DR Congo, Africa Trip Report

Below are some highlights of the services that took place during the DR Congo, Africa Mission Trip.  We know you'll enjoy the reports from Rev. Melvin Sanchez & Sister Mable Saunders!

First Day of Conference

Greetings from D.R. Congo!

Today we started our first session with the pastors, leaders and regional pastors. It was a wonderful meeting. I (Rev. Sanchez) shared about God’s vision for humanity. All the pastors and leaders took notes and read every scripture that was brought. As I began to share about God’s desire and God’s heart’s cry for the nations, the Lord moved on our hearts and we all began to cry and weep in the beautiful presence of God.  It was not a cry of sorrow but a cry of amazement because the God of the universe loved us so much that He would reveal His presence in such a magnificent way!

The more we praised God, the more powerfully God was moving.  At one point, the power of God was so strong we could no longer stay in our seats; we had to come to the altar and glorify God!  Many pastors laid on the floor while others were on their knees with their hands raised to Heaven and tears flowing down their faces.  The altar call was powerful!  Two of the church members that joined the meeting this morning where baptized with the Holy Ghost and began to speak in tongues as the Spirit gave the utterance! God was not only talking to hearts but meeting needs!

As God continued to move across the altar, pastors began to cry out for people to be healed, churches to be built, and souls to be saved. One pastor began to cry out and say, “Lord we are your servants.  We were born very simple, poor men from the bush.  We have nothing except You give it to us.  We depend on You for food, for water, for life itself.  Everything we have is coming from You, and now, oh Lord, You have come in this place and You have sent Your word and You have filled this place with Your presence to help us and show us Your great love for us.  All we can say is ‘Thank You’.  All we can give is our life.  All we can offer is our praise!”  As this man of God continued to pray, the Lord just saturated that church and then all at once it was quiet; there was a peace and it came with a strong presence of God in that silence.  Nobody moved, no one said a word.  I don’t know how long we were there but it did not matter because God was with us!  He was ministering to His people!  He was comforting His people!

Towards the end of the altar call there was a group of these little birds that had come into the church through the open windows and these birds started to sing and sing!  It was like they came to glorify their Creator!  It was awesome!  Sister Saunders said it was like a choir of birds came in just to sing praises to the Lord!

During the afternoon session, Sister Saunders taught on Jonah!  Sister Saunders poured her heart out to those men of God.  Every eye in that church was glued on her as she began to share about God’s perfect will for our lives.  She went on to share about how God is a God of second chances, and even if you find yourself in the belly of a big fish, it does not have to be your end.  You can still call on the God of second chances and he will hear you and help you!  It was powerful!

Sister Saunders then gave us all homework that we have to bring back tomorrow!  And then she is going to bring part 2 of her message.


After Sister Saunders gave us our homework, we all stood up and prayed!  That same beautiful presence of God still saturated the atmosphere!  It was a beautiful day and we are so grateful for all God is doing here in DR Congo!

The Last Meeting

The last meeting with the regional pastors and leaders was such a tremendous blessing!  Pastors shared testimonies about how the messages have impacted and changed their lives.  Others went on to share how they were going to take the limits off of God and how they are going home to build and accomplish all that God has called them to do in their villages.  We had such a wonderful time just laughing and sharing about the goodness of God. 

When it was time for the message, we talked about how we need wisdom and the Spirit of God in everything we do.  We also talked about taking our place in the kingdom of God and preparing, imparting and empowering into the next generation so they can fulfill their divine destiny!  Wow!  It was really a life changing service!

Towards the end of the message God really moved on these pastors. The Holy Ghost began to empower these men and women of God!  Pastor Ngoy said, “we will never be the same again after today.”  Pastors and leaders were around the altar of God, crying out and speaking in tongues as the power of God moved on their lives.  Then an entire choir of young people came into the church while God was moving because it was their time for youth choir practice, but God had other plans in mind.  The Holy Ghost started moving on the young children and we had them join the altar call.  Now we had the older generation and the new generation at the altar, calling on God together.  It was fantastic!  The elders were praying for the youth and the youth were praying for the elders.  God set up His perfect altar call.  It was a beautiful ending to a beautiful week!

Sunday Morning in Lubumbashi!

Today was an exciting day!  When we arrived at the church, we were greeted by the sounds of the praise team singing worship music!  It was such a blessing!  Then all the different choirs got up in their beautiful robes and glorified God in song!  There was definitely a great excitement and expectation among the children of God today!  

It was also wonderful to see the regional pastors that we have been preaching to and teaching all week, singing and shouting and just so free and on fire for God!  You could really see how God had healed and refreshed them through His word.  There has been a great transformation in these pastors and you could not stop these men from praising God if you tried! 

We also had a military sergeant and captain, escorted by soldiers, join the service this morning because they heard I would be preaching and they really wanted to hear from God.  When it was time for the message, I preached a sermon called “Restoration of Power!”  I preached how God, in this last day, was pouring out His spirit on all flesh and putting power back in the hands of the church!  The message was just explosive and the Holy Ghost empowered His people during this service!  As God’s word went forth, the church erupted in thunderous shouting and praises unto God!  Mothers and fathers were crying!  Children were dancing!  Pastors were leaping!  God was moving!  We had 16 young people baptized in the Holy Ghost!  Souls were saved, people were healed and backsliders were set free and restored!

As the Lord continued to move, the regional pastors went all over the altar helping us pray for people.  It was amazing!  The Spirit of the Lord was moving everywhere!  While I was at the altar praying for people, I noticed the military men had lifted their hands and started praying.  I felt led of the Lord to go over and pray for them.  The altar was packed and I prayed for people all the way across the altar!  People were falling out under the power of God!  It was great!  When I finally was able to reach the military men, I laid my hands on them with Pastor Ngoy and Bishop Misika and they began to call on Jesus!  And when they lifted up their hands, the power of God came upon them and they started trembling in the Holy Ghost!  God was doing a work!  God kept moving on these men!  It was a powerful and beautiful service.  Pastor Ngoy stood at the altar with tears in his eyes and his hands raised to the heavens just thanking God for moving on His people!  All we can do is give glory to God for the great things He has done here in DR Congo.

Pygmies in Lumbumbashi

This past September, Pastor Ngoy, our overseer for the ministry in the Democratic Republic of Congo, shared with us his vision to better the lives of the Pygmy people. Within his vision, he shared his desire to begin bringing small groups of Pygmies to the main church branch in Lubumbashi for training both naturally and spiritually. WWLM has partnered with his vision and made an investment of finances to help him bring the first group in.  How exciting to receive this wonderful report!  We just had to share it with you!

 



Pygmy brothers

Here (left) you see our beloved pygmies, very happy to be with us in Lubumbashi.

In the photo below, they drink Coca Cola for the first time.   

Drinking a Coke

After coming to Lubumbashi for the first month, things got hard for them as they faced the changes from living in the bush where they spent nights around the fire to being in Lubumbashi in another life style. They all got sick but God healed them all.  They did not want to eat the “Nshima” which is a meal prepared with maize flour because they preferred to eat “Cassava", which is a sour tasting flour. But thank God, today they are eating food without sorrow.




Studying in school

Two of our pygmy brothers have been admitted as regular pupils at the Friend of Knowledge school.

Organizing clothes

They are habituating to get bathed everyday, using body lotion and washing clothes etc. Here (right) you see a brother singing and praying when organizing Pygmy clothes.





 The photo on the left shows the small house that we are making wider for them.

And we will continue to train them to work the land without difficulty. Here (right) you will see them planting Maize and they are happy to do the work.

In church services our brothers are praying, singing and praising God! When they pray, they thank God for bringing them to Lubumbashi and changing their former lives, where they were considered by society to be like dogs, to becoming like every man, equal and created in the image of God. The stational pastor thanks God for giving them the opportunity to come. He says, “God your will has been accomplished, you have opened us the heavens, you have broken the chains that were limiting us to get contact to the world."

Once again, we thank you for every effort and sacrifice you made in giving financial assistance and prayers.  ~Pastor Ngoy

The House of God in D.R. Congo

Praise the Lord!  Pastor Ngoy, our representative in D.R. Congo, sent us an update on the new church building project and we want to share it with you today.

“Greetings in the precious name of the Lord Jesus.  Before I say anything, please allow me to thank Almighty God for having blessed us through Pastor Kalinsky, the Full Gospel Interdenominational Church, World-Wide Lighthouse Missions, and everyone who has prayed and given to make this church building project a reality.  We purchased everything we needed to paint the new church building, but the walls inside and outside of the church have not yet been completely painted.  The reason we have not been able to paint them is because the winds are blowing very strong causing dirt to stick inside and outside of the church.  We have also rented machines to help cut large stones into smaller square bricks in order to plate the front of the church building, but while the workers are cutting the stones, it is creating a strong swirling dust cloud covering the whole church.  So, to avoid ruining the paint job, we decided it is best to hold on painting until the work for the stone cutting is finished.  The work is almost complete!  God bless you, Pastor Ngoy.”

I can’t even begin to tell you how excited we are that this new church building is almost completed!  This has been a dream in the heart of Pastor Ngoy for years and now it is almost finished!  Yes, they had to deal with the winds and the dust that came to hinder the work, but it did not discourage them.  They did not quit or run away, they just trusted in God and kept on working.  Today, I don’t know what dream God has placed in your heart.  I don’t even know what you are holding onto by faith for, but I want to encourage you that even when it seems like it is not going to come to pass, even when the dust clouds are so strong that you’re wondering if what you are believing God for will ever happen:  Hang on in there!  God is faithful to do what He promised!  The Bible says in Isaiah 55:11, “So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper [in the thing] whereto I sent it.”  Glory to God!  What He promised will come to pass!  It will be accomplished!  It makes me want to shout just thinking that God is going to do what He pleases!  His desire is going to come to pass for you, your family, your ministry, your health, and your finances, so have faith in God because your answer is on the way!

Rev. Melvin L. Sanchez

God is Moving in D.R. Congo!

Pastor Ngoy, our leader in D.R. Congo, wrote us this wonderful report that we just had to share with all of you!

Greetings in the precious name of Jesus.  I must start by telling you that God is moving in all ten regions of D.R. Congo. Bukama, Kabongo, Kalemaie, Kamina, Kolweski, Kinshasa, Likasi, Lubumbashi, Malemba Nkulu and Manono.

In the main branch God has brought back so many families that had left the church. We have tried to meet with them and speak with them but they were determined to leave and find other places to worship. Our hearts were sadden, because they never went to any other church and ended up falling away from God, yet we determined to keep our eyes on God and continue to do what He has called us to do and that is to preach the Gospel. Well the good news is that  15 families that left the church have now returned back to the Lord, they have been restored and they are active members along with their families working for God!

We have also experienced our leaders being used by the Holy Ghost with spiritual gifts. 3 of our leaders are being used in Word of Wisdom, Word of knowledge and the gift of prophesy! The messages from our Heavenly Father are flowing in the church and the church is strong and on fire for God!

The Kalamie region has opened up 3 new church branches this year. 66 new souls in one branch, 85 new souls in another branch and 120 new souls in the last branch!  God is moving! A new church branch has opened in the Kasumbalesa region with 115 new souls in that church. In Manono, the pigmy region, three new church brances have opened for the glory of God!

In one month alone it was reported that over 250 souls were saved. The Word of God has gone out and it has not retuned void. Muslims are getting saved, witch doctors are getting saved, drug dealers and gang members are getting saved. God is moving in our country and He is not done yet!

We have had many water baptisms where people get baptized in Jesus name and they are filled with the Holy Ghost!  This month many pigmies were saved and also baptized in Jesus name! Yes, Rev. Sanchez even the pigmies spoke in tongues as the Spirit gave the utterance! Today they no longer need black magic or witchcraft; they have a greater power working inside of them. In the three church branches in Manono, where the pigmies are, is where we have trained pigmy pastors and leaders that are anointed and armed with the Word of God! You know nothing is impossible with God, with man yes! But with God no! God can do all things!

Here in Lubumbashi many people are poor, they cannot afford to buy medicine or visit the doctor when they are sick. All they can do is rely on God. They come to church sick. Some come to church having to be carried in and they lay them on the altar. Where else are they going to go, who else can help them and take their pain away?! Is there a balm in Gilead? But God stretches out His mighty hand every service and heals people of all manner of diseases.   They are carried in but they walk out!

I cannot end without saying that we are so excited about the new church building that by the grace of God will be finished next year. We know that the Glory of God is going to come down like a cloud and fill our new church and many miraculous things are going to take place! We thank God for what He has done. 
May God Bless you,  Pastor Ngoy

As you face your today know that the same God that moved in D.R. Congo wants to move on your behalf!  I have learned that miracles don’t just happen where they are needed, they happen where they are expected! So why don’t you step out on your faith today and believe God for a miracle! How long have you had that pain in your body?  How long have you been dealing with that mountain that won’t seem to move out of your way!  How long have you been struggling just to make it through the day?  I have come today to remind you that Jesus has all power and nothing is impossible for Him.  So make today a day of change by believing Him for a miracle! The songwriter wrote “ right now if you believe, God will work a miracle for you!"   Did you catch that last part?  He said right now!  Right now!  If you believe it can happen right now!  You can lift your hands and claim your healing right now!  You can command that mountain to moved right now!  You don’t have to wait til tomorrow, you can have your miracle right now!  So don’t you wait til the battle is over!  Go ahead and shout now because we are believing that what you are asking God to do in your life, is already done!  And remember as He blesses you , keep reaching out and be a blessing to others that are in need!

God bless you
Rev. Melvin L. Sanchez