Branches have friends in several places overseas. Most but not all through the work of Alan Reeve one of our Elders. Click on the name of a country to read about our connections.
Pakistan
Ethiopia
Alan has made several visits to work with a church in Sri Lanka as part of his ministry. We gave the Church £150 as a gift from Branches to help towards the cost of building a toilet in a small village where there are a handful of Christians. This would be a witness to the rest of the community of the love of God and of His concern for their everyday needs (we also find it amusing that this is so typical of Branches. Other churches have orphanages and hospitals - we have a toilet!)
We support a young boy called Gokul who is in a Christian orphanage. This is done through an organisation called Harvest Ministries.
Maranatha Ministries was founded by Pastor Henry Joseph (His Grandson Prem Joseph is a pastor in Rochdale and a friend of Branches). Prem's father and uncle now lead the work, with Churches all over South India, plus a few in other parts. They have four Bible Schools to train young people in the work of evangelism. Alan has made many visits.
Living Hope Ministries is led by Pastor D. C. Kaushall who has visited the Fellowship on three occasions over the last few years. In the town of Amritsar in the North East of India there is a Bible School which Alan has visited several times. The young men and women at this Bible School are being trained to reach out with the Gospel to villages where there is no Church. Many of the Churches which Alan has visited and where the work of Living Hope Ministries is being carried out are on the border with Pakistan.
We have regular visits to the Fellowship from Release International. We paid for the purchase of an auto rickshaw for the family of Antony in Pakistan. The main wage earner in this family has been thrown in prison for preaching the Gospel. The rickshaw will help the family to make a living. We also held a 'Green and White Day' to raise a few extra pounds for RI's May 2008 trip to Pakistan.
This is former French Colony. The official language is French. In the capital city of Bangui there is a Missionary Training Centre, which is led by Anatole Banga. Alan has now been there eight times to teach the students who are being trained to reach out to people who have not yet heard the Gospel.
Branches don't have a collection for church funds on a Sunday but people put spare coppers into a pot for the Stephen Centre Orphanage Abeokouta.
Many of the children have lost their father and sometimes mother. Isaac Newton is the Director of the Stephen Centre and has visited Branches twice.
Every year for the past six years Alan and Margot have travelled to Tourcoing in the North West of France (very close to the border with Belgium) to work with a Full Gospel Church called "Le Tabernacle". Alan has preached in the Church many times. Each year they organise a free barbecue in the centre of the town, and use this as an opportunity to preach the Gospel.
Both Alan and Margot have visited the town of Soroti in the North West of Uganda. Alan works with Time for God Ministries which is pioneering new Churches all over the region, including in the many camps for internally displaced people - these are people who have fled their villages because of the violence from a rebel army. Alan's ministry is to teach at the Time for God Bible School - which only functions when Alan is there to lecture!
Alan has lectured several times at the Ethiopian Full Gospel Theological College.
