Things are looking up

It’s been two weeks since I got here.  On average, most short-term trippers would be on the flight home now.  I am still here for the next 10 months, and I haven’t even almost barely begun to understand how to relate to people here.  But things are looking up.

Talking with a few "jeunes" (young people)
in the quartier... with my perpetual confused face

I’ve realized a few things about African relationships.  Story time.  The first time I went to the duck duck goose quartier, I had the opportunity to talk to a couple young fellows, Jean-Luc and Gabi.  During the conversation, Jean-Luc showed me this paper filled with Scriptures and declarations about the blood of Jesus, printed all in English.  I thought he was asking me to translate his paper into French.  I agreed, thinking it would be a good friendship favor, but later I suspected that he just duped me into doing his homework.  I translated only the declarations, thinking that he could translate the verses on his own with his French Bible, but upon taking it back to him and telling him that, he had a new request for me.  He didn’t have a French-English Bible, but he wanted one.  I didn’t have one either so I said I would talk to someone about getting one.  A few days later they showed up at the gate to the house asking me if I could teach an English class for them.  See where this is going?    

I thought the same thing too, that they just wanted things from me.  Not that I was opposed to that, since they were asking for uhh Bibles, but relationships in my perspective are hard to form when nearly the first to the last sentence of a conversation deals entirely with the latest request. 

But I talked to the missionary who knows these kids and runs the school they go to about the whole thing, and she gave me a different perspective.  Apparently they fell away from church and slipped into witchcraft and worldly living, but now it looked like God was bringing them back.  That’s why she gave them the Scriptures about the blood of Jesus, and that’s why they wanted the French-English Bibles.  She said that Gabi wanted to get the whole quartier saved, and they were hungry for more teaching and discipleship.  Both of them agreed to work to earn money to buy the Bibles.  So…they’re not just some kids trying to jip me into doing their homework or getting them free stuff.  They are honestly spiritually hungry. 

People are not always as they appear to me here.  I need discernment and patience to be able to figure out relationships and who people really are.

Inside Pasteur Ezekiel's church.
There were about 60 adults and 80 children that came.

Ministry plans here are starting to spirit out.  Because we’re not living according to the flesh.  Haha lame Jesus juke.  Ok so I love talking with young people—les universitaires, university students my age.  At the prayer meeting last Friday, a new fellow joined the church.  He transferred from the larger parent church of the church plant.  Back there, he worked with the evangelism/get-people-to-come-to-church department, and I’ll be serving with him in talking to, visiting, and praying for people while inviting them to come to our church.  I would love to do that. 

Oh and about that… a couple days ago, Hannah and I went around the neighborhood with Pasteur Ezekiel’s wife, Maman Mimi, to hand out church invitations to people.  She kept saying “Si un blanch le leur donne, ils viennent.” If a white person gives them a flyer, they’ll come.

Hm.  I was not quite sure what to think of that.  It made me a bit uncomfortable.  After talking with Bill a bit, I realized this…  Here, people highly regard all things Western.  If it’s American, it’s better.  That, and they associate white skin with wealth, because most white folk who pass through are wealthy.  When white people attend a church, it gives the church credibility.  That’s kinda why the church we went to this Sunday often had the camera on us for their TV broadcasting.  So, then I will use this white skin—wisely—as a tool to draw others in.  Does that make you feel like that’s not right?  A lot of me does too.  But we’ll see how this goes.

That calls for another corollary lesson on missions:  keep the long-term goal in mind in the midst of temporary ministry.  After 10 months, white man will be gone and so will the attraction that comes with me.  Whatever draw I could offer myself is only temporary.  That’s not a bad thing, and it’s certainly not so if people see that credibility, come to church, and are made into disciples because of that.  But I need to offer more than just my skin color in order to help establish a long-lasting, effective evangelism/people-reacher department whose ultimate draw is the love, fellowship, acceptance, grace, and provision of Christ, not just a white man.  The relationships I will establish with my Congolese friends in this ministry are essential to completing this.  This is what I am so looking forward to!!

Here's another great ministry possibility.
Students come from all across town to study
on the peaceful, beautiful compound.
Maybe something can come out of this.

The girls got to sing at a prison a couple times.

All in all, relating to people cross-culturally is tough.  I have found that is easy to concede to fleshly tendencies and frustrations on the field and let new changes in character and behavior get out of hand.  But I have learned one powerful weapon against conforming to the flesh and towards living by the will and Spirit of God--prayer.  However, prayer is not what strengthens us and gives Christ-like character and directs our path—our Heavenly Father does that, and He can be related to in prayer.  It is only through Jesus, who has cleansed me of my sin and put me in perfect standing before God, through whom I can relate to the Father.  And it is only through living the example of Jesus, which can only be forged by God in prayer, that I can relate to these people in love.

Did I mention this would be the making of a missionary?