Our lot in life ... the Konongo of Tanzania

“O God our Savior, the hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest seas, who formed the mountains by Your power, having armed Yourself with strength, who stilled the roaring of the seas, the roaring of their waves, and the turmoil of the nations.  Those living far away fear Your wonders.”
Psalm 65: 5b-8a

Round barrel type, contraptions hang from trees in the forests surrounding Konongo villages.  Known as the beekeepers of Southwestern Tanzania, the Konongo hang these to house beehives that produce the honey they eat and sell.

June and July are harvest months for the Konongo and the harvesting of their tobacco crop is underway. Honey and tobacco are cash crops for the Konongo; however, subsistence farming doesn't bring much money.  After this harvest the men will wait until October or November for the rains to come and planting will begin again.

Living in very small, rural villages with less opportunity for good education, the Konongo are marginalized; overlooked by larger, more educated people groups in Tanzania, so they settle for their lot in life with very little initiative, many spending their days drinking home brewed alcohol.

There is a Catholic Church in every Konongo village and most Konongo, if they are churchgoers, attend the Catholic church.  Attending the Catholic Church affords the Konongo the opportunity to continue their traditional ancestral worship, which is synchronized into their religious practice.

Moravian, Seventh Day Adventist, Assemblies of God, Pentecostal and Lutheran all have a presence in Konongo villages, but they are reaching the surrounding people groups, not the Konongo.

Pray for the Konongo of Southwestern Tanzania.

Ask God to open the eyes of the Konongo to the hope of God through Christ, understanding that He is the Way, the Truth and the Life; there is no other path to God.

Pray that God would bring together engaging partners with the vision to reach the Konongo people of Tanzania.

Reaching the Konongo

“I have thought it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus my brother and fellow worker and fellow soldier, and your messenger and minister to my need…."   Philippians 2:25

God’s work is astounding.  He puts people in our path to guide us, or we meet someone who knows someone who knows something – it is just amazing!

This verse from Paul’s letter to the Philippians speaks of Epaphroditus – we want to introduce you to Faraja (Fa-rah-jah).  He is a brother, fellow worker and fellow soldier. He is God’s appointed guide as we seek to go to Konongo villages.

Faraja together with his sister run a local restaurant.  (Actually, I think his sister does most of the running! – Faraja is in charge of procuring the food for her to cook.)  Rice, beans and a bit of beef in a tomato broth is on the menu today and it is quite tasty. Sitting outside in plastic chairs that have the words “Glory to God” imprinted on them, we discuss the Konongo people.  Both Faraja and his sister are believers; however, their father is not. 

Welcome to Inyonga

We will talk more about the Konongo people next week.  Today we want to look at Inyonga town, the largest town in the Konongo area with dreams to expand.

With many shops, adequately stocked, Inyonga is reminiscent of a big village; there remains the quality of everyone knowing everyone else.  For sure, everyone knows we are here.

The market opens early and we are in search of breakfast.  Afterwards, we are to meet Faraja and head to some Konongo villages.

While not bustling this early, some sellers are open and the little restaurants inside the market area all seem to have a fairly brisk breakfast business.

Yesterday we had chapatis and tea here. We could have indulged in chapatis with boiled chicken and broth; this seems to be what most of the customers (men for the most part) are eating -- probably the only thing they will eat until late at night when they get home from work.

This morning we walk around hoping to find something different and we are rewarded for our diligence.

We find a small establishment in the corner of the market – a bakery of sorts. The bread rolls, already baked for the day, are in the display case while the mandazis are being fried.

Sitting down, we watch the early morning market activities with a cup of sweet masala tea and some bread rolls, spreading on peanut butter that we bought at a stall just outside the restaurant.

Freshly ground peanut butter
from the market

Schoolchildren especially seem to come and buy a roll or two as they head to school -- probably their lunch.





There are Konongo people in Inyonga town, there are also several churches. The Moravian church in particular would like to help reach the Konongo.  Faraja is from the Moravian church. We stopped at the church yesterday, meeting the current pastor and the retired pastor.  Both are excited that someone is interested in ministering to the Konongo people.

*Pray that God would open the hearts of His ambassadors to step out of their comfort zone and reach the Konongo people with the truth of salvation by faith in Christ.

*Pray that God would be readying the hearts of the Konongo people for the Word to be planted; that they would see the futility of their ancestral worship and understand the truth of God in the face of Christ.

Pray for the Konongo people of Tanzania

Historically, the Konongo people lived on the ivory/slave trade route; today however, the area is a remote, arid woodland toward the west and south in Tanzania.

Modern conveniences have not yet come and available medical care is basic. The knowledge of God was brought by the Catholic fathers which was then interwoven with their own ancestral rituals and witchcraft.  

Today they have little knowledge of God’s FREE gift of salvation. Their efforts are in earning God’s favor and appeasing their ancestors who have the ability to bless or curse life.   Knowing about God and believing in God are two very different things.  

Pray for the Konongo people to understand that God is not only the Creator but our Father who wants a personal relationship with us individually and that He gives the FREE gift of salvation to those who believe in Him.  

Pray that they would be released from the bondage of fear that ancestor worship brings. 

Pray for believers to have a burden to pray for the Konongo people and that God would impress upon willing hearts the need for them to step out of their lives of comfort to tell these lost ones about God’s amazing grace.