Growth that needs our help

The village of D.C. Kura is an old farming community in the Yendi district of the Northern region. The village obtained its name “D.C. Kura” from an old District Chief (D.C.) Executive (a central government representative) from Yendi who had his farm in the village and being a prominent person, the inhabitants decided to name the village after him.

Predominantly, those who live in D.C. Kura believe in the African traditional religious system; their religious worldview lies in the belief that the spiritual is imminent and impinges directly on the living. There is a strong belief that people are surrounded by hosts of spirit-beings which are able to influence the lives of the living for good or for evil. These fearful beliefs in the spirit world enslave the people of D.C. Kura as they often sacrifice animals out of fear to appease the gods and their ancestors (their dead relatives) who are believed to have the power to bless or curse the living depending on the way they live.

In 1992, Pastor Azindow saw the need to establish a literacy class in D.C. Kura, as no one in the entire village was able to read in either their mother tongue language or in English. Through the literacy class the good news of Jesus Christ was heard in the village and this brought a dramatic change to the lives of many inhabitants. They came to know the truth, and the truth indeed has set them free (John 8:31, 32). The gospel really brought liberation to the people as many families gave their lives to Jesus. Also many young men and women enthusiastically started to learn how to read and caught the vision of sending their children to school. In fact the current leader of the D.C. Kura Church, Naakiwu Lamba, was one of the first students who learned to read in their first literacy class. In 1994, two years after the literacy classes started, Mark Hagerup (a missionary with SIM) helped D.C. Kura believers establish a church congregation and since then they have continued to experience spiritual and numerical growth.

The church building at D.C. Kura

Abukari with Naakiwu Lamba, the church leader at D.C. Kura

An occasion last Sunday clearly affirmed this when we were especially invited to witness the graduation of students of the Children’s Sunday school class. When we arrived at the church the 14 young men and women who will be leaving the Sunday school were sitting under a tree, rehearsing the memory verses and songs they were to perform during the church service. Under another tree over 70 children gathered who also attend the weekly Sunday school. The church was full up of adults who are part of the membership of the church of D.C. Kura. When the 14 students entered the 24 x 18 ft church, followed by the 70 children to be part of the service it was obvious that the people of D.C. Kura have outgrown their church building. What a wonderful concern to have - the church is too small!!! Praise the Lord.

We are now taking up the challenge to see how we can make space for all these groups in one church building. Can you pray and stand with us as we try to raise $16,000 to build a church that can accommodate both the adults and children and their activities at the same time.

The Sunday school children are gathered under trees outside

Joke talking to the Sunday school children

The church is too small - people are standing in the aisle and many are still outside

Thank God for: 

• The growth of the Church in D.C. Kura
• The leaders and their commitment towards the adults as well as children in the church 

Pray for:

• This church that it will continue to grow, not only in numbers but also in their faith
• Funds to build a new, bigger church 
• Our trip to Kara, Togo; we hope to be there from 4th-11th September
• For the children who will go back to school (after a long absence) on 12th September
• For the safe arrival of another team from Videre who hope to be in Yendi from 11th-16th September to train a new group of entrepreneurs in ‘Business as Mission’