By David Rice
I have always been moved by our Navigator Calling: “To advance the Gospel of Jesus and His Kingdom, into the Nations through spiritual generations of laborers, living and discipling among the lost!”
This sentiment has echoed in my heart since I first became a Christian through the Navigators during my freshman year at the University of Texas at Austin in 1975—that’s fifty years ago. Even today, it continues to resonate deeply within me.
I had the privilege of experiencing the impact of our Navigator Calling firsthand in November 2012, during an International Forum with Navigator leaders from 59 countries. During a lunch break, a tall Cameroonian man approached me, his face beaming with a broad smile. “David Rice! I have been looking for you for 15 years!” he exclaimed. It was Peters Taniform, the Navigator Country Leader for Cameroon. After years of hearing stories of my spiritual lineage from his mentor Kurt, Peters had finally found me. With a joyful bear hug, he proclaimed, “You are my grandfather! I have finally met you!”
In the early 1980s, I had discipled Kurt while leading the ministry at Texas Tech University. In the 1990s, Kurt went to Cameroon, where he became the Country Leader and discipled Peters, his relative, and others. Peters had heard of this spiritual legacy and had longed to meet me. With joy, I said, “Peters, let me introduce you to someone. This is your spiritual great-grandfather!” I introduced him to Mark Lewis, who was also at the same meeting.
Mark had led an investigative Bible discussion in my dorm room in 1974-75, where I first heard the gospel and was discipled after trusting Christ. As Peters met Mark, he exclaimed, “You are my great-grandfather!”
In that moment, I said to Peters, “See, Peters, it works!” He looked at me and knew exactly what I was talking about. And with a smile, he responded, “It works! It works!” Yes, our Navigator Calling truly works.
Fast forward twelve years to November 2024. While flying from Zambia to Johannesburg, I sat next to someone I had never met before from the same international gathering. As we exchanged names, he introduced himself as Vincent Taniform—the current Country Leader for Navigators in Cameroon. I was thrilled to tell him the story of how I had met his relative, Peters, twelve years prior.
Vincent explained that he too had been discipled by Kurt, the same man who had discipled Peters. Looking at me in awe, Vincent said, “I have heard of you for all these years but never thought I could meet you. You are my spiritual grandfather, too!”
We marveled together at God’s timing and how our shared Navigator Calling had unfolded right before our eyes. I proudly showed Vincent a note on my phone, which traced the spiritual lineage from Vincent all the way back to Dawson Trotman, the founder of the Navigators.
Dawson Trotman → Don Rosenberger → Leroy Eims → Walt Hendrikson → Dave Dawson → Charlie Casebolt → Mark Lewis → David Rice → Kurt Diederich → Peters Taniform and Vincent Taniform.
From this lineage, we can see how spiritual generations of laborers continue to multiply:
Vincent → Louis & Sunita → Raymond Bah → Chiangeh, Roland N., Protus B., Standley N., and Ebenezer C.
Over 13 spiritual generations spanning 75 years! Only God could work in such a way, and it is humbling to witness the ongoing growth of this movement.
As we reflect on the impact of our spiritual generations, we are reminded that our work continues—just as it has from the beginning. “It works!” Indeed, this Calling works!
