This Gospel is Really Doing Wonders!

//SPECIAL REPORT: INTERNATIONAL RHEMA

Kenya . . . stepping off the plane it's exactly as you'd imagine Africa to smell—earthy and smoky with a hint of spice. The larger cities mix new and old. Donkeys and foot carts mingle with cars in the shadows of high-rises. But wherever you go in this equatorial country, one thing remains consistent—people. They're everywhere. Men, women, and children . . . walking, sitting, and trying to sell their goods to earn a living. Seeing them, you know why Rhema Bible Training College has come.

One of our staff writers recently visited Rhema Kenya. The students and graduates she talked to all agree—nothing compares with Rhema's teachings! And those who hear them are taking them to their neighbors, their church members . . . anyone who will listen. They're impacting the people of Kenya for Jesus.

 

Here are just a few testimonies . . . 

Ten years ago Pastor Justus Kaloki was starting his church, working, and going to school! His church met in a small mud building. On a good Sunday, offerings averaged $1 to $2. After putting what he learned at Rhema into practice, Pastor Kaloki has seen a transformation. The church now has 250 members and a $20,000 building. And his congregation just bought him a $15,000 car! They and the church are prospering because they've learned about faith, prosperity, and a strong work ethic!

Pamela Ngonga —"I'm seeing things differently from the way I used to see them. I've learned how to truly believe, trust in God, and stand by faith."

John Wesley Sullubu calls himself "a very old man." And at 87 he is Rhema Kenya's oldest graduate. After nine years as a schoolteacher, six years as a social worker, 26 years as a government children's officer, and five years as a counselor, John answered the call. He became a pastor in Adu, Kenya, a coastal area so remote that transport is difficult and water scarce. Though his life is difficult and he admits he didn't want to be a preacher, Pastor Sullubu is thankful and happy to be where God has called him. And he's thankful to Rhema for what he has learned. "I am thankful I know how to preach and conduct myself
as a preacher," he says.

Susan Andrew —"Being a pastor's wife, I thought it would be a good thing for me to get the same education as my husband. Rhema was really helping in his ministry life. I've learned how you can apply the Bible, teach people, and live as a Christian."

Roseline Jasper and her husband pastor a 1,500-member church in Kisumu City.
She says she used to preach like a wild tuk-tuk driver. [A tuk-tuk is a small, motorized, three-wheeled vehicle.] But Rhema changed all that. She now knows how to be a good spiritual leader. Pastor Roseline has also seen her marriage change. "The training I got about family life has really helped me a lot. I learned what a husband really needs, and I've tried to exercise that. And my marriage is turning to another level."

"When I heard about Rhema Kenya, I was jumping with joy," says Pastor Douglas Mwadziwe. "It's something I've had in my heart since 1988. I've seen a lot of growth by these teachings. And I'm being accepted because of the messages I'm teaching." In addition to pastoring, Pastor Douglas, 64, oversees 12 other pastors. "Every time I go to a place to minister, they always call me back. One thing they say is, 'Why are you an old man and you're so vibrant like this?' I tell them, 'Take this message and you'll have it in your own lives too!' I say may God bless Pastor Kenneth Hagin for having such an insight of revealing knowledge to the people who are in darkness. With this knowledge comes the light, and no darkness can come here anymore."

The class that most impacted Pastor Ephantus Njuguna at Rhema was children's ministry. "I learned that when you change a child, you change a whole future. That child can change the nation many years later." After this class, he went immediately to the schools. (Kenya has a program allowing pastors to minister in primary schools.) "I now have three schools where the Lord has used me to transform and change children's lives," he says. "I just teach faith! Now they say, 'We don't want to hear anybody else. We just want to hear our pastor.' " Since he began ministering in the schools, Pastor Njuguna has seen over 300 children saved. He says, "They have surrendered their lives to Jesus! They just want to continue in faith, and I just want to continue teaching them about faith!"

Pastor Marshall Mbaru — "I'm convinced that Rhema Kenya came at the right time. Without the knowledge Rhema brought, it would be quite a challenge to contain the revival that is yet to come. Rhema Kenya has a special place in this nation. I'm very grateful. It has done a lot of good in my life and in the lives of my fellow students."

Isack Kitheka helps his local church any way he can—from running sound to teaching in Bible studies and meetings. At one fellowship he prayed for a young girl who had open sores from her fingertips to her forearms. Her sister had the same sores. When he returned the next week, both sisters were healed. "The family isn't born again," Isack says, "so this was a good way of testifying to them that Jesus is able and can change them."

Abigail Mkaya was already an ordained pastor when she came to Rhema Kenya. But the faith teaching she received really taught her to trust God. In a country where land is everything, she has even acquired a small plot for herself. Her church is also currently building. She says, "I don't even know where the money will come from. But something within me just tells me to believe God. God has been providing—for my own self and for the church. I appreciate God for that!"

"Last August I went to the eastern part of Kenya to preach the Gospel, and 583 people got saved. One of these people was the son of a witch doctor. She's known in the area. This son of hers was supposed to inherit that job from her. She was preparing him. But he gave his life to Jesus and told his mother, 'I've decided to follow Jesus. I don't want to inherit your stuff. You either decide to follow Jesus or I'm not with you in business.' This woman had to take her stuff and go about 20 kilometers away. She said, 'When that pastor is finished with his crusade, I'll come back. I have no peace when they are preaching that Jesus!' I tell you, this Gospel is really doing wonders! We need to go to those remote places where people have never heard this Gospel. We need to go and take it to them!"
—Pastor William Meni