A fantastic opportunity has arisen for 13,000 pastors in French-speaking West Africa. Starting in August 2024, “Pastors Book Set” conferences will begin in West Africa.
This project aims to equip pastors with Christian books in French that are both beneficial to their ministries and doctrinally sound. The project was begun by the mission SIM (Serving In Mission) over forty years ago, with books in English for Christian workers in Ghana. The basic idea of the project is to provide pastors with a mini-library (usually around thirty books) at a modest price. This is the third time French-speaking Africa has benefited from this project, which was also carried out in 2001 and 2012.
In the past, SIM has organized similar projects in other parts of the world, providing Christian books in French, English, Spanish, Amharic and Hausa. Depending on the language, the books included in each project are chosen by pastors who will be served by the project in Africa, Asia or Latin America. In the case of the French-language books, a title has never been repeated from one project to the next.
This time, 13,000 pastors in seven countries will benefit from this project, namely pastors in Senegal, Togo, Benin, Burkina Faso, Niger, Tchad and Cote d’Ivoire. Each participant will receive 36 books in all: eight printed books and 28 e-books, including 14 audiobooks. If you were to buy all these books in a bookstore, the cost would exceed 535,000 FCFA (880 USD). But each participant will pay only 35,000 to 40,000 FCFA (58 to 67 USD) to take part in this project. What’s more, each participant will attend a conference that will address themes of importance to the African church.
One of the special books included in this project is the French edition of the Expository Dictionary of Bible Words, a dictionary that has been translated especially for this project. This dictionary gives the meaning of Hebrew and Greek words in the Bible. Another special title is the second edition of the African Study Bible. This Bible emphasizes the African presence and participation in the biblical text. This project will mark the first time that this Bible is available to Christian leaders.
Please pray that the Lord will use this project to deepen the maturity of pastors and to transform His Church in French-speaking West Africa.
