The mission field is an exciting place to be. Special and unique experiences occur as human agents make themselves available as ambassadors for Christ. The truth of the gospel maneuvers its way into out-of-the-way places and reaches hearts in unexpected ways, and when it does, amazing things happen. Two frontline workers who know this are Whiteson Sichone and Givers Munkondya. These two brothers are part of a group called the ”pioneers,” named such by Riverside Farm, a missionary training institution in Zambia that utilizes Light Bearers’ literature for its aggressive outreach programs. Here are two stories brought to us from Whiteson and Givers.
“The Fake Convert” by Whiteson Sichone
Mr. Loti Mulenga is a very prominent Catholic leader. But he admired Seventh-day Adventist preachers for the way they could interpret the Bible. He approached one of our Bible pioneers and asked him how it would be possible for him to learn to preach like they do. The pioneer directed him to one of Riverside Farm’s Evangelism Schools in Isoka.
There was a problem, however. Only baptized members are permitted to enroll in the evangelism course. Mr. Mulenga knew that it would not be possible to study at an Adventist school as a Catholic clergyman. That’s when he decided to pretend to be interested in Adventism, concealing the fact that he only wanted to know how to preach. He acted his part so well that the people believed him to be sincere and baptized him, after which he enrolled in the evangelism training school with his covert agenda.
…he decided to pretend to be interested in Adventism, concealing the fact that he only wanted to know how to preach.
But Mr. Mulenga’s plan failed while God’s plan succeeded.
After studying the Bible and discovering truth after truth, especially in the prophecies and the three angels’ messages, he confessed his dishonesty and told what he had done. Now Mr. Mulenga was truly convicted that the Seventh-day Adventist church was preaching the truth. He no longer needed to pretend, for now he fully believed the message.
Mr. Mulenga has gone home a changed man, eager to share what the Lord has done for him. Now his plan is to preach the powerful message he has discovered to his previous church members.
“I Never Knew About the Sabbath” by Givers Munkondya
It was in June 2013 when we did an evangelistic series in the village of Nzoche, in the North Eastern part of Zambia. During the first week of the series we decided to visit Mr. Jastone Sikaonga, the pastor of the nearby Free Methodist Church, although he was not attending the meetings.
We had some Light Bearers’ Bible lessons with us. As we told him about the lessons he became interested in them. It was on the 21st of June that he started attending our afternoon Bible study as well as the evening meetings. He also attended the Sabbath meetings with us after we had given him an invitation to have fellowship with us.
His fellow pastors and church members, however, did not like the decision he had made and from that time on they rose up against him.
By the time we reached the second week he was attending all the meetings and asked us for some additional reading material and expressed a desire to study the lessons on his own. During his study he encountered some challenging truths that were new to him. He needed our help to find answers and asked for our assistance. With the aid of the Light Bearers’ lessons, we took him step by step through the Bible and showed him the answers he sought. One of the greatest struggles he had was over the Sabbath, which he never knew about. After he had studied sufficiently he decided to surrender his life to Christ and follow what the Scriptures teach.
His fellow pastors and church members, however, did not like the decision he had made and from that time on they rose up against him. Things turned sour. The church, who sponsored two of his daughter’s school fees, withdrew their sponsorship. He had also been sponsored by the church to further his own education. This also ceased immediately. Nearly all the people with whom he had fellowshipped with were now rejecting him for standing firm in his new faith.
And yet the truth is so sweet that even though Satan has tried to discourage and weaken his commitment through several trials, Jastone still has decided to get baptized and he is confident God will take care of him.
Ty Gibson
Ty is a speaker/director of Light Bearers. A passionate communicator with a message that opens minds and moves hearts, Ty teaches on a variety of topics, emphasizing God’s unfailing love as the central theme of the Bible. Ty and his wife Sue have three adult children and two grandsons.
