InterSections
inform - encourage - unite
INTERNATIONAL LETTER
L – R: Dennis Caddy, Susan Caddy, Chuck Dennis.
God's Work in South Sudan Dennis Caddy
After decades of mission work on Nias Island in Indonesia, in 2011 God opened a door for us to a new work in the newest nation of the world – South Sudan in Africa.
When we first travelled to South Sudan in December 2011, the country was just five months old. In the region of the country we were led to, Churches of Christ were unknown. The people had just ended a 22-year civil war during which over two million people had died. The country was flat on its back.
From the beginning we have combined humanitarian work with evangelism. Most of the humanitarian work is through education. We run a vocational boarding school which currently has 79 students. In addition to Bible teaching, the school trains students in tailoring, computing, electrical studies, and agriculture.
The Jonglei Vocational Christian Boarding School is not a Bible school. Students come to learn a skill. However, it is evangelistic and in the term ending in early 2024, 56% of students were converted.
We also run two primary schools, one with more than 1,000 students and the other with about 500. These two schools are almost self-supporting, with tuition being paid by the students. The schools are recognised as among the best in the nation. They generate goodwill with the government while also opening doors for evangelism.
Since then the Gospel has been shared with many. As I write this on October 2024, there are 41 congregations in the Aweil area with more than 1,020 people having been baptised so far in 2024.
Sometimes converts must delay being baptised because of the distance to water in the dry season. Often, Christians start meeting under trees but soon erect temporary buildings from grass.
We support five evangelists (none of whom have formal training) and regularly hold three-day seminars which almost always result in conversions. We struggle to provide more training for village church leaders who use the five Bible correspondence courses we have written. We also run two weekly radio programs.
The leadership training seminars bring two to three men from each congregation together for six days of intensive instruction. Fellowship is of great importance. When church leaders leave their village in the bush and come to an understanding that the church exists and is growing in other places, it is an inspiration to all.
Challenges include the fact that there are so many new congregations and Christians. It may sound strange but it is somewhat true to say that ‘success is killing us’!
A major focus is on further teaching and training. As with any growing work, financial needs increase monthly. It has become difficult to keep up with demand but we try our best not to say no any more than we have to.
My co-worker, Chuck Dennis, and I are both 78. We have made about 20 trips to South Sudan and plan to go again later this year. But no one is after our job.
We are highly motivated to equip the South Sudanese people to take the kingdom forward in the near and distant future. Prayers are desperately needed!
A former church elder in Texas and missionary in Asia, Dennis Cady continues to serve the Lord’s work in South Sudan and Haiti. Dennis and his wife, Susan, are based in Wichita Falls, Texas. They work with Chuck Dennis through the Starfish Foundation (thestarfishfoundation.net). dcady6@gmail.com