We praise the Lord for His faithfulness to lead and provide! Following a two-week break, our second trimester commenced on April 8. Running through July 24, most of the instruction this trimester will be provided by guest teachers from the USA and from within Zambia. Courses through this period are quite intensive, each consisting of only eight days. Our students remain motivated as they learn as much as possible with the help of these instructors, in eager anticipation of applying their knowledge outside of the classroom. Our guest teachers sacrifice much to serve with AIU, traveling long distances at great expense while enduring extended time away from family. We are grateful for their selfless desire to train Africa’s next generation of spiritual leaders.

At AIU, we raise chickens to supply our cafeteria with quality protein for both students and staff. While reducing our food expenses, this also helps us increase operational sustainability as the surplus from each chicken harvest is sent to market. There are currently three poultry houses on campus, each accommodating up to 765 chickens, with plans to add more houses.

The poultry project provides a valuable training platform for numerous students who tend to the birds as part of their work scholarship program. The skills they learn related to chicken-rearing could prove helpful for sustaining their own families and ministries once they have graduated.

We praise the Lord for making this possible. Please pray with us as we seek to expand the poultry department and maximize its ability to help sustain operations at AIU.

As we have been doing through our poultry operation, we are also pursuing increased self-sustainability through our farming ventures. Both AIU and Chifundo Clinic maintain fields for planting various crops. This year, as we focused on corn production, we were greatly challenged by the impact of a severe drought in our region. Despite the lower yield, we are grateful that God provided enough for us to reduce our cafeteria food expenses at AIU while providing a source of sustenance for malnourished families served through the Chifundo clinic. Keep praying with us as we seek the Lord’s help and direction to expand our farming operation.

Joseph Lungu graduated from AIU in 2020, and became our Assistant Librarian in 2022. His hardworking spirit and pastoral qualities led to his recently being appointed AIU Campus Pastor. In preparation for his calling as a pastor, Joseph took part in a one-year pastoral internship in Lusaka in 2021.

Joseph’s new role encompasses a variety of key pastoral, outreach, and evangelism responsibilities. In addition to leading on-campus discipleship and counseling, he will be developing and leading student outreach initiatives within Zambia and beyond, encouraging students to engage effectively in the Great Commission. To expand and maximize discipleship across our immediate region, Joseph will seek to develop deeper relationships with local churches with whom AIU can coordinate ministry initiatives.

Joseph is humbled and grateful that the Lord would entrust him with this new position. He is thankful for the many people God placed in his life to encourage him spiritually and for how AIU prepared him as a ministry leader. Pray for Joseph as he seeks the Lord’s wisdom to serve well in this new role.

Antonio is part of the 2024 sophomore class at AIU. Hailing from Manika province in central Mozambique, he is the fourth born in a family of seven, with five sisters and one brother. From a young age and well into his teenage years, Antonio and his family participated in the traditional African religious rituals and spirit worship common to their region. Looking back, he laments that neither he nor his parents had ever heard the Gospel preached at any point in his early youth. He explains what it was like for his family during that time:

On a miraculous day in 2018, while in high school, Antonio visited one of his cousins. During a conversation, his cousin asked Antonio if he had a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Antonio had no answer because he had never heard of Jesus Christ. His cousin went on to share the Gospel with Antonio, explaining that only through Christ can anyone find spiritual peace and eternal salvation. Referring to John 1:12, he assured Antonio that when he believes in Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior, he will become a child of God. As Antonio placed his faith in Jesus Christ, he knew at that moment he was set free from the fears that troubled him for as long as he could remember. The Lord has grown Antonio greatly in faith and understanding since then, and he thoroughly enjoys the fellowship he has with other believers at AIU.

For Antonio, being at AIU is an answer to prayer and a tremendous blessing. His understanding of God’s Word has improved remarkably. As he desires to learn as much as possible during his time here, he is especially grateful to have been introduced to the art of interpreting the Bible in context and preaching.

Antonio is incredibly thankful for all the sponsors and teachers who have invested their lives and resources to help him succeed at AIU, which he describes as a large family full of many kind, loving, and caring people. Pray with Antonio that he will finish his studies well. Pray also that God will use Antonio in his desire to evangelize his local community, which continues to worship spirits just as he did all those years before finding salvation in Jesus Christ.

Thank you for your prayers and participation with us as we seek daily our Lord’s direction in preparing Africa’s next generation of Christian leaders at Ambassador International University!