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A church building in Sierra Leone couldn’t weather the rainstorms—but because you provided leadership training facilitated by Resonate Global Mission, the people of the church could stand.

Collapsed and Crumbling

It was rainy season in Sierra Leone. As Pastor John Jalloh and his congregation trudged through mud for Sunday morning worship week after week, they nervously eyed the sagging foundation of their church building and watched water run down the walls of the sanctuary. One day, the building could no longer stand the rain, wind, and mud. The foundation crumbled; the roof collapsed.

Without a safe church building, the congregation had nowhere to gather for worship. They had no place to welcome newcomers who were interested in learning about God. And it was obvious to Pastor John and his congregation that their church building wouldn’t just need repairs—they would need to construct an entirely new building. A new foundation. New roof. New walls and floors.

Families of the church often struggle to provide for their own needs, but because Pastor John had participated in leadership training that you made possible, he knew how to lead his church through this setback.

A Plan to Rebuild

Pastor John participated in Timothy Leadership Training, a Resonate initiative and curriculum of Raise Up Global Ministries that equips and trains church leaders who wouldn’t normally have access to training. Because you support Resonate missionaries who lead these trainings, Pastor John was prepared to lead his church through this setback.

“One of the modules studied at the TLT training is Christian stewardship,” said Resonate missionary Istifanus Bahago. He notes that through TLT, church leaders are encouraged to recognize the resources God has given them, rather than relying on outside support

“Pastor John Jalloh shared this challenge with his congregation,” said Bahago, who supported and advised Pastor John throughout the project. “[The congregation] developed a plan of rebuilding their church.”

Rebuilding from the Ground Up

The people of the church felt it was important to have a safe place where they could worship God and invite their neighbors to join them. Each family contributed money so the church could purchase roofing, nails, and cement. Families brought the remaining materials they would need: sand, stones, and boards. Those with skills in carpentry and masonry gave their time and skills to lay a foundation, build walls, and raise the roof.

Not only does the church have a brand new building to worship in, but the building is larger than their last building. They have more space to welcome more people to worship with their church.

“It’s a great encouragement to see Pastor John Jalloh using the principles he learned from TLT a few years ago to mobilize his congregation to undertake the project without depending on outside help,” said Bahago. 

Thank you for equipping strong church leaders like Pastor John through Resonate! Because of Pastor John’s strong leadership skills, his church is thriving.

A version of this story originally appeared on crcna.org.