Brandon and Ali Heselschwerdt Prayer Letter: Dare to Be a Daniel!

March, for our family, has been an exciting month, as well as a transitional month, with what God is doing through the Bible study we have started! As mentioned in last month’s prayer letter, I have begun meeting every week on Wednesday evenings for discipleship with a gentleman named Daniel. He has been faithful to every Wednesday evening, as well as Sundays for our Bible study.

Daniel has also now become my translator for those who are very limited in English. But the most exciting thing that happened was after we had studied our fourth lesson in discipleship, which covers soul winning. After this lesson, Daniel asked me the very next Wednesday if it would be possible for me to meet a few people he wanted me to talk to. I agreed, of course, and we decided that Saturday would work best for both of us. Little did I know that we would go from home to home from 10:00 a.m. until 7:30 p.m.! Praise Almighty God, we were blessed to see souls come to hear the truth of the Gospel for the very first time in their lives and turn to Jesus Christ alone!

Since that Saturday, we have faithfully gone out together every Saturday for eight hours each time, going from home to home and sharing the Gospel! Seeing every soul we have witnessed to come to accept Christ alone as their personal Saviour has fired us up to reach more, one by one, every week. All this started because Daniel read the command and learned how to be a soul winner from the Word of Truth; now he is on fire for Christ. This month, along with our prayer letter, is Daniel’s personal testimony, and I would encourage you to read it for yourself! God is working in Daniel’s heart to reach his own people with the Gospel!

This has resulted in the growth of our Bible study on Sunday afternoons. We are now averaging around 10 to 12 adults and around 30 children, praise the Lord! All of this is because one man came to the marvelous light of the Gospel and now has a zeal to reach Kitengela, and all of Kenya as well, with the Gospel. May I add that Daniel gives up working and making money for his family on Saturdays so that he can see more people come to Christ?! Friend, when was the last time you got so fired up about the truth of the Gospel that you gave up a day of work to go out all day and tell others about Jesus Christ? It’s convicting, I know, but as Christians, we need to get more excited about the Gospel of Christ more than anything else. Amen!

Also, Lewis continues to grow through his discipleship lessons. Every week, he brings joy to my soul as I see him get more and more excited about the things he learns from the Word of God.

ADDITIONAL FAMILY NEWS

This month, we also had the blessing having my mom with us for two weeks, along with Miss Theresa, a friend from our home church. Miss Theresa is working with us until April 25; it has been a blessing having them both with us at the perfect time to help with the need in the growth we have seen in our Bible study! Since my mom was here, we went ahead and celebrated my and Hannah’s birthdays. It was a blessing to have her here with us to celebrate!

Lastly, our family will be back in the States for a short furlough from May 12 – June 20. We will only be in the Michigan area this time around to give an update to our supporting churches there before coming back to Kitengela, Kenya. Please pray for our team member, Andy Richey, as he will be filling in for us to keep our Bible study going while we are away.

Thank you for your faithful prayers and support, as always, and may God use you in your part of the world to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with a soul in need of the truth!

Your co-laborers for lost souls across East Africa,

Brandon, Ali, Jeffrey, Hannah, and Esther Heselschwerdt
Romans 10:14

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I am Daniel Wafula. I come from a God-fearing family. I knew God through my dad and mom, who were members of the Kenya Assemblies of God. I grew up in the church, attending Sunday school class, teen class, youth class, and then as a main church member after marriage. I have one wife and four children; all of them are alive, thank God. I personally “gave my life to Jesus Christ as my personal Saviour” while in high school in one of our Christian Union services. I started attending seminars, church services, house-to-house fellowships, crusades, and open-air meetings. I was taught and preached to by many pastors, evangelists, and preachers of the Word of God during this time period. I was an active youth, and at one time, I served as a youth leader, an evangelist, and lastly, as a secretary to the main church in our church denomination.

During all this period, I lived to know and I was told that in addition to receiving Jesus into my life, I had to do good works to earn Heaven. So, I had to give tithes and offerings, repent from time to time, attend church programs, and commit to church services every time to make sure that I was going to Heaven. I was even baptized.

After being married for several years, I had to look for a job to be able to take care of my family, so I came to the city of Nairobi. Here I joined a church, which had a good praise and worship team, and I liked it. But things were not different here because they were more focused on giving tithes and doing righteous works to go to Heaven. While here, I met a bishop, who happened to be from the same region/county and speak the same language I did. He asked me to join and work with him in his newfound international ministry. I accepted, not knowing much more about the new church. I even worked as his church administrator, for which I was well paid.

But alas! It was a total mess. I think this was the worst decision I have ever made in my life, and I regretted it. What the bishop did and preached, in my little knowledge of the Bible, was against God. He sacked six pastors for being spiritual, not much prayer, and he baptized a member in the name of the Father and mother and Son. It’s also here where I saw a Sunday school teacher marrying a Sunday school kid. Let me stop there for now. My family and I decided to quit, but some other members also followed. The bishop accused me of trying to break up the church, which was just three years old. I decided to stay at home and not join another church.

Thanks to Almighty God for meeting a person for allowing me to meet a man and his family, whom I did not know very well. I just used to see him on his evening walk and passing near our home. One day, he gave my children a flyer, which they passed
to me. I read it, and this is what it said, “Please drop in and join us for a weekly Bible study.” I was convinced, but I did not call; I just walked there. He welcomed me inside. I found two other members studying the Word, and I joined them. After the lesson, I was given a sheet of paper to fill in my personal information, such as my name, phone number, and the best time and day to visit, which I did. We also enjoyed a cup of coffee and water. After the lesson, as he was walking us out of the gate, he asked if
he could have a one-on-one talk with me. I was shocked, but I accepted.

I chose the day and went to his home again. Both of us sat in the backyard around the table; with him were two Bibles and some paper in his hand. Then he asked, “Can I ask you an important question?” I said, “Yes.” Then he said, “What do you think it would take for you to go to Heaven?” My answer was obvious because “I knew.” I said, “By accepting Jesus Christ, doing good works, and repenting.” I did not know that I was wrong. He then said, “Can I take some time to show what the Bible says, but not what I say and think?” “Yes,” I replied.

From that point on, my Christian life changed. He read many verses with me, and I paid close attention to what he said and asked. He reasoned with me and persuaded me; then I was convinced that what I was believing in before was wrong and would lead me to the Lake of Fire, which is the second death. I would have missed Heaven, which is eternal/everlasting life and the gift God gives to us who believe in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ. Thank you, Pastor Brandon, for letting me know that it’s only believing in Jesus Christ alone and not in anything else—not my good works, not myself, nor my righteous good works can earn me Heaven, which is everlasting life. That evening, I decided to give my life to Jesus Christ and believe only in Him. Praise God for a new beginning as a child of God.

There are many people in Kenya today who claim they are Christians, but there are few true believers. A lot of people come to church to save their marriages, careers, families, businesses, and children; but many souls are not saved, and they do not believe in Jesus Christ alone, but in other things like good works, stopping their sinning, and repenting every time they sin to earn Heaven, which is everlasting life. I regret that many people are heading to the Lake of Fire, for they know not the truth.

Due to this truth, I now know that I am not condemned, and the wrath of God is not upon me anymore. He has given me eternal life, which cannot be taken away. I have to live a lifestyle of witnessing to others and constantly looking for an opportunity to witness my new faith to others to encourage them to get saved, just as Romans 10:14 says.
Thanks very much, Pastor Brandon and Mrs. Ali, for establishing, strengthening, and making sure I grow in knowledge. I promise to hold fast unto this doctrine. Amen. – Daniel Wafula

Your co-laborers for souls across East Africa,

THE HESELSCHWERDT FAMILY
Brandon, Ali, Jeffrey, Hannah, and Esther
Romans 10:14