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The Sheppards -
Missionaries to Liberia

Dear Friends,

Greetings from Liberia! At this Easter time we praise God for his marvelous provision of salvation through the death, burial and resurrection of Christ. Without the resurrection, we would be lost in our sins and on our way to hell, and the crucifixion meaningless. And this message of salvation is the very basis of our being in Liberia!

And if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty. Yes, and we are found false witnesses of God, because we have testified of God that He raised up Christ, whom He did not raise up—if in fact the dead do not rise. For if the dead do not rise, then Christ is not risen. And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins! Then also those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men the most pitiable. But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.
(1 Corinthians 15:14-20)

We have been blessed through a great number of ministry opportunities since our last update. At the end of January I was a part of the Faith Independent Baptist Association of churches (FIBA) annual conference. It was a blessing to see hundreds of believers from our Bassa-speaking churches come together for fellowship and edification.

On February 27th I was able to be part of an ordination council to examine a former student of mine who recently graduated of Jake Memorial Baptist College (JMBC). It was great to hear him answer hours of questions with biblically sound answers. The ordination service on Sunday the 28th was a great celebration of this man of God.  He is presently pastoring a church that we have worked closely with in the past.  

About eight months ago the president of JMBC asked me to be the dean of theology and Nancy to be the dean of education. These roles have thrust us deeper into the planning and programming of courses for the school. After years of experience and study, it is a blessing to put be in positions where we can schedule (and even create) classes we believe will meet the spiritual, educational and social needs of the students. We have also been working with the rest of the staff to meet the necessary standards to offer bachelor’s degrees.

On February 1st classes started at JMBC with Nancy teaching an English class based on the King of Glory materials we mentioned in previous letters and I teaching a biblically-based course on logic and critical thinking. Both Nancy and I have been blessed to see the interest and dedication of the students. 

On April 1st I took an Mission Aviation Fellowship flight to Tappita to work on completing the Bible School building and the electrification of the mission. Yes, believe it or not, for the first time in history, Tappita has electric power as it is now connected to the same West African power grid that we enjoyed while living in the Ivory Coast! Lord willing, I will be taking a flight back on the 8th to resume my work in Monrovia. (If you are interested, click here for a video interview of me during the flight, put together by MAF pilot Steven Biggs.)

Recently brother David Bennett and pastor Mark Coleman came from the US on a survey of ministries to the deaf in Liberia and stayed with us for part of the time.  The work with Silent Word Ministries International, a ministry to the deaf. Every day we see many types of handicapped, disabled and impaired people in Liberia whom really need to be ministered to. We praise God for David and Mark's work and their goal to help Baptist churches in Liberia start ministries and schools for the deaf. 

Back in 2007, one of our former coworkers from our time in the Ivory Coast raised money for pastor Amos Kangar to buy a motorcycle to use for ministry purposes (above picture). Amos is a shining light to Nancy and me as a proof of the efficacy of God and His Word to change lives. He was my student in the BMM Bible School in Tappita during our first term from 1986-1989. He now runs the FIBA Bible School in Grand Bassa county, is principal of an elementary school, pastors a church and tries to visit nearby fellowships as much as possible. Well, the 2007 motorcycle had given up the ghost so he asked if I would consider raising money for another. I said, “yes,” and told him I’d let him know if any gifts came in. As I thought and prayed about it, I considered the most recent “COVID” money that had come to us via the “largess” of the US government and thought, Why don’t we pass on some of this unexpected money to him? Nancy agreed and he was able to take the motorcycle home with him after the FIBA conference in January.

Do you have some “unexpected” money that you could give for God’s work in Liberia? We have a number of important projects such as the Jake Memorial Baptist College, our interior Bible schools, and of course, motorcycles for faithful pastors. If you would like to give, see the information at the bottom of this email.

Please pray for the following requests:

1. More men to follow God’s leading into the pastorate. We had a young pastor die recently after a stroke and we see the pastors in Liberia getting up in years..

2. Revival in Liberia.

3. Wisdom as Nancy and I continue our teaching and administrative ministries at Jake Memorial Baptist College. 

4. Some Canadian missionary friends of ours who have had some serious health issues with their 8-month-old daughter. They finally were able to evacuate to Canada as a family where "E," not too long after they arrived, had to be hospitalized for breathing problems. She is doing better now, but they really need your prayers. 

5. The spiritual and academic growth of Jonah, who is now 13. (Picture: Jonah’s birthday party at the beach.)

In His service,

Mark, Nancy and Jonah Sheppard

Serving with:

Baptist Mid-Missions
Box 308011
Cleveland, OH 44130-8011
http://www.bmm.org

To give online, click here and then use the menu under “FUND” to choose “3. Missionary Support.” In the menu under “SUB FUND” choose “Sheppard, Mark Richard, 706065” Enter the amount you wish to give. Push “ADD DONATION,” Choose whether you want to use your Credit Card or Bank Account. After entering your payment information, fill out your name and address and then push “Submit” at the bottom of the page.

You may also mail gifts to the above address. Mark the gift “for the ministry of Mark Sheppard.” (For more information on monthly giving, etc., go to
https://www.bmm.org/give/ways-to-give )