NAMIBIA PASTORS CONFERENCE: Olukonda - Ovamboland : 8th – 10th August 2012

The old Olukonda Mission church

This year (2012), Pastors  Laban Mwashekele,  Tuundjakuje (Spencer) Tjijenda  and I decided to do things a little different  with respect to the annual Pastor’s  conference,  which  is sponsored by Eastside Baptist Church,  and which normally takes place in Windhoek.

We decided to hold a conference for pastors in Ovamboland. For this purpose we chose a historically significant place- Olukonda, the mission station of the Finnish  Lutheran missionary, Dr. Martin Rautanen (1845-1926). He  truly was the apostle to the Ovambos.  

About  20 pastors  from various  denominations  gathered for this purpose.  The subject matter of this conference  was Namibian Church History: "How the gospel came to Namibia, and  the effects it had on  the country”.  

In previous years,   we have had always included a biographical paper  on  the work of  a   missionary to  our territory, which was  then, in  pre- colonial days, [1] known simply  as ‘South West Africa‘.  

The home of Martin Rautanen

Over the years then  I have produced biographical papers on the lives of three major missionaries.[2] 

The first  pioneer missionary  was Johan Heinrich Schmelen (1777-1848). He first brought the gospel to the Nama  people of   Southern Namibia.  He  too had always prayed for  the people  who  lived  north  of  this territory  i.e. the Herero people of central Namibia, and also  for  the  Ovambo people  of northern Namibia. His prayers were heard  by God, in  the sending of  Carl Hugo Hahn to the Herero people  and Martin Rautanen to the Ovambo people. 

Pastor Laban Mwashekele in Rautanen's study  and in his chair!

The second paper  therefore focussed  on  the life and work of  Carl Hugo Hahn  (1818-1895). He  may be considered to be  the  pioneer missionary  to the  Herero people.  He  saw to it that the Ovambo people were reached with the gospel, through the agency of the Finnish Missionary  society.  

The most prominent and  outstanding missionary to  the Ovambo people  was   Martin  Rautanen  (1845-1926). He laboured 50 years in Ovamboland, and lies buried along with his wife and most of his children in Olukonda. 
Martin Rautanen  was the subject  of my third paper, and it was very fitting  that  we should  have met on the  grounds of  his   mission station, which is now a museum. Our hearts were indeed moved by this man’s  testimony.   

Martin  & Frieda Rautanen with their daughter , Johanna

Johan Heinrich Schmelen’s prayer was answered in a most remarkable way.  Not only did God send Martin Rautanen to Ovamboland  to preach the gospel  and to see much fruit after many years of labour, but Martin Rautanen married one of his offspring  - a  granddaughter of Schmelen, Frieda  Kleinschmidt. Martin Rautanen met her  at  Hugo Hahn’s mission station in Otjimbingwe.   Here is a remarkable testimony in terms of how God moves in answer to prayer, and over a number of generations! And so the whole territory was just about covered with the gospel in the 1800’s! A remarkable feat, when one considers the size, the aridity, and the inhospitable nature of this desert country.

Pastor Tjijenda (Grace Reformed Baptist Church)  presented 2  excellent papers which illustrated how the gospel  preached by  men like Hugo Hahn  had influenced two  former Herero chief’s , Samuel Maherero  (1856-1923) and Hosea Kutako (1870-1970). We have challenged our Namibian pastors to  do  further research  on  how  the gospel  has  influenced  the various tribes of Namibia,  whilst also asking  why our nation is  currently  so lukewarm,  having evidently been previously favoured with such  rich deposits of gospel truth. 

Pastor's Conference

Pastor  Tjijenda   speaking on the lives of some  Herero chiefs

Books  are important  witnesses  to our church history!( Ignore the Coke advert!!!)

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[1] The scramble for Africa only began in the mid 1880’s

[2] These three biographies may be found on my blog “ A Reformed Baptist in Namibia”

NAMIBIA GRACE MINISTER’S CONFERENCE - 2011

Pastor Callie Rossouw leads a session

The Namibia Grace Minister’s Conference is currently in its 11th year of existence . It  was founded in 2001.
The purpose of the Namibia Grace Conference is to encourage pastors and elders in their work . This year about 25 people met together for this three day conference .
Although we prefer a Reformed Baptist ecclesiology , we are not sectarian and welcome other churches to participate in, and profit from this conference .
This year our theme was “ Preaching – our principal work “.
Pastor Ronald Kalifungwa was our principal speaker and Pastors Callie Rossouw (Walvis Bay Baptist Church) and Francois Koch (Swakopmund Baptist Church) each led one session .

Topics covered were :
• Spirit empowered Preaching
• Preaching Christ – the heart of the Gospel Ministry
• Preaching Christ from the Old Testament
• The Elements of Expository Preaching
• Pastoral Preaching – preaching that establishes the church
• Evangelistic Preaching – the importance of preaching for a verdict

Happy fellowship between sessions

Evening sessions which were open to the public,  dealt with the ministry of  the runaway preacher - prophet Jonah , which was handled by Ronald Kalifungwa , whilst  Joachim Rieck on another evening presented a biographical paper on a colourful Namibian personality “Hendrik Witbooi (1830 – 1905) – with a special emphasis on his spiritual thinking” . This paper will be published on this blog in due course.

The conference was well received , and we believe that our goal was reached . Our men were sent home satisfied and encouraged . Once again we thank God for the ladies of Eastside Baptist Church who so graciously and willingly served us in providing us with hospitality and good food.

Some of  the  Ladies of Eastside Baptist Church @ work

It was resolved at this conference that next year (i.e. 2012 D.V.) we should endeavour to bring our wives with us. This might mean that we would focus on the life of the pastoral family in that conference. Thank you for praying with us. We believe that our prayers  for this  conference  were answered.

A BRIEF REPORT ON THE NAMIBIA GRACE MINISTER'S CONFERENCE

NAMIBIA GRACE MINISTER'S CONFERENCE - 2010

THEME  : Biblical Discipleship

DATES :   23rd - 25th   March 2010

SPEAKERS :  Phil Hunt - Central Africa Baptist College ( Kitwe /Zambia )

                            Doug  van  Meter  - Brackenhurst Baptist Church ( Alberton / S.A )

CONFERENCE VENUE : Eastside Baptist Church - Windhoek .  This church has been  sponsoring and hosting this annual conference for mainly Reformed Baptist Pastors  since 2001.

The  annual  NAMIBIA GRACE MINISTER'S CONFERENCE  is a small  conference  of   mainly  Reformed Baptist  pastors , elders   and students , although we do encourage other likeminded  men  from other denominations to attend . The purpose of this conference has been  explained in my previous blog .

This year's theme was focussed  on  "Biblical discipleship ".  Our  speakers   Doug van Meter  and  Phil Hunt  are men who are  verry  committed  to the practise of this imperative given to us by our Lord Jesus Christ in the  Great Commission. They expounded  the Scriptures with plenty of  practical application  .

Doug van Meter set the tone on Tuesday evening  when he  spoke about  " The  Great Commission and the Imperative of Discipleship "  in the context of an open session ,  which  was attended  by  a number of church members .

The  day sessions for the  conference attendees   addressed  the issues of "discipling leaders ;  discipling the home ; discipling men  and discipling new converts ". 

On Wednesday evening  Phil Hunt  spoke at an 'open session' on the  subject :  "Challenging the current world views that challenge the call to discipleship " .

On Wednesday afternoon we  had a public discussion  on the subject  " Discipling  a nation through public forums : Radio , Schools , Prisons , Universities " . Currently , these institutions present open  doors for ministry in  Namibia , and we  encouraged one another to make full use of these present  opportunities , knowing full well that such opportunities may not be there  for ever in a day .

We   believe that our men went away challenged and encouraged .  May the impact of  this conference  be seen in the years to come .

Joachim Rieck

 Pastor Spencer Tjijenda ( Westside Baptist Church - with wife  and  daughter )

                                                                                   Conference venue : Eastside Baptist Church

Namibia Grace Conference  : Evening Session

NAMIBIA GRACE MINISTER'S CONFERENCES

The annual Namibia Grace Minister's Conference will be held once again , starting on Tuesday evening  23rd March  2010  and ending  on Thursday 25th March with lunch. The Conference is being sponsored and hosted by the  EASTSIDE BAPTIST CHURCH in Windhoek .
The conference   is geared towards pastors/ elders  & theological students , but those that are interested  in the Christian ministry  are more than welcome to join.
This  year's  conference will be focused on the theme : “Biblical Discipleship “ and the subjects  will be handled  by Phil Hunt - principal of the Central Africa Baptist College on the Copper belt in Zambia,  and Pastor Doug van Meter of the Brackenhurst Baptist Church in Alberton , South Africa . Both men have a proven track record and commitment to the biblical discipline of discipleship . So , expect to hear sound teaching rooted in practical experience !
If you read this and are interested ,  contact Joachim Rieck  at  " jrieck@iafrica.com.na "  

Doug van Meter











Phil Hunt




                                                                           

Explaining the purpose and Vision of the Namibia Grace Minister’s Conference

 The History of the Conference

The first Namibia Grace Ministers Conference was held in 2001 when the Eastside Baptist Church invited Dr Wayne Mack , a noted Biblical Counselor from the USA to address pastors and the public on matters of biblical counseling . Since then the conference has met every year, except in 2008 .

The Purpose of the Conference
To provide a platform for teaching and fellowship appropriate to the needs of pastor/elders / student interns , encouraging these men to remain faithful to their principal calling i.e. pastoring their churches through faithful preaching and integrity of life . It is hoped that this conference will continue to grow in scope and influence , until the whole Namibian nation becomes obedient to Christ .

The Ethos of the Conference
The conference is rooted in historical and Reformed Christianity . The conference aims to be rooted in the authority of the Word ( SOLA SCRIPTURA) , Christ centeredness ( SOLUS CHRISTUS), doing what we do for the glory of God alone ( SOLI DEO GLORIA) . The primary tools for accomplishing this is to teach the doctrines of Grace ( SOLA GRATIA) and to commend the life of Faith ( SOLA FIDE) as the operative principle for Christian happiness .

The Conference is sponsored by a Reformed Baptist Church , and therefore prefers a Baptist Ecclesiology , without allowing this fact to hinder our fellowship with other churches with whom we share substantial agreement in doctrine .

We believe that the context for working out our mission is from the biblical platform created by God – the local church !

The goal of the Conference
• Revived pastors are important catalysts to stir up evangelical concern for the lost through fervent prayer and gospel preaching so that the Kingdom of God will advance .
• Revived pastors will show renewed love and compassion for their churches and thus provide for a happy church .