Africa School of Missions

Africa School of Missions (ASM) is a non-denominational missionary centre which dedicates itself to preparing men and women for Christian ministry across the world. Through an exciting and innovative Missions and Ministry Development Programme, ASM creates opportunities to develop the heart, head, and hands of programme participants. Opportunities are created for you to gain valuable hands-on ministry and missions experience through practical outreach into both local and international communities. ASM commits to equip you to impact contemporary society through strategic thinking, innovative leadership and appropriate ministry skills in order to become agents of change all over the world, for the glory of Christ.

The programme participants and staff at ASM represent a wide cross-section of the Body of Christ drawn from many different nations world-wide. ASM has been training men and women for missions and ministry for more than 23 years. Many Church denominations and mission agencies from all over the world have expressed their confidence in ASM. ASM believes that this new approach to equipping men and women for world missions keeps ASM on the cutting edge, and is very relevant in the postmodern world that we live in. Former graduates who successfully completed their missions and ministry programme at ASM are faithfully serving with good testimony around the world.

The dedicated staff at ASM is fully committed to serve you and our mentorship programme will provide you with support, encouragement and guidance during the formative years of your mission's and ministry preparation. ASM is committed to cultivate an atmosphere of spiritual growth through personal devotions, corporate devotional meetings and pastoral small groups. You will have wonderful opportunity to interact with people from many different nations, cultures and backgrounds. We find that people develop meaningful friendships that will last a lifetime while at the same time have great opportunities to deepen their relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.

ASM is situated in the Mpumalanga province of South Africa, in the scenic Lowveld region on the Numbi Gate Road to the Kruger National Park. There are several towns and cities near the ASM campus. The most notable of these are White River, a good sized town just 14 km away from the ASM campus. Close by is also Nelspruit, one of South Africa's fastest growing cities including a very large shopping complex called the Riverside Mall. Nelspruit also has its own national airport serving all national airports and some African Countries.

ASM is surrounded by beautiful nature and mountains and on the door step of some of the most spectacular nature views in the whole country, including the world famous Kruger National Park. The campus buildings are set in beautiful grounds. The peaceful location enhances the spiritual atmosphere and a feeling of being close to God.

Nationally, ASM is approximately 4 hours from the Gauteng province by car. Most international participants will arrive at Oliver Tambo International Airport , Johannesburg. ASM is easily reachable from OT International Airport by car or coach.

In 1983 the vision to train men and women for missions in the nations of the world was born in the hearts of Paul and Carol Alexander. God miraculously provided a beautiful campus and a dedicated staff, and in January 1985 Africa School of Missions was opened. It soon became apparent that besides training for missions there was also a need to train pastors who would have a passion for missions. The training programmes at ASM were adjusted and expanded accordingly.

In 1987 ASM saw the birth of the School of Health (SOH), a department that would equip missionaries with skills in the field of health care, enabling them to be more effective on the field. In 1990 the SOH started a weekly mobile clinic service to a fairly remote area that had no other medical services available. This service is still being offered after all these years. In November 1991 the SOH was approved by the South African Nursing Council to offer basic nurse's training.

Initially ASM offered a three-year Licentiate (practical degree) that was recognised by various universities in South Africa. Graduates were accepted directly into their Honours Programmes to further their formal training. Over the past decade the Department of Education has brought about numerous changes in the process of recognising and accrediting training institutions and programmes in South Africa. This has lead to the development of an exciting new Missions and Ministry Development Programme at ASM that focuses on character development and guided, practical missions exposure.

Currently ASM graduates are serving on the field in 56 different nations such as India, Cambodia, Romania, Russia, China, UK, France, Middle Eastern and many African Countries etc. Graduates have established ministries that includes Church planting, Pastoral work, Bible School Training, Bible Translation, Children and Youth work, Leadership and Community Development, Relief Work. Some graduates are working in closed countries through authentic business or professional work.

From the inception of ASM the faculty, staff and students had the desire to also impact the local community with the gospel of Jesus Christ. As a result, over the years a number of ministries have been birthed from ASM:

In 1987 ASM started a school on campus for the children of missionaries. The school had remarkable growth and in order to accommodate the growth moved into White River. Today it functions as an independent school and still continues to provide a wonderful service to the White River community.
In 1988 a Bible translation programme was introduced and missionary candidates had the option to study "Mother Tongue" Bible translation principles. The success of this programme resulted in the decision that the programme would be taught "on the field". In 1994 Word for the World took the training to the various fields where translation work is done and today many translators are being competently trained on the field.
The Masoyi Home Based Care Project (MHBC) was started in 1997 and currently makes over 25000 home visits to people living with HIV/AIDS. They also provide food, clothing and schooling for about 1600 orphans. In 2002, to accommodate the rapid growth of the ministry, it separated from ASM and formed Hands at Work, an umbrella organization that duplicates the MHBC model in many Southern African countries.
In 2000, from the MHBC Project the ACTS Initiative, a specialist HIV/Aids Clinic, hospice and training centre was birthed. The team at ACTS provide specialist medical services for people with advanced HIV/AIDS. This includes care for the MHBC patients and orphans, either in their homes or at the clinic.
From the work of the SOH, a Primary Health Care Clinic that offers preventative and curative health services was opened in 2002. This includes care of children, pre and postnatal care, and acute and chronic medical care. The ASM clinic also provides medical care to the MHBC orphans that are not HIV positive and destitute children from other projects. As from 2006 the nursing school has also been run from this new facility.

As we look to the future, ASM has a commitment to continue to make a difference in the nations of this world, and also in the local community that God has placed us in.