Testimony of Conversion

I was raised in a home of polygamy; my father married two women, and I was born to his first. I was the second born of seven.

My parents were not believers, and used to brew a type of local beer known as “kachaso.” My father was a terrible drunkard, and I grew up as a notoriously evil boy due to the unfavorable environment I experienced at home.

There was no school near my village, and due to my disability, I couldn’t walk long distances. I stayed with my parents’ relatives while my siblings went to school.

In June of 1999, I attended a church meeting where the pastor preached from the famous verse of John 3:16. He said that we were all born sinners, and needed to be saved from the penalty of sin. Salvation was found in Jesus Christ alone. I could only be saved by what Christ did for me on the cross of Calvary. Only those who believed in Him, and accepted Him as their Lord and Savior could become children of God.

My heart was troubled; I needed to hear more.

I followed the preacher, and sought clarification. He helped me, and I repented of my sins; accepting Jesus as my personal Master.

This was the beginning of my Christian journey.

I joined a local baptist church nearby. I was committed, and joined a baptismal class where I was later baptized by immersion.

The relationship I held with my family and friends turned sour; I didn’t approve of their activities, and they in turn didn’t understand mine.

I felt sorry for them, and often preached the gospel of salvation to them when I could.

Call to Ministry

Before I joined the Reformed Baptist Church movement, I resided with the Southern Baptist Church. I was actively involved in the life of the local church. When the elders saw my dedication to the things of God, they appointed me to be the church secretary, and later asked me to serve as a deacon in the church.

I also had the opportunity to preach in the church and at funerals.

I just felt inadequate. Like I wasn’t proficiently equipped to divide lies from the word of truth. I decided to attend Covenant College in order to equip myself for ministry.

On July 19, 2006, I was enrolled as a student, and in 2009, I completed my theological training.

When I graduated, I returned to the church, but was received with a cold reception  by the elders. They asked me to begin a new work due to the fact that I was now over-qualified.

I started a southern baptist church, and named it Karimeli Baptist Church.

Three years after the birth of the new church, the leaders of my old church refused to ordain me. They didn’t want me to be able to baptize new converts or to conduct the Lord’s supper, and told me that I should call them whenever there was such a need.

I felt frustrated.

Then, I met Pastor Ngoma when he was preaching to the pastors of Chipata. I inquired about what he was doing, and about the church he was pastoring. 

In October of 2011, he invited me to attend the Eastern Province Reformed Baptist Conference at Covenant College that ran for four days. The theme was “The Marks of a Healthy Church.” Pastor Ngoma was the main speaker, and at the end of the conference, I requested that the organizers of the conference allow me to say something.

“I have not,” I told the attendees, “been pastoring a healthy church due to the frustrations I have been subjected to by the Southern Baptist Church leadership. Therefore, I will tender my resignation as a pastor to join the reformed work in Zambia!”

The conference organizers told me that they would help me with transitioning in a peaceful manner without creating waves of dissension with the Southern Baptist Church.

When I returned home, I announced to the congregation at Karimelia Baptist Church that I was leaving the Southern Baptist Church to join the reformed movement in Zambia. The members had one thing to say to me:

“Where you go, we will go also.” We later changed the name of our church to Karimelia Reformed Baptist, and were adopted as a mission station by Chipata Calvary Baptist Church.