The Plan is Coming Together

Since I’m sharing this blog via my Facebook account for the first time, I’m going to give a quick rundown on the past 3 years of my life (all of this is detailed in previous blog entries).  Here’s the Readers Digest version:

God called me to go on a mission trip to Ethiopia in December of 2011.  During that trip I met a then 10 year old boy that is now my son and our fourth child Sofani.  I also met a dentist, Dr. John Balikowski that has dedicated his life to mission work.  Dr. John lives in Sofani’s hometown of Mekelle, Ethiopia, and is working to get the news of Jesus Christ to the people of this country.  In this area, religion is dominated by the Ethiopian Orthodox church (96%).  There is also a growing Muslim movement (4%) and a small contingent of an evangelical Christians (<1%).   Mekelle is a rapidly growing city with a population of 700,000.  Ethiopia is one of the only remaining non-Muslim countries in northern Africa; however, this continues to shift more towards Islam.  Dr. John has the cooperation and support of local evangelical leaders that desperately want a place to teach and train new pastors – something nonexistent in that part of the country today.

Ethiopian Orthodox - Muslim - Protestant (Geography of Religion in Ethiopia)

God has called me to help Dr. John spread the word, raise funds and amplify the news of Jesus Christ through a harvest of Pastors and future leaders in northern Ethiopia.  We are channeling funds through New Life Christian Fellowship in Michigan that is led by one of Dr. John’s friends from the mission field, Pastor Bob Roberts.  This has all come together over the past month and I’m fired up to be a part of this.

Here are some updates since the last blog entry.

Dr. John has begun renting a temporary site for the Bible Training Center where the evangelical leaders can begin their work.  We have 90 students that are anxious to begin their studies.  We do, however, need tables (24) and chairs (90).  Considering that Home Depot and Lowe’s don’t have distribution in this part of the world, we’re looking at about $4,200 ($20 per chair and $100 per table).   This is the most immediate financial need that we have.

After speaking about this calling at church 2 weeks ago I had a friend, Dwayne Lott, offer to help me build a website.  This is an area of the project that I needed some help and Dwayne stepped up without hesitation.  I purchased a domain name and we’re currently constructing a site that I’ll reveal in the next entry.  We’re developing content, playing around with the layout, adding graphics, plug-ins, etc. to allow the site to tell the story and call people to act.  We should have this ready to launch very soon. 

The next phase of fundraising – money for a permanent site and facility – will require presentations and speaking engagements.  I’m excited about getting people stirred up to realize that we can do something to introduce Christianity in a rapidly growing part of the world yet to know the truth of the son of God, Jesus Christ.   I’ve seen the need first hand; however, now it’s just a matter of getting the message into a power point and a website.

People often ask me, “What can I do to help?” I try to always give them something to do.  If you’re wondering the same thing here are a few options:

1)      Help. Pray for this project.

2)      Research. Read about the religious history of Ethiopia, the Muslim plan to take Africa – anything that you find of interest on topics such as this and send it my way.

3)      Share.  I could use the help of my friends to introduce me to new contacts that would provide me opportunities to share this project at churches, conferences, etc.  Social media makes this so easy to do.

4)      Follow.  Sign up to follow my blog and stay tuned for the new website!

5)      Donate.  I’m not asking any of you to scratch out huge checks. At this point we need money for tables, chairs and rent.  (We have $1400 raised through 3/8/14)

New Life Christian Fellowship

MEMO: Ethiopia Bible School

Mailing Address:
New Life Christian Fellowship
2237 E Reid Rd
Grand Blanc, MI 49439

or go to:

New Life Christian Christian Fellowship and click the "Donate" tab at the bottom right of the page.  When we get to the "Review Your Donation" page, click on "List Designations" and type in "Ethiopia Bible School.”

Working together for the harvest in Ethiopia,

JB

The Time is Now

In my last blog entry I referred to an amazing man that I met when I was in Ethiopia in December of 2011.  In this entry I want to give you some more background on him as well as some more information on the plan to take the first step in spreading the good news of Jesus Christ to Northern Ethiopia by raising funds for the temporary site for the Bible Training Center in Mekelle.

With any fundraising venture, some people may be a bit skeptical about where their donations are going.  I think it’s important for you to know more about how this process will work and who will be on the receiving end of the donations in Mekelle.  I heard from two men last week after I posted my last entry.  Both have served in the mission field with Dr. John and both independently referred to him as “the real deal.” 



"The Real Deal" Dr. John Balikowski

I’ll start off by telling you about this man that has dedicated his life to evangelism.  Dr. John has been in Ethiopia serving the Lord for 9 years.  The first 6 years he spent in Addis Ababa and moved to Mekelle 3 years ago.  Prior to his time in Ethiopia, he spent time ministering in 20 different countries.  The majority of that time – 17 years – was spent as a missionary in the Philippines.  In the Philippines, he started a medical evangelism ministry which is still functioning under the nationals.  He was also a Pastor.  He was involved in Bible school teaching and served as the coordinator for 99 fellow missionaries.  In 2013 Dr. John received the Humanitarian Award from his dental school alumni, State University of New York at Buffalo, School of Dental Medicine.

Dr. John first visited Mekelle 6 years ago in order to get permission from the Tigray Health Bureau for a visiting medical, dental and optical team from the United States.  At that time he was informed that there were no licensed dentists in the whole State of Tigray.  The population of Mekelle, Tigray’s capital city, was 150,000 at the time.   He started working with the Tigray Health Bureau and eventually started a dental school in Mekelle.  He was asked if he could train some Tigrinya nurses to do some dentistry. The government officials who recognized the need for dental services in Tigray were very appreciative of what he was doing and his efforts gained favor with the local government.  His dental work translated into a positive attitude toward the Evangelical community in Mekelle.  

When he arrived in Mekelle there were eight Evangelical churches with about 1,000 members.  Today there are 12 Evangelical Churches and about 3,000 members.  The Evangelical Christian population in Tigray is still only 0.1% of the total population.  When he moved to Mekelle three years ago the population had grown to 300,000, largely due to the Universities and Colleges, and the construction industry.  Today the estimated population is 700,000 people. 

The Ethiopian Orthodox Church is the predominate church in northern Ethiopia (96% of the population).  However, now the Muslim population is growing rapidly (an estimated 4% of the population).  Five years ago there was one Mosque in Mekelle.  Today there are three.  In each of the larger towns, in Ethiopia, where  Dr. John has initiated dental campaigns; there is a new Mosque under construction.  Most of the towns, even towns with 50,000 to 100,000 people have NO Evangelical church.  There is a desperate need to train church planters and strengthen new Christians, thus the need for a Bible Training Center in Mekelle.  For that matter, there are no Evangelical Bible schools in the northern half of Ethiopia.   In the state of Tigray alone, there are over 5 Million people with no schools to teach and train leaders about Jesus Christ.

Pastor Bob Roberts and his wife Beverly

Dr. John recently introduced me to one of his friends, Pastor Bob Roberts.  Pastor Bob and Dr. John served in the Philippines together.  Pastor Bob is now the Senior Pastor at New Life Christian Fellowship in Grand Blanc, Michigan.  Bob has offered his church as the vehicle to get funds from the US to Dr. John in Mekelle.  Bob was very clear that none of the money donated to the Ethiopian Bible College will go to administrative fees.  It’s all going straight to Dr. John to get this important work underway in Ethiopia.

As Christians in the US, we have many denominations of which to choose to worship.  Our beliefs vary from one to the next and it’s very important for everyone reading to understand what will be taught at the Bible College.  The Bible Training Center will be open to all Evangelical Christians regardless of church affiliation.  The doctrine is as follows: Jesus Christ Crucified, Risen, Ascended, and Coming Again.  The Bible College will train on the belief in the Ordinances of Water Baptism and Holy Communion as well as anointing the sick with oil and praying for Divine Healing.  The main curriculum that will be used in the Bible school is from ISOM (International School of Ministry).  The materials will be in English and Amharic (Ethiopia’s National Language).  We will also welcome pastors and Bible school teachers to come and teach block courses.

On Wednesday of last week, my wife’s friend shared with me the cover of the latest edition of World Magazine.  The cover of the issue is entitled “The Battle for Africa” and it details the struggles in Uganda with the insurgence of Islam and illustrates the struggle on this continent between Muslims and Christians.  This is one of those articles that most people read and think “that’s on the other side of the world” or “what can I do about it?”  My friends, we can do something about it.  We can’t solve the entire crisis with one Bible School but we can do something for the Kingdom of God to begin to reverse this trend one soul at a time.  You have that opportunity in front of you right now.  I'm asking you to do something.

Read more about this at: World Magazine Article

On Monday of this week, Dr. John met with the Tigray Evangelical Association of Churches.  The leadership was very helpful and cooperative.  They currently have an option to purchase a piece of property that could easily become a multi-use complex.  The site is on the main highway in Mekelle near the University.  What a perfect spot!  Dr. John visited the location on Tuesday with the leadership and prayed for the Lord to help them with the site.  We will need $100,000 initially to buy the land which already has a foundation for a building.  

On Tuesday, Dr. John visited sites for a temporary school and is working to find someplace suitable with the $5000 that we're going to raise to get things started.  

The Evangelical Association is conducting a survey regarding the anticipated number of students for the program.  More on this in future blog updates.

The last couple of weeks have been some of the most exciting weeks in my life.  God has clearly spoken to me and given me sign after sign that I am supposed to be involved in getting this project underway.  

God has a plan for all of Ethiopia to be reached with the Gospel and the time is now.  We need to train workers for the Vineyard.  The field is white unto harvest.  The Harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few.  Our time is now.

I’m going to ask for four things.

1) Donate.  Get out your checkbook or  go to the New Life Christian Fellowship website and give something.  We need $5000 to secure the temporary site in Mekelle for the Bible Training Center and get things underway.  We need $100,000 to purchase the land for the site.  Let's start with these two short-term goals in mind.  You can make checks payable to:

New Life Christian Fellowship
MEMO: Ethiopia Bible School
Mailing Address:
New Life Christian Fellowship
2237 E Reid Rd
Grand Blanc, MI 49439

or go to:

New Life Christian Christian Fellowship and click the "Donate" tab at the bottom right of the page.  When we get to the "Review Your Donation" page, click on "List Designations" and type in "Ethiopia Bible School."

2) Help.  Pray about this.  I need people to help me develop the infrastructure for a campaign to raise $500,000 for a permanent site for the Bible College.  I need people to help me with research, coordinating Pastors from the US to visit and train, web developers, prayer warriors, administrative assistants, teaching materials, marketing, etc.  Please consider this and let me know as I’m anxious to coordinate these efforts and get this project underway.  We will get organized and begin our work in front of us.  Who knows… maybe one college is just the beginning.

3) Share.  My last blog entry had 600 views in 6 hours.  Clearly people are interested in helping.  Share this on social media.  Send it to people that you know that would be willing to help be a part of this.

4) Follow.  Follow the blog by signing up for email updates with new posts.  I’m so excited to be able to report back on all of the progress in the days to come. I plan on updating everyone on the progress of donations as well as how the organizational plans come together.

Working together for the harvest of Ethiopia,

JB

Letter from one of Dr. John's Students