wtwh.org

The Vision and Burden
of Christian Life Teachings International

By Dr. John Robert Opio

John Robert OpioI was born on October 28, 1968 and raised by a non-churchgoing father whose main occupation was farming. I am now married and a father of two boys: Asaph and Prince Eotu. My wife and I also care for four orphaned children, three girls and one boy. That means I have six children, although two are not directly biological.

In December of 1982 when I was 14 years old, I was converted to Christianity. A group of preachers came to our home when I was very sick and preached from Isaiah 53, explaining that Jesus came to the world as a result of God's love for sinful mankind. As they laid their hands on me, I felt a burning fire in their hands. That day I received not only healing but also my Lord Jesus Christ! Since that day I have never regretted being a Christian.

In 1993, while attending a Bible college, I received a burden to train rural pastors in the things of the ministry by way of in an interdenominational mobile Bible training college. I would do this by establishing satellite centers for training rural pastors. This idea came to me when most of the rural pastors quit the Bible college before finishing. Before he left the school, one of the rural pastors told me, "If there was a way to receive the same training in a village setting, I would gladly be willing to study at that level." His concern became my priority.

Rural pastors have heavy responsibilities at home and church. Public education is not freely provided for African children as it is in other countries. Every African parent faces the challenge of raising school funds for his children. It has been almost impossible for a pastor to further his own Christian education while still providing for his family. Meeting the needs of the rural pastor is my vision and burden. Since 2002, Christian Life Teachings International Ministries has been bringing a seminary education to the village level.

The CLTI Program

The CLTI curriculum includes a wide range of courses covering Pastoral Theology, Bible Survey, Systematic Theology, Historical Theology, Church Administration & Management, Christian Education, and Christian counseling. These courses were presented over a period of eleven months, with classes held two to five days a week. Ours were not residential students; they were commuting from their homes each day.

Meeting Reverend Tim Sullivan in 2004 was a great blessing to me. It was an amazing thing for me to realize that God connects people who have the same burden together! For several years his seminars have been part of our curriculum. He has presented The Principles of the Doctrine of Christ, If Ye Do these Things Ye Shall Never Fall, and In the Power of His Might to our students. When Tim comes to Africa, we gather all the students from our various training centers in one place so they can hear his classes and then graduate together. On several occasions he has also assisted in the ordination of select graduates.

Areas of Challenge

There are three areas of challenge that I face in my endeavor to help rural pastors in their work.

1) TRANSPORTATION: There are very few easy roads to go to where the pastors are. We travel either on the back of motorcycles we here call "Boda-boda" or hire a taxi. Both means are very expensive.

2) OFFICE RENT/FURNITURE: It is our desire to have a central place where our office equipment and school properties can be safely stored. To date we have not had sufficient funds to purchase our own place and have settled for renting a facility. But that rent is often increased, and we are forced to find a cheaper place. When we shift from place to place, some things are lost or damaged.

3) FAMILY UPKEEP: Since I teach in remote (poor) areas, it is very often that the pastors are unable to pay even the small fees requested by CLTI. In order to return home at the conclusion of my program, there have been times I needed to use some funds that were set aside for my children's education. Nevertheless I am thankful to God who has always made a way for this work to continue.

Future Plans

I am very excited that Workers Together With Him has plans to partner with Christian Life Teachings International in a new program for rural pastors we are calling Mobile Bible College (MBC). I will let Reverend Tim explain that to you. I humbly request your prayerful support.

 

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