Steven Simpson is an Elder at his local Brethren church in Fiji. He grew up in the church, and over time took on various roles starting with singing and later moved into the Eldership role leading the congregation.
Responding to God’s call
Prior to becoming an Elder and preaching, Steven had received no training. He shares, “I went to Bible school once, but it was just for two months. The course was supposed to be two years, but something happened and those that ran it had to leave…. And so that was it. But after that, there was no training.”
He continues, “It was a big responsibility. It’s not easy, but who else was going to do it? So I just felt that this is a calling, and this is a task, it’s a responsibility. So I just needed to take that role as a leader in the church and just go from there.”
The Word impacting lives
Steven completed Preaching training with Langham Partnership and shares, “Langham has been a great help, especially in preparing sermons because it has given a structure that we can follow in preparing a message. Langham encourages preachers to read the Word and reread it and just to keep reading the Word. And the more we read, the more we see things just coming up from the Word of God… that’s something that we never really got to know before. And with the role and responsibility in the church, it has greatly impacted, especially, we who stand up to minister the Word, to be more serious about the Word and know that the responsibility is to feed the flock and see that they grow and mature, that they may go and bear fruit as well and give God all the glory.”
“A lot of what Langham has offered has really impacted most of the congregation because there’s not many good preachers, especially around our area, that really preach the Word. So in our church, they have seen a difference. And it’s not only me, but there are a few others that got this training from Langham. And so if there’s a couple of us, then we are able to feed the flock more, feed them better.”
“Langham has greatly impacted my life, especially when it encourages us to spend more time in the Word.. And not only are we preparing a message to share, but even as we read the Word and study the Word, it speaks to us first. It speaks to me. And that has helped me grow as well in my Christian walk and in the preparation of sermons.”
The need for more training
Few pastors have received training to teach from the Bible in Fiji, Steven shares; “I don’t think that a lot of these churches have [trained] preachers, but they just get up to preach. But to really preach from the Word, they need this training, they need a lot of training. I know a lot of my friends who preach, who have a role in the church, but haven’t gone through any training at all. If they can get training from what Langham is offering, there’s going to be a lot of impact in the churches, especially the local churches around this area.”
Prayer Points
- Thank God for Steven and his faithfulness to God’s calling to be a leader of a church
- Pray for more church leaders in Fiji to receive Langham training to be able to read and share the Word faithfully and relevantly.