Approximately 200,000 migrants from Africa have landed on European shores in the last three years alone. This number adds to the 7 million already living in Europe. The majority of these African immigrants will be granted asylum and seek a path to residency or citizenship.
A few years ago, I met the Rev. Albert Delali at the annual conference for the U.K. and Ireland. Albert is from Ghana but has been living in the London area since 2002. He shared his journey and the testimony of how he arrived in the U.K. He also shared his passion for missions and desire to network with African immigrants in the U.K. and across Europe. Last year, we continued talking about how best to partner. Then the pandemic hit. The need to collaborate and strategize about reaching the African diaspora on the European continent became even more evident. As a result, the FMC-Europe and the FMC-U.K. have formed an alliance to address this strategically. Therefore, the birth of the Africa-Europe Church Network.
Albert shares:
There are a lot of African churches across Europe, especially in Spain, France and Belgium. I want to encourage the FMCUSA to partner with us with resources and finances to help us implement what God has laid on our hearts regarding these African churches. This network will allow these African communities to worship in the context of their own cultural traditions. It will also foster church growth and church planting, which is the aim of FMC-Europe.
Friends, even with challenging days ahead, we have an opportunity and an obligation to partner strategically. We have begun to actively reach out to our African brothers and sisters looking for community and a church family. We are currently working to create a virtual office with the primary focus of connecting and providing training and resources to African leaders, churches and ministries across the U.K. and Europe.
Join us in prayer and partnership as we take these steps of faith and launch this new ministry. To learn more and partner, visit the Europe Area Development Fund.
