Click Here to go to the PDF version of this newsletter.
Dear Friends and family,
The Women’s Department of the Cameroon Baptist Convention is one of her strongest departments. Here are a few examples of what’s been going on:
- Each local church has a weekly women’s meeting, characterized by a Bible lesson, prayer time, and a memory verse. Many have an annual retreat.
- Each Field (association) has an annual Bible conference in the fall. The men, women, and youth all meet separately the first day, followed by plenary meetings the second day.
- The Women’s Executive traveled to the East Region on a fact-finding trip regarding sponsoring a mission pastor to work in the East Region in Baturi.
- For the past two years, the Women’s Department has partnered with the Health Services of the CBC to hold cervical cancer screening in two villages each year. Last year they screened 910 women during one week in Fumbam (a predominately Muslim town in the West Region) and 532 women in the Northwest Region village of Pinyan. They were able to freely share the gospel message in both areas.
- While the Women’s Department president, Mrs. Elizabeth Samandi, was in the USA last year for family matters, she was able to visit the three CBC Women’s extensions: Minneapolis, Maryland, and Dallas. She was a big encouragement to these women’s groups, who in turn are praying for us in Cameroon. The group in Maryland financially sponsored the cervical cancer screening mentioned above.
- The 2nd National Women’s Conference was held in Buea (near Mt. Cameroon at the coast) from April 15-17. Over 2000 women, from all of our 30 Fields, attended this two-day, three night conference. How nice it was to attend it, be blessed spiritually, see many old friends, and even some former students.
The theme for the conference was “They that know their God shall be strong and do exploits” or, as another version puts it, “The people who know their God will display strength and take action” (Dan. 11:32b).
The main speaker for the conference was a graduate of our CBC seminary in Ndu. She is a single mother, a chaplain at Etoug-Ebe Baptist Health Center in Yaoundé, the capital city. Her first message looked at some of the attributes of God, and how we can truly know Him. She challenged us, “What are you doing with your knowledge of God?”
The second was about the behavior of those who know God: “What is the difference in you, what shows you serve the living God?” What is our part in becoming strong? Answer: To be strong in our faith in God and the authority of His Word, we must 1) accept His promises, 2) meditate on His Word, and 3) trust God’s presence. How do we do exploits/ take action for Him? 1) We must sacrifice, 2) face the challenges of ministry, 3) be courageous, and 4) we will conquer.
Two of the other presenters had been students in my cultural anthropology class at Ndu, and a third was one of Mbingo’s recent nurse-practitioner graduates. What a blessing to see our former students passing on their knowledge and challenging others in this national setting.
We hope to see many of you in Sacramento, July 1-5!
Nancy & Dennis