by Willard & Yvonne Wagner<\/p>\n
Every year our church in Togo, the Eglise de Pentecote du Togo, has their Easter Convention that attracts some 100,000 worshipers.\u00a0 This year they held thirteen massive meetings with each one having from 3,500 to 18,000 attendees. The worship, excitement, and joy in each service is beyond one\u2019s ability to explain, or even understand. You would have to be right there to experience such an incredible move of God among these wonderful Togolese.\u00a0 We were honored to have with us during the convention Bishop Talmadge Gardner, director of IPHC World Missions, and Bishop Joel Dibetsoe, of IPHC South Africa. They are both powerful preachers and with 13 meetings held for four days, they had the opportunity to share the Easter message with thousands for our risen Lord. While Bishop Gardner and I accompanied the leaders to the famous German Restaurant, Le Munchen, Yvonne hosted the wives of these brethren to a luncheon in the hotel where we had registered. These are annual events, and our dear friends so enjoyed the meals and the fellowship. Some business was conducted after the meal, as time was precious and we were meeting flight deadlines for our visitors. We appreciate the wood carvings the leaders of Togo presented to Bishop Gardner and me, even though we had to purchase a much larger suitcase to get them to the States. They have found their place in our home.\u00a0 We had invited the leadership from the Republic of Benin to visit with us in Lome, which gave Bishop Gardner an opportunity to interact with these fine people. They now report that there are 51 well established churches and some 3,500 in membership. We will visit with them in Easter of 2018.<\/p>\n
Somehow the dates on our return tickets were changed and we were forced to stay in Lome one week longer than planned. But realizing our disappointments are sometimes God\u2019s appointments, we just rested, read, and enjoyed this unscheduled change. We were glad to spend some time with Pastor and Mrs. Mampe\u00a0 Mawunya, a recently retired minister and one of the founders of the church. Our private interpreter was always on hand to help us communicate with these Franco-phone brethren and through him, we were able to share so many experiences in the ministry.\u00a0 My interpreter appreciated the Scofield Study Bible I presented to him for his labor. Many of the leaders of Eglise de Pentecote were not aware of our extended stay, so when we showed up at their Sunday morning service after Easter, they were pleasantly surprised. Bishop Adedje invited us to the platform, and before we had entered into the praise of the service, he asked me if I was ready to preach the Word this morning. Of course I responded in the affirmative. And after participating in glorious and intense praise, hearing both of their anointed choirs, and enjoying the talent of their church orchestra, I was ready to preach.\u00a0 Fortunately one of my favorite interpreters was in the service and, through his brilliant interpretation, he greatly enhanced my message. I have found that if one cannot preach in Africa with a good interpreter, one cannot preach anywhere, as a good interpreter will literally bring a special anointing and a contextualized understanding to your message. The church was having their second service, and had more than 500 people seated in this large and beautiful headquarters sanctuary. Many more were standing outside, eager to worship and hear the Word of God.\u00a0 What an honor it has been to serve as the Regional Director to West Africa for the past 25 years, which has included ministry among these remarkable Togolese. They are so receptive to the Gospel and appreciate the preaching of the Word immensely. Can you believe they now have 1,642 thriving churches throughout Togo which, when their people are combined, make up a total of 150,000 members? Over the past 25 years they have been with us, this church has increased from 15,000 to its present contingency. To me, that is church planting and church growth at its finest. I have learned some valuable principles on how to grow a church from following their example.<\/p>\n
The rest of this year will be spent at the 28th General Conference in Orlando, and then to Ghana in September where I will meet with our Presiding Bishop and Rev. Ernest Turner to accompany them to our IPHC churches in Kumasi. When we return to Accra, Dr. Beacham will attend an international meeting, and I will visit our industrial school in the Volta region under the direction of Alberta Smith. I also look forward to networking with a sister Bible College located in that area of Ghana.<\/p>\n
We always look forward to our annual graduation at West Africa Bible College, in Lagos, Nigeria. We have been sharing ministry there for the past 28 years and through the national leadership, they have shown significant growth and have become one of the most outstanding Bible Colleges in all of Nigeria. From the 2,500 graduates over the past 20 years, 80% have gone into full-time ministry, either in Nigeria or elsewhere around the world. We will have Rev. Stanley Reynolds from North California making a second visit to the college, as our people in Nigeria love him and his ministry. Coming to WABC for the first time will be Pastor and Mrs. Harrison Lampley, of the Franklin Springs IPHC Church.\u00a0 That will be a very busy week for Nigeria, and we will write about the results of this graduation and subsequent meetings in our next prayer letter.<\/p>\n
We are making plans to visit our other countries: Sierra Leone, Liberia, Cote d\u2019Ivoire, and Republic of Benin, when time and finances allow.\u00a0 They are doing quite well, and are becoming more solidified in the faith and growth of their ministry. We long to be with them and encourage them in the work. Be assured of our continued love and prayers for your faithfulness to our ministry in West Africa.\u00a0 We know full well that without your contributions and prayer, none of this would be possible, so we say thank you from the bottom of our heart for helping us continue our work in West Africa.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
by Willard & Yvonne Wagner Every year our church in Togo, the Eglise de Pentecote du Togo, has their Easter Convention that attracts some 100,000 worshipers.\u00a0 This year they held…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":1554,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[29,4],"tags":[35,231,162,123],"class_list":{"0":"post-1553","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-missionary-newsletters","8":"category-world-missions","9":"tag-africa","10":"tag-bible-college","11":"tag-togo","12":"tag-wagner","13":"entry"},"title_es":"Bolet\u00edn de Wagner: Junio \u200b\u200bde 2017","content_es":"Por Willard & Yvonne Wagner Cada a\u00f1o nuestra iglesia en Togo, la Eglise de Pentecote du Togo, tiene su Convenci\u00f3n de Pascua que atrae a unos 100.000 fieles. Este a\u00f1o se celebraron trece reuniones masivas con cada una de ellas de 3.500 a 18.000 asistentes. La adoraci\u00f3n, la emoci\u00f3n y la alegr\u00eda en cada servicio est\u00e1 m\u00e1s all\u00e1 de la capacidad de explicar, o incluso de entender. Usted tendr\u00eda que estar ah\u00ed para experimentar un movimiento incre\u00edble de Dios entre estos maravillosos togoleses. Nos sentimos honrados de tener con nosotros durante la convenci\u00f3n el obispo Talmadge Gardner, director de Misiones Mundiales de IPHC, y el obispo Joel Dibetsoe, de IPHC Sud\u00e1frica. Ambos son predicadores poderosos y con 13 reuniones celebradas durante cuatro d\u00edas, tuvieron la oportunidad de compartir el mensaje de Pascua con miles para nuestro Se\u00f1or resucitado. Mientras que el obispo Gardner y yo acompa\u00f1amos a los l\u00edderes al famoso restaurante alem\u00e1n, Le Munchen, Yvonne recibi\u00f3 a las esposas de estos hermanos a un almuerzo en el hotel donde nos hab\u00edamos registrado. Estos son eventos anuales, y nuestros queridos amigos disfrutaron tanto las comidas y la comuni\u00f3n. Algunos negocios se llev\u00f3 a cabo despu\u00e9s de la comida, ya que el tiempo era precioso y est\u00e1bamos cumpliendo los plazos de vuelo para nuestros visitantes. Apreciamos las tallas de madera que los l\u00edderes de Togo nos presentaron al Obispo Gardner ya m\u00ed, aunque tuvimos que comprar una maleta mucho m\u00e1s grande para llevarlas a los Estados Unidos. Han encontrado su lugar en nuestra casa. Hab\u00edamos invitado a los dirigentes de la Rep\u00fablica de Benin a visitarnos en Lom\u00e9, lo que le dio al obispo Gardner la oportunidad de interactuar con estas bellas personas. Ahora informan que hay 51 iglesias bien establecidas y unas 3.500 en membres\u00eda. Vamos a visitar con ellos en la Pascua de 2018. De alguna manera las fechas en nuestros billetes de regreso se cambiaron y nos vimos obligados a permanecer en Lome una semana m\u00e1s de lo previsto. Pero darnos cuenta de nuestras decepciones a veces son citas de Dios, simplemente descansamos, leemos y disfrutamos de este cambio no programado. Nos alegramos de pasar alg\u00fan tiempo con el Pastor y la Sra. Mampe Mawunya, un ministro recientemente retirado y uno de los fundadores de la iglesia. Nuestro int\u00e9rprete privado estaba siempre a mano para ayudarnos a comunicarnos con estos hermanos franco-telef\u00f3nicos ya trav\u00e9s de \u00e9l, pudimos compartir tantas experiencias en el ministerio. Mi int\u00e9rprete apreci\u00f3 la Biblia de Estudio Scofield que le present\u00e9 por su labor. Muchos de los l\u00edderes de Eglise de Pentecote no eran conscientes de nuestra estancia prolongada, as\u00ed que cuando nos presentamos en su servicio de domingo por la ma\u00f1ana despu\u00e9s de Pascua, fueron gratamente sorprendidos. El obispo Adedje nos invit\u00f3 a la plataforma, y \u200b\u200bantes de que hubi\u00e9ramos entrado en la alabanza del servicio, me pregunt\u00f3 si yo estaba listo para predicar la Palabra esta ma\u00f1ana. Por supuesto que respond\u00ed afirmativamente. Y despu\u00e9s de participar en la alabanza gloriosa e intensa, escuchando a sus coros ungidos y disfrutando del talento de su orquesta de iglesia, estaba listo para predicar. Afortunadamente uno de mis int\u00e9rpretes favoritos estaba en el servicio y, a trav\u00e9s de su brillante interpretaci\u00f3n, mejor\u00f3 mucho mi mensaje. He descubierto que si uno no puede predicar en \u00c1frica con un buen int\u00e9rprete, uno no puede predicar en ninguna parte, ya que un buen int\u00e9rprete literalmente traer\u00e1 una unci\u00f3n especial y una comprensi\u00f3n contextualizada a su mensaje. La iglesia estaba teniendo su segundo servicio, y hab\u00eda m\u00e1s de 500 personas sentadas en este gran y hermoso santuario de la sede. Muchos m\u00e1s estaban afuera, ansiosos de adorar y escuchar la Palabra de Dios. \u00a1Qu\u00e9 honor ha sido servir como Director Regional de \u00c1frica Occidental durante los \u00faltimos 25 a\u00f1os, que ha incluido el ministerio entre estos destacados togoleses! Son tan receptivos al Evangelio y aprecian inmensamente la predicaci\u00f3n de la Palabra. \u00bfPueden creer que ahora tienen 1.642 iglesias pr\u00f3speras en todo Togo que, cuando su gente es combinada, componen un total de 150.000 miembros? En los \u00faltimos 25 a\u00f1os han estado con nosotros, esta iglesia ha aumentado de 15.000 a su contingencia actual. Para m\u00ed, eso es la plantaci\u00f3n de iglesias y el crecimiento de la iglesia en su mejor momento. He aprendido algunos principios valiosos sobre c\u00f3mo cultivar una iglesia de seguir su ejemplo. El resto de este a\u00f1o se pasar\u00e1 en la 28\u00aa Conferencia General en Orlando, y luego en Ghana en septiembre donde me reunir\u00e9 con nuestro Obispo Presidente y Rev. Ernest Turner para acompa\u00f1arlos a nuestras iglesias IPHC en Kumasi. Cuando regresemos a Accra, el Dr. Beacham asistir\u00e1 a una reuni\u00f3n internacional y visitar\u00e9 nuestra escuela industrial en la regi\u00f3n de Volta bajo la direcci\u00f3n de Alberta Smith. Tambi\u00e9n espero poder trabajar en red con una universidad b\u00edblica hermana ubicada en esa \u00e1rea de Ghana. Siempre esperamos nuestra graduaci\u00f3n anual en el West Africa Bible College, en Lagos, Nigeria. Hemos estado compartiendo el ministerio all\u00ed durante los \u00faltimos 28 a\u00f1os ya trav\u00e9s del liderazgo nacional, ellos han mostrado un crecimiento significativo y se han convertido en uno de los Colegios B\u00edblicos m\u00e1s destacados en toda Nigeria. De los 2.500 graduados en los \u00faltimos 20 a\u00f1os, el 80% ha entrado en un ministerio de tiempo completo, ya sea en Nigeria o en otras partes del mundo. Vamos a tener el Rev. Stanley Reynolds de California del Norte haciendo una segunda visita a la universidad, ya que nuestra gente en Nigeria le ama y su ministerio. Venir a WABC por primera vez ser\u00e1 Pastor y la Sra. Harrison Lampley, de la Iglesia IPHC de Franklin Springs. Esa ser\u00e1 una semana muy ocupada para Nigeria, y escribiremos sobre los resultados de esta graduaci\u00f3n y las siguientes reuniones en nuestra pr\u00f3xima carta de oraci\u00f3n. Estamos haciendo planes para visitar nuestros otros pa\u00edses: Sierra Leona, Liberia, Costa de Marfil y la Rep\u00fablica de Benin, cuando el tiempo y las finanzas lo permitan. Lo est\u00e1n haciendo muy bien, y se est\u00e1n solidificando en la fe y el crecimiento de su ministerio. Anhelamos estar con ellos y animarlos en el trabajo. Est\u00e9n seguros de nuestro continuo amor y oraciones por su fidelidad a nuestro ministerio en \u00c1frica Occidental. Sabemos muy bien que sin sus contribuciones y oraci\u00f3n, nada de esto ser\u00eda posible, as\u00ed que decimos gracias desde el fondo de nuestro coraz\u00f3n por ayudarnos a continuar nuestro trabajo en \u00c1frica Occidental.","author_name":"","jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/missions\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2017\/06\/Bishop-and-leaders-of-Togo-e1498861373620.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pb62Ar-p3","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/missions\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1553","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/missions\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/missions\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/missions\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/missions\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1553"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/missions\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1553\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/missions\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1554"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/missions\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1553"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/missions\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1553"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iphc.org\/missions\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1553"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}