Friday, 10 August 2007
Friday, 3 August 2007
"Erasing Race"
Wheaton Professor Calls for “Erasing Race”
“God created a race—the human race—in his image. All people are part of that one human race,” said Vincent Bacote, associate professor of theology at Wheaton College, in a lecture given Thursday, August 2, on Fuller’s Pasadena campus. Bacote is one of several prominent visiting professors teaching intensive courses at Fuller this summer.
In the lunchtime lecture, titled “Erasing Race,” Bacote described several problems with using race as a way of considering or classifying people. “The language of race orients us toward thinking about different people as different species,” he said, with “whiteness” conferring certain privileges and access not given to others. Certainly there is differentiation among people, but “categorizing others by race makes it impossible for us to act fully Christian,” he claimed. “Intentionally or not, whiteness becomes a kind of idolatry.”
Striving to be “color-blind” is not the solution, Bacote maintained, because in doing so we do not acknowledge the fullness of others’ cultures. “We need, rather, to replace race with the concept of ethnicity,” he said, “which is far more complex.” Referring to the parable of the Good Samaritan, he called for a commitment to taking care of others as we take care of ourselves—and often that “other” is someone very different from us. “We must do the hard work of really getting to know that person,” he said, and understand that this will take much time and patience, and that there will be misunderstandings along the way. “We must recognize it is a long, challenging, and difficult process,” he emphasized, “but a process that will bear much fruit.”
Bacote is author of The Spirit in Public Theology: Appropriating the Legacy of Abraham Kuyper, and his has also appeared in such publications as Re:generation Quarterly, Urban Mission, Christianity Today, and Journal for Christian Theological Research. His lecture was sponsored by the African American Church Studies Office at Fuller.
Thursday, 5 July 2007
Home Again
July 5
Hello Everyone,
I got home safely from Tanzania and have been in the states for about
two weeks now. Getting settled back into life here has taken a little
time, so I am just now sitting down to follow-up with you all on my
trip home!
First of all, everything worked out really well with flight
connections and traveling. A van full of my students and friends
joined me for the hour long drive to the Kilimanjaro airport to say
goodbye! Once in the airport, there was a group of grandmothers who
had been on safari and staying in nice hotels, and one of them gave me
her amazing hamburger and another her amazing chocolate cake! I must
have looked hungry (: But coming from what I had been eating, this
was an immense blessing and a very visible way for me to see God
watching out for me on my trip. In the Nairobi airport I even met a
man who had been doing mission work in Tanzania. From there I flew
to London where i stayed with Ashley and Nick, in their new flat! And
i'm happy to say that Ashley looks very pregnant and beautiful. In
leaving London, my flight was delayed for a day so I managed to change
to a direct flight to LA instead and make it to the wedding I was
trying to get home in time for! So that was an answer to prayer!
Leaving London was a zoo, but a young man offered to help me carry my
bags through the metro since we were going the same way, and it turned
out that his sister was getting ready to go to Arusha to teach
English. And I stood next to a woman from Nigeria on the metro and got
to talk to her briefly. I was excited about all of these ordained
meetings!
I am now back at Pepperdine finishing my last class and adjusting to
Southern Californian culture. Even though I have spent far more time
here than in Africa, the differences between the two countries have
been really evident and poignent for me in coming back. The first
couple days everything represented a high economy and money in my
mind. I was so excited to be home and in my neighborhood, but i
couldn't help being overwhelmed with how everything we did, everything
we have, and everything in our environment represents money that was
not represented in Africa! Everything is clean and new and nice. I
felt shocked that I have lived in Malibu and San Diego, two of the
nicest places in the world. And not just San Diego, but Point Loma!
I couldn't figure out how this has been MY life. I was much more aware
of the priveleges I have had in my life.
I also felt really bombarded with materialism. Instead of rejecting
money because i had been living in poverty, i wanted everything! I
wanted to fit back into my culture: get my nails done and haircut and
new clothes. Because i had just arrived in town i got showered with
food and coffee and comforts at home. Eating at a restaurant that
would have been normal before i left suddenly felt like such a
privelege, and because of that i wanted to eat everything! i felt
like a kid who had been taken off the streets and brought into a candy
shop. But at the same time i felt guilty. And i felt judgmental of
the things people had, even though these things are normal and
appropriate to people here. i had thoughts like "everyone is so
materialistic here, stuff drives our culture," but it was ME who was
feeling swamped with stuff, and to everyone else it was just a normal
part of their life.
I've also had an interesting mix of feeling happy to have space to
myself and my own independence and freedom back, and feeling lonely
for people and community. In Arusha there were always people to be
with. If I was in my room by myself I didn't feel alone because I
could hear people outside my window and I knew I could go talk to
someone whenever I felt like it. People never wanted you to be alone,
because their culture is so relational. So someone would always join
you if you were eating by yourself, or check in on you if they hadn't
seen you all morning. In Malibu, I have to call someone to see them!
Or if I want to just be around people I have to go to Starbucks and do
my homework! Of course, being with people i knew all the time had
it's moments of being a bit much. It's just an interesting change in
my environment. And i have to drive everywhere! Or at least I feel
like i have to drive everywhere.
One of the things I've struggled a lot with in being back is not
seeing visible needs around me. In Africa there were always people to
minister to. There were street children right outside my front door
who needed to be touched and loved. My students needed encouragment
and discipleship. There were always people on base who could use help
and people in town who were hungry. People's needs in our village or
in town were so obvious: they were dirty, wearing ripped and ragged
clothes, barefoot, and had signs of malnutrition. Just saying hello
to some people meant bridging cultural and racial gaps, and it meant
showing them tangible love. Here, people are clean and well fed and
have more than they need. Appearance wise, they are sending the
message that they don't need anything. i want to hug every little kid
i see but in all reality he doesn't really need it: his mom has been
giving him more attention and food and care in a day than some of the
kids i saw get in a life time. And he doesn't crave a hug from a
stranger like the kids in Africa do. So I have been struggling with
where I am needed in my own culture. I know that looking past these
appearances, people's souls need the same ministering to, and people
are hurting and lonely. Our needs aren't as visible and on the
surface as the needs in Africa, but they are still there. But in
coming home, I have felt like our well kept and well provided for
appearances create a barrier in ministering to each other. (at least
in my seeing people to minister to!)
It's also funny going from being a teacher to being a student. Being
a student is so much easier! I just have to sit and listen to my
professor, understand what he is saying, and then do some studying.
It takes way less energy listening and applying than instructing and
teaching. I'm taking a very basic math class but i am having so much
fun being a student! and having been out of school for a year i am so
hungry to be learning. i think this is a good sign in starting
Seminary (:
So, those are the main things i have been experiencing in being back.
Thank you again for all of your prayers during my time in Africa.
Your support and prayers equipped me and gave me strength to do the
work that God had given me there. Going to Africa made it so much
clearer to me that God has things in store for my life that i couldn't
even imagine given my so much smaller scope of things. He may give me
a glimpse of something he has for me, through giving me the dream or
desire to do something, but His fufillment of that dream entails so
much than i could ever have imagined! Life with God is such an
adventure with so many options, ordained encounters, blessings,
growth, and opportunities to use your gifts and therefore be fulfilled
in the very core of your existence. God's plan is so much better than
the plans i have for my own life! And that is the hugest
understatement of the year! I think He gives us dreams and visions
and desires, and then when we step out in faith and let Him fufill
them He blesses us tenfold. What an amazing God, to not only give us
dreams and desires but to bless us in the fulfillment of them.
If you feel called to continue to pray for me, please pray for my
preperation in going to Fuller (housing, financial aid, registering
for classes, jobs/internships, home church in Pasadena). Please also
pray for me during this transition, that I would be able to find ways
to serve here and feel purposeful.
Thank you again. You each have had faithful hearts of ministry in
taking part in this trip with me! I couldn't have done it without you.
God bless,
Christina
Hello Everyone,
I got home safely from Tanzania and have been in the states for about
two weeks now. Getting settled back into life here has taken a little
time, so I am just now sitting down to follow-up with you all on my
trip home!
First of all, everything worked out really well with flight
connections and traveling. A van full of my students and friends
joined me for the hour long drive to the Kilimanjaro airport to say
goodbye! Once in the airport, there was a group of grandmothers who
had been on safari and staying in nice hotels, and one of them gave me
her amazing hamburger and another her amazing chocolate cake! I must
have looked hungry (: But coming from what I had been eating, this
was an immense blessing and a very visible way for me to see God
watching out for me on my trip. In the Nairobi airport I even met a
man who had been doing mission work in Tanzania. From there I flew
to London where i stayed with Ashley and Nick, in their new flat! And
i'm happy to say that Ashley looks very pregnant and beautiful. In
leaving London, my flight was delayed for a day so I managed to change
to a direct flight to LA instead and make it to the wedding I was
trying to get home in time for! So that was an answer to prayer!
Leaving London was a zoo, but a young man offered to help me carry my
bags through the metro since we were going the same way, and it turned
out that his sister was getting ready to go to Arusha to teach
English. And I stood next to a woman from Nigeria on the metro and got
to talk to her briefly. I was excited about all of these ordained
meetings!
I am now back at Pepperdine finishing my last class and adjusting to
Southern Californian culture. Even though I have spent far more time
here than in Africa, the differences between the two countries have
been really evident and poignent for me in coming back. The first
couple days everything represented a high economy and money in my
mind. I was so excited to be home and in my neighborhood, but i
couldn't help being overwhelmed with how everything we did, everything
we have, and everything in our environment represents money that was
not represented in Africa! Everything is clean and new and nice. I
felt shocked that I have lived in Malibu and San Diego, two of the
nicest places in the world. And not just San Diego, but Point Loma!
I couldn't figure out how this has been MY life. I was much more aware
of the priveleges I have had in my life.
I also felt really bombarded with materialism. Instead of rejecting
money because i had been living in poverty, i wanted everything! I
wanted to fit back into my culture: get my nails done and haircut and
new clothes. Because i had just arrived in town i got showered with
food and coffee and comforts at home. Eating at a restaurant that
would have been normal before i left suddenly felt like such a
privelege, and because of that i wanted to eat everything! i felt
like a kid who had been taken off the streets and brought into a candy
shop. But at the same time i felt guilty. And i felt judgmental of
the things people had, even though these things are normal and
appropriate to people here. i had thoughts like "everyone is so
materialistic here, stuff drives our culture," but it was ME who was
feeling swamped with stuff, and to everyone else it was just a normal
part of their life.
I've also had an interesting mix of feeling happy to have space to
myself and my own independence and freedom back, and feeling lonely
for people and community. In Arusha there were always people to be
with. If I was in my room by myself I didn't feel alone because I
could hear people outside my window and I knew I could go talk to
someone whenever I felt like it. People never wanted you to be alone,
because their culture is so relational. So someone would always join
you if you were eating by yourself, or check in on you if they hadn't
seen you all morning. In Malibu, I have to call someone to see them!
Or if I want to just be around people I have to go to Starbucks and do
my homework! Of course, being with people i knew all the time had
it's moments of being a bit much. It's just an interesting change in
my environment. And i have to drive everywhere! Or at least I feel
like i have to drive everywhere.
One of the things I've struggled a lot with in being back is not
seeing visible needs around me. In Africa there were always people to
minister to. There were street children right outside my front door
who needed to be touched and loved. My students needed encouragment
and discipleship. There were always people on base who could use help
and people in town who were hungry. People's needs in our village or
in town were so obvious: they were dirty, wearing ripped and ragged
clothes, barefoot, and had signs of malnutrition. Just saying hello
to some people meant bridging cultural and racial gaps, and it meant
showing them tangible love. Here, people are clean and well fed and
have more than they need. Appearance wise, they are sending the
message that they don't need anything. i want to hug every little kid
i see but in all reality he doesn't really need it: his mom has been
giving him more attention and food and care in a day than some of the
kids i saw get in a life time. And he doesn't crave a hug from a
stranger like the kids in Africa do. So I have been struggling with
where I am needed in my own culture. I know that looking past these
appearances, people's souls need the same ministering to, and people
are hurting and lonely. Our needs aren't as visible and on the
surface as the needs in Africa, but they are still there. But in
coming home, I have felt like our well kept and well provided for
appearances create a barrier in ministering to each other. (at least
in my seeing people to minister to!)
It's also funny going from being a teacher to being a student. Being
a student is so much easier! I just have to sit and listen to my
professor, understand what he is saying, and then do some studying.
It takes way less energy listening and applying than instructing and
teaching. I'm taking a very basic math class but i am having so much
fun being a student! and having been out of school for a year i am so
hungry to be learning. i think this is a good sign in starting
Seminary (:
So, those are the main things i have been experiencing in being back.
Thank you again for all of your prayers during my time in Africa.
Your support and prayers equipped me and gave me strength to do the
work that God had given me there. Going to Africa made it so much
clearer to me that God has things in store for my life that i couldn't
even imagine given my so much smaller scope of things. He may give me
a glimpse of something he has for me, through giving me the dream or
desire to do something, but His fufillment of that dream entails so
much than i could ever have imagined! Life with God is such an
adventure with so many options, ordained encounters, blessings,
growth, and opportunities to use your gifts and therefore be fulfilled
in the very core of your existence. God's plan is so much better than
the plans i have for my own life! And that is the hugest
understatement of the year! I think He gives us dreams and visions
and desires, and then when we step out in faith and let Him fufill
them He blesses us tenfold. What an amazing God, to not only give us
dreams and desires but to bless us in the fulfillment of them.
If you feel called to continue to pray for me, please pray for my
preperation in going to Fuller (housing, financial aid, registering
for classes, jobs/internships, home church in Pasadena). Please also
pray for me during this transition, that I would be able to find ways
to serve here and feel purposeful.
Thank you again. You each have had faithful hearts of ministry in
taking part in this trip with me! I couldn't have done it without you.
God bless,
Christina
Party! Party! Party!
June 21
Hello all,
I am leaving this afternoon but I wanted to share about my going away party
last night before my mind gets caught up with my trip home!
My students went above and beyond anything i could have imagined! first,
they had been having "secret meetings" for some time, making plans for this
elaborate party! then yesterday, they spent all day making preparations.
when i walked into the classroom at 7pm, the room was transformed into a
banquet hall! the tables were in a rectangular shape with the middle floor
open. they had a designated seat for me at the front of the room (kind of
like a bridal party!) with a big sign with my name on it hanging on the
front. Monishi was playing the keyboard, complete with big speakers, and
djed the whole night! at a side table was a spread of food with rice, beef
curry, fruit plates of avocados, mangos, oranges, and bananas, that they
rotated to the guests throughout the evening! they had even invited people
that were important to me from outside of the class!
the girls began by singing some songs. then james, the ELS director, gave a
short talk. he said how they had been praying for an English teacher and if
they couldn't find one he was going to have to teach the school!! and how
God really brought us together to fill this need in Arusha. after dinner my
Maasai students led us in a Maasai dance, complete with jumping! then Mama
Miracle (the base director's wife) gave a talk, as well as Becka and Wilson
(one of my students). it was so honoring! i couldn't believe the things they
said! they even made up a song for me: "goodbye Christina, no matter how far
away, we won't forget you." And then, when I couldn't imagine anything more,
they gave me presents! starting with an entire cake!!! then three of my
students came up and put necklaces on me, kind of like graduation lays,
and Maasai beaded necklaces! they said this was just as big an
accomplishment in my life to finish teaching the school as for them
finishing taking the school.
and then of course there was dessert. we cut up the cake, had fruit cups,
and cookies. we finished the evening with taking a million pictures, all the
younger girls were fighting over getting a picture with their teacher, so
now i have a picture with myself and each individual girl in the class! it
was so sweet.
it was amazing to have an entire party in my honor! and to have all of this
love and encouragement poured out on me! i felt so built up and strong; like
i was being equipped to go home, and being given a shield of truth and
strength and love.
so what an amazing way to end my time here. now i'm all packed and my
students are preparing for their finals. i'm tying up loose ends, but i
think i have all the big stuff done! hallelujah! so i will see you at home
shortly!!
much love,
Mungu Aku Bariki,
Christina
Wrapping Things Up
June 19
My flight home is all figured out! and it only cost $50 to change! (which is nothing compared to the horror stories i've heard about changing flights!!!!) So now I am leaving tomorrow night, also wonderful news as i am not a morning person. Now I am flying all night to london, spending the whole day and night with my dear British sister, and then flying home!!! i am so excited and relieved!
tonight my students are throwing me a going away dinner that they planned all by themselves and even pitched in money to make happen! i am so humbled and blown away! this morning two of them were cutting fruit for it in the staff kitchen! so i will give you details about that tomorrow.
and i have just enough (typical God isn't it?) cards that my brother made to give one to each of my students. they're the cards of the lioness school teacher teaching her classroom of Tanzanian animals! and i am putting this verse in them:
"We give thanks to God for all of you, constantly mentioning you in our prayers, remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you." 1 Thessalonians 1:2-4
Be blessed,
Christina
Last Weekend in Arusha
6/17
Hello everyone!
My last weekend in Africa is coming to a close. I spent all day yesterday with my DTS friends, and then went to All Nations Christian Center for church today. This is the church that feels the most like a "home church" to me. My friend Natasha's parents were the visiting preachers from Zambia. Her dad got really sick this morning though, so her mom took over. and she was powerful! lots of screaming, yelling, and praising God. I really liked the basis of her message:
In the beginning, God created Adam and Eve in His image: physically, emotionally, and spiritually. There was no illness, no suffering, no pain, no depression, no mental illness, and everything created was close to, and in relationship with, God. This tells us that God did not intend for us to be ill, to suffer, to have emotional turmoil, and so on. These things weren't in the garden of Eden, they aren't in God, and they won't be in heaven. That feels hopeful doesn't it? And the Bible tells us that we are more than conquerors through Him, so i might be as bold as to say that God can conquer these things in our lives on earth.
After church Baba Choi, our base founder and leader, took me out to lunch to thank me for my time here! i was so blessed! nothing slips through the cracks, or goes unrecognized by Baba Choi or James! We sat outside and had an amazing meal, and he told me some of his visions for YWAM Arusha. He is such a visionary, and the amazing thing is how his visions get carried out. He told me he came to Tanzania committed to staying for two years. He was set on leaving after that allotted time, and didn't have a desire to stay longer. During that time he spent a week with the Maasai in the bush bush, and on the way home God started challenging him to dedicate his life to living in Africa. Baba Choi said, Ok God, but it has to be on your strength. That was in 1984 and he is still here! And God has done so much through him! He said it gets better over time because Tanzania feels more and more like his permanent home. He is currently undertaking a project of building a school for primary to high school level children. I saw the building in process and I could totally see myself coming back to teach there. so pray for that! he is also taking on a project of raising up African teachers, and providing the education teachers would need. very good idea. Also, he has a vision of writing children's books for African children, which amazingly is a vision i have also had while being here! so he was soliciting me to write them! which i would love to! the children read books about white people, or else don’t really have books. they don't have books that connect with them and their culture. they also don't have "heros" to learn from. it is hard to find people in leadership or government positions who are setting an example for the youth to follow. this perpetuates the problem of poor leadership because values aren't being instilled in the children at a young age. so he wants to write books that give the children heros to look to, and teach them values to follow. so we'll see where this idea goes!
please continue to pray for my flight home details, i had a schedule change that i didn't read thoroughly before i came here and apparently i have a 15 hour lay over in Nairobi! not fun, and not a great city to be stuck in.
I hope you all are doing well and are feeling blessed.
Mungu Aku Bariki,
Christina
Thursday, 28 June 2007
Sunday, 17 June 2007
What God Has to Say About My Realism
look at what God showed me in response to my email last night:
Jeremiah 12
Jeremiah is complaining about evil people prospering. He says,"Righteous are you, O Lord, when I complain to you; yet I would plead my case before you." I like this because he recognizes that God is righteous, and deals righteously with his people, but he still makes his complaint known and questions God. So i can fully know that God is righteous and sovereign, but i can still have complaints and questions! and i can still bring them before God: He can handle them (ie: Job).
God answers: "If you have raced with men on foot, and they have wearied you, how will you compete with horses? And if in a safe land you are so trusting, what will you do in the thicket of the Jordan?"In this context, God is responding to wicked and treacherous people, but i think it still applies to me because i made some complaints to God: the culture is wearing me out! and God is saying, if you are growing weary in this safe YWAM environment where your race is with men (teaching a class, running with endurance with people of a different culture) how much more will you get tired when i put you somewhere unsafe, racing against spiritual battles?
He's also giving Jeremiah street smarts: stop being so trusting! use you're discernment! stop putting yourself in a position to be tricked and disappointed. He says that even Jeremiah's own household has dealt treacherously with him. God is telling me to stop putting myself in a position to be dissapointed by man, stop expecting everyone to be good, stop giving my trust where it is not due (such as, expecting people to follow through in a Western manner when I am in AFRICA! or feeling dissapointed when my students don't understand but their education level is so completely different).
then God goes on to tell Jeremiah His plan and how He will deal righteously with these people. God sees it all, He equips us to deal with all situations and people, and then He deals righteously with it.
Amen?
Amen.
Jeremiah 12
Jeremiah is complaining about evil people prospering. He says,"Righteous are you, O Lord, when I complain to you; yet I would plead my case before you." I like this because he recognizes that God is righteous, and deals righteously with his people, but he still makes his complaint known and questions God. So i can fully know that God is righteous and sovereign, but i can still have complaints and questions! and i can still bring them before God: He can handle them (ie: Job).
God answers: "If you have raced with men on foot, and they have wearied you, how will you compete with horses? And if in a safe land you are so trusting, what will you do in the thicket of the Jordan?"In this context, God is responding to wicked and treacherous people, but i think it still applies to me because i made some complaints to God: the culture is wearing me out! and God is saying, if you are growing weary in this safe YWAM environment where your race is with men (teaching a class, running with endurance with people of a different culture) how much more will you get tired when i put you somewhere unsafe, racing against spiritual battles?
He's also giving Jeremiah street smarts: stop being so trusting! use you're discernment! stop putting yourself in a position to be tricked and disappointed. He says that even Jeremiah's own household has dealt treacherously with him. God is telling me to stop putting myself in a position to be dissapointed by man, stop expecting everyone to be good, stop giving my trust where it is not due (such as, expecting people to follow through in a Western manner when I am in AFRICA! or feeling dissapointed when my students don't understand but their education level is so completely different).
then God goes on to tell Jeremiah His plan and how He will deal righteously with these people. God sees it all, He equips us to deal with all situations and people, and then He deals righteously with it.
Amen?
Amen.
A little Realism from Africa
hello friends,
I hope everything is going well at home! I'm excited to be back in California in less than two weeks! My mind is becoming more and more aware that my time here is coming to an end and that i will be home soon, so i am starting to have one foot in Africa and one foot on the plane home. Pray for endurance, perseverance, and patience to finish the race that i started!
This weekend i had a fun adventure. My friend Edward went running one day and came upon a country club that some Westerners opened here in Arusha. He ended up meeting people who bought him food, drove him home, invited him to their houses, and one even leant him her car one weekend! He came back raving about this place, how he sat in the restaraunt for hours and watched football and so on. Needless to say we all wanted to go. So on Saturday Edward, Hannah, Stephanie and I set out to the country club! It ended up being an hour long walk across fields, winding through coffee plantations and climbing over things. But then we came to a clearing and there was a huge manicured grass field, then a huge club at the end! We sat in the restaraunt for four hours and talked and watched tv and ate and ate and drank coffee and juice and soda. it was so nice! (especially nice since our money goes so far in Africa). it was a nice break from serving on the base (;
my students are working on researching their topics this week for the final presentation. i think i am taking on A LOT in teaching them how to do a researched presentation, so pray for me! the project is stuff we learn in third or fourth grade in America so it seemed really easy and doable to me. but the idea of taking notes, using google on the internet, writing down three sources, making an outline, is all brand new to them! and paired with doing it all in English it is especially hard. i think they will learn a lot by the end, but i'm not sure if i will still have any hair or finger nails. when I lived in Heidelberg, Germany i had do a researched presentation on a topic of my choice and it was really hard. i did it on Marlene Deitrich, a German movie star from the 20s that i like, but it was challenging to translate my whole talk into German. and that was an advanced college level course. so i have to keep reminding myself that this stuff is challenging.
I have been told that around the three month mark in a foreign country people start to have a harder time with the culture. when i first came to Tanzania everything was new and exciting and i was able to accept cultural differences more easily because i had fresh coping skills. now my coping skills have been worn down a bit and because i am coming home soon i find myself not trying as hard. i think this is important to share with you all so you know that missionaries are not immune to cultural challenges! being a missionary is not one long spiritual high, it is also coping every day in a different country: the food, the people, the smells, the systems, the ways of thinking. God is fully capable and still works within our weaknesses and short comings, but it is challenging to serve in a different country.
So my message to the future up-and-coming missionaries: being frustrated with a different culture is normal, but what you do with that frustration is up to you. bring it to God and be positive. Don't focus on the negative frustrations. Don't let Satan build a wall in your ministry. have a realistic mindset in going to the new country, that there will be good AND bad things, and that God is bigger than both of them.
this may be more of a message to myself than to you guys, but hopefully it will have some helpful insight into serving in other countries.
be blessed this week!
Christina
I hope everything is going well at home! I'm excited to be back in California in less than two weeks! My mind is becoming more and more aware that my time here is coming to an end and that i will be home soon, so i am starting to have one foot in Africa and one foot on the plane home. Pray for endurance, perseverance, and patience to finish the race that i started!
This weekend i had a fun adventure. My friend Edward went running one day and came upon a country club that some Westerners opened here in Arusha. He ended up meeting people who bought him food, drove him home, invited him to their houses, and one even leant him her car one weekend! He came back raving about this place, how he sat in the restaraunt for hours and watched football and so on. Needless to say we all wanted to go. So on Saturday Edward, Hannah, Stephanie and I set out to the country club! It ended up being an hour long walk across fields, winding through coffee plantations and climbing over things. But then we came to a clearing and there was a huge manicured grass field, then a huge club at the end! We sat in the restaraunt for four hours and talked and watched tv and ate and ate and drank coffee and juice and soda. it was so nice! (especially nice since our money goes so far in Africa). it was a nice break from serving on the base (;
my students are working on researching their topics this week for the final presentation. i think i am taking on A LOT in teaching them how to do a researched presentation, so pray for me! the project is stuff we learn in third or fourth grade in America so it seemed really easy and doable to me. but the idea of taking notes, using google on the internet, writing down three sources, making an outline, is all brand new to them! and paired with doing it all in English it is especially hard. i think they will learn a lot by the end, but i'm not sure if i will still have any hair or finger nails. when I lived in Heidelberg, Germany i had do a researched presentation on a topic of my choice and it was really hard. i did it on Marlene Deitrich, a German movie star from the 20s that i like, but it was challenging to translate my whole talk into German. and that was an advanced college level course. so i have to keep reminding myself that this stuff is challenging.
I have been told that around the three month mark in a foreign country people start to have a harder time with the culture. when i first came to Tanzania everything was new and exciting and i was able to accept cultural differences more easily because i had fresh coping skills. now my coping skills have been worn down a bit and because i am coming home soon i find myself not trying as hard. i think this is important to share with you all so you know that missionaries are not immune to cultural challenges! being a missionary is not one long spiritual high, it is also coping every day in a different country: the food, the people, the smells, the systems, the ways of thinking. God is fully capable and still works within our weaknesses and short comings, but it is challenging to serve in a different country.
So my message to the future up-and-coming missionaries: being frustrated with a different culture is normal, but what you do with that frustration is up to you. bring it to God and be positive. Don't focus on the negative frustrations. Don't let Satan build a wall in your ministry. have a realistic mindset in going to the new country, that there will be good AND bad things, and that God is bigger than both of them.
this may be more of a message to myself than to you guys, but hopefully it will have some helpful insight into serving in other countries.
be blessed this week!
Christina
Compassion International, Testimonies, and a little Lucado
June 6, 2007
Dear everybody!
I forgot to share with you in my last email that I visited a Compassion International school on Saturday. One of my student's, Visitor, is a social worker for a Compassion Int'l branch here in Arusha (actually right down the street from our base) and she invited me to come. A group of four of us went and got to participate in the day and get a tour of the school. I was so impressed! The day began with a worship service in the sanctuary. The room was packed with the kids and staff. The kids range from 6 to 17 years old. They all wear green uniforms: light green blouses, dark green sweaters, and green/beige pants or skirts. (All the school children in Tanzania wear school uniforms that distinguish what class level they are.) The students sat on wood benches forming rows in the sanctuary, all in matching uniforms, the younger children in the front, and the older children in the back. During worship they closed their eyes and raised their hands, and when they prayed they got down on their knees by their benches and prayed outloud all at once. They really had genuine hearts seeking after God!
Since I was a visitor they asked me to speak (this is a common trend in Africa!). I was very excited for this, because God has really been developing within me a deep heart for children in the past year. I got to share with them how much God loves them, how He always made time for the children even when there were other ministries to attend to, and how children are a reflection of God's heart and purity. Then I got to tell them that God calls people when they are young! I asked if everyone knew this, and some said yes and said NO! So I told them how God called Jeremiah when he was young, and said that He was going to use him and give him authority over nations and words to say. I told them God called me when i was eleven, and had all the eleven year olds raise their hands. They looked so small! I told them when I was eleven i never would have imagined I would be here in Africa with all them. And that God can do the same thing for each of them! He can call them at a young age and do great things in their lives. And finally, God tells us to not look down on people because they are young! I told them God can use them to speak truth to adults. Some of them looked pretty shocked at this idea (: So, I was so blessed to get to talk to all their bright faces and squirmy bodies (let's face it, if you talk for more than 5 minutes you lose over half your audience who is under 8). It was also a blessing to me because Visitor translated my talk into English, and she did such a good job.
After worship the students went to their bible classes, then had skills workshops. They had workshops for tailoring, knitting, carpentary, and art. These workshops help prepare them for jobs after they have finished their education. I thought this was a phenomenal idea.
Also, the students spend a day once a month fasting for their sponsors!! And they always pray for their sponsors during worship time together. Some sponsors share personal testimonies with their child, and the children are so excited to share about them with the whole group. They are also eager to share prayer needs their sponsors tell them about. How great is that?
I think the students are so aware that it is a privelege to be there. They don't live at the school, so they are still very aware of the environment they are coming from. They are also receiving so much help and nurture from the school. So I am now a firm advocate of Compassion International!
Today in class we opened up our worship/intercession time for students to share their testimonies, or a testimony of something God is doing in their life, and every single person shared something! In English! A couple people shared about God recently healing them or their family members, how they became Christians, stories about their background, a meaningful verse, and so on. It was so encouraging. During one of the testimonies God allowed me to stumble upon this verse: "And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death" Revelations 12:11. This verse is in reference to Satan and his angels being thrown out of heaven onto the earth. It reminded us that there is so much power in our testimonies! That when we verbalize, and proclaim, what God has done in our lives, the darkness shudders and is cast out! When God touches our life, we can then share it and touch 20 lives in turn. Sharing our testimonies is a way for us to share God's testimony, to come back to what He has done: covered our lives with the blood of the Lamb. And it is a way to conquer the darkness.
I especially liked a story that Becka shared:
Before coming to Arusha Becka and her husband, Chris, spent time doing ministry in Brundi. One day they were walking through town and a little boy came up to her and grabbed her hand. He had wounds on his head, and his clothes were so dirty she couldn't even recongize what color they were. He asked her for money, which is extremely common for street children to do. Most people assume that white people are loaded, and the children are so aggressive in asking for money, that we have learned to ignore and not even acknowledge them. But Becka looked down at him and asked him what his name was. His attitude immediately changed. He saw that she was interested in him. He looked straight at her and asked, "Am I good?" He wanted to know if he was a good person. He wanted affirmation in his being. He wanted to know if he was ok. His wounds were exposed, dirt was covering his body so that his identity was barely visible, and he was small and alone. Becka got down and told him yes, he was good, and gave him a hug.
He proceded to follow her through town, and when she got to the market she bought him bread. He sat down right where he was and ate it.
Isn't this what God does with us? We ask for things that provide for our immediate or temporary needs, but God is only interested in who we are: our identity in His love for us. He shows us that he cares about us. He sees past our situation and reaches to the core issue. We come before him covered in the dust of our sin and shame. Our wounds of dissapointment, discouragement, brokeness, and any number of things, are exposed to Him. And we just want to know, "Am I good? Am I worthy? Am I ok? Do you still love me?" And God wraps His arms around us, draws us near, and says "YES! You are worthy, you are good, you are ok, because I have redeemed you with my blood." Isn't this the heart of our Father? And then he provides for us, takes care of our needs, but his bread is the bread of life.
It's so great teaching with someone that I can learn so much from! It is also such a blessing that Becka could have that experience and glean spiritual truths from it. Bravo Becka.
And in conclusion, I just finished my first Max Lucado book and I am wondering why this was my first Lucado book. It was amazing! Here are some truths I wanted to record and pass onto you:
Pray all the time. If necessary, use words.
Sacrilege is to feel guilt for sins forgiven.
God forgets the past. Imitate Him.
Greed I've often regretted. Generosity—never.
Never miss a chance to read a child a story.
Pursue forgiveness, not innocence.
Be doubly kind to the people who bring your food or park your car.
In buying a gift for your wife, practicality can be more expensive than extravagance.
Don't ask God to do what you want. Ask God to do what is right.
Nails didn't hold God to a cross. Love did.
You'll give up on yourself before God will.
Know answered prayer when you see it, and don't give up when you don't.
Flattery is fancy dishonesty.
The right heart with the wrong creed is better than the right creed with the wrong heart.
We treat others as we perceive God is treating us.
Sometimes the most godly thing we can do is take a day off.
Faith in the future begets power in the present.
No one is useless to God. No one.
Conflict is inevitable, but combat is optional.
You will never forgive anyone more than God has already forgiven you.
Succeed in what matters.
You'll regret opening your mouth. You'll rarely regret keeping it shut.
To see sin without grace is despair. To see grace without sin is arrogrance. To see them in tandem is conversion.
Faith is the grit in the soul that puts the dare into dreams.
God doesn't keep a clock.
Never underestimate a gesture of affection.
When Jesus went home, he left the front door open.
And to sum it up:
As soon as you can, pay your debts.
As long as you can, give the benefit of the doubt.
As much as you can, give thanks. He's already give us more than we deserve.
Lucado, Max. When God Whispers Your Name. Dallas: Word Publishing, 1994 (43-44).
Cakey-Oh-Cakey
hello everyone!
first off, i got my dates mixed up and i actually have a little less than three weeks left! i'm feeling a bit relieved because two weeks didn't sound like enough time!
special guest night on wednesday went really well. Judy came and talked about HIV/AIDS. She organized her talk by defining HIV/AIDS and it's origin, discussing causes/preventions, explaining symptoms, ways to care for AIDS patients while taking precautions for your own health, and our attitudes/mindsets towards people infected with the disease. She was very open in her talk and gave people the chance to ask questions. At the end she urged the class that now that they have this information they will be held accountable to taking precautions in their lives and educating the people around them. I was very pleased with how it went. it was funny how awkward parts of the lecture were, and we were grown people!
on friday we had our second test and workshops. the scores on the test were a wider range than the first and were a better reflection of where people are in their learning. the workshops were amazing! my group baked a cake and then our whole class ate it in the evening. it was everyone's first time baking a cake, and i had adult women with families in my group! so that was a blessing. when we ate it together they sang "the cake song" which is a Swahili song about a cake! it was priceless! it basically goes, "Cakey-Oh-Cakey" with lots of dancing and motioning to the cake. Claude's group made their classroom into a business import/export office. one side called in orders and the other received orders and mailed them off. and the third group did preaching and got really relevant vocab and Bible verses.
On Sunday i went to a church that two of my students go to. the UK DTS team preached and lead the service. it was a lot of fun watching the team instead of being involved with it. it gave me a chance to experience what it is like to be ministered to by a visiting outreach team. it was great! it really felt like something special and out of the ordinary. it encouraged me in doing outreaches, that they do bless the people on the receiving end (at least it blessed me!).
on the subject of cakes, all the kids on the base ask me "when is your happy birthday?" they never separate happy from birthday.
three of my friends just got back from climbing Mount Kilimanjaro! they said it rained a lot but was amazing. it took them 7 days to climb up and 2 days to hike down.
other news, i have a cold. so please pray that it will go away quickly. it's already improved since yesterday but it's still in me. not fun. also pray for me as i get everything organized for Becka since i'm leaving a week earlier than her. pray that i will get all the grades situated and loose ends in order.
i hope you are all doing very well! God bless,
Christina
first off, i got my dates mixed up and i actually have a little less than three weeks left! i'm feeling a bit relieved because two weeks didn't sound like enough time!
special guest night on wednesday went really well. Judy came and talked about HIV/AIDS. She organized her talk by defining HIV/AIDS and it's origin, discussing causes/preventions, explaining symptoms, ways to care for AIDS patients while taking precautions for your own health, and our attitudes/mindsets towards people infected with the disease. She was very open in her talk and gave people the chance to ask questions. At the end she urged the class that now that they have this information they will be held accountable to taking precautions in their lives and educating the people around them. I was very pleased with how it went. it was funny how awkward parts of the lecture were, and we were grown people!
on friday we had our second test and workshops. the scores on the test were a wider range than the first and were a better reflection of where people are in their learning. the workshops were amazing! my group baked a cake and then our whole class ate it in the evening. it was everyone's first time baking a cake, and i had adult women with families in my group! so that was a blessing. when we ate it together they sang "the cake song" which is a Swahili song about a cake! it was priceless! it basically goes, "Cakey-Oh-Cakey" with lots of dancing and motioning to the cake. Claude's group made their classroom into a business import/export office. one side called in orders and the other received orders and mailed them off. and the third group did preaching and got really relevant vocab and Bible verses.
On Sunday i went to a church that two of my students go to. the UK DTS team preached and lead the service. it was a lot of fun watching the team instead of being involved with it. it gave me a chance to experience what it is like to be ministered to by a visiting outreach team. it was great! it really felt like something special and out of the ordinary. it encouraged me in doing outreaches, that they do bless the people on the receiving end (at least it blessed me!).
on the subject of cakes, all the kids on the base ask me "when is your happy birthday?" they never separate happy from birthday.
three of my friends just got back from climbing Mount Kilimanjaro! they said it rained a lot but was amazing. it took them 7 days to climb up and 2 days to hike down.
other news, i have a cold. so please pray that it will go away quickly. it's already improved since yesterday but it's still in me. not fun. also pray for me as i get everything organized for Becka since i'm leaving a week earlier than her. pray that i will get all the grades situated and loose ends in order.
i hope you are all doing very well! God bless,
Christina
Monday, 4 June 2007
I am going to miss Africa!
hello friends, family, prayer warriors,
i can't believe my time here is almost over! i only have three weeks left! i'm excited to come home to see all of you, especially my family, and to have good food again, consistently hot showers, a car, easy trips to the supermarket, trips to target where i can get almost everything in one stop, conversations in English without language confusion, going outside without being called "Mzungu" twenty million times, and being able to do things by myself without comprimising my safety!
But i am going to miss so deeply the friendships i have made here, the fellowship, the opportunities to disciple and preach, the colors of Africa, the wide open spaces of land, the singing and dancing, the everyday growth and learning, the children, the fields and trees and mountains, the sense of adventure everytime I go off base, the ways i have been discipled by people on base, the hospitality, the slower pace, and the willingness to care for one another and take time for one another.
I pray that I will successfully bring home some of the cultural things i have learned here. that i will be able to integrate healthier approaches to life that i've learned from Africa: that i don't have to frantically accomplish a list of ten million things in one day. that i can invite people into my home and serve them even when i am struggling to provide for myself, and i will be blessed by the interaction. that i can exercise patience and grace with people (because the situation probably doesn't even compare to the patience i've had to exercise in Africa!!!). that i can appreciate speaking the same language as people, and i can take advantage of sharing Christ's love when the language isn't preventing communication. that i can appreciate the things i do have. i can appreciate the economy i live in at home, and instead of feeling guilty or ashamed or greedy, i can feel thankful and humbled by God's provision in my life. that i can allow every aspect of my life to proclaim Jesus and not have to water it down to fit in socially or with my culture, because in Africa i have had the freedom to make Christ my whole identity.
i am already praying about reintegrating into life at home, because i know coming back is always challenging. if God puts that on your heart, please pray for me as well.
Please also pray for tonight! i am having Judy, the administrative director's wife, teach on HIV/AIDS/STDS during our special guest night. I am so excited for this. this has been a big issue on my heart in coming to Tanzania, so i am glad that i can address it with my class. it is very hard for people to talk openly about private things, such as sexual activity, here in Africa, so pray that people wouldn't feel embarassed to ask questions or really listen to the talk.
also on Friday we have our second test, as well as workshops on preaching, cooking, and business/selling. we have three different speakers coming to teach vocabulary, give verses, and pratical application to help equip them for a skill in English. i'm really excited for the cooking workshop because we are going to bake a cake, and homemade cakes in Africa are really the best i've ever had (this is one food area i will actually miss!). Baba Zulu will be teaching on preaching, and he is amazing. And Claude will be leading the business workshop, which is such a great opportunity for one of my student's to use his gifts and step up to a challenge. he's also been filling in for becka these past two days!
i started making the website for ESL missionary teachers, so continue to pray for that. pray that i will organize it clearly and have creative inspiration in the materials i include!
i hope you are all doing very well, that God is blessing you today, and that you are feeling encouraged in His presence. Everyone that sees my mom and dad in San Diego give them a hug for me, and make a point of saying hi to parker (:,
much love from Africa,
Christina
Thursday, 24 May 2007
Hopeful and Encouraged
May 23
Hello prayer team and friends!
This week has been amazingly encouraging. I was starting to feel a little worn out, a little irritable with the lack of comforts from home, a little discouraged in my teaching, and yes, a little frustrated wtih cultural differences. Then after i wrote the last email i started feeling built up and encouraged, so i know that i am receiving strength and encouragement from YOUR prayers! thank you!
Becka and I sat down and planned out the rest of the English course, and I am feeling very hopeful about it. I think by the end of the course the students will have been challenged, discipled, and equipped. I know that not all of them will reach an easy conversational level of speaking, but i also know that God will have fulfilled a purpose in each one of their lives. I think living on the base at YWAM will have given them really valuable fellowship and spiritual disciplines, and I think they all will have been exposed to basic English. Their experience at YWAM is so holistic, we have provided so many different ways of learning and have tended to their minds and hearts, so i think everyone will have profited from that. Their final is going to include a ten minute presentation on a researched subject, so i think walking them through this will take them steps ahead in their learning.
God also put it on my heart to make a website with teaching materials, tips, and sermons for ESL teachers! How fun does that sound? Becka told me i must be a natural teacher if that sounds fun to me! So pray that God will bring that vision to fulfillment and give me discernment on when to start on it. Also, the outreach pastor for the YWAM LA team came to check up on the DTS group that has been staying on our base, and he invited me to come teach a seminar on teaching English overseas in LA! their base is about 20 minutes from Fuller, so i'm excited to be involved with them. So please keep that in your prayers as well.
I decided not to go to Loliondo (Maasai land) this weekend because i didn't have a peace about it. So no lion hunts for me!
During my time here I have felt really excited about starting Fuller in the Fall, so if you feel so inclined please pray about this for me! The main areas I need prayer in are:
1. Financial Aid and housing
2. For God to open an obvious door for me to work in a church in Pasadena
I hope you are all well and growing in your understanding of God's love towards you daily!
God bless,
Christina
Mzungu Church, Order, Desires, and Unity
May 20
hello prayer team and friends,
Things are going well here in Arusha. Today we took our class to a Mzungu church (a Western style church: in English, lots of white people, Western songs). I met a family from Santa Barbara which was fun! They have a son at Westmont and they are on the mission field with a family from my church, Calvary Chapel Santa Barbara. It's really great to see well-adjusted missionary families. Their kids seemed really happy, really comfortable with my African students, and really open with one another. Their dad assured me they have their share of rebelliousness, but I was still encouraged to observe their dynamic.
After church a group of us went to the Maasai Market, which is a shopping area in town where the Maasai sell things they make. I was commissioned by my friend to help him buy jewlery for his girlfriend at home. I think we were successful (:
Class was challenging this week. On thursday morning my class gave way to massive confusion: everyone had forgotten the lesson i had taught the day before and were confusing one another with false instructions that they themselves didn't understand. So after calling a break to prevent my breaking down in tears of frustration, we came together and i got to disciple them on "order." I had been reading through 1 Corinthians and God applied it to my class for me. So I shared with them about using our gifts, and how God has given us each strengths in order to edify the body. But we have to use our gifts in an orderly way so that there isn't confusion: "For God is not a God of confusion but of peace." (Praise God for that!) So i encouraged them that they are each so important to the class, each is a hand or a foot or the eyes, but we need to follow order in our class so that we can build each other up. I told them that God gave me and Mama Joshua (my translator and helper) authority of the class so that we could create structure for them to learn. So they need to trust us and ask us questions, instead of confusing one another. I was encouraged by God discipling us, and i think we have been much more unified since then.
On Friday we had worship/intercession as a class. Claude, my student from New Caledonia who is basically fluent in english, taught on "desires." He had us each write down our desires for after ELS on a piece of paper and then put it in a bowl at the foot of a big wood cross he brought into the classroom. In this way, we were giving our desires back to God and trusting him to fulfill them. It was very powerful and very moving. Then God spoke through Becka, my fellow ELS teacher. She told us that God had put a burden on her heart for someone in our group who had given up on their dreams. Then she shared with us how she had walked away from the Lord for seven years, and in the process had completely given up on her dreams. When she came back, God told her that He was going to give those years back to her, that those weren't lost years. And the blessings that she had missed during that time, He would give to her! How amazing is that? God doesn't withhold one good thing from those who love Him. This concept is something I have been struggling with recently: feeling like i have all this wasted time in the past years of struggling with this sin and that sin, time that only amounted to being ineffective and destructive. But God desires good things for us. So much so, that the years we haven't been obedient to Him, He will still give in full to us! That is just beyond my comprehension.
So the week ended well. We finished another unit, and we are right on track with where we should be. Praise the Lord.
Continue to be in prayer for unity on our base. That has been the main theme God has given us in our prayer time. I have noticed disunity especially between some of the Westerners and the Africans. Our cultures are so different, and the Westerners are the ones who are out of their comfort zone, so some Westerners start thinking their way of doing things is better. Instead of just observing cultural differences, they start judging the cultures and the people within them. They complain, get frustrated with differences, and put on negative attitudes. This is so frustrating to me because this is why we came to Africa! To experience a new culture! We can learn so much from their way of doing things, even if we don't learn, or agree with, every aspect of it. This was heavy on my heart today, so this morning God showed me Phillipians chapter 2. Paul is discipling the church on not grumbling and having humility. I think Satan can use cultural differences as an obstacle, a barrier in our really connecting and gleaning things from one another. If any of you are called to travel or called to doing mission work, I would encourage you to start praying about these issues ahead of time. That God would give you a heart for other cultures, that He would open your mind and understanding to take in things outside of your realm of comfort. Pray for this even at HOME! We operate among so many different cultures in America. Even between families we have different cultures. People approach things differently, one family may communicate differently, some people live fast paced lives some are slower, and so on. Pray that differences would not hinder you in loving one another, communicating with one another, or spiritually building each other up. Cast out all judgement! Stop trying to make people like you, and stop only befriending people who have your beliefs and your customs! Consider others better than yourselves, and make yourself a servant to everyone. there's your sermon for the day (:
So, there is the update for now (: Continue to pray for PATIENCE in everything, as this a daily need. Pray that I would be encouraged, as it is easy to become discouraged as a teacher. Pray that I would have a lot of grace with myself, as i am far from perfect in what i am doing and need to continually forgive myself for short-comings. Pray that everything would be done on God's strength alone, and that I could be completely removed from the equation.
Blessings to you all at home! I am so encouraged by your love and support! Your prayers give me so much strength and such a firm backing in my ministry here.
In Him,
Christina
Preaching: John 17
May 13, 2007
I am exhausted but it has been a day full of learning, growth, and yes, more adventures.
After breakfast a group of us set out to go to a church in a nearby town. Nearby as in two hours there and one hour back. It has been raining like crazy the last couple days so all the roads were muddy with puddles. So we inched along the dirt roads to the daala daala stop. We decided that it's tradition for me to slip in the mud everytime we go out preaching becasue it's happened twice now. Fortunately not too much damage was done (: The village was three daala daalas away. Once we got there we had to hike through banana and coffee plantations to get to the church! It was absolutely beautiful. The rain made it look like a rain forest: green everywhere and huge banana trees. First we drank hot milk at a member of the church's, then we went to church to preach! There were about 100 people there and I was nervous! It was in a new church building, so the ground was still grass and the structure was cement without window panes or doors. I loved going to church inside but on grass! Their old church building was just across the way, and was about a third the size of the new one. I found out after that this was their first service in the new buidling! We started with worship then introduced ourselves, then I was introduced to preach!
Earlier this week I decided to preach on John Chapter 17. So today, I preached on having a personal relationship with God, and showed how Jesus modeled this in his prayer to the Father in the garden of Gathsemene. I told them that God doesn't call us to be good Christians, he doesn't call us to follow all of his laws, or to do good works. He calls us to KNOW HIM. And growth, obedience, and good works come out of our understanding of God's heart towards us.
Jesus didn't start his ministry until he was 33. Yet, when he was baptized by John the Baptist the Holy Spirit descended upon him and God said, "You are my son in whom I am well pleased." God was pleased with his son before he started his public ministry and before he had fulfilled his purpose on earth. Nothing is recorded in the Bible about Jesus having healed anyone, having raised anyone from the dead, or having performed any miracles before this point; but God was pleased with Him. This is because Jesus was God's son, and he had a father's heart towards him. God has the same heart towards you. He is pleased with you because you are made in His image. He loves you whatever your past, whatever your present, and whatever your future holds. His desire is to know you. And through knowing Him and understanding His love towards you, the miracles, the healing, and the growth is made evident.
I told them about how I was called to teach the Bible when i was eleven. I hadn't done anything of significance before this point! I was a kid! I had never preached, i had never lead a worship service, i was just busy growing up. But God told me, "You are my daughter, with whom i am well pleased, teach my Word." He was pleased with me as a child because I was his daughter. I didn't then, nor do i now, need to do anything to gain his love. He only desires for us to know Him more deeply, and through this he uses us, and in using us he reveals himself to us in even more intimate ways!
In verse 26 Jesus says, "I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them."
Jesus' purpose in coming to earth and dying for our sins was to make His father's love known to us. That is the whole point: knowing God and his love towards us.
And then for some reason God put it on my heart to talk about the road to Emmaus (which afterwards i realized i called the wrong name....oops). I told them that that is one of my favorite stories in the Bible because it was after Jesus' resurrection when he was walking with two men on their way to Emmaus who didn't recognize him as Jesus Christ. But Jesus walked with them the whole way. He listened to their conversation, he asked them questions, he listened to their thoughts on Jesus. The whole time he didn't say, "hello! I'm Jesus!" Instead he allowed them to see him for who he was in their timing. He was patient with them. He discipled them: "And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself" (Luke 24:27). This is how God calls us to minister and reach people. Not to say, "Hello! Why don't you see Jesus? Why don't you recognize him for who he is?" But to walk patiently with them, to listen to their thoughts, and to let Jesus reveal himself to them in His timing.
When we understand God's love towards us, it can be made known to the people around us. They will be able to see it. It will give them the chance to walk with Jesus for a while, and start to see the Father's heart towards them.
Then God put it on my heart to say, "Did you know that God loves the little children sooo much?" There was a little girl, maybe five years old, who was smiling at me throughout the whole service. She was absolutely precious. She had a conga tied around her head like a cape because it was raining outside. Then God put the same words on my heart but for the widows and the poor. That God has such a heart for people in need, because He wants to fill that need. He knows that He can reach them.
Then I prayed.
This was the hardest sermon I've done yet (though i haven't done many!). First, it was a bigger group and the power wasn't working so the sound didn't carry well. Second, they wanted me to stand behind tables that were like 15 feet away from the benches of people! Way too far! So i walked out from behind them to get closer, and they followed me with one of the tables! They even carried over the flowers and everything they had on them. That really threw me off. I felt intimidated and less personal behind this table! Third, my translator knew very little English. He was 22 but looked about 15, spoke very quietly, and didn't know a lot of basic words. Sometimes it's hard for me to get across what i'm saying without using more specific words (i'm an english major so words are what i do best!), so having to pick less specific words made me feel like i was losing the meaning. i would say a sentence, then have to re-explain it to my translator, and by the time he finished saying it in Swahili i would have completely forgotten my point let alone what i was saying! so this was challenging. and fourth, the church was so far away and African services are soooooo long, that i was starting to check out after i was done preaching.
so i think growth and learning had to have come out of this because i was challenged. and i think God did give me a message, and i maybe it will be a word for some of you if not for the church i spoke at today. i think God is equipping me with messages that i can continue to share when i get home. maybe i'll have a "messages i got in Africa" bible study when i get back (:
after church we ate lunch at the pastor's house and that was lovely. a new DTS team just arrived this weekend from the UK. so it was refreshing to have people to talk to who not only speak english, but have the same humor (:
i hope all of your weekends were blessed. May you come to know God's heart more and more everyday, and grow in all understanding of Him,
with love,
Christina
I am exhausted but it has been a day full of learning, growth, and yes, more adventures.
After breakfast a group of us set out to go to a church in a nearby town. Nearby as in two hours there and one hour back. It has been raining like crazy the last couple days so all the roads were muddy with puddles. So we inched along the dirt roads to the daala daala stop. We decided that it's tradition for me to slip in the mud everytime we go out preaching becasue it's happened twice now. Fortunately not too much damage was done (: The village was three daala daalas away. Once we got there we had to hike through banana and coffee plantations to get to the church! It was absolutely beautiful. The rain made it look like a rain forest: green everywhere and huge banana trees. First we drank hot milk at a member of the church's, then we went to church to preach! There were about 100 people there and I was nervous! It was in a new church building, so the ground was still grass and the structure was cement without window panes or doors. I loved going to church inside but on grass! Their old church building was just across the way, and was about a third the size of the new one. I found out after that this was their first service in the new buidling! We started with worship then introduced ourselves, then I was introduced to preach!
Earlier this week I decided to preach on John Chapter 17. So today, I preached on having a personal relationship with God, and showed how Jesus modeled this in his prayer to the Father in the garden of Gathsemene. I told them that God doesn't call us to be good Christians, he doesn't call us to follow all of his laws, or to do good works. He calls us to KNOW HIM. And growth, obedience, and good works come out of our understanding of God's heart towards us.
Jesus didn't start his ministry until he was 33. Yet, when he was baptized by John the Baptist the Holy Spirit descended upon him and God said, "You are my son in whom I am well pleased." God was pleased with his son before he started his public ministry and before he had fulfilled his purpose on earth. Nothing is recorded in the Bible about Jesus having healed anyone, having raised anyone from the dead, or having performed any miracles before this point; but God was pleased with Him. This is because Jesus was God's son, and he had a father's heart towards him. God has the same heart towards you. He is pleased with you because you are made in His image. He loves you whatever your past, whatever your present, and whatever your future holds. His desire is to know you. And through knowing Him and understanding His love towards you, the miracles, the healing, and the growth is made evident.
I told them about how I was called to teach the Bible when i was eleven. I hadn't done anything of significance before this point! I was a kid! I had never preached, i had never lead a worship service, i was just busy growing up. But God told me, "You are my daughter, with whom i am well pleased, teach my Word." He was pleased with me as a child because I was his daughter. I didn't then, nor do i now, need to do anything to gain his love. He only desires for us to know Him more deeply, and through this he uses us, and in using us he reveals himself to us in even more intimate ways!
In verse 26 Jesus says, "I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them."
Jesus' purpose in coming to earth and dying for our sins was to make His father's love known to us. That is the whole point: knowing God and his love towards us.
And then for some reason God put it on my heart to talk about the road to Emmaus (which afterwards i realized i called the wrong name....oops). I told them that that is one of my favorite stories in the Bible because it was after Jesus' resurrection when he was walking with two men on their way to Emmaus who didn't recognize him as Jesus Christ. But Jesus walked with them the whole way. He listened to their conversation, he asked them questions, he listened to their thoughts on Jesus. The whole time he didn't say, "hello! I'm Jesus!" Instead he allowed them to see him for who he was in their timing. He was patient with them. He discipled them: "And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself" (Luke 24:27). This is how God calls us to minister and reach people. Not to say, "Hello! Why don't you see Jesus? Why don't you recognize him for who he is?" But to walk patiently with them, to listen to their thoughts, and to let Jesus reveal himself to them in His timing.
When we understand God's love towards us, it can be made known to the people around us. They will be able to see it. It will give them the chance to walk with Jesus for a while, and start to see the Father's heart towards them.
Then God put it on my heart to say, "Did you know that God loves the little children sooo much?" There was a little girl, maybe five years old, who was smiling at me throughout the whole service. She was absolutely precious. She had a conga tied around her head like a cape because it was raining outside. Then God put the same words on my heart but for the widows and the poor. That God has such a heart for people in need, because He wants to fill that need. He knows that He can reach them.
Then I prayed.
This was the hardest sermon I've done yet (though i haven't done many!). First, it was a bigger group and the power wasn't working so the sound didn't carry well. Second, they wanted me to stand behind tables that were like 15 feet away from the benches of people! Way too far! So i walked out from behind them to get closer, and they followed me with one of the tables! They even carried over the flowers and everything they had on them. That really threw me off. I felt intimidated and less personal behind this table! Third, my translator knew very little English. He was 22 but looked about 15, spoke very quietly, and didn't know a lot of basic words. Sometimes it's hard for me to get across what i'm saying without using more specific words (i'm an english major so words are what i do best!), so having to pick less specific words made me feel like i was losing the meaning. i would say a sentence, then have to re-explain it to my translator, and by the time he finished saying it in Swahili i would have completely forgotten my point let alone what i was saying! so this was challenging. and fourth, the church was so far away and African services are soooooo long, that i was starting to check out after i was done preaching.
so i think growth and learning had to have come out of this because i was challenged. and i think God did give me a message, and i maybe it will be a word for some of you if not for the church i spoke at today. i think God is equipping me with messages that i can continue to share when i get home. maybe i'll have a "messages i got in Africa" bible study when i get back (:
after church we ate lunch at the pastor's house and that was lovely. a new DTS team just arrived this weekend from the UK. so it was refreshing to have people to talk to who not only speak english, but have the same humor (:
i hope all of your weekends were blessed. May you come to know God's heart more and more everyday, and grow in all understanding of Him,
with love,
Christina
Enkikaret and hiking through the bush
May 12
Hello prayer team and friends,
Today was full of adventure. The whole base went to Enkikaret, the Maasai village I visited my first week here where YWAM has a preschool. We spent the morning praying over the land, because our base wants to expand their buildings and vision for this area. We broke up into six groups and prayed in different areas. Then we came back together and shared the things that God had shown us. It was amazing to see how God had shown all our groups multiple things! And a lot of the things were confirmed by God showing the same thing to different groups. Enkikaret means thorny dessert. It is very dry there with lots of thorns and bush. But God showed a couple of the groups that when you look closer you can see some flowers in the bushes. They felt like God was speaking to them about Him bringing beauty to this area through His presence being made known.
In the afternoon we planted 57 trees! A couple years ago I found out about a Christian group called "Forever Gardens." They plant trees and gardens in inner city areas and villages in Africa that need food and nutrients. I really wanted to go but it wasn't part of God's plan for me at that time; so i was really excited to take part in this same vision during my time here in Tanzania.
Then we were invited to go to a mountain that Baba Choi had a vision about using for YWAM, or go home. I figured "when else am i going to go see a mountain in Tanzania...but when I'm here in Tanzania!" so i went with that group. I pictured driving to the top of a mountain for some reason, and walking around and praying for it. Instead, we hiked through the bush for an hour and up a mountain, and then all gathered on a big rock overlooking the whole bush area. Baba Choi has a vision to build a prayer house/retreat place for people to come away to the wilderness and be refreshed. It is the perfect place for it. It is so remote and peaceful. He sited some scripture where God called people away to the wilderness to pray, and he wants to follow this same model in providing a place for YWAMers and visiters to get away. I hope God calls me back to Tanzania to take part in using this facility!
Hiking through the bush is quite an experience. There are thorny bushes everywhere that grab you when you walk by, and then hook into your clothing or skin! It's a maze of low bushes and trees, and lots of dusty dirt that covers your feet, hair, and clothes. But it is amazing. It is a place like no where else I've been, and in every direction you look there is free, open land. We had a view of Mount Muru on one side and Mount Kilimanjaro on the other (it was covered by clouds, but that gives you an idea of what the view from the retreat center will look like).
So tomorrow I preach in a church that is about an hour away. I am so tired from our journey today, so pray that God will speak through me and do all the work, and that i can do as my mom says, "Go and have fun and let God do the ministry."
God bless you all,
Christina
Pizza Dinner, Cultural Lessons, and a Short Story
May 9, 2007
Dear Prayer team,
"Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm the, with the belt of truth buckled round your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given to me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel. " Ephesians 6:10-20a
On Monday night I ate dinner at Mama and Baba Vikki's with a couple from California. They are an amazing family: their kids have gentle spirits and are very well behaved. Their youngest is named Baraka, which means Blessing in Swahili. Mama Vikki made us pizza! She said she only makes it once a year, but she knows how much American's like it so she wanted to treat us to it! She doesn't have an oven so she made it on the stove! And it was amazing. After dinner we talked to Baba Vikki about marriage customs, and the Eastern African countries uniting to form one country (this is the topic for next week's debate in class, one I think is very interesting).
Yesterday we started a section on buying things, using words like expensive, cheap, cost, and so on. I told the class that our room was now a market, and appointed four people to sell things. We had a person selling oranges, one selling avocados, one selling shoes, and one selling cows. Then the rest of the class went through the market and bargained prices in English. One person got a cow for $5! Tonight I have a special guest lined up who is visiting from the Kilimanjaro base. She is South African and teaches DTS. I'm very excited for this, as she's a very good teacher. I am also praying about having a special guest talk about HIV/AIDS. Please pray for this with me; I think it would a meaningful use of our time together. I am considering two different speakers, so pray that God would appoint the best one for this setting.
On Friday I am planning on showing "The Last Holiday" with Queen Latifah! I thought of Anna's Bible study when I picked it, and how much fun you all had watching it! I'd like to show my class a movie with an African American actress: I think it would be interesting for them to see how these cultures have come together in the states.
Yesterday's debate was "Is tea or coffee better?" I picked an easy one because they didn't have a chance to prepare for it ahead of time. Afterwards I gave a lesson on tea and coffee culture, and eating customs, in Western countries. My students had never heard of a drive through, so they thought that sounded very unusual. In Africa eating out is a sign of having money, so it wouldn't make sense to pay for food that you don't sit down and eat. I told them that my family eats out maybe twice a week, and someone said I must have a lot of money. Most people in Africa live off one to five dollars a day, so being able to eat in a restaurant twice a week sounds pretty luxurious. Since we were on the coffee subject I gave them the history of Starbucks, and no one had heard of it before. I found that a bit refreshing (: Also in Africa we don't have dessert with meals. You can buy sweets in town but it's not customary to serve them after dinner. Baba George says they make up for it with all the sugar in their tea! In order to explain table manners, I told them that Mother's in America are always telling their kids to "take your elbows off the dinner table," "don't slurp your drink, sip it," and "Cut your food into smaller pieces so you don't gulp it!" They thought that was pretty funny. I asked them if their mom's said that to them and they said yes! Some things are universal! But they don't get told to eat their vegetables because they don't have courses with their meals; it's usually all combined in a dish. And you wouldn't have to tell a Maasai to drink their milk because they love it so much!!
Today the concept of pets came up in our book. So I gave them a cultural lesson on pets! This was pretty halarious, as animals are purely food and livelihood in Africa. They couldn't believe that I let my dog sleep on my bed! I tod them that my dog at home is my mom's "fourth child" and they all started laughing. I said that people can pay $500-1,000 for a dog, and then they take them home and feed them, wash them, brush them, and give them cookies. In East Africa it's hard enough to feed yourself let alone a dog! I also told them that some people even put clothes on their dogs, and this was just over the top! One of my student's asked if dog's have savings accounts! Another asked if once someone became a Christian if they tried to change this about our culture. I'm not sure what he meant by this, but i'm pretty sure he thought there was something wrong with our Western behavior. Dogs here are like dogs in Mexico, so you can imagine how strange this concept would be to my students. The main shocker though was that dogs sleep on people's beds sometimes.
So, we are moving along nicely. The book is starting to get more interesting and my student's are starting to get more confident. I arranged for English speakers on the base to be paired with one of my student's so they can have a conversation together once a week. I think this will be really effective because it will be an informal setting and give them a break from just hearing my voice all the time!
It's been raining on and off this week so we haven't had power, internet, or water all the time. Right now we have all three though so I'm very happy! It's beautiful when it rains because all the plants look greener and the air is still hot.
And now for a short story:
My friend Becka, who is the other teacher for ELS, was living in Australia with YWAM with her husband Chris. Because of where the base was located, a car was very neccessary. She felt like God told her not to ask for a car but to let Him take care of this need. She was also aware that as a missionary they couldn't afford anything but gas to maintain a car. So she and her husband prayed and very shortly after someone gave them a car! The insurance and everything was covered, all they had to do was pay for gas. This was also during their first year of marriage, and they had gone straight into full time ministry on the mission field. She felt like they needed a vacation to spend time together, and once again prayed about it. Then, someone gave them a key their house that was right on the beach, saying they could use it for some time because they wouldn't be there. Don't you love it when God meets our needs in such tangible ways?
love to you all and God bless,
Christina
Dear Prayer team,
"Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm the, with the belt of truth buckled round your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given to me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel. " Ephesians 6:10-20a
On Monday night I ate dinner at Mama and Baba Vikki's with a couple from California. They are an amazing family: their kids have gentle spirits and are very well behaved. Their youngest is named Baraka, which means Blessing in Swahili. Mama Vikki made us pizza! She said she only makes it once a year, but she knows how much American's like it so she wanted to treat us to it! She doesn't have an oven so she made it on the stove! And it was amazing. After dinner we talked to Baba Vikki about marriage customs, and the Eastern African countries uniting to form one country (this is the topic for next week's debate in class, one I think is very interesting).
Yesterday we started a section on buying things, using words like expensive, cheap, cost, and so on. I told the class that our room was now a market, and appointed four people to sell things. We had a person selling oranges, one selling avocados, one selling shoes, and one selling cows. Then the rest of the class went through the market and bargained prices in English. One person got a cow for $5! Tonight I have a special guest lined up who is visiting from the Kilimanjaro base. She is South African and teaches DTS. I'm very excited for this, as she's a very good teacher. I am also praying about having a special guest talk about HIV/AIDS. Please pray for this with me; I think it would a meaningful use of our time together. I am considering two different speakers, so pray that God would appoint the best one for this setting.
On Friday I am planning on showing "The Last Holiday" with Queen Latifah! I thought of Anna's Bible study when I picked it, and how much fun you all had watching it! I'd like to show my class a movie with an African American actress: I think it would be interesting for them to see how these cultures have come together in the states.
Yesterday's debate was "Is tea or coffee better?" I picked an easy one because they didn't have a chance to prepare for it ahead of time. Afterwards I gave a lesson on tea and coffee culture, and eating customs, in Western countries. My students had never heard of a drive through, so they thought that sounded very unusual. In Africa eating out is a sign of having money, so it wouldn't make sense to pay for food that you don't sit down and eat. I told them that my family eats out maybe twice a week, and someone said I must have a lot of money. Most people in Africa live off one to five dollars a day, so being able to eat in a restaurant twice a week sounds pretty luxurious. Since we were on the coffee subject I gave them the history of Starbucks, and no one had heard of it before. I found that a bit refreshing (: Also in Africa we don't have dessert with meals. You can buy sweets in town but it's not customary to serve them after dinner. Baba George says they make up for it with all the sugar in their tea! In order to explain table manners, I told them that Mother's in America are always telling their kids to "take your elbows off the dinner table," "don't slurp your drink, sip it," and "Cut your food into smaller pieces so you don't gulp it!" They thought that was pretty funny. I asked them if their mom's said that to them and they said yes! Some things are universal! But they don't get told to eat their vegetables because they don't have courses with their meals; it's usually all combined in a dish. And you wouldn't have to tell a Maasai to drink their milk because they love it so much!!
Today the concept of pets came up in our book. So I gave them a cultural lesson on pets! This was pretty halarious, as animals are purely food and livelihood in Africa. They couldn't believe that I let my dog sleep on my bed! I tod them that my dog at home is my mom's "fourth child" and they all started laughing. I said that people can pay $500-1,000 for a dog, and then they take them home and feed them, wash them, brush them, and give them cookies. In East Africa it's hard enough to feed yourself let alone a dog! I also told them that some people even put clothes on their dogs, and this was just over the top! One of my student's asked if dog's have savings accounts! Another asked if once someone became a Christian if they tried to change this about our culture. I'm not sure what he meant by this, but i'm pretty sure he thought there was something wrong with our Western behavior. Dogs here are like dogs in Mexico, so you can imagine how strange this concept would be to my students. The main shocker though was that dogs sleep on people's beds sometimes.
So, we are moving along nicely. The book is starting to get more interesting and my student's are starting to get more confident. I arranged for English speakers on the base to be paired with one of my student's so they can have a conversation together once a week. I think this will be really effective because it will be an informal setting and give them a break from just hearing my voice all the time!
It's been raining on and off this week so we haven't had power, internet, or water all the time. Right now we have all three though so I'm very happy! It's beautiful when it rains because all the plants look greener and the air is still hot.
And now for a short story:
My friend Becka, who is the other teacher for ELS, was living in Australia with YWAM with her husband Chris. Because of where the base was located, a car was very neccessary. She felt like God told her not to ask for a car but to let Him take care of this need. She was also aware that as a missionary they couldn't afford anything but gas to maintain a car. So she and her husband prayed and very shortly after someone gave them a car! The insurance and everything was covered, all they had to do was pay for gas. This was also during their first year of marriage, and they had gone straight into full time ministry on the mission field. She felt like they needed a vacation to spend time together, and once again prayed about it. Then, someone gave them a key their house that was right on the beach, saying they could use it for some time because they wouldn't be there. Don't you love it when God meets our needs in such tangible ways?
love to you all and God bless,
Christina
Special Guest Night
Hello prayer team!
This sunday I am preaching at another church in Arusha. I need to preach for 30 minutes (with a translator) so pray that God will give me a message!! Pray that I will have time to prepare, and that I will be divinely inspired. During the week I'm so focused on teaching and lesson plans that it's hard to change over to preparing for a sermon. So pray that I will be able to do this! Also, this church is bigger than other ones i've preached at so pray that i won't be nervous!
Last night we had our special guest, Chanel from the Kilimanjaro base, speak. Here's a story she shared:
Chanel worked in Haiti with YWAM some years ago. There is a lot of witchcraft in the form of Voodoo in this country: people wear goat heads on their heads and paint themselves in tar for ceremonies. There was a witchdoctor nearby who's wife got very sick. They called on all of the witchdoctors to try to heal her but no one was successful. As a last resort, they asked YWAM to come see her. Right before YWAM came, the man said don't bother, his wife had already died. A team of three people from YWAM decided to go anyway, and pray over her body. As they were praying for her, the woman was awakened from death. She sat up and was hungry and thirsty. Shortly after the witchdoctor saw the group again and asked them where the fourth man was? He was tall and dressed in white.
The witchdoctor and his wife came to the Lord through this experience.
Blessings to you all,
Christina
This sunday I am preaching at another church in Arusha. I need to preach for 30 minutes (with a translator) so pray that God will give me a message!! Pray that I will have time to prepare, and that I will be divinely inspired. During the week I'm so focused on teaching and lesson plans that it's hard to change over to preparing for a sermon. So pray that I will be able to do this! Also, this church is bigger than other ones i've preached at so pray that i won't be nervous!
Last night we had our special guest, Chanel from the Kilimanjaro base, speak. Here's a story she shared:
Chanel worked in Haiti with YWAM some years ago. There is a lot of witchcraft in the form of Voodoo in this country: people wear goat heads on their heads and paint themselves in tar for ceremonies. There was a witchdoctor nearby who's wife got very sick. They called on all of the witchdoctors to try to heal her but no one was successful. As a last resort, they asked YWAM to come see her. Right before YWAM came, the man said don't bother, his wife had already died. A team of three people from YWAM decided to go anyway, and pray over her body. As they were praying for her, the woman was awakened from death. She sat up and was hungry and thirsty. Shortly after the witchdoctor saw the group again and asked them where the fourth man was? He was tall and dressed in white.
The witchdoctor and his wife came to the Lord through this experience.
Blessings to you all,
Christina
All Nations
May 6
Today i went to a church called All Nations, which was in town but held outside. At the beginning of the service all the little kids went up and did a song, complete with hand motions and dancing. next time i'll bring my camera so i can video it, it was priceless. then we went to lunch where i ordered a chicken burger but received a mystery meat. chicken has never looked or tasted like that before. hmm.
Yesterday i had my Sabbath. i have decided to make Saturday my day of rest: i am not allowed to do anything related to school, and i am only allowed to do what i want to. So i stayed on base all day and ate good bread and cheese, read, made my blog, wrote emails, talked to some people. it was very rejuvenating. People in Africa generally work everyday of the week, because they can't take a day off of attending to their animals and farms! But since YWAM is also a school we get real weekends.
the movie on friday was "The End of the Spear." it is a very powerful movie about Nate Saint and Jim Elliot, the missionaries in Ecuador who got speared to death by the tribe they were trying to reach. then their children and wives go and live with the tribe and win them to Christ. over half of it is in the tribal language though, so i don't know how affective it was in teaching English! but people had good responses to it in the questions i gave them to answer. i asked them "what is one thing you learned from this movie?" and here are some of their answers:
"The God's love. Agape love." Hyun Yi
"All things are able for Jesus." Visiter
"I'm learned is love to people." Johan
"Ministry of missionary is very difficult but God helps." Onesmus
"For God is very good." Franaeli
"The missionaries they gave life for ministries." Shadrack
"I learn that God has a powerful because most of them they got saved." Wilson
"I learned greece (grace) of God and love much." Mark
Thanks for the prayers and God bless,
Christina
Today i went to a church called All Nations, which was in town but held outside. At the beginning of the service all the little kids went up and did a song, complete with hand motions and dancing. next time i'll bring my camera so i can video it, it was priceless. then we went to lunch where i ordered a chicken burger but received a mystery meat. chicken has never looked or tasted like that before. hmm.
Yesterday i had my Sabbath. i have decided to make Saturday my day of rest: i am not allowed to do anything related to school, and i am only allowed to do what i want to. So i stayed on base all day and ate good bread and cheese, read, made my blog, wrote emails, talked to some people. it was very rejuvenating. People in Africa generally work everyday of the week, because they can't take a day off of attending to their animals and farms! But since YWAM is also a school we get real weekends.
the movie on friday was "The End of the Spear." it is a very powerful movie about Nate Saint and Jim Elliot, the missionaries in Ecuador who got speared to death by the tribe they were trying to reach. then their children and wives go and live with the tribe and win them to Christ. over half of it is in the tribal language though, so i don't know how affective it was in teaching English! but people had good responses to it in the questions i gave them to answer. i asked them "what is one thing you learned from this movie?" and here are some of their answers:
"The God's love. Agape love." Hyun Yi
"All things are able for Jesus." Visiter
"I'm learned is love to people." Johan
"Ministry of missionary is very difficult but God helps." Onesmus
"For God is very good." Franaeli
"The missionaries they gave life for ministries." Shadrack
"I learn that God has a powerful because most of them they got saved." Wilson
"I learned greece (grace) of God and love much." Mark
Thanks for the prayers and God bless,
Christina
Saturday, 5 May 2007
"I'd Like To Go To Africa"
Earlier in my trip I read a book entitled "Foreign to Familiar" by Sarah A. Lanier. I read it in two days, so it is a quick read. It is written by a woman who is involved with YWAM and has done extensive studies on how different cultures relate with one another. She classifies them in two different categories: Warm and Cold climate cultures. Southern CA is a warm climate culture, though not as warm as Africa or Latin America! I wanted to recommend it to you at home as a quick and interesting study....because even within CA climate approaches differ. Africa is all inclusive, people are always in groups and with other people, and they are event oriented rather than time oriented. So you may be going somewhere but you always make time for a conversation or greeting someone. I have felt a lot less stress because of this! There was a poem about Africa that i came across in the book and I wanted to share it with you:
I'd Like To Go To Africa
Today
I thought
I would like
To go to Africa.
Yes, I will go to Kenya
And see if time
Has stood still
Where at least
The walk
Is on the ground
And all comes
To a sudden halt
At dusk
And sounds
Come from the voice
And travel a mile or two
And strength comes from
The family
Near to you.
I'd Like To Go To Africa
Today
I thought
I would like
To go to Africa.
Yes, I will go to Kenya
And see if time
Has stood still
Where at least
The walk
Is on the ground
And all comes
To a sudden halt
At dusk
And sounds
Come from the voice
And travel a mile or two
And strength comes from
The family
Near to you.
Yes, Today
I thought
I'd like to go to Africa.
Sallie Lanier
May 5, 1995
I thought
I'd like to go to Africa.
Sallie Lanier
May 5, 1995
Orphanage
Orphange
Yesterday I went to an Orphange about ten minutes away from the base. We weren't there long, but we got a tour of the grounds and got to spend time with the kids. It was amazing how the children just wanted to be touched and payed attention to. When we saw their rooms my first thought was "where's all their stuff?" It was a nice facility, but the kids didn't have any belongings except some shoes under the bed and an occasional toothbrush on a bed. Becka made a "mouse" out of my head wrap and made it jump on people. I think I was more entertained than the kids! it was so funny! The girl in this picture really touched my heart. She asked me what I want to do and I told her I want to be a pastor. She said, "Oh, like me!" She's eleven and is already called to be a pastor "Anywhere." I received my calling from the Lord around that age as well, so I was really blessed to see how God has worked in similar ways in our lives even in such different and far apart countries.
Entitlement
May 3, 2007
Yesterday during our class worship and intercession God showed me this passage:
2 Timothy 4:1-5
"I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry."
I have a lot of pastors, evangelists, and people called to be teachers in my class so this was especially meaningful. and it was such an encouragment to me and my staff!
I also wanted to share with you what i am learning about entitlement. while living in Africa I have realized that i am not entilted to a hot shower, nor a shower with clean water, i am not entitled to a latte everyday from Starbucks or anyother high quality-or low quality-coffee shop. I am not entitled to a soft bed, or a bed at all. i am not entitled to personal space or private time, good books to read, teaching supplies, fresh salads, sweets, clean feet, good smells, or nutritionaly balanced meals. In short, i am not entitled to anything. Infact, i am blessed. and it is by the free gift of God's grace and hope in salvation through Him that I am given anything at all. It is a blessing that i was born in America, in Southern California none the less. it is a blessing that i went to preschool, elementary school, high shool, and a top university (go pepperdine), and now a very good seminary. it is a blessing that my country has high quality education and that my parents could afford it....and that it is the law to send children to school. it is a blessing that i have received amazing health care (go denise!), clean drinking water, and that i live in a country with sanatation laws. it is a blessing that i live in a house made of wood, bricks, carpet, tile, and other fine things. while congnitively i could have told you i am not entitled to any of this, living in Africa has made me KNOW that i am not entitled to any of these things. and i am grateful for that. i am grateful that every good thing comes from the Lord and that it is not of me...that i don't deserve these things and i haven't earned them.
it is also amazing to see how God provides for people who have nothing. when the warrior Maasai go out into the bush all they have to eat is their cows and all they have to drink is the cow's blood. in the villages they sleep on animal skin in houses made out of sticks and cow dung. they can live off the bare necessities. no one is entitled to a certain life style.
i have been encouraged by this! it liberates us from things, gives us full reliance on God, and gives us an outward mindset: that it's not all about us, it's about what God has done in our lives and how He can use these things to fufill the ministry He has given us. amen? amen.
take care,
Christina
David Jeremiah: God's Seminary
Thursday, May 3
God's Seminary
For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
God is preparing you for the ministry that He is preparing for you. He's working at both ends of the process—in your life to prepare you for a unique role of service, and He's preparing beforehand the work He'll give you in His timing. So wherever you are right now is God's classroom for future service.
Joseph's prison term prepared him to be God's man on Egypt's throne. Moses' years in Pharaoh's court equipped him for his tasks as leader of Israel. For years Joshua served as Moses' aide, and Elisha did the same for Elijah; God was preparing them both as successors. Paul's years in Arabia were readying him for years of missionary service. Even Jesus experienced an extended period of preparation in the carpenter's shop of Nazareth.
Whatever you are right now, God is giving you experiences that are training you for future service. It may be over a long period of time or only a few minutes, but He equips us with what we need to serve Him.
Think of your circumstances today as God's Seminary.
"All there is of God is available to the man who is available to all there is of God."
Read-Thru-the-Bible1 Chronicles 29:1 - 2 Chronicles 3:17
God's Seminary
Ephesians 2:4-10
For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
God is preparing you for the ministry that He is preparing for you. He's working at both ends of the process—in your life to prepare you for a unique role of service, and He's preparing beforehand the work He'll give you in His timing. So wherever you are right now is God's classroom for future service.
Joseph's prison term prepared him to be God's man on Egypt's throne. Moses' years in Pharaoh's court equipped him for his tasks as leader of Israel. For years Joshua served as Moses' aide, and Elisha did the same for Elijah; God was preparing them both as successors. Paul's years in Arabia were readying him for years of missionary service. Even Jesus experienced an extended period of preparation in the carpenter's shop of Nazareth.
Whatever you are right now, God is giving you experiences that are training you for future service. It may be over a long period of time or only a few minutes, but He equips us with what we need to serve Him.
Think of your circumstances today as God's Seminary.
"All there is of God is available to the man who is available to all there is of God."
Major Ian Thomas
Read-Thru-the-Bible1 Chronicles 29:1 - 2 Chronicles 3:17
Maasai Seminar: Hosea Chapter 2
April 29, 2007
hello prayer team and friends!
it has been another eventful weekend here in Arusha, and i am so thankful to God for it! earlier this week Mark told me he was preaching at a seminar for Maasai's nearby, and asked if i wanted to preach. i told him i would come to hear him preach, but i didn't think i had anything to say. he replied, "but you're a missionary in Africa!" and i thought, "oh yeah, that's why i'm here isn't it!" so this saturday me, mark, one of student's Solomon, and two of our friends went to preach at the seminar! we walked there and it was about a half hour away. the church was above a big coffee plantation (which i was especially pleased about :). it was a small room with about five rows of benches and a pulpit in front. the church was founded two months ago and the pastor said there are about ten faithful members as of now. for some reason the term "Maasai seminar" invoked an image of a big room and lots of Maasai in their traditional dress, long and lively worship, and lots of speakers. instead, it was a very humble church, and we were blessed to help in laying it's foundation. we had two people come from the village, the pastor, another preacher, and our whole team. we prayed for the consecration of the buidling and for God to protect His church. we sang worship songs as loud as we could to let satan know that God's ambassadors had arrived and we were claiming this church as HIS. then we each preached. i had figured i would preach on Daniel chapter 9 again, because if God gives even one message why not keep sharing it around? but when i was sitting on the bench i decided to teach on Hosea, on a passage that God had shown me earlier in my trip and spoke very intimately to me. so here's roughly what i said (in more eloquent English :):
In Hosea chapter 2 God personifies Israel as a woman. He says that she has been unfaithful to Him. She has looked to other lovers for provision and for her water, food and shelter. But really all along it was God providing these things for her. Because of this, God takes everything away from her. Then, in this state, he can "allure her to the wilderness" and "speak tenderly to her." He has to take it all away in order to draw her back to Him: to show her that He is the one watching over her. Then he takes the names of her gods away from her mouth, so that she doesn't even remember them, and replaces them with His name. He becomes her husband. So i told the church that i had come to tell them that God heals your past. And he does it in such an intimate way that He even removes the memories. You won't even remember the names of your other gods, because God's name will be upon your lips. i told them that whatever lies in their past is forgiven and God wants to heal it. That he is allowing us to leave it behind and move forward into the present and future with Him.
after i preached our friend Anne, from Kenya, spoke. she had planned on saying something, but while i was preaching God told her to teach on a passage in Matthew. it was the passage about the crippled man at the gate Beautiful outside of the temple. she said what i had shared spoke to her, and she wanted to expand on it. she asked us "what is hindering you from moving forward?" this crippled man was sitting right outside the sanctuary, but he was prevented from getting up and going in. what is preventing us from going in? she said the past is like something tied to our ankles, not allowing us to walk. then we went into a time of prayer, asking God to remove things from our past and to bring healing. she shared my Mom's life verse in Phillipians "forgetting what lies behind and pressing on towards the upward call of Christ Jesus."
i have to go to a coffee date but i wanted to share this wonderful day with you all. God bless,
Christina
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