Word Alive Ministries International

The history of Word Alive Ministries International dates back to early 1980’s with Rev Barbara Tippet who introduced a fellowship in her home after being miraculously healed of spinal complications in Johannesburg, South Africa.

What had happened is that Rev Barbara Tippet was staying in the commercial city of Malawi, Blantyre with her husband, Brian Tippet who was working as an accountant with one of the leading companies. But at 28 years of age, Rev Barbara had undergone three major spinal operations and she lived in a body plaster cast, used a walking stick and lived on strong pain killers.

In 1980, she resolved to travel to South Africa for yet another operation. Whilst in South Africa, her friend, Amanda Giles took her to Pastor Me Cauley who prayed for her. It was at this
moment that she confessed Jesus Christ as her Lord and saviour and also got her complete healing.

Returning to Malawi, Rev Barbara Tippet did not just sit back but wanted to preach Jesus Christ who miraculously healed her. She began a fellowship in her home which later grew very big in number to an extent that a hall was rented for the meetings. This time various churches in town began forbidding their congregations to attend these fellowship meetings which included Lunch hour services, Bible study meetings and Mid-week services.

In 1985, her fellowship moved into larger premises, near Bombay Bazaar in Blantyre where a Bookshop was also introduced. This time the fellowship was called Mustard Seed Center and people like Fouzia Wilson, South African by origin but currently living in Malawi, Joyce Rix and Sheila Gilmore, both Malawians by origin played a vital role in laying the foundations of the fellowship. In a twist of events, when the fellowship grew and started to affect many souls, the government of that day shut it down because it was operating without legal documents. At this moment members of the fellowship prayed diligently up until 8th July 1987 when the government finally registered the fellowship as a church under the name “Blantyre Christian Center.”

Over the past years of the Church’s existence, different people of different tribes, colour, have come in and been part of the leadership.
Pastor Barbara Tipett, who is the founder, provided oversight of the ministry from its inception up to April 1995 when she sensed a call to move on. At the time Rev Barbara left for USA, Elders Mr Felix Sakyi and Mr Kamuzu Chibambo ably led the church until 1997 when Reverend Jim Lapka from Canada took over as Senior Pastor of the church.

Rev. Lapka served the Ministry up to March 2002 when he felt the need to move on. From April 2002 Pastor Zacc Kawalala providing oversight to the church, while it was still known as Blantyre Christian Centre. It was at this time that the vision to plant churches beyond Blantyre was birthed. Since the revisiting of the vision, the ministry has also changed its governance structure to fit the current direction.
Currently the ministry has an Executive Council as the highest governing board. The council is supported by Technical Advisory Boards.