Equipping and Releasing
"Loose him and let him go."
Dear Friends,
Equipping in Love and Truth
“And he gave the apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ… Speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by that which every joint supplies, each part working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.” (Ephesians 4:12-13, 16)
This passage has inspired our work for four decades. God didn’t give ministry to babysit the church, but to equip the church, to release each member into service. It’s great to see lives changed, as each person, empowered by God, fulfills their God given purpose. They do far more than we do on our own, and thereby the church reaches God’s goal.
How do we do this? “Speaking the truth in love.” It’s not truth OR love: it’s both. “Love” without truth is not love. What is truth? “God’s word is truth.” (John 17:17) Many said following God’s word is extreme, but over the decades we see the opposite. It is the world that is extreme, following teachings of corruption, but God owns the world and will deliver creation from evil.
Completely Self-Governing Community
Gwaklat is a small agrarian community of 200 settlers. It is very far in the interior, with no government, no police, no phone, no Fulani, no violence, no schools, no clinics, no markets (no taxes). They only speak their own dialect. They have a small breed of cows, and sheep and rotate them on their farms. The soil is good. They had no gospel witness. A missionary lady we work closely with started the church and school there. She was a university lecturer in Jos before she gave it all up for missions. CFM has taken over all her mission stations, at her request. One of our graduates is now the pastor of this work. This is typical of what is happening in 1,000s of districts.
A discussion on Ephesians and Paul’s mission after rediscovering Israel’s mission in healing the nations through a new family. Studies in Ephesians. Click image above to watch.
“Loose him and let him go.” (John 11:44)
When Jesus rose Lazarus from the dead, he gave his disciples the job to “Loose him and let him go.” When someone is born again, they need the church to remove their grave clothes, equip them and let them go to follow God and fulfill their call. We don’t control and hold them to ourselves. They are God’s and this is the way to see the most fruit for the kingdom.
Abubakar Amos hid, studied, learnt and laboured at Wurin Alheri for seven years, mentored by our team. In October 2023, he returned to his state that tried to kill him for turning to Christ for salvation. He met 11 mission centres with CFM there and today he leads 57 mission centres in the region, 46 of which he and his team have planted through fresh evangelism in previously no-go areas. So many have come to Christ, due to salvation, liberation and community development.
Fruit on the Frontier
CFM graduates go to parts of Nigeria, neighbouring nations and beyond, where few people have encountered the gospel, in places dominated by Islam, with pockets of Islam - resistance, where African Traditional Religion (AFT) rules. AFT beliefs (fear of demons) infiltrate Islam and can impact churches, unless God’s word is thoroughly taught and lived. Our graduates passionately share the saving gospel, as well as bringing sustainable agricultural training, vocational, small business, community development, peacebuilding and conflict resolution skills to share with the new believers in their infant churches. They teach literacy and numeracy, eventually starting schools, as in Gwaklat, with practical skills, slowly bringing development and much needed change in long neglected regions. They bring the most important gift - Jesus himself, the light of the world, the Word of truth, bringing abundant life, love and hope, rescue in every way - to these communities. What a privilege to share in equipping and helping these young men and women for the task!
Thank you for your ongoing prayer. Thank you for financial support, as God enables you. These are very fruitful fields, yielding amazingly bountiful harvest!
Blessings, Kent, Ruth and CFM Team
Donate
Donations to CFM’s associated accounts below, go 100% (less bank charges) to the work of CFM in Africa, without any administration costs.
Giving in Australia: 1. Christian Faith Ministries Australia (CFMA) Incorporated, BSB 035046, Account No. 607721. Secretary: Warren Mack cfmaustralia@outlook.com. CFMA is a registered Australian Charity (ABN: 24239839075). Donations to CFMA are tax deductible. If you would like statements for your gifts, please read this attachment. 2. Voice of the Martyrs kindly receives tax deductible gifts on behalf of CFM. Please contact Melissa Hill (mhill@vom.com.au).
Giving in the USA: CFM is a tax-exempt charity in the USA. Christian Faith Ministries USA, US Bank, Routing Number 122105155, Account Number 151708783072. Contact Bart Langland tmatf16@gmail.com. Or make an online donation at CFMUSA.org.
Giving in the EU: Christian Faith Ministries Africa is a registered charity. Boezingestraat 103, 8906 Ieper, Belgium: IBAN: BE50 7330 7602 7418, BIC/SWIFT: KREDBEBB. Contact Pieter Morisse, pieter.morisse@telenet.be
Giving in the UK: 1. Transfer to CFM’s account in Belgium, details listed above. 2. Use the “Make an Online Donation” link (see below). 3. Transfer directly to Nigeria (details below).
Make an Online Donation: You can click CFM Donation Form to be taken to a secure site where you can make an online donation.
Transfer to CFM in Nigeria: This must be made in US$. United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc, Nigeria. Swift Code: UNAFNGLA. UBA branch sort code: 033200987. Beneficiary account number: 3002513431. Beneficiary name: Christian Pentecostal Faith Assembly. Beneficiary address: Wurin Alheri, Du, Jos South, Post Code: 930101, Plateau State, Nigeria. Bank address: UBA Plc., Dadin Kowa Branch, Jos North, Jos, Post Code: 930272, Plateau State, Nigeria.
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Kent & Ruth receive no wage from CFM, only our weekly living costs in Nigeria are covered. CFM cfaithministries.org Substack kenthodge.substack.com CFI (Bible College) cfaithinstitute.org
Our Faith:
We believe in One creator God, who created all things. The incarnation of God in Christ, as redeemer, son and heir of creation. The death of Christ for our sins, his bodily resurrection on the third day and his current rule over the nations. God the Holy Spirit, the agent of salvation and restoration in the church of Jesus Christ. The resurrection of all humanity from the dead and the final judgement. Eternal life for those of faith and eternal destruction for the godless.