New Year Short Report

 

Grace and Peace to you friends.      As we begin this new year, I want to take a moment to look back at the graduation of the 2025 class from the Bear Valley Bible Institute International in Arusha (aka ACSOP).  It was a day of great joy because it was the graduation ceremony for a Kiswahili class of preaching students, joined by a class of graduates from Kisongo Bible School.     Fourteen students from ACSOP were supposed to graduate, but tragically one student, Jacob Elias Ng'homange, passed away in an accident. We still honored Jacob by a moment of silence, and by placing his portrait in the chair that he should have occupied during the ceremony.  Additionally, the family of God had made sure that Jacob’s family will be taken care of for years to come.     We had many visitors from different places for the ceremony, and more than 200 people attended. The ceremony featured several speakers that traveled from America, including Harold Pirtle, Sid Altman, Harold Rhodes, and myself. Now the school is closed and will be reopened in the second week of February next year, and we are expecting to enroll many students.  Now take a look at some of the year-end numbers for 2025: The Year-End Numbers - 2025 34 Students in the Bachelor’s Program 14 Graduated from ACSOP 12 Students in the Master’s Program 6 Students in the Cy Stafford School of Leadership 5 Graduated from Kisongo Bible School 164 Baptisms 192 Restorations 43 Seminars 2 Camps Hosted - Tanzania Christian Camp and Future Preacher Training Camp     Lastly, I’d like to give you an update on the Imani Focus Foundation orphanage, since many of you participated in helping it last year.  The land has been purchased and construction is coming along nicely.  God has truly blessed this effort, and soon Imani Focus will have a wonderful new facility with plenty of room for expansion and growth to help numerous children receive the love and care of God’s family. You can see a picture below.     Thank you for your support, encouragement, and prayers.  May God bless our efforts together in the coming year!    Till all have heard, Daniel Gaines Mission Coordinator Tanzania Missions

Donations Can Be Made Out To: "Hoover Church of Christ" - be sure to mention TANZANIA MISSIONS in the Memo line and  Send To: 3248 LORNA RD. HOOVER, AL 35216

Thanksgiving Appeal and Short Report

 

Grace and Peace to you friends.  As Thanksgiving approaches, we pause to reflect on the blessings God has so richly provided. Among those blessings are faithful partners like you—men and women who believe in the transforming power of the gospel and in the mission of training preachers to spread that good news throughout Tanzania and beyond. Since its beginning, the Andrew Connally School of Preaching (ACSOP) has equipped hundreds of men with the knowledge, faith, and skills to proclaim Christ with courage and conviction. Many of those graduates now serve as preachers, evangelists, and teachers across East Africa—each one a living testament to the impact of your prayers and generosity. Today, we invite you to join us in building a legacy that will ensure this work continues for generations to come. The Tanzania Legacy Fund is an endowment established to provide long-term financial stability for ACSOP. Its earnings will help sustain the training of gospel preachers well into the future—long after we are gone. This Thanksgiving, will you make a special gift to the Tanzania Legacy Fund? Your contribution—large or small—will help secure the future of this vital ministry. My wife and I believe in this effort deeply, and we are making a personal donation ourselves. We want to lead by example because we have seen firsthand the eternal difference ACSOP makes in the lives of students, their families, and their congregations. As you give thanks this season, please consider adding ACSOP to your list of blessings to share. Together, we can ensure that the next generation of African evangelists will continue to preach “the unsearchable riches of Christ” (Ephesians 3:8) for many years to come. Thank you for your love, your faith, and your partnership in the gospel. May God bless you and your family with peace and gratitude this Thanksgiving. ACSOP in Action To show how your support is bearing fruit, here’s an update from the ACSOP faculty: ”Brethren, I hope that you are all doing well. From the 2nd through the 5th of October, the Andrew Connally School of Preaching held the Tanzania Leadership Conference at the school. Many visitors from various places and different countries attended the meeting. People from America, Zambia, Kenya, and Uganda were present. More than 80 congregations were represented in this meeting. “Local preachers and teachers were very encouraged and learned a lot from these foreign teachers and preachers as they presented their lessons. The theme was “IGNITING THE CHURCH’S LOVE FOR PREACHING.” The purpose of the meeting was to awaken the churches and restore their first love of preaching the gospel to lost souls. “All who attended this meeting were very excited, and some of them requested that the days of the leadership meeting be extended so they could learn more. They said that four days was too short. Through this meeting, we have hope that the future church will become stronger and stronger. The total number of participants was 187. Students’ Evangelism “On the 25th of October, students together with their staff went to the Songambele Church of Christ for personal evangelism. We usually do this at the end of each month. Both first-year and second-year students participate in this program. We divide them into various groups, and each group must have both first- and second-year students, so that the first-year students can learn from the second-year students. “Evangelism there went well. Twenty-seven new Bible studies were established, and three souls were added to the Lord’s Church through baptism. Please continue praying for them to remain faithful. “We appreciate all who are working hard to support this effort and to make sure that the work of the Lord continues.” Till all have heard, Daniel Gaines Mission Coordinator Tanzania Missions Donations Can Be Made Out To: "Hoover Church of Christ" - be sure to mention TANZANIA MISSIONS in the Memo line and  Send To: 3248 LORNA RD. HOOVER, AL 35216

August Short Report

 

Grace and Peace to you friends.  Today I am happy to share a note from one of our deans, Desdery Massawe: “‎Let God be glorified and the great things He has done for us. ‎The whole month of July was the month of the staff or faculty of ACSOP to take their time and visit the second year students at their home congregations and see how they are helping the sister congregations to mature. ‎Most of the students we visited were found to be very active in the work of the Lord. So we are very excited about them and we are so encouraged. ‎They were so busy preaching the gospel of Christ and bringing souls to Christ and others were busy building church buildings for the new planted churches. ‎Thank you for your prayers and support to make sure that the work of the Lord must be done.” Today I also have a treat to share with you in the form of a short video from our Co-director, Ahimiwe Kimaro. You can find that HERE. Thank you for being a valuable partner in this good work!  May God bless you. Till all have heard, Daniel Gaines Mission Coordinator Tanzania Missions

Donations Can Be Made Out To: "Hoover Church of Christ" - be sure to mention TANZANIA MISSIONS in the Memo line and  Send To: 3248 LORNA RD. HOOVER, AL 35216

Summer Short Report

 

Grace and Peace to you friends. Today, I’d like to share some highlights from this summer’s travels in Tanzania. The theme of this update is finding a healthy balance between providing help and encouraging independence in young, growing congregations. The church is a global body, interconnected in so many beautiful ways. Yet, it can sometimes be challenging to know how to help in a way that fosters maturity rather than unintentionally hindering it. Our experiences this summer offered some wonderful examples of how that balance can be achieved. Tabora: A Church Plant Gaining Ground One encouraging example comes from our visit with brethren at the Tabora church. One of our ACSOP graduates, Shadrack, has been working diligently to plant a congregation there, and it’s experiencing healthy growth. In an impressive show of personal commitment, Shadrack purchased a piece of land with his own funds and donated it to the church. (You can see a photo of this land in the side column.) Thanks to the support of generous donors in the U.S., we will soon be able to construct a church building on that land—a wonderful step forward for this young congregation. Nyama Koma: Local Initiative Bearing Fruit We also witnessed a powerful example of self-driven progress from our brothers at the Nyama Koma church in Misungwi. These Christians have been working together and pooling their limited resources for some time. Despite the economic challenges they face, they have managed to lay a foundation and build the walls for their own church building! Their determination is truly inspiring. (Their efforts are pictured in the side column as well.) They still need about $5,500 to complete the building—with a roof, floor, windows, and doors. Would any of you like to reward their initiative and sacrifice by helping them cross the finish line? Tanga: Generational Growth in the Gospel In Tanga, we saw another exciting form of growth. Meet Amos and Dennis Kuchizi—a father and son who represent two generations of ACSOP students. Years ago, Amos graduated from ACSOP and has since done tremendous work for the Lord in Tanga. Now, his son Dennis is halfway through his senior year at the school. I’m proud of this faithful family—and even more encouraged by what their story represents: a maturing church in East Africa where second-generation preachers are now rising to carry on the work! Simiyu: A Church in Its Infancy At the other end of the spectrum, we visited a brand-new congregation in the remote village of Simiyu, where our ACSOP student Sylvester Bugota is laboring tirelessly. Despite his significant mobility challenges, Sylvester is undeterred. He is passionately advocating for the gospel and working to establish the Lord’s church in his home village. Please keep him and this young congregation in your prayers as they take their first steps in faith. These stories have been a great encouragement to me, and I hope they are to you as well. So much becomes possible when God’s people work hand in hand. May He be glorified through every effort. Please continue to keep the church in East Africa in your faithful prayers! Till all have heard, Daniel Gaines Mission Coordinator Tanzania Missions

Donations Can Be Made Out To: "Hoover Church of Christ" - be sure to mention TANZANIA MISSIONS in the Memo line and  Send To: 3248 LORNA RD. HOOVER, AL 35216