One of the products of the great friendship between John Stott and Billy Graham was what became the Lausanne Movement. The First International Congress for World Evangelisation was held in Lausanne, Switzerland, in 1974, drawing people from 150 nations to “reframe Christian mission in a world of political, economic, intellectual, and religious upheaval”. This resulted in the Lausanne Covenant, of which John Stott was the principle architect, as well as a platform for majority world voices to be heard for the first time in circles previously controlled and monopolised by white colonial voices.

Gottfried Osei-Mensah was grew up in Ghana, and after studying in the UK, returned to work in the oil industry there. But Christian ministry soon beckoned, first in student ministry (in IFES) and then at Nairobi Baptist Church in Kenya. It was while there that Gottfried not only attended Lausanne, but, as we hear in this interview, was approached to become the first international director or General Secretary of the Lausanne Movement.

For more on:

– The Lausanne Movement: www.lausanne.org

– International Fellowship of International Students (IFES): https://ifesworld.org/en/

– Nairobi Baptist Church: https://nairobibaptist.co.ke

The John Stott book reviewed by Ed Veale was: The Incomparable Christ

Gottfried is pictured here with John Stott and others in the US, for a Lausanne Consultation a number of years ago.