Ending well in Musokotwane!

Musokotwane students with their Global Study Bibles!

We recently finished four days of training in a bush village named Musokotwane, about twenty miles north of Livingstone, Zambia. We met with leaders from two Assemblies of God churches sponsored by Calvary Assemblies of God church in Livingstone. Pastor Imasiku, an old friend of Percy Muleba's, and Deacon Simataa spearheaded the effort.

Pastor Imasiku and Percy Muleba

Our focus was typical, with Abby laying the foundation for healthy families & churches and me for properly understanding the Bible. It was just the beginning, we think, because it's likely we'll return next year for more extensive training, and Percy will be training them in biblical worship between now and then.

John joyfully leads worship with his son!

The people were great, very eager to learn and delightfully open to discussing very difficult issues facing them in the church on a daily basis. This isn't always easy when both men and women are in the class, but by using small groups we managed to begin the process of dealing with the particular issues of money, sex and power, not to mention various false teachings, that swirl in the Zambian bush church culture.

Students were focused and committed.

One of the false teachings that was identified is not uncommon in Zambia; it's the lie that African blacks are a separate creation of God, do not descend from Adam and Eve, and are therefore cursed to remain in whatever state they are in. It's a very fatalistic view. And it's such an insidious lie that it's shocking that anyone still believes it, but it's a lie our class members have heard all their lives. So, whether they actually believe it or not, it's in the air where they live.

Small group breakouts for discussion worked well.

Linked to such nonsense is something that comes up in our training regularly, and that's how poor the local Bible translations are, in this case in the Tonga language. The limitations of the local language, plus sloppy translations, often lead to false, even heretical, misunderstandings of the Word by well-meaning disciples.

Frankly, it infuriates us! And that's putting it mildly. The freedom and life the Lord intends for his people becomes muddled when his Word is muddled!

Our only recourse at this point is to teach them to use a good English Bible (like the Global Study Bible by Crossway we give to our class members - thank you Crossway!) along with their native language Bible so that they can see when their version is in error. For those who struggle with English, this is a problem, but we encourage the strong English speakers to help those who have less facility in English.

"Your word is a light to my path..."

Despite this, we left Musokotwane feeling hopeful because of the teachable leadership who love Jesus and so very much desire to lead healthy churches according to the Word.

Our classroom in the bush!

Please pray for the Musokotwane leaders as they seek faithfully to follow Jesus. And continue to pray for us as we debrief and prepare to leave Zambia on August 31st.

Make new friends, but keep the old!

Global Movement of Salvation Church in Katima Mulilo, Nambia (Abby, center R)

Percy's old friend, Pastor Ernest Muyunda, is planting a new church in Nambia, Global Movement of Salvation. So, Abby & I made the trek (just 3 hours!) to Katima Mulilo, Namibia for twelve days of training.

We stayed with pastor Ernest and enjoyed it very much. Also staying with Ernest, whose wife's work had taken her to Japan for six weeks, was our old student and friend, Evangelist Alex, another young man, a worship leader named Brackson, and a young woman named Susan, a family member doing her internship in Katima Mulilo.

During our stay, we had the opportunity to talk seriously with Ernest several times about ministry, theology and church planting. We also spent a morning with Brackson and Alex discussing their questions about marriage and ministry.

Pastor Ernest has planted his church in a poorer section of Katima Mulilo, a section where Namibians, Zambians, Zimbabweans and Angolans live in a mixed neighborhood. It's mission come next door!

Students discussing the Word!

Typically, as you may know, we train only pastors and leaders who will multiply our training, but this time we trained leaders and layperson together and averaged about fifteen people per session, the perfect size for significant interaction. We trained Namibians, Zambians, Zimbabweans and Angolans, all four. Looking back, the training went very well and seemed to have had a significant impact on several of the students.

Our youngest student was seventeen!

One student said, "Africans have a certain way of studying the Bible. You have shown us a different way and it suits me better. Thank you!"

Another commented, "You have no idea the impact you have had on my life. You have inspired me that if people at your age (LOL!) can travel across the world, then my dream of taking the Gospel to other nations can one day come true. I love you!"

One of the blessings of our trip was visiting most of our students in their homes, meeting their families and hearing their stories. What a privilege the Lord has given us!

Please pray for Pastor Ernest and his wife, for their church, for Alex, Brackson and Susan, and for Ernest's wife as they seek to bring the Gospel to Namibia!

Here at last!

Percy Muleba welcomes the shipment from the U.S.!

For ten days, it sat in Durban, South Africa. For eight days, it sat in Kazungula, at the border of Botswana and Zambia. But now the shipment of supplies had arrived! What a wonderful day!

And what a blessing from our supporters, especially Centre Presbyterian Church and the Interact Club at Liberty Prep, along with the key individuals who financed the shipment containing shoes, clothing, musical equipment, books and even a chain saw, plus more!

And special thanks to the individuals who contributed so greatly to the supplies in the shipment, including Rachel Sanford, Emily & Andrew Steelman and Jen & James Slagle.

Percy and Paul Mukwiza unload a crate!

Percy & Muyunda are thrilled, of course, she especially with the clothes & shoes and Percy especially with the music equipment. They are grateful and send their heartfelt thanks!

After a four year wait,  Percy's keyboard has finally arrived!

God is good and he has used you to bring a blessing to our dear friends and the Inyambo Mission Center ministry. Way to go! You are awesome!

Strength in numbers!

GTN Colleagues in Livingstone, Zambia (L to R): Gary, Doug, Carl & Patsy, Abby & Doug and Joel

When we heard that two other Global Training Network teams would be in Livingstone, Zambia at the same time we were, we couldn't believe it! But, sure enough, the Carl Green and Doug Dorman teams did come and we had a great time connecting and relaxing over a couple of dinners and a river cruise. It was very, very encouraging to be together.

Percy, Abby & I were especially interested in observing the Carl Green team during its two day Year 1 training. They offered three tracks for: pastors & leaders, pastors' wives, and teachers. Subjects covered included Discipleship, Old Testament Survey, Inductive Bible Study and Developing Men's Ministries. The teaching was excellent and will be followed up with Year 2 & 3 training to the same groups in 2017 & 2018.

Students pray during closing worship over prayer requests posted on the discipleship cross.

Even though our approaches are different, we learned a lot. In fact, Abby & I just used the discipleship content taught by Joel Madson (Vice President of GTN) in a subsequent day of training in Sesheke, Zambia, but that's the subject for another blog!

We're very grateful that Carl & his team invited us to sit in. It was great to spend time together, compare notes and mutually encourage one another.

Doug Dorman and we agreed to get together this fall and compare Zambia notes; it was his first trip here. Since he and his wife, Joan, and their family live in Myrtle Beach, it'll be easy to connect.

Another great thing that happened was that Percy connected with other GTN staff. It has opened the door for the possibility of Percy joining Abby & me at other GTN training opportunities outside Zambia. Countries such as Rwanda, Ethiopia, Nepal and Cambodia were discussed as future possibilities.

Please pray for GTN especially the Carl Green & Doug Dorman teams who have headed home. And, pray for us as we look to the future possibilities outside Zambia, trusting God to order our steps.