Conrad Mbewe, Dan Pentimone & Ron Thomas

On January 23-25, Ron Thomas (Director of Development) and I attended the G3 Conference in the Atlanta, GA area. One of the speakers was Conrad Mbewe, newly appointed Chancellor of ACU. The messages at the conference were spiritually edifying and the fellowship opportunities were abundant. As sponsors of the conference, ACU had a unique opportunity to show a three minute video outlining the four fundamentals that guide ACU. In addition, Conrad Mbewe had an opportunity to speak to the entire audience for about six minutes concerning the vision of ACU. This was the second year ACU had a presence at the G3 Conference. Our desire is to continue to be involved with G3 in the coming years.

Ron and I had many excellent opportunities to acquaint people with ACU. Approximately 35 people signed up to begin receiving our monthly prayer updates and were interested to learn about the vision of ACU. Numerous conversations were had with people who expressed an interest in learning more about ACU for possible involvement in some way. One gentlemen we met had already begun communications with Dr. Ken Turnbull about the very real possibility of moving to 

Conrad Mbewe

Africa to serve the Lord with ACU. We supplied him with a number of useful materials to take back to his congregation to make them aware of the work of ACU as well.

informing many people about the work of ACU. Please pray that through these contacts that we made, God will raise up many prayer supporters, laborers, and financial supporters to advance the kingdom through the work of African Christian University. God is able to do far above all that we can ask or think. Ephesians 3:20-21, "Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen."

Mr. Wilson Tembo

Wilson Tembo was sitting in his office when Ken Turnbull and Ray Warwick walked in. After talking about education and the biblical worldview, Tembo said they discovered they were all "on the same wavelength." Soon after, Tembo accepted a teaching position at African Christian University. 

"Teaching is my calling," Tembo said. "Being a member of the faculty will enrich me greatly." 

Tembo received his Master's degree in teaching of English to speakers of other languages. He hopes to spend the rest of his life writing teaching materials for the teaching of English and Literature in English with a biblical worldview. 

He is originally from Chibale Village, Petauke District in eastern Zambia.. Now Tembo lives in Lusaka with his wife, Dorothy. They have been married for 35 years and have four children, Kalembo, Wilson Jnr., Ngoza and Milika. Kalembo and his wife, Njeleka have one child, Mchinzi. Wilson Jnr. is an information communications specialist. Ngoza is an undergraduate law student and Milika just completed high school and is thinking about applying to ACU. 

His whole family attends their local church in Nyumba Yanga, where Tembo is a church elder.  

Tembo was born into a family who raised him with beliefs in the Anglican faith. Although he was introduced to the word of God, he said he did not truly appreciate it and gradually strayed away from it. "When I went to university, I had the liberty to forego the religion of my parents and I was free to live with the religion of the world," Tembo said. 

On his last day of college he told his friend, that he would like to find God. When he moved to Zambezi, he met Pricilla Shaba who prayed for him. In December 1977, he heard Croudance speaking about Jeremiah 29:11. 

"'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'" 

Croudance then challenged Tembo to buy the Bible and read it. 

Later, as he stood in front of his class, teaching them how to understand the English language, he said he heard their testimonies louder than anything else.

Tembo believes his past experiences in teaching Sunday school and serving in administration will help him in his work at ACU. He was also the first Zambian Principal for Mpelembe secondary school and the first lecturer for the Australian Institute of Business and Technology in Zambia to teach professional communication. 

Tembo hopes and prays for the best during his time at ACU and that things will not affect his capability perform to the best of his abilities. He prays with the Evangel church as they search for a senior pastor and he asks for prayers for his "family to serve the Lord with joy!"

The mission of African Christian University (ACU) is primarily about glorifying God through African culture. Culture is the expression of humanity in all capacities of intellect, art and practices. Mankind, created in the image of God but fallen through sin, requires redemption through God's provision of His Son. This allows redeemed individuals to fully glorify God according to their re-created nature in Jesus Christ. This is the fundamental presupposition of ACU. 

Dr. Jack Chalk establishes this premise as the pathway for discipleship in Africa, as it is the pathway of followers of Christ in all cultures. In Making Disciples in Africa, Dr. Chalk uniquely provides a window into the life-transforming impact that the Christ follower experiences in traversing the African culture. This understanding comes through viewing the shaping foundations of African culture through African Traditional Religion and setting that worldview in the light of Biblical revelation. Those coming from western culture, willing to honestly evaluate history, vividly realise that the Christian foundations upon which western culture developed formulated the moral character and benevolence that cultivated the flourishing of dignity, peace and cultural advances that have been known. Westerners likewise see the rapid moral decay and withering of culture as those fundamental Christian foundations are jettisoned with celebrated depravity. This sets the importance of the timing of Jack Chalk's insights into Africa as the advance of the Christian church and worldview is moving from its gestational stages and begins to bloom towards bearing fruit on the African continent. This is the time for serious followers of Christ to assist in strengthening the foundations of true, gospel-saturated Christianity in Africa for the sustained advance of the Christian worldview that is now reforming African culture. 

Jack uses a Scriptural framework of Genesis, chapters 1-11, upon which to encapsulate the African Traditional Religious context from which African culture has largely been shaped so that a direct comparison to a Biblical worldview can be formulated. This approach allows the components upon which every culture's worldview is founded to be examined. All worldviews seek to provide workable understanding and solution to life's "BIG questions". This includes ontological questions such as, "Is there a Supreme Being, and, if so, what is it like?"; "What is the origin and nature of man?"; "What is reality, and what is ultimate reality?"; "What is truth?" This also includes questions about cosmology such as, "What is the origin and nature of the universe?"; "What is God's relationship with the universe?"; "What is the meaning of time?"; "Do laws and causality govern the universe absolutely?" There are questions of teleology such as, "Why do man and the universe exist and do they have a final end?"; "Does evil have a purpose?" There are questions of ethics and morality such as, "Who or what determines what is moral and immoral?"; "How do we know what is right?" Aesthetic questions include, "What is man's relationship with the natural environment?"; "Is there aesthetic value to religious experience?" Philosophy of history questions are of concern such as, "What is the meaning of history?"; "Is history cyclical or linear in progression?" Questions of epistemology include, "What can we know and how can we know it?"; "What justifies a belief?" Along with these BIG questions are many other components upon which worldviews are formulated. There are religious dimensions, experiential dimensions, mythical dimensions, doctrinal dimensions, ethical dimensions, ritual dimensions and social dimensions. I trust you are getting the sense that Dr. Chalk is tackling an enormous task in trying to give a broad scope of a worldview founded upon African Traditional Religion and likewise define the same worldview components according to the Christian view derived from Scripture. The scale of the undertaking of ACU to see African culture transformed by the life and work of Christ is certainly aided by the understanding of an equally massive undertaking as what Jack Chalk is providing in his book. 

The book ends with deeper comparisons of African Traditional Religion and a Biblical worldview. Concluding with recommendations on how these insights might be applied to growth and maturity of the Christian worldview in Africa leaves the reader with the motivating challenge that draws us to our knees in seeking our triune God. It is His kingdom work through weak vessels who may have a scattering of knowledge, but who are seeking a work that can only be accomplished by the Spirit of God. 

If you desire a deeper understanding of not only the Christian worldview, but how to examine the foundational influences on the African worldview in light of the Christian perspective, I strongly recommend reading Dr. Chalk's book. It is a treasure chest of information, yet is readable to the one who is keen to develop a depth of insight into things that are normally left unstated and cloudy at best. Making Disciples in Africa is a grand undertaking that matches well the scale of what ACU itself is seeking God to accomplish.