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Here are two stories from my Africa trip, followed by
some reflections. Because I arrived
in Nkhoma at the end of the term, my week in Malawi was spent learning about the
Nkhoma Synod of the Church of Central Africa Presbyterian (CCAP).
One day we made a tour of the various mission stations established by the
Dutch Reformed missionaries from South Africa.
The last facility that we visited was the Katengeza Lay Training Center.
Unlike the other stations this facility had been built by the CCAP after
it became independent. It was a
retreat center in a beautiful setting at the base of a mountain.
After a tour of the facility Anderson M’nthambala (my host for the
week) and I met with the director of the center.
Following the customary snack and Coca-Cola hospitality, the director and
Anderson began to talk about some of the challenges the center was facing.
The director mentioned that there had been no money for salaries since
March. Then he went on to talk about
the need for the Synod to be more realistic about funding for the Center, since
it looked like they were going to assign another pastor to the Center, and the
money was just not there. In Lusaka we took a break from meetings on Saturday and
rode a van into the slums in order to visit the CCAP congregation in Lusaka.
There we met some of the members of the congregation who were
carrying out the ministries of the congregation to those in Lusaka who had been
impacted by AIDS. We heard about
four initiatives: (1) a home visitation program for those who were confined to
their homes because they were too sick to get out; (2) an AIDS prevention
program focused on the ABC’s (Abstinence, Be faithful, Condoms); (3) an
advocacy program designed to overcome the social stigmas attached to AIDS; and
(4) an elementary school for AIDS orphans. Amazingly
all these programs were staffed by volunteers, many of whom spent 20-30 hours a
week in addition to their jobs. We
asked these volunteers why they did it, and they answered that it was because of
their faith in Jesus Christ. When we
asked them how long they had been at
it some said one year, some two or three years, but we had two there who had
been teaching in the elementary school for over five years. These two stories have a common theme. I was often amazed at how much the people of the churches in Africa could accomplish with limited resources. Their attitude was that they were committed to ministry in the name of Christ and that God would provide what was needed. Their calling was to be faithful. I have a hard time imagining an American pastor talking so matter-of-factly about not being paid for four months, even though room and board were supplied. Yes, there are American Christians who devote themselves to ministry at the level I encountered in Lusaka, but I wonder if any congregation could muster the number of people who were doing ministry in that CCAP congregation. I wonder if it is the limited resources that partly account for the level of commitment I encountered. After all the Bible does warn us that wealth is dangerous to our souls. Just something for us to reflect on as we think about our own commitment to God’s mission in the world. Your pastor, John [For the previous month's column go to oct Column] Return to Pastor's Page |
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