They rejoiced over us with singing!

Our Lilonga, Zambia students were awesome!

July 18-21: We were excited to return to the Lilonga congregation of the Evangelical Church in Zambia (ECZ), located in the bush about 10 miles north of Sesheke where I (Doug) had preached last year. New elders had been chosen and leaders were hungry for training, according to Pastor Moses Yamba, our colleague and friend.

Mushiba, a brilliant and friendly young student, reads Scripture from the Lozi Bible.

The training went fantastic. We were warmly welcomed each morning by folks hungry for God's Word. We'd remembered beautiful acapella singing at Lilonga and our memories were accurate!

Munyinda, our oldest student in Lilonga, was a delight.

As Abby taught them "Family & Church Systems," we drew a picture map of our family when we were children. There was so much laughter and joy as they drew, but also some poignant stories shared as we encouraged one another that God was with us even in the difficult times we had as children. They really dug into the Word as I taught them "Understanding the Bible," and focused on the structure, story and themes of the Bible and how faithfully to interpret it. The "Wounded Healer" Abby taught focused us on Jesus, the real Wounded Healer. The students worked really well in small groups to study Scripture. 

Multi-generational learning at its best!

One of our students there, a young single Mom of three, Helena, lost her hut to a freak fire sweeping through the bush in the middle of the last day of training. Despite this, they all still wanted to finish the training. So Pastor Yamba and some others from the class and I went and comforted Helena. They then left her in the care of some of the village "mothers." The church immediately began making a plan to rebuild her hut and replace her belongings.

Helena's home was destroyed by a freak bush fire during our final day of training.

When we returned, we spent some time praying for Helena and her children, and then finished the final 2 hours of training. Sad for the tragedy, we are glad no one was hurt, and are still praying for Helena in her loss. We are amazed and grateful for the ways these sisters and brothers taught us about community, sharing and generosity which arose out of folks with so few material possessions. We remain humbled. 

As we drove away the last afternoon, several of the woman ran behind our car and sang over us, joyfully waving goodbye. We were deeply touched, to say the least.

As I reflect, I'm reminded of Zephaniah 3:17, "The LORD your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing."

July 22: Percy joined us in Sesheke and we had a much-needed rest day.

July 23: We worshiped and I preached at the Katimo ECZ, a new church plant. Pastor Yamba accompanied us. Worship was fantastic, the music joyful and passionate. There were about 75 in attendance, including 26 children! We had a great time.

The Katima ECZ congregation warmly welcomed us.

The congregation's development is being hampered by the rent they're paying the school in which they meet, about $10/month. You read that right. A gentleman has generously given them a plot of land which is amazing, and they're praying about alternatives. We told them about a South African ministry that donates tents to new congregations. Pastor Yamba is going to follow up with that.

July 24: We traveled with Percy Muleba and Pastor Yamba about 3.5 hours from Sesheke to Nangweshi, a bush village of about 2600 people still awaiting electricity. We looked forward to training the 15 key leaders we expected to find there.

Please pray for Helena and her children, for the church in Lilonga as they reach out to neighbors with the Gospel, and for us that the Lord continue to order our steps.

Back in Mwandi!

A Mwandi fisherman heads out at sunrise.

If Zambia's home, then Mwandi is our living room. The ride from Livingstone to Mwandi on Friday, July 14th should have taken about 1.5 hours, but it took over 3 hours because of the deteriorating road conditions. The potholes were worse than ever and it made for a very tedious trip.

Still, it was wonderful to be back in Mwandi where we are staying in our old friend, Fiona's, place on the river. We are the only ones here so it has been very peaceful and quiet. There's nothing quite like waking up to beautiful morning light and the sight of mokoros (dugout canoes) on the Zambezi River.

A Mwandi fisherman checks his net.

That evening, we attended a crusade sponsored by the Livingstone Mission Center (LMC) which featured a Zimbabwean evangelist. LMC is headed by David Newcombe from Jupiter, Florida and he brought an American team with him. Pastor Kimo, his wife, Natalie, and daughter, Emma were joined by Rick Branson, an evangelist, all from the Jupiter area. Amazingly, they had all attended the Rise Missions Conference in South Africa so we had already met them!

Youth (ages 13-35) Praise Teams from many ECZ churches camped at Sesheke ECZ.

Saturday, July 15th, we were invited to join Pastor Moses Yamba, an old friend, at his Evangelical Church in Zambia (ECZ) in Sesheke, about 30 miles away. A district-wide youth choir & praise team conference was underway and it was quite a sight to see dozens of colorful tents on the church grounds. It was even better to listen to the beautiful voices!

A clash of cultures? Or a beautiful marriage?

Abby and I were given the opportunity to introduce ourselves and I was asked to pray for the conference. We then enjoyed a lovely fish, nshima and greens lunch as the guests of Pastor and Mrs. Yamba. It was further exposure for us to the ECZ and its leadership which we appreciated.

That night, we attended the last evening of the crusade where Rick Branson gave an invitation to those who wanted to follow Jesus for the first time. Joyously, a number of folks stepped forward and they will be followed up by local church leaders in the days to come.

As the crusade drew to a close, our dear friend, Pastor Arold Mudenda, invited me (Doug) to preach at his church, Pilgrim Wesleyan, on Sunday morning, July 16th. We were delighted to accept the invitation.

Abby leading prayer at Pilgrim Wesleyan, Pastor Mudenda's church.

Worship at Pilgrim was hampered by a planned power interruption, but to be honest we were delighted. It meant that the praise and worship teams used traditional Zambian drums, and the beautiful four part harmonies the Lozi people are known for just flowed. The worship was amazing. It made preaching so easy. I felt carried by the Holy Spirit. I focused on Psalm 22 and, apparently, it tied in beautifully to a sermon series Pastor Mudenda has been preaching on Esther. I'm grateful. Abby was asked to pray at the end of worship and the Lord used her well.

Our old student and now friend, Obby, with Abby.

An old student of ours, Obby, has become very involved at Pilgrim where he facilitated a Live School last year and now co-leads the youth and younger adults ministry. It was great to see him and to hear he is doing well.

Abby & I have taught at Pilgrim several times through the years, leading Bible studies, preaching and training leaders in church planting. When we began working with them, Pastor Mudenda's church was meeting in his front yard under a simple shelter. Now, they have a lovely worship center and a strong congregation.

It was heartening to hear that Pilgrim has planted a new church in Limpopo, about 20 miles into the bush. Pastor Mudenda rides a motorcycle there, reminiscent of the Methodist circuit riders who planted churches in the United States in its early years. Of course, they rode horses!

Monday, July 17, was a rest day from training, although we had a visit from Lewis, a retired United Church of Zambia pastor, who shares our heart for bush ministry and sound biblical training. Since retiring about 18 months ago, he has planted three new bush churches. Now that's an active retirement!

I had a fascinating conversation with him about the danger of breeding dependency in people as we do mission. He warned that if missionaries (and pastors) are not careful, they'll produce spoiled children instead of mature disciples. Happens in the USA, too, doesn't it?

That evening, we hosted Percy's wife, Muyunda, for dinner because Percy was in Livingstone checking on their kids and making sure the electricity is hooked up sooner rather than later in their new home. We'll see him on Friday, July 21st, in Sesheke.

On Monday, July 17th, we moved from Mwandi to Sesheke.

Please pray that the Lord will gather the right leaders for training as we teach in Sesheke, Lilonga, Nangweshi and Mongu, that he will empower us by his Spirit and enable us to continue to rest well and pace ourselves sensibly!

Hey, it's good to be back "home" again!

leaders from two assemblies of god churches gathered for training in musokotwane, zambia.

It's good to be home! South Africa was warm and welcoming, but Zambia is our African home base. When I think of South Africa, I think of it as a Western country with Africans living in it, perhaps because we've spent most of our time in the Pretoria area. When I think of Zambia, I think of it as an African country with Westerners living in it. I know I'm painting with a broad brush, but I think it fits.

After our travel day last Wednesday to Livingstone, Zambia, we settled into Nshima Towers, a lovely new lodge with a great staff. Thanks, Percy!

pastor imasiku, church planter

Abby and I then met with Pastor Imasiku and his wife, Cindy, on Thursday. We enjoyed a cup of tea and a good discussion about the training he wanted us to do. They explained that they were in the midst of planting a new church and building their core team. They went on to tell us that their approach is different from a typical Zambian church plant, stressing a team approach with a balance of spiritual and social development, including ministries to the poor and teaching the arts. Exciting!

Would we train the team in church planting and pastoral care? That was the question from Pastor Imasiku and Cindy. Percy Muleba, our "Director," had prepared us for this meeting so we quickly and enthusiastically agreed.

Friday evening, we began our training, ending with a delicious nshima, chicken and greens supper. The class will be small which suits our teaching style and the students are highly motivated and very gifted. We continued training on Saturday evening and will pick up again tonight (Monday) thru Thursday.

Sunday, Pastor Imasiku and his team took us back to Musokotwane, about an hour outside Livingstone, where we had trained church leaders from two Assemblies of God (AOG) churches last year for two weeks.

mother and son's hands in worship...notice the gideons bible!

At the Musokotwane church, Pastor Imasiku led a great Bible study on learning to abound in love from Philippians 1, we then sang and danced in a spirited time of praise and worship, then Abby preached on God's radical love from Isaiah 43:1-4 and I preached on the nature of discipleship from John 1:35-42. We ended with more praise and worship. It was awesome.

receiving the word of god

Following worship, leaders from the second AOG church joined the Musokotwane leaders for training. I focused on turning leadership on its head, i.e. on biblical servanthood. This led to a spirited discussion on the implications of leaders living out Jesus' example and challenge in John 13:1-17 (Jesus washes the disciples' feet).

pondering the word of god

We arrived home about 5:30pm exhausted but blessed, and grateful that the Lord lets us do this. Thank you for your support and encouragement. You are with us!

Please pray for us as we continue training Pastor Imasiku's core leaders and as we plan for our next phase, training leaders in Mwandi.

Southern Africa Arise!

"I am not ashamed of the gospel for it is the power of salvation for everyone who believes!" The Apostle Paul

We've been in South Africa since a week ago Saturday (along with our dear friend and colleague, Percy Muleba, from Zambia) and have had a great time.

Last Sunday, Isaac and Rachel Modise invited me (Doug) to preach at the Ark of God Church which Isaac founded some seventeen years ago when he was twenty-two years old! Today, Rachel and he provide strong leadership with a mission vision to Ark.

I preached on Psalm 22 which Jesus quoted twice from the cross: "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" (22:1) and "It is finished!" (22:31). This Psalm has been on my heart since last summer's trip and I had spent some time studying it and reflecting on it since then. It is, at heart, a Messianic Psalm with mission at its heart. From the cross, Jesus was announcing his sacrifice on the cross and resurrection for the sake of the nations (us+).

My outline was: 1. The Price Jesus Paid for Us; 2. The Faith Jesus Kept for Us; 3. The Life Jesus Lives for Us; 4. The Life Jesus Lives With Us.

An African Elephant Browses in the Early Morning Mist at Kruger National Park

On Monday, Isaac kindly drove the three of us 6 hours east to Kruger National Park where we enjoyed a day of great wildlife viewing (Tuesday) and 3 days of friendship building. Isaac's heart for international missions is obvious and we discussed many things in this regard. We're grateful we had the time to spend with him and to hear his heart and get some insight into the Southern African church's perspective on missions.

We returned Wednesday afternoon to our host and hostess, Mr. and Mrs. Kekana, who provided beautiful quarters for Percy and us. We enjoyed several serious talks about local missions, the desperate need for education and the problem of gangs among young men. Both Mr. and Mrs. Kekana have a deep heart for worship and community ministry so it was a pleasure to get to know them and their lovely children. Lillian, newly employed by the family, served us so kindly.

An Evening Session at The Rise Missions Conference

Friday began The Rise Missions Conference with the theme, "The Harvest Is Here!" We enjoyed an awesome evening of worship and inspiration. Pastor Willie Crew, founder of World Mission Centre (WMC), was the keynote speaker. WMC developed Live School, the video curriculum we use with our students. In addition, an amazing dance ministry from the Ark of God led us in worship, followed by a dance team from Columbia, South Carolina (!) who are here to train about 120 teens from area churches in dance ministry. It was amazing!

Saturday featured a warm devotional which was followed by four keynote addresses. I was privileged to speak on the subject "What We Are Harvesting: The Nature of Discipleship." I based my talk on John 1:35-42 and my outline was: 1. Discipleship Is Relational; 2. Discipleship Is Transformational; 3. Discipleship Is Not Exceptional; and 4. Discipleship Is Procreational.

Pastor Isaac Modise Praying for the Mission Team Soon Heading to Mozambique.

Saturday night was another service of inspiration featuring talks on Farming Gods Way (www.farming-gods-way.org) and the prayer ministry of WMC for world mission. In addition to the sermon by Bishop Zakes from Swaziland, which was a vivid call to authentic discipleship and servant mission, we enjoyed three more dances by the South Carolina team and commissioned a mission team from Soweto who leave for Mozambique this Friday.

Sunday, Isaac gifted us with a morning of rest. We had hoped for the opportunity to travel into the bush to worship and preach, but suitable arrangements could not be made. Frankly, we welcomed the chance to rest and were refreshed.

Sunday night and Monday brought more amazing worship and inspirational speakers from different parts of Africa. Among them was Bishop Albert from Kenya, a dynamic speaker on Leadership, encouraging those in ministry to be accountable to mentors, open to learning from others and attentive to their own families. His lovely wife Nancy gave a stirring devotional Tuesday morning, Let's Go Back Home!, challenging those in missions and ministry to keep family a priority, pleasing the Lord and being authentic in our witness of Jesus' love.

Tuesday, Abby gave a keynote address in the morning entitled "Harvested by Love." Abby did an amazing job sharing her own testimony, the passionate love of Jesus for us, the need for genuine daily love in action as we join Jesus in bringing in the Harvest, and facing our need to rest and be with Jesus to fuel our outreach to others with his love. She ended with the significance of being used by the Wounded Savior as wounded healers as we join him in reaching wounded people. It was awesome!

Prior to Abby's talk, three pastors prayed for our nation on Tuesday, the 4th of July! That night, a cake with the American flag on it was presented to us and we all sang The Star Spangled Banner. It was all deeply moving, to say the least.

I unexpectedly had the opportunity to give a short keynote following Abby and I focused, at Percy's suggestion, on servanthood in mission using John 13:1-17.

The South Carolina Dance Team and Local Dancers Rejoice in the Lord!

Tuesday night, we were able to share dinner with Bishop Albert and Nancy from Kenya, solidifying our new friendship. Then we met for the final time with all those at RISE, worshiped through the dancing of more than 100 local children and youth from Mabopane Township, led by the 10 dancers from SC Dance Theatre in Columbia, SC and enjoyed a commissioning service led by Dr. John Schotz from South Africa.  He has worked as a mission doctor and pastor for many years and now oversees twenty churches in the Church of the Nations family. We are definitely inspired and ready to return to the mission field in our beloved Zambia!

Please pray for Isaac and Rachel as they rest from leading this awesome conference with representatives from Botswana, South Africa, Swaziland, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Lesotho, Kenya and the USA. Pray for Percy, our student John who enjoyed his first time at the RISE so much and for us as we process and learn from the stories of amazing people from these countries who are doing local and international mission. And pray that we keep a healthy balance of work and rest as we get settled in Zambia today, meet with Pastor Imasiku and his wife this evening and begin training tomorrow. Please also pray for Percy, Muyunda and their three girls as they move to the house they built in Livingstone today and tomorrow!

God is so good!