ADVENTURE
Jerry and Maxine Share Eritrean Saga
First Classroom
40-foot shipping container
Maxine teaching in
container classroom
Launching A Ministry
An invitation had been given by the Full Gospel Church of Eritrea (FGCE); Maxine and I arrived in Asmara; the need of the Beja people was heavy upon our hearts; the time had come to launch our ministry in Eritrea.
The first step was to meet with the FGCE Executive Committee. I expressed our appreciation for their invitation and gratitude to God for making it possible for us to respond. I asked the committee, “How can we best serve you?”
The chairman was ready with an answer to my inquiry. “We need training. Training that goes beyond a formal Bible school and teaches us how to share the gospel with other cultures, especially the groups in the lowlands of Eritrea.” This was their only request.
I explained our keen interest in addressing the need among the Beja but that we would pray about assisting them in developing a training center. Maxine and I knew that a training program based in Asmara with its varied responsibilities would prevent us from direct and regular contact with the Beja in the southwestern part of the country.
It was the need of the Beja that brought us to Eritrea. Could we forsake that sense of divine leadership? After giving thought and prayer to the matter, we realized that by establishing a quality cross cultural training program there would be workers for the six unreached people groups, including the Beja.
We returned to the committee and said “yes” to their request. Two months later, the School of Leadership Training was birthed. A shipping container in the church yard served as a classroom with 41 students enrolled.
A new ministry was launched. It was much different than we anticipated, yet far more extensive than anything we had imagined. Our lives, His people, His design – all meshed into a beautiful expression of His sovereign purpose!