Christian Center the Hand of God

With a sanctuary built for 60 people and an average weekly attendance of 90, Christian Center the Hand of God in Hamilton, Ohio, is bursting at the seams.

Pastor Hermann Mputu says this USMB congregation, which is comprised primarily of French-speaking immigrants from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), has standing room only.

“Every Sunday, most people stand up,” Mputu says. “They stand for all the service.”

The congregation’s 60 children—from babies to teenagers—squeeze into one small room at the back for Sunday school. The lack of space also limits activities during the week.

“We try to do what we can, but the first need is to expand our church building,” Mputu says. “We cannot have two activities at the same time because we have one room. If this group has an activity, the other one has to wait. The problem is, some people might be off only one or two days a week in the evening.”

You can help provide more space for CCHG’s growing congregation by partnering through the CORD program, which provides funding for vetted congregations like Mputu’s over three years. CCHG is the first participant in the CORD program, and by giving to CORD, you can help fund not only the expansion of CCHG’s building, but also ease Mputu’s workload and fund his continued training.

A growing church

Mputu has a legal background as a lawyer in DRC, but he has served nearly 17 years in ministry. He and his wife, Mamie, started CCHG with a prayer group in their apartment living room in 2014. As the gathering grew, the group moved to other spaces, and the church officially organized in 2015. Three years in, the congregation collected money to purchase its current building.

“If we see what’s happening now (and) the number of people coming to the church, we can say glory to Jesus,” Mputu says. “I’m very excited, first of all, that the presence of the Holy Spirit is there. Second, the church is growing.”

Most of the CCHG congregation is from DRC, but some come from Ivory Coast, Cameroon and Togo. Sunday services are presented in French and translated to English, while children are taught in English. Church ministries include a Wednesday night Bible study, Friday prayer meeting and Saturday leadership training.

Church membership nearly doubles the weekly attendance, but conflicting work schedules mean not everyone comes on a given Sunday. On special occasions, there’s not room for everyone.

“We can do more”

Mputu is bivocatonal, working up to 50 hours a week at a factory to support his ministry at CCHG and family of six.

“It’s a growing church, but right now, the church doesn’t pay me,” Mputu says. “I’m working somewhere else, but it’s my calling to be a pastor.”

Operating on five or six hours of sleep, Mputu wakes up at 4 a.m. and returns home by 4 p.m. to pick up his children from school, make sure their homework is done and eat supper. He spends most evenings at church, either in personal prayer for the congregation, Bible study or corporate prayer.

“Sometimes I have to call off when I’m working if I have a lot of people to talk with, to counsel them,” Mputu says. “I’m very busy. The Lord is gracing us with more souls. We need to take care of them.”

Mputu spends most weekends at church, including on Saturday for leadership training and choir practice, and on Sunday for the three-hour service at 10:30 a.m. and visiting with the congregation. He returns home at 5 p.m. in time for his two-hour The Urban Ministry Institute (TUMI) class at 6 p.m. TUMI is a ministry of World Impact that provides Christian leadership education.

“We are very excited (about) what God is doing here in Cincinnati, but one thing is time,” Mputu says. “We can do more than what we’re doing now, but I don’t have enough time to focus on the ministry because I have a family to take care of. If we are full-time in the ministry, we can do more than what we’re doing now.”

CORD partnership

Through the CORD program, USMB will partner with CCHG, providing $55,500 over three years for educational training, facility expansion and a pastoral stipend.

CORD funds will be used to expand the CCHG building to accommodate growth, as well as help ease Mputu’s workload and fund his continued training. After Mputu completes the 16-module TUMI certificate program, the goal is for him to continue his biblical training and education by enrolling in an online course at Tabor College, says Terry Hunt, Eastern District Minister and chair of the Integrated Immigrant Council.

Having a larger space will not only make it possible for more people to attend CCHG on Sunday but will also allow for more opportunities for youth and for simultaneous activities during the week.

Please prayerfully consider donating to CORD to partner with Mputu and the CCHG congregation.

For more information or to donate, visit www.usmb.org/cord.