Tuesday, May 23, 2023

April/May Updates

Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock - Acts 20:28

We have some remarkable updates to share this month. The biggest highlights were the events that took place in Zambia in early May.

MOPS Africa held its first ever continent-wide leadership summit, welcoming 19 of the top leaders of 10 nations together. We had an incredibly successful three-day event, forming new relationships, being encouraged and trained as leaders, and setting goals for the upcoming years ahead. Sherri Crandall, Vice President of Global Experience and Leadership Studies, Nichole Tautz, Vice Chair for the Board of Directors, and Destiny Leahy, the Regional Manager for MOPS Africa hosted this event in Lusaka. They heard inspiring stories from around Africa of the many lives being changed through MOPS as these leaders work tirelessly to grow the ministry within their regions. 


The theme of the Summit was from Acts 20:28Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood. We spent the first day talking about how to pay attention to our own walk, and the second day focused on how to be good shepherds of all that we have been appointed.
 

Those present included country coordinators, cohort leaders, and MOPS pastoral ambassadors who represented over 8,000 women and their families directly connected to a MOPS group within their regions. Though almost all of those leaders had been trained and visited in-person in their local countries over the last five years, this was the first opportunity to bring everyone together in one location to dream big together. They each brought a contagious passion for reaching moms across the continent, and we are already seeing the fruit of our time together as they have reached back home, on fire for their work ahead. One of the biggest initiatives the leaders left with was the goal of reaching unreached areas of their countries and even new countries on the continent to continue to multiply the ministry. MOPS Africa is currently our largest growth region in the world, expanding 10-fold in the last six years.


During this visit, we also had the opportunity to meet with a government representative of Zambia to share the ministry vision, train the local MOPS Zambia leadership team, attend a local MOPS group, and speak at the conference which launched the NGO Mothers of Destiny in partnership with MOPS Zambia. And finally, we were able to make key contacts in other parts of Zambia which have already started MOPS groups in new regions, as well!

Local MOPS meeting

In the last few months, we have connected with pastors and churches around the country of Mali to share the good news of Jesus with many unreached women through this ministry. MOPS just finished translating our global curriculum into the local Malian language of Bambara, and one of our pastors shared this with us: "Pastors in our country can go for two years without someone new coming to faith. Since we have introduced MOPS and started using the curriculum, we have baptized almost ten women in our churches. Pastors in Mali are all in for MOPS!" Mali now has 20 thriving MOPS groups, and we just met with their MOPS Ambassador - Ezekiel - in Lusaka, Zambia for our Africa Leadership Summit.


Mother's Day was celebrated around the world on Sunday, May 14. Check out this great photo from Nairobi Believers Mission MOPS in Kenya celebrating the day together!



Here are some of our other updates from around the continent over the past several weeks:

Celebrating the newest little MOPS baby in Nigeria
MOPS Benin seminar. Topics: Women of Faith. Being a Great Mom.
MOPS Togo meeting 
Pastor James has opened many new MOPS groups around Côte d'Ivoire
MOPS Cameroon reigniting their meetings after a break
Glory MOPS in Kenya
 Christ Global Ministries International MOPS in Zambia
Fellowship with Blessed Moms MOPS in Kenya
PCWI MOPS in Ghana
Foursquare Gospel MOPS reignited in Nigeria
Mandy and I doing a training during a leaders MOPS training in Côte d'Ivoire
Faith MOPS Tanzania
Upendo MOPS in Tanzania

MOPS Ghana Cohort Leader - Bishop Dr. Gladys Asante graduated with her doctorate degree in divinity
Kasese Uganda MOPS
MOPS Zambia leadership meeting
Nairobi MOPS graduation ceremony
I called into MOPS Madagascar to share with the group

Riziki MOPS, brand new group in Northern Kenya
Pure Word MOPS, Nigeria

Sunday, April 2, 2023

March update

 It's been an exciting month in MOPS Africa. 

To start, it has been a busy time preparing for the first MOPS Africa Summit happening in Lusaka, Zambia May 7-8. There will be 19 participants, representing 10 nations. We covet your prayers for the success of this important event. 


We welcome new MOPS groups from around the continent - in Tanzania, Mali, Togo, Kenya, and Ivory Coast, as well as a revival of several groups in Uganda.

Let's take a look at our new and old groups from around the continent: 

Blaa MOPS, Mali
Upendo MOPS Tanzania
Dakar MOPS, Senegal
Ivory Coast MOPS
Kangema MOPS, Kenya
Bugulo MOPS, Uganda
MOPS Cocody Cite Sir, Ivory Coast
Mali MOPS group activity
Gatundu MOPS visited by Sylvia and Leah, Kenya
MOPS Ghana leadership meeting
Goaso Harvestime MOPS,Ghana
Kyanni Machakos MOPS, Kenya
Narok MOPS, brand new group, Kenya
Sylvia, East Uganda Cohort Leader, attending the MOMCon Europe conference and sharing a photo with Cristina Cardoso
Pst James visiting our Bamako MOPS leaders, Mali
Faith Arusha MOPS, Tanzania
Lome MOPS, Togo
Pst James visiting our Bamako MOPS leaders, Mali
MOPS Liberia
MOPS group English classes in Rwanda
Upendo MOPS, Kenya
Upendo MOPS, Tanzania - first meeting
Kasese area MOPS group, Uganda
Kasese area MOPS group, Uganda
Kasese area MOPS group, Uganda
Favour and Hellen, MOPS Zambia
Subii MOPS, Uganda
Uvumilivu MOPS, Kenya
Cocody Cite Sir MOPS, Ivory Coast
Pastor Lameck presenting MOPS in a new church, Kisii Kenya
Pure Word MOPS, Nigeria
MOPS presentation by Imani in Dodoma Tanzania
Kamirithu MOPS in Kiambu, Kenya graduated from Nairobi Institute of Business Studies; cookery school 
MOPS Zambia team meeting
New MOPS group in Kisii , Kenya
Women of Vision Kasarani MOPS visit from Leah, Kenya
Hope on the Rock MOPS, Uganda