About the size of Pennsylvania, Benin has few natural resources. The
country has a small offshore oil deposit, limestone, and timber to
support the economy. It is not an industrialized nation, and 40% of the
population lives below the poverty line. The average income rests at a
meager $1,500 per year.
About 40% of the population claims Christianity, but many of these
“Christians” practice Vodun, the religion that gave rise to the
commonly known “Haitian Voodoo” when African slaves were brought
to the Americas. Vodun is not a Christian religion, but it has a
strong influence on the Christian worshippers.
When looking at the African map, it is easy for our eyes to wander to
the great pyramids of Egypt, to the vast game reserves of Kenya, or to
the economic powerhouse – Republic of South Africa. But within the tiny
and almost forgotten West-African country of Benin, the Lord is doing a
great work.
Because of the burden placed on the hearts of the saints at Weldon
Christian Tabernacle in Saskatchewan Canada, every known Message church
in that country recently received a full French Message library.
Not only did they receive a set of French-translated Message MP3 CDs and
a library of French Message books, they also received two MP3 players,
rechargeable battery packs, power converters, and solar chargers so they
can play the Message in the most remote setting.
In all, 65 pastors attended the distribution meeting and received their
packages. Another 37 new Message churches came forward and will soon
receive their own Message libraries.
These packages are intended for the congregations as well as the
pastors. With the number of books and CDs that each church received, the
individuals in the churches should be able to borrow the books and MP3
players for their personal use in their own homes. This project will
give thousands the opportunity to hear Brother Branham with their own
ears. The international community can send food and money, but that will
soon perish. God’s Words spoken through His prophet will be with them
for eternity.
What greater gift could we give than the Eternal Word of God?
The following is an excerpt from Brother Andrew Alasa’s report (VGR
Office Manager in Nigeria):
The brothers started arriving at the venue in small numbers as
early about 8:30am for the meeting planned for 9am. We waited until
we had arranged the material for distribution in the hall, and for
most of the brothers to arrive at the meeting. There were some
churches on the list that could not make it to the meeting but had
to ask other pastors to help them in collecting their material.
Also, we had 37 new churches who filled the forms to be included on
the mailing list. This is already a good sign to of the growth in
the number of believers to be reached by the MP3 project material.
I greeted them and brought greetings from Brother Joseph and the
Voice of God Recordings. I told them how you all love and appreciate
them and are praying for them. I further told them how important
today was in the history of the Message in Benin. I told them that
VGR has never done anything like this in Benin before, and this is
very special to them.
At this junction, I read Brother Joseph’s letter to the ministers,
copies which they already had with the commitment form that I gave
to be distributed to them as they were seated. After reading the
letter, I picked some of the highlights of it and explained them
further like.
− The long desire of Brother Joseph to provide a full library
of material for the churches in Benin, and how the Lord opened
the door to finally undertake such a great task.
− They were to make the library of books and MP3 accessible to
all the believers in their congregation. That the material was
not intended to be their personal property or the property of
any one person, but solely for use by the believers who worship
at the church.
− They were encouraged to set up a lending library in their
church by which each member would benefit.
− We would like to see each family being able to borrow the MP3
player and MP3s messages home to play in their homes and being
able to listen to the Voice of God in their homes.
− There is nothing greater that they could receive than the
opportunity to hear the Voice of God for our day. We are
privileged and have the opportunity to have that Voice recorded
for us to hear.
− For them to make a commitment to make the material available
to the believers God has given them to oversee.
Many believers made commitment to sponsor this project, and they
trust it will be a blessing to the believers in Benin.
After this, I encouraged them and let them know that they were not
forgotten nor forsaken by VGR And that they should not be
discouraged. They have a part in this work, and this project is like
sowing a seed; it will come back with harvest...
The meeting thus ended and everybody was very happy and felt good
about the project and meeting. For me, it was a great blessing to
see these brothers and how they love the Message. It was wonderful.
Thank you.
Andrew Alasa