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Dear Family and Friends,
Greetings from Cameroon. We rejoice in being able to take part in God’s kingdom work here. While there are some unwelcome sorrows, there are also spiritual victories.
In recent months in Cameroon, especially in the Far North Region (formerly Province), there has been increased terrorism. Aside from kidnappings, there are now regular incidents of suicide bombings. Most are attributed to the Boko Haram, and often their strategy is to get mere children to carry the bombs strapped to their bodies. That’s the bad news in that area.
However, there is also good news up there. The Cameroon Baptist Convention (CBC) has had a spattering of churches in this region, usually made mainly of Anglophone Cameroonians who moved into the area and wanted a church like where they came from. However in January, the CBC Executive President, Rev. Godwill Ncham, made a tour of the area and reported, “Thank you all for your prayers, it was challenging but very encouraging as God is raising a harvest from among the indigenous people. Let us continue to be a praying for the work out there.”
On the weekend of February 4 – 6, Baptist Comprehensive High School (in the safer southern part of Cameroon) celebrated its 50th anniversary. What started out as a teacher training college (to train primary school teachers), later was transformed into the Cameroon Baptist Convention’s first technical high school, teaching trades and commercial subjects, plus the usual grammar curriculum.
Over its 50 years, the school certainly has had its ups and downs. From the mid 1990’s to about 2007, the school was the “eye of the storm” in the CBC – Belo Field church crisis, when a good number of churches broke away from the Cameroon Baptist Convention (CBC) to form the Cameroon National Baptist Convention (CNBC).
As we gathered with former students, current students, staff, and other invitees for the celebration, it was noted that both the CBC and CNBC had large contingents of people there. All parties appreciated the leadership of the current principal, Mr. Kofi Armah, a Ghanian, who had brought back stability and growth to the school. Through the many speeches, grievances were aired, successes appreciated, and God’s faithfulness recognized. Rev. Ncham reminded all that in the Old Testament 50 years was considered a time of jubilee, when debts are forgiven and relationships are restored. He asked if this jubilee could be a time of reconciliation between the CBC and the CNBC. Pray that it will.
Recently we were informed that we were fully supported by NAB churches and individuals for 2015. For this, we are humbled and grateful. We also had the pastor of our home church in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, Pastor Dieter Reda and two other brothers in Christ, Daniel Hildebrandt and Michael Horst, come and visit us in Bamenda in early December. That is encouraging. May we all continue to seek God’s grace and live guided by His Spirit. God bless!
In Christ,
Walter & Florence