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When we began working in Kenya twelve years ago, there were certain conditions that have now changed significantly. At that time, we were still ten years out from the establishment of the Republic of South Sudan. Based in the Kakuma Refugee Camp, Lifestreams International worked with hundreds of Sudanese refugees who had been displaced by more than two decades of war and genocide. These were the “lost boys of war.”

In 2011 the people in South Sudan voted in a referendum to become an independent country. This was a very significant development because there was the opportunity for them to unite with north Sudan which was primarily Islamic. In the referendum, some 90% of the people voted and they were unanimous in their decision to secede from the north. In 2012 after independence, South Sudan cut off oil supplies from the north and this set off internal conflict and conflict with the north. This created instability and tribal clashes. This has continued on since then until the present.

Lifestreams continued to train, evangelize and work during this period. The graduates from the Mission school began to migrate northward back to South Sudan beginning in 2007 where many of them are living and working today. It was envisioned that the training would also move northward into South Sudan. In reality, though the conditions on the ground have changed. The evangelistic work is centred on the border areas between Kenya and South Sudan and between Kenya and Ethiopia. The need on the ground became supporting the moving of the Holy Spirit and the evangelistic flash points in these various areas.

As things have progressed, there has been a corresponding increasing militancy and resistance to Christianity from the Islamic community. During 2013-’14  Al Shabad, and other lesser known terrorist cells, moved into Kenya trying to use the refugee system  through Kakuma. Many of our converts from the people groups have come under heavy oppression, death threats, women sent away from being able to get water for public use in the camp. Terrorist attacks and killing have been occurring through movement out of Somalia into major population areas in Nairobi. Churches and schools and Christian safe areas now have been being over taken by the Islamic movement inside of the camp. We have found it necessary to shut down our training centre from visibility. [ the Camp is now at 160,000 + , with 67% Somali population]

We therefore, have had to change our training strategy. Seven branch schools have been established in these border areas to support the work. Our priority and mandate right now is to fortify each of these centers and to establish the primary one in Lodwar for the training of lay pastors.

After eleven years of progress training refugee community, many significant opportunities have opened up to move into three main tribal people groups. These groups—Boma, Aromo, Traposa— have been resistant historically to Christianity, having mixed Islam with their animism. A fourth group which is related linquistically, the Turkana, is also now increasingly open.

In July 2014, we had a public baptism of close to 3,000 people at one time in the desert on the border between Kenya and Ethiopia.

This evangelistic mission was initiated and led by four native Turkana lay evangelists, who were trained and raised up in the Lifestreams Satellite Missions School outside of Lodwar, Kenya. Every month we have been doing a crusade in the various tribal areas where the evangelists have been working on the ground. The crusades fortify this work and provide the opportunity for people to become born again Christians.

In 2013, our field director, Benson, established seven satellite schools in the field. The schools are used to equip evangelists to further the work. There was a release of 109 evangelists in the first quarter of 2014 who finished their training at the Lifestreams Missions Extension School based in the Kakuma Refugee Camp on the Kenyan border. These evangelists are traveling through the countryside to interact among these tribes and evangelize in the native dialects. There is a threefold process: 1) Individual scouting and advance work by evangelists; 2) Crusades that proclaim the Gospel regularly bringing in hundreds of new believers; 3) The third phase is to send in lay pastors who will lead home / cell churches. This latter work is absolutely critical and must be done right away following the crusades. These are first mention Gospel converts who have no background in Christianity and need to be taught and equipped immediately upon their conversion. Many of the groups also have a history of amalgamating different religions. There is a need to teach and help them to become grounded in true Bible teaching.

The third phase incorporates the approach of saturation church planting. Saturation church planting is when you go into previously unreached people groups and areas and establish smaller cell / home churches. These areas are first evangelized through personal interaction and group outreaches. The converts are then connected to the cell/ home churches for pastoral care and education.The compound which is in Lodwar, will be facility that will be used to train and equip lay pastors from among the new converts in the different locations and among the different tribes. Lifestreams International is currently raising funds to build a new school at this compound in Lodwar.

From 2002 to 2011 Lifestreams International trained in a four-year strategic missions curriculum for Sudanese nationals at a cost of slightly over $300,000 to evangelize and disciple through a micro-broadcasts system, targeting the major dialects and most of the thirty-four dialects that are still basically untranslated and without adapted alphabets. SSCEN was registered with the government of Sudan in February of 2011 and given license to operate mobile FM broadcasting of multiple units on a single frequency, enabling the over-ride of a fifteen to thirty year loop of translation and literacy in South Sudan, thus delivering hi-density information in dialects for evangelism, leadership, and social arbitration. An excess of 1,100 students graduated from three different levels. Out of this number there are reported to be approximately 560 who are now actually grouped in the field in their various regions to be involved in the implementation of the SSCEN outreach network across 8 of the 10 states at this time.

In July of this year the new parliament of the new Republic of South Sudan emerged from of its first session with changes in the Ministry of Information and Education that now require any Broadcast License holders to be on the air by the end of 2011 or forfeit said license and re-register under new rulings that would end our mobile ability.  It is absolutely necessary for us to get at least one of the three planned transmitters in operation for our pilot program and immediately pay the frequency fees.  This will secure our pre-registry and allow us to continue implementation asmobile broadcasting stations functioning as schools of evangelism.  In addition, this will enable us to compile a report of statistics for future fund raising to properly place other two transmitters needed for the program early next year.

Micro-broadcasting as a missions tool of outreach for pre- literate dialects has yet to become an effective, proven system to catalyze an indigenous Christian movement that is capable of producing saturation church planting.  I believe that our phase one training (along with the special conditions in South Sudan) is able to carry an interdenominational, indigenous movement and ignite a significant out-pouring of the Holy Spirit along with gift ministries in leadership.

The Training Teams

After 8yrs of developing over 900 grads for the field, teams are taking their places in target regions of So. Sudan. These teams consists of a Team leader from the 4 yr. Missions Diploma grad program and a team of 7 teachers and trainers for training indigenous people for evangelism into un-reached areas. Phase 2 involves using these trainers educated at the Kakuma Interdenominational School of Missions from the Kakuma Kenya Refugee Camp to train leaders in the field in South Sudan to minister to the people of numerous dialects in the country.

Methods of Operations
Teams called FOB (Fixed Base Operations) are  in place developing a core for training the actual outreach teams and developing Church Leadership Training centers on the mission field. The purpose of these training centers is to train people as leaders directly in the field.

Fixed band Micro Broadcasting is also used for electronic training of indigenous people. These transmitters are solar powered and used to educate in people in dialects which are unwritten. Thirty-four dialects have not been translated and have no outside communications. Fixed band broadcasting, therefore, is used to train these people by oral methods.

Tribal Arbitration Using Hi-Tech Methods for Low-Tech People

One of the most important needs for South Sudan to become an autonomous nation from the Islamic North is to develop peaceful interaction and economic development between the 97 basic tribes. This requires arbitration between the tribes. A project using a concept of Hi-tech methods for Low-tech people will help introduce the concepts of Christianity and change. This educational process will help develop the socio-economic development and interaction between the tribes necessary for the overall development of a unified and autonomous South Sudan.

One example of using Hi-tech methods is the “MegaVoice Project“. In 2006 Lifestreams International began a pilot program for Digital Bibles to be use by the graduate students of Kakuma Interdenominational School of Missions out of the Kakuma Kenya Refugee Camp.

The MegaVoice allows field workers to “transliterate” the Bible OT/NT with the Jesus Story and God Story(Biblical Apologetics) from English into unwritten Dialects. (Transliteration is thought to thought just like the paraphrased Bibles but into the proper figures of speech that are characteristic to the specific languages.)

Between 2007 and 2008, we have place approx. 500 field workers into target areas with this equipment. Daily the workers are able to verbally train and expose people groups to the Word of God before literacy. It is a fast track project and is incredibly cost effective at about $60.00 per unit by the time it gets into field use.

We have the expedient need of getting another 400 into field use in 2009. Once the equipment is in place, the cost to run the program is self-sustaining.

Of Special Concern: Young Sudanese Women

One of the greatest social help needs of post war southern Sudan is the young women who have war-time offspring and no husband. Most are under a displacement  because of tribal and social rejection. Lifestreams International is developing a women focused broadcast which is designed to develop co-operative groups in various regions to care for and give an avenue of economic survival to the part of Sudanese community that is at risk.  There is a need for support through  contribution and  partnership involvement in the areas of reproductive health, female educational issues. There is also a need for dedicated workers for short term mission training trips to specific locations and to specific people groups.

Out of over 900 students , we have trained 6 Sudanese women who are able to be involved in this specific training program. They need volunteer Christian female trainers.  We are especially appealing to Afro-Americans who have a background for gender development.