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Congo Church Leaders Ponder Future Direction
BANGUI, CONGO (July 13, 2000) - Mission and sustainability were two key issues that emerged during several days of discussion involving key leaders of the Congo church and representatives of the Evangelical Covenant Church (ECC).
Leaders met for three days at a Catholic center just out of town. "The Congo church expressed great appreciation for the support that the Covenant has been giving them financially, in prayer and through visits," reported Ken Satterberg, missionary to the Central African Republic where he works with literacy and translation issues. "They said that 'even though we are in difficulty now, we are praying for the Covenant churches around the world, since no one knows when persecution will come.'"
One key focus of discussion is mission. "The Congo church is mobilizing as never before to reach the unreached in Congo and across their borders," Satterberg said. "It is just the beginning of the movement, so there is a great deal of work to be done among church leaders to see this
movement continue."
A second key focus is sustainability. "How can the Congo church sustain the ministries to which God has called them?" Satterberg said in describing concerns for the future. "We talked about how the Covenant can help them move in (terms of) vision and appropriate directions in the future," Satterberg said. "We talked about providing the resources to train leadership in the church in areas that will help sustain the work of the church."
Congo leaders have a great deal of work ahead of them. They also face at least two significant challenges. The first challenge is motivating support within church leadership to move toward a goal of sustainable ministry, avoiding a temptation to rely on outside authority and financial dependency.
A second challenge centers on the politics of the region, which for almost a year has been under the control of rebel forces. There is always the possibility of future conflict between rebel and government forces, which would have an impact on ministry on that area.
"Thanks for your prayers," Satterberg said in a personal note to Covenanters everywhere, "and continue to remember the Congo church as you pray."
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