An ongoing drought and scorching heat weren’t enough to stop more than 5,000 people from attending BG-RRT trainings about how to share God’s hope in traumatic situations.
Sharing Hope in Crisis (SHIC) courses were held last fall in Lusaka and Ndola—Zambia’s capital and third largest city, respectively.
When Kevin Williams, a BG-RRT chaplain and training manager, arrived at Antioch Baptist Church in Ndola, he was shocked at what he saw.
“There were so many people, we couldn’t even get into the place when we arrived,” he explained. Local Christians had eagerly packed into the non-air-conditioned church dressed in their Sunday best.
“The U.S. fire marshal would have shut it down,” Williams said with a smile. “But there was no shutting this down.”
The crowd listened intently as the team took them through material that typically lasts six hours, with lunch and two 15-minute breaks.
This crowd didn’t want to stop.
“All of the people said ‘no way,’” Williams shared. “This is how hungry they were.”
The event—translated into local languages Bemba and Nyanja—was one of the more than 170 SHIC trainings held in both the U.S. and internationally over the years.
“Something’s happening in Zambia,” said Williams, noting the Ndola event was one of the largest crowds he’s ever taught. “The Lord is doing an amazing work there.”
Law Enforcement Chaplains Encouraged, Equipped
In addition to SHIC courses, BG-RRT hosted two Law Enforcement Chaplain Training Programs (LECTPs). Similar to SHIC seminars, these classes are focused on the unique needs of police and first responders.
“Law enforcement is law enforcement—it doesn’t matter where it is in the world,” said David Rutledge, a BG-RRT trainer and retired police officer who helped teach the classes in Zambia.
The Biblically-based training is open to active-duty or retired officers, chaplains, pastors, and anyone else interested in serving men and women in uniform.
“The Zambian constitution explicitly states they are a Christian nation,” Rutledge said. “There are different tribes and virtually no tribal warfare, which is unusual for Africa.”
Because of the stability and peace among the nation’s more than 70 different tribes, neighbouring countries often look to them to serve as first responders in natural or man-made disasters, he added.
Chaplain (Brig. Gen.) Henry Matifeyo—chief of chaplains of the Zambian Defence Forces—invited BG-RRT to come and equip the Zambian people through these specialized courses. He personally attended each session.
“The teaching was impactful,” he said. “I believe that our chaplains are responding, and they are grateful for the training and even looking forward to more.”
“We were able to look at how the chaplain cares for himself or herself,” he added, noting a key point was learning how chaplains can avoid becoming “wounded warriors.”
Kyla*, who attended an LECTP, shared that she had been orphaned at a young age and then sold into slavery—until someone at a local church helped her escape.
Now in her early 20’s, she works as an administrative assistant for a military general and lives at an orphanage, where she helps care for the children.
She told Rutledge and the team that the tools she learned had been “life-changing”—showing her to how heal and do her job with understanding and excellence.
*Name changed for privacy.
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