Fight the good fight of the faith, take hold of the eternal life
Following Cameroon’s presidential election on October 12 last year, the country was plunged into significant turmoil. On election night, preliminary vote counts suggested a victory for the opposition leader, but the official results announced on October 27 declared the ruling party’s candidate the winner. This reversal triggered widespread unrest across the nation.
In the port city of Douala, protests erupted throughout the city as demonstrators blocked roads and carried out arson and attacks. Gas stations, shops, government buildings, and police stations were targeted, plunging the city into a state of near anarchy. For more than 15 days, normal city functions were paralyzed, making movement impossible both day and night. During this period, more than 65 people were killed in shootings and fires, and over 600 protesters were detained. The opposition leader fled the country, escaping through Nigeria before seeking refuge in Zambia.
President Paul Biya, now 92 years old and in power for 43 years, showed signs of declining capacity during his inauguration ceremony, at times forgetting the order of the oath and parts of the declaration. Across Cameroon’s cities, piles of uncollected garbage emit foul odors, and major roads damaged years ago remain unrepaired. Approximately 70% of the population survives on about 1,000 CFA francs per day (around 2,500 KRW), while youth unemployment remains a severe problem.
Despite these harsh conditions, the spread of the Gospel continues. Dopasi Center Church, where missionary Chang-Seok Kang serves, has been faithfully practicing oikos evangelism by holding monthly Sunday gatherings throughout the year, sharing the Gospel with family members and neighbors through personal relationships. In December last year, the church held four consecutive Sunday services as evangelistic celebrations, inviting neighbors and relatives. Around 30 guests attended each week, and approximately 80% responded to the message and made commitments to the Lord.
One invited guest experienced a motorcycle breakdown on the way to church. The member who invited him encouraged him, saying, “This is Satan’s interference—you must come.” The guest eventually arrived, heard the Word, and stepped forward to accept Jesus Christ.
After a QT (Quiet Time) ministry team from Hannam Church in Germany visited in August last year to conduct training, about 100 people made faith commitments. Currently, nearly 80% of them have continued daily QT practice for four months. Participants record their reflections in notebooks, take photos, and share them with one another for mutual encouragement.
Mamange Victoire, a 63-year-old member of the First Women’s Mission Group at Dopasi Church, shared, “Some days I struggled with the QT book for four hours and still couldn’t fully understand it, but through that process I realized how important it truly is.” She requested an additional QT book to use for evangelism.
Missionary Kang testified, “Since the QT seminar, the spiritual atmosphere of the church and the quality of worship have visibly changed. The faith of the congregation has grown rapidly and matured more deeply than before.”(Source: Gospel Prayer News, Edited version)
But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness. Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses.(1 Timothy 6:11-12,NIV)
God, thank you for allowing Your gospel to be proclaimed in Cameroon, even amid the turmoil surrounding the presidential election. As protests and unrest continue because of the greed for power among those in authority, may this land all the more hear Your Word and come to know You deeply in this time. May the souls established by the gospel in this land fight the good fight of faith and be built up as a church that holds fast to eternal life, boldly proclaiming Christ crucified and standing as witnesses of Jesus in their daily lives. We trust You, Lord, to reveal eternal life ever more clearly through the churches of Jesus in this land that seems without hope.
Prayer 24·365
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