Updates

I wanted update everyone on the response of the seed-sowing! We had 30 people come to the first Bible study, which was held in the local school classroom. The next week we had 15 and it was raining hard that day so it would explain the smaller numbers. However, we are told that not everyone will accept the message. Continue to pray for these new seekers of God as we continue to teach the good news in Mitukutuku. For those of you coming for the campaign in June, we will be traveling to this village to hold a medical clinic. Usually, when a medical clinic is held in an area a church tends to form and be planted. So we are planting the seed, and you that are coming will have a chance to water, then we’ll get to see God bring the increase! I also wanted to update everyone of other things going on. We are studying hard the language and are coming along pacheeche pacheeche (bit by bit). Learning language and using it with the people really brings joy to their hearts. It tells them that they are important enough to work hard to get to know them and use their language. Now we are far from fluent, but the effort is appreciated and often builds up relationships here, which is the #1 cultural value. I have also been teaching a study of the Kingdom of God in the village of Mushingashi. This village is about an hour bike ride into the bush. I frequently return very sore and muddy as the paths during the rainy season are often saturated with mud. I pass through grass over my head and ride through a swamp to get there. But every week is worth the effort as each time I have a mud-bricked building full of interested learners. It is a blessing to be in a place where people really seek understanding of the spirit realm. Everything is spiritual to these people. Sickness, relationships, crop yield, death, birth, and pretty much everything else that has to do with everyday life have a spiritual connection. So people are intensely interested in learning more. I have also been building relationships with the male teachers (Whitney with the females) to inspire God’s high calling of teaching children. We’ve been discussing what each feels their calling is as well as helping them identify the gifts and talents God has given them to be used in this environment. As we live in a place consumed by mental poverty, helping them believe in themselves and view themselves as God views them is imperative in raising them up from the beggar position that handouts can cause to the Sonship, heir position of being a Child of God. This is our challenge above all else—trying to help them learn to help themselves and reinforcing the capabilities that they possess. On another note, we had a wonderful baseball game with our mission team. There are some pictures below of the team playing. We were split in the two teams The Fisheagles (national bird of Zambia) and the Mpongos (bush babies-google them!). We had a great afternoon of team bonding through a great American past time surrounded by an audience that had no idea what we were doing surrounded us!