RENEWED Ministries Update – 29 April 2022

NEWS AND PRAYER UPDATE – AFRICA MISSIONS 2022

This is the RENEWED Ministries update for 29 April 2022, as provided by Reverend Courtney Richards.

Dear friends and prayer partners. Greetings in the wonderful name of our risen Lord Jesus Christ.

The trainings over the last three weeks in Jinja, Uganda and Nairobi and Ukunda, Kenya with pastors and leaders and youth leaders from 12 different African countries. They have been excellent in the attentiveness of the attendees and how well they have captured the vision to make disciples of the nations – THE JESUS WAY – and work on and implement their strategic plans to do so. We are so encouraged. Praise God.

Already they are sending us reports of what they have started to do in their countries to implement their strategic plans to be a disciple or follower of Jesus and make disciples who make and multiply disciples for the Kingdom and glory of God – THE JESUS WAY – including using sports and other means. One of the young pastors, a Muslim convert from Uganda, said it best about the impact of the training on him, “I AM BORN AGAIN, AGAIN!!” We say, Hallelujah! Glory to God!!!

My two sons from the Caribbean – Alex Altidor and Leroy Hutchinson – who have been traveling with me and helping me with the training have done an excellent job teaching and training those who have come. We have been resting this week as we are thoroughly exhausted. Leroy who is from Jamaica left last night (Thursday) to Jamaica via Dubai and New York while Alex remains with me to go to South Africa on May 8. We have a retreat with my sons from Uganda and Kenya this coming week here in Nairobi, Kenya. It’s a spiritual formation and leadership retreat the purpose of which is to help deepen their walk with God and sharpen their focus on being leaders who model Christ. So pray for great impact and transformation on us all! Thanks.

On Monday, we went to the Nairobi National Park (safari) to see animals in the wild. We were blessed by and enjoyed seeing lions, hippos, crocodiles, giraffes, impalas, zebras, buffaloes, etc. The prize for us was seeing rhinos twice! The last group of five rhinos had a confrontation between 4 of them and one that was being aggressive. We watched with amazement how the four dealt with the other one by standing together, side by side, and resisting the bad behavior of the other one. What lessons from wild animals to us humans about working together for the common good!!

In the midst of all the great stuff that God has been doing, we lost my dear son, Joel Mapesa. He led our ministry here in the Nairobi area of Kenya and beyond to several countries to the west, north and south of Kenya. Joel passed away unexpectedly on April 5 at the tender age of 46, while I was teaching in Uganda. What a shock this has been and still is to all of us. But what a dearly devoted servant and man of God. So please pray for his wife Latifah and their 4 daughters. They will need help financially to continue their lives without Joel. It will be a challenge but God is more than enough!

God richly bless you as you continue to pray for and give your financial support and encouragement to us in RENEWED Ministries. We truly value each of you. We need your support now more than ever as we are expanding to 25 African countries by 2025. VISION25 as we are calling it.

Please send your gifts to: RENEWED Ministries, P.O. Box 1229, Mishawaka, Indiana, USA 46546 or via PayPal on our website: www.renewed-ministries.org

Grace, mercy, love, favor and peace from God our  Heavenly Father to you and your family and loved ones. Coram Deo!

Always in God’s grip,
Courtney

For more on Reverend Richards’ missionary journey, go to our Archive pages.