Re-entry and Reflection, Part 2

Tuesday, May 1

"How can we get involved in helping Africa?"

That is a common question upon my return and seeing people around town. I first give a glazed-over look because the needs are so great. My mind cannot wrap itself around all that could be done and how much doing all we can appears at best to be a drop in the ocean of need.

There are all kinds of levels of need: the immediate human need to survive (food, water, shelter, medicine), the developing need for sustainable life (schools, infrastructure, agriculture, economic), the great need for growing the church deeply in the Word (spiritual formation, counseling, theological education of pastors and lay leaders), and the long-range goal that belongs to Uganda Christian University's Vice Chancellor, Steven Knoll - to raise up godly leaders for all aspects of African life (business, politics, law, education, social work, communications, medicine), which sounds a lot like NWC's Vocare program.

So, where to start?

One aim of my clergy renewal program (click here to see the program explained) is to rekindle a passion for mission, ministry, and vision for our shared journey as pastor and congregation. One activity outlined in the program is to connect with the world church to discern how to have ongoing relationships that are partnerships in the gospel. To that end, let me suggest both individual and church-wide efforts that could be undertaken. No, we cannot change all of Africa, but we can make an eternal difference in one part, one village, one ministry. If every church in North America adopted one ministry to partner with, the few drops become a life-giving spring to Africa's great need and opportunity.

INDIVIDUAL:

1. Informed Prayer: Make Africa part of your regular, personal prayer life. Try fasting to identify with hunger. Use a prayer guide, like www.24-7prayer.com.
2. Buy a bracelet: Some Trinity members are making Africa AIDS bracelets to sell. All proceeds will go directly to help people living with AIDS in Africa. It's a small way to get involved, and everyone can participate.
3. Support a Compassion Child: Some people in our church already do, and I saw one group of CI children in Seeta, Uganda. From first-hand knowledge, it appears to be a very worthwhile effort. For about $1 a day your gift feeds, clothes, and educates a child. (www.compassion.com)
4. Adopt a Child: Perhaps the Lord would put on your heart the desire to work with a Christian orphanage to bring a child orphaned by AIDS or war into your life for the long haul.
5. Go on a short-term mission trip: Wow! That'll rock your world. I'd love to take a group back.
6. Buy a windmill: For $750 your family can buy a windmill for sustainable agriculture in Ethiopia with RCA missionary Caleb Swart!

CHURCH-WIDE:
1. Buy a lot of windmills!
2. Adopt a ministry to become deeply involved in: perhaps as we walk through our own building program, we could be used to help others build and maintain ongoing ministry. For example, $100,000 would go a long, long way in completing Titus' Field of Dreams. This would build a counseling center for people dealing with AIDS, depression, and other spiritual needs. It would also be enough to get the right building and equipment to launch more radio programs in minority languages to northern Uganda and southern Sudan (coming to life after decades of war and the Lords Resistance Army that has ravaged the land and people). We could also adopt a school and build one. As I mentioned in Titu's field of dreams blog entry, much money is pouring into Africa for AIDS medicine. What the church is longing to provide is the spiritual needs of people dealing with AIDS, this is something UN money and the Gates Foundation and others are not providing. The counseling center and ministries like it are trying to fill that gap.
3. Bring a team to Uganda for 2 or 3 weeks, partnering with the local churches in ministry and mission. We could do development work in a rural area, provide professional training for lay counselors, do children's ministry in the rural parishes, do workshops at the university (maybe our strong NW connections could build partnering relationships with UCU, which is part of the CCCU).

The opportunities are virtually limitless. The need is great. And, no, we can't do everything, but let's do one thing and make an impact.

Re-entry and Reflection, Part 1

Friday - Saturday, April 27-28

We return home safe and sound and.... tired. We've been traveling for nearly 36 hours straight. The closer we got to home the more homesick we became. Embrace of the rest of the family was sweet. It's good to be away and it's better to be home - good mattress, cool pillow, and no mosquito netting.

Even though it's only two weeks, it seems a lot has changed. Our worldviews are rocked, are passion for the world increased, and our appreciation of family and friends multiplied.

Friday brings the barrage of unopened mail. Then the e-mail program finally works - 216 messages greet me. Most are the usual items, but tucked here and there are updates from Trinity that keep us tied in. And then, there is one that grabs me hard - a notice that Dr. Lyle Vander Werff has died. I rejoice that he is in heaven but grieve with Phyllis and with her children - David, Kristyn, and Kathy - all of whom were in church together on Easter.

Lyle was my first college professor - the first period of the first day of my college experience. I'll never forget it. In OT Faith he gave me the words "Biblical Worldview." He taught us what a worldview is, what a Christian worldview is, and why it matters. He taught a class on world religions and how Christ's claims were unique and exclusive and worthy of making known to the ends of the world. He taught a class on personal evangelism, the books of which still are useful in my library. His passion for international students and concern for the lost was contagious. His teaching was a key step in God turning my heart to ministry and I am so grateful for his life and witness.

And there is culture shock. Two weeks among the poor will do that. Lauren and I laugh at the suggestion that we "need" the A/C on in the car. At the store we marvel at our selection and wonder why we should be so blessed and others truly struggle for their daily bread. We travel to Sioux City - 45 miles in 40 minutes - when the same journey a week ago took us 2 hours. And while it is much better to be with family than away, we desperately miss our new friends - will Bright e-mail us? Will Titus and Steven and Charity remember us? What are they doing right now? When can we go back?

Lauren is making plans to move. OK, maybe not just yet, but at least to take a semester of Study Abroad.

Uganda Day 9 - Preach-till-you-drop :)

Sunday, April 22

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ..... he as given us new birth into a living hope... (1 Peter 1:3)

I returned to the Seeta congregation (St. Luke's) to preach the three morning services. Their schedule is 7:00 - 8:30, 8:30-10:30, and 10:30-12:30. That's right - no break for coffee between services! As one group leaves the main door, the next group of worshipers enters through side doors. Sunday school is during the 8:30-10:30 service. The 7:00 a.m. service is English and the others are in Luganda.

Lauren has now heard my message on 1 Peter 1:3-9 at least 5 times! She could probably preach it. So, after the 7:00 a.m. English worship service, she grabbed a taxi with a new friend to take the short drive back to the guest house. Taxis in Uganda are 15 passenger mini-buses known for sudden stops and wild drivers. Thankfully, her drive was uneventful.

As with last Sunday, the church is nearly full each service and people are joyfully praising the Lord. Seeta church has a part of the service during the offering when people come to the alter area and pray prayers of praise as part of their offering, and a prayer time that lasts about 30 minutes.

The pastor also warmly welcomes guests, whom he asks to come to the front. He prays for them and gives them a big hug - not exactly seeker sensitive in the US, but in Uganda people love the attention.

As part of worship, the pastor asks the church to give a little extra for the church's next purchase to help their ministry. This church has limited infrastructure, no rest rooms, no kitchen, no fellowship area, and limited electricity (we start the 7:00 a.m. service with a generator because the city has turned off the power to save energy).



So, what does the pastor say the church is saving for? No, not a bathroom or a kitchen, but --- a computer, a projector, and a screen :-).


I also noticed what looked like green cloth pouches that resembled our mail boxes. When I asked what they were, I was told they were offering envelopes. Each pouch is numbered, parishoners put their gift in the sack, place the sack in the offering, and the gift is recorded. Then a church volunteer puts the sack back on the rack - a reusable offering envelope!



At around 1 p.m., the preach-a-thon is finished. I'm tired but full of joy. The faith of the people is absolutely a blessing. I am energized by their passion for the gospel, their love for Jesus, and their concern for the lost. And, if Trinity needs to add a third service, I'm prepared!

After worship and lunch, the time has come for good-byes to our Ugandan friends. The week of ministry is over, many people came forward at evangelistic services, and Words of Hope Uganda has been launched. It has been a great privilege to witness and participate in this great week.

Rev. David Bast heads back to the airport for the 10:30 p.m. flight to Amsterdam and Detroit. Lauren and I head to Kampala for a night in a hotel before heading out to the north for a few days on a safari.


We stay in view of Lake Victoria and spend an evening meal with CRC missionaries Jim and Josephine Zylstra (friends of Orange City resident, Rod DeBoer). They welcomed us in their home and we enjoyed a meal at an Italian restaurant - our first without beans and rice in more than a week. We learned about the work that CRWRC is doing in Uganda and how missionaries experience life in Uganda.

Lauren asks, "Can we call our Uganda friends. I miss them already."

Uganda Day 8 - A Tale of Two Pearls

Saturday, April 21

[Please Note: I am publishing this and the balance of posts for Uganda after returning on April 26. Power outages and lack of Internet access prevented updates in the last several days.]

Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls.

When he found one of great value,

he went away and sold everything he had

and bought it.

Matthew 13:45-46

A Tale of Two Pearls

Saturday saw a great contrast in experiences from morning to afternoon.

We accomplished in a short time on Saturday morning what we had hoped to get done on Friday. We exchanged some dollars for shillings (1705 to 1), we picked up a camera battery charger (PTL!), and we stopped at a new shopping district to pick up a few supplies.

Our Ugandan friend, Bright, was so pleased to show us around his Uganda. He is up to date on all things technological (iPhones, computers, and HDTV – which he wants even though Uganda doesn’t broadcast in HDTV).

Bright was especially keen to show us the new stores – a supermarket and a discount store – think Super WalMart with a Starbucks-type coffee place thrown in for good measure. Inside were all kinds of foods (processed with filtered water), products (made mostly in China), and people (all rushing after the latest thing). It was fun for a little while.

Then it hit me: will the developing world run after globalization and worship the gods of materialism like so much of the developed world? What will become of the 1,000s of little stands that families depend on for their only income? What does it mean to be truly "developed?"

What pearls is the world chasing after? What pearls am I chasing after?

Saturday afternoon brought into view a better Pearl.

A few hundred people showed up to march for Jesus and celebrate the beginning of Words of Hope Uganda’s gospel ministry. School children in their uniforms, choirs and praise teams from area churches, and many parishoners showed up to walk through the streets of Seeta’s markets, neighborhoods, and even the main road to Jinja to celebrate Jesus.

The march was led by the diocese’s boys brigade band. The leader, Davis, is on fire for leading youth ministry in the area, and he is a band leader with passion. We took home a list of brass instruments he would love to have. If you have a brass instrument you’d like to give, let me know and we’ll see if we can make a dream come true.

After the march, the people gathered in the hot sun and sang and prayed and listened to preaching to bless the ministry. The bishop also led a beautiful prayer for the gospel to reach the unreached. The day ended with a soccer match featuring Christian players from the national soccer program. They shared the gospel during timeouts and many young people came out for the event.

Here’s what I learned from this gathering of people: From their joyful determination to proclaim Christ, their absolute joy in the Lord, and their delight in making Christ known at every opportunity, they are showing to the world that they have found the Pearl of Great Price.

It is said that Uganda is “The Pearl of Africa,” but it is clear that for the Christians in Mukono Diocese that Jesus is their Pearl of Great Price.

As a post script, I want to share that one of the children’s groups was a Compassion Children’s Choir. The local church partners with Compassion International in their school program. I know that many families at Trinity support a child through Compassion. From what I witnessed, I can share with confidence and joy that Compassion is doing a great work.

Uganda Day 7 - Sabbath Friday

Friday, April 20

A relatively down day, catching up on sleep and enjoying the scenery of Uganda Christian University. It was a potpourri of experiences:

First, a walk around campus and fresh-brewed cup of Caribou Coffee (we have a travel-size French press along). The campus is beautiful! Many flowers and trees and green all the time.

The morning ended with a meeting of Words of Hope Uganda and Vice Chancellor (the equivalent of University President) Stephen Noll. Dr. Noll is a brilliant man with a grand vision for Christian Higher Education in Uganda. Under his leadership the university has added dorms and class room space and grown from 120 students to over 6,000 in ten years. They have a new association with the CCCU schools in the US and they do a Study Abroad program with 40 CCCU students. In fact, we met a Northwestern College student. She is having a great time and is sad to be returning in a little while.

Following this, we tried very hard to go into Kampala for some time "shopping." This proved absolutely fruitless. With no traffic, we should be about 15 minutes from Kampala. But there is NEVER no traffic. It was the worst, actually, that our driver had seen. A combination of the last day of school and protests in the downtown and construction saw us not moving for 90 minutes! We turned around and enjoyed the rest of the day going for a walk, reading, and enjoying down time together.

Here are some more pictures of life around here: School girls on their last day of school, University students studying together outside, and Lauren with Elisia (the housekeeper at the Guest House).

Uganda Day 6 - Principalities & Powers

Thursday, April 19

A more leisurely morning after a busy Wednesday. By the way, although our schedule may seem quite full, I am finding it wonderfully refreshing and producing in me great energy and joy. We go to bed tired but full of delight.

We might call this day, "Principalities and Powers." We met the most powerful man in the Church of Uganda (and one of the most influential people in the World Anglican Communion's current controversy over homosexuality). We witnessed the growing challenge of Islam in central Africa. And we witnessed the power of the gospel among the poorest of the people.

We traveled to the heart of Kampala - the national capital - to visit with The Most Reverend Henry Luke Orombi, Archbishop of Uganda. He was a most gracious host and a keen observer of the times we all live in. Lauren was included in this historic visit. He had many kind words for her. After visiting about the kind of ministry partnership he hopes to have, he encouraged the local Words of Hope Uganda team to concentrate on the north. "There is a window for the gospel right now. The government has a peace agreement with the Lord's Resistence Army." And then these words: "The government has a disarmament program, but it is the gospel that will truly disarm them." Praise be to God!

On our way through the city we also saw a huge and beautiful Mosque. It was clearly the most visible building in downtown. There are mosques popping in in many places, and we see not a few women wearing Muslim coverings - a sign that Islam is interacting more in places it has not historically been. Even in the evening crusade - in a small village, a Muslim man listened from the edge of the crowd.

The evening saw Lauren and I traveling with Rev. Baraka to a small village up the absolutely craziest road we have ever been on - if you can call it a road. We had to go inside because of rain, and the place was packed. There was no praise band or instruments - only a little canned music over a generator-powered p.a. system. Titus broke out a few favorite choruses and then I preached a short message. Titus took up the alter call in a fervent passion. I knew almost nothing of what was going on. No one outside of Titus spoke English, but it seemed the Lord was at work in beautiful ways. It was a poor place, but the people were eager to hear the gospel and celebrate Jesus. Many unchurched residents were also in attendance.

We are learning so much about the world we live in. We see the beauty of God in everyone we meet, along with the seeming injustice that permeates our world. In a discussion of Visas, Lauren was surprised to learn that we can travel almost anywhere in the world (as US citizens), but the people we are with have an incredibly hard time getting to visit the US for a short time. It costs $100 US to apply for a Visa, and if you don't get the Visa, you don't get your money back.

Field of Dreams?

"Are there any places where the diocese needs help with AIDS work," I asked Rev. Canon Captain Titus Baraka. I asked because the recent Sunday School class on AIDS in Africa had asked me to have my eyes open for partnering opportunities where I was going - things like orphanages or medical facilities.

Titus' answer surprised me:

"We do not feel we need more AIDS medical help from churches. There is plenty of medication available and wonderful people do that work. What we desperately need is to counsel people dealing with AIDS, their families, and their children. There is much hope if they will only allow themselves to be tested and treated."

Both Titus and his friend in ministry, Rev. Canon Steven Kazimba, have taken in AIDS orphans to their homes and know the devastating impact.

This is Titus' dream: to 1) help young people deal with sexual pressure and other temptations, 2) to educate people in the parish about how AIDS is transmitted and prevented, and 3) to counsel people who need help and courage in the face of AIDS and other problems. Many people don't want to get tested because they'd rather die than face the prospect of humiliation. Yet, if tested and found positive for HIV, there is much hope for a longer life and a healthy child. So, the biggest challenge is helping people deal with depression and denial. Many also do not want to go into a church building for help, but they will gladly go to a building outside of the church and speak more privately to the pastor or lay counselor. To that end he is developing an expanded lay counseling program called "Bethesda Christian Ministries Uganda." (He had no idea there was a Bethesda Counseling ministry in the USA.)

In any event, I couldn't but help think this might be a field of dreams to help with. Why not pray about what the Lord would have us do? I could see a team of our own trained counselors coming and helping to train lay people in Mukono. I could see us helping to fund the building of the center.

God is doing amazing things in the midst of great need. It's a joy to see the resilient faith of the church and unending efforts of Christ's servants.

Say a prayer to tonight for Titus' dream.

Uganda Day 3 - Evangelism 101

Monday, April 16

We got to sleep in, but the neighbor of the Guest House played the bag pipes at 8:30 a.m.! It was a tune called "Scotland the Brave." Oh my, rise and shine :)

We enjoyed a leisurely lunch at Uganda Christian University and topped it off with a fresh fruit pineapple smoothies.

Rev. Baraka took me to the site he hopes to build a counseling ministry and a studio for Words of Hope Uganda. I hope to write another post about that alone. It is Titus' "Field of Dreams." Could it be Trinity's, too?

Beginning around 4:00 p.m., I was taken to St. Dunsten's parish for the first of the week-long mission outreach. It's a circular church building with an outdoor stage built into the steps. A university Campus Crusade team from Kampala led Praise and Worship, followed by a powerful testimony from a student. about 200 people filled the lot - many children and teens.
Then it was my turn - I preached the message "In Jesus, I am invited" from the call of Levi. The same student who testified was my translator. She covered for my cultural mistakes and probably made me sound better to them than I was. It was the first time in my life that I was the absolutely only white person in a group of people that size. It was good for me to taste that.

The alter call was given by the university chaplain - a fiery evangelist who looked a bit like Barak Obama and every bit as passionate as Tony Campolo. I was totally the warm-up act!

Many children and teens responded to the call, but I'm not sure what the call was, since it was in Luganda. After they went inside the church to meet the pastor, the evangelist invited people to come forward for healing and deliverance. The follow-up report the next day is that several people came back to the parish to turn in witchcraft items and other animistic materials. Praise the Lord!

I was completely outside of the norm, but totally at home in the Lord. A special experience I will never forget.

Again, thanks for your prayers.

Uganda Day 2 - Church

Sunday, April 15

Church!

David Bast preached at St. Luke's parish and I preached 2 of the 3 services at the Cathedral on the campus of the Uganda Christian University. I don't yet have a picture of the outside, but it is an old stone building, with wide-open windows (no glass, no screens) - very basic and sparse, in the shape of a cross, stone floors and thin red carpet down the center aisle and chancel area. Acoustics are wonderful for singing and preaching. Despite the austere setting, the sound system was state of the art and they even have a projection system not unlike the one at Trinity. Here's the rundown of worship:

7:00 a.m. Luganda Language Anglican Liturgy service

Very formal, reasonably full sanctuary, an old electric organ, and the Book of Common Prayer service read in Luganda. The service lasted for 100 minutes. I preached my Easter message from Trinity through a translator.

9:00 a.m. English Service

Very informal, overflowing with all generations. A praise band with two keyboards, guitars, and a drum machine led worship. Songs like "The name of the Lord is a Strong Tower," "Blessed be the name of the Lord," "More precious than Silver," opened the worship after a time of confession. Later we sang a variety of hymns with an African rhythm. Amazing joy filled the room. At each service, I preached from an elevated pulpit that kept from walking around :). At this service people would applaud after a point they especially found helpful, and at the end of the sermon, there would be extended applause and "Amens!" The service lasted about 90 minutes.

11:00 a.m. Luganda Choir festival service at St. Luke's

We transitioned to hear David's third sermon at St. Luke's. We thought the service would be almost over, but by noon, he hadn't yet preached, and the service lasted until 1:3o p.m., all in Luganda.

So, Lauren was in worship from 7:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., with only 90 minutes in English!

The day ended with a dedication service (5:00 to 7:00 p.m.) at St. Luke's for the week of evangelism and launching the radio ministry. The Anglican Church of Mukono Diocese is partnering with Campus Crusade for evangelism for training and Words of Hope for broadcasting, in hopes of reaching more people for Christ. Lay people trained in evangelism came from all over the diocese to spend the whole week doing door-to-door evangelism, and the Bishop came to the evening service to pray for them.

I hope to post more later about the week's schedule.

Thanks for your prayers.

Uganda Day 1 - Cultural Immersion

Saturday, April 14

Although I'm writing this on Sunday, let's talk about Saturday, first. We finally got to a wi-fi source and we can update you on a few things. It's hard to imagine how much we have experienced in such a little time.






We landed Friday night at 7:45 p.m. Uganda time. We had travelled for 36 hours straight! The flights were wonderful, if long. After landing, we made our way from Entebbe to Mukono - about 1.5 hours of traffic. Though we passed a few million people, it is surprising how dark the city is. We stayed Friday and Saturday nights in a very nice hotel, and transitioned on Sunday to the mission guest house on the campus of Uganda Christian University in Mukono.


Saturday was absolutely unbelievable. We travelled another 1.5 hours north to Busaana, a remote village, with no electricity or water. We visited a people who speak the Bari language, the first language outside of English that Words of Hope Uganda is broadcasting in.

Saturday was the launch celebration. About 1,000 people participated in a "March for Jesus" through the village. People had come from miles around, some had walked over 5 miles and stayed over night. We feasted, celebrated and 'marched' to a local band brigade. Then we worshiped for a long a time and David Bast preached a salvation message. It was translated from English into Luganda and then from Luganda into Bari. The Bari broadcast team from the Mukono was also with us, having coordinated this day for several months in advance.


The team leaders were overwhelmed with joy as they heard stories of people praising God for the programs. The Rev. Canon Captain Titus Baraka is the chariman of the project and he was thrilled by the early results. To top it all off, about 50 people came forward for an alter call.

As for Lauren and me? We were simply in a daze of culture shock and immense joy. These people have so little and praised God from the bottom of their hearts. We tried all kinds of food we had never seen or thought of, including matoke, a cooked banana dish that is very pleasing.

Lest this post become too long, we'll leave it off at that. The two pictures are of the march and inside the church.

I'll try to update later on what has all happened on Sunday - again, an incredible day.

Finally, David Bast again thanked Trinity for the wonderful mission support. The extra year-end giving helped to launch this broadcast and do evangelism training for the local churches.

Uganda Awaits

The first experience in the renewal program will be to visit Uganda with Rev. David Bast of Words of Hope. Lauren, age 13, will accompany Jon and David. They will be part of a post-Easter evangelistic emphasis in the Mukono Diocese of the Anglican Church of Uganda. Mukono is located just a short drive northwest of the capital, Kampala. Mukono is not on this map. You can click the map to see a larger picture. The climax will be a "March for Jesus" on April 21. Jon will connect with the global church and encounter how Islam is beginning to impact life in the equatorial Africa, a traditionally strong Christian region. While there, Jon will speak at a few events and preach April 22 at the three morning worship celebrations at the Cathedral in Mukono Christian University.