Evangelism in Malawi

What a month! What a great joy to share! What a blessing! It is always a great joy to share the good news after an excellent event. Bear Valley Bible lnstitute Ekwendeni Malawi is thrilled with joy after being visited by four great men of God, namely, brother Dr Denny Petrillo, Donnie Esteep, Tim Murray and Mike Kidwell

Our visitors arrived through Kamuzu International Airport on the 6th of October. From the 7th to the 12th of October, it was a busy week whereby Donnie was in class for the whole week teaching World Religion course while Denny, Tim, and Mike were teaching Bible classes in village congregations. We had 3 places we visited in villages; from the 8th to the 9th of October we were at Kafukure church of Christ where about 17 local congregations sent atleast 5 people to represent the church at the Bible class. _The last classe the attendance was 84,_ including Denny, Mike, Tim, and Ephron. On the 10th, we were at Chinungu church where and on the 11th, we were at katoto Church. In all these places, brothers Denny, Mike, and Tim had to teach one after another, and Ephron translated. 

Finally, on the 12th was another busy day of graduation ceremony and farewell speeches from both visiting teachers (brothers), local directors, chiefs, and students. What a day, what an event it was. In all these things, joy was the sermon of the day . After the graduation we had to drive about 6 hours to a lodge near the airport in Lilongwe. God made everything possible .

 *Graduates on Fire!* 

After graduation ceremony ended, all the students left for their homes but just after two days, we started receiving good news from the students; William Msutu baptized 2 souls just two days after the graduation, Blessings Kavuta reported 2 souls saved, after three days of graduation Webster Zgambo reported 3 souls saved. This is proving to us that the students are putting into use what they have been entrusted by both local and international teachers. This is very encouraging news to us as teachers. Very interestingly, William had to dig a well to baptize the two souls as in his home area, there's not enough water running in the rivers.

 *Extra news!* 

We also received good news from some of our way back graduates; Brother Shadreck Chitekwe reported 2 baptisms and 2 restorations; brother Mateyu Ching'oma reported 4 baptisms; brother Takesure Nkhoma reported 4 souls saved; brother Alex and Farawo reported 7 souls saved and 9 more restored. *This has brought in a total of 24 souls saved in October and 11 souls restored* . 

We are very thankful for the partnership between Bear Valley Bible lnstitute International and the church at Hillcrest. The strong bond is making things work for good at Bear Valley Bible lnstitute Ekwendeni - Malawi. We always keep you in our prayers. The world is still lost in sin and needs Christ. You on going involvement will bring in great change. _Eternity Is Forever, Think Souls_ !

Your fellow brothers in Christ, 

Ephron and Clergynton

Graduation in Malawi!

Graduation time is always a special event to be remembered by the graduates, teachers, and guardians. On the 12th of October, 2024, we had a great graduation than before. This was a special graduation graced the even was the professor Dr. Denny Petrillo, our brother I'm Christ. We have known him as the president for BV 70 schools in the world before he became one of the elders at his home congregation. We were very honored to have him as the guest of honor along with the elders from Hillcrest church; Brothers Tim and Mike. The visitors also included Donnie, who is the coordinator for all the BV schools in Southern Africa. 

The ceremony started at 8Am and ended at 10Am it took about 2 hours to finish everything. 

We had about 6 men who spoke, and I will just mention the speeches made by only three people; The first to speak was the student's representative, he thanked God for their 2 years time at school where everyone enjoyed the classes and received everything at no cost. He also requested the BV international to consider Bachelors and Masters degree classes at the school since they still have hunger and thirst to learn more of God's words.

The second to speak was the chief of the area, who appreciated the coming of the school in the area as they have benefited greatly with clean water, which the school shares with them. But they noticed the many villagers who came to the school to get water and cause the environment to be conducive, and because of this, the chief asked if we could consider drilling another borehole in the area. After the chief representative, the director of the school, also spoke, then one the elders from Hillcrest church, the coordinator, and finally, our guest of honor concluded everything.

The speech of Brother Denny Petrillo emphasized using the knowledge they have been given. As follows of Christ, we always need to commit what we have been entrusted to other faithful men who could also be able to teach others - 2 Timothy 2:2. He also said, "Without using the knowledge given, it is a disaster"; "Without living a life demonstrating the knowledge given is a disaster" he encouraged the students to live a life worth the entrusted message of salvation - *the gospel !

We, as BV school staff here at Ekwendeni, are always thankful to God for the great partnership between the BV international and the eldership of the Hillcrest church. The cooperation has greatly changed the looks of many things at our school here in Ekwendeni, Malawi. We pray to God always for your families and the church thereto always consider us worthy of your support, kindness, and love. The world is still in sins, and we need to always consider the lost souls - Eternity Is Forever, Think Souls!

Your brothers in Christ, 

Ephron and Clergynton

New students arrive in Lilongwe, Malawi

New Faces in New Places

Two ladies, whose husbands both work at the school, stood ready to assist with the moving process as a student family arrived on campus.  Four families trickled in between Tuesday and Wednesday so that all would be present for Orientation on Thursday, September 12.  An evening meal was prepared on Wednesday for the weary travelers.  They also received a welcome gift of a small pile of firewood and a mbaula (charcoal cooker).

Over the month, we learned that the other two pre-approved, student families would not be coming for various reasons.  We were disappointed with this development but with a small group so much more is possible.  For example, even before they arrived, we knew the names of all the husbands, wives, and children so we could give them a warm, Malawian welcome.

Orientation 2024

Before these children had been on campus for 24 hours, their parents went to orientation to learn more about the school and what will be expected of them.  The children remained to play behind the housing block with Lancaster Ngulube, Alyssa, and Leann.  

With pre-loved toys such as lettered blocks, Matchbox cars, plastic eggs, balls, plus a new jump rope and soccer ball paired with kaamba (similar to round cheese curls that are great to eat straight from the fingertips like black olives) and individual water bottles, the three hours passed by fairly quickly.  

As we didn’t have any kids younger than 3 years, it was a tear-free experience.  Those who were missing their parents just grabbed Alyssa’s hand and held on.

Back to the Beginning

We are remembering what it was like to start with a brand new group of students.  Dale taught the Language and Research Class so the men could learn to use the library, how to write a sentence, and get used to how he talks.  By the second week, Dale was able to pick up the pace as together they studied Acts 1-12.  

Leann is teaching both of the women’s classes for the first 8 weeks.  On Tuesday evenings, the class entitled “Christ’s Culture” contains back-to-the-basics lessons where God is established as the supreme authority.  Students are also reminded how to enter Christ, how to identify the one true church, and what do to after a person becomes a Christian.  They are challenged to turn the world’s thinking upside down, and then encouraged to take a close-up look at the similarities and differences between Christ’s culture and the Malawian culture.  Friday mornings are dedicated to studying the book of James.

Dale Kastner

32 more conversions in Malawi

Hello everyone!

Grace and peace from God be with you all. We are always thankful to God for everything.  God has again brought excitement in our hearts as we have good news to share with you all. It is always good to hear from our students who graduated from our school. This months we were able to receive good news from Shadreck, Wakisa, Calvin and Mateyu. These men are doing great work every day, for example Shadreck had preaching campaign in Phalombe district far south of Malawi and has reported 16 baptisms,  Calvin from  Nkhataby district reported 1 baptism, Wakisa from Karonga district reported 7 baptisms and Mateyu from Kasungu district reported 8 baptisms and 6 restorations. We are thankful to God for their zeal to keep preaching .  This has totaled to 32 baptisms and 6 restorations. Praise God!

Teaching 

The Teaching work is almost finished,  we are remaining with three courses before the graduation in October this year. The students have grown in the understand of the scriptures.  It is always a gradual growth. We are looking forward to have Donnie teach a final class on World religion from the 7th to 11th of October, 2024.

Graduation 

We excited to announce the 12th day of October, 2024 as the day when our students will be awarded their diplomas for reaching to the final day of their studies with us for two years. We are humbly inviting all who would love to comes and witness this occasion.  We are already excited that brothers Tim, Mike and Donnie have already shown interest.  Please you are welcomed to this happy day, food will be available for everyone  

We are thankful for the partnership between Bear Valley Bible Institute International and the Hillcrest brethren. Without your hand,  nothing could have been achieved. As long as we still have lost souls under heaven, we have responsibility to preaching the saving message of the gospel. Eternity Is Forever,  Think Souls!

Your fellow laborers in the Lord, 

Ephron and Clergynton

26 more baptisms in Malawi

Bear Valley Bible Institute

June, July 2024 Report

 *Introduction* 

It is amazing to see how time goes so quickly. It is already half a year done. We are happy to see the students back at the campus. They were on one month vocation preaching in their home congregations and reports from their church leaders, and members are exciting news to the school – 26 souls saved and 8 more restored! We thank God for the progress the students are making using the knowledge they have been given to the wisely.

 *Teaching* 

We are happy that we are almost about to finish our 2 years of teaching before graduation takes place in October. We resumed classes on the 1st of July with Minor Prophets 2. It was amazing to see the Church of Christ in Minor Prophets and many prophecies about Christ being told. We are looking forward to short course teachers coming; Brothers Wongani, Blessings, and Donnie.

 *June Preaching Results by Students* 

We thank God to have students from all the regions of Malawi. It is very exciting to hear news from all of these regions and how the students are helping in changing the lives of many people as they preach in their home congregations. After going through the student’s reports, we noticed the numbers of the souls saved through baptism, totaling 26 and 8 more restored. God is good!

 *Preaching Campaign* 

We planned a preaching campaign in the Kasungu area in September 2024, where Brothers Mark, the assistant of the director of BV international schools, was supposed to be with us. Unfortunately, he is not coming, but we will still go ahead with the plan. Pray for this to be successful.

We always appreciate Bear Valley International and the Hillcrest church for the support. Your prayers and kindness mean a lot to us. We always pray that God continues blessing your families. _Think Souls_ !

Yours fellow servants,

Ephron and Clergynton

More good news from Malawi

Hello everyone!

We are excited to let our students go for one moth holiday.  June is always a month we give our students to go home and harvest their crops as well as to reunite with their families.  We had good time with them, they have been doing good in class and in preaching door to door as well.  We hope as they leave for their homes,  they will come back in July with good news to share as always. 

Preaching campaign - 21 to 25 May

The Usisya congregation invited the school for a one week preaching campaign as dated in the heading above. We responded them positively,  so we went. We are excited with the campaign outcome and they are asking us to go back again next time. We are always happy to go preach, this helps our students to gain more experience in the field work. This always is our goal - 2Timothy 2:2 (We Train Preachers). This campaign we have helped 17 souls be added to the church through baptism and also 8 souls restored.  Praise God . 

Teaching 

We are almost to the end of our second year Teaching.  We are remaining with few courses to finish before the graduation of our students.  We will resume our classes in the first week of July, 2024. 

Construction work

Please,  we ask for your prayers as we are Constructing Teachers house which will also be accommodating our visiting teachers. The foundation is completed and will start the super structure soon.

We are always thankful for the cooperation between BV international and the Brethren at Hillcrest church for this work. Without your support we would not be where we are today.  Your prayers,  kindness and support means a lot to us. God bless your families continually. 

Eternity Is Forever, Think Souls!

With Regards!

Ephron and Clergynton

Special guests in Malawi

Bear Valley Bible Institute 

Ekwendeni - Malawi 

Hello everyone!

The progress still continues as we are looking forward to the graduation of our students this year. It is their second and final year in class with us. Teachers and students are in a very serious cooperation at the moment, making sure that everyone gets his assignments finished before that joyous day of graduation.  Everyone with unfinished work, will not enjoy this day of receiving diplomas as he will not have it.

This month of March,  we were blessed to have our visitors from the USA.  One of the 2 brother Charles Gunter stayed with us for two weeks and the other one stayed for 3 days. The students were so happy to have brother Charles teach them the book of John.  The grades they got showed that they have learnt alot.  We are always thankful to have visitors come to help us teach.  This makes the work easier; and also it makes it said rightly " Blessed is the home that receives visitors "!

Evangelism 

We are in rain season and it is difficulty to take our students out for door to door preaching. However,  we have our graduates in many districts of out country Malawi and always send us good news.  This month we received news from brothers Mateyu and Takesure,  they have reported 13 baptisms and 4 souls restored. 

School Land extended 

We are also glad to share the joy we have that the chiefs have given us another portion of land (1 hactor). This is one way of appreciating the development we are doing in their village.  We are so happy that most of our plans will work out well. We need enough place to build teacher's houses and also a library.

God continues blessing your families as this work still need your involvement.  

Your's fellow workers in Christ,

Ephron and Clergynton

43 more baptisms in Malawi

Bear Valley Bible Institute

Ekwendeni - Malawi

Introduction

We are of great joy to be back at school again after a long holiday. The students are happy to start their many assignments, memory work again and many quizzes . 

It is amazing to hear from the students how their holiday never enjoyed as a holiday. With the reports they have shared, no one seems was just resting. Everyone was busy, preaching, teaching and more to this farming making sure they have food for their families. But the good news is that they have reported 30 souls restored during holiday and 43 baptisms. We are proud of them for the good work they are doing. This makes the school to be recognized by those who hears them teach and preach.

Teaching

We are in our second year, and at the end of this year this class we are having will graduate. The work of teaching is at its boiling point. This being the final year for our students we are making it possible that they are taught the remaining courses in time. In this month of February, 2 courses have already been done.

Evangelism

As stated in the introduction part, the students have been preaching and teaching during their holiday session which resulted into 43 souls being added to the Lord's church and 30 more restored. We had 21 students and now we are having 17. The 4 students have dropped out of school due to other issues about their families, which we couldn't get involved for them to stay at school. But we pray that one day they will think of coming back to finish their studies. The report about 30 restoration and 43 baptisms is from our 17 students home congregations and places where they have been going preaching and teaching.

Prayers needed,

We ask your prayers as our country Malawi is experiencing dry spell in many areas which gives fears of having hunger this year through next year. Our students being bread winners in their homes they are deeply worried. But we hope God will not allow His people to starving . We need to approach Him in prayers .

We are thankful to the Bear Valley Bible Institute International and the Hillcrest church. We appreciate the love, support and many prayers you offer for this work! Your partnership with Hillcrest church is helping us greatly. We always need your involvement in this work of saving souls to Christ and training men become faithful preachers. As long as there are people who cannot find their way, we have the responsibility! Eternity Is Forever Think Souls!

Your fellow workers in Christ;

Ephron and Clergynton

First ever graduation in Lilongwe!

Power-Packed Potential

Standing before you is the Class of 2023, the school’s very first graduates!  For at least 1,500 hours, the men have been immersed in the Word of God… searching, studying, and seeking to grasp its true meaning.  For over 350 hours, the women have done the same while also cooking, cleaning, and caring for their families.  They will never be the same!  Prayerfully, with the addition of seven more families in ministry, Malawi will never be the same!

Every Rose has a Thorn

The rose was in full-bloom as the students sat for final exams, took class pictures, and walked through the graduation ceremony.  Relationships were being knit together more and more tightly as everyone realized our time together was coming to an end.  

Dale’s final chapel talk was about building a R.A.F.T.  This acronym that stands for Reconciliation, Affirmation, Farewell, and Think Destination is a healthy way to leave.  It makes sure any hard feelings can be mended, those embarking on new territory as well as those who would remain behind could be encouraged, the painful goodbyes would be said, and all could look forward to being together in heaven again once our work on earth is done.

Immediately following graduation (Saturday), one family needed to leave.  In order to register their child for school, they had to be back in their home village the very next day.

The largest group of 5 families left together early Monday morning on a private bus that would take them to the largest city in the North.  It was a mass exodus of 22 people who had come as strangers but left with part of our hearts.

The final family stayed until Friday morning.  After receiving public school grades, they too packed up their things and left.  

This was the goal.  Students would come, grow as individual Christians, make life-long friends they could lean on in ministry, and then go home.  All of that has happened.  

What we didn’t fully anticipate is that with the curtains gone in the 10 houses, the lights that don’t come on, the jungle gym unoccupied, and no one meeting under the mango tree, we feel not only a sense of accomplishment but also a sense of loss in many areas of our lives.  We belonged in a village, as part of other people’s lives, and a part of something much bigger than we could have ever done.  

Please pray for our family as we feel the thorns that come with every rose.  We will need to grieve the loss of the departure of these 33 people in our daily lives in a healthy way so that when the next group of students comes another rose will bloom and fill our lives with its beauty.  

Supporting the Students

As we are between groups of students, we have two sets of people on our minds. One set includes those we know dearly, have walked beside, and are waiting to hear how God is going to use them to grow His kingdom.  The other set is the next student body whose names are unfamiliar and the mere mention of them doesn’t bring a flood of memories because we have yet to meet them.  Both need our support.

The recent graduates have returned to their homes and planted their farms and/or started back up the businesses they had before coming to the preaching school.  Every man had a job before he came to the school and was providing for his family so financial support is not what we mean when we say “supporting the students”.

Prayer is the best way to support the recent graduates.  These families are doing something even Jesus struggled to do… be effective in their own hometowns (Mark 6:4).  They have moved back to the same places they came from initially.  They are working among people who have known them in some cases since birth.  They need our prayers to keep studying and to keep growing spiritually so they can accurately handle the word of truth in each situation that presents itself (II Timothy 2:15).  The graduates also need our prayers as they strive to be the pillar and support of the truth as we learn the church should be from I Timothy 3:15.

The student applicants also need our support.  They have taken the first step by submitting an application which expresses their interest in being a student at the preaching school.  Like all of us, they don’t know what the future holds.  They don’t know the sacrifices it may take to transition well or what it will require of them to stay for the duration of the program. 

Next month we will begin student interviews.  We will be looking for the ones who are already working in the kingdom, have hearts characteristic of a servant, and seem most able to thrive despite whatever obstacles may arise.  

Please pray for the student applicants in these ways:

Honesty - telling the truth during the interview process

Transparency - identifying the foundational reasons they want to attend the school

Pliability - being able to adapt to a new culture (both physically and spiritually)

Humility - willing to put others before themselves

Teachability - accepting the truth even if it differs from their original understanding

Competency - showing whether they understand English (men) or Chichewa (women), respectively

Thanks for joining us in prayer on behalf of both types of students:  those who have just graduated and those who will be the next graduates from the Bear Valley Extension School - Lilongwe.  

Dale Kastner

Graduation in Malawi

Hello Everyone!

The graduation ceremony was a success!  Fourteen individuals received certificates acknowledging their attendance and numerous hours of effort at the school.  

Everyone has returned to their home villages.  The campus remains with 8 people (as it was before the 40+ people arrived in October, 2022).  

We have a special prayer request.  One of the children, who is less than 2 years old, is very, very sick.  Notification was sent last night, and we read the message this morning.  All day we have been trying to get a call to go through so that we can find out more.  Please pray for this little guy!  

Love,
Dale, Leann & Alyssa Kastner

19 more baptisms in Malawi!

Hello!

Greetings from BV school in Ekwendeni Malawi. We all the joy we want to share with you the good news that have been received in this month of November from our students. 

When you think of holiday, you mean resting but this not with our students. The holiday for them means working, "we will rest when we die" I quote from one of the students. This month of November, alot have been done in the village congregations where our students are staying during this time of their holiday - 22 souls have been saved(19 baptisms and 3 restored)!

December plans!

The teachers have agreed to have some few trips to villages, checking on how the students are doing in their home congregations. It is one way of encouraging them.

Bibles in our local language

We are so thankful to brother Dale for the contribution towards they purchase of Tumbuka Bibles. We managed to buy 89 based on the funds we had.

We always appreciate the Bear Valley Bible Institute International and the Hillcrest church for the partnership that makes our school move forward. God continue to blessing you all.

"Eternity Is Forever, Think Souls

In Christ,

Ephron and Clergynton

Marriage class conducted in Malawi

The Family Unit

A full week of intentional focus on marriage and the family just ended.  This was a capstone class that will prayerfully help these 7 families to submit to one another through obedience and love.  

Topics covered included but were not limited to biblical marriage, definitions of love, establishing healthy boundaries and fences in relationships, communication, conflict resolution, parenting, budgeting, differences in sets of needs, intimacy, anger management, and lust.   

There were cultural difficulties in teaching the class even for a long-term missionary.  Things like clearly defined roles in the local culture made it challenging to teach things like showing love through acts of service. When cultural discrepancies presented themselves, the biblical principle was restated, and the students were encouraged to find their own application to that principle. 

Each day was balanced with godly principles and fun to remind the students of the joy in marriage.  By the end of the week, the husbands and wives seemed more relaxed around each other.

It is our desire for the students to continue working on their own marriages as well as to begin sharing this information with others once they return to their villages.

What about the children?

Great question!  If both parents are in class for 30 hours (spanning over the course of four full days and a partial day on Friday), where are the children, and what are they doing?

From 7:45 until noon, Leann and Alyssa cared for the children who were not yet old enough to attend primary school.  There were officially 7 of them, but one school employee’s child who lives on campus also tagged along several days.  At the beginning of each hour, we had an activity ready.  We went from building houses and cars with blocks to picture cards, snacks, and then a game.  At that point, the little ones were fading fast and rest time often took us close to noon (especially for those who were slow to wake up).  We did our best to keep everyone with us, but one or two were not quite old enough to be away from mom for long.

Throughout the afternoon (1:30-4:30) the older kids trickled in from school, ate lunch in their homes, and then joined us.  We brought out Bible coloring pages, games, and ended with picking up trash in exchange for a sucker.  Homemade games (even meaning hand-sewn by Alyssa in some cases like bean bags) included giant tic-tac-toe, bean bag toss, and bowling. 

As we are six to eight weeks away from rainy season, keeping the kids hydrated was important.  We served rehydration drinks daily.

Meet Your New Sister

Although the waters are receding significantly as we near the end of dry season, there was enough in the creek to immerse Labeka on October 1st.  She was buried in the water and came out a new creature (Romans 6:4, II Corinthians 5:17).  Labeka attended class without fail as Dale took the congregation through an 8-week study of Bible basics including God’s plan of redemption and salvation.  She also fully understood that changes would be needed to comply with Biblical teachings on an on-going basis. 

Lilongwe, Malawi school perseveres

We have been operating on reduced power since two batteries have been sent back to the manufacturer for factory defects.  As the factory is in another country, it is taking months to get back up to full power.  

The students have adjusted to getting up early instead of staying up late since the lights in their houses and in the study hall have been going out at 8 p.m. (right after they have finished eating supper and spending time with the family).

As the company was working to install one battery as a “loaner”, we moved chapel outside so we could stay on schedule at the preaching school.  Things like those, which could derail everything, instead are viewed as opportunities.  It was nice to meet outside for a change… a reminder of church camp!

Loss & Sickness Plague the School

A third student wife has lost a parent in less than a year… that’s almost half!  Yet, they are persevering! 

A 1 1/2-year-old contracted a bacterial infection and needed transport to and from the hospital for 3 days to get daily antibiotic treatments intravenously. She is recovering fully!

Meet the Bodwin Phiri Family

The seventh and final student family we would like to introduce is the Bodwin Phiri family. Bodwin is 36 years old, and his wife Doreen is 27. They were married in 2017. Bodwin and Doreen have a daughter, Anjellina, who is six and a son, Onesius, who is two. They are what one would call a cross-cultural family as Bodwin is from Northern Malawi and Doreen is from the Central Region. Bodwin grew up attending the church and was baptized in 2005. Doreen was baptized in 2016. 

Before coming to Bear Valley Lilongwe, Bodwin and Doreen farmed a little and ran a small grocery shop in their village. In addition, Bodwin was a brick layer. Both Bodwin and Doreen are very hard workers. They want to put their great work ethic to use for the kingdom of God. After school, they plan to return to their village near Karonga and continue in their prior professions. They also want to plant new churches and spend more time evangelizing lost souls. 

As a director, I find myself noticing little things about each person on campus. It’s interesting to see the significant changes in their lives during the relatively short time they are here. Doreen came quite reserved but outspoken when the time was right. It was easy to see she had great potential. This especially came to light when in a matter of weeks she lost her mom, sister-in-law, and Bodwin about died from cholera. Now, her intelligence, confidence, and godly determination are shining brightly. Bodwin came as a wallflower. It was not until the second hermeneutics class that I heard his “loud voice”. He has come out of his shell and is revealing a deep desire to learn. They are going to do great things for the kingdom. 

Please join us in prayer for this wonderful family.

Dale Kastner

Donnie Estep visits Malawi

Hello Everyone!

We are grateful to God that we have reached this far in the year 2023. We have just ended our second semester and all the students have gone home for their practical work. We expect them back in early February. We were also excited to have Donnie with us for a short course. This month of October a lot has been achieved and good news from our former students is always encouraging. More in the details below!

Teaching

So far so good a job has been done. We have done more than half of our curriculum and next year will be the final for this class and then graduation. Before the close of the second semester we hosted brother Donnie who was teaching the book of "Hebrews". Donnie was excited to see how quickly our students are growing in knowledge. The first year class is always challenging especially in the first semester but as they go along they improve and their understanding becomes Joy to every teacher.

Evangelism

We have received news from some of our former students like brother Saliwa, Takesure, Shadreck, Mateyo and some men who are working with the school; brothers Abishai and Kennedy. They have reported of souls being saved totaling to 46 in the months of October and 14 more souls restored. This always puts the school on the map when we hear from our graduates. We pray that God bless their families physically and Spiritually as they continue doing this noble work.

Holiday

Our students are now gone for a 3 months holiday. It is a long holiday for them to have enough time to preach, teach and encourage congregations. And also, we in Africa depend on farming as a source of finding something to put on our tables and the rains starts in November whereby everyone is needed to be working on his field of crops. The school will open in the first week of February, 2024.

We are always thankful to God for the Bear Valley Bible Institute International and the partnership with the Hillcrest church in Missouri for the every month support. Our currency has been devalued 2, if not 3 times this year putting everything rocketing up high in prices. Life is not the same. But your support and prayers make us move forward. Keep helping us and you have your reward hereafter. Many men have no biblical education and many souls are not saved. Let's join hands to fulfill the ministry. Your involvement is still needed.

"Eternity Is Forever, Think Souls"!

Yours in Christ,

Ephron and Clergynton

Guest teacher in Malawi

Hello everyone!

It is amazing to see how days are ending so quickly. We have almost 3 months before the year ends. Many good things have happened this year and we wish they could continue and the year shouldn't end so soon. However, we respect the seasons given by our good God and Lord Jesus Christ to us.

During the past 2 months lots have happened and we sometimes fail where to start because we are so excited about good news we are receiving from our former students who are doing good work in their respective homes. Within these two months 35 souls have been added to Christ and 18 more restored! We always thank God who works in us all for this course of winning souls to Christ. We also had a short course teacher from our sister school in Gweru - Zimbabwe. It was a blessing to have him teach and he too was excited to receive a warm welcome in Malawi which is rightly nicknamed as "The warmheart of Africa"!

Teaching

As we all are aware that the purpose of our school is to train men become faithful preachers of the sound and health doctrine, we have covered a lot of course since we started our second semester in July, this year. Brother Ishmael Mutichu from Gweru taught the "Synoptic gospels" from the 18th through 22nd of September. This is a good thing as it does strengthen the relationship between the sister schools within central Africa and beyond.

Evangelism

We have had lot of preaching campaigns in August and September. The results of these campaigns is that 35 souls saved and 18 souls restored. We have brothers who are our graduates and are doing a good job of winning souls to Christ. Brothers Saliwa, Takesure, Mateyo, Shadreck just to mention but a few. The other campaign will be from the the 28th through 1st of October, 2023. This campaign will be in the district of chitipa near the boarder of Zambia and Tanzania. Our students are looking forward to going. We ask for your prayers . 

We are so thankful for the support we receive from the Bear Valley Bible Institute International and also from the Hillcrest Christian family. The bold between us is beyond our imagination. We pray that God continues blessings your families as we still need your involvement in this work of training men and winning souls to Christ. As far as we have souls still not saved, we have the responsibility of reaching out to them - 2 Timothy 2:2!

"Eternity Is Forever, Think Souls

In Christ,

Ephron and Clergynton

Malawi student helps church correct error

Meet the Pundi Family

Since we introduced the oldest family on campus last month, it is only fitting we introduce the youngest family this month. Matthias is 28 and his wife, Charity, is 24. They have a 1-year-old son, Chance. Matthias was baptized at age 15, and Charity was also baptized at age 15. They were both born and raised in Mpherembe which is a village in northern Malawi near Mzuzu. Before coming to school Matthias was a reed farmer.

Matthias met Charity in 2020 at the local market. He is one of the few students we have who graduated high school. Charity finished her sophomore year. After graduating, he was not sure what to do. He wanted to continue his education but was not sure how he would be able to afford more education. In the spring of 2022, he received an application to our school from a friend who had attended a meeting. Matthias immediately applied. 

Even at a young age, Matthias was very active in his local church. He preached, led songs, and was also the church secretary. Here at school, he has maintained his desire to participate and grow in knowledge. Following graduation, Matthias and his family will return to the village and continue to farm and work in the church. If an opportunity arises, he will further his Bible education. 

I am excited to see what life holds for the Pundi family. Matthias has the gift of critical thinking. He will ask 70 percent of the questions in class and a fair number of them will require me to postpone the answer until I can do further research. He is a thinker. Both he and Charity are consistently towards the top of the class. Please take time this month to pray for the Pundi family. 

Sad News from the Bible Society of Malawi

One of the works the school is involved in is purchasing Bibles and selling them for 10% of the original cost or giving them away if the interested individual can say all the books of the Bible from memory. Not only do we have this program here in Lilongwe, but we also work with the Bear Valley School in Ekwendeni. Recently, Mbano, the director in the Ekwendeni school, went to purchase more Bibles from the Bible store. He was told they were no longer printing the “old” Tumbuka version as it was outdated, and they could not make any money with it. They were now printing the “new” version. At a glance this would not seem to be a problem. However, the “new” version includes all the apocryphal books. Mbano decided to purchase Chichewa Bibles which have 66 books. It is very sad our Tumbuka brothers and sisters will not be able to learn from God’s word in their their mother tongue. It is funny to mention that while Mbano was in the store working through a solution, five other customers came in requesting the same “old” version. Let’s pray the Bible Society of Malawi changes their mind about the Tumbuka translation. 

Great News of Multiplicity

One of our students has returned a week early to make up a course he missed due to chicken pox. Upon greeting him and his family, I learned of the great success he had while in the village. He was given the opportunity to teach Bible class for two weeks. They asked him to teach on the Lord’s Supper which is one of the most disputed parts of worship in Malawi. Many congregations have divided over the Lord’s Supper. George carefully taught what he had learned from 1 Corinthians and the gospels. He made sure to only teach the text and not tradition or opinions. George also included the entire context of the relevant passages and not just a few verses here and there. I am excited to write that the congregation immediately corrected their worship service that Sunday. It was through George’s careful presentation of God’s words, and only God’s words, that the congregation was taught. 

My dear brother and sisters, this is what Bear Valley International is all about! Teaching others to teach others to teach others. Multiplicity of efforts at its best. I am so thankful Bear Valley has provided a great way to spread the pure word of God to changes lives. Please make time to lift up those at Bear Valley to our Lord and Savior. Have no doubt that your financial assistance is making a difference in Malawi!

In Him,

Dale Kastner

32 Baptisms in Malawi

Hello everyone!

It is our hope that everyone of you is doing well. July has been a good month for us. We have had busy time preaching and teaching the gospel of Christ. As it is; some were good recipients and some were slower than others. But the good news is that we have a report of 32 souls saved and 47 more restored. We are thankful to our Alumni for working tirelessly preaching and teaching the sound doctrine!

Teaching and Preaching

As a preaching school of training faithful men become preachers, we are so excited to train as many men as we can. The Ability and Opportunity will always give us Responsibility to action as we preach and train men - 2 Timothy 2:2!

We are in our second month since we resumed the classes after holiday. Much have already been achieved so far. It is always a move from the low lever to a high lever of understanding and getting used to memorizing, research writing, essays. Students are growing to understanding things every day which is encouraging. 

Evangelism

It has been a good month of preaching door to door. Brother William Tembo invited the school for a 3 days preaching campaign where the church has been established. The place is called "Kajivi" in Mtwalo area of Mzimba. It was all joy as the church has started with 31 members. We ask you to remember them in your prayers. Again, we received good reports from our allumins who have been busy preaching and winning souls to Christ.

Brothers Saliwa, Takesure, Abishai, Shadreck and Mateyo have reported a total of 32 baptisms and 47 restorations. We thank God for these men and the big difference they are making in the Kingdom of Christ. We are always proud of them. This shows the work of training men to become preachers is fruitful.

We are thankful again and again to the Bear Valley Bible Institute International and Hillcrest church of Christ for the good work you are doing. You always think good of us and without your support things could could not be as it is right now. God keep on blessing your families.

Your fellow workers in Christ,

Ephron and Clergynton

Meet Khembo, a student in Malawi

Meet the Mwale Family

Khembo was born in Malawi in a little village called Kasiya. At seven, his parents moved to Zimbabwe which at that time was called Rhodesia. Khembo returned to Malawi with his mother when he was fifteen. He found Malawi very strange, and it was difficult for him to make a living. Due to the hard life, Khembo was not able to go beyond an eighth grade education. Through instruction from his mother, he learned to grow the food they needed to survive. Before coming to school, Khembo farmed 35 acres to provide for his family. At one point, he tried a small business but was not able to keep it working.

Khembo met his first wife in his twenties, and they had five children. In 1996, she died leaving Khembo with the children and hard burden of care and food. In 2000, he married Falesi to whom he is still married. They have six children together. Of the eleven children, eight have married, and the youngest three are still at home in primary school. 

After the death of his first wife, Khembo was baptized in 1997. Khembo believes he has a great responsibility to work for the Lord. He is very thankful to be here at the school and learning as much as he can. At age 64, Khembo is the oldest student. As would be expected, Khembo struggled when the classes began. It had been almost 50 years since he had been in school. However, through hard work and a determined mind, Khembo has been able to do very well. 

Falesi has been a tremendous asset to the student body. In addition to caring for her own children, she is the campus “grandma”. If the other mothers need to leave campus for food, she is more than willing to watch their children with the same nurturing heart she has for her own. When a little child gets upset for one reason or another, she is more than willing to hold and wipe the tears away. 

A Dedicated Group

At this point in the program, we are over half way through the classes. Even though the schedule is very rigorous and the classes are getting harder, all the students are keeping their noses to the grindstone. The students will have a longer break at the end of July, and then they will return for the last 16 classes. Please pray for these families to continue to stay focused and finish strong. 

Dale Kastner

Souls are being won in Malawi!

Introduction

It is always good to hear people being saved from the kingdom of Satan to the kingdom of Christ. Preaching is always a difficult work when it comes to making someone leave his or her wrong belief, and come to Christ. But since we do the work and the good Lord change the hearts of people, it becomes joy to us when many lost souls are being saved. We praise God

We are looking forward to the end of the holiday in 2 weeks time when students will be coming back. Students are on holiday, but the reports coming shows they are not resting. They are preaching and teaching the gospel, and the results of the work they are doing is outstanding.

Baptisms

We have received good news from our students in Karonga, Ntchisi, Mzimba and Kasungu that the Lord has added souls to Christ. The number of baptisms which has reached us is karonga wovwe 4, kasungu 8, ntchisi 3 and Mzimba 5 giving us a total of 20 baptisms. Apart of this good news we have another awesome news! New congregation established at Chazgovu village in Euthini Mzimba district.

New congregation established!

On of our former graduate, who is also helping us distribute world bible school lessons in villages, went to euthini where we have more than 100 WBS students registered through our school BV Ekwendeni. He was called to help some get into Christ last month and he found that the distance from where people are to a meeting place is far, a suggestion for the new congregation to be established was given. I helped Saliwa organize the campaign and we called preachers to go and preach. The campaign stated on the 22 to the 25 of June. The Lord did wonders in a period of 3 days that 15 souls were saved! The new congregation is established! Keep them in your prayers . The chief has said will give land to the church to build a church building, but has also given the church a nursery room for kids that  temporarily should be used as a meeting place for the church. He has asked us to go again and preach since the area is big and many have not been reached. We plan to go with the students this second semester!

Word of thanks!

We always thank Bear Valley Bible Institute International and the working hand in hand with the Hillcrest to help us teach and reach out to the lost souls. Without your support and prayers nothing we could be able to do on our own. There's still a wide door open for us to reach out to the lost souls - Matthew 28:18-20! We are ready to go!

Eternity Is Forever, Think Souls.

Your brothers in Christ,

Ephron and Clergynton

Great progress in Lilongwe!

Here in Lilongwe, the month of May was busy and full of excitement. As always, there were classes, students encouraging one another, and plenty of hard work. But, this month was special. It was the first time in 10 years that both the Kastners and the Mayfields were in Malawi. 

Daniel Mayfield, a classmate from Bear Valley, accompanied Leann and I on a survey trip 10 years ago when we came to Malawi. At that time, Daniel was engaged to Miranda who is now his wife. Daniel and Miranda are now working in Kingfisher, Oklahoma and have three lovely children. Don Garms, who is a deacon in Kingfisher came with Daniel to help out wherever he could on campus.

Daniel did an amazing job teaching the book of Romans. His deep knowledge of the book as well as his endless energy showed through in his teaching. He exegeted many passages which helped the students know how to apply the principles they learned early in their education. Daniel spent many hours discussing the major themes of the book as well as some of the hard spiritual concepts. Even after Daniel had left for northern Malawi, the students were still talking about how much they had learned from Daniel. 

In addition to teaching, Daniel connected with the students on a personal level. After class, he would change clothes and go play soccer with the guys. One afternoon, he went on a run with several of them. It was a blessing to have a man who can connect with the students on a spiritual level as well as a personal level. 

While Daniel was teaching, Don and I took some time to catch up on some projects around the campus and the church. We spent three days painting my house. It was one of those things that was important but not urgent. Having an encouraging man like Don come just to work was what I needed to get it finished. After painting the house, we went to the church building and made the provisions in the brick wall to hang the doors. From talking to Don I could tell he had experienced a lot of things in his life. But hanging a door on a mud-brick building was a new one for him. He later said that he had been very blessed from the experience. Have no doubt, Don was not the only one blessed from his time here. Daniel was right when he said Don was a true Barnabas. 

Two weeks after Daniel and Don left, the students and I gathered up the needed supplies and headed to the church. In a matter of a few hours, we had hung the homemade doors, patched a few holes in the wall, and plastered the pulpit with cement. It was eye opening to see some of the students who are quiet and reserved in class shine brightly in a different environment. I could not ask for a better bunch of guys to start this school off. Please continue to pray this Bear Valley effort. 

In Him,

Dale Kastner