Learning about Jesus amid inter-clan violence

As missionaries we have the opportunity to witness differing cultures around the world. In America we have the culture of individualism. "I did it my way"-- and it's all about me! When a person achieves success it may reflect a bit on his parents but it is his success just as it is his failure.  Africans live in the collective. We saw an example of this when President Obama rose to office.  It was an African victory. They count him from the clan of Africa and gloried in his victory as if it was their own.
We witnessed an example of this collective identification on Wednesday as we went out to the small preaching point we visited on Sunday to meet with the church and discuss matters.

There were no drums this time, but it wasn't long before young men began arriving. We noticed several coming with injuries; one with a gash on his foot which was swollen, another limping, leaning on a stick for a crutch; there was someone with his arm in a makeshift sling, and still another with a large bandage on his head. We were soon to find out the reason for all these injuries. 

It seems that on the previous Saturday just after dusk another clan invaded. They came wielding clubs and spears, without warning, out of the darkness to attack. The root of the attack stems from the age old challenge of the marriage of a daughter. Evidently a young woman from the attacking clan fell pregnant and the father was a young man from this clan. They ran away to get married, but her clan had other ideas. The problem was not contained to just one or two individuals or families, but the whole clan took up arms and attacked, putting the wife of the sub-chief in the hospital, now blind and deaf due to the battering she received, and causing many more less severe injuries.

Now these young men come carrying clubs and spears.  They will not be caught unaware again.
The point is -- they are coming.  They said they want to learn more about Jesus.  We talked about Sunday and they said they want us to come during the week as well.  Together we made a plan, Debbie will meet with the women Friday mornings and Jerry will meet with the men on Saturday afternoons. God is at work -- we want to be part of His plan.

Pray for these young men and women who want to know more about the Bible.  Satan is trying to distract these seekers; he will try and do the same to us.  Pray that we will all be dedicated and dilligent to proclaim and study God's Word. Pray for peace to reign in this war torn country.

Easter Sunday

Easter is a time to remember all that Christ has done for us -- His death on the cross -- His time in the tomb -- and most importantly His Resurrection from that tomb, conquering death with the power of an Almighty Savior. 
His perfect life... His horrible death...  the wonderful mercy and grace He bestows.
Usually, we do this remembering in church -- at least in America we do.  We have Good Friday services which bring us to the cross and we have Easter Sunday services which celebrate the glorious power of our resurrected Savior.
Our Easter in South Sudan was a bit different.
Good Friday, a normal workday -- as it probably is in America -- was only significant in the hearts of those who know Him -- the remembering was done in our hearts and minds.

Easter Sunday was seemingly insignificant as well. As we drove out to a church start located a couple of miles on the other side of town; we passed by the market bustling with the commerce of any normal day.  We saw one church, celebrating the resurrection; but for the most part, this Sunday was not dissimilar from any other Sunday, or any other day of the week.

As we arrived at the church start no one was there.  We were not surprised. We have been coming to this place for five or more Sundays and there never is anyone present when we arrive.  Eventually two small boys come carrying the drums which will announce services. A few minutes later two teenage boys approach, greet us and sit with us on the tree limb which form the pews of this outdoor sanctuary.  They pick up the drums and begin to beat out a rhythm calling whoever is willing, to come and worship. 

In the distance we recognize a young woman who has come several times before, along with her is a small boy.  They both carry plastic chairs upon which the honored ones will sit.  The chairs are bigger than the boy -- and if you look closely you can see that he is carrying two of them!  He stops, puts down his load, hikes up his shorts and carries on.  We smile.

In total, four women came and the two teenage boys but none of the men showed up.  We prayed together remembering Christ's sacrifice and thankful for His mercy in our lives, then we talked about this church group.  One woman told us that we need to come back on Wednesday morning; that the people of the church will come together on Wednesday morning to talk about the disposition of the church, whether they will try to continue to meet together or disband completely.  We don't know when the church stopped meeting together.  We know they were active two years ago, but the church leader went off to school in Wau, another town 4 hours to the north; and as there was no missionary presence and no one took over leadership...
We are concerned that this is the state of many of the Baptist churches in South Sudan. The illiteracy rate is very high, even if they had Bibles, many would not be able to read them.   Even though there are several churches in town, the need is for local, village churches to form.  Only the most dedicated of believers would be willing to walk three or four miles to town one way to go to church on Sunday morning.  We pray that this church start will continue. We pray that someone will rise up to lead these people. But more importantly we pray that the people of this village would understand their need for a Savior and the love of Christ.

Water Well Project ID #WH11429A01

Water is life -- without it things die, plants, trees, livestock, but more importantly people.   
Rumbek, situated at the northern end of Lakes State in South Sudan, lies more than 35 kilometers from a permanent water source. The Dinka people living in Leither village walk up to six kilometers one way to obtain water.  Rumbek, is a very dry place, however, just below the surface, about 125 feet or so, there is water.

Do you remember, those months back, when we moved into the house on the Baptist property? We realized then the importance of accessible water. In a small way, we understood the challenge of living life with very little water.  Still, during those days, we used three or four times more water than the average Dinka household; we had access to a vehicle to carry back the heavy water containers.

When we began living here, the people of the community came asking if Baptists could help ease the daily challenge of water.  We prayed over the request, investigated various organizations that help with water sourcing, and asked advice from our leadership.  God led us to move this request through Baptist Global Response (BGR).

BGR, a SBC supported community development and disaster response organization, works with communities all over the world helping relieve human suffering. As we use BGR's funding for the wells in conjunction with our mission effort, we demonstrate the love of Christ in a tangible way, ministering to the physical as well as the spiritual needs of people.

One of the well sites.
Notice the path through the middle which is used by many.

BGR has set up a project (ID # WH11429A01) to drill two water wells (boreholes) and set two hand pumps in our community – Leither village.  We have contacted a driller and have located two sites. 

This is a big deal for us. While we have helped other missionaries with food distribution and hunger relief or human needs projects, this is the first one we have done. We really need your prayer support. God knows the need for water, He knows where the water is, He knows the cost of the project, He knows all the details involved, and He knows the hearts of the people.  We are relying on Him to work it all out for His glory.

If you feel led to give toward this project there are several avenues open to you. Your gift is tax deductible.
To use a credit card, go to www.gobgr.org/donate put the project ID # WH11429A01 in the comments box.
or send a check  to
Baptist Global Response
402 BNA Dr. 
Suite 411 
Nashville, TN 37217-2546  Write #WH11429A01 on the memo line.