World Missions Celebrates Madagascar Church Dedication

- World Missions Ministries Communications Office

New Life in Christ Pentecostal Holiness Church newly built, three-story building.

Bishop J. Talmadge Gardner with Pastor Tojo and Deborah Ranaivorimanana performing the ribbon cutting ceremony to New Life in Christ PHC's main auditorium on Sunday, March 5, 2023.

MADAGASCAR ­­– Pastor Rev. Tojo Ranaivorimanana and his wife Deborah began building the foundation of their new church building in 2019. As they diligently worked alongside church congregants, many times even into the night, the Lord blessed their hands and not only did their congregation grow, but their building plans grew along with it. Just a few years later, on March 4-5, 2023, World Missions Ministries (WMM) rejoiced with the Ranaivorarimananas and their congregation as they dedicated their newly completed, three-story structure in Madagascar’s capital city of Antananarivo as the official home of New Life in Christ Pentecostal Holiness Church.

Regional Director Joe Delport, Pastor Tojo Ranaivorimanana, Bishop J. Talmadge Gardner, and Pastor Bobby and Laura Floyd present at the ceremonies (right to left).

Present at the two-day dedication and celebration was World Missions Executive Director, Bishop J. Talmadge Gardner along with Southern Africa Regional Director Joe Delport and Pastor Bobby and Laura Floyd from Barrineau PHC in Barrineau, SC. Throughout the preaching, ribbon cutting, dedication, and worship, Bishop Gardner reported it to be a humbling and unforgettable experience with a wonderful sense of God’s anointing and presence on both days.

The new building, which held 1,000 people in the main auditorium and over 600 people in an overflow room the weekend of the celebration, has been a true testament of God’s provision for New Life in Christ PHC.

Regional Director Joe Delport with Pastor Tojo Ranaivorimanana performing the ribbon cutting for New Life in Christ PHC's lower level auditorium on Saturday, March 4, 2023.

“Over the years, serving as a missionary, I have built many churches, and the one thing I have realized is that a church building brings identity, stability, and a place of hope for the people of that community, town, or even city. This is what has happened in Antananarivo,” Delport said. “They have grown considerably from a small, prefabricated building to a three-story building having an attendance of 1,000 on a Sunday.”

The celebration, according to Delport and Bishop Gardner alike, carried a sense of excellence throughout, just as the new building does in its infrastructure. Complete with a bottom-level overflow space, a second-floor main auditorium, and a third floor with classrooms and offices, the building is expected to be a true launching pad for the IPHC in Madagascar. Because of the Lord’s blessings and the growth of the congregation, Pastor Ranaivorimanana is already making plans for expansion where New Life in Christ can also care for their city.

Sunday worship with the New Life in Christ PHC worship team.

In sharing the significance of the event, Bishop Gardner recalled his thoughts as the ceremonies commenced. As he watched the audience worship and praise God, he remembered Jacob D. Lehman, a PHC missionary who first went to South Africa in 1913. According to Dr. Frank G. Tunstall in The Simultaneous Principle, the young Pentecostal Holiness Church didn’t have the funds to even provide a one-way ticket, but Lehman realized that the Jehovah Jireh who called him to missions would also provide for him, and he went anyway. Lehman was faithful to carry the gospel message and expanded the IPHC into Africa. Today, the IPHC celebrates a ministry presence in 31 of the 49 countries within the African region and continues to expand.

Bishop J. Talmage Gardner and the Ranaivorimananas unveiling New Life in Christ PHC's dedication plaque.

“And now 110 years later, as I worshipped with the 1,600 plus members that had gathered to celebrate what God had done, I was overwhelmed by the importance of our being a sending church. Without your support for missionaries who have a calling to go,” Gardner said of the IPHC sending body, “none of this may have been possible, and these precious souls may have never heard about Jesus, His love for them, and the radical transformation that He can make in their lives. We must never stop sending those who have a call to go. The fields are ‘riper’ for a harvest of souls than ever!”

WMM extends a special thank you to those who gave over the years to make New Life in Christ Pentecostal Holiness Church a church for Madagascar’s generations to come.

Visiting the lower level overflow from Sunday morning worship.