New Planter Spotlight: Sinethemba Hliso

Sinethemba Hliso

Khanya City Church

How have you seen God working in your life and church plant?

The last few weeks leading to the Khanya launch, we had about fifty people in our core team. Twenty of them pulled out just before we launched for various reasons, and another eight soon after we launched because of new jobs outside of Johannesburg. I was left discouraged, and thoughts of doubts about whether the church plant was a good idea or even if God wanted me to go through with this plant started to creep in.

Little did I know that God was shaping his new core and a church (congregation) that was best suited to reach the community we were targeting. New people who just moved into the area who were looking for a church got connected and began to serve and form part of our core team. These new people immediately started to invite to the church their family members, neighbors, friends, and classmates. The church quickly grew to about ninety members by the end of the first year and a core team of forty people.

When we were envisioning Khanya City Church, we wanted it to be different from the one we came from because we were convinced that we needed to be effective in reaching the inner city. God cut us down first and brought the people of his choosing to reach the lost in the city, and for that I give praise to God. His ways are indeed better than mine.

God has humbled me in this new journey by showing me my limits and my need for other people to accomplish the church’s mission. I’m learning the need to delegate, to communicate my thoughts and desires to people, and to trust people more.

What is your church’s mission/vision?

We are a family that is visible; genuine; that loves God, and loves the city; that rejoices for the display of God’s glory.

Church Website: khanyacitychurch.org

For further information, please contact Sinethemba at khanyacitychurch@gmail.com

New Planter Spotlight: Juan Cotto

Juan Cotto

How have you seen God working in your life?

God has shown me his immense and unrelenting love. He has rescued me from my own vanity and made me aware of his mission to the world. I was born into a devout Christian family, but at the age of seventeen his grace reached me. Since then I have been able to serve him by preaching the gospel in many places in Latin America. Planting a church has become the most exciting task of my life and I thank God for the privilege.

How have you seen God working in your family?

By the grace of God I have a beautiful family. My wife is a tremendous help in my ministry life, my adviser, confidant, friend, and partner. My three children show me the beauty of God. They love the Lord. I know that God is doing an immense job in my children and wife to see them so happy and involved in planting a Communion Church.

How have you seen God working in your church?

We started Iglesia Comunion in 2020 during the start of the pandemic. In Puerto Rico, the restrictions due to COVID-19 were very strong. Everything was closed including temples of worship for more than 5 months. At that time we felt that the initiative would fail. But me and my plantation team decided to continue. We gave Bible studies by zoom, we created a podcast and we developed strategies through social networks. By January 2021 we managed to start our face-to-face services with 25 new people. In February 2022 we presented our first group of members with a total of 45 members of Iglesia Comunion. God has been more than faithful and generous with us. He has been- through the grace door of him.

Church Mission & Vision

Vision: To be a community of faith that is part of a movement of churches that seek to grow in the knowledge of God, have a deep experience of love with Him and His people, and develop their character to live fully as part of the Kingdom of Christ. Seeking, in this way, that only God be glorified and promoting the spiritual and social well-being of Puerto Rico, Latin America and the world, through the development of leaders and disciples. Mission: Hacer discípulos que profundicen, compartan y sean renovados por el evangelio de la gracia mediante la enseñanza diligente de la Escritura, la vida en comunidad con Dios, con otros y la participación activa en la misión de Cristo.

For further information please contact Juan at https://iglesiacomunion.org/

The Cotto Family

New Planter Spotlight: Samuel Boateng

Samuel Boateng

How have you seen God working in your life?

I grew up as someone who had to struggle to survive almost from every front. But in recent times, the Lord has been working in my heart to learn humble dependence on him. Church planting has been one of His means of teaching my heart to depend on him daily and to learn to trust him and to move away from my natural instinct of depending on my "ability to struggle" for survival mind-set. I see myself truly growing in a deeper conviction about these things: God loves me. God is with me. God has called. God's work is God's. He is working in me to grow in total dependence on Him in all I do; and it's liberating.

How have you seen God working in your family?

We've seen our children grow in knowing Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior for themselves. We are not sure how much the two younger ones (boy-7, girl-4) understand though. But we clearly see a growing consciousness about the cross of Christ and the reason for it: Jesus Christ died for them...to save them from their sin and its result. Our first daughter, 11, gets it and is trusting in Jesus Christ as her Savior and Lord. It is evident in a growing change of behavior. Gifty (my wife) and I maturing in being more gracious to one another. We believe, especially since we set out to plant, the Lord has united us deeply around Christ and the gospel. We have grown a lot in our hospitality ministry to others (Christians and non-Christians). I believe God is giving me a "softer ears" to listen to my wife and hear her out in our journey together. I was always too quick to speak and very slow to listen to her. I am think I am more repentant and trusting in Jesus better. I am not where I should be in this area of listening to my godly wife but I am certainly not at where I was. Praise the Lord.

How have you seen God working in your church?

People are coming to faith. Believers in Redeemer City Church are becoming more excited about Jesus and all that God has done in and through him for us. I see a desire among church members to reach out to the city with the gospel among their own circle of friends and family. There is a growing sense of love and unity and, generally speaking, a penitent attitude. We have baptism on September 12, 2021, and this has created a huge excitement about how that is giving us opportunity to invite non-Christian friends.

Church Mission & Vision

Mission: A church-planting church that makes whole-life disciple-makers of Jesus Christ for the glory of God. Vision: To be a redeemed family of servants on a mission to raise the next generation of Christ-like disciple-makers who serve their world with the gospel for the glory of God.

For further information please contact Samuel at http://www.rccaccra.org/

The Boateng Family