Mission in the Horn of Africa

An update from Michael Granger, Lead Pastor of Trinity Fellowship Church, Ethiopia ...

For the last year, Trinity Fellowship has had ZERO space to grow. Sunday mornings are regularly standing-room only. Finding a meeting space for a church in an urban context can be difficult. We would know, our team has been looking for over a year. About ten months back we began a conversation with a Lutheran Seminary down the road because they have a conference hall that holds approximately 700+ and is not currently occupied. After months of dialogue, talk talk talk …. and more talk talk talk … and synod talk talk talk … Trinity Fellowship was approved for a one-year lease of the space on Sunday mornings.

On April 7th we experienced the answer to a year of prayer. Trinity Fellowship launched at our new location with an evangelistic sermon from John 6:37, “Whoever comes to me, I will never cast out.” In his providence, the room was packed out and many unbelievers heard the gospel. We are now getting 300-350 people on a Sunday, what a wonderful God we serve!

The first quarter of 2024 has certainly been jam packed. We’ve welcomed two short-term mission teams: one from Castleview and another from Grace Miami. As for the Trinity Fellowship Pastors College, it would not be what it is without our many friends. Our professors in recent months have included Eric Bancroft, Steve Wellum, Joseph Stagora, Brian Chesemore, Bob Kauflin, Steve Bice, Jason Derouchie, Joel Bain, Mark Alderton, Tyson Ziegler, Pete Payne, and Andy Farmer.  

As for our Sunday morning services - we are nearing the end of our Ecclesiastes series entitled: Normal Life to the Glory of God. As we’ve preached through this series we are doing something new. I am splitting the series 50/50 with Amanuel (Pastoral Intern at Trinity) so that he is preaching every other sermon. The purpose is to intentionally grow him as a preacher by giving him more reps. This also builds the church into his leadership. And as leaders we’re incredibly encouraged by the response of our members to this series.

In 2018 The Telegraph did a study finding Ethiopia to be the #1 most religious country in the world. If that is true, perhaps we are especially prone to a Pharisaical mindset. Ours is a culture of legalism, asceticism, and the prosperity gospel. However, week after week we’ve received feedback of how this book is correcting thoughts and helping to organize lives. Slowly it is helping to establish a theology of suffering, and also a theology of joy; slowly it is helping to establish a gospel culture. One of the most helpful resources has been Carolyn Mahaney and Nicole Whitacre's book, True Life. We highly recommend it!

Also in the first quarter of 2024, Josh Pannel (Dean of Trinity Pastors College) and I jumped on a plane bound for Europe. The purpose? An MTh module at Union School of Theology in Wales. Union officially partnered with Trinity Fellowship last year and they are so so so generously giving us majorly subsidized tuition rates.

The set-up of our program consists of block-course modules. Similar to our Pastors College, we sit in class from Tuesday-Friday and then write an essay. Our professor Clive Bowsher is the provost for the school and he lectured on Union with Christ. He recently published Life in the Son in D.A. Carson's New Studies in Biblical Theology series.

For a week I felt pastored by his lectures. It was such a refreshing time. Additionally, we felt we left Wales with a new friend. I was texting Clive last week appreciating the effect his class has had upon my meditations and he asked, "Doesn’t union with Christ make such a difference to feeling at home and bold in prayer?" I responded, “You hem me in” is the feeling. Secure in every direction I look, like St. Patrick’s prayer: “Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me, Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ on my right, Christ on my left, Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down.”

We are more aware of grace than anything else. Thank you for contributing to our awareness of grace. James 1:7 says "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights." If that is true, and it is, I cannot think of anyone richer than us because of you. You are a gift to us, worthy of celebrating God's generosity.

"For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD as the waters cover the sea." 
Habakkuk 2:14