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Jean Baptiste

Jean Baptiste was born in Rwanda in 1965 and is married to Julia Marina. He was born in a family that practiced Islam and ancestral worship at the same time.

He shares his story:

“Amidst instability at home, I needed someone to cry to. I learnt that there was a God who is greater than everything and everybody, and that this God is good and is a loving God who cares for me. I wanted to know Him. Through the ministry of a gentleman by the names of William Ngwabije, I knew that this God created everything and everybody, and that He also sent His Son to die for us. I felt that I needed to develop a personal relationship with this God. I made a decision and confirmed it by baptism one Christmas Day. William was a Rwandan Christian who was sent to our home village to lead an Anglican Church and he liked house to house evangelism. That’s how I ended up connecting with him.

It was in 1990 when God opened my eyes to the plight of Rwandese young people without hope and sound Biblical grounding in Christian faith. God developed in me a strong desire to help these young people. I started Youth Ministry in the city while I was still working for the Rwandan Central Bank. I received an opportunity to go to the Haggai Institute in Singapore, and there I met Dr. Gerry Gallimore, the former International President of Youth For Christ. From him I learned of Youth for Christ ministry that does youth evangelism and discipleship. From 1993 I began corresponding with him. He later sent Mr. Donald Osman, the then Area Director for Africa, who became the first person to give me and my team formal training about Youth for Christ. I pioneered Youth for Christ in Rwanda .”

Jean Baptiste shares his dreams as a Regional Director for East Africa:

  • To strengthen and consolidate the ministries in countries where Youth for Christ already exists;
  • To ensure that Youth for Christ ministry in Democratic Republic of Congo and Tanzania is established with well trained leaders;
  • To promote the cross border ministries started few years ago and entrench this into our culture;
  • To empower the national programs in the region to grow in skills and methodologies of youth evangelism and discipleship (good leadership, good governance and management of our ministries, wider areas of youth outreach and good discipleship programs). This will ensure that our nations in this region serve as effective models for other nations and regions regarding Youth Ministry.

Jean Baptiste’s greatest ministry project in the next three years is to ensure that leadership development and discipleship program currently operating in Rwanda grow to the level of sending missionaries all over the world, and to become a showcase for those who would like to learn how to identify, screen, and equip emerging young leaders.