Home Again

We arrived back in Florida safely on Friday.  Thank you, Lord, for safety in travel, and for what you have done in us, to us, for us, and with us on this trip.

Giving Charity Without Destroying Dignity

There has been a reawakening in American churches to the command of Jesus to help the poor. Best-selling books have shined the light of truth on the darkness of our materialism and self-indulgence. We have been reminded that God's heart hurts for the poor. We have been reminded that we have a responsibility to share the good news of redemption in Jesus with all the world.  For that I am grateful.

In our eagerness to be obedient to Jesus, we have not always acted with wisdom. Throughout Africa, as in most third world countries, western Christians and aid groups have responded to poverty and its debilitating consequences with open-hearted generosity. But because of the way we have often responded, there have been very serious unintended consequences. For decades now we have conditioned people in the third world to expect handouts from missionaries and aid groups. The popularity of short term mission trips has created a revolving door of reinforcement of these unintended negative consequences.

Unintended Consequences

1. When aid is constantly handed out free, initiative is stifled. We recognize that with our own children and in our own society. It's also true of people in third world countries. We make it very difficult for them to take initiative to meet their own needs or better their own situations when we keep handing them free goods.
2. Local economies are weakened. Local merchants, manufacturers and farmers are put out of business when free aid is made available in a local area. There are many stories that need to be told from Haiti, Africa and other places of small family businesses being ruined because they cannot compete with free goods.
3. Christians cannot be taught to trust God to meet their needs and at the same time to know that the “rich” American missionaries will meet their needs. It is too common in the churches here, that when asked what their needs are, to be told they need bicycles, grinding mills, Bibles, preachers' salaries, motorcycles, and other material things. They have been trained by experience to expect American missionaries to pay for those things. In the meantime, they have the money (many times) for cell phones and other things that have a high priority to them.
4. Dignity is destroyed. Over the past 40 years, the west has replaced colonialism with patronage. The result is the same. The dignity and self-respect of local people are weakened. We often talk about “partnering” with a third world church or community. Partnership is a good thing, but true partnership is not possible between two vastly unequal parties. It will always be a partnership of patronage.
5. A relationship of dependency is created. Once created, dependency is hard to stop. But it can be done through God's help with sensitivity, wisdom and patience.
6. Emotional ownership is stifled. This message has been conveyed many times - “your church (or school) has a leak in the roof. When are you going to come fix it?” Emotional ownership belongs to the one who plans, builds, finances and controls a project. Emotional ownership is a large part of the answer to restoring dignity and ending dependency. We must take the slow, messy road of allowing local people to assess their own needs, inventory their assets, plan their own solutions, and finance and control the operations. They will then “own” the undertaking emotionally, and that's essential for long term advancement.

Thoughts on Poverty

1. Poverty is relative. Our American (western) mindset informs us that if they do not live on our standard, they are poor. Many times they do not know they are poor, until we start giving them things.
2. Poverty does not mean they are ignorant or inferior. Our unspoken assumption is often that if they were as smart as we are they wouldn't be so poor.
3. Poverty is not the root of the problem. Spiritual darkness is the problem. Witchcraft, ancestor worship, and idolatry of all sorts plunge people into spiritual darkness and lead to physical suffering and poverty. In reality, the dichotomy of earth-life into spiritual and physical is a western notion – not a Biblical distinction. The promise of God is that if we live lives focused on Him and His kingdom, He will supply our needs.

There are times when we in the west need to respond. Natural disasters and wars often create crisis situations that need our immediate and generous help. But even then, we need to tread carefully, working as a support resource behind local leadership.

There is also a place for subsidizing Bibles and such. But even Bibles should not be given away free, as a rule. In all cultures, things that are free have no value. It feels wonderful to give Bibles away free to poor people, but in the long term we do them a favor by teaching them to place value on owning a Bible. Our dollars are better spent subsidizing the cost of the Bibles so that the price is within reach.

I am not proposing that it is never appropriate to help the poor in third world countries. I am not saying that Americans should just stay home and not try to help. I am saying that we need to look hard at proposed projects and mission trips to try to avoid unintended consequences. We need to learn better how to do short term missions without doing long term damage. We need to take the time to read good books that explore the problems and solutions in detail.

Further Reading

There are many books on the subjects of charity and missions and the problems of dignity and dependency.   Below are a few good ones:  

When Charity Destroys Dignity - Overcoming Unhealthy Dependency in the Christian Movement by Glenn J Schwartz, World Mission Associates, 600-C Eden Road, Lancaster, PA 17601, ISBN: 978-0-9669735- 4-9. www.wmausa.org

Roots and Remedies of the Dependency Syndrome in World Missions by Dr. Robert Reese, William Carey Library, ISBN 9780878080137


When helping Hurts: Alleviating Poverty Without Hurting the Poor...and Yourself, by Brian Fikkert, Steve Corbett and John Perkins, Moody Publishers, ISBN 978-0802457059


End of the Spear, by Steve Saint, SaltRiver, ISBN 978-0842384889

For a good example of a project that fights poverty while building dignity and self-reliance, see my blog post for November 3, Hope in Struggle Against Dependency.

Pray for wisdom in how to be generous, and God will direct you. Does any man lack wisdom? Let him ask God, who gives to all men generously.

Trip to Visit Rural Churches, Part 4

Thursday October 27, 2011


Up before daylight. We were served boiled sweet potatoes for breakfast, with hot sugar water to drink. Walked down the hill to see the Zambezi River. It is a very large river, beginning in Congo, down through Zambia and thenturning east and forming the border between Zambia and Zimbabwe. Finally it cuts across Mozambique and and continues east into the Indian Ocean. Just before we drove off, we called together those who were there (mostly women) and read Joshua 1:8-9.

Drove to the next river and crossed over by ferry. On to Caia, arriving about 1 PM. They were waiting for us. We were supposed to be with them all day Wednesday, but Pedro kept adding churches to our schedule earlier in the week. They sang a couple of songs, I spoke for about 10 minutes using 1 Corinthians 15:58, then Dionisio apologized profusely for the brevity of the stop – told them that Pedro had stolen their time, and we would be back another time to see them. As we were pulling out, they came running after us and said to please wait, they wanted to give us a gift. A man disappeared, and came back a minute later with a chicken (live). So we made the trip home with an extra passenger in the car!

Left about 2 PM, and 300km later we arrived home, about 7:30 PM, after seven days, seven churches, two leadership conferences, and eleven sermons each.

Trip to Visit Rural Churches, Part 3

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Up at first light to sound of children, men and women. Bathed, broke camp, then drove to the Shire (She Ree) River to see canoes that act as taxies on the river. The canoes are made from a single hollowed log, about 25' long, with walls about 30” high when standing inside. We thought we had come down to the river to cross over to visit the church, but not so. They just pointed out to us the direction of the church across the river. Back to the church for breakfast of rice porridge with sugar, a short parting meeting, then down the “road” about 25 km to another church. Greeted with children and women singing “you have arrived.”

First stop today was Kangazira. It began as a Reformed Church, but the preacher stopped preaching one year when there was a food shortage. Pedro visited the area and encouraged him (the preacher) to keep preaching, to no avail. Pedro encouraged another man (from Church of Christ) to preach there, along with his (Pedro's) visits. It is now, by Pedro's account, a strong church of about 50.

We all 3 preached. By the time I spoke (3^rd) it was incredibly hot, people were tired, and maybe I wasn't connecting too well. Pedro told me to wrap it up, so I did. They served us lunch of Coke and cookies, then down the road 5 km to the next church at Cherembwe.

Cherembwe - Had about 30+ present. HOT! HOT! Always greeted with singing. When we arrived, they seemed listless (I was too, in that heat!). Service began about 11:30 am. The Senna people sing with clapping, tin-can shakers, a drum, dancing, and occasional trilling. (These are churches started by preachers trained by acappela church of Christ missionaries.) Most songs are 4-40 songs – 4 words repeated 40 times (or more). When they like something you say, they shout out “amen, amen, amen, amen.”

Once they started singing they got very animated and listened to the lessons very attentively. There are always lots of children. This church had very few men; maybe because they were working. Children follow you everywhere and watch every move. In this church (we didn't see this anywhere else) when they prayed, one man started the prayer, then everybody began praying together out loud, then quieted down and the leader finished the prayer.

I spoke 1^st this time. 1 Corinthians 12, one body, then Ephesians 5, one flesh in marriage. Dionisio went 2^nd and followed up on my lesson with lots of applications of love your spouse, don't let Satan come into your house; pray; obey.

We were served another lunch of Coke and cookies, then they brought rice and chicken. It was the toughest chicken I have ever had, I think (until the next time we had chicken).

This area has lots of coconut palms, palmettos, bananas, lots of mangoes, papaya, neem, kapok, and other types of palms. They use the palmetto bark for rope and the stems for construction. They use palm trunks for rafters.

Problems in the Cherembwe church – no Bibles, no transportation, frequent floods, and often no food (because of the floods). They asked for our prayers. (They live in the flood plain of a large river. The government has repeatedly asked them to move and offered to give them new lands. When it does flood - every few years, the government evacuates them by helicopter, puts them into camps and gives them food. Why would they want to move?)

Pedro translates 3 times at every stop. He is very energetic and animated. He has a strong, commanding preaching voice. There was a missionary in this area before Jacob who paid Pedro a salary and helped him with purchasing things like a bicycle. Jacob will not do those things. He (Pedro) can be manipulative and can't always be taken at his word. Jacob started a cattle project at the Cherembwe church, which was progressing pretty well. One day Pedro called (the church is in his area) and said the cattle had been stolen. Dionisio (who works closely with Jacob) called the local police and inquired. They looked into it and reported back that the cattle were not stolen and were just fine, and that Pedro had intended to sell the cattle to buy himself a motorcycle.

Dionisio is very personable. When he preaches he stands straight as an arrow and goes right to the point. He is animated, authoritative, uses lots of illustrations and examples(necessary for Africans). His delivery is excellent, and his content is very Biblical and relevant. He is an evangelist who has attended Bible college, started a number of new churches, and is now Jacob & Jaynie's farm manager. In addition to having started a new church on the farm, for which he preaches, he also travels with Jacob when he visits rural churches, functioning as liason and fellow preacher.

Jacob speaks softly and invitingly. He is a good teacher, and knows how to make it very relevant to the Africans. He has been in Mozambique for 21 years now, after spending 16 in Zimbabwe. He preaches in Portuguese.

3^rd Stop – Kasana. 25 – 30 people. Jacob spoke on David and Goliath. He asked them what their giants were, and got no response (that's common). He asked them about AIDS, malaria, poverty and transportation and they responded to each one with a resounding Yes. I spoke on Elisha and his servant when Elisha prayed that God would open his eyes to see the horses and chariots of fire all around – He that is in you is stronger than he that is in the world.

Treated to more Coke and cookies. They always bring unopened bottles of Coke, but seldom have a bottle opener. They generally use their teeth. Jacob carries one with him.

4^th stop – arrived after dark at Chapepa. I spoke about 10 minutes on our hope for eternal life when there will be no disease, death or problems. Dionisio then spoke on Job 2 and encouraged them to build latrines. Jacob did not speak. Set up the Jesus Film. About 9:30, when the film was finished the first time, they fed us dinner of cheema and stewed chicken with tomato and onion. Washed off and to bed about 10:30 while they watched the Jesus Film a second time.

They told us their problems are no Bibles, and no money to buy zinc panels for the roof of the church building. Jacob responded that they have money to buy cell phones and bicycles, and that zinc is much hotter than thatch, and that some very large, expensive buildings have thatched roofs. That's not what they wanted to hear.


I mentioned above that there are always lots of children. There is no birth control for the general population, and women have no voice in the home. AIDS is rampant here, as are malaria and other diseases. The life expectancy in Mozambique is no more than 45. Consequently, one sees lots of young children (many of whom die before adulthood) and a lot of young/ mid-life adults, but very few older people.
Life is hard here. Pray for your brothers and sisters in Mozambique.

Hope in Struggle Against Dependency

Wednesday November 2, 2011

Got up to leave the house by 6:45, but had to change a flat tire first – one of the ones that went flat on our trip to Tete. Still got away before 7:00. Went to Lars' house in Chimoio, picked up 4 high school students visiting from Sweden along with a local brother, and then 50km to Msika to visit a Savings Club. (The local brother promotes, organizes and trains Savings Clubs over a wide part of central Mozambique. He is an employee of Alfalit, (http://english.alfalit.org/) an international ministry working to eliminate human suffering caused by illiteracy. Lars is also a part of Alfalit.) 

The Savings Clubs are locally promoted, organized and operated. They promote self-reliance and independence within the cultural context of community life. They are usually composed of women, many of whom are widows, although some groups allow men to participate. The men usually do not want to participate – they are not focused or disciplined enough to stay with it. 

When the group is formed, the women each deposit with the group whatever money they can afford to put into savings. They elect a president, a secretary, a treasurer and two controllers. They money goes into a metal box with three padlocks. The treasurer and controllers each have a key to one lock. The treasurer keeps the box. The secretary keeps the records. The controllers and treasurer together add or remove money from the box at the weekly meetings. 

The group meets each week and each person adds money to her account as able. Anyone in the group who needs a loan can borrow from the saved money. (The loan can be for any reason – business, death in family, sickness, to repair the house, or anything else.) The loan comes due in six months, with 10% interest. If they cannot repay when due, they have one month grace. Because of social pressure, there is virtually no chance of default. After one year one can take her money out and leave the group, but seldom would someone want to leave.

Each group is community based. To be admitted to the group a person must be voted on and accepted by the group as being of good repute, diligent and honorable. Some groups require that a person be recommended by her church; some do not have that requirement. 

When the groups meet each week, they also have literacy class, with teachers provided by the government. With literacy among Mozambiquan women at about 35%, this is a welcomed opportunity for the women. The group teaches money management skills, literacy, provides peer support, and opens opportunities (especially for the widows) that they would never have otherwise. (Literacy alone opens new worlds for these women.)

The group we visited has been in operation for two years. These women were among the poorest in their community when each of them joined the group, but this year, from their savings, they bought building materials, hired masons and carpenters, and built themselves a nice building to meet in (about 20' x 40'). They share the building with the community as a community center. 

Perhaps the most valuable lesson they learn is self-reliance (within the African context of community – American individualism is frowned upon). They come to the group with only pennies to their names and no hope of a better life, and within a couple of years have learned that by putting their resources together they can better themselves and the lives of their families. They gain confidence and hope, and give the glory to God.

Trip to Visit Rural Churches, Part 2

Sunday October 23, 2011
Bathed, broke camp and left at 6:30 am. Six and a half hours of bad road (210 km of dirt). Got to church in Tete as they were taking the Lord's Supper. On the way Mica (the regular preacher) asked me to preach, on the subject of giving. Started the lesson with God as giver because of his love, with application to us imitating God.

Tete is HOT! (It sits in a river valley shaped like a bowl.) Ate lunch at a Lebanese cafe – roasted chicken and french fries. 300 km to Mutarara. 200 of it on really bad dirt road (some dirt roads are not that bad). We had two flat tires – at the same time, and only one spare. We changed one tire, and Dionisio took off running down the road – we were in the middle of nowhere. A couple of kilometers down the road he found some people, and about 45 minutes later here he came on the back of a bicycle, with a bicycle pump. We pumped up the 2^nd tire and prayed we would make it to the next town (35 km away). We arrived there about dark, roused the local tire repairman (he had a hammer and a couple of crowbars, and some patching material) and 3 hours later we were on our way.

Arrived 11 pm in Mutarara (supposed to have arrived for evening service), to about 100 children and adults singing in Senna “Welcome missionary friends, you have arrived.” They escorted us the last mile to the preachers house, showering us with bougainvillea flower petals and singing all the while. Jacob set up the Jesus Film, which finished about 1:30 am. They served us dinner (around midnight) of rice, millet and fish. The only light in the house was one small flashlight mounted on the ceiling rafters.



Monday October 24, 2011
Woke up to sound of kids. Bathed, broke camp and packed car. They served us breakfast of bread (rolls), scrambled eggs and tea. Sweating like a pig! 8:30 am.

Drove 26 km from Mutarara to Bompoma (not a town – just the name of the rural area where the church is located. Same with all the stops today. In each place, the church building is located on the property of either the preacher or one of the members, who served as our hosts.) Greeted with singing. Preached on 1 Cor 12 – one body, many members, then Matthew 20 and Philippians 2 on serving one another. Jacob translated into Portuguese then Pedro into Senna. Jacob interpreted my intent as needed while he translated, then Pedro elaborated as he felt led, so I don't know what they really heard! Seemed to be well received. About 60 people present, with 3 pastors from other churches. The evening service had about 200 in attendance.

After a long lunch break, we had another session (from about 4 – 5:30 pm). Jacob and Dionisio preached. One of the things Jacob talked about was how to study the Bible. (My question is, how do you study the Bible when very few people have Bibles, and most cannot read? My suggestion was that they spend time in their assemblies letting the congregation memorize passages as they are read.) After dark, they watched the Jesus Film – two times. To bed about 10:30. The wind had been blowing hard all afternoon and evening. There is no grass around here – just plowed fields and dirt. It was like being in a dust storm until sometime during the night, when the wind died down.

Lunch was rice and goat parts (organs). I ate the liver, because I could identify it. Dinner – cheema (she ma) and goat parts. Because it was dark I figured what I couldn't see wouldn't hurt me, so I don't know what I ate.

Story of the Bompoma church – a preacher in the Union of the Harvest Church in another area had a strong disagreement with his church leaders, who began to persecute him. He left the area, went to Mutarara, and met Pedro, who encouraged him to go to Bompoma and start a church. Began with two people a couple of years ago. Now they have 60+ members.

One thing I have observed is that people are the same everywhere. We have the same needs, the same underlying problems, the same fears, and the good news of Jesus meets the deepest needs of us all.

Trip to Visit Rural Churches, Part 1

Friday October 21, 2011

Left early with Jacob and Dionisio for a trip to Tete Province to visit churches and leaders conferences. 350 km to Tete. About 10 hrs of driving, with a stop in Tete city to pick up 3 more people. Drove another 200km into the bush to Furankungo, Makanga district, where about 30 people from the churches were waiting for us. Arrived just before dark. We set up our tents, then walked about a mile into town to present ourselves with some of the leaders to the police, to let them know who we are and what we are up to. Then dinner of cheema (corn meal mush), and Jacob set up his 12” TV on top of the car and showed the Jesus Film in Chechewa to about 100 people gathered. Before it was over I was asleep. 2 hour film – done about 11 pm.


Saturday Oct 22, 2011

Before daylight was even a thought I began to hear people talking outside the tent. As soon as it was light, before the sun was up, the sounds of women, children, pots being scrapped made staying in the sleeping bag useless and made me curious about what was going on outside.
Jacob reminded me that when greeting someone, one's proximity to the ground is an indication of respect. When I was seated and a man introduced himself, I should have remained seated, letting him be higher than me. This morning the same man (who speaks English) called his wife over to introduce her to me. She came over and quickly fell to her knees in front of me to greet me.
Languages here – Chechewa and Portuguese, and lots of English, because of the proximity to Malawi. Greeting in Chechewa - “ma de banja.”
Breakfast of bread and tea. They did a roll call of the churches and each came to get their breakfast as called.
This conference was for the leaders of 38 churches of Christ (acapella because of influence and evangelization from Malawi) in this district. Evangelists, who plant churches, evangelize and train up churches until elders are appointed (by the churches). Sometimes there are problems with an evangelist who does the appointing and tries to keep control of the churches in his sphere of influence. One such evangelist was at the conference, and because of his dominant personality is a real problem to the churches around Tete (city) and to the other evangelists.
Breakfast started about 7 am. Singing at 8 am. The schedule was for 2 speakers in the morning, 2 in the afternoon, two at night, then Q&A beginning at 10 pm. Being the visitor, I spoke first in the AM . Spoke from Matthew 20 – the greatest is the servant, and Philippians 2 – Jesus as our example of servanthood. Then Q&A – how do you deal with pastors who lord it over the churches? Are they really pastors? I referenced David and Saul, and also 3 John.
The program got pushed back in the afternoon, with dinner at about 7 pm, (cheema, peas, greens and stewed dried fish (whole little fish). Watched the Jesus Film again, and started teaching again about 10 pm. I preached first again.
I had planned to talk about elders from 1 Peter 5, but they asked me to talk about family. Started with Genesis 1, then Ephesians 5, with references to servanthood (from my morning lesson). The only thing I could see was the flashlight in my eyes. Asked for questions at the end and got a lot of questions about divorce, adultery and polygamy, and how to deal with these things in the church and among pastors. (Such as, if a woman comes to church who is wife in a polygamist marriage, do we receive her? If a man and woman divorce because of ones unfaithfulness, both remarry, then both new couples want to come to church, do we receive them?
After speaking, I went to bed. They had Q&A till about 1 am, with the main topic being the role of women (the question was asked by one of the women). Women have been taught to be quiet in church (but it's ok for them to sing). After much discussion, the consensus was that women could speak, but not exercise authority. Another topic discussed was whether a polygamist pastor is really a pastor. Another – if a person is arrested (presumably for no good reason), how should he respond.
Jacob will ask questions during these discussions, but is careful not to give answers. It is important for them to reach their own conclusions. If the missionary gives his answer, they would accept it and not think it through for themselves.
When I preached here, it was translated from English to Chechewa. When Jacob and Dionisio preached, they preached in Portuguese, with translation to Chechewa. When Dionisio preached, Jacob translated that to English for me. Jacob uses simple language (in Portuguese) and goes slow, so I could generally understand what he was saying.
The leaders expressed their problems to us. They were:

1. Lack of trained teachers and study materials.
   
2. Economics – the Church of Christ (meaning – the missionaries) does not provide money (US $) for them to build church buildings, and no salaries for preachers.
   
3. Poverty of the people (reference #2).
   
4. From 1994 – 2000 there were not many churches, and growth was limited by the talent of the preachers. Preachers did not encourage others to grow and learn to preach. (Reference #1)
   
5. Division over singing during the Lord's Supper.
   
6. In Malawi we had one preacher per district who was appointed by and supported by the missionaries. We need support from the missionaries.
   
7. The long distances preachers must travel to meet together. (Most came by bicycle, some 30 or more miles.)
   
8. Disagreements over doctrine. We need more missionary help to train more preachers (meaning – to tell us the answers).
   
9. Too large an area to evangelize. Preachers cannot get around to all the churches. They have to choose between farming to feed their families and preaching. (Meaning – we want the missionaries to support us and buy us motorcycles.)
   
10. (Women's input) Lack of women's teachers and leaders. Distance between villages.
    
    Sadly, they see many (most?) of their problems as being rooted in the need for more US dollars and more missionary intervention.  With all good intentions, the missionaries have been building dependency upon American missionaries rather than on God for over 100 years now.  Breaking dependencies is very difficult for any of us, but it can be done, with wisdom and patience.  But there are still many mission groups and aid organizations feeding the dependencies in the third world, which makes the job all the more difficult.  No one has evil intentions, and the problem is complex.  There will be more on this in coming posts.
    
    Pray for your brothers and sisters in Mozambique.  Life is hard for them, and Satan is very active.
    

Bush Fire

Africans all over sub-Saharan Africa burn off the dried grass near the end of the dry season (September - October) before they plant their new crops.  They believe it makes the new crops grow better, makes it easier to plow, and flushes out any animals, making hunting easy for a short while.

If the wind is blowing much, they burn much more than their own fields.  One of the reasons the soil is poor in some places, and there are no trees to speak of, is this practice of burning.  Small trees have no chance of making it to the big time.  A lot of voices have been telling them not to burn, but cultural norms change very slowly.  (In our culture, we know that fast food is not really good for us, but McDonald's has never done better.  We need to be careful when we think that other cultures are maybe not as smart as we are.)

Jacob's farm has several times been the recipient of out of control fires, and once the target of an intentional fire set by a disgruntled squatter.  Jacob keeps the grass near the house cut short, and beyond that they cut fire breaks and, if a fire is coming, will set back fires.  So far they have only had one devastating fire, and that was before the house was even completed.  It destroyed a lot of newly set medicinal trees and some building materials.

Jaynie said that a fire was her worst fear, and that particular fire - the first one - was especially traumatic.  But it forced her to trust God more and reminded her that the farm and all her ministry plans involving the farm were in His hands, not her control.

Grocery Shopping

Friday October 14


Unpacked, rested most of the day.  Melonie didn't feel too well after not sleeping well. In the afternoon Jacob & I went to Chimoio, about 15 miles from the farm, to get groceries. First to the supermarket – Shop Rite – a South African chain. Any American could go in there and feel almost at home. Then to the local market, where we found fresher produce, but not quite the variety as the supermarket.


The local market was row upon row of crowded little stalls with piles of whatever vegetables, fish or fruit they had to sell. Some of the “stalls” were nothing more than a blanket of sorts on the ground to mark out the vendor's spot. The aisles between rows were narrow, the whole market was built on ground that was not quite level to begin with, and has over time been eroded by the rain. To get down the aisles means negotiating your way through small gullies and ridges, accompanied by the din of hundreds of conversations all around you, multiple people calling out to buy their goods, and swarms of flies feeding on banana peels, dried fish, and anything else in sight.


Life here moves on African time. Jacob had hoped to go by the mechanic's shop to check on the progress of repair on his Land Rover, but we were too late – repair shops and such close at 4 pm on Fridays. On the other hand, the mechanic has only had the vehicle for two weeks (to replace the front bushings), so it's probably not ready yet anyway.

Our First Night in Mozambique

Thursday Oct 13

Arrived at Jacob and Jaynie's farm from the Beru's in the Vumba in Zimbabwe. Border crossing was pretty uneventful, except that the price of a visa to get into the country has jumped from $25 each to $80 each. We were not expecting that!

I learned a lesson in timing at the Michael farm – as I was getting ready to jump into the shower, the generator went off for the night. The water is on a gravity system (both hot and cold) so I had water, but no lights. Melonie had the lantern in the bedroom, so I proceeded to shower in total darkness. Not too hard, but I would have preferred at least a little light. Friday night I did a little better – at least I got wet before I got in, and Melonie was kind enough to bring the lantern to the bathroom. Some of us are slow learners!

Poverty, Hunger & How We Can Help

Poverty is prevalent in much of Africa, including Zimbabwe and Mozambique, where we visited. Here are some thoughts on helping:

1. Poverty (as most of us understand it in the west) is not the problem. Being poor is not a problem - in fact, anxiety and depression are American problems that have increased in lock-step with our affluence. Don't feel sorry for the "poor" people in Africa - they don't feel sorry for themselves.

2. People starving is a different matter. Because of government mismanagement of economies, droughts, the devastation of AIDS, and other such things, there are often situations in Africa where people are truly hungry and people are dying. At times like these, we in the west need to rise to the occasion and share what we have been blessed with.

3. Bigger is not always better. Large scale actions might be well intentioned and make good news stories, but they also have many unintended consequences that are not always helpful. For example, the UN, Oxfam, and other large donor organizations must funnel their aid through the government. Food aid then becomes a political tool in the hands of the ruling party. Large shipments of clothes often find their way to the markets, where they are sold.

If large shipments of clothes are being distributed free (which does happen) it makes it next to impossible for the local merchants and manufacturers to compete and stay in business. A short-term solution short circuits the long-term solution.

Organizations with staff have overhead expenses, and that's money not going where you intended it to go. Institutions, once set in motion, tend toward existing for their own sake. This leads to the temptation of skewing facts for the sake of maintaining donations. (Can you imagine a major aid organization saying "don't send us any more money; the crisis is over and we are disbanding the organization.")

4. Small scale solutions work - on a small scale. When multiplied, they work on a large scale.

Late in 2008 and into 2009 there was no food in Zimbabwe. When we recently talked about that with people there, nobody mentioned the UN or any other large-scale aid program as a part of how they survived. They all mentioned the small donations and care packages that came into the country from abroad.

Small scale projects have no overhead, do not attract government attention, can be quickly changed, can be easily monitored, and accountability can be maintained.

More information about a crisis situation in Zimbabwe and how you can easily help is at www.cupsofwaterafrica.blogspot.com.

Role of Missionaries in Africa Today

Most African countries (the exceptions being Muslim countries) have had the good news of Jesus being preached for well over 100 years now. Most countries have well established, reproducing churches and strong leadership, along with smaller, weaker churches that need good leadership – much like here in the USA.

The weakest churches are generally the ones with a recent history of foreign missionaries and foreign money supporting their local evangelists. The stronger churches are the ones that are local planted, have local leadership, and minimal interference from foreign money. Think of parenting – not cutting the apron strings makes a child dependent – not strong and independent. The same is true in mission work, whether in church planting, benevolent work or schools and other organizations. (Missionaries have often helped a village by installing a well, only to hear a year later, “your pump broke; when are you going to come fix your pump.”) Emotional ownership of any endeavour is essential to it's ongoing effectiveness.

There is a very limited role for foreign evangelists and church planters in most African countries. There is a role for westerners in Africa, but humble wisdom is needed to define it.

God has not called everyone to go to Africa. But he does still call some, and he gives them specific tasks that contribute to the growth and well-being of His people. Some are medical workers, some educators, some are farmers, some are training and encouraging church leaders, some are caring for orphans, street children, and the hungry. Some are called by God to go, some to give, and some to pray hard.

Some of the greatest needs in Africa are skills that will make life, work and church growth more effective – things like learning to plow with an ox rather than a short-handled hoe; better sanitation and hygiene to prevent diseases. But as simple as that sounds, cultural norms change very slowly. (Just look at our culture – we know that our diet causes obesity, diabetes, heart disease, depression, etc. But how easy is it to change our diets?)

One of the keys to effectiveness is to always go behind local church and community leadership. Begin by asking them, “what are your needs, and how can we help you meet those needs?” Channel your help and assistance through the local churches, not your own organization. Teach them to depend upon God to meet their needs – they have been taught to depend upon missionaries and foreign support.

Things that are free have no value. We work hard to teach that to our children – we need to incorporate that principle more in our mission work. Almost without exception, everyone can afford to pay something for things they need. (There are crisis situations where this is not true and that is a different matter.) Africans have learned from experience that Bibles are free. While the motivation of the donors is right, there are unintended consequences – things that are free have no value. This is true of Bibles, village wells, bicycles for preachers, and education, among others..

Pictures from our recent trip can be seen at www.picasaweb.com/meloniefudge87

Zimbabwe Politics & Economy

This link will take you to a very good article on the current economy & politics of Zimbabwe. Takes less than 5 minutes to read, but lots of good information.


Kitco - Commentaries - Alf Field

What God Can Do With a Willing Heart - Maforga Mission

About 25 years ago Roy Perkins, a White Zimbabwean, accompanied a friend on a day trip to Beira, Mozambique (about 200 miles round trip) to take care of some business. Mozambique was in the last throes of civil war, the economy was decimated, and extreme poverty was everywhere. For months after returning home, Roy could not get the images of poverty out of his mind and increasingly felt that God wanted him to do something to help. He began to load his car with basic food stuff, drive into Mozambique and distribute it.

The governments of both Zimbabwe and Mozambique became suspicious of his activity and demanded that if he continue, he must have a base in Mozambique to work from (and they could keep track of him). He prayed about it, and the Lord led him to a farm on the east side of Chimoio, on the main road to the coast. He met the owner, a German lady, and much to his amazement, she wanted to sell the farm to him for next to nothing! The local community, as well as most of the country, was not only devastated by war, but also by AIDS and ignorance. The food he was providing was for many the only food they had to eat. Among those being fed were many AIDS orphans, widows, and young mothers with nursing babies.

Roy and his wife in time moved to the farm in Mozambique. God blessed them with more surrounding land (they now have over 2000 acres) and repeatedly He would lay a burden on their hearts then provide the means to meet the needs. They began to take in orphans, and now have over 100 living on the farm. They opened a clinic. Other missionaries have come to join them through the years, so that they now have, in addition to the orphanage, a school, a well-baby program for new-borns through their first year, a technical school, a wood-shop where the students make and sell furniture, a dairy cow project (in partnership with Land O Lakes, Inc. from the USA) that trains destitute families how to care for and utilize a dairy cow, then provides them with one or two cows to begin their new micro-business, as well as other projects.

Roy said they never envisioned all this in the beginning. They just felt led to buy food and drive to Mozambique to distribute it. Then as God opened more doors, they obeyed.

I pray that God will teach me to listen to His voice - and to have the faith to be obedient.

George Nsinga - Child Soldier

George Nsinga grew up in a Christian home, with a fairly typical life for a young African boy in rural Rhodesia. At least, as typical as life could be during the war for independence in the mid-1970's. At any moment, life could be interrupted by the arrival of government soldiers or "the boys" from any of the three competing rebel armies. That could mean intimidation, threats, torture, confiscation of property or even death for anyone who happened to be in the way. The worst were ZANU-PF, headed by Robert Mugabe.

One day, while in class at high school, they came - a band of fighters from ZANU-PF. Whatever else might have happened, this we know - they kidnapped the students, including George, and marched them some 250 miles through the bush to Zambia. The march was dangerous and hard - from hunger, other rebel armies, and animals (as large as lions and as deadly as malaria-carrying mosquitoes). There they were sorted and redeployed - some to combat training, some to the USSR for specialized training. George was sent to the USSR for training as an intelligence officer, complete with liberal portions of communism and other propaganda.

After training, he was redeployed back into Rhodesia as a spy - mind you, he was still just a teenager. Caught in an attack, his right leg was shattered, and to this day he limps and uses a crutch.

The war ended in 1980. Today he is married with three children, and he and his wife Musa teach school while he also serves as the preacher for the Senga Church of Christ in Gweru, Zimbabwe. He is a quiet man of deep faith, tested by fire, full of compassion and joy. I wish you could meet him.

Rabia & Dionisio's Wedding

A local pastor (Dionisio) who works closely with Jacob, got married today, in his home, which is on Jacob's farm. He was married previously, but his wife kept cheating on him, and eventually the other church leaders in the district advised him to divorce her, so he did. The new bride was also previously married - she was the 2nd wife (at the same time) but could not have any children. She saw a doctor and told her husband that for a certain (small) amount of money she could have surgery to correct the problem. Her husband decided it was cheaper to divorce her and replace her, which he did.

Dionisio was interested in this lady (Rabia) so he asked the other church leaders what they thought, and they agreed it would be good for him to marry her. So he sent a friend to Rabia's brother to ask for his permission (her parents are dead), he agreed and it was arranged. (Dionisio and Rabia knew each other well and wanted to get married, but the process is necessary.)

The wedding was in large part the families, church leaders and the local chief answering the question "does anyone have an objection to this marriage?" They all testified that it was proper and good and it had their blessing. The ceremony lasted about 2 hours.

After the wedding everybody was served corn meal beer. When they were bringing it in, I thought somebody was tracking in something on their shoe. But if you don't breathe through your nose while you drink it, it's actually pretty good.

Pictures and videos can be seen at http://picasaweb.google.com/meloniefudge87

What Jacob Does Here

Jacob has lived in Africa - Zimbabwe and Mozambique, for 35 years (except for one year in Brazil and four in the USA). He has learned that a foreign missionary (in an area that has existing churches) should always be working himself out of a job – meaning that his job is to work alongside the local church leaders to help them to do their job better; not to build an organization around himself or to supplant local leadership. It may be slower, and doesn’t lend itself to exciting letters back home, but it builds men and women into strong leaders who depend on God, not foreign know-how and money.

He does not approach his work with an outside agenda. He makes it a practice to always go behind the local leadership - they will let him know what the needs are, and by working with and through them, they have emotional ownership of their work.

In 1984 Jacob and his family returned to Gweru, Zimbabwe, where he was co-leading the Mkoba church with a local preacher. The church was composed of poor laborers and was not supplying any support for either preacher (money was coming from the US for both). In 1991 Jacob decided and announced to the church that they no longer needed him – they had elders, a good preacher, deacons, and a membership of 700 (it was 300 in 1984). That’s when he moved to Mozambique.

The Mkoba church has since taken responsibility for the support of their preacher, started two more churches in Gweru (both of which are thriving), and grown to 1000 members.

Jacob’s role in Mozambique could be characterized as a resource person. He travels to a district (with advance notice to the churches), meets with the church leaders, and asks them how he can help them. For several days they will study together, help them find solutions to their problems, and if it seems appropriate, commit his outside resources to help meet a need. He has a constant theme of teaching them to depend upon God, not on western money or missionaries.

One time he asked the village leaders what they needed, and they immediately requested that he help get rid of the elephants who were destroying their crops and threatening their homes.

For the past 10 years Jacob has been driving a LandRover that has just about given up the ghost. The dirt trails, gullies, potholes, huge loads, and dust clouds have taken their toll. Two weeks ago he was able to get a “new” car – a 1994 Toyota Hilux Surf (similar to the 4Runner). What a blessing it has been! It gets there without breaking down!

Prayer Needs

- That the church leaders in this province (Manica) will be receptive to Jacob’s offer to help them. They have been conditioned to expect support and financial assistance from the missionaries, and that’s not what Jacob has to offer.
- That God will move His givers to supply the remaining $8000 for the new vehicle. (He had to rob Peter to pay Paul to get it.)

Mika, Pedro and the Churches in Tete

Two visitors came to the house this morning to see Jacob - Mika and Pedro (pronounced Pedru – it’s Portuguese, not Spanish), both of whom are preachers from Tete Province. Mika speaks English, and I was able to learn some things from him.

Tete Province is the left finger on the northern side of Mozambique, about the size of Kentucky or Indiana (38,800 sq.mi.) with a population of 1,500,000.

In Tete, as in all of Mozambique, the Roman Catholic Church was the only Christian church for many, many years (Mozambique was a Portuguese colony) and is still the largest denomination. Many people feel loyal to it because their parents and grandparents were Catholic. The other “largest group” he mentioned is Jehovah’s Witness.

Mika (pronounced Meeka) was born in Zimbabwe but came to Mozambique as a child. Some of his mother’s family were in the Rhodesian army. During the war the family fled to Malawi as refugees to avoid being killed by the guerrillas fighting the government. His father was from Mozambique, so they settled here after the war (the guerrillas won the war, so going back to Zimbabwe would not have been safe).

Tete Province is sandwiched between Zimbabwe, Malawi and Zambia, all of which are English speaking, and have many strong churches, including the Church of Christ (having been recipients of many, many missionaries for the past 100 years). Mica says there are 200 Churches of Christ in Tete Province, with an average size of 50 – 60, and some of as many as 300. But there are not 200 preachers for those churches, so many of the preachers are circuit preachers. Their work, though, is hampered by very poor roads. With roads, a person can hitch a ride or ride a bicycle, but without roads, they must walk. A walking preacher is limited to an area of about 50 mile radius, and each church might get one visit a year. With a bicycle he could visit those same churches four or five times a year.

The roads are so bad, I was told, that to make the 60 mile trip from the district where Pedro lives to the Provincial capital where Mika lives, it is necessary to go through Chimoio – a 400 mile trip.

Mika said the greatest need of the churches is for printed materials to help the Christians grow – reference materials, tracts and booklets on living a Christian life.

Prayer Needs

Pray that God will raise up more evangelists, pastors and teachers, and that He will provide the resources they need to grow in their understanding and faith.

Visiting a New Church

Several days ago, the guard at the house next door to Jacob asked if he would come preach Sunday in the church he belongs to, and of course Jacob said yes. Our wives were still gone to the ladies' retreat, so the two of us, and the guard headed off to church, which turned out to be an Apostolic Pentecostal Church. The service was in the Shona and Senna languages. Jacob preached in Portuguese, with translation into Shona.

After the sermon, the pastor repeated much of the sermon, which was his stamp of approval on what had been said.

I was asked to lead a prayer, and so I said a phrase (in English) and waited for a translation, which did not come. So I prayed in English, knowing that very few understood. A bit later the pastor (who did understand English) asked me to pray again, and I asked him to translate this time, which he did.

Some pictures can be seen at
http://picasaweb.google.com/meloniefudge87

Pictures are Posted on Picasa3

The best way to see pictures, including several videos, is at

http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/sredir?uname=meloniefudge87&target=ALBUM&id=5390228710671619633&authkey=Gv1sRgCOLKkcHRqdnfWw&invite=CO-M_bcL&feat=email