Imagine packing the population of Indiana into an area smaller than Delaware—that is Imo State, millions of souls living shoulder to shoulder and most still needing the Gospel. Nigeria is home to 235 million people, spread out across 36 states. As of right now, there are currently 10 states without any independent Baptist church. All except 1 of them is in the north. The 1 lone state without an independent Baptist church in the south is Imo State.
With a population of over 6 million people, Imo State as a whole is already crowded—about 3,300 people for every square mile. But walk into Owerri, and the real intensity shows: its municipal area is more than 3 times denser than that, and the very central-city area is nearly 7 times denser. (America as a whole by comparison averages about 94 people per square mile). Owerri has crowded streets, busy markets, and neighborhoods overflowing with families who have never heard a clear Gospel presentation. The need for a solid independent Baptist church here is overwhelming. There are people everywhere, and every one of them needs Christ.
It is for this reason that I took 2 men with me into the heart of Imo State to present the Gospel. We were blessed to see 17 people trust Christ as their Saviour. One of the men I led to Christ was the prince of 3 of the villages around Nekede. My wife showed a picture of him to Favour, a young lady at the church in Port Harcourt, and she was surprised, calling him the “Granddaddy Prince.” On our way back to Port Harcourt, we were detained by police for a period of time (they were hoping we would give them money). When they finally let us go, they asked us to give someone a ride back to Port Harcourt, and we agreed. While talking to him, he identified himself as Pastor Lorris and called himself a police chaplain. He did admit, however, that he was trusting in his works for eternal life. After a thorough explanation of the Gospel, though, he chose to accept Christ. We were also not stopped at any other police checkpoints, thanks to Mr. Lorris, who gave a hand signal to let us pass. Glory to God!
Please pray for us as we consider Owerri as the location for our independent work. Also pray for our Soul-Winning, Leadership, and Missions Conference October 26–29. There will be several other Nigerian churches attending, and Brother Denton Bell, as well as Brother Ken Shinn, from America will be joining us. For the church family, this is also when we collect our Faith Promise commitments for the church plants we support.
Lastly, to explain the title of the letter, there are multiple people with the same names in the photos.
Working hard to bring fruit to your account,
Jeremy, Sandra, Carina, Barrett, Henry, Alex, and Joanna Barker
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- Cordialia, Blessing, & Samuel accepted Christ at a funeral.
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- Sandra’s visitor Divine
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- “Granddaddy Prince” Mere accepted Christ.
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- First day of homeschool
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- Pastor Lorris accepted Christ.
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- Blessing 2 came and brought 7 visitors with her.
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- Collins, Frank, & Samuel Dike accepted Christ at a funeral.
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- Anderson accepted Christ.
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- Preaching at Government Crafts Development Centre
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- Soul winning with Barrett, Divine accepted Christ.
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- Mary (left) accepted Christ at church, Mary (right) on Saturday.
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- Blessing 1 came and brought 8 visitors with her.
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