Zacharias Tanee Fomum – “Watchman Nee of Cameroon”
Zacharias Tanee Fomum (June 20, 1945 – March 14, 2009) was a Cameroonian, scientist, pastor and a prolific teacher and writer. He had written more than 100 scientific publications in international journals and over 150 books on Christian discipleship, growth, and maturity, with special emphasis on prayer and fasting.
By the time of his going to be with the Lord in 2009, he had preached in over 1000 localities in Cameroon, sent over 200 national missionaries into many localities in Cameroon and planted over 1300 churches in the various administrative provinces of Cameroon. At his base in Yaounde (capital of Cameroon), he planted and built a mega-church with his co-workers which grew to a steady membership of about 12,000.
Zacharias Tanee Fomum was the founding team-leader of Christian Missionary Fellowship International (CMFI); an evangelism, soul-winning, disciple making, Church-planting and missionary-sending movement with more than 200 international missionaries and thousands of churches in 65 nations spread across Africa, Europe, the Americas, Asia and Oceania.
On Learning From Others
I have learnt a lot from Watchman Nee. He is like my number one teacher. … So just be a good imitator of good people and make progress. When someone is better than you, say this person is better than I. What is his secret?
On Reading of Watchman Nee’s Books.
I am reading my 61st Watchman Nee’s book now. I entered the experience of the book, “The Release of the Spirit”, after 8 readings. I read “What Shall this Man Do?’ on my knees for four months, praying every sentence through, pleading that it would become true in my life. This was in 1971.
On Reading Christian Literature
The devil got many of you to waste your lives, such that you are asking, “How many books have I read? Instead of “How many experiences have I entered into?’ I have mentioned that I entered into the experience of the release of the spirit in my eighth reading. If I had stopped at the seventh reading, I would not have entered the experience and the reading of that book would not have helped me. Therefore I can touch the Spirit of God readily and hear God’s voice quickly and clearly.