“Like farming, you dig a lot, you plant a lot, and the more you’re going to get. It’s the same thing in God’s word: you dig a lot, you’re going to get a lot out of it.” – Veresa Colata, Langham-trained Elder, Fiji.
Veresa Colata lives in Nukubolu Village in Fiji, a small community, home to approximately 13 families. He serves as an Elder at the local Brethren Church. In 2018, after the passing of his father, Veresa took on leadership of the church despite having no formal training. When he heard about Langham Preaching, he was eager for the opportunity to be trained. He has completed Level One and plans to continue with Levels Two and Three.
Life in Nukubolu Village is centred around farming. Local families raise cows and pigs and grow their own food, and each Saturday is market day, when they sell their produce.
Veresa shares, “I didn’t have any training. Pastoring the church without training was difficult. Everything in here you have to learn. Like to farm, we have to learn how to farm and how to harvest so you can prosper. Pastoring too, you have to learn.”
The Langham Preaching training had a significant impact on Veresa. He explains, “When I took Langham training, it helped me a lot. The training really taught me to dig deeply in the Bible passage, and then from the text, write a sermon.” Before the training, “you just took one passage from the Bible and started preaching. But now I’ve learned the stages, from where to start and what should be in the sermon before preaching.”
The impact of the training is also evident in his congregation. Veresa explains, “I preach in Fijian… I took Langham English training and I transferred that to my dialect, so they can really understand what my sermon is about.”
Passionate about sharing the Gospel
Veresa feels called to preach and is passionate about sharing the Gospel beyond his church. He says, “God has blessed me a lot to preach His Word, not only in my congregation, but outside.” He often visits local schools to preach “to the children, to the teachers, and some families”.
Alongside practical preaching skills, the training has shaped Veresa’s personal walk with God. He shares, “Langham preaching has taught me to study God’s word more… Before it took me only a few minutes, now it takes me hours to really dig deep in God’s word.” This deeper study has also strengthened his prayer life. “I wake up at 4am every morning… I pray, and after that, I do my Bible study.”
Veresa acknowledges the challenges faced by the church in Fiji. Many attend church for the sake of it without fully understanding the Gospel, and outside influences can cause confusion.
Focusing on the Bible passage
He explains, “You have to work hard because there’s a lot of obstacles coming in…churches coming in with ideas. But I have to refer back to the Bible and what the Bible wants.”
Since the training, his sermon preparation has changed significantly. Veresa says, “When preparing, the training has helped me to really look deep in God’s word before preaching. Before, it was just focusing outside, now you have to focus really on the passage of the Bible.”
Veresa is passionate about laying a strong biblical foundation, particularly for young people. The training has taught him to prepare well to preach and share the Gospel.” He explains, “Like farming, you dig a lot, you plant a lot, and the more you’re going to get. Same thing in God’s word, you dig a lot, you’re going to get a lot out of it.”