01/08/26 To God Be the Glory!
As we enter 2026, let us share what God has done through Global Baptist Training Foundation in 2025 through training nationals to train nationals.
Classes:
National trainers have held about 200 classes in 2025. With an average of 50 students in each class, that means that 10,000 pastors and church leaders had GBTF theological training in dozens of nations.
Graduations:
Several graduation ceremonies were held in 2025 from Burundi to Rwanda to Tanzania and other countries. Each time a graduation is held, pastors and church leaders have completed all 15 courses in the GBTF college- level curriculum. The exciting thing about a graduation is that each one yields new national trainers who will go out to train others.
Trainers
Speaking of trainers, at the end of 2024, we had 88 national trainers. Our goal was to reach 100 trainers in 2025. As of today, we have 200 national trainers! These trainers have graduated from GBTF, been further trained as a trainer, and have moved into becoming regional trainers of other nationals. We have been able to equip these trainers with vehicles, motorcycles, projectors, smart phones, and other equipment to make them more effective. You can read the stories of many of these trainers in Bruce’s new book, The Voices of Nationals, which was published by Wipf and Stock in December, 2025!
Church Plants:
Another benefit of GBTF graduations is that many graduates go out to plant new churches in towns and villages all over Africa! By the end of 2025, GBTF-trained pastors have started a total of 1,862 churches! We were able to supply these church plants with tens of thousands of Bibles in 2025!
Results:
The goal of training, church planting, and all the efforts of Global Baptist Training Foundation is to see people come to faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. In the final quarter of 2025, the GBTF church plants that documented results (about 1.550 of them), reported 31,990 people who professed faith in Christ alone for salvation. That brings the total salvations for 2025 to just over 108,000!
And leading people to faith in Christ is just the beginning. The churches are baptizing the new Christians and then taking them through discipleship programs to help them get a start on being life-long followers of Jesus!
Looking Ahead:
What is ahead for 2026? More of everything here! More buildings being built, new wells being dug for church plants in famine-prone areas, more Bibles delivered so that everyone without a Bible has access to one, and even a new podcast (Mission 21)! For all of our faithful donors, you share in the blessings of this harvest! For those who are not yet part of our GBTF team, please visit www.globaltrain.org and be part of an amazing work to the glory of God!
Bruce & Grace Snavely
Global Baptist Training Foundation
Videos:
Missions 21 Episode 1
South Sudan Worship
Zimbabwe Graduates Rejoice
AND sing!