Strengthening leaders, supporting communities

Expanding partnerships in Malawi and Tanzania

Sovereign World Trust continues to deepen its support for churches and leaders across Africa, with Malawi and Tanzania being two countries of particular focus in recent years. The Trust’s engagement goes back to visits in 2014 and 2015 and has been enriched by long-standing relationships—especially through the Anglican Diocese of Rochester’s connection with Tanzania, and our ongoing collaboration with Starfish Malawi. .

One notable result of these partnerships was the translation of the first 11 chapters of The Bible Student (by Glory to Glory Publications) into Swahili, making it accessible to non-English-speaking church leaders in Tanzania.

A new connection from Kent

In August, we received a call from Jon Butt, a church leader from the Beckenham area of Kent. Jon and his wife Jackie are part of the Regions Beyond network (www.regionsbeyond.net) within the New Frontiers International family (www.newfrontierstogether.org)—another growing Kent-based link with these two African nations. 

Jon and Jackie were preparing for a six-week mission trip to strengthen relationships, encourage leaders, and provide practical resources for churches in three key locations: 

• Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
• Zomba, Southern Malawi
• Mzuzu, Northern Malawi

In each location, they met with local pastors and growing congregations—many of them relatively young churches, yet already making an impact:

• The church in Zomba is three years old and showing strong signs of growth.
• In Mzuzu, a new church plant has emerged in the last 18 months and is already gathering momentum.

Both the churches’ leadership teams had previously undergone foundational training in South Africa, a reflection of New Frontiers International’s commitment to developing healthy, self-sustaining churches with strong biblical and leadership foundations.

Sovereign World Trust is especially committed to supporting churches in this way—providing carefully chosen biblical resources and integrating them into relational, face-to-face leadership development. A key part of this model is a holistic approach, which includes encouraging churches to develop self-sustaining small businesses. Many of our supporters will recall similar reports from Richard Smart’s work in Uganda.

African Christians do not want to remain dependent on the West. They desire a helping hand to get started, along with practical support along the journey. Our long-term goal is to help communities thrive—both spiritually and materially—and ultimately break the cycle of poverty.

This is no quick fix. It requires time, prayer, and perseverance. But books can play a vital role, especially in cultures where church leaders often learn as they go. Books are powerful tools for imparting truth, wisdom, and guidance. They help leaders remain grounded in God’s ways, avoiding the pitfalls of corruption and the pull of traditional or tribal beliefs.

Before their trip, Jon connected with Chris, Director of the Trust, who provided a 23kg suitcase packed with biblical teaching resources. Each title was carefully selected to meet the needs of local leaders and ensure the books would be well-used and appreciated.

As Jon shared: “We are passionate about providing pastors in Africa—and around the world—with high-quality, culturally relevant material. There are excellent African theologians, but their work isn’t always accessible. We believe resources like Michael Eaton’s preaching series and other publications can be incredibly helpful.”

It’s worth noting that Michael Eaton lived and ministered in Kenya. His Preaching Through the Bible series and Branch Commentary were originally developed for African congregations—making them particularly well-suited for this context.

In the suitcase

Here's a snapshot of the books included in Jon and Jackie's luggage:

Title	Quantity	Notes
Preaching Through the Bible: James	12	Practical and pastoral teaching
Preaching Through the Bible: 1 & 2 Corinthians	12	Highly relevant, applied theology
Swahili Bible Student (Ch. 1–11)	60	Guided studies in Tanzania’s national language
Explaining the Holy Spirit	12	Foundational truth for all believers
Paradoxical Messiah	19	A clear, accessible overview of the Gospel story
Branch Commentary (Old & New Testaments)	2 sets	For influential leaders
Total	117 books

These resources are already in the hands of pastors and church leaders, supporting their ministry and helping shape communities for lasting transformation.

We look forward to providing even more resources for Jon and Jackie’s next trip in November.