Thanks to your support, graduates leave St Andrew’s Seminary in Manila with a Bible dictionary and commentary. To Victor Bongngat Mangngao, these gifts are indispensable tools.

 

“My six siblings and I were born into a remote Ingorot tribe in Kalinga Province. As a child I cultivated white beans, coffee and tiger grass. However I dreamed of becoming a priest. I was inspired by the commitment of the priests who travelled by foot to far-flung areas in my province to celebrate the Eucharist and minister to the people.”

 

Suffering produces perseverance

 

“Poverty and the remoteness of our village made life difficult. The year 1984 was a sad year. My eight-year-old brother died of pneumonia and my two-year-old brother died with measle-like symptoms. Neither received medical attention.”

 

Victor managed to complete elementary school. He then travelled long distances to attend high school and university. “I graduated from Kalinga-Apayo State College and sat the St Andrew’s Theological Seminary entrance exam. Unfortunately, I could not afford to pursue theological studies. But I was determined to find a way.”

 

Perseverance produces character

 

“My height disqualified me from enlisting in the police and armed forces, and I failed the civil service exam several times. I ended up working as a construction worker. My frustration caused me to join a revolutionary movement. With this underground movement, I saw the value of comradeship, developed self-discipline and learned to live with danger.”

 

When his father got sick, Victor was forced to choose between the movement and his family. “I felt bad because I was not able to take care of my father. I was also worried about being killed. I took advantage of a government amnesty and left the revolutionary group.”

 

Character produces hope

 

“My father died in 2010. In my grief I was reminded of my vocation. Almost 20 years after my first attempt, I finally enrolled at St Andrew’s Theological Seminary. This time my training was sponsored by friends.”

 

“My struggles have not been in vain. I can see that God has been preparing me to serve his church.”

 

“Pray that I will devote myself to our Lord Jesus Christ. Please pray that if it is the will of God, I will become a priest and serve him and the people he entrusts to my care.”

 

 

Victor Bongngat Mangngao graduated with a bachelor degree from St Andrew’s Theological Seminary.

 

$70 will provide an IVP New Bible Dictionary and a New Bible Commentary to a theological graduate in Manila.

Jengish was educated at a school run by followers of the Turkish Islamic scholar and preacher Muhammed Fethullah Gülen. He left school eager to “live like a real Muslim.”

 

“But while applying to university I met real Christians for the first time. They had a personal relationship with God. God spoke to them. I had never heard of anything like this before. In Islam the only person to hear Allah’s voice was the prophet Muhammad.”

 

God answered me

 

One night Jengish was cramming for an English exam. There were 90 possible topics but only one would appear on his exam. “I chose a topic and said, ‘God, if Christianity really is the true faith and I can hear your voice, then give me a sign so that I can believe. If this topic is in my exam tomorrow, I will believe’.”

 

The next day Jengish held his breath as he flipped over the exam paper. “I had the topic I had chosen!”

 

Jengish began to seriously investigate Christianity.

 

God convinced me

 

“A Christian friend lent me a Russian edition of the Full Life Study Bible. I quickly realised that my Muslim teachers knew little about Christianity and had misrepresented what the Bible says. Then I borrowed a book of doctrine, Cornerstones of Truth. I learned about God: Father, Son and Spirit. In the book of Romans God showed me how Jesus died for our sins to make us righteous.”

 

“After two months I accepted Jesus as my Saviour and Lord.”

 

God speaks through his Word

 

At theological seminary, Jengish started translating Christian books into his native language. “I am currently translating The Old Testament in Seven Sentences by Christopher Wright. This is the book that helped me understand the grand narrative of the Bible. The Old Testament shows us what God is like, what people are like, and why we need Jesus to do for us what we cannot do for ourselves.”

 

In a remote region of Central Asia, Jengish is preaching the gospel and educating young people who are at risk of being radicalised.

 

“Please pray that I will be like the apostles in Acts and go where the Spirit leads, so that a light will shine upon those living in a land of deep darkness.”

 

 

Jengish has a bachelor degree in theology and works as a teacher, translator and project manager in community development.

 

$4000 will enable the publication of a local edition of Chris Wright’s The Old Testament in Seven Sentences.

You can help pastors like Srey Villa speak the word of God with confidence in rural Cambodia.

 

“My father took me to church but he would not let my mother go. In fact he never took her anywhere. He was a proud, violent and controlling man. I decided not to be like him.”

 

Things changed when Villa’s father died in a traffic accident. “Now my mother was free to go to church. She became a Christian. Because of her faithfulness, my brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews and I all decided to follow Jesus.”

 

God gave us a spirit of power and love

 

“At church I was given many opportunities to serve and grow. The youth leader took me to a Bible college in Siem Reap to attend training workshops.”

 

One Sunday Villa’s pastor took him to visit a group of 53 new believers. “They met under a tree at the edge of the forest. Despite violent resistance, a fearless widow had led these 13 families to the Lord. Her name is Khem Rem. I was inspired by her energy and courage.”

 

“When Auntie Rem asked me to be their pastor I said “no”. I had just finished year 12 and married. I wanted to serve God full-time, but not as a pastor. Who was I to take up this responsibility?”

 

Feed my sheep

 

“But when my wife and I read the Bible and prayed together, we realised that we loved these people and wanted to encourage and teach them. In 2013 I agreed to be their pastor part-time and study theology part-time.”

 

“I felt too young to be a pastor. Others thought so too. But Auntie Rem continued to encourage me. She never stops praying.”

 

Jesus be my guide

 

“I have a lot to learn and am keen to benefit from the experience of other Christians. The Bible alone is the word of God, but Christian books give me the skills and confidence I need to serve the church.”

 

“Will you pray that I will mature as a leader and care for my church? To be a pastor I must support and nurture rather than control God’s people. I love my wife and I am proud of her. Pray that together we will share the good news and that I will do the will of my heavenly Father.”

 

 

Srey Villa purchased a package of Khmer-language books subsidised by SparkLit. He pastors an Assemblies of God Church in Skun, Siem Reap Province.

 

$15,000 will enable the publication in Phnom Penh of five new books written in Khmer by local Christians.

 

Joshphat Mutunga tells how God is using books to equip pastors like him in rural Kenya.

 

“Because my father was a witch doctor everyone hated my family. No preacher ever came to tell us the good news. One night my father was found naked in someone else’s compound. The hostility towards us intensified.” 

 

“It was not until I was in my late twenties that my family had the opportunity to know God. In 2005 a church was planted near our house. It was in that church that I found Jesus Christ. Because I became a Christian, my father chased me away from home.”

 

First I was given responsibilities

 

“However, God provided me with a new home. Although I was old enough to marry, my pastor and his family took me in. He taught me God’s word so that I could teach others. The following year, I was baptised and put in charge of the Sunday school. Three years later, I was made pastor of a small church! I had no theological training and a pressing desire to go to Bible school. However, I could not afford to study.”

 

“In 2017 a friend graduated from the Word of Life School of Theology. I attended the graduation ceremony. Deep in my heart I was asking God to one day open a door for me to study theology too. Little did I know that God had already answered my prayer.”

 

Then I was given training

 

“The principal announced that the first applicant for the new intake would receive a scholarship! I applied immediately. That October I was welcomed into the next cohort and was given the bundle of ten books SparkLit provided.”

 

“These books have become the foundation of my Bible understanding and will shape my ministry. Thank you for empowering me for ministry work. This study and training has changed my life.”

 

“Surely God loves his people and provides for us from many sources. I will keep praying for SparkLit.”

 

Pray that the word of Christ will dwell richly among church leaders in Kenya so they will teach and admonish with all wisdom, singing to God with gratitude in their hearts.

 

 

Joshphat Mutunga graduated with a diploma from the Word of Life School of Theology, Meru.

 

$80 will enable a pastor to train for two years by providing a ten-volume Africa Leadership Manual.