Dear Friends,
Thank you for praying with us this week for Habtamu Solomon Kebede in Ethiopia.
The second most populous country in Africa, Ethiopia is home to over 116 million people. Christianity has a long history in Ethiopia, possibly since the first-century conversion of the unnamed courtier in Acts 8. Today, 67% of Ethiopians identify as Christians (44% Ethiopian Orthodox, 23% Evangelical Protestant) and 31% as Muslims. From November 2020 to November 2022, civil war raged in the north between the Ethiopian government and its Eritrean allies on one side and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front on the other, leaving up to 600,000 civilians dead, millions more displaced and impoverished, and thousands traumatized by rape and other atrocities. Pray for Ethiopia as millions continue to go hungry and violence persists in the Tigray region.
Habtamu is pursuing a PhD in Contextual Theology through Asian Theological Seminary (Manila, Philippines). His dissertation develops a biblical theology of prophecy for Ethiopian Pentecostal and Evangelical churches. Since 2008, Habtamu has taught at Ethiopian Full Gospel Theological Seminary (Addis Ababa). He also serves as Treasurer for the Association of Evangelical Theological Institutions in Ethiopia (AETIE). In addition to sponsoring Habtamu’s research through Leader Studies, Scholar Leaders collaborates with both Ethiopian Full Gospel Theological Seminary and Asian Theological Seminary through the Vital Sustainability Initiative. Habtamu is married to Netsanet, and they have two preteen sons, Nathan and Dan.
Habtamu shares the following message:
Dear Friends at Scholar Leaders,
I am writing to share with you a few prayer requests. First, let me give some brief background. I am from Ethiopia. I am married and the father of two boys, Nathan and Dan. Nathan is twelve and Dan is nine. I am doing my PhD in Contextual Theology at Asian Theological Seminary in Manila, Philippines. I am faculty at Ethiopian Full Gospel Theological Seminary.
Prayer Requests
I would appreciate prayer for the following:
1. I am writing my proposal and hope to start writing my dissertation before the end of this year. Please pray for me to successfully defend my proposal.
2. I ask your prayer for God’s protection and blessing as I am devoting more time to my studies.
3. Please pray for our country, Ethiopia, as we are passing through high inflation, civil war going on in some parts of the country, and violent ethnic clashes.
In His Service,
Habtamu Solomon Kebede