Firsthand Accounts of African Witchcraft - Rev. Jean-Marie Malengala | Theology, Things & Stuff #023

J. Christopher McMichael was privileged to be raised in a Christian home, attending church his entire life. He surrendered his life to the Lord as a child while at a summer Baptist youth camp in the mountains of Tennessee. As a teenager on his first missions trip, he began to recognize the call of God to ministry. He earned a degree in earth sciences from Tennessee Tech University and enjoyed a successful career as a geologist in geotechnical engineering and mining. In 2007, he and his wife Manda were installed as the pastors of Engrafted Word Church while continuing to consult as a geologist for the next thirteen years. Today, Chris’ focus in solely on the church and world missions. After authoring six books and learning the ins and outs of book publishing, he launched Petra Press Publishing in 2023, with the goal of helping pastors and ministers publish their God-inspired work with the highest standard possible. Chris and his wife have three children they love raising in Tennessee.

Ben Weaver serves at Engrafted Word Church, where he was born and raised, overseeing the recording, editing, and publishing of Theology, Things & Stuff. He graduated from Middle Tennessee State University with a degree in Video Production and a minor in Audio Production. Ben enjoys photography, audio mixing, and videography, and runs a small photography business on the side. He met his wife, Jessica, at church, where they dated, were married in the spring of 2024, and now continue serving together.

Reverend Jean-Marie Malengela is a missionary pastor based in Pretoria, South Africa. Born in central Congo in 1967, Rev. Jean-Marie encountered Jesus Christ in the early 1980s in the city of Likasi in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). He has served as an evangelist since 1983 within the Protestant chaplaincy under the supervision of Reverend Pastor Kasongo Kiabuta K. Since 1989, he has continued this ministry in Kinshasa at the "Worker with God" Missionary Center (CMOD). After being ordained in 1997 in Lubumbashi, Rev. Jean-Marie completed his theological training at the Higher Theological Institute for Evangelization for All Nations (ISTENA/Kinshasa). He also serves as a Bible course instructor at Destiny College International in South Africa. He is the co-founder of the Evangelical and Missionary Community “EC Jehovah Shammah,” established in April 1994 in Lemba IX, Kinshasa, DRC. Rev. Jean-Marie is married to Charly Njiba Kataku, his lovely wife and a servant of God. Together they have three sons—Dan Mukendi, Jan Tshimanga, and Jaydon Tshibalanga—and one daughter, Merveille Ntumba. He currently resides in Pretoria, South Africa, where he continues his missionary work for the advancement of the Kingdom of God.