Africa

 Ethiopian Church Mobilizes for Tentmaking

/ Steinar Opheim
In November leaders from 17 synods in the Ethiopian Mekane Yesus Church attended a seminar in Hawassa, Ethiopia on how to mobilize and send professionals and businesspeople. With its 11 million members, the Mekane Yesus church is regarded as the world’s biggest Lutheran church. 

Leaders from 17 synods in the Mekane Yesus Church in Ethiopia are now focusing on recruiting and sending workers, businesspeople and professionals who will serve Jesus among unreached people groups. “The teaching we have received on this has been an eye-opener for us. Now we are ready to do the job,” says head of the church’s mission department, Tilaye Daba. 

Mekane Yesus is regarded as the world’s largest Lutheran church. As of today, the church has around 11 million members, and the numbers are growing rapidly. 

“Growth is part of our DNA. Already when I took confirmation classes, I learned how I was responsible for sharing the gospel with people around me. Our obligation to bring the message about Jesus to new areas and people groups has however not been clearly communicated. We want to do something about this now, says the mission leader. 

Leader conference 

Last year he was among the representatives when leaders from Mekane Yesus and from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania (ELCT) met in Nairobi. Their aim was to develop ideas on how they can send more professionals and businesspeople to other nations. Norwegian Lutheran Mission (NLM), which is the biggest mission agency in Norway, initiated the conference, and participated with several leaders. Victor Agbonkpolor from Tent Nigeria and Steinar Opheim from Tent International served as main teachers.  

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Mobilizing West Africa for Tentmaking

/ Steinar Opheim

All 16 West African nations are expected to have representatives at the conference that will be held in Nigeria’s capital, Abuja, in February. Photo: Adobestock.

Aims at mobilizing West African professionals

Mobilizing tentmakers from West Africa is the main aim when Tent and collaborating partners gather leaders for a West Africa Tentmaking Conference in Nigeria next year. “We must activate the whole, global church if we are to fulfill the great commission,” says Tent Nigeria’s leader, Victor Agbonkpolor. 

All 16 West African nations are expected to have representatives at the conference that will be held in Nigeria’s capital, Abuja, in February.

“Promotion is starting now, and we expect that the conference will fill up quickly,”

says Agbonkpolor.
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A praying woman’s vision for Africa

/ Ari Rocklin

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The All Africa TI Tentmakers Congress brought together people from many African nations. Some traveled for days, by air, road, bus and sometimes walking great distances. 

We heard encouraging if not surprising reports of how tentmakers trained in Africa have gone to neighbouring countries and beyond, bringing the Gospel with them while looking for work or starting small businesses.

What is a small business?

How about a shoe shine stand or a crate full of Coke, mobile phone service or vegetable stand. God’s merchants in the marketplace.

What is different about this kind of mission?

No foreign money, no expectation of remuneration or assistance from the so called “West”. Could this be the start of a new wave of missions not dependent on the western church?

I see the church of Africa taking a leadership role for world evangelism, and proclaiming a simple but not watered down version of the Gospel. It is my personal hope to see African style worship coming to the west, and perhaps calling it “Africa Song”.

Why would this work?

A story was told of a shoe shine man, in front of a very large church building, shining the shoes of business people. As he started building his clientele and building relationships while serving them, the conversation always led to Jesus. One businessman asked, what is different about your religion compared to the large church behind me? The shoe shine man responded, I have come here from another country to work for a living and share the message of Jesus while working. You see Apostle Paul integrated his work and faith by making tents, I am only following in his footsteps but as a shoeshine man.

In a matter of months the shoe shine man had started a bible study in a nearby park with people who had never considered attending the large church.

Back to the congress.

At the rear of the main meeting room hung some paintings. The story behind one of them was told to me through an interpreter. An elderly woman had been praying for the congress for a long time and during those prayers she had seen a vision. It was so powerful that she thought it should become a panting. Not being an artist herself, she went to a local painter who then proceeded to paint her vision from her words and instructions.

The vision is of a woman symbolized as Africa, who is in distress, without hope for the future. On the right hand are two African tentmaker wheat merchants heading her way with the hope of the Gospel. She saw hundreds of these tentmakers from Africa going across Africa spreading the good news of Jesus as a result of this congress and the work of the All Africa Tentmaking Movement.

It is the conviction of this editor that Africa will train and send more tentmakers who will disciple more new believers and plant more house churches than any other continent in the next decade!

Does the Self Supported Tentmaking Model Work in Africa?

/ Ari Rocklin

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Can African believers follow in Apostle Paul’s footsteps by taking their profession and business with them to other regions of Africa? Is it possible to have Africans being trained by Africans to go to other Africans with the Gospel without any financial support from elsewhere?

It is the conviction of this editor that Africa will train and send more tentmakers who will disciple more new believers and plant more house churches than any other continent in the next decade!

Steinar Opheim of TENT Norway has been going to Africa for many years to teach and encourage the tentmaking movement there. Together with an increasing number of local teachers, the movement has taken off in ways not imagined.

The 6th All African TI Congress in Tanzania took place last month with 157 delegates and attendees from many African nations. We heard encouraging and exciting reports on how God is moving through tentmakers and how quickly this movement is spreading.

There was an intensive training for trainers course at the end of the congress which had 53 pastors and leaders in attendance. From the interaction and questions it became evident that this model for evangelism and mission is here to stay.

Here are some reports on the impact tentmakers are having:

  • 2011-2012: 1,000+ tentmakers in 7 African countries
  • 2,105 tentmakers trained.
  • 239 House churches/prayer cells started.

Thanks to Tentmakers International and the All Africa TI leaders for putting on such a wonderful event.

Conclusion: The tentmaking movement in Africa, by Africans for Africa is about to explode!       “You ain’t seen nothing yet.”