Tag Archives: equipping indigenous pastors

Tanzania 2023 – Waters of the Lord

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It has come to be that Capturing Courage will be in Tanzania within a month’s time. We have been looking ahead to this for some years time and now glad to be on the cusp of another time in Africa.

“Through the heartfelt mercies of our God, God’s Sunrise will break in upon us, 

Shining on those in the darkness, those sitting in the shadow of death, 

Then showing us the way, one foot at a time, down the path of peace.”

Luke 1:79 The Message

Peace is powerful. Chaos cannot remain where there is peace. We do not know exactly what God wants to do in Tanzania. So, we have been putting down our own thinking, setting aside any agenda we may have, and endeavouring to bring our anticipation and glad-hearted agreement unto the Lord for this time.

Therefore we pray peace. And we come in peace. We allow the Lord to make us people of peace. Peace makes way for refreshment. And specifically, God has been speaking to us about the waters of the Lord upon the hills of Tanzania. Yes Lord, may it be so.

Award a Pastor their Degree

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We are delighted to announce that there are twenty-one pastors who have graduated College of Capturing Courage to the degree level; a Bachelor of Professional Studies in applied Christian Ministry. 

This has been a two and one-half year process for them, faithfully attended to, taught, facilitated, and reported, by Bishop E. in Tanzania. 

While all reporting and Certificates, with a Diploma, are processed from Head-Office Capturing Courage, this Bachelor Degree is externally awarded from Global University of Lifelong Learning. 

While those who financially partner with us on a regular basis cover our in-house work of awarding certificates and diplomas, the degree from GULL requires an extra sponsorship, enabling these to happen. 

The individual cost of each degree, the processing, printing, and shipping from GULL direct to our students, is 20£. 

This is about $34 CAD. Making room for the amount processed by GCF, our charitable receipting and partnering organization, through which all donations come, we suggest: 

$38 CAD Donor Contribution

We are looking for twenty-one individuals to sponsor one of these pastors 

to receive their well-earned bachelor degree as awarded by GULL. 

Sponsor a Pastor’s Degree Today – A Great Christmas Gift

Upwards of 80% of Pastors in rural areas have had no to little training. Often, they cannot access the good Bible Schools that are in primary cities in their countries. Due to limited means, the need to remain with families, the realities of subsistence farming and lack of funds, pastors have not had the education they deserve and need. 

College of Capturing Courage is a gift indeed to these folks. We offer the course free of charge. It is taught by pastors to pastors, spreading with a multiplied impact person to person, effecting personal and church renewal, extending even to the level of communities and regions. 

MODULE THREE TESTIMONY. Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior from Tanzania.
This module was very interesting and challenging at the same time, but the Holy Spirit help me to understand it .
I got challenged when studying chapter 89, The Robe, the Ring and the Sandals. At first it was very hard for me to understand the meanings  of these things and their importance. Until I had to kneel down and ask the Holy Spirit to help me understand these things.

After that the Holy Spirit helped me, I came to learn that, Robe was an act of love and of compassion. God restores us. I also learnt that, the Ring which was given to the son by the father meant that, the son was restored back to the family and all the authority that this meant. The son restored to having a “say” in things. This means that we have been covered over with the robe of God, restored back as sons and daughters with all that, this means in this world and beyond. We now speak for the Father, for we know him intimately. This was very challenging to me and the class.

This module three had great impacts in my life and the ministry. After finishing studying the chapters 66-89, I have witnessed a lot of things changing in my life and the ministry. People are testfying what they see in my life and the ministry, as a result, more people are coming to Jesus Christ. Because they can see that, all God’s services are given freely to them, unlike what they see from other ministries, prophets and pastors. This has brought a great change, glory to God. Thanks for your great teachings and God bless you. Bishop in Tanzania. 

To Sponsor a Pastor in receiving his or her Degree in Applied Christian ministry, use the form below and please insert SPONSORSHIP in the comment box. 

Thank you for helping to make this momentous achievement for these individuals both awarded and recognized.

Note that the picture at the top of this post is from a Ugandan pastor and his network, from which there are currently six College of Capturing Courage classes. Keep these ones in your prayers as they also advance through the course.

Poverty Strongholds #10 – The Demonic Factor

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Poverty Strongholds – Post Ten – The Demonic Factor

  1. Demons
  2. Poor Stewardship – link to past article
  3. Lack of Knowledge (common sense)
  4. Mind Sets (faulty thinking)
  5. Lack of Holiness
  6. Agreements with the Enemy
  7. Bad Theology
  8. Blaming & Excuses
  9. Refusing to be a Blessing
  10. Pain Upon Pain

I’ve introduced all the other strongholds, so today, let’s take a look at the 1st Poverty Stronghold – Demons

On our original pie chart and in our list of poverty strongholds we had demons as first on the list. This was because the thinking that led to this entire series began with a theology relayed to us of how demons were the entire problem for all poverty and for everything that goes wrong.

In a certain area in Uganda we were told that all of the pervasive problems of that region were due to this very large tree that had had a demon in it, and that when the tree was cut down and distributed throughout the entire area the demonic stronghold became established in the entire area. This was the understanding, the belief, the theology. This is what we were told was the entire problem.


demonic conversation extension 2

But of course, as a professional people developer and as a prayer minister, I know that if we give all blame (ie:credit) to the demonic we have just given fully 100% of our power away, we’ve become victims and have entered ourselves into apathy and despair. So I roughly jotted out my thinking about this issue with the result being this series of posts. Today, in this series, I finally come to address the demonic factor. Let’s talk about that.

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Capturing God’s Heart – The Wide Road & The Narrow Road – Volume 44

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“You can enter God’s kingdom only through the narrow gate. The [road that leads to destruction]ESV* is broad, and it’s gate is wide for the many who choose that way. But the gateway to life is very narrow and the road is difficult, and only a few ever find it.” Matthew 7:13-14 NLT    *[highway to hell] NLT

I have become convinced that the wide and the narrow roads that Jesus talks about are not in regards to sin per se, but about our response to sin. The Wide Road experiences sin in shame and condemnation and out of that experience works to rid itself of sin.

The Wide Road is where we put in good works and our own efforts to try and make ourselves right with God. The Wide Road is where we participate in religion that appeases the Gods, that focusses on self, that works to come clean.

“If we are afraid, it is for fear of punishment, and this shows that we have not fully experienced his perfect love.” 1 John 4:18b

The Narrow Road, on the other hand, does not experience sin as condemnation and shame but as a matter-of-fact part of our humanity and our fallenness. The Narrow Road despises the shame and condemnation and instead remains turned toward Jesus Christ the Saviour of our lives.

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Poverty Strongholds #8 – Bad Theology

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Poverty Strongholds – Post Eight – Bad Theology

  1. Demons
  2. Poor Stewardship – link to past article
  3. Lack of Knowledge (common sense)
  4. Mind Sets (faulty thinking)
  5. Lack of Holiness
  6. Agreements with the Enemy
  7. Bad Theology
  8. Blaming & Excuses
  9. Refusing to be a Blessing
  10. Pain Upon Pain

Today, let’s take a look at the 7th Poverty Stronghold – Bad Theology 

Bad theology leads to many bad things. It is the root of all sorts of distortions and manipulations perpetrated by supposedly godly men and women. Here are just a few of the craziest things I have heard while overseas:

“The wealthier you are the holier you are.”  (this is a literal quote from a Kampala city pastor)

“The woman with the seven husbands, well, she killed them all and what we take from this story is that the seed must be planted in the right place, and this is the right place for your seed, so tithe to this church and you will be blessed.”

“We must all change our names because Abram’s name was changed”

“Do not sleep at the wrong times because this was the cause of the Hebrews being in slavery for 400 years in Egypt.”

Even as I write this I hardly have words. I am astounded time and again at the kinds of bad theology that I come across in my work. But, I am also, often enough to note, just as astounded by the bad theology found at home. For instance:

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Poverty Strongholds – Part One

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We were more than halfway through our ministry trip in Uganda. We had been alongside many, many pastors, had stayed in many homes, and had been to many districts and villages and churches.

So far, we had been experiencing a bounty of thought and action, of hospitality and sufficiency. Those we were alongside knew that God was caring for them, knew that life was good albeit hard, and out of that delighted in their care of us.

But then we ran across some thinking and perspectives that glared out at us as a poverty mindset extraordinaire all rolled into one. They claimed poverty as their biggest challenge and relayed to us stories of how the enemy was confounding everyone, literally everyone, in that surrounding area.

Now, we had heard bits and pieces of this same thinking in the months prior, but somehow it all came together in stark reality — all poverty was blamed on the devil; it was ALL satan’s fault.

Now, while we know that satan’s plan is one of destruction we could not abide by the belief that everything bad and wrong was of the enemy without any responsibility from the humans involved. If this were the case, then we would all be victims forever more, the end.

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Capturing God’s Heart – Revival – Volume 43

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I grew up in the church and often heard about revivals that happened over the years in various places. Yet I never had a working definition for revival. Earlier this year I began asking the Lord to give me a better picture of revival, what it is, how it comes to us, and the impact it leaves in our lives.

To begin, let’s define revival. If I had to give a definition to revival it would be when the Kingdom of God breaks in upon our realities; it is when we are touched by the living God and our lives no longer remain the same.

In my study of revival I found out is that Revival requires three necessary ingredients.

  • A Hunger for More of God
  • Repentance & Humility
  • Religious Stronghold Broken

Lets take some time to look at these three key ingredients for revival.

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Three of Us to Uganda

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We are two and one-half weeks away from journeying to Uganda. Myself, Crystal, and Nelson will be arriving in Uganda on September 18th, and will be in the country until we begin our flights home on December 16th. 

When I go to a country and to those I will be with, I am hosted, fed and given a place to sleep, by those I’m ministering alongside, while the money that I bring into a country is for the internal travel of our on-the-ground-team (which includes the pastor/s we are travelling with once there).  

Now, with three of us going, Nelson having just decided 9 days ago, I’ve been communicating that we are now three coming and asking if this is okay on their end in terms of the hosting of us. 

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Capturing God’s Heart – Disciples – Volume 40

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“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:19-20

The church is where disciples are being made.

Where disciples are being made there is the church.

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The Real Work Belongs to the Lord

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The international launch of CCIM was in the fall of 2011. It was at that time that I took my first ministry trip to Africa. I had been invited, persistently invited, by a gentleman in Uganda and after prayer and discernment realized that it was time to begin what the Lord had been telling me about for some time.

In the year 2000 the Holy Spirit had begun showing me these rolling hills as far as I could see, covered by trees more than I could count. And with this vision came his words, “Each tree represents a life that your words will touch.” Initially I thought I was imagining all of this. Yet as time went by and as the Lord continued to impress this vision upon my spirit and mind I began to take this as God telling me something.

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Capturing God’s Heart – Love – Volume 36

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I write these God’s Hearts as the Holy Spirit leads me. I don’t have an agenda of topics chosen months in advance, I simply write in accord with the Lord’s leading. And these last few weeks I’ve been brought back to the central truth of God’s love for us and am compelled to pass that on.

It feels to me that the Lord wants to remind all of us that while we are working and serving alongside the Lord in His kingdom that we must not forget how much we are loved.

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