Stronger Together: How BTCP Training Transformed Peter and Monica's Marriage and Ministry
We’re grateful for our ministry partner, Teaching the Vine (TTV), which equips pastors and church leaders in Africa’s refugee camps. Recently, we joined founder Don Schrenk in Uganda to teach and encourage TTV leaders and students. While there, we were blessed to meet Monica, wife of team leader Peter Godoi. Learn more about TTV’s unique ministry at teachingthevine.org.
Monica lights up when she talks about her husband Peter. But it wasn't always this way. When they first met, Peter was a student of Bible Training Centre for Pastors (BTCP), and Monica had no idea she was witnessing the beginning of something extraordinary.
"When I look at the Peter of those days and the Peter of today—my, oh my!" she says, her gratitude spilling over. "I tell you, dear brothers and sisters, God is wow!"
The Foundation Years
Peter's time at BTCP wasn't just about earning a certificate or checking a box. Monica watched him change from the inside out. "Peter looked to God," she explains simply, but those four words carry so much observation. She saw how the training didn't just fill his head with knowledge—it shaped who he was becoming as a man, a husband, and a ministry leader.
The transformation was thorough. BTCP gave Peter more than theological education; it provided what Monica calls "a very great foundation." This foundation would prove crucial later when Peter stepped into roles that demanded both pastoral heart and practical wisdom.
Looking back, Monica can see how those early years of training prepared Peter for challenges neither of them could have imagined. The refugee camps of Uganda, with their complex needs and heartbreaking stories, required someone with deep biblical grounding and genuine compassion. Peter's BTCP experience had given him both.
A Ministry Born from Vision
Today, Peter leads children's ministry across multiple refugee camps in Uganda. It's demanding work that requires someone who can navigate cultural sensitivities, administrative complexities, and the deep trauma that many refugee children carry.
"Today my husband is currently leading in ministry—the children's ministry—because BTCP is the foundation," Monica explains. But this isn't just a job for Peter. Monica describes how "God gave him the dream and vision for this children's ministry." The training at BTCP had created space for Peter to hear from God and understand his calling clearly.
The impact extends far beyond what you might expect from one ministry leader. Monica proudly shares that they've become parents "not only to our children, but to the nations for the glory of God." Peter's work touches hundreds of displaced children, offering them stability, hope, and the love of Christ in circumstances that could easily breed despair.
Monica's Turn
Watching Peter's growth convinced Monica that BTCP offered something special. So when the opportunity came, she enrolled in BTCP's Bible Training for Church Leaders (BTCL) program herself.
"Even as I talk now, I'm in school and next year I am graduating," she says, excitement clear in her voice. For Monica, this isn't just about personal enrichment—it's about understanding God more deeply and learning how to serve Him more effectively.
The BTCL program has opened new worlds of understanding for Monica. "It opens up your mind to know who God is, how a servant of God is supposed to be," she explains. The training covers practical areas too—how families should function biblically, how to raise children with kingdom values, how to navigate the complexities of ministry life.
Monica's studies haven't been separate from her life as a wife and mother. Instead, they've enriched everything she was already doing. The biblical principles she's learning inform how she approaches parenting, marriage, and her role in supporting Peter's ministry.
Life-Changing Education
Monica doesn't make small claims about BTCP's impact. "When you look deep under the teaching of the BTCP school and when you're there, I want to tell you your life will never be the same. Your family will never be the same. Your children will never be the same."
These aren't empty promises—they're observations from someone who has lived through the reality. Monica has watched BTCP training reshape her husband's character, redirect their family's priorities, and multiply their ministry impact in ways they never expected.
The changes aren't superficial or temporary. Years after Peter's graduation, Monica still sees the fruit of his BTCP training in how he handles pressure, makes decisions, and relates to people. The training created lasting change that continues to influence every area of their lives.
Training That Actually Works
Monica and Peter's story highlights something important about effective ministry training: it doesn't have to be expensive or exclusive to be excellent. Peter received affordable pastor training that prepared him for leadership in one of the world's most challenging ministry contexts.
The refugee camps where Peter serves would be difficult assignments for anyone. Traditional seminary training, even if it had been geographically and financially accessible, might not have prepared him as well for the practical realities he faces daily. BTCP's approach—combining solid biblical education with real-world application—gave him tools he actually uses.
This model of accessible pastor training serves people who might otherwise never receive formal theological education. For pastors and church leaders in developing countries, or those working in difficult circumstances, programs like BTCP provide training without seminary access that still maintains high standards.
Monica's experience in BTCL demonstrates this same principle. As a busy mother and disciple, she needed Bible training that fit her life circumstances. The BTCL program's structure allows her to grow theologically while maintaining her other responsibilities.
Building Leaders Who Multiply
Peter's progression from student to ministry director illustrates something crucial about effective training—it creates multipliers, not just individual success stories. His current role involves developing children's ministry across multiple refugee settlements, which means he's training local leaders and expanding the impact far beyond what he could accomplish alone.
This multiplication effect is particularly valuable in contexts like refugee camps, where needs are enormous and resources are limited. One well-trained leader like Peter can influence thousands of children and families, but more importantly, he can train others to do the same work.
Monica's parallel journey through BTCL adds another dimension to their ministry effectiveness. When both spouses receive solid biblical training, the stability and depth of their ministry increases substantially. They become a team that can handle complex challenges while maintaining biblical faithfulness.
A Different Kind of Seminary
What makes BTCP's approach unique isn't just its affordability. It's the recognition that effective ministry training must be both accessible and excellent. Programs like BTCP prove that economical pastor training can produce outstanding results when the content is biblically sound and practically relevant.
Monica's enthusiasm for her studies suggests another important element: effective theological education should inspire, not burden. Her joy in learning reflects an approach to fun Bible study that engages students emotionally and intellectually, making them eager participants rather than reluctant students.
The global bible training model that BTCP represents serves pastors and church leaders who might never have access to traditional theological education. Yet the results—leaders like Peter who can handle complex, cross-cultural ministry assignments—demonstrate that this accessible approach produces graduates ready for significant ministry responsibility.
Looking Forward
As Monica approaches graduation from her BTCL program, she's already thinking about expanded ministry opportunities. Her excitement points to one of the best outcomes of quality theological education: it creates people who are passionate about serving God and eager to find new ways to make a difference.
The combination of Peter's established ministry leadership and Monica's developing theological preparation represents a powerful partnership for future ministry. Their story shows how training for poor pastors can produce results that equal any expensive educational program when the training is comprehensive and well-designed.
Their work in refugee camps represents just one example of pastor training for missions contexts producing real-world impact. Around the world, BTCP graduates are serving in challenging situations, proving that excellent theological preparation doesn't require institutional prestige or high costs.
More Than Education
Monica's testimony reveals something important about Bible training: it changes more than just the individual student. When she says their children will "never be the same" because of BTCP's influence on their family, she's pointing to generational impact.
Peter's work with refugee children creates ripple effects that extend far beyond immediate ministry results. Children who experience Christ's love and biblical truth in refugee camps carry that foundation with them wherever life takes them next. Some may become ministry leaders themselves, multiplying the impact even further.
Monica's own theological development ensures that this multiplication continues at home. Her growing understanding of Scripture and ministry principles influences how she raises their children and supports Peter's work. The investment in her education pays dividends across multiple areas of life and ministry.
A Testimony Worth Sharing
When Monica talks about what God has done through BTCP in their lives, she's not just sharing personal history—she's offering evidence that accessible, excellent theological education can produce extraordinary results. Her story demonstrates that affordable pastor training, when done well, creates ministry leaders capable of handling complex challenges while staying rooted in biblical truth.
Peter's success in refugee camp ministry and Monica's growth through BTCL both point to the same conclusion: effective church leadership pipeline development doesn't require expensive facilities or exclusive access. It requires solid biblical content, practical application, and commitment to serving the global church wherever it's found.
Their story continues to unfold, but already it provides compelling evidence that programs like BTCP serve a crucial role in developing the church leaders our world desperately needs. One transformed life, one equipped family, one impacted community at a time.