School of Biblical Studies - Georgetown

Last Sunday I was at the very first service of a new congregation that started in the Campbellville section of Georgetown. This Sunday I drove about 30 minutes east of Georgetown to the village of Buxton to the inaugural service of yet another new congregation. So many new churches have started lately that I have honestly lost count of the number of churches in Guyana. It is great to know that God is working so mightily in this Caribbean nation. By Sunday night 36 people had gathered at Campbellville for their first services and 32 were present this week at Buxton. Prince Carter, who will graduate 12 September, will be the preacher at Buxton and one our first year students, Wayne Collins will work along with our visiting instructors at Campbellville.

This summer churches have started in Alexander Village, Ruimveldt, Kitty, Campbellville, and Sophia all in the suburbs of Georgetown. In addition the church started in Buxton and one in Village 62. Seven churches are now meeting in the Northwest Territory. And there are others that have started that I have heard about but know nothing concerning them. The Lord's church is on the move in Guyana.

With the starting of each of these congregations our task at the School of Biblical Studies becomes even more demanding. Each of these churches needs preachers. We were already about 25 short of meeting the needs of the existing churches, and now we have all these additional churches. Everyday our job becomes more and more critical as we try to train men for this most important work of sharing the Good News of Jesus.

With the start of the new school year seven new students will begin their two-year journey through the Word of God. This year's class is made up of all men, and most of these are older and more mature than some of our previous classes. The majority of them are married and have families, unlike some of the other classes. We wish we had double the students, but unfortunately most of the applicants this year were just not mature enough to handle the demands of the studies. We look forward to the challenge that is before us.

Another summer objective has been reached and surpassed. At 1:30 a.m. on Saturday brother Jack Exum departed Guyana for home. He spent one week with us preaching for the new church at Campbellville. He conducted nightly meetings that averaged about 40 in attendance each evening. That was an excellent number for the amount of work that had been done in the community prior to his coming (i.e., none!). Jack preached the first service for the church on Sunday with an attendance of 20. That evening 36 were present. Thanks to his efforts the church is now ready to grow in this area.

Jack also taught our students at SBS in a special week of lectures. Again he did an outstanding job. Jack is very practical and down to earth in his teachings. A sad note is, Jack indicated he wouldn't be back! He will be 70 years of age soon, and travel, especially international travel, is taking its toll on his body. The School of Biblical Studies loses as the result of this decision. This was Jack's third trip and each was better than the preceding one. We wish Jack godspeed in his continuing work.

The past few weeks have been unbelievably busy, and it is not finished yet. This Sunday I preached for two churches. I preached for one at 10:00 a.m. and the other at 11:00 a.m. The first one was the Buxton church and the other was at Melanie. The Holly Hill, Florida, church will be sponsoring the Buxton church. We hope their experience is a good one.

My time is getting extremely short. I will be leaving Guyana on 16 September at 5:45 a.m. It will be good to get home, even though it will not be to rest. There are a lot of congregations that I will be visiting, meetings to conduct, and the wedding of our son Kyle in Texas. Stateside will be just as busy as it has been here in Guyana.

Please keep us and the work in Guyana in your prayers. We are very grateful to all of you who unselfishly support us and the work here. We are very thankful to God for all of you.

Link to Guyana International Bible Institute Home Page