Mission: Chad - Rescuing Orphans and Training Leaders in a Desperate Land


	Helping the Church in Chad rescue orphans and widows, train leaders, and share the Gospel

Meet the Children
of Mission:Chad


	August 2010

	Mission: Chad – Rescuing Orphans and Training Leaders in a Desperate Land

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Village Altonodji resident orphan

One of the 120 orphans at Village Altonodji, soon to be increased to 160!

By Scott Hafemann

I often read Christianity Today to keep on top of what is going on among God's people. The last two issues have highlighted in powerful ways what we are all about at Mission: Chad. In July 2010, Russell Moore makes the case for the fact that "every Christian is called to rescue orphans." Having been adopted by God ourselves (gospel), "our adoption spurs us to join Christ in advocating for the poor, the marginalized, the abandoned, the fatherless" (mission)

. Remember James 1:27! Thank you for being part of this gospel mission in Chad! As Moore puts it, "Genuine faith is always orphan-protecting . . . the kingdom of Christ (is) a kingdom of rescued children."

The Mission Continues: To Teach the Rescued

We know, however, that to rescue a child from poverty is only the beginning; we must teach those whom we take in, for the sake of the future of the Church and for the sake of the future of Chad – again, Moore reminds us, remember that we were orphans once, and that someone taught us to call God "Abba" (Rom 8:15) and to pray to him as "our Father" (Matt 6:9).

That is why we are now focusing on finishing the K-12 school at Village Altonodji! 270 kids in a Christian school already recognized to be one of the best schools in the country! And only one part of one building left to go, the science lab! And only $15,500 left to raise!

Finishing the school is becoming all the more important as VA expands again this coming Fall from 120 to 160 orphans on site! We need to be ready to provide the very best education for these emblems of the Kingdom!

God is in the business of rescuing and teaching orphans through our little mission! It is a wonder to be taken up into his family of faith and into his great work of extending his love to the world. Our duty is, in the end, always a delight, since we can never out-give God!

The Mission Continues: To Care for the Children of ESTES

ESTES preschool child
Recently a 20-year veteran of ground-level mission work in Chad remarked about our commitment to supporting Shalom Evangelical School of Theology (ESTES) that "training is the way forward for the Church and the Gospel in Chad." We agree! ESTES trains the leaders of leaders for the country, as well as those who will teach in the lower-level, grass-roots schools throughout the country. As the leaders go, so goes the church! But the school is small (44 students) and the needs enormous (3 million believers!).

This is why the other Christianity Today article, July 2010, was so sobering. It reported on the results of the extensive survey of religious attitudes in sub-SaharanAfrica, now out by the Pew Forum, one of the world's premier research institutes. The news is not good for Chad. 48% of Chad'sChristians practice polygamy, "far more than Christians or Muslims elsewhere in Africa;" 31% engage in extra-marital sex, and 12% in prostitution. Remember: these are stats about the church, not society!

ESTES preschool children

These preschool children are cared for while their parents are attending classes at ESTES.

ESTES preschool children

Due to its lack of biblical teaching and leadership, the Church in Chad is suffering a poverty of soul that is far greater than any physical poverty. So what we are doing for orphans, we want to do for those God has adopted too! Jesus' great commission cannot be fulfilled without leaders who can teach God's people Jesus' commands by word and deed, and model why following them, as the expression of faith, is the pathway to eternal life. But it is hard to raise money for theological education; it is not flashy. And discipleship is a long, slow process. But it is the only way out of the statistics that represent starving lives within the churches of Chad.

So we are praising God for the major gift of $11,000 that came in this quarter from a church in the San Francisco area to finish and expand the ice business project dramatically! This will provide a major source of income to support the budget of the school – five times what we originally imagined! See the website for details! And since to serve and study at ESTES entails serious sacrifice, such support will be literally life-giving.

So what's next at ESTES? A day care building for the students' children, who must now play outside or under a straw hut in very harsh, desert conditions. Cost: $24,418. On Hand: $6600. Needed: $17, 818. It is hard to study if you are concerned that your children are not safe and protected. Families at ESTES sacrifice greatly in order to study. We would like to lesson this aspect of their sacrifice, for the sake of the children, for the sake of their parents. The fathers have a school building; the mothers have a school building, now it's time for the children to get theirs!

References:
Abba Changes Everything
Why every Christian is called to rescue orphans.
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2010/july/10.18.html

Spotlight: What We Learned About Africa
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2010/june/4.11.html


	VA expands again this coming Fall from 120 to 160 orphans on site!

Scott Hafemann,
President


	..."training is the way forward for the Church and the Gospel in Chad."

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