The greatest need is the need for workers.
Jesus told us this when He asked us to pray the Lord of the Harvest to send labourers into His vineyard. The need for workers in missions has never been more important and urgent than in this generation and in our day.
At CDMF, we launched ASCEND in August 2015 as a response to getting more young Nigerian Christians into missions with the first cohort of 3 candidates committing to serve God for 6 months as missionaries. They have spent the last 4 weeks in training and orientation and are just set to make their first launch into real action – the mission field. It’s an experience they have looked forward to; following Jesus to where it matters.
For our Ascenders, it’s an experience like none they have had before. For the first time they are heading to Chad with all it’s differences – language, geographical, economic and cultural. Having to raise their own support for the first time is also a major challenge that has the potential to discourage them, but we are standing with them in faith that God will miraculously provide for all their needs in this faith-venture and establish their trust in Him.
Because of the current regional insecurity there is no road access to Chad again, so each of them has to raise not less than 180,000 (One hundred and eighty thousand Naira) to cover International Passport cost (NGN 25,000), Flight expenses (return tickets to Chad cost about NGN 140,000) and local transport and immigration costs in Chad. This is a heavy load for new short-termers to raise, but their faiths are strong and morales high as they know that it is God who has called them and He is able to touch the hearts of men to send them support through different means.
Meet the Ascenders heading out:
- Andrew Chapi Arome: A young Civil Engineer from Lokoja in Kogi state who quit his job with a lucrative network marketing company to go serve God for the next 6 months in the North-East of Chad. He will be teaching English to an Arabic/French community and using the platform to share Jesus with Muslims. His budget runs into about NGN 50,000 monthly to cover his upkeep and utility bills for the next 6 months and will need lots of prayers to be able to get positive results, especially working among Muslims. You could commit to join Andrew’s support and prayer network. Reach him on 08060166139 to encourage him or find out how you could be of help or support.
- Chidi Christian Ekeke: This young man from Port Harcourt in Rivers State has sensed that God may be calling him into a lifetime of Missions but has been wondering what first steps to take. God ordered his steps to begin with the 6 months ASCEND programme and he has willingly obeyed. He has a strong burden to reach out to Muslims and is passionate about where God is leading him to. He will be spending the next few months in Doba, Chad at the Centre for Languages and Social Integration where he will use whatever skills and abilities God has blessed him with to build bridges that can be used to share the Gospel. Chidi will need about NGN 35,000 monthly for his upkeep for the next 6 months. Join his support team and be a part of God’s work-in-progress in his life. His direct line is 090361555218
- Samuel Mark: Hailing from Benue State in Nigeria but growing up in Ibadan, God began to work recently in Samuel’s life as he brought him in contact with our team that only recently relocated to Ibadan from Mubi. He took some discovery bible studies with us (XPLORE) and was later invited to give God 6 months of his life through ASCEND and he willingly accepted, agreeing to follow Jesus wherever he would send him and to yield his life as an instrument in the hands of God. He will be serving alongside Chidi at CELSI in Doba and will be teaching young boys like him to love and follow Jesus. He is hoping that through his life, God will challenge the younger Christians in Southern Chad to yearn and long for more of God and to experience more of Gods fullness, allowing Him to use them as a witness even in their communities and among neighboring tribes. His budget as same at NGN 35,000 a month. Reach him on 08166709126 and find out how you can be a part of this next phase of God’s move in His life.
You can be part of what God is doing in ASCEND and in the lives of these young men by contributing to their initial take-off budget or by committing to give a token towards their monthly upkeep or even by just remembering them in your prayers. This is just a beginning of what God is set to do through this generation of the Nigerian Church. We are certain that this is a tipping point in the history of world evangelization and we invite you to be part of God’s making of History.
For other means of support, you can get in touch with:
- CDMF International Office, Ibadan: 07033238588, 08053642166 or cdm_ngr@yahoo.com
- CDMF Mobilization Office, Uyo: 07061386323 or mobilize@cdmissions.org
We invite you to be part of this historic move of God. The next batch of ASCEND will run starting February 2016 and we are trusting God for not less than 6 young persons to sign-up. We thank God for your support through the years in keeping the Gospel going to the ends of the earth and still invite you to stand by us as we explore this next phase that God is leading us into as a team. With your support, we can reach the world for Jesus.