by Jon Konnerup
A t the present, there are three Baptist Bible Fellowship International missionaries. At age 61, I am the youngest of the three!” This is what Eugene Worley, missionary to Ethiopia, told me in 2003 when I was visiting Ethiopia.
Of course, having been born in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia to BBFI missionary parents, I became very interested. Worley asked if I would share the need with young people. I prepared a video and spoke about my trip to several mission classes at Baptist Bible College. With the assistance of these promotional efforts, four young families and one single lady sensed the call of God upon their lives to serve the Lord in Ethiopia. The Shadles have been there for 13 months, the Fortners for eight months, and the Dysons for two weeks. The Wright family and Julie Miller are currently on deputation raising financial support to live and minister in Ethiopia
I just returned from a trip to Ethiopia and was very encouraged to see these young couples already learning the language (which is not easy at all), making adjustments to a very different lifestyle, and participating in various ministries. They join a missionary force comprised of the Autersons, Switzers, and Hoovers who have made an impact in Ethiopia and southern Sudan.
While in Ethiopia, I also had the privilege to meet with a group of national pastors who endured the terrible days of persecution under communism. Their churches continue to reach Ethiopians with the gospel and they participate in various community outreaches. It was a joy to see that the church my dad, Richard Konnerup, started in the countryside is still going today. I was blessed to meet the current pastor and others in the church I knew as a young boy.
There is a great need for a church-planting movement in Ethiopia. While working with the existing churches, the missionaries are taking an active role in winning people to Christ, discipling them, and starting new churches. The opportunities are wide open.
I think what impacted me the most was that along the main road to the north, where our missionaries first went to start churches in the 1960s and 70s, there is now very little witness because of the many years of communism. Instead, mosques are present in every town along the way. The door is open again and the road to the north once again needs missionaries to show Ethiopians the Way, the Truth, and the Life. We must have more surrender to go, to give their lives for the glory of God, and to build upon what was started years ago.
The plea of the former Emperor, Haile Selassie, still calls out today — “Please send 100 missionaries to our country — they need Jesus!”