Partnership Overview

There are some places on earth that are hard places, hard to get to, hard to enter and hard to work in. The land of the Koti people is one of those places on earth. The Koti are an ethnic group with a very basic lifestyle, living on the north coast of Mozambique. Most children grow up in poverty, living in simple huts made from mud and sticks built on the sand and eating mash made from dried tapioca with a salty fish soup.   

The Koti were previously an unreached people group until the work commenced in August 1998. The work is led by Koti men and their vision is to take the gospel to every island and village in the Angoche District to establish congregations of disciples in each community.

History Of Partnership

A church from Japan sent a team to become involved in this area towards the end of the 1990's. From 2003 the gospel began to spread and may people were baptised and began to follow Jesus. After hearing about the work from key people, it was easy for us to decide to become involved.

Bright Hope World commenced support for this work in April 2006.  

Beneficiaries 

Most of the key people are fishermen living around the mangroves near Angoche. Their fishing helps sustain them, but they need a small amount of subsidy if they are to take time out to be involved in Christian outreach among their people. There are a number of levels of support, depending on the amount of time the people devote to the work.

What We Like About The Partnership 

The funding from Bright Hope World goes to two major purposes:
1) Providing a small amount of support for the Koti leaders to supplement their incomes. This is so they can visit other villages with the gospel while still taking care of their families; outreach means being away from home (farming and fishing) and therefore neglecting basic support. 

2) Facilitating transport so that the key people are able to meet every week from all around the district for training. They come into Angoche, spend the day learning and then go back out with new understandings and resources. They replicate the training in more than 20 training centres in their respective zones. Village pastors and leaders come to those zone training centres (about 400 men every week) and then go home to care for their people and make disciples. 

The key objectives for this partnership are:
- To facilitate the spread of the gospel among the Koti and make disciples 
- To provide a supplemental level of support for the Koti leaders 
- To assist with transport by providing bicycles for workers who are itinerate amongst the villages and to be available for training

Key People

Graeme Fawcett is the key person Bright Hope World deals with in regard to this project. He was sent from the church he pioneered in Japan, but is a New Zealander and his wife Lucy is Malaysian. They both completed degrees in Sociology from Canterbury University and attended City New Life Church in Christchurch. They have been involved with church planting for many years.

Timmy Holah is also deeply involved in the project. Like Graeme and Lucy, he lived with his family in Angoche for a few years and is now a pastor in Christchuch. He continues to visit Angoche every year and tracks with the leaders closely. 

The key leader locally is Talsamo. He is a young man with a huge leadership gift and he is so faithful with all the people he cares for and the resources that he and his team manage. He normally communicates several times a week with Graeme and Timmy.

Other People Involved
This project is affiliated with the church in Japan which Graeme and Lucy planted. They had been solely supporting the project up until April 2006 when Bright Hope World also became involved with support. The work had grown so quickly that the church could not sustain it and had reached their limit of how much they could support this project.

Vision And Annual Strategy  

There is a 10-year plan that includes the following:
- To support 50 evangelists @ US$20/month
- 5 bicycles per month @ US$70/month
- The establishment of a farm to assist people to grow more of their own food and to provide a model for other people to imitate

Annual Budget 

Currently Bright Hope World is providing financial support for 50 evangelists and bicycles. 

Personal Testimony

Real "Life Change" Stories

Abdul (not his real name) was a wild and violent husband until he met the Lord. He repented and returned to his wife and children. His family was transformed and became a great testimony and model to others. The leaders help people in their congregations through teachings on the family of faith and Abdul leads studies because he ministers life not just theory. He and his wife began to go out together in evangelism – with a baby strapped to their back and other kids in tow. Previously no other Koti people would do things like that as couples! Many years later, he and his wife continue to serve the Lord in Tarikhi ya Haakhi. 

Graeme and Ayupa (not his real name) met when Graeme was visiting another friend who lives on the same small island. Ayupa came by and chatted with him. He was a bit drunk actually and reproached Graeme for visiting the other guy many times without sharing with him and telling him what he was up to. So Graeme shared with him from a booklet about Abraham’s sacrifice of Isaac, a story which is familiar and valued by Muslims. A wanted to hear more so they arranged to visit him a few days later. He gave his life to Christ and he and his wife and three children decided to be baptized right there and then in the muddy mangrove swamp! His life was totally turned around  from a very wild and immoral life and he served with them for many years (but recently moved on to do his own business).

Many young couples have been transformed and are now serving together, spreading the gospel among their people. Finding ways for them to be self-sufficient, to farm well and start small businesses continues to be our greatest challenge.