Gratitude for new calling

“Due to his skills and passionate heart for mission, the Executive Committee (Board of Directors) of EBM INTERNATIONAL unanimously appoint Prof. Dr. Michael Kißkalt as the new General Secretary.” With these words, the president of EBM INTERNATIONAL, Emma Mabidilala from South Africa, summarized her written recommendation for the delegates of the council in the run-up to the online mission council. This passion was evident in Pastor Michael Kißkalt’s personal introduction at the meeting. He will be appointed as the new General Secretary from January 2023. Michael will take over from Pastor Christoph Haus, who will retire after 14 years of service at EBM INTERNATIONAL.

Michael Kißkalt is the professor for missiology and intercultural theology, and is also the current principal of the Theological Seminary in Elstal. Michael Kißkalt was clear that he likes to train currently future pastors, and is enthusiastic about church work and mission. Still, since his missionary service for EBM INTERNATIONAL in the 1990’s at the Theological Seminary in Ndiki, South Cameroon (see pictures), his love for world missions and the connection to EBM INTERNATIONAL has always remained strong.

This was also reiterated by many attendees: church leaders from numerous member unions expressed their joy at this calling and remembered with appreciation the encounters they had with Michael Kißkalt. The former president of EBM INTERNATIONAL, Arild Harvik from Norway, expressed his gratitude: “I am very pleased that after my tenure, the new management was able to promptly initiate this personnel decision. I always felt that Michael was “one of us”. Here I can clearly discover the action of God.”

In addition to Kißkalt, Michael Fischbeck was appointed as the new Team Leader for Promotion and Fundraising. He has been working as a fundraiser at EBM INTERNATIONAL since 2018 and internally succeeds Matthias Dichristin, whose contract will expire in December 2022. In addition to these important personnel decisions, Pastor Regina Claas was honored for her long service in Southern Africa and Pastor Christina Döhring was introduced as the new missionary for theological training in Sierra Leone. The official farewell for Regina and the sending out of Christina should hopefully happen in person at the Mission Council 2022 in Leipzig next May.

There is profound gratitude to God for all his guidance. It is encouraging to see how God continues to build his kingdom in these uncertain times and how he provides for EBM INTERNATIONAL in the midst of these great upheavals. Even today he calls the right people into his ministry.