Freedom Can Change the State of a Nation at War

On a random weekday several years ago, Ernie walked into the offices of African Leadership Congo intrigued by what he had heard. He had met several graduates passionate and confident about the Word of God and the education they had received from AL Congo’s teaching staff. Ernie was interested in changing the education provided for his students: the military chaplains of the Democratic Republic of Congo’s army.

Tasked with preparing these officers to move around a country traumatized by its ongoing civil war, Ernie was desperate to prepare these men for what they would find in some of the most depraved and desperate parts of the world. (Goma, one of the largest cities in the DRC, is known as the “rape capital of the world”.) Ernie signed up for classes himself. Passionate about what he learned, he worked diligently with AL Congo’s staff to enroll his chaplains in classes – hosting them in his military compound in Beni.

Fast forward a few years. Now, thanks to the passion and purpose of Ernie and the AL Congo team, they have graduated their third class of military chaplains. And while the impact of this education is spreading all across the country as these military chaplain graduates get assigned to war zones, the demand is growing at an outrageous pace.

The freedom Ernie found in learning the Gospel and having language and truth to share in his shattered country’s circumstances is quite clearly altering the state of his nation.