What’s the biggest gift that you have given to God and to his church?  Every Christian has given their heart and life to Jesus.  The Holy Spirit brought us to faith through the gospel and set us apart to be God’s people.  But out of all the earthly resources that God has given you, what’s the biggest and most valuable gift that you have returned to God?

Hannah gave her son.  Read her amazing story in 1 Samuel chapter 1.  Childless, she prayed that if God would bless her with a son, then Hannah would dedicate the child to God’s service.  God listened.  Hannah conceived.  A healthy boy was born to her.  Hannah rejoiced to name him Samuel, which in Hebrew means “God listened.”

That boy could have been a tremendous asset to Hannah’s family, he would have been a capable worker at home or on the farm.  But Hannah had made her promise, and she kept it. When Samuel was still a boy, Hannah brought him to God’s temple.  She told the High Priest: “I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of him.  So now I give him to the Lord” (1Sa 1:27-28).  Samuel became one of the greatest prophets in the history of Israel.

Over the past few months, things have been rather quiet here at the Lutheran Bible Institute (LBI) in Lilongwe, Malawi.  The school trains young men to serve as pastors in the Lutheran Church of Central Africa. Every three years we accept a new group of students who bring their families with them to live on our campus. Last June, our most recent class graduated and moved on to the Lutheran Seminary in Lusaka, Zambia, where they will spend another three years training for the ministry.  After they left, the student houses all stood empty.  The classroom was silent. The LBI campus was “childless.”

But not anymore.  Last week the LBI chapel hosted the opening service of a new school year.  All 20 desks in the classroom were full.  These 20 students have been carefully selected from more than 50,000 members in over 250 Lutheran congregations in the countries of Zambia and Malawi.  They were chosen because they demonstrate a high degree of God-given gifts for leadership in the church. They could have made a comfortable life for themselves and their families by following secular callings, but they have set their hearts on being public servants of the church.

Thanks be to God, the Giver of all good things!  Thank you to the congregations who sent us the finest young members that they had.  And thank you to 20 faithful “Hannah’s” who have offered up their sons for service in God’s church.

As our Lord said, “Everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life. (Matthew 19:29)

Missionary Mark Panning, Malawi

Please pray for those working in fields that are ripe for harvest. Share their story, engage with future news and receive updates. Go to this link to learn more about our mission fields in Africa and how the Holy Spirit is working faith in people’s hearts  https://wels.net/serving-others/missions/africa

Nigeria and Cameroon have a combined population of over 200 million people. Guess how many resident WELS missionaries are based in West Africa? There are only two – and one of them must split his time between both countries.

Everyone agreed that it would be difficult to find someone to serve in this capacity. But the Holy Spirit knew who would be willing to take up this challenging position. Rev. Jeff Heitsch and his wife Stephanie (Mueller) will now represent our Synod as missionaries to Nigeria and Cameroon. Pastor Heitsch spent the last 19 years serving Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Cheyenne, Wyoming where his closest brothers in ministry were an hour’s drive away. He will have a little further distance to travel for pastors’ conferences now.

Although Missionary Heitsch is the coordinator for Nigeria he will not be living there, due to the challenging security issues in the country and the needs of the church in Cameroon. Instead, the Heitsches will reside in the city of Bamenda, a city of about half a million people in the northwest region of Cameroon.  Bamenda is a three and a half hour trip by car to the Nigerian border.

Our two sister church bodies in Nigeria, Christ the King Lutheran Church and All Saints Lutheran Church, have a combined membership of over 5,000 people served by 52 Nigerian pastors and 52 lay preachers. Because Missionary Heitsch will be away from home quite regularly, his wife Stephanie will accompany him on his visits. The daughter of a former WELS missionary to Africa and a pastor’s wife, Stephanie will be a great support for her husband and resource for the wives of Nigerian leaders.

Isolation is a challenge for our missionaries in West Africa.  Missionary Dan Kroll, a veteran of Africa missions for over two decades, has been serving in Cameroon for just over three years.  He and his wife Karen live in the city of Kumba, which is a five and a half hours drive from Bamenda.  Bamenda does have some North American missionaries from other denominations, so the Heitsches will form friendships there.  It’s not the same as fellowship, but at least there will be people who “know the ropes” in Cameroon and can help them understand their new surroundings.

The Krolls are very familiar with the ministry in Nigeria and are eager to share the challenges of ministry of Cameroon with their new mission partners.  The two families will share both struggles and blessings as the Lord provides.  After several years of missionaries cycling through the field, and the retirement of Rev. Doug Weiser in June of 2017 we pray that Missionaries Kroll and Heitsch will assist the Lutheran Church of Cameroon to maintain consistent attitudes and policies.

Keep our newest missionary family in your prayers as they share the love of Jesus with our brothers and sisters in Nigeria and Cameroon. You can keep up with the Heitsches as they transition to their new life in Africa by following their blog at https://jsheitsch.wixsite.com/africa 

Please pray for those working in fields that are ripe for harvest. Share their story, engage with future news and receive updates. Go to this link to learn more about our mission fields in Africa and how the Holy Spirit is working faith in people’s hearts  https://wels.net/serving-others/missions/africa

“What did you do last summer?” Nine students from Fox Valley Lutheran High School, Appleton, Wisconsin and three chaperones traveled to Zambia to see mission work in the Lutheran Church of Central Africa. The trip was intended to show a real partnership between our mission workers in Africa, and Americans who support those workers.

A little over a year ago, the Fox Valley schools pooled their mission offerings to support two Christian schools in Lusaka, Zambia. This trip gave our students the chance to see not only see how those offerings were used but also the people who teach the students and bring Jesus’ good news of forgiveness to them. The FVL students spent four days at two schools:   Kaunda Square School and Kuunika Matero School.

The first day spent at each school was a chance to get acquainted with the students and teachers, to interact with the students, and to see similarities and differences between African schools and American schools. On the final day at each school, the FVL students acted out and taught the Bible account of Jesus calling Peter and providing a great catch of fish. The American students then led their African counterparts in singing and helped them make bracelets that reminded them of Jesus’ love and power. They also made a large poster of the young students’ painted hand prints, which will remain on display at the school. The week concluded with reading books to the youngest students and joining in more singing and games of soccer during recess.

The cross-cultural interaction with the Zambian school students was eye-opening. This trip provided the perfect opportunity for young Christians — from two different continents — to get a taste of a different culture.  It also gave everyone an appreciation for the Holy Spirit claiming believers around the globe to be part of Christ’s kingdom. This mission trip was a once in a lifetime experience for the American visitors, and all are extremely thankful for the opportunity to serve their Savior.

Please pray for those working in fields that are ripe for harvest. Share their story, engage with future news and receive updates. Go to this link to learn more about our mission fields and how the Holy Spirit is working faith in people’s hearts. https://wels.net/serving-others/missions/africa

The Board for Christian Schools of the Lutheran Church of Central Africa coordinated the itinerary of these young missionaries, and the Lutheran Mission in Zambia and the Seminary faculty hosted the students at the Seminary Guest House.  The group visited local sites of interest, such as Eureka Animal Park, a boat cruise and Victoria Falls. You can view many more photos of this mission trip at fvlvibe.fvlhs.org/novl/zambia2017

Missionary Daniel Sargent, Zambia