The Guinea Bissau Missions has over the years shown consistency and proven to be vast and a fertile land for the harvest of souls. The rough beginning was a catalyst to the ground breaking successes recorded till date.
Reaching the Madigos tribe was one never easy task as events began to unfold favourably to reach this tribe and God has been in the centre of it all. The entry point to Guinea Bissau was characterized by a vision from God about Guinea Bissau. This spans a period from 1989-1994.
Sister Kehinde Yisa had the vision for Guinea Bissau and began to search around for what could link her to this country. She came about the organization called World Evangelical for Christ (WEC) in 1989 which has a base in Guinea Bissau and began to communicate with them. The communication intensified as she roamed the internet and God was beaming His search light on for her.
The survey of Guinea Bissau was to start and this further strengthened the relationship as she kept on writing to (WEC). FMI started in 1993, and in 1994 FMI sponsored her trip. In October 1994, she got to know WEC better. In December 1994, Sister Kehinde married Brother Zacchaeus Yisa in Nigeria.
Brother Yisa came to school at the Fullstature Missions Training School (FMTS) and after the training they were ready to move to Guinea Bissau. The contact with WEC gave them the impetus to take the giant leap to go to Guinea Bissau. WEC became their host in 1996 August till January 1997 when they moved to Farim.
Patrick John Stone visited Nigeria in 1997. He was one of the WEC leaders. He facilitated the partnership FMI has with WEC. He sent a message to WEC in Cote D’ Voire, which was communicated to WEC in Guinea Bissau, to work out an arrangement of a partnership with FMI Missionaries. This was because he saw what FMI stands for and the credibility of the FMI Vision as a Missions Agency.
The agreement was based on partnering with the Yisas’ as a family not the other way round. It is patterned for them as an associate to work with WEC. This was as a result of the worthy report of the Yisas’ conduct and stewardship. WEC was apprehensive to go all out on an agreement with just any Missionary from Nigeria.
The partnership arrangement was to be with individuals from FMI and this would be done under thorough investigation, observation and supervision of anyone who wants to be a beneficiary of such partnership agreement with WEC.
WEC giving the Yisas’ a pastoral coverage and care and also receive funds for them from the United Kingdom because it was difficult for the Mother Agency (FMI) to get money through to the Yisas’ from Nigeria.
The partnership has since been reviewed and the consistency has generated a very cordial and true partnership till date.
Reaching the Madigos has been a herculean task of going to villages, visiting churches and unchurched areas. There was a refrain that was consistent and that was that they were old but their children could come along. God made it possible for their children to be reached when the Lord gave the word to start a school.
Through this school, the younger ones have been reached and the discipleship training has intensified. One remarkable thing about Guinea Bissau is that as at the time FMI got to the country, they had no university but now the country in that direction and development beckons.
We bless God for the numerical growth we experience in Farim Church. Many young people and married women are coming to faith almost on weekly basis. This gives us the joy of seeing one group baptized after another. We took over 40 new converts in baptismal classes. They were baptized in June 2022.
We thank God for how He has kept our schools running both the Primary and the Secondary and for the little harvest we are getting from them for the Kingdom. It gives us an open door to reach many that we would have been unable to have access to otherwise. We have liberty to reach out to them openly and sometimes do deliverance for some as occasion warrants. Please pray for more souls through this channel.
We did not hold our annual three months Discipleship/Missions Training program for two years due to corona virus. We receive calls almost on daily basis from pastors and believers begging us to hold it this year. We have so many on the waiting list that we prayed for God’s direction on the right strategy to use to select 100 students for 2022 session. We decided finally by the end of May. Please pray for God’s divine leading of the teachers.
We thank God for His grace to produce the 5th edition of the Creole devotional for 2022. The Lord has continued to use it in many homes and lives as we receive calls of encouragement and gratitude. There are two Christian Radio stations that use it for their devotional and many believers and Catholics follow the program for their daily devotion. We are also happy that many people use it in their WhatsApp groups especially the Guineans in the diaspora. We also sent the PDF format to many of our disciples in the diaspora as our way of following them up and it has been very fruitful from the feedbacks we are getting. Please pray for the grace and inspiration to produce the one for 2023.
Pastor Mateus Malu is our Guinean anchor man who has worked with us for two decades now. God has raised him to the top position of leadership in our Region which means he should have high Theological qualification by Guinean context. We thank God for opening door for him to go to Nigeria to do his degree and Master’s program in Theology. He finished in March and is now back in Guinea-Bissau to continue the work with us. Pray for more unction and utterance for him.
Successes of developments and spiritual progress that dot here and there are what God has helped and used our missionaries to do. We are grateful for all the supports and partnership extended to us.
Praise God!
Report by – Dr. Mrs Kehinde Yisa