Toward African Christian Leadership
There is no better example of the impact of JSM-Langham Scholars, than the Rt Rev. Dr. David Zac Niringiye. Zac has helped to launch the careers of many African pastors, church and para-church leaders, and was a founder of Kampala Evangelical School of Theology (KEST) a major seminary in Uganda. Zac, one of the first JSM-Langham Scholars to study in the USA, has degrees from both Wheaton in Illinois and Edinburgh in Scotland.
Zac is from a rural background and his faith journey started at a young age. Recently he wrote:
My particular journey of faith begins with that of my parents who, at the time I was born, were serving as ministers in the Church of Uganda. I am truly a rural boy. I grew up in rural Uganda in the mountains and hills of Bufumbira, in south-western Uganda. Let me share a little bit of my rural-ness. In rural Bufumbira, electricity was a novelty. For me at the age of fifteen, I switched on an electric bulb for the very first time when I went to secondary school. When I got to school, the older students recognised how rural I was; the only way I knew how to turn off a light was to blow it!
So these little naughty boys teased me. One of them went by the wall and the other went close by the bulb and to my real amazement he could blow and it just went off. So they asked me to blow out the light and I worked at it! As you can imagine to their joy!! Only later did I actually discover that there were other ways of turning out the light. But I am proud of that rural heritage!
David Zac Niringiye became the first John Stott Ministries Scholar in the US after meeting Dr Stott along his journey. He received his undergrad training at Wheaton College and then completed his PhD studies at Edinburgh in the UK. After completing his studies he returned home to Uganda and through his leadership the Kampala Evangelical School of Theology (KEST) was founded.
Today, Zac is an ordained minister in the Church of Uganda, and Assistant Bishop Designate for Kampala. He is a theologian, pastor, Bible teacher, marriage and family life counselor, trainer, and organizational development consultant. His impact throughout Africa has been both broad and deep. David Zac has also presented Phillip Wandawa to John Stott Ministries and he is now studying for his PhD at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He will be returning to Kampala as the director of KEST upon the completion of his studies.
Zac’s multicultural ministry, leadership and mission experience has made him a sought-after speaker at mission and leadership conferences globally. He speaks regularly at conferences and churches in Europe, Africa and North America, including serving as keynote speaker at the most recent Urbana Missions conference. He has served as Africa Regional Director of the Church Mission Society, Co-Director of the Global South Institute at Uganda Christian University and Missioner-at-Large Honorary Curate at Christ Church in Beckenham, Diocese of Rochester. He is a regular presenter at KEST/ JSM-Langham Preaching Seminars and a trusted counsellor to John Stott Ministries.
Working with John Stott Ministries, Zac has implemented preaching seminars that are now well established in Uganda and attracting preachers from nearby countries such as the Sudan, Rwanda and Tanzania. This had lead to the spreading of preaching seminars to these nearby countries.
When choosing a JSM-Langham Scholar, our selection committee and our Board members look for people of great integrity, commitment, and potential; we agonize over these decisions, seeking God’s leading for several months. In Dr. Niringiye we see the fulfillment of our calling to train top leaders who will help unleash the next generation of pastors and church leaders. We thank God for this calling…as we thank God for Zac.