Nuusbrief van Veritas College International Augustus 2023

Training Figures Increase by 50%

Our Foundation Training (Modules) figures for the year ending June 2023 have increased by just over 50% from the previous year. We had a total of 24,177 (previous year 15,970) enrolments in a module in 1,837 classes in 53 countries. In addition 1,428 facilitators were trained in comparison to 1,160 in the previous year. This adds up to a total of 25,605 enrolments.

The Veritas Diploma Training (accredited in Australia) had 101 students graduating in comparison to 48 the previous year. The Veritas College International Graduate School (accredited in the US) had 32 students enrolled in its Master of Divinity program and 4 in its doctorate program.

It is generally accepted in the evangelical world that 2,000,000 pastors and ministry leaders need biblical training. With our 24,000 enrollments Veritas is now meeting at least 1% of the global need for training!

We are so grateful to the Lord for His grace in making these results possible! From all of us at Veritas a sincere thank you to our prayer and financial supporters and volunteer facilitators!

The Challenge for a Growing Missionary Organisation

Veritas College is a missionary organisation as its training equips workers for the church worldwide. We work in some of the poorest countries and in countries where Christians are persecuted or oppressed. As such, its funding model is completely opposite to that of a business. Normally, growth in customers leads to growth in income. In our case, the more successful in fulfilling our mission to serve the church worldwide, the bigger the financial challenge. Approximately only 10% of our income is from tuition and the rest is dependent on the financial support of our ministry partners. We are therefore very aware that the work cannot only be done by our 50 staff members with the support of volunteer facilitators, but that a variety of gifts is required (Romans 12:6-8):

We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us.
If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith;
if it is serving, then serve;
if it is teaching, then teach;
if it is to encourage, then give encouragement;
if it is giving, then give generously;
if it is to lead, do it diligently;
if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.

Although we have seen a growth of 50% in training numbers, our expenses have only increased by 16%. However, our income did not match the expenses with the result that we had to dig into reserves. Unfortunately this is not sustainable. If you are already providing financial support, please consider to increase it. If you are not, please consider to become a financial supporter. More information is at the end of this letter.

Does Training Stop when War Breaks Out?

What is now happening to the Veritas training in Sudan? We have been training there since 2019. At the end of last year an international foundation asked us to expand our training in the country to cover all 18 of its states. They believed that we are the only organisation with the ability to achieve this. We agreed to this even before receiving a grant because we felt “we should train while the door is open”. Moheb Mossa, our Regional Director for the region almost immediately started to implement a strategy for increased training. The strategy is to train local facilitators who in turn train local church leaders. When he visited the last time just before the war broke out, he said to the facilitators who had been trained to run all four modules: “Even if I will not be able to enter Sudan again, I am happy that you are well equipped to train your people”.

The training is now indeed run by local volunteers without depending on Veritas!

Prayer requests

• Please pray for the facilitators in Sudan and in the other 52 countries where we train. Some are working in very difficult and even dangerous circumstances.
• Please pray for our 50 staff members who work hard to serve the church.
• Please pray for additional funding to support the increase in training.