and participate. Apparently they had suffered at the hands of unscrupulous characters who had promised training and never followed through, so just showing up and keeping our word was a big deal in itself!
A participant in Bahn shared the following:
“For the past 12 years I have been a pastor here. This is the first Christian leadership training opportunity we have seen come to pass. People have come here, collected our money, promised to come back but never came. They lied to us all the time.”
All of these trainings provided a great learning and transformation opportunity, not only for the participants in the training but also for our Liberian associates.
God is growing His work in Liberia!
