TLRwanda had the privilege of hosting the Back to the Bible Conference for the second time this year. The training was in two parts. On November 4, Dr. Renner, the new chairman of the International Board, trained the members of the TLRwanda Board. The following week, from the 6th to the 10th, Dr. Renner, along with Faustin Ntamushabora, trained 20 pastors from various denominations in Musanze. Both training were an exposition of the letter to the Philippians.

Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, To all God’s holy people in Christ Jesus at Philippi, together with the overseers and deacons[a]: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Thanksgiving and Prayer  

I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

Using Philippians 1:1-6, Dr. Renner taught the principles of a good and productive leader. These principles include showing love to those under your leadership, even when it’s challenging, prioritizing humility over seeking titles, and having confidence the one who started the good work among your people will bring it to completion. The training was transformative and had positive outcomes. Some of them are:

  1. Self-reflection and repentance: Upon discovering that a genuine spiritual leader loves, serves, and prays for his people as God’s saints, the pastors had an introspection and acknowledged that they need to improve in this aspect. One participant confessed to his fellow pastors about using hurtful language towards his family and congregation and expressed a desire to change. Another pastor disclosed that he was harboring resentment towards certain church members who hated and opposed him. He shared that during the conference week, he reached out to these individuals and affirmed the fact that they areSaints in Christ and God loves them.
  2. Encouraging and praying for one another: It appears that many of those who attended the training are facing tough challenges in ministry, especially opposition from certain church members. The conference provided a safe space for them to share, pray for one another, and heal. They were able to pour out their hearts to their fellow ministers in a way they couldn’t to their church members. Hopefully, there will be more occasions like this that enable pastors to be a support system to each other.
  3. Resolutions to build unity among believers: the participants learned that when churches made up of people with different backgrounds, like the church inPhilippi, work together in love and unity, their oneness is a testimony to Jesus’ power to reconcile. This sparked a discussion, facilitated by Dr. Ntamushobora, on the actions pastors can take to promote unity within their congregations and among different denominations. Several suggestions were put forth, including teaching accurate and Christ doctrine, addressing conflicts before they escalate into divisions, participating in interdenominational initiatives, and more.

The pastors had the opportunity to meet various TLAfrica partners, including Brian and Sheila Keel, the founders of the Leadership Development Partnership (PLI) ministry. Brian and Sheila have assisted numerous Theological schools in Africa in establishing their libraries. Currently, they are collaborating with THUI to establish a much-needed library for the university. The pastors also had the chance to meet Andrew Mwumvaneza and John Mutende, who are leaders of the organization called All the Bible in Community (ABC), which seeks to foster Bible literacy in the church beginning with church leaders. On Wednesday, the 8th, Andrew Mwumvaneza led a devotion based on Philippians 1:21-30. He emphasized the importance of remaining steadfast and continuing to preach Christ despite facing obstacles and opposition in the service of God.

In his closing remarks, TLAfrica’s CEO encouraged the attendees to start preaching the letter to the Philippians following the outline they learned during the training. Additionally, the CEO assured them that the Rwanda office would maintain a close relationship with their churches to support the implementation of these teachings.

Compiled by Solange Balikunde