Langham Preaching enriched us in Ghana!

I had the wonderful opportunity of attending the Langham Preaching All Africa Leaders Consultation in Accra, Ghana from 9-15 November 2025. Altogether we were 81 Langham Preaching leaders from the Preaching Movements across Africa. We were all enriched by God’s Word and inspired by the Africa Leadership Team as well the Global Leadership Team. I have returned to Zambia feeling spiritually enriched and emotionally inspired and uplifted.

The venue was on a mountain overlooking the city of Accra. The environment was beautiful and peaceful.

Silent Strength and Powerful Humility

One of the things that stand out most to me is the humility and strength of the Global leaders of Langham Preaching. I am really glad that we got to meet them. I was particularly struck by the silent strength and powerful humility of the international director (Paul Windsor) and the Africa director (Femi Adeleye). They remind me of one of the qualities of “Level 5 Leader” that Jim Collins refers to in his book Good to Great. They seem to blend “extreme personal humility” with a “fierce resolve” to see the vision succeed.

It became increasingly clear as the days went by, that the vision they were striving to advance was not their own vision, but that of “uncle John Stott”. They not only feel that they are stewards of “the vision that God gave to uncle John Stott”, but they also seem to have been infected with the blessed characteristics that were evident in John Stott’s life. They shared with us John Stott’s vision and spoke warmly about his humility, capacity for friendship, and his integrity.

This, combined with the characteristics of the leaders, has inspired me not only to pursue the vision relentlessly with “fierce resolve”, but to also maintain a strong sense of humility.

I am African by God’s Appointment

I really learned a profound lesson about myself during Femi’s session on Preaching in Context. His statement, “I am African by God’s design,” struck me profoundly and impacted significantly. The thing that really hit me about the statement is the context in which I live and have grown up in. Somehow, I have always felt that I don’t belong in Africa. I was born in this continent (in South Africa) and I have never left Africa since the day of my birth. I love Africa and its beautiful and diverse cultures. I have travelled Africa extensively travelling overland from Cape Town to 16 countries on this amazing continent. And yet I have often felt that I am not African because of my skin colour. However this statement that Femi made really impacted me. He showed us from Acts 17 that God appointed the times and places in which we live. I am African by God’s divine appointment! This was so encouraging to me. My 81 brothers from around the continent showed great love and acceptance to me after I shared my heart at the Q&A. They said, “you are my brother.” I am so pleased to found an accepting family in Langham Preaching – a place where I belong.

During our excursion to Accra we went to the mausoleum to learn about the history of Ghana’s first president, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah. Armand eagerly called me, “come see my brother. I must show you your picture. This is your picture. This is your monument.” He pulled me by the arm and lead me towards a wall that had a huge star on it with a statement by Dr Kwame Nkrumah which read: “I am not African because I was born in Africa, but because Africa was born in me.”

Consolidating Growth

It was amazing to hear how Langham Preaching has grown dramatically in Africa. The theme of the week was: “Consolidating Growth”. So the key question was, ‘how do we keep this growth that God has given us – and how do we make it stronger, long-lasting, and more impactful. However, since Langham Preaching in Zambia has only started making renewed traction in 2024, we have a lot of growing to do and a lot to learn. So the theme and the discussions were super helpful to me. I was able to learn from other Preaching Movements in other countries what worked for them. This helped me to acutely discover not only what the DNA and vision of Langham Preaching is, but also to learn about its structures, administration procedures, and policies. I have a way better picture of how to advance the effectiveness and reach of Langham Preaching in Zambia.

Leadership is KEY!

Now that we know better how to take the Preaching Movement to the next level in Zambia, we need to apply one more lesson learned in Ghana. Be patient.

We have been in such a hurry to see the value of Langham Preaching impact many preachers in Zambia. However, we need to slow down and ensure that we establish proper and productive leadership structures. “You cannot move ahead of your leadership capacity”. This was one of the lessons emphasised. We were also cautioned to be very careful who is selected to be included in the leadership team. The wrong people can, not only hinder progress, but can even drag the work down.

This is one area that myself together with the others on the leadership team need to work on to prepare the Zambia Preaching Movement for exponential growth.

Please pray for us as we strive to build a sustainable and impactful Langham Preaching Movement in Zambia.

This very week, from 3-6 December, we are running a Langham Preaching Training Seminar. Please pray for the success of the seminar as well as for the preachers attending it – that they will be blessed by the fellowship and training and that they will grow in their faithfulness as preachers of God’s Word.