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

Guest teacher in Malawi

Bear Valley Bible Institute

Ekwendeni – Malawi

May, 2023 Report

Introduction 

Holiday is here again as we end up the first semester with good news! It has been a very productive semester with good news and visiting teachers than ever before. We always say it is holiday time but in reality it is not as the students work tirelessly in their home congregations. The students will be out of school for one month 2 weeks and will be doing lots of door to door preaching and teaching.Some of our former graduates are reporting good news too from the good work they are doing. This month we were also blessed by the visiting short course teachers from the USA. The former graduates have reported 21 baptisms and 67 restored. Out of the 21 baptized, 4 of them are those they are studying with us through world bible school. We have 301 students registered and some who have already finished the 7 series of courses have received an ESV Bible. To God be the glory!

Teaching 

This semester has come to an end and students have gone for holiday after spending 4 months of classes work. The semester ended with the course on Romans taught by Daniel from the USA. Daniel was accompanied by one of the deacons from where Brother Daniel is preaching. Both of the two are good Brothers with the great zeal to help Malawi grow in the knowledge of the word. We hope they will come again to help us teach.

Evangelism

Some of our former graduates have reported good news to us and we are also glad to share with all who read our monthly reports. Brother Shadreck from Pharombe reported that 5 souls were added last 2 weeks as a result of his preaching door to door; Brother Takesure reported 9 souls saved and 67 more restored; brother Saliwa reported 4 souls being added to the church and also Brother Mateyo reported 3 souls baptized. We are very thankful to hear that our graduates are doing what has been planted in them. This is always encouraging news to every teacher locally and internationally. We are also praying daily for the WBS students who are registered through BVBI- Ekwendeni. We have witnessed many souls being baptized out of 301 total registered. Only this month 4 have been baptized. Praise God!

We are so thankful for the BVBI-International for the strong bond with the Hillcrest church in Missouri, this has brought a change in the school here in Malawi. We pray that the fellowship will continue for the betterment of the school progress here in Malawi. We pray for your families to prosper as this work still needs your help and support. Working as a team will easily destroy Satan’s kingdom. Matthew 28:18-20!

Yours brothers in Christ,

Ephron and Clergynton

Students return in Lilongwe

The Lord Adds to the Church

It doesn’t matter how many times you’ve watched it happen, there is still nothing better than seeing someone put on Christ in baptism.  We can’t help but rejoice because baptism means that one more soul can go to heaven one day if that person will stay faithful until death or until Jesus returns.

In Acts 2:38-47, we learn that when a person is baptized, they are added by the Lord to the church.  In the past month, two more souls have been added… Fani and Chisoni.  Both are serious about their walk with Christ, and we are checking in with them each week to see how they are growing. 

We have enjoyed using the river near the church building for baptisms during the rainy season.  We all walked together, singing as we went.  Everyone witnessed the baptisms:  the way to get “in Christ”.  Those walking along the road stopped to watch.  Then we sang more on the way back to the church building where often more instructions were offered for how to walk with Jesus.

Bonds Grow Stronger

The last time the students came back from a break the children were still a little shy but not this time!  There were hugs in abundance, sharing stories, and kids went right to the places they love the most… like the jungle gym. 

Students Come Back

As we stay synched with the calendar for the Malawian government schools, the students went home for a two-week break in April.

Although a short break, here are some of the things they were able to do…

• Rest

• Enjoy their extended families

• Maintain their houses

• Bible studies

• Handed out tracts

• Preach

• Teach Bible class

• Give the Lord’s Supper lesson (here it is like another sermon)

• Encourage others to attend this Bear Valley Extension School and give applications

Some had family issues to sort out, work to do, and are looking forward to the 3-month break in July when they can serve more.

Meet The Isaac Nguluwe Family

Isaac was born in the Mzimba region of Malawi on June 6th, 1988. Later, he moved with his wife to the lakeshore area called Nkhata Bay. He stopped his education after he finished 7th grade.  Before coming to school, Isaac was a vegetable farmer as well as a chicken and pig farmer. 

Isaac married Lancaster 10 years ago, and they have 4 children:  Ryota is 9, Elick is 6, Desire is 3, and Melvice is 1.  Isaac is one of the most engaged fathers we have.  He fully supports his wife in parenting and is not afraid to address a child’s needs rather than sending them to their mother for assistance.  Isaac feels it is important to study his Bible with his family daily.  They both are amazing parents.

After school, they would like to return to the Nkhata Bay area and continue farming. However, Isaac is a devout evangelist. He wants to spend his spare time sharing what he has learned as well as teaching children and young adults. 

As a director, I can say without a doubt Isaac is one of the hardest working students we have. Although his education is the lowest, he turns in some of the best work.  English is his fourth language.  He had a bit of a slow start, but he is off to the races now.  By far, he has improved the most of any student we have. He is also the most passionate about evangelism.  If there is one who wants to study at church, he is the first one to volunteer to mentor.  All of this is not to mention his children are the most well-behaved children on campus.  Isaac is living proof a person does not need a high education to be a great worker for the Kingdom. 

Learning practical Christianity in Malawi

As a dress rehearsal of sorts, the youth competed in a mock Bible bowl against Dale. Every question came from Ephesians 4. Although they went neck-to-neck for awhile, the youth gradually pulled ahead as questions were taken from their weekly chapter questions that Dale was not privy to see.

Two weeks later, the youth tackled their own dads with questions coming from the entire book of Ephesians. With 9 weeks of preparation, the youth were more than ready. On the morning of the competition, one of the oldest youth was plagued with fever & fatigue due to malaria. Through the four rounds of competition, he helped his team to victory and took third place overall. The youth took 1st, 2nd & 3rd places: Alyssa, Moses, & Ganzan.

Make Me a Servant

...Lord, make me like You. For you are a servant, make me one too.

In the women’s program, we have been studying how to become servants for the past eight weeks. At the beginning of each class, we try to sing the referenced song that I translated into Chichewa.

Malawian moms are diligent to take their young children to the equivalent of wellness checks. Springboarding off that concept, each of us completed a spiritual wellness check to see how we are coming along as Christians [ie took temperatures (hot, cold, lukewarm), checked attitudes, considered our walk (mobility check), evaluated our spiritual age (milk or meat), and performed home inspections].

Next, we considered what servants look like and how to start thinking like a servant. This is where we noticed that being a bondservant of Christ is not something we do but who we are.

In Week #3, we went a little deeper into the heart. Having the heart of a servant included being in fellowship with God and loving our brother/sister as the two go hand-in-hand.

At the halfway point, we stopped and spent an entire class applying what we had learned so far. We played a game that taught us that by listening carefully to what others say about themselves, their families, where they came from, etc, we can learn how better to serve them.

As soon as we start serving, we must also start renewing. We carefully studied the book of II Thessalonians to see why the church in Thessalonica needed the encouragement “to not grow weary and lose heart” found in 3:13 and how Paul, Silvanus, & Timothy encouraged them.

In Week #6, we looked at ways to continue growing in faith and how to keep our cups full.

Finally, we concluded with the ultimate servant: Jesus Christ. We began with His superiority and then took a closer look at who He served, why He served, and where He could/could not serve. 

Let the Show Begin...

As a grand finale to the “Make Me a Servant” class and as the students are going home on break next week, Alyssa and two of our workers put on a puppet show for everyone on campus.

The puppet script based on a children’s story book illustrated that some people may applaud the changes they see in us, compliment the lessons we teach, or give us praise for spiritual growth. Other people may lavish us with criticism, make comparisons between us and others, or remind us of our mistakes or who we used to be. Both can be distractions as we should only care about what Jesus thinks about us.

The Dunbel Glaston Family

Dunbel was born in 1970 in the Dowa district of Malawi. Thokozily was born in 1978 in the Nkhotakota region. He married Thokozily in 1998. They have 7 children ranging in age from 24 to 1. Currently, they are also caring for their granddaughter for a few months while her mother is moving. Dunbel was baptized in 1993 and Thokozily was baptized in 1998. Interestingly, she was converted by her husband. 

Before coming to Lilongwe, Dunbel and his family were living in Phwamphwa, a small village east of Rumphi. He worked with his sons as a goat butcher. Dunbel  had almost 30 years of preaching experience preaching before coming to school. However, he wants to get an education in Bible to become a better preacher. 

Between the 8 students who are enrolled, Dunbel is by far the most passionate speaker we have. He is not afraid to raise his voice and drive home that point. He is also an older man who wants to be molded to become a better worker for the Lord. Thokozily is a very concerned about the souls of her children and the influence the world is having upon them. She deeply desires for all of her children to get that crown of life in the end. Please pray for this dedicated family as they work hard to become more knowledgable workers in God’s kingdom.

Doing good in Malawi

Bear Valley Bible Institute

Ekwendeni – Malawi

March Report – 2023

Introduction

March has ended with both good and sad news! But if we summarize all, the name of the Lord is always PRAISED! March took us to the end of the second month since we started our classes this year of 2023. Many things have been accomplished such that 6 courses have been finished. We have received news from some of our former students that 13 souls have been added to the church and also 13 more souls restored.

The sad news is about deaths; we have had heavy rains in different districts of the southern part of Malawi where 10 districts were affected with the floods. Two of our students are from the south and one has lost his biological brother and the other one lost his father. It is sad news! Below is the detailed report.

Teaching

As we are in the middle of our classes, a lot of work has already been done. We have had short course teachers who come to help us and with our full time teachers six courses have been accomplished in just a period of 2 month.  Now the Pentateuch II is in progress. We are thankful for the zeal of the teachers who are committed to doing this noble work of training men to be faithful preachers of the true gospel of Christ – 2 Timothy 2:2.

Cyclone

We have had heavy rains in some of the 10 districts of Malawi in the southern region of our country. These rains were due to the so-called “Cyclone Freddy”. This caused rivers to flood, houses destroyed, people and animals killed and crops being taken away leaving people with no hope for food and shelter. The very sad news is the loss of lives! Lot of brothers and sisters in Christ are also homeless and grieving for their loved ones who died and some still missing up to date. We have our 2 students who lost their relatives. One lost his brother and another lost his father. But looking to who sends the rains, we always say PRAISE GOD! We cannot blame God for the rains. We have a saying "Whatever comes from heaven has no case to answer”! We thank God in everything.

Good News!

As it is always good to share the good news, we have had reports from some of our former students who like to share with us the reports of the work they are doing. This time we had reports from 4 of them. Brother Shadreck from Pharombe reported that 1 souls saved and 2 more souls restored; Brother Mateyo from Kasungu reported that 2 souls saved and 7 more restored; Brother Takesure reported that 8 souls saved and 4 more restored and also Brother Saliwa reported 2 souls saved! Which means 13 souls in total have been baptized and 13 souls restored! Keep the newborn babies in Christ in your daily prayers that they grow.

We are thankful to BVBI International and the Hillcrest brethren for their continued support! God bless you all!

Your fellow workers for Christ;

Ephron and Clergynton

Donnie Estep visits Lilongwe, Malawi

Classes Continuing

Throughout the month of February, our men studied three different Bible topics. First of all, Donnie Estep came from America and taught the Scheme of Redemption before teaching the same in Ekwendeni. Following Donnie, Foster Zimba taught the students about the New Testament Church. I taught a survey class of Old Testament history from Joshua through Esther the third week of month. Leann is teaching a ladies class each Friday focused on servanthood and Navie is teaching the women the Life of Christ on Tuesday nights. 

The last week of the month was designated as a research week for the men. They used the week to catch up on assignments and papers. It also allowed them to do a little work in their gardens that help supplement their food stipend.

Now that their program is one-fourth of the way finished, the entire family is learning about the time required for their studies. This time comes at a cost to family time. All students, both men and women, were encouraged to set aside some time in the research week to spend time with their families in order to keep their relationships strong. 

Meet the Students

As a missionary and director, I feel it is very important to help you know the individuals you are supporting. It seems like the best way for you to meet the students is through a monthly introduction. For the next few months, I will introduce one of our families who are attending Bear Valley Lilongwe. Please take time and pray for these families by name. As you will see, they have left jobs, families, and homes to come and study God’s word for two years. 

The Wilson Phiri Family

Wilson was born in 1992 in the Kasungu district in northern Malawi. In 2020, he moved to the Nkhata Bay Area near Lake Malawi. Wilson is married to Cecilia who was born in 1990. Wilson was baptized in 2005 and Cecilia was baptized in 2014. They have been married for 10 years. They have two boys. Hubert is 9, and Blessings is 5. 

Before coming to school, Wilson cut wood with a hand saw, farmed, and did some contract farm work. After school in Lilongwe, Wilson would like to continue learning the Bible and help others grow in their Bible knowledge. 

Here are a few fun facts I see in Wilson and his family. Wilson is an amazing husband and father who has very well behaved children. Cecilia is a dedicated wife and mother who stays focused in her school work. Both of them have amazing smiles which show their inner joy and peace. Hubert is a quiet one who is always thinking like his dad. If I ever need to find Blessings, he is hanging out with his buddy, Flasko, maintaining the campus. Please pray for Wilson and his family as they work hard to increase their Bible knowledge. 

A new class of students in Malawi

Bear Valley Bible Institute

Ekwendeni – Malawi

February, 2023 Report

Introduction

Greetings from Malawi, the warm heart of Africa! It is a gain with great joy to share the good news accomplished in the month of February, 2023. Visitors after visitors. Last month we had our President visiting us, and this month of February, visitors again from America. We thank God for blessing us with such brothers in the brotherhood from outside Malawi.

We are excited to see students back to school again. We enrolled 30 students but because of some challenges during this time of the year only 21 managed to report for school. The exciting news is that the new congregation has been established at the school campus! Already many are willing to be baptized. Praise God!

Short course Teacher

After being visited by Dr Denny Petrillo in January, we received 2 more American brothers Charles G Ching and Chad Scott. The two brothers arrived on the 4th of February and went back on the 11th of February, 2023. Charles G Ching used to be my WBS helper/Teacher in the late 1990s. Chad is a brother in Christ as well as a nurse. Their visit was great as we were helped in both ways in our community. Chad was at Kaweche Health Centre while Charles was teaching our students “Bible Geography”. We thank God for them and wish them to come again. So far we have taught Writing skills, Bible Geography, Homiletics and now the book of Acts in session.

Church Established – School Campus

The school is at a distance of about 7km to the next meeting place and between us there is Thukutu River which is a big thing this time of the rains. Because of this we allowed students to start preaching within the villages around the school and many have promised to be baptized soon. This has made us start worshiping at the campus and last Sunday the attendance was 24. We hope the number keep adding  soon.

We are always thankful for the partnership between BV international and the Hillcrest church of Christ, this partnership has made a lot to be accomplished within a short period of time. Working together as a team always brings in positive results. Together we can! Many souls are lost out there and let us join hands to conquer Satan. Eternity Is Forever, Think Souls!

Yours fellow servants of the Lord,

Ephron and Clergynton

Training families in Malawi

Eager to Serve

The students set off on a campaign to talk to as many people as they could about Jesus.  They offered Bible studies and looked for those who had fallen away.  In one week, about 210 conversations happened.  

One lady chose to put on Christ in baptism after learning what the Bible says about how to be saved.  Two other women committed to returning to the church after having fallen away due to marrying outside of the church and following their husbands to other religions or merely staying home.

Each day two student families remained on campus to be responsible for the children.  Several children were too young to be in school but no longer dependent upon their moms for food while others returned home around noon.  Parents cooked lunch and supplied snacks for their own children in advance.

The students gained momentum daily being motivated by people who were willing to obey God’s will for their lives.  There is much follow-up work to be done, but the new church plant is now well-known in five surrounding villages thanks to the spreading of the word by the student body.

Serving Each Other

One of the students suffered polio which left him no longer able to walk.  He moves from place to place either by walking on his hands or by wheelchair.  

The other students have rallied around him to be sure he can get where he needs to go.  If he leaves the campus, someone always accompanies him whether to the church building or on errands.

In turn, he also serves others.  When his neighbor was ill during the night, he was the one who sounded the alert.  He woke up another student and the resident staff member so that we could also be called to assist with an ambulance run to the hospital.

Prayer Requests

It is not easy to commit 100% to the Lord, but the student families are doing exactly that.  They have left houses, brothers, sisters, father, mother, and farms for the sake of Jesus.  Their dedication will reap much more than what they have left behind and, most importantly, eternal life (Matthew 19:29).

• One student lost his brother after a long illness.  It was this brother who was caring for his field and home while he was away.  The student has returned to class and is currently on break tending to the needs of his extended family.

• We just received news that a student wife has lost her mom since leaving for break.  The loss has brought her family back to the region of Malawi where the school is located so we are hopeful for her return with the rest of the students on Saturday.

Please continue to keep this work in your prayers.

Dale Kastner

Denny Petrillo visits Malawi

Cholera Spreads Widely

“Worst outbreak in two decades… every district in Malawi affected”

Rather than having a pitched tent that quarantines those infected with the coronavirus, there are now tents at hospitals where cholera patients stay in crowded conditions as they fight against the disease.  Thankfully, we have only had one student mimic the symptoms, and he has fully recovered.

The students are wary of how many sicknesses are spreading during rainy season and staying at the school as much as possible.

Our Honored Guests

Four, faithful men came from near and far to bless the school this month

Two local teachers and two directors of schools equipped the students with increased Bible knowledge one week at a time.  

Beginning with a survey class covering Exodus through Deuteronomy, a local teacher led the way.  He was followed by another Malawian who has studied at various schools and taught in one other preaching school.  Galatians was his topic for the week.  

Next up was Denny Petrillo, president of Bear Valley Bible Institute of Denver and their extension schools, who spent a week teaching “How We Got the Bible”.  As one of the newest Bear Valley extension schools, we were blessed to have Denny come to see the campus and teach in the men’s program.  

Denny did everything a guest teacher does, and then he went the extra mile.  Not only did he teach for 7 hours each day, grade homework in the evenings, and review his lesson for the next day, but he also preached and taught Bible class on Sunday at the worship services, participated in an impromptu Q&A, and allowed Dale to ask as many questions as he wanted on any topic as the thoughts came to his mind. 

Denny was the first guest to stay in our home for a week in 3 years.  What a huge encouragement to our family!

The Malawian director of another preaching school in the country finished strongly with Hermeneutics…understanding Scripture.

A sneak peek…

We are going to host a Bible bowl-type event entitled “Race of the Testaments” intended to generate a healthy competition between the youth, their dads, and possibly even their moms (to be determined).  The questions will come from the book of Ephesians.

The youth are getting a head start as Leann launched their first meeting to evaluate interest last Sunday afternoon.  All seven literate children want to participate.  Leann will continue to coach the youth while giving them Bible study tools. Their parents have already learned in their respective classes at the school.  The adults will be on their own.

Rising Prices

The price of maize has increased 33% here in Lilongwe in the past 4 months. We are seeking new and creative ways to salvage family budgets. Please pray for us as we are trying to make wise and sustainable financial decisions. 

In Him, 

Dale Kastner

The President visits Malawi

Hello!

It is always a blessing to have a home that is visited by many! Here in Malawi, we have been blessed and felt honored to be visited by our President Dr Denny Petrillo.

We are all aware how busy Denny is, and if we think of 60 schools under heaven that need him to visit, such visitor coming at your house, WOW! What an honor! The holiday is over and time to start another semester is here. We are starting on the 6th of February, 2023. Keep us in your prayers as we now have 30 students enrolled. 

DR DENNY PETRILLO

As you have noted in the introduction, Brother Dr Denny Petrillo is the president of Bear Valley Bible schools all over the world. We have 60 schools and for him to visit all of these schools is not easy. Especially when we think of how much it does cost to travel from USA to places like Malawi the central Africa. We felt honored and blessed to have him. Though it was holiday time, but we managed to gain from his knowledge as he taught "How we got the Bible", and also "1 Timothy chapters 1 to 4" those who attended were about 42 preachers including some of the Bear Valley Bible Institute Ekwendeni former graduates.

We really enjoyed the lessons and also were given the materials to use as we continue studying. Materials given were like; DVD on How we got the Bible course, (hard drives with lots of courses, sermons, commentaries and audio lessons, etc), hard copy of the notes on How we got the Bible and also empty hard drives which can be used to save in lessons and other Bible materials were given to those who attended.

SCHOOL OPENING

We are opening the school on 6th February, 2023. Again,  another blessed month with 3 visitors; Donnie, Charles and Chad. Donnie will be teaching at our sister school in Lilongwe the Malawi Capital while Charles and his son-in-law Chad will come to Ekwendeni. Charles will be teaching short course on "Bible Geography" while Chad is a nurse and will be working with a local clinic at Ekwendeni area. We are really thankful for these godly men. Their visit will boost the good reputation of the school. It is always a blessing to receive visitors!

CONSTRUCTION WORK

In our previous report we talked about the students hostel building finished, now we are happy to report that solar power is installed in the hostel building. And also we have built shower rooms, toilets and the school kitchen.

We are thankful to the Bear Valley Bible Institute International working hand in hand with the Hillcrest Church Missouri for the monthly support. A lot has been achieved since you partnered. Without you we could not get where we are today. The work is still on, souls are still lost today, as long as we are able to see this we have duty to evangelize! 

Eternity is forever Think souls!

As it is rightly said "Until all have Heard"

Ephron and Clergynton 

A new school in Malawi!

Eager to Learn

We have been very impressed by the student body’s efforts to go the extra mile to learn God’s Word.  Inside the classroom learning is expected, but the student families are doing more outside of the classroom. They are learning how to serve their local congregation. The local church only had one toilet for both men and women. One day, all of the men joined forces and finished a partial outhouse the church had started several months ago. Now the church can do the culturally correct thing and have separate toilets. 

Not only are the husbands and wives learning, the children are too! This month, several of the older boys took advantage of a Bible and songbook program we have. They said all the books of the Bible, which earned them a free Bible, as well as Psalm 100 which earned them a free song book. To say the least, these older boys were setting a great example for all the younger children on campus. But wait. That is not the best news. Two of those same boys were baptized this month!

Chapel Attendance

Chapel is a devotional held on a morning break from the men’s program.  Although not required, the women are consistently coming to learn more, be with their husbands, and add their voices to the song service.  Although it has added the need for everything to be translated, it has been a true blessing. They bring many smiles as well as encouragement to their husbands for the few minutes they are together in the mornings. In addition, it gives all the students an opportunity to practice translating in a safe environment. When one makes a mistake or is searching for the right word, his classmates will gently assist him with a word and a smile. Although a challenge for some, this valuable life lesson is one more way we are equipping men for the Lord’s work.

Classes and Campaigns

This month the men enjoyed their first research week. Then they participated in Acts 2, Personal Evangelism, and Matthew taught by three different teachers. Next month they will have Homiletics 1 followed by their first campaign. The women continued in their studies of James and Christ’s Culture. These two classes will finish at the same time as the men’s classes so they will be able to participate with their husbands in the campaign.

The first campaign will focus on evangelism in the 5 villages around the school. Following the campaign, all the students will travel home for two weeks. This will be especially important as they will need to arrange for contract work in their fields as well as maintain relationships with their home congregation.

We solicit your prayers and support as we continue in this training exercise.

Dale Kastner

Graduation in Malawi

Bear Valley Bible Institute Ekwendeni is one of the extension schools for BVBI - International of Denver Colorado. We are dedicated to training preachers the health Doctrine (Sound Doctrine). It has taken us 3 years to graduate the current class due to the breaks we had because of the pandemic. Otherwise it is a 2 years course to get one graduate. We are thankful that our students persevered all this long and today they have sung a song of Joy.

This month of October was a blessed month that we had 3 visitors from states; Brother Donnie came to teach short course from the 10th to the 14th of October, 2022, while Brother Tim and Mike from Hillcrest Missouri (USA) came to see the work of construction they have done through their congregation support and officially handing the building to the BV Ekwendeni school. It was a moment full of excitement for all of us including the traditional chiefs who came to witness this. The short course also ended with a graduation ceremony which took place on the 15th of October, 2022 whereby Tim was the guest of honor!

Seeing our graduating students, we were also excited with the news they shared about baptisms happening in their respective homes. It is really all about good news!

Short course

Donnie Estep taught the last class before the graduation and was impressed with the performance of the students and the change they have made so far. It really proved to him that he was teaching the graduates.

Graduation

In life there's alot of things people cerebrate and feel the joy of life, things like birthdays, weddings but more to this when someone finishes a higher diploma course at any institution, this too brings Joy and excitement. It was on the 15th of October 2022 when BV Ekwendeni new campus was covered in full excitement and joy. Students dressed nicely as they cerebrate their day of award after completing 3 years of Biblical studies. Chiefs around the school campus were invited, former students, one of Mzuzu Bible college teachers and not forgetting the congregation that has always been hosting our students that is Chinungu church of Christ members were available! We praise God for the joy shared. We had 14 students graduated this year.

Construction work

The construction work is in progress, as we reported that the hostels are finished, the toilets and shower rooms finished and now we want to start the kitchen and possibly the guest house constructed once the funds allow us to. The guest house is very important that it will be able to accommodate the short course teachers, visitors from states would be accommodated with no lodging costs as of now all visitors from abroad we have to accommodate them at the lodge but when we have the guest house at school campus, this could save their costings at the lodge. The Group Village Head has promised us in presence of our visitors, that if BVBI - International wants more development at the campus in Ekwendeni Malawi, they are happy to extend the land for us even more!

Baptisms

The students have reported 15 baptisms at the end of their practical work before their graduation and also 6 more souls restored. Our students are coming from almost the whole part of Malawi. We have students from Pharombe boadering Mozambique, Machinga, Blantyre, kasungu, mzimba, Karonga, Ntchisi and also Nkhataby districts. The news about school is everywhere. Our purpose is that as long as we have the Ability and Opportunity; Responsibility to train more men is with us - 2 Timothy 2:2

Next semester

Our next semester will reopen the first week of February, 2023. We like opening in this month, that we give enough time our students to cultivate their land and plant crops, as subsistence farming is our major source of food. November, December and January is farming time. This time we have 30 prospective students enrolled. Pray for their families as they have stepped into this path of learning God's word.

We always appreciate the effort the BVBI-International give us through monthly support. We remember you and your families in our daily prayers. God has a reward for you for this work. We also remember to give praise to God for the brethren at Hillcrest Missouri for helping us with all the construction work which is still in progress. God guide you in all you do to make sure BV Ekwendeni is independent with our campus well built. This has put the BV Ekwendeni school on the map with the good looking buildings.

There are still souls to be saved - Think Souls!

Yours truly brothers in Christ,

Ephron and Clergynton

44 more baptisms in Malawi

Hello everyone!

Hope this news finds you well! It is always good to hear when people are being saved. It makes us all feel happy as one soul obeys the gospel, knowing full well the tragedy of sin. As you are aware, our students are on holiday but they are not resting. This month of August, we have received reports from same of them reporting that 44 souls have been saved through baptism and 13 more restored! The Lord is working through them and His name is glorified. It is very encouraging hearing from their good work of winning souls to Christ.

Construction

We are also thankful to Brothers at the congregation where Tim and John worship in Missouri. They have greatly helped us get established. Now we are saying we have the students hostel block finished and now we are about to finish the shower rooms and toilets before September ends. After this work we will start the kitchen, we are hoping that before January/February we may have the kitchen completed too. We really thank brothers Tim and John for their kindness, love and many prayers for us.

Graduation

We are looking forward to the 15th of October 2022, when our graduation number 3 will be conducted since the school was established in Malawi. But before the 15th we will have a short course and then graduation. It is good to see men graduate and get the courage to keep on saving souls to Christ as well as teaching the health Doctrine to those who are faithful - 2 Timothy 2:2!

We are also thankful to the Bear Valley Bible Institute International for the operational support you send us every month. We don't take it for granted. You have really changed lives of many including our families. We always remember you in our daily prayers . Without your support, we would have not reached this far. The opportunity to reach out to more souls and train more faithful preachers is still available! As it is wisely said "Ability+Opportunity = Responsibility"

Eternity Is Forever, Think Souls!

In His vineyard,

Ephron and Clergynton

Students evangelize in Malawi

Ekwendeni – Malawi

May, 2022 Report

 Introduction 

It is always exciting to share the good news from the Bear Valley School. As we all are aware our brand is to train men to be faithful preachers of the gospel – 2 Timothy 2:2. We are happy to share with you the news that we have received from our students as they have gone to their home congregations to do the practical work of preaching and teaching the word! They will be out until the end of 16 weeks. This period of time will also help us get everything ready before their graduation on the 15th of October, 2022.

The good news has reached us that already in a period of less than a month19 baptisms have been done and 4 souls restored. We are hoping for more good news to share soon! 

Preaching and Teaching

As far as teaching is concerned at our Bear Valley Bible Institute – Ekwendeni, all the teachings are completed except one course which will be completed by Brother Donnie in early October before the graduation. This made us use the opportunity well as we have sent the students back to their homes to do the preaching and conduct the lectureships as we teachers will be making sure the preparation for the next bunch of students is ready and also the construction of toilets, shower rooms, and kitchens are completed before October. So far so good, in less than a month, the students are sending us good reports about what they are doing in their homes. We have received news from Pharombe, Mozambique where one student is from. This brother Shadreck has reported that he organized a preaching campaign and 4 souls were added to Christ. We also received a report from Brother Mateyo in Kasungu central Malawi, he preached door to door at the end of May and 8 souls obeyed the gospel. It has really been a good time for our students. 

We also had good news from Brothers Takesure Nkhoma and Abishai Makwakwa that they helped 7 souls get saved. This is good news that only in the month of May, 19 souls have been added to the church! We give glory to God!

The construction work of the hostel is completed!

We are excited to report that the construction work has reached the ending point. We have painted it and soon solar power will be installed. 

Construction of the toilets has started

As the excitement has filled the atmosphere, we can’t proceed without toilets, shower rooms and kitchen. We are now also happy to report that the toilets are under construction and after that we expect the kitchen done then shower rooms. We hope that before October all these structures will be completed.

We thank God for everything, and mainly for all those who make this possible through support and many prayers. May the Mighty God continue blessing your families as you Think Souls!

As it is rightly said “Until all have heard”!

Ephron and Clergynton.

Exciting times in Malawi!

Bear Valley Bible Institute

APRIL, 2021 - REPORT 

Introduction

Hello!

Hope this find everyone in good health. It is always a happy thing when you come to the finishing line of your race in every completion. Covid 19 has been a great challenge in our work of teaching men be faithful preachers. As we all are aware that it takes 2 years to graduate, but this time it has taken 3years because of Covid 19 challenge. But now we are happy that we are almost there. All courses have been taught and these remaining 3 weeks of May, we are finishing the remaining 2 courses of general epistles. We are thankful to God that we have managed to reach this far. This semester we were blessed to have our students hostels completed, healing hands international representative came to train our students in new technologies of agriculture and many more ways how we can harvest using composite manure. We are feeling to have been favoured and blessed by God! God has been faithful to us.

We are also thankful to mission printing team for sending us books and now our library will look great! The students have also received their carton full of books each. They are thrilled with joy as they will go home fully equipped with all kinds of weapons to defeat Satan. Again, we have good news from our former students that souls are being added to Christ, this time 11 souls have been reported saved! We praise God for the good job these men are doing. More detailed information in the paragraphs below.

Preaching and Teaching

We are excited at the moment as all the teaching work is almost done. We have had brother Blessings who came to teach short course on Minor Phrophet2 and also Brother Navie Theu who taught on poetry books. The students have grown in their understanding greatly and hope the congregations where they are going will benefit a lot as they fill up the pulpits and fulfil our brand – 2 Timothy 2:2.

As the school, we are always proud of our former students when we hear of them making a difference where they work as preachers. In the month in the month of April, we have received reports about the evangelism outcomes from our three former students who had preaching of door to door. We have received the news that 11 souls have been added to Christ and also 4 souls restored summing up to 15 souls! We praise God for this.

Construction work

The student’s hostel construction work is at the advanced stage of the finishing stage. We have everything completed only painting is to be done in few days to come. Having said this, without toilets, kitchen and shower rooms, we cannot be able to shift to this place. Therefore it is our prayer that God will keep our door to having funds open that we do the shower rooms, toilets and kitchen constructed. Renting has been expensive for a long time. The money we spend on rentals would have been used in other works of bringing souls to Christ.

Agricultural training

As school, our purpose is not only training preachers in Bible only, knowing that a person grows both physically and spiritually, we thought to invite the Healing Hands International to train our preachers how to keep their lives independent as the preach the gospel without support. Nowadays preachers support from without is no longer there, therefore, preachers need to work hard with their own hands as Paul, Peter left us with good examples. The Healing Hands have helped us with water and agricultural trainings. We thank Brother Mbwenu Chirwa who came to teach the students and the community also benefited from the studies to the point that one villager offered his one acre of land that next time the healing hands international come can go and help the whole village with the training. This training has preached a lot in the area where the school is allocated.

Mission Printing – Brings Joy to school and students!

Time passed and we were not even dreaming about this. We have been asking for library books since the school started in 2015, without know that BV International is working on that. We have been surprised with the coming of the books, not only for the library, but also for the students as a gift to each a carton. This is the joy the students and us all are in at the moment. God bless you all who took part in putting the books in cartons and shipping them to us. You have done us good. We are also thankful to Brother Donnie who offered the transport of books from Zimbabwe where they were shipped through. We really thank him for his kindness and love and so is our sister school in Gweru – Zimbabwe helped a lot putting the books in a bus to Malawi from Harare.

We are also thankful for the partnership between BV international and the Hillcrest church of Christ for the great support given to us to make the construction work accomplished. Without your stretched hand in this work we would have not made it on our own. Let this heart continues as the work still needs your involvement. Eternity Is Forever, Think Souls!

In Christ!

Ephron and Clergynton

Wonderful news of conversions and construction in Malawi

Bear Valley Bible Institute

Ekwendeni – Malawi

Introduction

Hello! We are happy to be back in class after a long holiday. We extended our holiday by a month due to the late coming of the rains; for which we don’t blame God as everything is under His control. We have a saying “What comes from above has no case to answer”. We reopened on the 7th of March, 2022 and we received good news from our students that happened during their holiday. We are also glad to share this in this report. We were also blessed to have Donnie come for the short course in the second week of March. He taught the epistle to the Hebrews. After his class on Hebrews, Donnie, the teachers, and all the students went to see the construction of the hostel progress where the students were amazed and suggested they be allocated there but the challenge is that there are no toilets yet, and the kitchen and shower rooms are not constructed yet. It is all exciting! God has been faithful to us!

Preaching and teaching

Our students are coming from 10 districts in 3 major regions of Malawi, Northern, Central and Southern regions respectively. This shows that the good news about the Bear valley school is known all over Malawi. The preaching work report from our students during holiday time has been outstanding and wonderful. It has been reported that there have been 44 baptisms during the holiday, 145 restorations, and also 50 World Bible School students enrolled with Brother Thomas who is one of our current students. Brother Thomas is one of the World Bible School helpers. This is exciting news to see and hear souls being added to the church every time.  Let us join hands praying for the saved souls to grow in Spirit and in the knowledge of the word of Christ.

Teaching work is in progress. The first week of March 7-11, Brother Clergynton taught the Marriage and Family course, and the second week it was Brother Donnie with the Hebrews epistle. We have really started well.

Construction

As we are looking towards the completion of the hostel block construction work finished, we still have a long way to go before we shift to our new place this year. We have to build toilets, kitchen and shower rooms, of which we hope God will help us get them done. We still ask your prayers for this work, renting has been expensive and especially this time of the year when everything is skyrocketing daily.

Gospel campaigns

We are thankful to many congregations and preachers from the villages asking the school to help in preaching campaigns. We are looking forward to getting back in the field to help souls come to Christ. Prayers are needed so that God opens doors for this work.

All in all, we are thankful to Bear Valley International for the monthly support and many prayers. We are also thankful to Brother Tim and John and the whole congregation for partnering with Bear Valley International to help in the construction of the hostel block. We don’t take this for granted, you are such a blessing to us. We always pray for you and your families knowing for sure that this work still needs your involvement. Eternity Is Forever, Think Souls!

In His VineYard,

Ephron and Clergynton.

Making progress in Malawi

Bear Valley Bible Institute

Ekwendeni – Malawi

2022 Begins with Good news!

Hello everyone! I hope this finds you all doing well, thanks! As we all are aware that the first week of February, 2022 was our time to restart our classes after a 3 month holiday, but we have extended the holiday. We will open on the 7th of March, 2022. This is because we have had no rains in Malawi until the 3rd week of January. Therefore, knowing that our daily food comes from our subsistence farming, we thought it good to give extra time for our students to plant. However, the students are able to divide their holiday time that they spare time to preaching as well.

Baptisms!
Recently our students went to a funeral ceremony of one of our brothers in Christ in Ntchisi District. After the burial, the car they were in ended up involved in an accident but we praise God they all were protected. Some of the passengers recognized the students in the car that they were the once who were preaching and singing at the funeral and they asked them to share the good news about Christ. Mateyu Ching’oma preached and ended up with a voice that made people to cry and some obeyed the Gospel the same time. His words were “We have been saved in this car accident that we should lead some of you here if not ALL to Christ” – 3 souls obeyed Christ! Praise God. This is amazing story. God truly has his ways of helping people hear the gospel, no matter they situation involved.
My Fellow teacher Brother Clergynton also went to Chankhombo church of Christ last week to worship, he meet his son in-law who was preaching to 2 ladies and after the preaching the 2 ladies obeyed the gospel!

Construction work!
The construction work for the student’s hostel is still in progress, we are now plastering, window frames and door frames have been fixed in and also tubing has been done waiting for the electric wiring soon. It is good that before the year ends we will shift to our own land. We thank Bear valley Bible institute International for making this possible with the partnership with brethren in Neosho Missouri! God bless you!
Greetings!Ephron

Exciting times in Malawi

BEAR VALLEY BIBLE INSTITUTE

EKWENDENI – MALAWI

October Report - 2021

INTRODUCTION

Hello everyone! It is always a joy for the students when we come to the closing date, especially in the month of October as everyone is looking forward to farming before reopening of the school in February. October has been a month full of good news to tell. God is blessing us daily, we praise His Holy name. In this month of October, we have had a visiting teacher – Donnie Estep, our coordinator. Brother Clergynton, one of the BV Ekwendeni teachers went to Lilongwe and Blantyre to conduct the interviews for the next intake, all went on well. We also had a preaching campaign whereby more souls obeyed the gospel.

Preaching and Teaching

We are very thankful to BV international that they always consider sending us short course teachers, and we were happy to have Brother Donnie who taught the course of “Hermeneutics”. The same dates Donnie arrived were our same dates for the interviews for the next intake. Therefore, instead of all the teachers going for the interviews program, the work was divided so that Ephron the local Director stayed to take care of Donnie while Clergynton and another teacher went to conduct the interviews in the central and southern region of Malawi respectively. As indicated in the introduction of this report, this month of October has been of good news as far as the winning of souls to Christ is concerned – two more congregations established.

Brother Navie, one of the teachers who helps us in short courses, is always happy to manage the evangelism part of the school work. After teaching the short course he went to a place called Manthepa where he was involved in the preaching campaign, 1 soul was baptized and many others restored. This congregation has started with about 30 members plus. After Manthepa, he went to restore the Mtende congregation where 20 members are now meeting as the church. Then last week went to Hola where he was involved again in establishing the new congregation, 3 souls baptized and 12 more restored – the church has started with 15 members there. God is good.

Saliwa Nkosi

Saliwa is one of our former students who is very active and always shares with us what he is doing. This month of October, he has helped 8 souls come to Christ through baptism. We are always appreciating him for the good work he is doing. This work has a greater reward hereafter! We pray that God will continue blessing his family.

School Van and school construction work

We are thrilled with great joy as we now have hope for the school future in Malawi. For a long time we have been hiring cars to take us to preaching campaigns, funerals and lectureships; but now we say PRAISE GOD, for the problem is solved as we have our own school van now. We are also happy that the construction work is in progress, everything is moving in the favor of God at the moment. We are thankful to bother Wongani Gondwe, our former student who is also our current contractor. Wongani is well experienced in building work and he is really doing a good job on our Hostel construction. So far the hostels are in roofing level and once the funds are available, we are roofing it hopefully before the rains

We, therefore would like to appreciate the Bear valley bible institute international for their monthly support towards this work here in Malawi. We understand the big task you have in looking after about 47 schools in the world. Ekwendeni being one of the beneficiaries, we want to really appreciate this from the deep of our hearts. We also want to take this advantage to thank brothers Tim and John for their love and concern with the Malawi BV school, renting is very expensive and now it has been increased in price due to everything going up in price, but with the construction of the hostels, it will help us move to our own place by September next year. We pray daily that God bless your families as you think about the BV school in Malawi. Eternity Is Forever, Think Souls!

Yours in Christ,

Clergynton and Ephron