A translation of Yambalu Mposhi’s report on sewing school at Kabinda, DRC.

In the Kasai region of the Democratic Republic of Congo , we have organised some sewing schools with the aim of helping change the lives of young women.

The girls that have been chosen to come to the school in Kabinda are all those who are among the most disadvantaged in the town and have not been able to finish their secondary education. Around half are girls who have lost both parents in the Congo War, the other half are simply those who have come from families who are too poor to pay for their secondary education. (The Church in Kabinda has a programme for helping the war orphans).

Our twin goal has been to help these young women be in a position where they can support themselves through being trained in sewing and dressmaking skills and also be schooled in Christian teaching and thus be able to leave with a strong Christian character and have a positive influence in the region.

Staff and Students
The school is staffed by two teachers paid and supported by the local church and through the sales of what is produced and sold in the sewing school lessons. We have started with 20 students.

The length of the course
This is a one year course. The aim is to keep a turnover of 20 students per year. There are still many more who could profit from this training.

Before the gift came
We had initiated this project before a gift came from England. We had the teachers teaching the girls with one sewing machine and the girls making drawings in their exercise books about how to work the machine. They then took it in turns to practise on the on the one machine. They were actually learning, but very slowly.

After the gift
Since the gift has come there has been a much happier atmosphere at the sewing school. The teachers say the girls are all making excellent progress and becoming skilled machinists. They are producing good quality clothes, which are being sold and paying for more materials for the school. It means the school is not asking for any more money to buy material but is totally self supporting.

Praise God for what is happening through this adventure into changing forever lives through the Gospel of the Kingdom!

Yambalu Mposhi

We had a fantastic time making the VIP guests feel the way God intended them to be – like Very Important People. Throughout the evening Church members hosted the VIPs as they enjoyed the fine food cooked by a team of helpers in the kitchen with our own in-house King’s Church chefs!

Whilst the guests enjoyed their meal, Doug Walker, who is a singer / song-writer, played his set and shared his testimony of how Jesus transformed his life. We also had other testimonies from church members including Craig O’Shea who became a Christian at the last Men’s VIPs Night in November 2008. Seeing lots of guys who could relate to Craig’s testimony, and even having some of the lads who live at his hostel who have seen the change in Craig, was incredibly exciting! Following these testimonies, Gary Stretton preached the gospel to the VIPs letting them know that they too could experience the wonderful transformation and restoration that comes with having an intimate relationship with Jesus.

After the meal we had a quiz, a clothes room with free clothes and a room where the guys could go and get a hair cut. The idea of the VIPs nights is to practically show our guests the love of Jesus Christ and to build lasting relationships.

One of the guests gave his life to Jesus on the night and was baptised in water. Other testimonies included guests experiencing peace that they had not known before. The VIP Nights have always proved to be fantastic events that improve and increase each time we do them. They are a great example of the whole church working together to do what it does best – namely, showing the awesome love of Jesus. I feel incredibly privileged to have been involved in these events. I am really excited to see all the fruit that will come as a result of us preaching and demonstrating the Good News of Jesus as we build lasting relationships with these very important people.

Go to our photo gallery to see more photos of the Mens VIP Night.

Mat Irwin