Thursday, November 16, 2006
Namibia Update 2
Well, this part of the journey was where we spent almost 2 weeks in 2 different regions of Namibia, the Northwest and Northeast corners. It is still amazing to me the immense urban development of the cities in the south that stood in shocking contrast to the villages in the north. In our Western ignorance, we could assume that there is such a thing as universal African culture; but truth is that even Africans themselves live on many different social levels. To say that an African in the city is just like an African in a village is to say an uptown New Yorker is just like a Tennessee "hill-billy".
Beyond these cultural issues lies an impeding reality--tribes of people remain forgotten. We were able to minster in places where scattered evangelism has taken place across the past few decades, yet no lasting witness has remained and a current generation of villages has barely, if at all, heard of Jesus and His love for them. Imagine driving through the southern half of Texas and visiting 30 different small towns, and finding not one single church building, one single pastor or even Biblical teacher...this was the sight for my eyes, this was the haunting reality that I've only read about untill now...I am definetly not one to confuse the true Church with buildings, however the reality was that without the material structures there was also no one ministering in vast regions of dozens of villages...
Of course, I myself was convicted at the reality that I was also joining the ranks of infrequent evangelistic work. However, I also knew that if I even have 2 pennies to give to God, He accepts it gladly. I also realized I work not to relieve the guilt that Christians mistakenly carry in response to the greatness of the world's needs, but I work to please the Father. "Apart from Him I can do nothing" said even our Lord His Son. It's all about Jesus! So, Jesus took my little offering of a few days here, and a few days here, and He used these days to bring dozens, even hundreds to Himself.
This is where we would walk into a village and speak to just a few. We were always welcomed with offers for chairs (or sometimes to join them on the large stones they sat on) and cool cups of water. We found that a chat under a tree would repetively turn into a gathering of the whole village. Across 5 villages and 1 village school, we perhaps spoke to about 50 people in each place. I'm not wanting to count numbers and tell you about our multitudes; for the pleasure of Jesus is my only goal. However, it was pure joy that when Jesus is lifted up, all men will be drawn!
Those in the Northeast were of mixed tribal backgrounds, but the Lozi tongue was the mutual language that they used for trade. Partnering together with our Pastor-friend, we translated the rarely heard Scriptures for them. In each village, the Lord told me to tell a story of the prodigal son who left his father. I put it into their context, telling them about a boy that grew up with a rich Cheif as his father...he left the village to spend money in the big city, only to find himself out of money...when he came back the Cheif ran to the boy....it was the same story in their words (except it still had to be translated) and I was thankful to the Holy Spirit to give me the words to say each time. Some were backslidden becauase they hadn't heard for a long time; even the drunks came out from the village bars (funny that the bars will go, but the Church won't) nearby and listened to these stories of love...and the drunks were the first to raise their hands!
My favorite of all these hundreds of lives was Ka Mbela Mbela....the witchdoctor that gave his heart to the Lord. I really want to revisit this area, Lord willing. But the best thing was the fact that we brought 7 young college age Christians from the city, so Lord willing they will provide some follow-up. I read the wisdom of Paul, who knew he had to move around, which is why he appointed Gentile leaders like Timothy and Titus and many others who would remain...he knew he had to go, but one would plant and another would harvest. Working toghether with the nationals, for me, means that Jesus gets the Glory at the end of the day.
We also were able to pray for rain cloulds in the NW corner of Namibia, and find the next day God sent them!!!!!!!!!!!!! I already spoke on that in my email, but man, Jesus is great. We were able to give a Bible to a lady, under the premise that she would read the gospels aloud to the entire village once we left. She agreed...I can see that when the day comes when the Lord allows me to focus more on village outreach and less on the media-related work that I do to serve the missionary body (my tent making job for now) I will then be able to concetrate serious time on teaching the "inner" disciples in each place...it's amazing to me how the Holy Spirit always has a few chosen one's in each place...there are those that kinda get it, those that get it, and then those that REALLY get it...they sometimes are also the elders in age, which would make for good elders in the Church. I, too, know that the Lord has asked me to follow Him without so much as a foxes den or a birds nest or a consistent place to lay my head. Even this next month I look onward to Mozambique for a time of refreshment and training under Iris Ministries, which has seen revival across that land. And in January I look onward toward tentative plans to go to Angola for 2 months and serve a missionary there, while traveling throughout that post-communist nation and ministering in villages where just 15 years ago it was illegal to preach.
And, that's where it was joy to have my brother Tebego with me. If no one else was made into a disciple this entire month, I know he was. I enjoyed sharing my "mic" time with him and coaching him in communication and preaching. He blossomed from a young man that had only ever seen the small region of his South African province (kinda like only visiting one state in the US) to a man that knows how to minister across culture, outside his familiar city area into the mud-huts and rural country. I know that if I'm never able to re-enter Namibia, this young believer will be able to hear his calling from the Holy Spirit and follow up on those people now that he knows the way.
As the Body strives to be a team, we'll finish the Great Commission in this generation, Lord willing.
in Jesus name!
Nate
Beyond these cultural issues lies an impeding reality--tribes of people remain forgotten. We were able to minster in places where scattered evangelism has taken place across the past few decades, yet no lasting witness has remained and a current generation of villages has barely, if at all, heard of Jesus and His love for them. Imagine driving through the southern half of Texas and visiting 30 different small towns, and finding not one single church building, one single pastor or even Biblical teacher...this was the sight for my eyes, this was the haunting reality that I've only read about untill now...I am definetly not one to confuse the true Church with buildings, however the reality was that without the material structures there was also no one ministering in vast regions of dozens of villages...
Of course, I myself was convicted at the reality that I was also joining the ranks of infrequent evangelistic work. However, I also knew that if I even have 2 pennies to give to God, He accepts it gladly. I also realized I work not to relieve the guilt that Christians mistakenly carry in response to the greatness of the world's needs, but I work to please the Father. "Apart from Him I can do nothing" said even our Lord His Son. It's all about Jesus! So, Jesus took my little offering of a few days here, and a few days here, and He used these days to bring dozens, even hundreds to Himself.
This is where we would walk into a village and speak to just a few. We were always welcomed with offers for chairs (or sometimes to join them on the large stones they sat on) and cool cups of water. We found that a chat under a tree would repetively turn into a gathering of the whole village. Across 5 villages and 1 village school, we perhaps spoke to about 50 people in each place. I'm not wanting to count numbers and tell you about our multitudes; for the pleasure of Jesus is my only goal. However, it was pure joy that when Jesus is lifted up, all men will be drawn!
Those in the Northeast were of mixed tribal backgrounds, but the Lozi tongue was the mutual language that they used for trade. Partnering together with our Pastor-friend, we translated the rarely heard Scriptures for them. In each village, the Lord told me to tell a story of the prodigal son who left his father. I put it into their context, telling them about a boy that grew up with a rich Cheif as his father...he left the village to spend money in the big city, only to find himself out of money...when he came back the Cheif ran to the boy....it was the same story in their words (except it still had to be translated) and I was thankful to the Holy Spirit to give me the words to say each time. Some were backslidden becauase they hadn't heard for a long time; even the drunks came out from the village bars (funny that the bars will go, but the Church won't) nearby and listened to these stories of love...and the drunks were the first to raise their hands!
My favorite of all these hundreds of lives was Ka Mbela Mbela....the witchdoctor that gave his heart to the Lord. I really want to revisit this area, Lord willing. But the best thing was the fact that we brought 7 young college age Christians from the city, so Lord willing they will provide some follow-up. I read the wisdom of Paul, who knew he had to move around, which is why he appointed Gentile leaders like Timothy and Titus and many others who would remain...he knew he had to go, but one would plant and another would harvest. Working toghether with the nationals, for me, means that Jesus gets the Glory at the end of the day.
We also were able to pray for rain cloulds in the NW corner of Namibia, and find the next day God sent them!!!!!!!!!!!!! I already spoke on that in my email, but man, Jesus is great. We were able to give a Bible to a lady, under the premise that she would read the gospels aloud to the entire village once we left. She agreed...I can see that when the day comes when the Lord allows me to focus more on village outreach and less on the media-related work that I do to serve the missionary body (my tent making job for now) I will then be able to concetrate serious time on teaching the "inner" disciples in each place...it's amazing to me how the Holy Spirit always has a few chosen one's in each place...there are those that kinda get it, those that get it, and then those that REALLY get it...they sometimes are also the elders in age, which would make for good elders in the Church. I, too, know that the Lord has asked me to follow Him without so much as a foxes den or a birds nest or a consistent place to lay my head. Even this next month I look onward to Mozambique for a time of refreshment and training under Iris Ministries, which has seen revival across that land. And in January I look onward toward tentative plans to go to Angola for 2 months and serve a missionary there, while traveling throughout that post-communist nation and ministering in villages where just 15 years ago it was illegal to preach.
And, that's where it was joy to have my brother Tebego with me. If no one else was made into a disciple this entire month, I know he was. I enjoyed sharing my "mic" time with him and coaching him in communication and preaching. He blossomed from a young man that had only ever seen the small region of his South African province (kinda like only visiting one state in the US) to a man that knows how to minister across culture, outside his familiar city area into the mud-huts and rural country. I know that if I'm never able to re-enter Namibia, this young believer will be able to hear his calling from the Holy Spirit and follow up on those people now that he knows the way.
As the Body strives to be a team, we'll finish the Great Commission in this generation, Lord willing.
in Jesus name!
Nate
# posted by Nate Sanow @ 1:54 PM 
