Picture for a moment a farmer. He tills the soil, plants the seed, irrigates and waits for the crops to grow. When finally the harvest is ready, does he move on to new fields? No, harvest is the busiest time for the farmer because if he does not reap when the fields are ripe, all his hard work before will be for nothing. Much of Africa is in the midst of a spiritual harvest. The bounty is the Lord’s, but it has come at great cost. If churches are not equipped and leaders not prepared, there is danger of losing what has been labored for for so long. A brief overview of some of the problems facing the church in Africa today will, I think, help make this point clear.

One of the greatest difficulties in African churches has been the lack of trained leaders. In Kenya, where Kim and I will be ministering, most pastors are responsible for several churches, and very few of these pastors have formal Bible training. The Master of Arts in Biblical Studies that I completed at Dallas Theological Seminary would not be considered by many as adequate to pastor a church in the U.S., but it is more education than 99% of Kenyan pastors ever receive since there is only one graduate level evangelical seminary in the country. Several African leaders have acquired their theological education abroad, but this is expensive and may not adequately prepare them for their situation in Africa. In addition, some African leaders trained at liberal seminaries in the West have returned with a faulty understanding of God’s word.

Nominalism is another serious problem among second generation African churches. For example, in Nairobi, Kenya’s capital city, 80% of the population claim to be Christian but only 12% go to church. The results of nominalism in African society are tragically apparent and include tribalism, widespread HIV infection (up to 20% of young adults in some areas of Kenya), and corruption at all levels of government. Kim and I hope that by both words and deeds we can demonstrate to our Kenyan patients, trainees and neighbors what it means to truly know Christ Jesus.

A third challenge for the African church are unreached people groups. In Kenya alone there are 117 distinct ethno-linguistic groups and 58 different languages spoken. An estimated 12% of Kenya’s population belong to peoples little affected by the gospel. Islam is also expanding southward into sub-Saharan Africa. In order for these peoples to be reached for Christ, African believers must catch a vision for missions and receive training in cross-cultural evangelism. Toward this end, Africa Inland Mission has helped establish a Missionary Training College where 15 Kenyan missionary candidates are trained each year. Because the hospital where Kim and I will be working serves a number of different tribal groups, we will have a chance to minister to unreached peoples and to help our Kenyan trainees learn to minister cross-culturally as well.

Ultimately, God’s purposes for sending us to Africa belong to Him alone. However, I hope that this brief overview has helped explain the need for continued missionary work in Africa and how our efforts there can be strategic in helping to reach the world for Christ