Thank You to NewSpring- Simon from Kenya Church Plant
Introduction
It is with much gratitude that we celebrated our first anniversary as NewSpring Church Kenya on February 4, 2024. The journey has been full of joy and, indeed, very fulfilling. Despite significant setbacks and challenges, we truly thank God for his favor and success.
We extend sincere gratitude to the leadership of NewSpring Church in the USA for standing with us and faithfully continuing to give towards the realization of this dream of a truly biblical local church in our community. This brief report highlights the milestones during our first year of ministry.
Winning the war in the spiritual
God gave us a promise on the day NewSpring Church Kenya was launched. It is the same promise concerning his church in Matthew 16:18. We read, “On this rock, I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail.” This promise has kept us going. We have seen God follow his Word to perform it.
Every week for the last year, we have gathered to pray and petition God for favor and victory over spiritual forces. We have seen God open doors for the gospel to penetrate the community, giving us favor with community leaders who did not know us, yet opened doors for us to visit their homes and public institutions. The influence of NewSpring Church Kenya on children and adults alike is amazingly significant.
Biblical Leadership
From the onset, we made a commitment to prioritize the formation and equipping of what we believe to be a biblical leadership team. The formation of this team is an answer to the prayer in Matthew 9:38 that the Lord of the harvest would send out laborers into the harvest.
Our church governance follows the New Testament plurality of elders model. God has brought together a team of six men—humble, gifted, and eager to learn—who have diligently steered the NewSpring Church Kenya ministries. Our Leadership is Wilfred and Elizabeth Mwaura, David and Lucy Njugun, Henry Ngure, James and Margaret Gichuru, Willy Maina, and Simon and Phyllis Maina. The married men in our team have served alongside their spouses in a truly encouraging way.
Our facilities
Our location and facilities are evidence of answered prayer. With the financial support from NewSpring in the USA, our church has a physical address and facilities that have significantly impacted its growth. We are strategically positioned to accommodate the church’s growth in the coming years. Within the first year, the construction of the main sanctuary, the office block, and the bathroom block is almost complete. The landscaping of the compound is also a huge milestone that we truly celebrate.
Other milestones and needs
Baptism and child dedication: The leadership delayed the baptism of new believers with the intent to lay a good theological foundation in regard to these ordinances.
While our numerical growth is slower than hoped for, we are truly thankful for the numbers God has entrusted NewSpring with. We are avoiding the trap of thinking about growth only from a numerical perspective. We believe there are many more in our town who God desires to join the church.
Financial growth: We are truly thankful for the partnership with NewSpring Church in the USA, which has helped finance our programs so far. Hence, we have managed to keep up with all the obligations. These resources have helped fund the building projects and support the part-time ministry staff.
We realize, however, that only 15% of our bills are paid for by the income from the church. It is our hope that the second year of our ministry will see a growth in our financial base locally from the giving of the members.
Moving forward
Without neglecting all the ministry areas that have been established during the first year, our strategy in the second year of ministry involves three major objectives:
- Evangelism and Outreach
- Midweek evangelistic services every Wednesday from 12pm-2pm and 4pm-6pm in a location within the town center is our key strategy in outreach and evangelism. This outreach is strategically led by Henry Ngure and James Gichuru. Pray that God will give us favor with the professionals and business people within our town who are the main targets of this program.
- Discipleship
- This program aims to engage every believer in a structured discipleship process that will lead to personal growth and ministry equipping. All discipleship activities are under the leadership of Wilfred Mwaura and Willy Maina. We are truly thankful for the partnership of Worldwide Discipleship Association, who is providing materials and training in effective structured discipleship. Pray that God will put a deep hunger for learning the Word of God in the hearts of every individual who comes to NewSpring.
- Children’s Ministry
- We have an amazing opportunity and a dream to transform our community through the children God is bringing to us. Lifelong discipleship is our strategy. Our children’s ministry is being led by David Njuguna and Phyllis Maina. Providentially, God has sent Key of Hope ministry our way to support our children’s outreach in the coming year. Pray for God’s favor in this outreach. Our dream is to minister to at least 300 children every week by the end of the year.
Thank You NewSpring Church!