STAGGERING STATISTICS

Dear Friends,

Did you know that the ratio of theologically trained pastors to people in the U.S. is 1 pastor for every 230 people? Yet the ratio of trained pastors to people abroad is one pastor for every 450,000 people! **

If you are like me, you may need to read that again – only one pastor out of nearly half a million people outside of the United States have access to any kind of theological training.

When church leaders are inadequately prepared to minister, churches are vulnerable to false teaching, authoritarian and abusive leadership practices and compromised ministry.

BrookLink’s mission is to help address this reality!

I am pleased to introduce you to our friend Esayas Ersabo. Esayas is a young and influential leader in the Ethiopian Kaleheywit Church. The network of Kaleheywit churches began 90 years ago and today consists of 1,310 churches scattered across nine districts.

When Esayas was a participant at Elmbrook Church’s International Center in Wisconsin in 2015, I had the privilege of introducing him to the work of BrookLink. Esayas asked BrookLink to come and “help equip their pastors on how to prepare and preach quality sermons in their churches.”

Because of your financial gifts, BrookLink was able to go to Ethiopia in November 2017 to train pastors and ministry leaders representing eight districts within the region. Through your continued support, BrookLink will be able to accept a return invitation this year. Esayas is enthusiastic about building a long-term partnership to provide training for Kaleheywit pastors, “until the church sees significant improvement in their skills of handling the Word of God.”

Ethiopia is one example of how your gifts are influencing pastors and churches across the Majority World.

Will you join us in equipping our Ethiopian brothers and sisters and others like them? Make a one-time gift or set up a recurring monthly gift today!

Staggering statistics like these can often overwhelm and discourage. Your gifts and partnership are helping to bridge the gap for leaders like Esayas and many others!

Thank you for “scattering abroad your gifts” through your generosity and faithfulness (2 Cor. 9:9).

With deepest gratitude,