In June this year I was privileged to join David Bareham (Community Church Chafford Hundred) on a church planting trip to Zambia.

I heard that David was looking for a travelling partner and that same day expressed an interest in going. By the end of the day my airfare was nearly paid for by the unsolicited gift of two friends, and my fellow elders and the RM leadership all encouraged me to go - so I took this as a green light from God, and not many days later was on the plane to Zambia!

Nick West and David Bareham in Ndola, Zambia

Providential Connections

During the pandemic, David found himself mentoring a young church leader called Gift over the internet, who was leading a largely 20s and 30s group of Zambian believers in Ndola called Rhema Faith Church (RFC).

RFC were interested in being part of the Relational Mission family so David arranged a trip to teach on values and strengthen their understanding of New Testament church principles.

Having become part of the RM family quite recently, this was an ideal way for me and The Church in Bassett Street to learn about church planting – by watching and doing. The church caught the vision of global Church through praying for me and David via Whatsapp and seeing lots of pictures. By the end of the trip, many at home in London felt very close to Rhema Faith Church in Ndola.

I was conscious from the outset that I would receive more than I gave, and I was not disappointed. I was moved by the kindness of the believers to one another, especially the poorest, in sacrificial ways. Their love for the Bible was exemplary, the culture of prayer was encouraging and the simple passionate worship was just amazing. I loved the food too!

It was especially touching to see the church reaching out to the inmates of a local prison who were allowed to sing as a choir at their conference. I also loved the way the church mentored the local youth in life skills and with opportunities to lead.

I also saw the value in Jesus sending the disciples out two by two as David and I had time to talk and plan and pray together daily - I learned so much.

Community Church Chafford Hundred had given generously to support some of the young people in their education and also put a roof on a house, and had invested in a church chicken farming business to empower the church in a very poor economy. It was a blessing to visit, hear the stories and pray with everyone involved in these projects.

Zambia is officially a Christian country with an amazing history of church growth since David Livingstone (still much revered) first brought the gospel in 1852. 80% of the population now attend church on Sundays. But, as often happens, fervent Christianity has been replaced by churchgoing in many places. And like the UK, Zambia has great need of New Testament Christianity and an outpouring of the Spirit.

Rhema Fatih Church praising God in traditional dress

David did the lion’s share of the teaching and we were both determined to bring biblical values, not our own. I had a little more time to get to know the church members – which was a lot of fun. By the time we left - only a week later - God had knitted our hearts together, and we had an emotional farewell at the airport.

Looking forward, it’s brilliant to see that several at RFC have a heart for church planting throughout the nation and into other African nations. In fact, they’ve already started a plant in the capital, Lusaka. With the RM family cheering them on, the future is even more exciting. We also look forward to some of their leadership coming to the UK and blessing us with some of their fire!

You can also read David Bareham’s report here.