tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12393392047524875272024-03-13T11:57:29.165+03:00AFRICONNECTIONMark and Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07325748585359702442noreply@blogger.comBlogger76125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1239339204752487527.post-15910676555569712042011-11-21T07:49:00.000+03:002011-11-21T07:49:43.791+03:00A Report of Blessings--A Plea for Help<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;">Well Hello!</span></b><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><b>Our last blog post to you was sent nearly 18 months ago--sometime the summer of 2010. Since that time, we have bought a condo in a walkable part of San Diego with restaurants and book and coffee shops nearby. Mark is very much enjoying his job at Point Loma and Nan is teaching a parenting class and has been named a part-time university chaplain at our nearby graduate campus. We feel so happy and so fulfilled and that the Lord is REALLY taking care of us.</b></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><b>This post isn't mainly about us, though. It's about a phone call we got and the thinking it made us do.</b></span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhNpJAdxdpcjzDJywAy-JUxrnHbSBtXRAUkQUKKQqOOLiauOWn9tcDxST2u8ccwKFs8WQvTn4ImnLgmwQIJhElCq3xXVHEGRkhAhv9b4MOnn_jmDkJnBFOQpaNH9_uC-ZhyphenhyphenpQU_CTIQCxm/s1600/DSC_2468.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><b><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhNpJAdxdpcjzDJywAy-JUxrnHbSBtXRAUkQUKKQqOOLiauOWn9tcDxST2u8ccwKFs8WQvTn4ImnLgmwQIJhElCq3xXVHEGRkhAhv9b4MOnn_jmDkJnBFOQpaNH9_uC-ZhyphenhyphenpQU_CTIQCxm/s320/DSC_2468.JPG" width="254" /></b></span></a></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><b>Our regular readers (or the readers of the first <i>African Voices</i> book NMI distributed last year) have already met Rev. Ermias Mekuria. He's a bright, deeply faithful husband and father of 3 handsome sons. He and his wife Mulu stayed in our home for a few days when they were doing deputation in Southern California earlier this year and they're just FUN. We laughed, went to a couple of Ethiopian restaurants together, talked about our kids, his wife Mulu had brought packets of exotic spices from home and she and Nancy spent HOURS cooking a delicious Ethiopian dinner--it was wonderful.</b></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><b>Rev. Mekuria is the Field Strategy Coordinator for the work of the Church of the Nazarene in the Horn of Africa. One of the things we've noticed about Ermias, John Yual who's the District Superintendent for all of the Sudan and others is a not-entirely-explainable JOY that they carry around with them. This isn't "things are going well for me" joy or "I'm headed into the holiday season" joy. This is "The JOY of the Lord is my strength" joy. It has to be. Because things for Nazarenes in the Horn of Africa are really challenging.</b></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><b>That brings us to the phone call. As he does when he's in the US for denominational meetings, Ermias checks in--we're sure he does it with others as well. He called last Monday morning just to say "hello", to give greetings from his wife Mulu and some of our other friends in the Horn. After we'd chatted for a bit, we asked him, "How can we be praying for you?" And he said quietly--"Well you know we're still struggling with the drought and the famine in the Horn. We'd be very glad if you'd pray about that." It was typical of Ermias: no drama, no request for anything OTHER than prayer.</b></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><b>After he hung up,though, we couldn't get the conversation and the images of what our brothers and sisters are going through in Ethiopia, Sudan and Somalia out of our minds. The fact that OUR lives are so pleasant and that WE are headed into a time of turkey and pie and gifts provided some thought-provoking context for Ermias' prayer.</b></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><b>People handle inequity in different ways. Nan and I are trying to think what God would have us do with the challenges in the Horn of Africa in LIGHT of our blessings. We'll let others decide whether it's wrong for there to be such great disparities. Mother Teresa says the poverty that really matters most is SPIRITUAL poverty--the lack of God's empowering and enriching presence in our lives. Our Ethiopian and Sudanese brothers and sisters are genuinely RICH in faith and in commitment to God, and the church in the Horn of Africa is growing as a result. That said, Africans in the Horn are suffering. Nazarenes in the Horn--pastors and laypeople--are watching their children suffer.</b></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><b>We've always said that your mission field may be your neighbors or someone in your church. If the Lord has laid a burden on your heart and you're going to be preparing gifts for an elementary school or fixing dinner for a needy family or doing something extra nice for one of your own KIDS who's been out of work for awhile, and the Lord tells you that's your mission, then thanks for the difference you're going to make and many blessings.</b></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><b>If on the other hand, you are feeling a special sense of God's blessing this Thanksgiving/ Christmas season and feel the Lord suggesting that you might be part of a miracle for a Nazarene family on the other side of the world, then the rest of this blog post is for you.</b></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><b>As it does often, our church, the Church of the Nazarene, is stepping up and providing a way for compassionate Nazarenes to make a difference in the Horn. Rev.Ermias asked for prayer and of course we would encourage you to do that, but somewhere in Ethiopia or the Sudan right now there is a Nazarene mother or father praying for food and water for their struggling children. By clicking on this link: <a href="http://www.ncm.org/news/press/famine_plagues_horn_of_africa/">NCM Horn of Africa Miracle</a> you'll be directed to more information and a way you can contribute to the miracle the Lord wants to do in the Horn of Africa. Just imagine, you enter a number and hit a button on your computer and in a few weeks a Nazarene family gets up from their prayers and looks outside to find bags of food being delivered by truck because of you! </b></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><b>We feel so very blessed, we've prayed about how to communicate our gratitude to the Lord with funds to put food and water on Nazarene tables there. If you feel moved, we'd encourage you to give as well. Thank you in advance for your faithfulness. </b></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><b>Many blessings, Happy Thanksgiving, Merry Christmas,</b></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #444444; font-size: large;"><b>Mark and Nancy Pitts</b></span><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thanks for reading, and don't forget, you can find the pictures and past posts at www.africonnection.org. Thanks for your prayers and love. Mark and Nan</div>Mark and Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07325748585359702442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1239339204752487527.post-38750302383714216772010-06-30T23:18:00.001+03:002010-06-30T23:23:42.974+03:00Transition Post--So Long But Not Goodbye<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Well, where to start? As we shared in a previous post, we had made the decision not to extend our commitment to World Mission and <st1:placename w:st="on">Africa</st1:placename> <st1:placename w:st="on">Nazarene</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">University</st1:placetype> beyond its original length, and in fact had to abbreviate it just a bit to meet the wishes of <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placetype w:st="on">Point</st1:placetype> <st1:placename w:st="on">Loma</st1:placename> <st1:placename w:st="on">Nazarene</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">University</st1:placetype></st1:place>, Mark's new employer.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">First perhaps a bit about the last few days and weeks at Africa Nazarene and then a report and some pictures from our first days in the <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">US</st1:place></st1:country-region> and then finally some things we've learned.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">"LATTER DAYS" IN AFRICA<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><br />
</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Within the last two months, Nancy and Mark got a couple of things done that had been on the "to do" list for over a year. In late April, Mark flew to <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Johannesburg</st1:place></st1:city> and did interviews for the second "African Voices" NMI book we have been asked to do. He spent several hours over two days with Dr. Enoch Litswele (pictured), whose parents became Nazarenes in the 1920's and who has been a Nazarene pastor, educator and Bible college head in Malawi, South Africa, Zimbabwe. It was fascinating to hear his stories of the history of the Church of the Nazarene, especially in <st1:place w:st="on">Southern Africa</st1:place>.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><br />
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<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 18px;">During that same trip, Dr. Filimao Chambo stepped away from strategic planning sessions to spend several hours being interviewed. He too, has a lengthy history with the church of the Nazarene. His family has been part of the denomination for over 85 years. From him, though, Mark got a glimpse of the future of the Church of the Nazarene in <st1:place w:st="on">Africa</st1:place>. Blog readers who have access to Nazarene missionary books will be able to read both of those chapters in a book scheduled to come out in 2011.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPyAfEfgDGAw8Hj4rihA5OL7UJhBbi8DtDupFNOejsYs1kxwLSUOUIjtDDv9jaN90b8PByiVbdeKv3dTU7jjxkC-rMmqrq4vmIMWuEPCOzZTmIKFYzYU0V-TpfyqwAJHq9tNRvQUrJMirJ/s1600/DSC_1351+(Medium).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPyAfEfgDGAw8Hj4rihA5OL7UJhBbi8DtDupFNOejsYs1kxwLSUOUIjtDDv9jaN90b8PByiVbdeKv3dTU7jjxkC-rMmqrq4vmIMWuEPCOzZTmIKFYzYU0V-TpfyqwAJHq9tNRvQUrJMirJ/s320/DSC_1351+(Medium).JPG" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Mark also got to visit with Spencer and April Baggott who were in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">South Africa</st1:place></st1:country-region> for medical appointments, and their great kids, Luke and Abbie (pictured)<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><br />
</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">In May, Nancy and Mark went with Rev. Don and Evie Gardner, our Field Strategy Coordinator and his wife, to the Maasai Mara--kind of the classic <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Kenya</st1:place></st1:country-region> safari experience, and it did not disappoint. We stayed in a tented camp and spent one memorable afternoon with lions walking between our vehicles and roaring within 20 feet of us (pictured). It was a wonderful goodbye to the amazing wildlife of <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Kenya</st1:place></st1:country-region>.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">In early June, the goodbyes began officially. We can say without qualification that never in our past lives and we expect never in our future lives will we experience the warmth and kindness of our leavetaking in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Kenya</st1:place></st1:country-region>. Over the course of 2-3 weeks there was a University "high tea" in the Helstrom Student Center auditorium with 600 people in attendance and ending with our being pulled onstage to begin a kind of African "conga line" of students, faculty and staff that snaked its way 3-4 times around the auditorium floor. <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Nancy</st1:place></st1:city> said the highlight was watching Mark dance. Mark felt her smile had a subtext to it. When Mark went by Pastor Bekke, a wonderful preacher and singer from <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Swaziland</st1:place></st1:country-region>, a nation whose Nazarenes tend to be pretty conservative about dancing, Mark said, "Pastor Bekke, please don't tell the Swazi church I was dancing!" Pastor Bekke said, "No, I will tell them you were just happy!" <o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">That same week there was an evening goodbye dinner for faculty and staff. There were also ten other events--goodbye parties with the Religion Students Association (B.Th. grad dinner in our home pictured), the International Students Association, with the Alumni Association, with Mark's staff, with the Department of Religion, the congregation of University Church, with the missionaries--a dozen goodbye events in all. Beyond that, as we tried to complete our packing, we finally had to put a note on our door saying, "We would love to talk but we need to finish our packing" because, in the African tradition which marks intimacy and real friendship, people were dropping by all day to bring small gifts and to make short, really eloquent speeches about something one of us said that touched someones heart. Because Africans value oral tradition, they are more formal in their speech on such occasions, and they make a point of remembering something one of us has said. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">On Thursday, we were acknowledged and thanked by the Vice Chancellor, Professor Leah Marangu and on Friday at Graduation we were thanked by our Regional Director, Dr. Filimao Chambo.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Now an acknowledgment and disclaimer: First, the primary point we hope you can gain here there is </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 18px;">that Africans are world class in their ability to communicate the importance and value of a relationship. We continue to think about and copy some of the things we have learned from them about relationship.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 18px;">If we had done the same thing on an American campus, there would have been a formal event with a plaque and some nice speeches, but that the level of support here is uniquely African, all out of proportion to the amount of time we have been here from an American point of view.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Second, Mark would say that a good portion of the warmth of the goodbyes comes from having a wife who is SO relational, who opened her office to students and heard their concerns and advised them. African kids have very busy parents and they are lonely for adult mentors. <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Nancy</st1:place></st1:city> served that role with them and also with faculty and staff in a wonderful way. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Even so, we do want to thank our African colleagues and students and friends for the incredible, unforgettable warmth of your goodbyes to us. We literally will never forget it and hope to retain relationship with as many as possible of you. That "deal" of buying you lunch if you get to <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">San Diego</st1:place></st1:city> is a real offer!<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Friday, June 18th began with Mark and Nancy participating in graduation (including a symbolic handoff of the ANU ceremonial "mace" from Mark, through the Vice Chancellor, to the new DVC Dr. Rodney Reed) and ended with Mark and Nancy getting on a plane for LA. Due to flying with the sun, we were able to have ANU graduation lunch on FRIDAY with Filimao Chambo, Jon and Margaret Scott in Kenya and a "Father's Day" lunch on SATURDAY with our children and the new grandbaby in LA (see picture).<o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">"EARLY DAYS" IN <st1:state w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">CALIFORNIA</st1:place></st1:state><o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 18px;"><br />
</span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><st1:state w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">After our lunch on Saturday with the kids, we crashed in a hotel for a couple of nights to rest up and then picked up an air mattress and a couple of lawn chairs and moved into our new condo (street view pictured--rented at least short-term from Point Loma). Within a week we had installed internet (aaaahhhhh--the luxury of a connection that mainly WORKS and is pretty zippy!), gotten cable, gotten SIM cards or topped up our phones, purchased a car, signed up for Point Loma benefits, and generally started our new life. Our first night in San Diego, we had dinner at George's Ocean Terrace, a wonderful restaurant overlooking the Pacific Ocean (Nan and Mark pictured there).</st1:place></st1:state></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHy5jVeTpHQ6pKnt659qF2rhw6UgHOJDwnUzd3m8Yz8YyzDhPUSFiSsPrz0ZpioB3OdNx2u6d_-HgfkJLNZtkbbN_qJbXkarV6weZT1nFpl0gKJnRJYUVVET7xGdu8-9lUj13WexZil0kh/s1600/IMG_0215+(Medium).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHy5jVeTpHQ6pKnt659qF2rhw6UgHOJDwnUzd3m8Yz8YyzDhPUSFiSsPrz0ZpioB3OdNx2u6d_-HgfkJLNZtkbbN_qJbXkarV6weZT1nFpl0gKJnRJYUVVET7xGdu8-9lUj13WexZil0kh/s320/IMG_0215+(Medium).JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><st1:state w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on"><br />
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</st1:place></st1:state></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><st1:state w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">In spare moments, we worked on the chapters for the second African Voices NMI book--more incredible stories of capable and faithful Afrricans doing important Kingdom work. Yesterday, in an amazing coincidence, BOTH of our shipments--the one from Nampa and the one from Kenya--arrived within 3 hours of each other! We got bed and other furniture wrestled into place, but as you can see from the boxes in our living room (pictured), still a lot of work to do!</st1:place></st1:state></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4NeWcpekQjUgYWM92KjKyuwKnL42F9ZyrIba1R4PJX0MqcdlTEInQLGueBzvFdaMJ6U40mcfjJ9vOAt00Tm7MMWT1mkBJTwY485m58TLikyJzyif2IGMRbk0oVltrpHu8rhjpb9nWrWO1/s1600/IMG_0244+(Medium).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4NeWcpekQjUgYWM92KjKyuwKnL42F9ZyrIba1R4PJX0MqcdlTEInQLGueBzvFdaMJ6U40mcfjJ9vOAt00Tm7MMWT1mkBJTwY485m58TLikyJzyif2IGMRbk0oVltrpHu8rhjpb9nWrWO1/s320/IMG_0244+(Medium).JPG" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><st1:state w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on"><br />
</st1:place></st1:state></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><st1:state w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on"></st1:place></st1:state></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">SOME THINGS WE LEARNED<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">In conclusion, some insights and thoughts about our time in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Kenya</st1:place></st1:country-region>:<o:p></o:p></span></div><ul type="disc"><li class="MsoNormal" style="color: black; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="font-size: 7pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">If we had it to do over again, would we make the same decision to spend three years in training and serving, WOULD we do it all again? Our answer is an enthusiastic "yes." It was a real experience with some aggravations and disappointments and challenges in it, of course. Even so, our time at Nazarene Theological and at<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on"><st1:place u1:st="on"><st1:placename u1:st="on">Africa</st1:placename><span class="apple-converted-space"></span></st1:place></st1:placename> </st1:place></span><st1:placename w:st="on"><st1:placename u1:st="on">Nazarene</st1:placename><span class="apple-converted-space"></span></st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on"><st1:placetype u1:st="on">University</st1:placetype><span class="apple-converted-space"></span></st1:placetype> has been a highlight of our experience-blessed lives.<o:p></o:p></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: black; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">We’ve learned that twenty-first century missionary training is very different from training and philosophy of missions a century ago. As a result, it’s useful to us in a variety of situations: listen more than we talk, cultivate partnerships, accept and allow for cultural differences, suspend quick judgment, avoid authoritarian language, accept that understanding comes in several layers over an extended period of time.<o:p></o:p></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: black; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">We are encouraged and blessed by the energy and growth of the church in<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><st1:place w:st="on"><st1:place u1:st="on">Africa</st1:place></st1:place>.<o:p></o:p></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: black; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">We are constantly amazed at and instructed by the quality and the level of commitment of the denominational leaders in<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><st1:place w:st="on"><st1:place u1:st="on">Africa</st1:place></st1:place>. No one there told us, “Be more like us”, but how do we process the fact that two of the people in this book are training to go back into a creative access area where they may be estranged from their families and their lives will be in jeopardy for sharing the gospel, where one interviewee was part of a house church in which 80% of the members were martyred in 18 months, where several of those we have spoken for these interviews and in other contexts have left jobs or training in engineering, veterinary medicine, or government service to follow the call of the gospel? As we return to the<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on"><st1:country-region u1:st="on"><st1:place u1:st="on">US</st1:place></st1:country-region></st1:place></st1:country-region>, what do we do with the example of sacrifice made by some of the people featured in this book?<o:p></o:p></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: black; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">Our clear and easy “answers” to some of the challenges in<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><st1:place w:st="on"><st1:place u1:st="on">Africa</st1:place><span class="apple-converted-space"></span></st1:place> </span>have melted away as we understand better the complexity of the circumstances. We recall the essayist who said, “There is a simple answer to every complex life question, and that simple answer is always wrong.” <o:p></o:p></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: black; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">While it’s true that there is poverty and corruption and disease in Africa, it is also true that Africa is making progress in many areas and that the global church needs to see Africa as a real place—not all safaris or all slums, but a place with gleaming shopping centers and well-travelled and well-dressed people and well-educated people as well as those struggling with the well-documented challenges.<o:p></o:p></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: black; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">Because we have heard African denominational leaders say such things repeatedly, we believe that Wesleyan-Holiness is a unique and effective resource in addressing some of the key challenges in<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><st1:place w:st="on"><st1:place u1:st="on">Africa</st1:place></st1:place>. The idea of “prevenient grace” is good news to people for whom fatalism about the future is a natural response to great hardship. The idea that Christians are “co-laborers” with Christ is a powerful response to dependency. Our interviewees point to holiness over and over as an antidote to corruption and nominal Christianity if we dedicate ourselves more to imperfectly living it rather than to perfectly defining it.<o:p></o:p></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: black; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">For ourselves, we are praising the Lord for the new opportunities he is providing, but admit to being in “listening and abiding” mode for his will beyond new business cards and position description. It’s so easy to see missionaries as the front line in evangelism and the Western world as a de-militarized zone, and yet the newspapers provide painful evidence that darkness is at work in comfortable American neighborhoods as well. In a powerful NPR interview before her death, Mother Teresa pointed to spiritual poverty as a more debilitating condition than economic poverty and encouraged<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><st1:place w:st="on"><st1:place u1:st="on">First World</st1:place><span class="apple-converted-space"></span></st1:place> </span>people to engage close to home as well as far from it. As we said in our deputation services, we do believe this is part of what the Lord is telling us.<o:p></o:p></li>
</ul><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Finally, faithful readers of Africonnection and friends and colleagues and "fellow-travelers" on this journey of faith, we thank you more than we can express for your engagement, for your notes and face to face comments telling us you were reading, and for your kindnesses to us in other ways. The Church of the Nazarene, like all organizations, is changing, but we have benefited from the tradition of strong prayer and emotional support for missionaries. Two suggestions for you to consider: first, please do look for other international missionaries to whom you could extend some of your prayer and emotional support. </span><o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">We'd also ask this--there is a new wind blowing that encourages committed Christians to have missionary hearts in more familiar settings. We hear occasionally from some young people or people in transition who say--"I'm wanting to serve God in a deeper way. Is there some work I can do in <st1:place w:st="on">Africa</st1:place>?" Now the answer to that question is always "yes," but we worry a bit that the reason it's phrased that way is because serving in Africa (or to some extent in <st1:country-region w:st="on">China</st1:country-region> or in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">India</st1:place></st1:country-region>) has been seen as kind of the "gold standard" for service and commitment. </span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><br />
</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Even some of our African friends, though, are saying to us--why don't your people serve closer to home? And of course Americans DO serve close to home--in all kinds of volunteer or service organizations, paid and upaid but it would be so wonderful if the church could extend its emotional and spiritual support in deeper, richer ways to those "local, tent-maker missionaries" and to see the work THEY do as part of a new "gold standard." Could you look for someone like that and give them the level of support and prayer you have given us? Many of you will say--I'm already doing that, and we thank you for, as usual, being way ahead of us in your insights and faithfulness, but one final thought--any chance the Lord is asking YOU to be that "new era, local, tent-making missionary"? <o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><br />
</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">For ourselves, we believe this new kind of missionary service is what God is calling us to, but we are feeling our way and praying for God's daily guidance and insight. The path is not clear, the job description and parameters of this new chapter are not set. You won't be getting these blog posts anymore (somehow pictures of lions from the San Diego Zoo just don't have the same "zing" as pictures from Maasai Mara!). But we would covet your prayers and we will be praying for you that each of us can have insights about what God is calling us to do in this new era where ALL missionaries hearts are moved, but only SOME missionaries addresses change. Blessings on you, thank you again, and best wishes as you seek the Lord's will for your own area of service.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><br />
</div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">So long but not goodbye, </span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Nancy and Mark</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><br />
</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">See Amboseli sunset and Pacific Ocean sunset pictured below.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIkWam8NjHLDZyuGxttF1zdOGoVGyDiWczFG-Xc8fAjR3ykI9CyL9esTTLJzTe5hd8b-ydoQzhp-XPbhCGra4rYpz-WyGB4Wz_eviG2y6kwW2skPL8hpokVKl4dYucIJSdVWTqmoosayWU/s1600/DSC_4468+(Medium).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIkWam8NjHLDZyuGxttF1zdOGoVGyDiWczFG-Xc8fAjR3ykI9CyL9esTTLJzTe5hd8b-ydoQzhp-XPbhCGra4rYpz-WyGB4Wz_eviG2y6kwW2skPL8hpokVKl4dYucIJSdVWTqmoosayWU/s320/DSC_4468+(Medium).JPG" /></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;"><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><br />
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</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thanks for reading, and don't forget, you can find the pictures and past posts at www.africonnection.org. Thanks for your prayers and love. Mark and Nan</div>Mark and Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07325748585359702442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1239339204752487527.post-54907566227281991092010-03-22T16:59:00.000+03:002010-03-22T16:59:13.789+03:00March Update and Transition Information<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEMeyCd3wnJAPoxC5cASVvONBeBCvofcc7vztShnaZ9XiClh_xI0MUjzcxoeMsJFDj8Iv8eaEud2eTRa9laGCMb5vntpuvlYgiic5DcUAmsr3nTrlIlVEBBE_RLu7P7ImYfF21LSZ2lyU_/s1600-h/DSC_0245+(Large).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;"><s><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEMeyCd3wnJAPoxC5cASVvONBeBCvofcc7vztShnaZ9XiClh_xI0MUjzcxoeMsJFDj8Iv8eaEud2eTRa9laGCMb5vntpuvlYgiic5DcUAmsr3nTrlIlVEBBE_RLu7P7ImYfF21LSZ2lyU_/s320/DSC_0245+(Large).JPG" /></s></span></a></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;">I<b>t's Saturday morning here--an opportunity for spending a little extra time on our devotions and for catching up on some household chores. It's hard to believe that we've entered the third year since our transition from Northwest Nazarene. A lot of amazing experiences, wonderful conversations, and with God's help, some significant accomplishments in that time. What's the news since our last entry?</b><s><o:p></o:p></s></span></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;"><s><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVdDetJI9uJW0fIwdISBpSdOrJ659mZt3dNBa5-njhTlSB5K2WJ7UpWq0svigKbMrzsH5mu2rZyEXJX81s2_mA-uXoqkVk_Xg0u4qNbQSjzK-vuhZsye1yUg8TOiUrsilmp8JZwVst8xL8/s1600-h/DSC_0319+(Large).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;"><s><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVdDetJI9uJW0fIwdISBpSdOrJ659mZt3dNBa5-njhTlSB5K2WJ7UpWq0svigKbMrzsH5mu2rZyEXJX81s2_mA-uXoqkVk_Xg0u4qNbQSjzK-vuhZsye1yUg8TOiUrsilmp8JZwVst8xL8/s320/DSC_0319+(Large).JPG" /></s></span></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="color: black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>In late December and early January, our "last" adult child, Benjamin, came to Kenya, completing the family visits. He welcomed in the new year in Kenya, visited the Nairobi National Museum and Amboseli National Park.In the picture, we got such a kick out of the Maasai, who are famous for their height, being overshadowed by our vertically precocious son! (Yes, and you have permission to slap your leg when you remember that his father Mark is 5'8" and a little horizontally precocious!) The Park showed very clear signs of the terrible drought Kenya has been experiencing. The Maasai we visited with said they had started the drought with over 800 cattle and ended it with 300. We would ask for your prayers for the Maasai and for all people in the rural areas of Kenya and other parts of Africa. </b></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="color: black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: x-large;"><s><br />
</s></span></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="color: black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>The NMI book African Voices has been released, and should be available for local NMI chapters right now. Since we were primarily just the editors of the inspiring words and ideas of our African interviewees, maybe it's ok if we encourage you to read the book and experience some of the blessing and inspiration and challenge WE experienced as we talked with the leaders featured in the book, including an interview with our new General Superintendent, Eugenio Duarte.</b></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><s><o:p></o:p></s></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="color: black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="color: black;"><span style="color: black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>In addition, NMI has asked us to do a second book of interviews, so we are having additional conversations. Interestingly, two of our most recent conversations have been with former Muslims who are now passionate Christians and Nazarenes. They have faced and are facing terrible persecution as a result of their faith. As a result, we have agreed to disguise their names and other details to help protect them from further persecution. One man, for example, was a member of a small house church in the capital city of his home country. Over a period of less than two years, almost 90% of the members of this church were martyred for their faith and only this man and one other are still alive! And yet this man has persevered to become an ordained Nazarene minister and graduate of one of our developed-world Nazarene institutions. We have not finished transcription of his interview yet, but when we do, we'll share some excerpts with you. It is inspiring and challenging to us and we think will be to you as well. <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b>An interview we completed just this last Tuesday was with two young men, also both former Muslims, who have been inspired by the truth of the gospel and want to bring that truth to the people of their own country. Will you join us in praying for all three of these men, that God will protect and guide them in their work?</b></span></b></span></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="color: black;"><span style="color: black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b><br />
</b></span></b></span></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="color: black;"><span style="color: black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal;"><b>(Picture lovers don't give up--there are two more pictures near the end, including a "pre-grandbaby" picture!)</b></span></b></span></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style="color: black;"><span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman';"></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b><br />
</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Some other highlights?</b></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;"></span></div><ul type="disc"><li class="MsoNormal" style="color: black; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>At ANU, Nancy is teaching Christian Beliefs and Spiritual Formation. In a way, though, these are only the small parts of her work. The main part (this is Mark talking here!) is mentoring and mothering a constant stream of students who come in and out of her office.<o:p></o:p></b></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: black; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>The University has just completed, under the leadership of Vice Chancellor Leah Marangu, Chancellor Jerry Lambert, and facilitator Dr. Jim Copple, a very significant "Youth Summit" whose goal is the empowerment, education and employment of Kenyan Youth. Millions of Kenyan young people are unemployed, and millions more will be born in the next decade. This summit was co-sponsored by ANU; Nazarene Compassionate Ministries, Incorporated; USAID; the Kenyan government and several Kenyan corporations. It was officially opened by Moi Kibaki, the President of Kenya. Nazarenes in the US can be justifiably proud that their University in Africa is engaged with Kenyan government, business and academic leaders, American government officals, and Nazarene officials, is working on practical solutions to some of the persistent challenges in Africa.<o:p></o:p></b></span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="color: black; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Mark is working with departments on several projects. The University is implementing a new academic database and trainers from the US were on campus last week training staff and faculty. The University is introducing several new academic programs next trimester and Mark is helping program launch coordinators in programs including Law, Peace and Conflict Resolution, Counseling, as well as the distance learning delivery of Christian Ministries and Commerce. In addition, he's helping the Department of Religion with a proposal for the start of a new and badly needed doctoral program. It's a bit of a stretch for the Department from a Western perspective, but is a high priority for the denomination in Africa and would make further use of our good group of doctorally prepared Religion faculty.</b></span></li>
</ul><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>What's the transition news?</b></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><i><b><br />
</b></i></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>When we accepted the invitation to come to ANU, we agreed that we would be away from the US for three years. As we mentioned earlier, we are nearing the third anniversary of our transition from NNU to ANU. While our intent has always been to return to the US after three years, we had hoped that it could be marked from our arrival in Kenya in January 2008 rather than from our departure from NNU. Nevertheless, since Mark needed to find employment in the US upon our return, we shared our intentions with the ANU Vice Chancellor and World Mission leadership late last year and began networking. </b></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><i><b><br />
</b></i></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: inherit;"><b>We prayed for a place where we could continue to serve the Kingdom and the denomination, and in our most audacious prayers, we prayed for a place close to our five adult children in LA. By early January, Mark was in conversation with three institutions--one in the Northwest and two in Southern California. By mid-January Mark began talking in earnest with Point Loma Nazarene University about a position as Vice Provost for Academic Administration (the position Keith Bell currently holds, for our California readers).</b></span></div><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;"><b> In mid-February Point Loma very generously invited both of us to come to San Diego for interviews and encouraged us to spend a few days with our children in Los Angeles, including Andrew's wife Birge, pictured with our first grandchild. Two days after our return PLNU offered Mark the position which he accepted, with the transition to happen as the current Vice Provost retires at the end of June.</b></span></div><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkBCHfY0X1mUOS5DDKYpfvRzH03lLqp3vOT5AmRVpFb6BYI5qWRd4eaRD_SXsN6dS4FScFMxAhHBWMDwLLiu-5C1HrROjIsUQtnClqIV8EYz8C6-HMzNUcXuTwZHp6ejJd-8dgocL66T_a/s1600-h/IMG_0188+(Large).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4GngMa6quC0dQEvK5g04kWWRQReSxtztMBLzxx6pterFFf00c6VCSZ8f1vYzmZ_lw_OmKsEKjwhyphenhyphenCuXtoTqKRlbObGzkp9mk5xnW1whNm4xnBPkZxB04zhCX7A3IpNjsW8E3cyAHsJYDu/s1600-h/IMG_0163+(Large).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4GngMa6quC0dQEvK5g04kWWRQReSxtztMBLzxx6pterFFf00c6VCSZ8f1vYzmZ_lw_OmKsEKjwhyphenhyphenCuXtoTqKRlbObGzkp9mk5xnW1whNm4xnBPkZxB04zhCX7A3IpNjsW8E3cyAHsJYDu/s320/IMG_0163+(Large).JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="MsoBodyText"><b>Leave it to the Lord to answer our prayers so extravagantly! To be called to a Nazarene institution two hours drive-time from our kids with a view of the ocean from nearly anywhere on campus points again not just to God's faithfulness, but to his desire to answer prayers generously--spectacularly, even! Mark is excited to work with the outstanding leadership and faculty at Point Loma as well as to being closer to our children. Nancy is thrilled to be moving within two hours of a new grandbaby scheduled to be born this month. We want to praise the Lord for his faithfulness and answers to prayer, and yet...</b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;"><b>We haven't been kidding when we've said what a wonderful privilege it has been to work with the students and staff at ANU. It has been and continues to be one of the highlights of our experience-rich lives. We're already making a list of "things we'll miss in Kenya." We'll share that list with you another time. <o:p></o:p></b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="color: black;"><b><br />
</b></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b>It's fairly common wisdom that the transition from the US or the UK to the mission field can be very challenging. Thanks to the wonderful care we have received from ANU staff and our field director, we have really not found it so. What's less well-known is that the return FROM the mission field to the US or UK can be a significant challenge. Would you please pray for us in this regard? We genuinely feel that the Lord is directing us back to the US, but we leave such warm feelings and need and opportunity for service here. We see such sacrifice and commitment here. The question we are asking each other and the Lord is the same one we were asking as we did deputation last summer: how can EACH of us be "missional?" How can we be obedient to the Lord's call for witnesses wherever He has placed us? </b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><br />
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<div class="MsoBodyText"><b>We are still almost three months away from this transition, so there will be additional time to talk about some of the highlights of our time here and some of the things we've learned, and to thank those of you who have been such faithful readers and supporters of us on this journey. In the meantime, thanks as always for reading, for inviting us into your churches and lives, and for your commitment to the Good News of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.</b></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thanks for reading, and don't forget, you can find the pictures and past posts at www.africonnection.org. Thanks for your prayers and love. Mark and Nan</div>Mark and Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07325748585359702442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1239339204752487527.post-91473746144143513612009-12-24T13:40:00.000+03:002009-12-24T13:40:00.790+03:00Merry Christmas and End of Year Summary<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiitoEV7ouPQ8w0SlV2NudyYJHnQRGfVNGzLEdnw4hgEqUbG8CDrUyb-0_KC4DPSgxrti_wwMPam3RDXdYyWnqpI23KOZgUYWFoLPlvv-MtcBzFs9ItoUHaRYcT6a6s1Mw7VjARgditusBk/s1600-h/DSC_9884+(Large).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ps="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiitoEV7ouPQ8w0SlV2NudyYJHnQRGfVNGzLEdnw4hgEqUbG8CDrUyb-0_KC4DPSgxrti_wwMPam3RDXdYyWnqpI23KOZgUYWFoLPlvv-MtcBzFs9ItoUHaRYcT6a6s1Mw7VjARgditusBk/s320/DSC_9884+(Large).JPG" /></a><br />
</div>Hello--We are so grateful to each of you who has read our blog this year and it is our pleasure to wish you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. We agree with CS Lewis about alot of things, but we disagree with him about Christmas greetings. He said if he didn't have to write so many Christmas cards he would feel alot more "peace on earth and goodwill toward men." Maybe if there had been blogs and Facebook and e-mail he would have felt differently. <br />
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Christmas is a "lower key" event in Kenya--decorations don't go up in shopping centers until late November. Employees typically only get Christmas day off work. Most people go "up country" to the homes of their parents for Christmas Day. This post includes a picture of Nan on a visit to Kisii in Western Kenya, a Kenyan Santa Claus, and a Kenyan "clown" at a children's Christmas event in one of the shopping centers.<br />
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</div>University Church of the Nazarene will be having a Christmas morning service at 9AM, followed by candy for the children and tea and mandazis (triangular, lightly sweetened Kenyan donuts). At noon, we will be hosting 25 international staff and students for a Christmas dinner in our home. We'll have students from Zimbabwe, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tanzania, Malawi, the US, and even two new students from China. Mark will be making chicken stew, rice, cabbage and the Vice Chancellor has donated part of a goat--a local favorite. Some guests will be bringing food from their home country and all guests will be bringing a story or song from home. We're looking forward to it.<br />
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</div>Some highlights of the year:<br />
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<ul><li>Completion of Commission for Higher Education Self-study Document--this involved 6 weeks of work for Mark and a team at ANU in preparation for an accreditation visit. One of the things that came out was ANU's success in research, in helping students who come in with some academic challenges to be successful. For example, a student team from ANU has been chosen in a competition with other Kenyan universities, as one of four to represent Kenya in an international competition among Kenyan university students. ANU prepares its students very well.</li>
<li>Publication of "African Voices" as 2010 NMI book. American Nazarenes should see this book among the set of missionary titles being offered in 2010. It was a privilege to do the interviews and edit the book. We hope you enjoy hearing several of our African leaders "in their own words."</li>
<li>Trip to Manchester--described below</li>
<li>Election of Eugenio Duarte as General Superintendent and appointment of Fili Chambo as Regional Director--We have already communicated our respect and appreciation for these men. When you pray, please remember them and the tasks that they are called to accomplish.</li>
<li>General Assembly in June and early July</li>
<li>Deputation in July and August--It was our pleasure to connect with many, many of you during our deputation--in Indiana, Idaho, Utah and California, we enjoyed our time with you.</li>
</ul><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thanks for reading, and don't forget, you can find the pictures and past posts at www.africonnection.org. Thanks for your prayers and love. Mark and Nan</div>Mark and Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07325748585359702442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1239339204752487527.post-84176982618770961562009-11-07T16:31:00.003+03:002009-12-24T13:43:06.489+03:00Nan's October and November Alumni Events<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHPjN00-8gpTiPn54JsKr8-0uyzX3Pa7j6op6uXyZbFDPA8NR7O3m4WPr8eGzomXVKNGoy3psdt7wuLIvpnAIf7686j7-Dj0rIvGI_ufg3Pdooad77jrrUEffu1CtkqOfJs2xVbjqEOM9q/s1600-h/DSC_0342+(Medium).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHPjN00-8gpTiPn54JsKr8-0uyzX3Pa7j6op6uXyZbFDPA8NR7O3m4WPr8eGzomXVKNGoy3psdt7wuLIvpnAIf7686j7-Dj0rIvGI_ufg3Pdooad77jrrUEffu1CtkqOfJs2xVbjqEOM9q/s320/DSC_0342+%28Medium%29.JPG" /></a><br />
</div>As coordinator of alumni activities at ANU, Nan oversaw two significant events in October and November. On Thursday, October 29th, the alumni presented a chapel. They shared with students--in ways no one else could do as well--the importance of making good use of their time at the University, On Sunday, November 1, Nancy and the alumni council sponsored the "Second Annual ANU Alumni Bash", this time held at Osiota ("Stone" in the Maasai language) located at the bridge on Maasai Lodge Road.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6xDEPZfaTTjTn1ocouwmwN61Ma07_o3jWtF90gGmFaMeYrc4hPDbHZUBsUYOI9Ojwa6S5zNq2uyQ-s83-ePGwFRPMvdrq5IHcZUbjJm-wk5n5Cyx0Aoxz9CxWL-TMOAVbJJVI-93T1956/s1600-h/DSC_6189+(Medium).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6xDEPZfaTTjTn1ocouwmwN61Ma07_o3jWtF90gGmFaMeYrc4hPDbHZUBsUYOI9Ojwa6S5zNq2uyQ-s83-ePGwFRPMvdrq5IHcZUbjJm-wk5n5Cyx0Aoxz9CxWL-TMOAVbJJVI-93T1956/s320/DSC_6189+%28Medium%29.JPG" /></a><br />
</div>In fairly typical fashion, the event, scheduled for 1:30, began a bit late, but once it started, provided a mix of good food, lots of laughter, and stronger connections between the alumni and the University. <br />
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A survey distributed to the alumni showed that 97% of them (all but one) are employed--a wonderful blessing in a nation where jobs are hard to get. Also, 87% of alumni indicated that their ANU education had prepared them "better" or "much better" than their work colleagues from other universities. We're pleased at the success they are having and at their satisfaction with the education they received at ANU.<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thanks for reading, and don't forget, you can find the pictures and past posts at www.africonnection.org. Thanks for your prayers and love. Mark and Nan</div>Mark and Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07325748585359702442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1239339204752487527.post-56518227570522888092009-11-07T14:43:00.002+03:002009-12-24T13:44:21.263+03:00Manchester Trip<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9ysN8CuYAw6SxIcDDm7fuLnKQsNRMMPXbqHEKRM1spfkCo-wmfQ4lAMj_rWlcfy2_rVSn4f5OnP8TXk3KTjJ20MawsA1eF7QGOKhPwksQnahEiJ8qkZ2g8SuYGtNvj2n1YBwEkWdp0rUK/s1600-h/IMG_0071+(Medium).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9ysN8CuYAw6SxIcDDm7fuLnKQsNRMMPXbqHEKRM1spfkCo-wmfQ4lAMj_rWlcfy2_rVSn4f5OnP8TXk3KTjJ20MawsA1eF7QGOKhPwksQnahEiJ8qkZ2g8SuYGtNvj2n1YBwEkWdp0rUK/s320/IMG_0071+%28Medium%29.JPG" /></a>In mid-October, Mark took part in a week-long Manchester UK meeting of international graduate theological educators in the Church of the Nazarene. There were representatives from Asia Pacific Nazarene Theological, NTC-Brisbane, Nazarene Theological Seminary in the US, Brazil Nazarene College in Campanos, Brazil; Seminary of the Americas in Central America; Korea Nazarene University; as well as NTC-Manchester. <br />
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Although he had met and spent time with several of these people before, Mark continues to be blessed and impressed and "taught" bwith the godly witness of these people:<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfWWMJNSd8vtGXQSj28L93qsMmSE03mdTBCWijI0O0Xsgw0OXew4PwleVlvuTyeKmKPp4JKoGpEvtY9SNkKmKzNVQpG0KzADuoqQyX7H3aRHTLd3pLTOu4c-TeUVnBXe4ErYNzOoOUCFvK/s1600-h/lee.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfWWMJNSd8vtGXQSj28L93qsMmSE03mdTBCWijI0O0Xsgw0OXew4PwleVlvuTyeKmKPp4JKoGpEvtY9SNkKmKzNVQpG0KzADuoqQyX7H3aRHTLd3pLTOu4c-TeUVnBXe4ErYNzOoOUCFvK/s320/lee.jpg" /></a><br />
</div><ul><li>Dr. David McCullough, the current school principal of NTC-Manchester, served as the van driver for the group during the five days the team was there. He was gracious and patient with the group even though the time included NTC-Manchester graduation and the arrival of his board in two weeks!</li>
<li>Dr. Herbert McGonigle, a world-famous expert on John Wesley, is recovering from an illness, but Mark noticed what a wonderful, attentive listener he was, and how he made every person feel special.</li>
<li>Dr. Abraham Im, president of Korea Nazarene University, the largest school in the Nazarene system, was upbeat and inspiring in spite of recovering from the death of his wife just recently.</li>
<li>Dr. Ron Benefiel, the president of NTS, who had helped organize the meeting with Dr. Jerry Lambert, conveyed by his manner and his words that all members of the team were important and that no one institution was orchestrating the actions of the others.</li>
<li>Dr. San Young Lee(pictured), a second-generation Korean Nazarene with degrees from Princeton, Duke and Vanderbuilt, and academic dean at the Nazarene seminary in the Philippines, gave us an update on how the seminary became a place of refuge for up to 120 neighborhood people during recent storms and floods. In your prayers, it would be especially good to remember Dr. Lee and the faculty and staff at APNTS as they attempt to return to ordinary.<br />
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</ul>Some other highlights of the trip:<br />
<ul><li><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7AWI0NQ4bKriZUEGYhb-8VN3j5j745PidfD9BxWGimKeMX3J7nMXQ_Vx-zajtpom9LMtn42lppgzDsuJPFTPNzD44fAZVRfeLkW2Sh7FQ3WJyWJKrzBElbFHBxol9vLQUlKosKJfFggUu/s1600-h/Whitworth.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7AWI0NQ4bKriZUEGYhb-8VN3j5j745PidfD9BxWGimKeMX3J7nMXQ_Vx-zajtpom9LMtn42lppgzDsuJPFTPNzD44fAZVRfeLkW2Sh7FQ3WJyWJKrzBElbFHBxol9vLQUlKosKJfFggUu/s320/Whitworth.jpg" /></a>On Saturday, the group attended NTC-Manchester's graduation in the wonderful Whitworth Hall on the campus of the University of Manchester. Like alot of victorian-era buildings, it was built as an academic building but looks like the inside of a church: at the back and on the sides, 40-foot tall stained glass windows. Roof supported by heavy, dark oak beams. At the front, a two-story structure with choir loft and huge pipe organ above and seating area below.</li>
</ul><br />
On Sunday morning, the group attended the Longsight Church of the Nazarene in Manchester, and then had meetings Sunday afternoon and Monday. <br />
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On Tuesday, after the meetings had been concluded, the group drove two hours in the van to Epworth, and got to tour the second of two pastor's homes in which John Wesley was raised, St. ANdrews Anglican church where his father Samuel was pastor for 30 years, had lunch at the Red Lion Inn where Wesley had stayed as an adult, then visited the Wesley Memorial Chapel in downtown Epworth.Some additional pictures below.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzr75vLdpC2_qBnBO7CRzlL2CnMWOfwYAPYGiAE_wkrN67piJgHa4dBuTSCOFTMzYlgfYSqXMlD8y63D_ZlTBLkqcgIBTDRNe_TZIH6M6lj3ZDdRAEWfYteLBhdMZP1yNJIq8YrS-MXftD/s1600-h/IMG_0076+(Medium).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzr75vLdpC2_qBnBO7CRzlL2CnMWOfwYAPYGiAE_wkrN67piJgHa4dBuTSCOFTMzYlgfYSqXMlD8y63D_ZlTBLkqcgIBTDRNe_TZIH6M6lj3ZDdRAEWfYteLBhdMZP1yNJIq8YrS-MXftD/s320/IMG_0076+%28Medium%29.JPG" /></a><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC1xJaq3KapDtScemjXIcse-0-TyS2tKKpQCyz1MJLRhtQ_zZ75IOjsWy4Fsxoi-GnUx1vl7s19WzKOxsfMNIfj4bl56AzWP9hYtBNPU31YOmd5j6Jvbbgmjz_0lMrnbAL59Zj8yD4alFY/s1600-h/IMG_0082+(Medium).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgC1xJaq3KapDtScemjXIcse-0-TyS2tKKpQCyz1MJLRhtQ_zZ75IOjsWy4Fsxoi-GnUx1vl7s19WzKOxsfMNIfj4bl56AzWP9hYtBNPU31YOmd5j6Jvbbgmjz_0lMrnbAL59Zj8yD4alFY/s320/IMG_0082+%28Medium%29.JPG" /></a><br />
</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thanks for reading, and don't forget, you can find the pictures and past posts at www.africonnection.org. Thanks for your prayers and love. Mark and Nan</div>Mark and Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07325748585359702442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1239339204752487527.post-54260823163349997522009-09-16T15:40:00.000+03:002009-09-16T15:40:41.759+03:00African Lives #3: John Yual<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div align="center" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: "Courier New";">John Yual</span></b> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5mjlu442lh9u8smAWH-JiLMKnZZdp_7tqedIhSJjsYXPjBNLRy7Q46rmBLR40SgZlON9I9WST09h2c6-CAbxVesw9Zxz_iMrw2fmx6RCjdO2W9eqSa2dhyfcrvpnWrc9Kl3K5ZNihWCVY/s1600-h/DSC_9505+%28Medium%29.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5mjlu442lh9u8smAWH-JiLMKnZZdp_7tqedIhSJjsYXPjBNLRy7Q46rmBLR40SgZlON9I9WST09h2c6-CAbxVesw9Zxz_iMrw2fmx6RCjdO2W9eqSa2dhyfcrvpnWrc9Kl3K5ZNihWCVY/s320/DSC_9505+%28Medium%29.JPG" /></a></div> <b><span style="font-family: "Courier New";">John Yual was born in 1973 in Southeast Sudan near the Ethiopian boarder among the Nuer tribe. He and his brother and sister were raised by their mother after the early death of their father. John was not allowed to attend school because, at the time, education in Sudan was reserved for Muslims. His family sent him to Ethiopia to protect him from the Sudanese army. There he connected with the Church of the Nazarene. After working as a trainer and church planter, he has been appointed as district s for Sudan, shepherding over a thousand pastors across nearly a million square miles. An early European writer, travelling in the Sudan, called the men of the South Sudan the "natural gentlemen of Africa." This seems a good description of John: tall, intelligent but soft-spoken, communicating a quiet wisdom. In May of 2008 he received his bachelor of theology degree from Africa Nazarene University. </span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">At the age of 15, John’s uncle Gatkuoth Toang shared from the Bible with him. </span><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "Courier New";">“He told me about the gift of life through Jesus Christ, that Jesus died for my sins, and that when I give my life to Him He will liberate me from being a slave to idol worship. I was amazed at the fact that somebody died for me, and so I tried to know much about the reasons why.”</span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">In 1989, when John was sixteen, life changed dramatically for him. </span><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "Courier New";">“I was in a cattle camp, and when the troops came they said they attacked our village because there was a rebel. So the Sudan army came at night to attack the place, and one of them said it is better for you young guy to run for your life, don’t be here. In Sudan there are some places where one can only travel at night and not by day for security reasons. The place I was living was not very far from the border of Ethiopia, and I managed to cross to the other side within three days. I was with my friends--a group of young men--and we carried some cattle with the idea that when we reached Ethiopia we could sell the cows and find money to survive. </span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">John ended up in a refugee camp, and though life there was extremely hard, it was there that he was able to receive schooling and learn to read for the first time. </span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHvc9sWsq8-s05DiL2KWhg8A3xR07CVZ0Mu5lOPjDgk8-4kKK-hglicKrwcVlUYckFT0jndwWZjJZhg4b9d-ULAihf1UdvRJt7GLQBhjzLU53LC0xK_gk97-zAgmI0GfzFixpQ5Ug9dF2f/s1600-h/DSC_2008+%28Medium%29.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHvc9sWsq8-s05DiL2KWhg8A3xR07CVZ0Mu5lOPjDgk8-4kKK-hglicKrwcVlUYckFT0jndwWZjJZhg4b9d-ULAihf1UdvRJt7GLQBhjzLU53LC0xK_gk97-zAgmI0GfzFixpQ5Ug9dF2f/s320/DSC_2008+%28Medium%29.JPG" /></a></div> <span style="font-family: "Courier New";">Another turning point happened for John in 1995 when a group of Sudanese friends told him about a new church in Addis that had English services. Since he was interested in learning English, John started attending the Church of the Nazarene. What captured his thinking was the doctrine of holiness. At first it brought multiple questions. </span><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "Courier New";">“Does it mean other churches are not holy? In Ethiopia there is the Orthodox Church, and they call themselves the most holy people, and this other holiness I am hearing, is it the same or there is a difference? These were my questions. Finally, I got the message that it is not just an outside adornment but an inner transformation that is revealed outside.”</span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";"> John joined the Church of the Nazarene in Addis Ababa and began working with the youth. Gradually he was given more responsibility. Although he did not see himself as a minister, when the other pastors at the church immigrated to the United States and Canada, John experienced the grace of God giving him more interest in ministering. </span><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "Courier New";">“My first time to attend district assembly, some church leaders met with us and said we want a person who will train pastors in Ethiopia and some day go to Sudan and start the church. I said, ‘OK, I don’t have a person like that in mind.’ We took a course, and the leaders say they checked the criteria of who will be fit for this job and decided it would be me.</span></i><span style="font-family: "Courier New";"> <i>They ask me if I would be willing to train pastors, and I say, ‘If it is the plan of God.’ They ask me, ‘What is your priority while you are in the refugee camp?’ and I tell them, ‘To go to America or Australia or anywhere in the world because the life in the camp is terrible.’ I prayed and decided to train pastors, but at the same time my wife’s uncle sent us visas to go to Australia. I say, OK, this visa I was wanting for many years is here . . . what is going on? I prayed about it, shared with my wife, and we say we will go ahead and train pastors. People in the camp say, ‘Are you out of your mind?’ </i></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjd-3pTykKzKaG60npsZjJGWFyTSjM0P5yE2f6ZWLLLcnfqsf9UI0Nnluyz9o1FxKojX64Iu0FNpvFAiNurVWYI9IwIBQgdblh0-wNX8QfyBeZNVAecAoBC0RnhqFeXnRn7qCExhXeiU7R/s1600-h/DSC_2457+%28Medium%29.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjd-3pTykKzKaG60npsZjJGWFyTSjM0P5yE2f6ZWLLLcnfqsf9UI0Nnluyz9o1FxKojX64Iu0FNpvFAiNurVWYI9IwIBQgdblh0-wNX8QfyBeZNVAecAoBC0RnhqFeXnRn7qCExhXeiU7R/s320/DSC_2457+%28Medium%29.JPG" /></a></div> <i><span style="font-family: "Courier New";">“In 2003, during the regional conference in South Africa, I was sharing with my field director that in Sudan we do not have a church there. So I asked him, ‘What about we start a church there?’ He said that it was a good idea, but the question was how can we go there? There was no transport, no means of communication, no security . . . how can we go there? He suggested that we can wait until peace prevails, then we can go. I said, ‘Peace may come any time, but our people need Jesus before peace.’ He said, ‘Ok, I cannot stop you.’ After we had finished our course it was February 2003, and by March 2003 I was on my way to Sudan. I went to one of the towns, Gambella, which is on the border, and waited for some people who could walk with me. One could not walk alone because it was insecure. You must be accompanied by people who have their own guns for protection. I found some fifteen young guys who came from Sudan for trade. After talking to them they said it was OK, I can join them, and we went. We had to walk for seven days before we reached the Sudan border. There were robbers who would organize themselves to disturb the border so you could not cross any border without seeing trouble. Even the local tribes were fighting each other because of Arabic influence, and there was no government at all. On our way we found more than twenty people killed who had been walking ahead of us.</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "Courier New";">“In my mind I said . . ., ‘OK, the church is not here, how can I start it?’ I said to myself that I must start it by teaching. I called some guys under the tree to talk to them if they were willing to listen to me. I talked to them about what the Bible says they need to do and whether they could accept God.”</span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">For one-and-a-half months he traveled the countryside, teaching beneath a tree to whomever would listen. In that time he started thirteen churches. That was 2003, and later on in October of that same year thirty more churches were planted. </span><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "Courier New";">“When peace came we were already there. That is how the church came to existence in Sudan</span></i><span style="font-family: "Courier New";">.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">Though today there are more than a thousand Nazarene churches in Sudan, there continue to be challenges with developing and communicating with leaders in the field. </span><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "Courier New";">“Even today in Sudan there is no good communication, especially in southern Sudan where I have been for ministry. Most of my churches in south Sudan I cannot reach them using my car; I must walk with my leaders to visit the churches there. I think God’s grace is how come, without communication, the church is growing. It is something that I myself . . . cannot understand; it is God’s grace that makes all those things to happen. I get letters saying, ‘We have started a church here,’ but I did not know this people, they said that they heard about the Church of the Nazarene so they decided to start one there. They invite me to go, so I send some pastors and my assistant to go and see those places and organize and teach them. What I can say is that it is the grace of God all this happening</span></i><span style="font-family: "Courier New";">.</span><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "Courier New";">“The only thing you do as a church planter or an evangelist is to pray, ‘God, if I meet three people, show me one . . . someone who can really buy this vision. If I find ten, give me two.’ Because of this prayer He gives me people, and even when there are many He helps me to identify one. When you want to plant a church you do not ask for qualified leaders, you just ask for people who are willing to serve God. And when you talk to someone, the Holy Spirit will help you to know that this one is real, genuine, and this other one is not serious. The Holy Spirit gives you discernment to know who is who.”</span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">As district superintendent of three districts in a country that is nearly one million square miles, John has a major challenge communicating with the one thousand pastors he shepherds. However, through the use of strategically placed satellite phones, John can call the pastor with the phone who will then send out letters to the other pastors to gather for a pre-arranged call. It takes some pastors two days to walk to the gathering, but the call from John serves as an encouragement and a planning tool for the pastors.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Courier New";">John was asked to share his insights on the following topics:</span><br />
<b><span style="font-family: Symbol;">·</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Courier New";"> <u>About holiness</u>: <i>“</i></span></b><i><span style="font-family: "Courier New";">When we came for the first time in Sudan we started the message of holiness. They actually didn’t just want to know about holiness, but they also wanted to join the Church of the Nazarene. In Sudan we have been going through difficult times because of civil war, and so people need love. When they see you showing love and living a life of love they get encouraged and are attracted to know what is happening there. I think people are interested in those who walk the talk</span></i><span style="font-family: "Courier New";">. <i>In Sudan our problem is peace, peace between neighbors. We need a solution where believers can live in peace with our Muslim neighbors. When they see us living in peace, love, and unity then what we preach is able to make sense to them. We don’t preach hatred against the Arabs. To win Muslims we need to spend time, develop a friendship, show love and care, then once we have a good relationship with them, they will want to know more about the gospel</i>.<i>”</i></span><br />
<b><span style="font-family: Symbol;">·</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Courier New";"> <u>About Africa</u>: <i>“</i></span></b><i><span style="font-family: "Courier New";">Before coming to Africa Nazarene University, when I thought of Africa I thought of my country only. Now, even if I am doing well in my country, I know that there is more that needs to be done in Africa, in the entire church, and for the sake of the Kingdom.”</span></i><br />
<b><span style="font-family: Symbol;">·</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Courier New";"> <u>About contextualizing the gospel and church organization</u>:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Courier New";"> <i>“If we go through the Church of the Nazarene manual, there are parts that do not make sense to Africans. An example is the issue of associate members. In my community you cannot tell people that you are a full member and the other is an associate member in the church. That says to the associate member that ‘we do not need you here.’ We need to remove that part of the manual and differentiate between leadership and membership.”</i></span><br />
<b><span style="font-family: Symbol;">·</span></b><b><span style="font-family: "Courier New";"> <u>About how the global church can pray</u>:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Courier New";"> In the last twenty years conflicts in Sudan have resulted in more than four million people being displaced and two million deaths. A peace agreement signed in January 2005 gave southern Sudan autonomy for six years, which has resulted in an uneasy truce.</span><br />
<i><span style="font-family: "Courier New";">“If war comes, where will our church be during that time? What will be the future of our church if another war breaks out in Sudan? This is the first priority that we need prayer for our people, that God may bring peace because He is the only one who can bring the peace that we need in Suda</span></i><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thanks for reading, and don't forget, you can find the pictures and past posts at www.africonnection.org. Thanks for your prayers and love. Mark and Nan</div>Mark and Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07325748585359702442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1239339204752487527.post-81074962641274037652009-09-16T13:33:00.000+03:002009-09-16T13:33:40.092+03:00Mega-update: Back in Kenya SectionOK, so what's this about Nancy speaking in a Hindu temple? We'll get to that in a minute. When we got back to ANU, or shortly thereafter, some things had changed. Here are some key items, good and bad:<br />
<ul><li>LACK OF RAIN--When we left, it was green and lush in Kenya. When we returned, it was brown and dry and lots of people were suffering. Only yesterday, we saw two dead Maasai cows in a ditch on the way home. The herd of goats, cattle and sheep that used to pass at a distance from Mark's office window, isn't doing so any more. People and animals are really struggling. Please pray for rain and for enough food for the people to survive until new crops can be planted or harvested. </li>
</ul><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU4bv54-Q26PVjnlEfJNl2PCcdMzP31E_jjHyQVuly4SxciemScTU4y_ij7-QGMMQ8kZjCiZgqFef-4th8_7Trh6GkkojJewXzWs8mQcQQd29Zi7m_zcsQMBX7B4w-tCZQaWZlUv0PTgE4/s1600-h/savanna_2+%28Medium%29.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU4bv54-Q26PVjnlEfJNl2PCcdMzP31E_jjHyQVuly4SxciemScTU4y_ij7-QGMMQ8kZjCiZgqFef-4th8_7Trh6GkkojJewXzWs8mQcQQd29Zi7m_zcsQMBX7B4w-tCZQaWZlUv0PTgE4/s320/savanna_2+%28Medium%29.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><ul><li>WATER AND ELECTRICITY RATIONING--Because some electricity is generated by hydro-electric dams, the lack of water is creating a lack of electricity. Here's another instance where good planning on the campus insulates us from challenges: the University dam on the Mbagathi River means the plants and grass get watered and the generators fill the gaps in most electrical coverage. Nairobi is a different matter. People in the city often have electricity only every other day and are dealing with water rationing as well.</li>
<li>TARMACK! It's true that it's on the street to the LEFT of the front gate not Maasai Lodge Road, and it's true that the treatment is kind of "thickness challenged", but it's black and smooth and we're really pleased. (Pictured below: white metal ANU gate to the left. Black tarmack beyond the barrels directly ahead.) Keep praying that Maasai Lodge Road is next.</li>
</ul><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6bGeg8MqztegHTa1Pdw0d_6K4bgPN5YuGuCgKBrG2ghBtQjorXQCIuu6RYX5njdVHSPwnxTN8EFd2louwk7OoHm65fPPQPhchVA798rGVy4fCoKwvfqARa6S3kbN80_OB2oUXIVZW6gZT/s1600-h/IMG_0030+%28Medium%29.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6bGeg8MqztegHTa1Pdw0d_6K4bgPN5YuGuCgKBrG2ghBtQjorXQCIuu6RYX5njdVHSPwnxTN8EFd2louwk7OoHm65fPPQPhchVA798rGVy4fCoKwvfqARa6S3kbN80_OB2oUXIVZW6gZT/s320/IMG_0030+%28Medium%29.JPG" /></a></div><ul><li>ZEBRAS--No question zebras are cute and we're seeing lots more of their cuteness these days--up until we left, we'd seen zebras from our balcony a couple of times--and at a looooong distance. Since we got back, we're seeing them directly across the canyon and perhaps a football field and a half away.</li>
</ul><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdtRfkMlaZ6swaSRg9X1YI9NRE6Zlp5zXQAvSRo8K4txgO25mfyuWpjUmaLSjwRCLScPu3y-9kIB61MisfRwCn1QkVMcSJO_Eio465djy390w2h76STQnmvNwDuxjD5mmj0U40nJnPRt-X/s1600-h/435_Zebras+%28Medium%29.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdtRfkMlaZ6swaSRg9X1YI9NRE6Zlp5zXQAvSRo8K4txgO25mfyuWpjUmaLSjwRCLScPu3y-9kIB61MisfRwCn1QkVMcSJO_Eio465djy390w2h76STQnmvNwDuxjD5mmj0U40nJnPRt-X/s320/435_Zebras+%28Medium%29.jpg" /></a></div><ul><li>MORE INTERVIEWS--We had explained in this blog earlier that we did 10 interviews with current and future Nazarene leaders in Africa as part of editing a book of interviews for Nazarene Missions International. Without going into much detail right now, we're being asked to do more interviews. Dr. Filimao Chambo, our new Regional Director, has agreed to be one of these, so "watch this space" for more interviews with current and future Nazarene leaders in Africa.</li>
</ul>OK, now about that speaking engagement in a Hindu temple: We've mentioned earlier that we've struck up a friendship with Mr. Vayas, an active member of Arya Samaj, which means kind of "Aryan community." Last week, Mark got a call from Mr. Vayas inviting us to a celebration of their 106th anniversary as a religious community in Nairobi and a request for Nancy, as an ordained Nazarene minister, to be part of a panel addressing the question, "What can the world religions do to encourage peace in Kenya and the world?"<br />
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Before the time of the panel, we were invited into their religious service in another part of the building: religious songs being sung by groups of 3-5 children, women and elderly people sitting on mats around firepots raising aromatic smoke. After that, a world-class cute group of kindergarten and pre-school children presented a one-hour variety show. There was singing and dancing and recitation of what we used to call "pieces." Also, though, in the "we're not making this up" department, one of the features was a 5-year old dressed up like Ghandi and giving advice to the audience.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4tytaLayyBIoJIYUVDNUmR3JMDJlVfCpE9YUkarmab6xo5kywxs0yg9UVmx-hs16VT7ADP7VTJbAJTPZ-E45hBjCFSpJtxn8e4t1n6QsrihnRuvVegjtDBDCuIIhW0_S0Z38WwSNHndSF/s1600-h/IMG_0606+%28Medium%29.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4tytaLayyBIoJIYUVDNUmR3JMDJlVfCpE9YUkarmab6xo5kywxs0yg9UVmx-hs16VT7ADP7VTJbAJTPZ-E45hBjCFSpJtxn8e4t1n6QsrihnRuvVegjtDBDCuIIhW0_S0Z38WwSNHndSF/s320/IMG_0606+%28Medium%29.JPG" /></a></div><br />
The panel was the last item of the morning. The other panel members included the chairman of the Hindu Council in Kenya, the education director of the Seventh Day Adventists, a pentecostal bishop, the chair of the department ofr religion at the University of Nairobi, and three other Hindus. Nan (Mark is saying here) did a really wonderful job, and got a big round of applause when she said we were going to have an Indian daughter-in-law in August.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwSHel6L7v1qDBbnZKYSZ09qMgbQNGW3Wyef75ZM4Hg0EmZXgC4yw2ugKXRvLP26pD-gr9noE8WngV3jOE9rxNwmu0KCvCgOs7xnvVwCedk7Ihs2zo7tthECZj-QHKOCTodY4klit2Z0Nd/s1600-h/042+%28Medium%29.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwSHel6L7v1qDBbnZKYSZ09qMgbQNGW3Wyef75ZM4Hg0EmZXgC4yw2ugKXRvLP26pD-gr9noE8WngV3jOE9rxNwmu0KCvCgOs7xnvVwCedk7Ihs2zo7tthECZj-QHKOCTodY4klit2Z0Nd/s320/042+%28Medium%29.JPG" /></a></div><br />
After the panel, we were invited to a great, spicey vegetarian meal. Anyone who thinks vegetarian food has to be wimpy and flavorless hasn't had really good Indian food.<br />
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Soooo--that brings us up to date on our own activites. As promised earlier, we'll follow up with our interview with John Yual, DS in the Sudan. We love what we're doing, but if you're reading time is short--skip what we say and read what John Yual says.<br />
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Have we mentioned to you lately how much we appreciate your prayers and reading (at least some part of ) the blog? Over and over during our home assignment you reminded us that you are praying for us and the work we've been called to do. Thanks so much. Regarding things to pray about: as we mentioned earlier, please pray for the good American pastors and churches we visited on our home assignment. Please join us in praying for our children. It's hard to be a young (or old) adult these days. Finally, please pray for rain, and in the meantime, for the rural people in Kenya. We know of a bi-vocational pastor who was counting on a sugar cane crop that has failed because of the lack of rain. We have student families who are struggling more than usual with school fees because crops that were the source of payment have failed. <br />
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Thanks again for your faithfulness. We are honored by your interest and by the privilege of working and serving in Africa<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thanks for reading, and don't forget, you can find the pictures and past posts at www.africonnection.org. Thanks for your prayers and love. Mark and Nan</div>Mark and Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07325748585359702442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1239339204752487527.post-63866834422097673882009-09-14T13:24:00.002+03:002009-09-14T15:04:17.473+03:00Mega-update--General Assembly Section<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigAr4iDAmlm0DTtnxqtcYhuCwP-ppvZRiz4drkqwJC6T-3UXz3dB5pyYorElosBV0f4PQP_9CPnGOEVx4YJJP4p0TzDkVgvMCVvCP5228Xj_ldgEgHTIX5MhC21TkXTlndZP_OxGKJYfWe/s1600-h/DSC_7368+%28Medium%29.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigAr4iDAmlm0DTtnxqtcYhuCwP-ppvZRiz4drkqwJC6T-3UXz3dB5pyYorElosBV0f4PQP_9CPnGOEVx4YJJP4p0TzDkVgvMCVvCP5228Xj_ldgEgHTIX5MhC21TkXTlndZP_OxGKJYfWe/s320/DSC_7368+%28Medium%29.JPG" /></a></div><br />
OK, at one level, we've failed miserably in the last three months. You haven't had an update since June. At another level, we've just been doing the "Africonnection" in person rather than on the blog (how are we doing? Are you persuaded?). Since we left campus in mid-June, we've spent a couple of enjoyable days in Switzerland, participated in a historic General Assembly, done two months of deputation and visited family. Some highlights and pictures of those events:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMLU7axHA-fcFD7rw0IlUzrKHbcWayKD_T-y93kJMSoWJFWNk5GYbmHOAOdBPlggo1G4j7P5r4bArfWG4cMOjiqtSZfANp6fWdRVnWTwYMuvK0QmyvMUknXpAcOvwJeXTR-O51RdDN98C2/s1600-h/DSC_7462+%28Medium%29.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMLU7axHA-fcFD7rw0IlUzrKHbcWayKD_T-y93kJMSoWJFWNk5GYbmHOAOdBPlggo1G4j7P5r4bArfWG4cMOjiqtSZfANp6fWdRVnWTwYMuvK0QmyvMUknXpAcOvwJeXTR-O51RdDN98C2/s320/DSC_7462+%28Medium%29.JPG" /></a>Switzerland was great. We decided kind of impromptu to spend a couple of days there when the "best fare" took us via Swiss Air through Zurich. We travelled, at IBOE chair LeBron Fairbanks enthusiastic and correct recommendation, by train and then riverboat, up the Rhine River to Schaffhausen (picture of Schaffhausen church clock tower) and Stein am Rhine--beautiful midieval towns near the border between Switzerland and Germany.We went BY European Nazarene Bible College, but were not able to stop this trip. Maybe next time.<br />
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It was a wonderful privilege to be part of the General Assembly when so much history was being made. We came a couple of days early to help set up the ANU booth (picture of Nan getting our picture display ready) in the exhibit hall and to prepare for the ANU luncheon. Both were very successful. If you stopped by the booth, thanks so much for doing so. The use of the new IBOE booth "passport" meant that many more people stopped by, and although some of those primarily wanted their passports stamped, many stayed and shared memories of time they had spent at ANU or communicated their hopes that they could come. The maasai bracelets we handed out were a huge hit, and it was all we could do to keep the basket full until all the bracelets--over 800 of them--were gone.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik4DlT_oTkF27siV6gS6SwB4D8z2X72LsT4hKVGq8Bcm3qCwInpIZyST9PnQXO9Ry4_Aj6I65TkCu__Ppztmdi56XF0MuqmJkHcndyHnzFbYL2-flDJ7WiBW7I1_0J7AOzhBwolGvdlezl/s1600-h/DSC_7560+%28Medium%29.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik4DlT_oTkF27siV6gS6SwB4D8z2X72LsT4hKVGq8Bcm3qCwInpIZyST9PnQXO9Ry4_Aj6I65TkCu__Ppztmdi56XF0MuqmJkHcndyHnzFbYL2-flDJ7WiBW7I1_0J7AOzhBwolGvdlezl/s320/DSC_7560+%28Medium%29.JPG" /></a></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0WRjUmCXUofkDNOftSycpyTwQ2Ek5TFJ9H86JJCDxgqqI2QvEZVIQqmvWS2gtU7z03DCLZTKYoVVGjaFv8SvbFOIaXLjIRnDLsF0KIOuuOt7l2gqfpz1ePX8JzEzkGGSs0a2RiJaAECAw/s1600-h/DSC_7514+%28Medium%29.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0WRjUmCXUofkDNOftSycpyTwQ2Ek5TFJ9H86JJCDxgqqI2QvEZVIQqmvWS2gtU7z03DCLZTKYoVVGjaFv8SvbFOIaXLjIRnDLsF0KIOuuOt7l2gqfpz1ePX8JzEzkGGSs0a2RiJaAECAw/s320/DSC_7514+%28Medium%29.JPG" /></a><br />
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The ANU luncheon was also a historic event. It's program centered around honoring Dr. Harmon and Beverly Schmelzenbach, and announcing a new scholarship program in their honor. Dr. Schmelzenbach gave another memorable speech, encourging those attending the luncheon to support the new scholarship program, and at the end, University President Professor Leah Marangu and Council Chairman and East Africa Field Strategy Coordinator representing ANU, and Drs. Eugenio Duarte and Fili Chanbo presented gifts to the Schmelzenbachs (picture of Professor Marangu and Rev. Gardner presenting gifts).<br />
One of the pleasures of our time at ANU has been meeting the many, many American Nazarenes who feel a special bond with Africa Nazarene University as a result of Work and Witness trips, but also as a result of volunteer teaching, visits from headquarters personnel and other connections. Many of those people were in attendance, including out-going General Superintendent Dr. Nina Gunter, pictured here with Professor Marangu.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-RRmZjt3Vt6piDvaZM6U8iMpLS3komF83jwx6nIPCRss3nzJruhxJE3WsYeJitXCv0kygp0RvK9d5zsr1l5zgzqO6e5PkckSqH8VIDdLa1oFRpelDjJHeo_1sYIIjTVC54xA0yh-qjmTZ/s1600-h/Eugenio+Duarte+%28Medium%29.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-RRmZjt3Vt6piDvaZM6U8iMpLS3komF83jwx6nIPCRss3nzJruhxJE3WsYeJitXCv0kygp0RvK9d5zsr1l5zgzqO6e5PkckSqH8VIDdLa1oFRpelDjJHeo_1sYIIjTVC54xA0yh-qjmTZ/s320/Eugenio+Duarte+%28Medium%29.JPG" width="269" /></a></div>Early the following week, we were privileged to witness the election of Dr. Duarte, whom we had featured in our June blog entry, being elected the first "international" General Superintendent. With typical determination and typical modesty, Dr. Duarte accepted the election of the General Assembly. We praise God for this historic moment in denominational history! As we asked "old-timers" what struck them most about this General Assembly, they mentioned this election more than anything else. As we saw African friends and acquaintances after the election, it was clear they felt we had entered an important new era in the church and were overjoyed. We might say that, with the appointment of Dr. Filimao Chambo as regional director, we feel the significance of strong, African leadership is making itself felt in the denomination. <br />
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When General Assembly was over, we began our series of deputation services. We'll update you on this in the post that follows this one immediately. Oh, and make sure you read FULL set of blog entries we post so you get a chance to read about Nancy being a guest speaker in a Hindu temple...<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thanks for reading, and don't forget, you can find the pictures and past posts at www.africonnection.org. Thanks for your prayers and love. Mark and Nan</div>Mark and Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07325748585359702442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1239339204752487527.post-60008122838550234262009-09-13T15:09:00.000+03:002009-09-14T20:11:47.560+03:00Mega-update--Home Assignment Section<span id="goog_1252938233289"></span><span id="goog_1252938233290"></span>After General Assembly, we began six weeks of more traditional home assignment. We want to thank the great pastors, NMI presidents, people who hosted us in their homes, and members of congregations for your kind words and support. Our typical home assignment presentation was basically a brief report on ANU, and then sharing some of the insights about holiness that we've gotten from our interviews with current and future African leaders.<br />
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The Africans don't all agree about a single definition of holiness, but they DO all agree that it is something to be "incarnated", to be implemented, to be reflected in their lives. They also agree that holiness provides a highly relevant response to issues such as corruption, violence, HIV/AIDS and poverty. We have been inspired by the deep commitment of Church of the Nazarene in Africa to the message of holiness. <br />
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What we saw on our visits to churches was American Nazarene pastors and churches working hard, attempting to impact their communities, faithful in the work of the church, doing Work and Witness, finding ways to engage their youth. We have great memories of the lilting harmonies and guitar-playing of three men from the 1st Hispanic Church of the Nazarene, of the membership explosion at Zion Community outside Bloomington Indiana as a result of Upward Sports and of their new educational wing (pictured) , of warm fellowship and great food at Spencer, Payette, Parma, New Hope; of an inspiring Celebrate Recovery service at Nampa First, our home church; of the great new church in Hemet California and the group of Work and Witness folks just returning from Hungary to the Highland Avenue church in California. Our time in Hawthorne CA and Brazil IN with family in attendance were also memorable. We continue to pray for the pastors and churches we visited.<br />
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In between deputation services, we got to spend time with family. That was wonderful too. We celebrated Mark's birthday in Indiana with a county fair, midway barbecue and turkey legs, and a demolition derby--what could be better!? County fair pictures just below and then more narrative...<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_SAPlSYfOYds6Wz5mKCwm85WbPVG1Nq80sNY3GWkp6OtjvcrBHWopYYxyb1q6eOaIEfdyBDfzflZQULayGioi4RqtyJKkdEDHsKmdP8Hh4oiekxFu3y99GNpj3ezljfVwMALJDsk8OOyQ/s1600-h/DSC_7676+%28Medium%29.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_SAPlSYfOYds6Wz5mKCwm85WbPVG1Nq80sNY3GWkp6OtjvcrBHWopYYxyb1q6eOaIEfdyBDfzflZQULayGioi4RqtyJKkdEDHsKmdP8Hh4oiekxFu3y99GNpj3ezljfVwMALJDsk8OOyQ/s320/DSC_7676+%28Medium%29.JPG" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpTtasAYNU0Uky2ze4jAssx0__j6OWu0WLlrBXb-IOstH7lQgDCL8j471pXkXJrTNscLVOuKgZIKhjlJNBgIwy1HPnHwHeXsp61Wkn34zzUCYwyqlogkTFHmopMEdcg53L_ap10BYlljrX/s1600-h/DSC_7700+%28Medium%29.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpTtasAYNU0Uky2ze4jAssx0__j6OWu0WLlrBXb-IOstH7lQgDCL8j471pXkXJrTNscLVOuKgZIKhjlJNBgIwy1HPnHwHeXsp61Wkn34zzUCYwyqlogkTFHmopMEdcg53L_ap10BYlljrX/s320/DSC_7700+%28Medium%29.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>The Nampa visit was equally pleasant and WARM in more than one way--temperatures several days above 104! We stayed with our friends Ray and Teresa Burwick, pictured, and enjoyed the friendliness and hospitality of our churches on the Intermountain District. Mark got to spend some time on the NNU campus, hearing about improvements in the library and in the music department and about new programs that have been submitted for approval. Nancy got word the second day we were there that the kids were dealing with a family crisis in Seattle, and she went to be with them. Without going into detail about that, it was a time of some tragedy for the kids, but also a time of healing and affirmation. Nan and the kids felt the prayers of the churches that knew about it and were remembering them.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih5lb6wdpcuIgz0S4ORQTJKzdshEjjqTnKeQzkIRB-wXTrKH-0FWdlLjpP3CtIC4OhQ7X98NbnKaMTMCxb8fElagTJJkB-UBMN4D3eFAt3cjOcY0Hq_zKehiSGM5MsxhU-53aRJ5pjlBgk/s1600-h/IMG_0017-1+%28Medium%29.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih5lb6wdpcuIgz0S4ORQTJKzdshEjjqTnKeQzkIRB-wXTrKH-0FWdlLjpP3CtIC4OhQ7X98NbnKaMTMCxb8fElagTJJkB-UBMN4D3eFAt3cjOcY0Hq_zKehiSGM5MsxhU-53aRJ5pjlBgk/s320/IMG_0017-1+%28Medium%29.JPG" /></a></div>After Idaho, and a brief "personal" time with Nan's sister and her husband in Seattle area, we went to California to be with all of the kids and it was a really wonderful time. Ben drove us to our first California service in Hemet. Thanks to you, Pastor Mike, for the special introduction and attention you gave to our son. You modeled for us how important it is that we lift up and affirm each other's "kids!" Three of the sons are buying a house together, and we have memories of several barbecues on the patio on top of the garage((daughter-in-law Birge, son Ben and Mark pictured) as well as announcements of an impending marriage for Nathan and his fiance Marli (Nancy pictured with Nathan), and of a child for Andrew and his wife Birge. Ben and Isaac and I visited Gene Autrey's Museum of the West where they posed on a recreated performance stage (Isaac and Ben pictured). <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh57ck1g9HtE9_TNl0LhEjxnQuP238kr13lsZC8jOHRhvE-_8WoRekXMMVZncIOwN-oKq2EbLmbzooKa92_Nkz39zaNNoZ42xgHWXucLM_mmE-BXRyu0832pEDRDDJDIu8sOWg5Q75v2HNS/s1600-h/DSC_7923+%28Medium%29.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh57ck1g9HtE9_TNl0LhEjxnQuP238kr13lsZC8jOHRhvE-_8WoRekXMMVZncIOwN-oKq2EbLmbzooKa92_Nkz39zaNNoZ42xgHWXucLM_mmE-BXRyu0832pEDRDDJDIu8sOWg5Q75v2HNS/s320/DSC_7923+%28Medium%29.JPG" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq60RQJJPYz9kZzKm4TrFjdk0G3rAwebXv3l2Eh-eiRPG-pG5vDOKS1LZXT4zSLkzIIWU_awFwhhyphenhyphenwH_Lop1ZK8IH4u2vA_OnSZ7-v_Mm1LZs4NRWIAauuXLXo7NIGhU6BifY0DTNkvD-c/s1600-h/IMG_0062-1+%28Medium%29.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq60RQJJPYz9kZzKm4TrFjdk0G3rAwebXv3l2Eh-eiRPG-pG5vDOKS1LZXT4zSLkzIIWU_awFwhhyphenhyphenwH_Lop1ZK8IH4u2vA_OnSZ7-v_Mm1LZs4NRWIAauuXLXo7NIGhU6BifY0DTNkvD-c/s320/IMG_0062-1+%28Medium%29.JPG" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHPUMnL6ohLU5cZ1QBWZk3tpNCcFbrR79F9NbVGoon2p9kgkeMFGYrEZA39fFmA3Mh-88cAMDhQJhYyc8bFEQ4vpJiBdDBsx-xoMzrwKDYxSG6rBulY6IIyhJvgQAu_d41Ri4l8D7UFTnS/s1600-h/IMG_0081-1+%28Medium%29.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHPUMnL6ohLU5cZ1QBWZk3tpNCcFbrR79F9NbVGoon2p9kgkeMFGYrEZA39fFmA3Mh-88cAMDhQJhYyc8bFEQ4vpJiBdDBsx-xoMzrwKDYxSG6rBulY6IIyhJvgQAu_d41Ri4l8D7UFTnS/s320/IMG_0081-1+%28Medium%29.JPG" /></a></div>In the next section, we'll talk a little bit about what's happened since we got back. Even looking over these pictures and reviewing the events of recent month, we'd appreciate your joining us in praying for the Kingdom work of these churches and pastors, and for our kids. In each case, and in our own lives, the challenges of the day require wisdom and discernment that only the Lord can give.<div class="blogger-post-footer">Thanks for reading, and don't forget, you can find the pictures and past posts at www.africonnection.org. Thanks for your prayers and love. Mark and Nan</div>Mark and Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07325748585359702442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1239339204752487527.post-74979603140203500272009-06-06T12:36:00.000+03:002009-06-06T12:47:34.718+03:00African Lives UpdateWell we already shared with you the article about Fidele Senga from Rwanda. Fidele graduated from ANU last week and was honored with one of two "Character and Leadership" awards. If you were going to buy stock in a person, Fidele would be a "stock to watch." <div><br /></div><div>Beyond that, Bwana Asifiwe (Praise the Lord!)--The glory and work of graduation are over. We graduated a record number (225) students and gave honorary degrees to Michael Ranneberger, the US Ambassador to Kenya and to a wonderful Christian lady named Ingrid Munro who has started a very successful self-help ministry to street people in Kenya.</div><div><br /></div><div>We've finished editing the other interviews we've had over the last several weeks with the people for the book: Regional Director Eugenio Duarte; Central Africa Field Strategy Coordinator Paul Mtambo; French Equatorial Africa FSC Chanshi Chanda; Horn of Africa FSC Ermias Choylie; Recent ANU graduate and new Kenyan Nazarene Jackie Mugane; Benson Phiri, a wonderful B.Th. student from Malawi. Even as we speak, our ANU boss, Professor Leah Marangu, is putting the finishing touches on her article. In the next few weeks--especially since the work is done--we'll be sharing pictures and stories of these people with you. Would you do this? Would you pick one or two of them and make the Lord and yourself a promise that you'll pray for them and for the prayer requests they made at the end of each article.<div><br /></div><div>We'll be at General Assembly in a couple of weeks and will be working part of the time at the ANU booth. We'd love to see you either their or on our deputation tour in July and August. Blessings on you all. Read down to the two additional posts: one for Eugenio Duarte, our great Regional Director, and for John Yual, the district superintendent for Sudan.</div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thanks for reading, and don't forget, you can find the pictures and past posts at www.africonnection.org. Thanks for your prayers and love. Mark and Nan</div>Mark and Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07325748585359702442noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1239339204752487527.post-6969606254093290262009-06-06T12:00:00.001+03:002009-06-06T13:15:10.141+03:00African Lives #2: Eugenio Duarte<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5SuMR9kTLS0O9SoryAaz11x5pYmlVxp5NG28OYOmzSHW3NYqc58woE6Zgnn4jOnQ7yi-QPSKX4ArwgfU-4CWMAFm5pdkpXIsYsGTj5GwG54NN_ZjcOWa7xrGnd14tr4e4aqoXa7tqPzUw/s1600-h/Eugenio+Duarte+(Medium).JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 336px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5SuMR9kTLS0O9SoryAaz11x5pYmlVxp5NG28OYOmzSHW3NYqc58woE6Zgnn4jOnQ7yi-QPSKX4ArwgfU-4CWMAFm5pdkpXIsYsGTj5GwG54NN_ZjcOWa7xrGnd14tr4e4aqoXa7tqPzUw/s400/Eugenio+Duarte+(Medium).JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5344154264931802514" /></a><br />On one of the last days of the Africa Region Leadership Conference in April, Eugenio Duarte took time from his very busy schedule to come for dinner at our house. Because he's a Cape Verdian, living most of his early life on an island, we had fish. <div><br /></div><div>Dr. Duarte is a wonderful listener and a very gentle but strong man. We are honored to have him as our regional boss. In what follows, his words are in <i>italics.</i> Here's his interview...</div><div><br /></div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal">Dr. Eugenio (ew-JEN-eeoh) Duarte (dwawrt) Africa Region Director for the Church of the Nazarene. He was born and educated in the Cape Verde (vaird) Islands and served as a pastor and district superintendent there before being appointed to field and regional leadership roles. He and his wife Maria Teresa have three grown children, and live in Johannesburg, South Africa where the regional office is located.<o:p></o:p></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:200%"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:200%"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Infant mortality was a problem in Cape Verde, and it affected Eugenio Duarte’s family. <i>In Cape Verde, medicine was not developed well enough so many children died. When I was born I had some health problems. I don’t think they thought I would survive, but I made it. We were five children, however before I was born I am told that there were eight children. So four of them had died and I am the last-born in our family.<o:p></o:p></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:200%"><i>My mother was a very hard worker who taught her children to be the same. She taught us to earn our living honestly and to give the best of ourselves to others. My father was a man of peace. He was a builder with people working for him. One day one of his workers offended him. He was hurt, but he did not tell us. A little later, the worker knocked at the door. When he was let in and shown to my father, he said, “I came to ask for forgiveness, for what I did to you.” And my father said, “Oh, I forgave you before even you came.” That is one of many situations that make me think of him as a man of peace <o:p></o:p></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:200%"><i><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span></i>When Eugenio was six, his eighteen year old sister Magdalena (mag-dah-LAYN-ah), who was attending the Church of the Nazarene, was the instrument of a turning point in his life.<i> It was</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:200%"><i> announced in church that a school was going to start, and they would like Nazarenes to bring their children. Magdalena decided that she would talk to my parents so that they would allow me to go to a Nazarene</i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:200%"><i> school. She went and did my registration and they took me to school and that is how my connection with the Church of the Nazarene started.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>To prepare me for school</i>, <i>my mother had crafted a gray school bag for me. It was precious because my mother made it from some fabric she had received from my aunt in the US.</i> <i>I remember the first day of school, I grabbed the bag, because I did not want anyone to mess with it because it was so precious.<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight:bold"><o:p></o:p></span></i></p><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8RhBKjQUxQkpN9QOTR14yThafU0CBoaA6jK5Rlz3zDnw5OsVgDjaV4Yy9-1ewhDc1od4N34XV2k3PZ_X9BA8OhV_W9pGLAtLofcrC-i-J83rWVAWTUG93eMINjn2DOjSrLZ_CY3OYn2fa/s400/DSC_5828+(Large).JPG" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 268px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5344154746340867810" /> <p class="MsoBodyText" style="line-height:200%"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><span style="font-style:normal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span></span></b><span style="font-style:normal">A meaningful illustration helped this island boy see his need for salvation. </span><i>We lived in islands surrounded by ocean, and most of the time the ocean was not friendly. When I was 12, a missionary, Clifford Gay, came to visit the island. That day he was asked to teach in my Sunday school class. The lesson was simple but impressive. The missionary presented salvation as what happens when you are crossing the ocean and the boat sinks.</i><span><i> </i></span><i>Even if you have no one around who is able to save you, when you have a life preserver, you are safe. That’s how he presented Jesus who is there and ready when you need him. And so I found myself lost and I went to this little room with four other boys and we prayed for our salvation. And that changed my life forever. </i></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:200%"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>When he first heard the message of holiness a devotional classic helped him with the question of earning salvation. <i>At the age of 17 I was in Mindello (meen-DAY-loh) and heard a message of holiness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>I was reading <u>The Christian’s Secret of a Happy Life</u> by Hannah Whitehall Smith. One passage made it clear to me that Jesus has already forgiven me and I asked myself, “Then why am I bothered so much if Jesus has done it?” In that room alone, I said, “Lord it is now. I want to leave it all in your hands.” That was another turning point in my life. <o:p></o:p></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:200%"><i><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span></i>Dr. Duarte’s sense of God’s saving and sanctification was clear, but God’s call to the ministry was hampered by a sense of inadequacy. He had talked to his pastor about attending Bible college, but instead of enrolling he first applied to join the Portuguese Army, then worked in business, and finally took a government job on Maio (MY-ew) Island, where he met his future wife Maria Teresa in the local Nazarene church and applied for a government scholarship. It was at this point that the true course of his life was about to be decided and two new chapters of his life began.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span><i>I had applied for an engineering scholarship from the independent Cape Verde government.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>I was going to Russia, and everything was set: invitation, passport, visa, and airplane tickets. The day before my departure I took my wife and went to say goodbye to friends. We passed by the Nazarene Church and empty parsonage. I had the keys so I said to my wife, “I feel like going inside and praying.” I asked the Lord to bless me. I said, “I cannot go if you do not bless me,” but he did not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>He said, “If you love me, then stay here.” When I said yes I felt that I was a new person again. I stood and said to my wife, “We are not going to say goodbye to anyone because I am not going anywhere.” So, we went back home and I sent a telegram to my DS who had been my pastor when I was growing up. The telegram said, “Do you have a place for a student this October? I will want to join.” I got a reply from my DS who said, “I have been praying for this day for years. I could have not gotten any better news than this!” I went to the capital, to ask them to release me, and the man who was in charge said to me, “You Protestants think going to Russia is going to hell.” I said, “No sir, none of that came to my mind, I have a reason but I know you will not understand.” He asked me what my reason was, and I explained to him about my call to ministry. He said, “Oh, you are crazy! How can you miss this opportunity for higher education?”<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal"><o:p></o:p></b></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:200%"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span></b><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight:bold">Eugenio’s time at the Bible college was productive and successful, and soon drew to an end. After an initial successful preaching assignment, Dr. Duarte served the church as a teacher at the Bible college, pastor of the mother Church of the Nazarene in Cape Verde, and then as district superintendent, gathering many memories of God’s faithfulness in the midst of challenge.</span> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal"><o:p></o:p></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:200%"><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>In 1996 Dr. Duarte was convinced that his time as District Superintendent was coming to an end. He alerted his field director and communicated his willingness to move back into the pastorate. God had other plans, though, and Dr. Richard Zanner called him to be the Field Strategy Coordinator in Central Africa. This assignment was followed in a brief period of time by other assignments to lead the Portuguese-speaking field and then the French-speaking field in West Africa. </span><i>When I was told I was needed to lead the West Africa Field, I went to my office and did something that I don’t usually do. I took the Bible and opened it randomly looking for guidance. I read Isaiah 41:10 “</i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand</i>.”<i> It was doubly confirmed when I went to the room where my wife was and she had her Bible opened to Isaiah 41 as well.</i><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight:bold"><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:200%"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>Dr. Duarte’s connection with Africa Nazarene University became stronger when he became a Field Strategy Coordinator<i> </i><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic">and as a result became a Board member. <i>It helped me to know Professor Marangu better, to know the great leader she is, and to see her relationship with the students.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>We do not see that type of thing much in Africa...there is usually a distance between senior administrators and students.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>God is using her example to train leaders. <o:p></o:p></i></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:200%"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span>1n 2006 Dr. Duarte was asked to serve as the Regional Director for the Africa Region.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">It’s a job that you do not ask for like any other ministry. When the Lord calls you, you do it. If I did not know Dr. Louie Bustle and the fact that he is able to work with you and empower you I might not have taken the position.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>I knew that he was someone I could go to when I made mistakes and tell him, “These are the mistakes please help me.” I did not feel confident and that kind of relationship had to be in place for me to accept this position.<o:p></o:p></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:200%"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><span style="mso-tab-count:1"> </span></b>When asked for his insights on several topics, Dr. Duarte responded as follows:</p> <ul style="margin-top:0in" type="disc"> <li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:200%;mso-list:l3 level1 lfo5; tab-stops:list .5in"><u>About Holiness<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal">:</b></u><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">Holiness is a lifestyle where we allow God to make us like him. And for that to happen it has a starting point but it is not just that one event.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>I think many people have failed to live the life of holiness because they feel that it is something that happens one time and it is done.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>We bring ourselves back to the Lord continually so he can keep empowering us. </i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">For many people in Africa they believe that once you are half religious then you are good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Africa does not need more religion because we have too many religions, we need something that changes people’s life. Holiness changes people’s lives.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>That is not a message that many people are willing to listen to because they know that Christ paid the price and they are not willing to pay the price. However, those of us who have paid the price can say that it’s a worth price. </i></li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:200%;mso-list:l3 level1 lfo5; tab-stops:list .5in"><u>About the African church:</u> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">The partnership between the church in the West and Africa is growing in significant ways. There was a time when that partnership meant Westerners brought money.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Now we are learning that it’s a relationship and it is much more than money which is one of the blessings of the global economic hardship. Now people are learning to understand that we can not wait for the west to give us, because what the west can give us we can also give to the west in some ways. For instance, in Africa we emphasize community rather than an individualistic approach to living.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>When I go to the US and visit churches people are warm and friendly. They really want you to be part of them and feel at home, but then after the service they do not have time to stay with you because they have to attend to many other things. In America you have clocks but in Africa we have time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>In Africa, we make time to be with people and they become part of us in ways they were not before.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span><o:p></o:p></i></li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:200%;mso-list:l3 level1 lfo5; tab-stops:list .5in"><u>About a vision for the Church of the Nazarene in Africa:</u><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">We have to have people who live a changed life, who are in revival mode, and willing for revival again and again</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal">The vision that I have for Africa is that the church planting movement that has happened in the Horn of Africa will spread through all seven fields...the whole of Africa.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>This movement is not about us, it is God’s work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>It is about allowing God to use us to make it happen. That’s why I invited Howie Shute to come work in the Regional Office to assist us. As I think about how we will make disciples, it is about people discovering what works in their own culture to build relationships.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>We cannot make disciples the same way that the west does it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>I am an African so I will use a different way. We have some great traditional ways of doing it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>We may not call it making disciples, but we bring people along by spending time with them. So I want us to explore those ways that God has given to us, and make use of them. And if we do it the way God wants it then the one million member goal we have for this continent is nothing. Actually, when I mention one million members, I always have someone tell me that number is too small.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Now my language has changed; I talk about the first million. <o:p></o:p></i></li> <li class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:200%;mso-list:l3 level1 lfo5; tab-stops:list .5in"><u>About how the global church can pray:</u><i style="mso-bidi-font-style:normal"> We need prayer for the vision to happen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>We have an ambitious goal to train 20,000 leaders by 2012.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Now we have less than 8,000 leaders and not all of them are trained. So we are believing that God will raise up leaders and those who will train, equip, and disciple them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>We see ANU as a power house to help make that happen as we create systems that help us multiple ourselves.<o:p></o:p></i></li></ul></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thanks for reading, and don't forget, you can find the pictures and past posts at www.africonnection.org. Thanks for your prayers and love. Mark and Nan</div>Mark and Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07325748585359702442noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1239339204752487527.post-44325357148879763682009-05-08T21:34:00.011+03:002009-05-08T22:54:44.350+03:00African Lives #1: Fidele Samvura Senga--Beyond the Rwandan Genocide<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxUDoCeazUMdvDEW5B8yY2T6RYIwM-zEQJVo5NTVXmEofxMZYNqHt7COhsSUFNbT-Y8m3IkzYRsdP4siKuwTqzCxsxcHm0l1m-Kcg9T-PZWfmKxxrEQvwyBDsO1QNJEfcOz9Ra3zIwiA-l/s1600-h/DSC_0306.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 376px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxUDoCeazUMdvDEW5B8yY2T6RYIwM-zEQJVo5NTVXmEofxMZYNqHt7COhsSUFNbT-Y8m3IkzYRsdP4siKuwTqzCxsxcHm0l1m-Kcg9T-PZWfmKxxrEQvwyBDsO1QNJEfcOz9Ra3zIwiA-l/s400/DSC_0306.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5333538037718293458" /></a><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:200%"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal;"><b>As our readers know, we've been </b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:200%"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal;"><b>asked to write a "missionary book" for NMI. It </b></span><b>has been a deep personal privilege to sit around our dinner table or on our back balcony overlooking the Athi Savannah talking to committed, faithful people about their lives and beliefs. We'll be previewing some of the chapters with Africonnection readers before they go to NMI. The convention of what follows is that the narration is in BOLD and the words from the interviewees are in ITALICS.</b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:200%"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; ">Fidele Samvura Senga, the third child of a Nazarene District Superintendent, was born in a Nazarene church and school compound in Isenyi, Rwanda about 20</span></p><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLuS7vOv6LrzGEbSEKMJkeJj-DRwBZ9ieO_GLBng9XX_8VM9UtkkZD3tmh5GT7jqsEqGi_9yJJZiRgjEkJiVBEgBNVjy9_5DUWBwUZ-dSmhewAeBMA-Umj8v4SrnfBIXRKwbs6mvW4Rmnv/s400/Rwandan+Flag" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 135px; height: 90px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5333534453115430562" /><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:200%"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "> miles east of the border with the Democratic Republic of the Congo. After high school, he attended Africa Nazarene University where he will graduated with a Bachelor of Theology degree in<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>May of 2009. While a student at ANU, he wrote a grant application for his church's affiliated orphanage and is helping to administer the grant and the orphanage as he completes his studies. (The picture of children and of a building are of the orphanage.)</span></p> <img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghIX9VRY-qkmTNtJn0BvxRjhLyfd8YFPAJ2LC6dz9E6vPbH6ItmRyisgNR3S8tLoF1awy-wr8RS461xIpIMq7kcKL0_TYGcVIt_S9KobAZWv5vvQU2MzN-VU9Bndj3sbFnM_izEnq3Rf4i/s400/Rwandan+Map" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 112px; height: 150px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5333534734008449778" /><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:200%"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal">Because of his work as a DS, Fidele’s father spent many weeks each year away from</b></p><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-uLdG_kN0GFop40TtcQ8I797p2EAqtpOPuE_RGrPZ4FO51BaBCb3fGgGCOK_JWKnpP41Hs3ehLT3K4QBZdG9aadEs9yytrH9lOI9vBNwpf6O7aQv-NZ4JdQn22X1oiDexTeilb8ZgI4AC/s400/IMG_1617+(Large).JPG" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5333532726153444674" /><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:200%"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal">home visiting churches, encouraging pastors, and seeing to the work of the district. Even so, some of Fidele’s best childhood memories are of his family and of his parents. Although it wasn’t important at the time, his father was a Hutu and his mother a Tutsi. </b><i><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#990000;">My father used to be away for ministry but every time he could come he could gather us around the sitting room and ask each one of how the week was. My mother could give him a report both negative and positive and if it is punishment we were to get it there and then, and we moved on with life. My father always gave us a chance to challenge him. He could come and sit all of us around the table and tell us to state what we have seen too extreme on his side, so from there we saw him being like our elder brother than being our father. My mother could understand us more easily than our dad because our dad had to practice justice but my mum could exercise mercy.</span></b></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:200%"><span class="apple-style-span"><b><span style="color:black;">Although today many Rwandans remember long periods of living with their </span></b></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:200%"><span class="apple-style-span"><b><span style="color:black;">neighbors in peace, when the Rwandan president’s plane crashed in April of 1994, it reopened old disagreements between Tutsis and Hutus. In the four months between April and July of 1994, thousands of Tutsis and moderate Hutus were killed. Some estimate the final death toll as high as 800,000. Fidele and his family were caught in the violence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>When the Rwandan genocide began, Fidele was up country at St. Andrews, an elite Catholic secondary school.</span></b></span><b> </b><i><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#990000;">After the president’s plane crashed in April 6</span></b></i><sup><i><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#990000;">th</span></b></i></sup><i><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#990000;"> 1994, I had just joined Form One (9</span></b></i><sup><i><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#990000;">th</span></b></i></sup><i><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#990000;"> grade), but when we heard that all the Hutus were to be killed we were called back home. The Catholic brothers used the school buses to take us to the doors of our homes. When I arrived at the Nazarene compound, there were between 70 and 100 young men with pangas (machetes) who came into the compound to look among the 300 students in our </span></b></i></p><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmG4f2ay-RfPPYiwFTznq-5vlAaX-LZTBJn1WC4BpVzjCzz5dpZFwmw-vX3DitZbTXXZViZ4ttJPFOe6n7HKAwgUItzYDMVOtpWDomdriR-ozjWbsIFMXetzQbZXeEt1YtzGJFfaKdhy6P/s400/IMG_1579+(Large).JPG" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5333528151922213410" /><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:200%"><i><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#990000;">Nazarene high school for those who were Tutsis. My father and some church leaders had just returned from morning prayers and were sitting outside. The young men said that they wanted to see all the invenzi, the cockroaches, which was the name they gave the Tutsis. My father joked with them, saying, “We do not keep cockroach here, we have students!” When some of the young men started threatening my father others started shouting, “This is our pastor! Stop threatening him!” So they went but still the tension was in the air and those who were in the compound had to find their way out of the country.</span></b></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:200%"><b>Outside of the<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>relative safety of the Nazarene compound, the Rwandan genocide continued. As Fidele and members of his family left to find food and try to rescue people and later as they fled to the Congo, they saw disturbing and unspeakable sights.</b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#990000;"><b>You could walk out of the compound and find people killed, to the extent it was like a normal thing to find a person lying down across the road dead. The place they were calling the District Commissioners place was really a cemetery run by people whose work was to kill people. Those who had cash could buy a bullet for quick death rather than being killed more slowly by the pangas. People were told to dig their own graves and then were buried while they were alive. A military commander who came to the cemetery found a Catholic archbishop and two priests being buried alive. When those burying them saw the military commander, some ran away and others were ordered to remove the soil, freeing the priests. We did not prepare to go to the Congo. We woke up at the middle of the night and joined the masses of people walking toward the border. That distance of 20 miles took us the full day to cross over. We walked tied together so that no one of us should get lost. You could hear many children shouting, “Mum!” because they had gotten lost. There were many people using the same path—perhaps as many as two million who went into exile at some point, including sixteen thousand Rwandan Nazarenes who made the trip under my father’s leadership. </b></span></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:200%"><b>The family stayed in the Congo until 1994 when Fidele’s father was invited to pursue a Master of Arts in Religion degree at ANU. Fidele’s father continued with his studies until 1996. Although it was officially two years after the peak of the genocide, there was still a struggle in Rwanda for leadership of government, business, and the churches.</b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span><i><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#990000;">My father felt that he needed to go back, because there were some people who wanted to take over most of the institutions in the country. Because there was a leadership problem, the church in Rwanda was in trouble. In 1996, my father went back to Rwanda to help the church. Then, in November of 1997 as he was making plans to come back to ANU, he was killed as part of the disagreements about leadership of institutions in the country. My mother was with him and was beaten and unconscious for awhile, but they did not kill her because she was a woman. Later, we discovered that prior to my father’s death 14 young people from the church had been killed in the same disagreements.</span></b></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height:200%"><b>After Fidele’s mother recovered, she returned briefly to Kenya to accompany the family back to Rwanda. Fidel’s mother was determined to redeem the family’s experience of the genocide, loss of their father and lengthy separation from each other and from Rwanda</b>. <i><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#990000;">My mother adopted a new lifestyle because she felt like she needed to bring us up in such a away we could forget the past and put our mind on God. So she is the one who was much encouraging us to be involved in the church and to understand how far we had come. And she felt that the only way should could is to pray and encourage us to do the same, even now she has set apart Tuesday as the day she prays for all of us as her children. For me, forgiveness has been a matter of accepting and not dwelling in the past and seeking a way of living a new life. So this idea of forgiveness, it took time for me and for the family members, we decided to do it as a family and let what happened be of the past and look forward for a better life. </span></b></i></p> <p class="MsoBodyText"><b>A chance trip to a Rwandan Peace and Reconciliation conference brought Fidele into contact with an American Nazarene family who were so impressed with Fidele that they offered to pay for his University education and suggested he attend Africa Nazarene University. Fidele credits ANU with allowing him to meet Nazarene leaders from all over Africa and to sharpen his thinking and his skills. As we had done with other interviews, we asked Fidele some questions designed to encourage sharing some ideas from his own perspective as a young African Nazarene leader in training. Here are some excerpts:</b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.25in;text-indent:-.25in;line-height: 200%;mso-list:l3 level1 lfo5;tab-stops:list .25in"><span style="font-family:Symbol;">·<span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman""> </span></span><u>On moving from bitterness to forgiveness:</u> <i><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#990000;">When the genocide and the death of my father were happening, I did not have much understand of who God was. I did know that God was good. We expected the God of love to be on our side but it did not seem to be true. Even the people we expected to be on our side did not seem to be. I came a book that talked about understanding God. The author was saying that our mind is so much limited that we see thing happening around, and we do not seem to understand. It makes it clear that God does not change with what happens to our lives, he still remains God. His ways of doing things can change but for him he does not change. In that situation, it gave me hope, I was able to figure out that my mum could have died with my father but there is a reason why she is alive. The encouragement we get from mum has kept me moving. Faith with God and her involvement in ministry has helped God make sense to us. I know God loves me the same way he loves other people and He regards me as a special person. </span></b></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.25in;text-indent:-.25in;line-height: 200%;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo4;tab-stops:list .25in"><span style="font-family:Symbol;">·<span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman""> </span></span><u>About what the African church can contribute to the global church:</u> <i><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#990000;">I think in Africa we have really responded to the call of the church as a community, which is one of the strengths of the African community. If our definition of a church is the coming together as a family to worship God, and we can see it lacking from our Western brothers because they are more event oriented and we are more oriented toward people and relationships which falls under social wholeness. If Africa can pass on to our Western brothers the real value of community it will be a good thing. It will make us feel that we all need each other. And the idea of where one comes from, or of white and black, will not be there because we will feel we are all the same. </span></b></i><u><o:p></o:p></u></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.25in;text-indent:-.25in;line-height: 200%;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo4;tab-stops:list .25in"><span style="font-family:Symbol;">·<span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman""> </span></span><u>About missionaries:</u>. <i>I<b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#990000;">n our church administration class at ANU, we asked one of our professors whether he thinks the church in Africa needs missionaries, and surprisingly he answered that the church in Africa needs missionaries who are born again. I think that was because he has stayed in Africa for long and he knows the challenges that are facing the church in Africa. I think what he meant is people who are willing to forget their identities and learn new ways of ministry; he meant people who can adopt to the fields that they are send into so that they can be more of a support to the fields that they are send into. Without the presence of missionaries one cannot sense the idea of the church being an international church. The idea is for the national church to be able to sustain itself both spiritual and financially</span></b></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.25in;text-indent:-.25in;line-height: 200%;mso-list:l3 level1 lfo5;tab-stops:list .25in"><span style="font-family:Symbol;">·<span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman""> </span></span><u>On the message of holiness in Africa: </u><i><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#990000;">What I understand about holiness is the desire to walk with Jesus. There are so many things we get from walking with Him. Like the things we get from the Bible, and the people we walk with, and even our community. The holiness theologians will come with many, many theological words explaining what holiness is instead of using a simple word. We are not talking about holiness because it is a denominational requirement but because it is what God expects us to live by. The best witness of our holiness life should be the people who are living around us. They will be able to say that we are Christians and Nazarenes, they will be able to experience and witness about our holiness life. </span></b></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left:.25in;text-indent:-.25in;line-height: 200%;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo4;tab-stops:list .25in"><span style="font-family:Symbol;">·<span style="font:7.0pt "Times New Roman""> </span></span><u>About how people can pray for him:</u> <i><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#990000;">I need God to help in the message that I preach to people to be of relevance to them and I may be able to make it simple to them without necessarily complicating their lives.</span></b></i></p> <p class="MsoHeader" style="line-height:200%;tab-stops:.5in"> <o:p></o:p></p><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thanks for reading, and don't forget, you can find the pictures and past posts at www.africonnection.org. Thanks for your prayers and love. Mark and Nan</div>Mark and Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07325748585359702442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1239339204752487527.post-37744970550861525332009-04-27T20:26:00.017+03:002010-06-30T20:37:11.960+03:00Africa Region Leadership Conference Report<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_-dHju43gbWRWtRI85dqcAITbT0XCgBhBlq4raNyFtrojwZrje1Uf27tcpjULhfk7hNZWUVnJfHtdkGT2EUrP_l4wKNJTrfbKqzk-8PmgtAAme84OWlmgNlqz40UdkV6IZdchy-eFo-bj/s1600-h/DSC_0564+(Large).JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5329455139282434338" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_-dHju43gbWRWtRI85dqcAITbT0XCgBhBlq4raNyFtrojwZrje1Uf27tcpjULhfk7hNZWUVnJfHtdkGT2EUrP_l4wKNJTrfbKqzk-8PmgtAAme84OWlmgNlqz40UdkV6IZdchy-eFo-bj/s400/DSC_0564+(Large).JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 251px; margin: 0 10px 10px 0; width: 400px;" /></a><br />
<div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">An Irish diarist wrote a short poem that we've quoted before but that's accurate these days: "A man who keeps a diary pays, due toll to many tedious days; but life becomes eventful then, his busy hand forgets the pen." It's taken us awhile to do the Leadership Conference post we promised because the Leadership Conference kept us so busy!</span></span></div><div><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><br />
</span></b></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">The Africa Region Leadership Conference was a gathering of 300 Nazarene leaders from all over Africa. Each daybegan with a devotional, followed by a plenary speaker and breakouts in the morning, and plenary and breakouts in the afternoon and ending with a preaching service in the</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> </span><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">evening. The days were 14-15 hours long, but very rich. Some highlights and pictures:</span></b></div><div><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><br />
</span></b></div><div><ul><li><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">The first picture at the top is of our blue T-shirted (mainly) ushers--all ANU "Bachelor of Theology" students, ready to greet our visitors. The next three pictures are of Horn of </span></b><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5329766685591366866" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinqz2L-CBD-zbkpI_wj-R_gntqotzhDXT0M33PKHl9db02vFu8HQJxiA7iHBshm88gzS9VHX80gtz7WeR7W3Ng6PfGtBuqU-QYxQx3idrs4GyPL163Cd2nWng___VY07oc9VL8cumTIW8w/s400/DSC_5562+(Large).JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 400px; margin: 0 10px 10px 0; width: 320px;" /><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Africa people. Sudan DS John Yual (left in patterned blue shirt), currently a student at ANU and one of the interviews we'll post later, greets a colleague upon arrival. The group picture is one Mark posted on Facebook, but we're still being taught by the joy of this group that lost eight of its members to Muslim and anamist persecution in 2008. The third picture is of a pastor from Ethiopia who is the "prayer warrior" for the Horn of Africa. Terry Barker, the Education Coordinator</span></b><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5329437777947853218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie6a25JmFR_sZyVIFPQOEVqO-6UWiRXJw_mRIXQ9ZZiMWqepORo7MDvTKuL3DCzsfKFsP_ptjvQmHHYNx2RE7SMTAfuQE5Nl-4j4cXOoHoZ4_x4mqnpn6XZW0tBe_Olax_LUyUT2EUOGoO/s400/DSC_5595+(Large).JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: right; height: 320px; margin: 0 0 10px 10px; width: 400px;" /><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> there, said this pastor climbs a sacred mountain in Ethiopia for a month several times a year to pray for the work of the Church and the Kingdom in Africa. Each time we begin to complain or to use "entitled" language, we will think of this group that is winning souls and starting </span></b><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5329438458846163442" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkK8S4Y8rxHeNpBrZ9xvtVJg4ejkvZKoj6htO7iFwZZ3lh4Px5DPQMAriCIFHYN_9JCqdw1s13-vVOBUEi-lts-kQ8pt67RbAcEARcOIIKhcr0gC3LL4AoQs2QQTTmMchK5PW6MYB11H4g/s400/DSC_5603+(Large).JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: left; height: 400px; margin: 0 10px 10px 0; width: 268px;" /><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">churches in the midst of tremendous oppression.</span></b></li>
</ul><ul><li><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">General Superintendent Jerry Porter preached two really excellent sermons. The first one, more earnest and intense, talked about the fact that Jesus was tempted, and that only yielding to temptation is sin. He acknowledged both the crisis and on-going relationship aspects of sanctification, and quoted 2 Peter 1:3-4 as he reminded the audience that we have access to power as well as purity through if the Holy Spirit. In the second, funnier, sermon he encouraged unchanging principles and changing stratgies. One item: he said--don't you just hate those songs where you have to stand and sing the same words over and over? For example, let's all stand and sing this irritating song which repeats the same word 56 times (and then a pianist accompanied him in the singing of Handel's Hallelujah Chorus!)</span></b></li>
</ul><ul><li><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Rev. Balibanga, from French Equitorial Africa, gave an excellent devotional one of the days. He pointed out that even in the 36 African countries where the Church of the Nazarene is active, the economic, racial/ethnic, and health problems of Africa exist. He said that the Church of the Nazarene must present the nations of Africa and the world not just with holy words, but with holy lives, and with a "new world order" built not on economic transformation or social transformation, but built on a testimony of radical spiritual transformation.</span></b></li>
</ul><ul><li><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Mark Lowe, Field Strategy Coordinator, quoted George Whitfiled, the famous Methodist evangelist, who said Wesley was right in putting his converts into classes, and observed sadly that his own converts were "a rope of sand." Mark said that without a well-constructed discipleship program, converts from such evangelistic efforts as the Jesus Film were in danger of also being a "rope of sand."</span></b></li>
</ul><ul><li><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Chanshi Chanda, the Field Strategy Coordinator from French Equitorial Africa, told the true story of an Imam to whom he witnessed and who was saved in a dramatic way. When he returned to his home as an Imam he was given the platform at his local mosque and preached the gospel there. He is now training to become a Nazarene pastor. His wife is not yet converted and, as one might imagine, is having a hard time accepting his conversion. They need your prayer.</span></b></li>
</ul><ul><li><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">In a breakout session, Chanshi said that if he were kicked out of the Church of the Nazarene at any point, he would leave everything but the message of holiness. He said, "Some of us treat holiness as a play word. We treat it as a toy to be played with, but the essence of Christianity is holiness." Chanshi studies online with a Jewish rabbi in Toronto, and says that God's intention for the Israelites is that they be holy and close to God. He said, "We need to take our message of holiness to heart. If we are not strivintg to maintain the church as pure as it can be, forget about 'ministry sustainability.'"</span></b></li>
</ul><ul><li><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Mashangu Maluleka, the principla of Nazarene Theological College in Muldersdrift, South Africa, preached a powerful, very African sermon, about Moses and the stick. He said that Moses was an African boy. His point was that we need to recognize the resources God has put into our hands, and we need to recognize the "snakes" that need to be killed.</span></b></li>
</ul><ul><li><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">As you might imagine, there were many, many other good sessions, including presentations by Howie Shute, Dr. LeBron Fairbanks, Fili Chambo and several others.</span></b></li>
</ul><ul><li><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">We attended (and mainly listened) in fascinating breakouts where DS's from all over Africa talked about some of their challenges: how to make graceful leadership transitions in a culture where the chief stays in as long as he can and historically has killed rivals. How to make disagreements model holiness and encourage learning and growth. How to deal with members or associate members (policy differs across Africa) who have been saved and repented, but are dealing with the consequences of polygamous marriages.</span></b></li>
</ul><ul><li><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">In between sessions, we did interviews with Dr. Eugenio Duarte and the three FieldStrategy Coordinators who are graduates of ANU: Chanshi Chanda, FSC of French Equitorial Africa; Paul Mtambo, FSC of Central Africa; and Ermias Choliye, FSC of the Horn of Africa. We will be publishing blog posts based on each of those interviews and others we are doing, so we'll save that for a different time.</span></b></li>
</ul><ul><li><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Below, some additional pictures "just for fun" (apologies for a couple of slightly out of focus but favorite pictures): Dr. Eugenio Duarte and delegates from Sudan; Rev Paul Mtambo, Field Strategy Coordinator of Central Africa (in tan suit); lady drummer from the Horn of Africa; small part of an end-of-conference group photo; we'll blog more pictures at a later time."</span></b></li>
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<img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5329450315798694898" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGQd6XvU5OmV6G88oMiGepsuPae3yUMToTCdEvUeq_5ZyzNY0e9efSnS3-zRek-VJ3Xki4Irj6Bgk7zO51XU8xxKoCzk7uY8r_5u8OsbyVKqNl5iNULI5VZv-1aRdzlm3BB0SzO4CR6VbV/s400/DSC_5848+(Large).JPG" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 268px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 400px;" /></div></div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thanks for reading, and don't forget, you can find the pictures and past posts at www.africonnection.org. Thanks for your prayers and love. Mark and Nan</div>Mark and Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07325748585359702442noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1239339204752487527.post-53611395779456895202009-04-18T22:34:00.010+03:002009-04-18T23:37:24.484+03:00ANESA REPORTWell, praise the Lord! The ANESA conference was great and we'll give you some quick highlights of it before we go to bed this Saturday evening.<div><br /></div><div>On Friday morning, Regional Education Coordinator Dr. Fili Chambo ( blue shirt in front of screen) led us in singing "Come Let Us Adore Him" and "He Is Lord."</div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlCFzRX4Q2v8jzIHPUXNdZyHBpHUJ_asSqQo6Kr3vtQbo8jmkvBKFsxQ3zXkVEyEmcZEUL1GPeVX7Ix7hZBeHWuQEoSBz696T7f3f-7oFaxLm_nyHJFVD3a1wXG2Wl09zlrkFb52DZ56F_/s400/CSC_5504+(Large).JPG" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 268px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326128961466592242" /><div><br /></div><div>In his addreess, Regional Director Dr. Eugenio Duarte called for a "culture of</div><div> spiritual accountability" and "extraordinary prayer" on the Africa Region. He called for ordinary people doing extraordinary work because they make themselves available to the Lord.</div><div><br /></div><div>Howie Shute (at lunch in red sweater) gave some thoughts about developments in the Horn of Africa:</div><div><ul><li><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7KM22qLCnwYQ_1cMt8z5RH7YXf7ha0tnFUaIYQ7v7bD2ja2cEsI88DPUpsjAFQ_Jo1b017ozdBJ_nqzQSZbC9PAwkS0eTWe7lx8FPIYz6RtvM-e50GC3Zvh543n7OC0QbPLlDSSPb0kCB/s400/DSC_5411+(Large).JPG" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 268px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326129310224057666" />We need representatives of each of the people groups in Africa to be trained as theologians capable of contextualizing theology for each group.</li><li>Great story about the Jesus Film being shown in a particular Ethiopian village with a large Muslim population. Across several weeks after the film, many Muslims were saved, the Imam's children became Christians; the Imam's wife became a Christian. A few days after this, the Imam came to the Nazarene pastor and dangled the key to the mosque in front of him. "Take it," he said. "The mosque is yours." The Nazazrene pastor was astonished but accepted the key. Right now there are three mosques in the Horn of Africa being used as Churches of the Nazarene.</li><li>On the darker side, Christians in general face tremendous danger and persecution in the Horn of Africa. 15 of our Nazarene leaders have died because of their faith in the last 8 years, but of these 15, 7 have been killed in 2008 alone. We need to be in passionate prayer for these brave pastors who are literally giving their lives for the spread of the gospel.</li></ul><div>There was a very lively discussion of the relationship between multiple, contextualized versions of the Nazarene Course of Study used for training of Nazarene pastors in Africa and the idea of a centralized, unified course of study to be used by all areas. Dr. Fili Chambo mentioned the cost of development of multiple versions, and a desire to pursue accreditation with the Accrediting Council for Theological Education in Africa (ACTEA) as reasons for moving toward unification. More senior Field Strategy Coordinators remember the old days when the Region sent what they often saw as irrelevant, unified materials for them to use. At the end of the discussion--which extended across the tea time--there was an agreement to talk about a "consolidated" course of study (meaning fewer models but not a single model).</div><div><br /></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0hDIuHx_UkW40W4eyW4XcTddbJOjKTelrUKubpgWpNAImpsptHWNHFK9w8Dop_BPdU8qTp7b1EEMnSyIkrbRtHgfoK1qYCDe3B_uFfm3OElYMVulyc8DzHowfdM0noMAxBEQIFVzFkoDo/s400/CSC_5505+(Large).JPG" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 268px; height: 400px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326132423384172722" /><div>Last night, we interviewed Ermias Choliye, the Field Strategy Coordinator for the Horn of Africa (standing and gesturing during the theology conference), for the NMI book we're working on--what a privilege to hear his story of faithfulness to the</div><div>Lord. We'll do a blog entry on him at a later date and he will be one of the interviews in the book, but just a kind of funny highlight of his perseverance and faithfulness: He had been an officer in the Ministry of Education in Ethiopia, and a life-long Christian who made the decision to become a Nazarene after meeting Al and Kitty Jones. He quit his job and came to ANU to begin ministerial training. He was housed with a very young student who played loud music and was doing his first studying in many years. He wrote</div><div> his wife a letter saying he was </div><div>discouraged and coming home, but before she received it, three things happened: He heard a sermon by Dr. Jim Diehl about how he overcame discouragement and frustration as a pastor, his wife sent him an encouraging letter and a picture of herself and his children smiling broadly, and--the Lord "piling it on"--he visited an elementary school as part of a prayer campaign at ANU and the welcome song the students sang was the Christian song "No Turning Back." He laughed and</div><div> said at that point he knew he had to stay and see it through! And now the Lord is using him to lead the "Book of Acts" movement in the Horn of Africa. Praise the Lord!</div></div><div><br /></div><div>This afternoon, ANU presented some of its plans for distance learning and did two sessions on entreprenurship for Nazarene pastors and congregations. There were presentations by our Dry </div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1afLqjgGanGB7KfPHNOR8huOU1Ry0f6Z3CO_VZ9fzqSJzrIW7D42H9Sj_c7Ssj0IeV9Yvjd7b6IkwAvHZuj1YFqane9SkZH-8FEmjVSWPagh4bLXGUw_Ye7ny1Uk3JjQsxva6XHKzt-ra/s400/CSC_5498+(Large).JPG" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 268px; height: 400px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326128793673078962" /><div>Land Natural Resource department, by our lecturer in entreprenurship, by our director of distance learning and by Rod Reed of the Religion Department, talking about how we might help some of our diploma colleges with short courses in accounting, land management, as well as theological subjects.</div><div><br /></div><div>We just got back from the first evening of a "mini-theology conference" attached to the two main conferences. Two great papers offered:</div><div><ul><li>Rev. Joseph Llilema, a Zambian working at NTC-CA in Malawi (standing at podium in gray suit), presented a summary of his excellent MAR thesis research regarding attitudes toward polygamy in the Central Africa District (Zambia, Zimbabwe and Malawi. His research showed that Nazarene attitudes toward the treatment of polygamists in the church were all over the board and called for the region to establish a clear policy toward polygamy. He cited the Manual statement regarding divorce (saying it is outside of God's<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik8XKD3XXQriy3eBZU41o4RR69kyF1ePZMjVozE3-AFr2BGASA7FaeT0hwqNLAFdAVCiE_gFdz6zD5PwC88os4O79pwurKRcODmsUGdwHYuqnqZhsKgTKeCKY7xo3RUdeKP-8tnrDBS6Bb/s400/CSC_5508+(Large).JPG" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 268px; height: 400px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326129746852898418" /> plan for marriage but that people can and should be redeemed after divorce) as possible language regarding polygamy and called for the full acceptance of redeemed polygamists as members of the church to be offered the sacrements. As you might imagine, lively discussion followed.</li><li>Rev. Gift Mtukwa, a faculty member at ANU (gesturing at microphone in blue mock-turtleneck and suit), delivered a portion of a paper he and Dr. Rod Reed, Religion Department chair, had delivered at Wesley Theological Society meeting at Anderson University earlier this year. His paper examined the idea being discussed in some academic circles in Africa of the idea of "Christ as Ancestor." He concluded that this was not a good alternative to Western Christology because by definition ancestors are tightly connected to family or clan, meaning the idea of Christ as ancestor would encourage rather than calm African ethnic tensions.</li></ul><div>It's getting late and we'd probably better close for now, but we'll give you at least one post from the Leadership Conference that begins on Sunday morning. Thanks for your prayers. We can feel their impact!</div><div><br /></div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thanks for reading, and don't forget, you can find the pictures and past posts at www.africonnection.org. Thanks for your prayers and love. Mark and Nan</div>Mark and Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07325748585359702442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1239339204752487527.post-79093401443510383112009-04-16T11:35:00.002+03:002009-04-16T11:51:40.080+03:00Request for Prayer and Promise of NewsHello--This will be a bit of a different blog post. We're asking for prayer for a set of two back-to-back conferences we'll be having at ANU beginning this evening, and promising you some pictures and information from each of them. <div><br /></div><div>The first of these conferences is the two-day ANESA conference. ANESA is the Nazarene organization that oversees education (primarily pastoral education) in Africa. This conference will be led by Regional Education Director Dr. Fili Chambo, and will feature discussion of the successes of the education strategic plan, how to do the current things better and what new strategies may be needed. This conference will include two evenings of papers presented by ANU masters students about topics including polygamy, hunger, the church's role in encouraging peace in Africa, etc. This conference will involve 45 educational leaders from all over Africa.</div><div><br /></div><div>The second, larger conference, beginning on Monday, will involve an additional 250 leaders for a total of 300 people. It's the Africa Region Leadership Conference, led by our Regional Director, Dr. Eugenio Duarte. Taken together, it may be no exaggeration to say that these two conferences are the most important formal meetings the denomination has had in Africa. They will involve progress reports regarding regional goals, discussions of evangelism and leadership strategies that are working and what additional things can be done.</div><div><br /></div><div>Soooo--we would appreciate your prayers about these meetings, and for Dr. Duarte, Dr. Chambo and the other global, regional and field leaders who will be presenting and/or participating. We'd ask you to pray for Professor Marangu as conference host and for the many staff at ANU who will be working to assure that visitors are housed, fed, and otherwise made to feel welcome. Most of all, we want the presence of the Holy Spirit to break through in these meetings, for the Lord to guide the discussion and the decisions that are made.</div><div><br /></div><div>We'll plan on taking our cameras to some of the meetings and jotting down some notes, so at least once for each meeting--more if possible-- we'll send you a report. </div><div><br /></div><div>Blessings on each of you. Thanks also to Spencer, Indiana; Zion Bloomington Indiana; Highland Avenue, California; Hemet Califormia; and Indianapolis District who have responded so warmly and quickly to our announcement of deputation dates. We still have a few dates left, but our calendar is filling up fast! We look forward to seeing you soon and delivering some of this information in person! </div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thanks for reading, and don't forget, you can find the pictures and past posts at www.africonnection.org. Thanks for your prayers and love. Mark and Nan</div>Mark and Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07325748585359702442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1239339204752487527.post-44745609153665752132009-03-28T22:39:00.006+03:002009-03-28T22:55:09.401+03:00Informal Picture AlbumWe thought you might just like to see some recent pictures that highlight why we love Kenya. From top to bottom they are: 1) A picture of an acacia tree at sunset taken on the way back from Amboseli National Park; 2) "Elephant Mother and Child" at Amboseli; 3) Gustav Banda--son of Millie and Agnes Banda, pastors and religion students from Democratic Republic of the Congo; 4) Nancy and family members petting a cheetah at Nairobi National Park; 5) Unknown child taken at the Nairobi Elephant Orphanage; 6) Boys in truck near our home in Ongata Rongai. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYxpPxL4cbjCZJT9G-tVjJxzhEofNfCberqVAcAN4HzbpCypyIViU5823diCbUJxmjtWi73NCHuDBKqZUnexURSkE0l_bpH0qvBcBQCGk-wEDjubeU1iO8CaoveA2C3Zi56az-k4_vFjWp/s1600-h/DSC_4469+(Large).JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 268px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYxpPxL4cbjCZJT9G-tVjJxzhEofNfCberqVAcAN4HzbpCypyIViU5823diCbUJxmjtWi73NCHuDBKqZUnexURSkE0l_bpH0qvBcBQCGk-wEDjubeU1iO8CaoveA2C3Zi56az-k4_vFjWp/s400/DSC_4469+(Large).JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318328429903067746" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc1pClV4YemzTnF5XjIvdgsF3Q8MtdVSGcwzVK5ioeC1zB_TeI3rrC7jMjDObWx5cmWRMwKQasIxWcgfQXoTStMibU-D_sJimcEgwt8UFrbJvwkPj2CISWkyaM_RPRKYhQWqaCS4Go10xf/s1600-h/DSC_4371+(Large).JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc1pClV4YemzTnF5XjIvdgsF3Q8MtdVSGcwzVK5ioeC1zB_TeI3rrC7jMjDObWx5cmWRMwKQasIxWcgfQXoTStMibU-D_sJimcEgwt8UFrbJvwkPj2CISWkyaM_RPRKYhQWqaCS4Go10xf/s400/DSC_4371+(Large).JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318328071633972594" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaqy23xlPwVurvuUkY56zAReuuhCGGW5hjycJeLZLy-FfLFEwTNeJ6zRDAIYi14IMxPKc4xXckYmWyp43gT7kpFoIj7QnXVUN2ljo6YYMmRPakOTYcvJHQglFgj3vEtBPnjjViIR4bFwe7/s1600-h/DSC_3552+(Large).JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 268px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaqy23xlPwVurvuUkY56zAReuuhCGGW5hjycJeLZLy-FfLFEwTNeJ6zRDAIYi14IMxPKc4xXckYmWyp43gT7kpFoIj7QnXVUN2ljo6YYMmRPakOTYcvJHQglFgj3vEtBPnjjViIR4bFwe7/s400/DSC_3552+(Large).JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318327863106599090" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS6zSu-67hyPkxKNqimRlyzN3do93OuZ6LdlfWK9TVTghBlUItysnXEW93hBCV06w-eXk6z1KKMKND7SsO4f3aVKpwH9WRxTXvOF9N0SCNRTC61kwhyphenhyphencZD9ZELl_teIchBI6ls47XMkeDC/s1600-h/IMG_0294+(Medium).JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS6zSu-67hyPkxKNqimRlyzN3do93OuZ6LdlfWK9TVTghBlUItysnXEW93hBCV06w-eXk6z1KKMKND7SsO4f3aVKpwH9WRxTXvOF9N0SCNRTC61kwhyphenhyphencZD9ZELl_teIchBI6ls47XMkeDC/s400/IMG_0294+(Medium).JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318327580694622322" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiMK47kMXp8w3ADWaWaeQIgXAWzheTQCd3iXEnzzWS7GB2WReOZidwknoH52TJX7eEUHEeY_3aOF418LVCHRM8ECK8erVB6a6UhJh9RkCFv3vv71Vhw248fR-bKETz8NzHDRPae1VqLXtE/s1600-h/Mother+and+Child+(Medium).JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiMK47kMXp8w3ADWaWaeQIgXAWzheTQCd3iXEnzzWS7GB2WReOZidwknoH52TJX7eEUHEeY_3aOF418LVCHRM8ECK8erVB6a6UhJh9RkCFv3vv71Vhw248fR-bKETz8NzHDRPae1VqLXtE/s400/Mother+and+Child+(Medium).JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318327309785401266" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1bd7NDaOSOBo7MRanOTyiukPnRB-lHugZAo7WU3FCiKyJ7h4Y6dHOQJwOx73UK5YjZzr0gs2VmZkWKFNBgDTJ-B0Ov0Pn3c-kKJmMnUdXnalBJtV1Q7Nh8y2e7it6KxvNLYba-kQmQFDp/s1600-h/IMG_0346+(Medium).JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 319px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1bd7NDaOSOBo7MRanOTyiukPnRB-lHugZAo7WU3FCiKyJ7h4Y6dHOQJwOx73UK5YjZzr0gs2VmZkWKFNBgDTJ-B0Ov0Pn3c-kKJmMnUdXnalBJtV1Q7Nh8y2e7it6KxvNLYba-kQmQFDp/s400/IMG_0346+(Medium).JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318326591370708130" /></a><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thanks for reading, and don't forget, you can find the pictures and past posts at www.africonnection.org. Thanks for your prayers and love. Mark and Nan</div>Mark and Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07325748585359702442noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1239339204752487527.post-9259066855839642152009-03-28T21:53:00.007+03:002009-03-28T22:38:17.890+03:00Available for DeputationOne of the real pleasures of the fall of 2007 (seems like a long time ago!) was the opportunity to meet with pastors and congregations in Washington State, Oregon, Idaho, California, Kansas and Indiana. (Some of the churches we visited are pictured in this blog post.) We've just been given permission to extend our June General Assembly visit to do some deputation in July and August. (We may also have some additional dates in November and early December). <div><br /></div><div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicoT0dXXU4fcbfzDvSaOgUDNoHJHMLy_CnY88C6NAeMBioFzQViDccEaQ0NVrWsg1rgqy6_8NrFZ50D0Dge5rJVKVl7QYKlzWt9HnnJFQgk83ROEYmMwzPWIolp18BidC1FYIEX_t12srs/s320/TH1st+Church+(Small).JPG" /> <img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKk-XSovhiK-VOTurNa0gxA0K-euDypUM9Z1DTdWu9weqEZbstmGxJ56PPmODwBrPcnB3LpvS9Wmtycmzy8lhaJU0h9zQXW9ynBTVHrLILoMothGqVtZx3Lc4wahrW01TSTswX6el8z4Gm/s200/IMG_1575+%28Small%29.JPG" /></div><div><br /></div><div>If we visited your church in 2007 and you'd like to have us back to hear the "rest of the story", or if you would be interested in having us visit your church for the first time, please send us a note at mnnkenya@gmail.com to let us know how we can serve your church or district. We'd love to make contact with you. </div><div><br /></div><div>Oh--and a couple of General Assembly-related notes: A special, exclusive note for readers of Africonnection: The Africa Nazarene University luncheon on Saturday, June 27 will feature a message by Harmon Schmelzenbach as the University honors the Schmelzenbach's for their lifetime of work in Africa. If you're interested, drop us a line at mnnkenya@gmail.com to get information about reservations. This will be a historic opportunity for an intimate hour with the Schmelzenbach's. . Finally, again if you're going to General Assembly, we'd love to have you drop by the ANU booth in the exhibit hall. </div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQkN-Rmo8sWvEjCOxwoDQpMuloM7_apGxQoHs0g03cgIl8hKZMfyeL0MFey29I5nk5YnKHM-2bhDIgHJaqpdZ8D8pKhEODBWIWLlAI5zJaTiXIo2Vc_NnTgRUkcfINcD_YDYUFw8kg4GLm/s200/Rancho_Cuchamonga+%28Small%29.jpg" /></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thanks for reading, and don't forget, you can find the pictures and past posts at www.africonnection.org. Thanks for your prayers and love. Mark and Nan</div>Mark and Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07325748585359702442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1239339204752487527.post-45271974861489514712009-03-28T21:36:00.006+03:002009-03-28T22:39:28.806+03:00We're Writing an NMI Book!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDsmcPPXQr3x75BTBHzbg1PkpgXNDJcTYxirZOsJE0v9jVJ8NCwKaZwmuckeb4Ls322C9FwkKRf5PjcHet_rzfVWQY2RL8H_hZ1cTpLH4PNHDJqS3xwpK3-kSitYu4FkT9refXg-Pro_th/s1600-h/IMG_6681.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 206px; height: 258px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDsmcPPXQr3x75BTBHzbg1PkpgXNDJcTYxirZOsJE0v9jVJ8NCwKaZwmuckeb4Ls322C9FwkKRf5PjcHet_rzfVWQY2RL8H_hZ1cTpLH4PNHDJqS3xwpK3-kSitYu4FkT9refXg-Pro_th/s400/IMG_6681.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318320109406828802" /></a>Last trimester, we were privileged to have Dr. Daniel and Carol Ketchum in our home. Some of you may remember that the Ketchums were our hosts while we did our missionary training at NTS. During that visit, we were asked to write one of the books which will be made available to local Nazarene churches. <div><br /></div><div>The book, to be called "African Voices" will feature mini-biographies of 8-10 current students, alumni, and leadership of Africa Nazarene University. People featured in the book will include Regional Director Dr. Eugenio Duarte, ANU Vice Chancellor Professor Leah Marangu (pictured), the three African Field Strategy Coordinators who are ANU graduates, and several others. We've already started the interviews and are hearing wonderful stories. We'd ask you to pray that the Lord will make the Pittses "small", and magnify the words and vision of these significant current and future African Nazarene leaders.</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thanks for reading, and don't forget, you can find the pictures and past posts at www.africonnection.org. Thanks for your prayers and love. Mark and Nan</div>Mark and Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07325748585359702442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1239339204752487527.post-1514632711068769582008-11-30T18:05:00.020+03:002008-12-02T23:52:01.510+03:00It's Beginning to Look a Bit Like Christmas.<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizjOtYtNR3GyugADPrTKcUDprp0ppUxfkrM4FRAm00jThxRdQQ69Ggmw7uc3SIdJcF11xciTE4yMh18IJUbtPQBueJJcmNxX7uctgte_PAqiSanW2Ph4Wr4AnG4ECBua-uPf3yJpoZgYC7/s400/IMG_0132+(Large).JPG" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 320px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5274863197511943106" /><div>Even before we left the US, we knew Christmas in Kenya was going to be different. While we were celebrating Christmas 2007 in the US and then on a quick trip to Ireland, we made a </div><div>game of which Christmas songs would be least appropriate in Kenya:<br /></div><div><div><br /></div><div>"I'm Dreaming of a..." Nope.</div><div><br /></div><div>"Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way! Oh what fun it is to ride in a</div><div> one horse open..."Nope.</div><div><br /></div><div>"Chestnuts roasting on an open fire, Jack Frost..." Nope.</div><div><br /></div><div>On the other hand, most of the songs about the FIRST Christmas still work:</div><div><br /></div><div>Silent Night, Joy to the World, Away in a Manger....few of the songs about the birth of the Christchild are bound by the Western image of snow and cold. Maybe that's at least partially because the "first" Christmas happened in the Middle East, probably in the spring since the shepherds were watching herds of sheep including lambs. </div><div><br /></div><div>We're thrilled that we will have five family members with us for Christmas: Mark's Dad Jay, second-oldest son Andrew and his wife Birge, and favorite daughter Rachel and her boyfriend Rich will all be here for visits from a couple of weeks to a month. We'll do some of the usual things we do with visitors, but it will be great to spend the Christmas season together.</div><div><br /></div><div>What's Christmas like in Kenya? Each week we have four students or four faculty members to lunch at our house, and for several weeks we've been asking people this question. The answers depend a little on the age or on the tribal background of the respondent, but there are </div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEju6pAAKPQzYsCXwsfcKkGg5ri-f_MVzMPXTgFS2MR8rxQWJuQZPXsltYWp8kpgU7NTHPe3-b94KkV2Lst53mkMp7q3qNGptUWxuBYBglb1MRNvvVAUCJmU0Xj4HfRnFINuFTayjNFTe3hV/s400/chapatis+(Large).jpg" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5275291424584343234" /><div>some general themes: Certain kinds of food that were rare on a daily basis were featured on Christmas Day: chicken and rice and chapatis (a kind of East Indian burrito, pictured nearby).</div><div> </div><div>Young men would go from door to door in the small, closely knit villages and ask for food that was cooked in the field by the young people as a special Christmas feast--kind of like "trick or treating for protein"! While it was rare for there to be many gifts to open, everyone got new clothes. Often, people would attend a village church service, led by a lay pastor since ordained ministers were rare in the small villages. Some people, if they thought their clothes were especially nice, would attend multiple church services to let their neighbors see how nice they looked.</div><div><br /></div><div>What we see around us now is an interesting mixture of old and new customs, African and Western elements. The "Nairobi Christmas" is usually the more Western, especially if families</div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG6qAEEAy8CzqjRjDcmwQHCfqFXioNdQu29Wzvi893KMIMtVp8yq7HMDCBdbVZQHEqcOAqpYjDqonRYy6A3Q2YC-jhO_0GJ0Y9w63SVywjJwdJhqQV3qc3ELxP3O7xPz3LkJtkXA50rHxt/s400/IMG_0109+(Large).JPG" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 322px; height: 400px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5275287366475579106" /><div> have young, media-influenced children. There will probably be a Christmas tree (like the one in Ya Ya Shopping Centre also pictured nearby) and other decorations. There will probably be more Christmas presents.</div><div><br /></div><div>The "up country" Christmas is usually more traditionally Kenyan. Most Kenyans have property in the rural areas--called "up country" wherever they are located. City Kenyans travel to enjoy the rural property, see elderly relatives, and slaughter and eat a goat. Christmas decorations are less common. Often, the most senior relative may give a speech of inspiration and advice at the end of the family celebration. </div><div><br /></div><div>There's a third variation of Christmas that we are a small part of: the "expatriate Christmas." Several students on the ANU campus will not be able to go home for Christmas: Okon from</div><div> Nigeria; Gift and Constantino from Zimbabwe; a pastor named Agnes and her family from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. We'll plan to have an on-campus expatriate Christmas. Often, these students are far away from family, have limited funds, and are cut off from the traditions of their home countries. We'll have lots of family around us, so we're feeling very happy about our Christmas, but as the news here is full of stories of violence in the Congo and cholera in Zimbabwe, we'd appreciate your prayers for these expatriate Nazarene students and their troubled countries at Christmas time. </div><div><br /></div><div>So do we miss the Western Christmas? Well sure, a little bit, but to make up for that we often</div><div> feel we are seeing the "real" Bible stories laid out before us--shepherds tending flocks of sheep</div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyNHU5lxvLOQ2m2JEiQouBhkXkepz1FoP7EOXxnQz4dc2IxtEepbEiRXS4UL2ju6wb9adJTjT78VUoJ1FTZNBh45SrFwaAN7Qm9lOGvF72niihvKDOok449Osm8tjG0FvstrB5qSucrh6r/s400/IMG_0141+(Large).JPG" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 263px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5275280651552259394" /><div> and goats; pairs of figures walking down rock-strewn trails, robes flapping in the breeze; herds of camels eating the leaves of acacia trees. </div><div>The Lord is teaching us not to alter our vision of Christmas, not to abandon our affection for snow and evergreens, but to expand our vision of Christmas and to use the timeless elements of Kenyan culture to reconnect to the quiet, star-lit and non-Western realities of the First Christmas.</div><div><br /></div><div>As we move more fully into the Christmas season, we want to thank each of you who have been part of the journey we have taken this last year. It took us from the violence at the beginning of the year in Kenya, through some personal challenges to the joy and excitement of Christmas with family. As we close, we'd like to wish each of our friends and blog subscribers a very Blessed Christmas, and to share with you some quotations about the religious and cultural aspects of the Christmas season:<br /><ul><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 14px; font-family:'lucida grande';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:large;">The spirit of Christmas needs to superseded by the Spirit of Christ. The spirit of Christmas is annual; the Spirit of Christ is eternal. The spirit of Christmas is sentimental; the Spirit of Christ is supernatural. The spirit of Christmas is a human product; the Spirit of Christ is a divine person. That makes all the difference in the world. Stuart Briscoe</span></span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 14px; font-family:'lucida grande';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:large;">They were all looking for a king To slay their foes, and lift them high; Thou cam'st, a little baby thing That made a woman cry. George Macdonald , British religious writer.</span></span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 14px; font-family:'lucida grande';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:large;">Remember, if Christmas isn't found in your heart, you won't find it under a tree. Charlotte Carpenter. </span></span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 14px; font-family:'lucida grande';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:large;">A lovely thing about Christmas is that it's compulsory, like a thunderstorm, and we all go through it together. Garrison Keillor</span></span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 14px; font-family:'lucida grande';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:large;">At Christmas, all roads lead home. Marjorie Holmes</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:large;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); "></span></span></span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 14px; font-family:'lucida grande';"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:large;">The three grand essentials … in this life are something to do, something to love, and something to hope for. Joseph Addison</span></span></li></ul><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 14px;font-family:'lucida grande';">MERRY CHRISTMAS! MARK AND NANCY</span></div></div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thanks for reading, and don't forget, you can find the pictures and past posts at www.africonnection.org. Thanks for your prayers and love. Mark and Nan</div>Mark and Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07325748585359702442noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1239339204752487527.post-46188979904606992292008-11-05T13:28:00.004+03:002008-11-05T14:13:46.921+03:00The View from Kenya: Election Day USA<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFLahELt_V-S6FBq8K_Ob14zXqLYaGTTkpIn-X6_KDHW7mMPThtS1twbipPZlHodqVHWnkxMMgj4T6q1v5nxZdDcca9GWILlTmDBpVDH_TJlmnRZoxnBk7cCO-FumVhMnwzhQfkm2nJlnT/s1600-h/Obama+Kenya.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 101px; height: 121px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFLahELt_V-S6FBq8K_Ob14zXqLYaGTTkpIn-X6_KDHW7mMPThtS1twbipPZlHodqVHWnkxMMgj4T6q1v5nxZdDcca9GWILlTmDBpVDH_TJlmnRZoxnBk7cCO-FumVhMnwzhQfkm2nJlnT/s200/Obama+Kenya.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5265126933237072354" /></a>First, an important disclaimer: what follows is not a political statement. Mark and Nancy already have a Savior we love more than any American or world leader. The notes that follow will try hard to avoid anything that looks partisan. We understand that not all votes are counted and that the electoral college in the US has not even started its work. We just thought you might be interested in how election day looks from Kenya. Some observations:<div><ul><li>First, the US Embassy has used the American election season as an opportunity to teach students and staff in Kenyan universities how American politics works. ANU had a representative from the American Embassy on campus last week to explain about the electoral college, about the relationship between state votes and the national vote, etc.</li><li>Several ANU students and staff (but not the two of us, who were too lazy to get up at 4AM as the invitation would have required) accepted the Embassy invitation to watch the returns from the US Ambassador's residence.</li><li>The fact that Barak Obama is half Kenyan has not played in Kenya quite the way most Americans would anticipate it would. Kenyans are VERY tribal. Barak Obama's father was a Luo, a minority tribe. Because of this, members of the Kikuyu tribe, especially, were not initially enthusiastic about Barak Obama's candidacy.</li><li>Even so, as Senator Obama appeared to get closer and closer to winning the election, national pride began to overcome tribal loyalties. It may astonish or amuse you to know that tomorrow has been declared a national holiday by Moi Kibaki, our Kikuyu president, in honor of the victory of Barak Obama, a half-Luo American! Banks, government offices, classes and businesses will all be closed because of an event half a world away.<span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; font-family:Arial;"></span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; font-family:Arial;">Short excerpt from <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">The Standard</span>, a major newspaper in Kenya: "Kenya’s Kogelo village (Senator Obama's family village) erupted in celebration after CNN projections showed Barack Obama to have won the hotly contested United States presidential elections, beating rival John McCain. After heeding Obama’s grandmother, Mama Sarah, not to celebrate until the elections were over, villagers in Kogelo, who had kept vigil as projected results indicated Obama was ahead of McCain in Florida by 52 to 48 electoral votes, burst into celebration. <span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">In Nairobi, residents sang, danced and did high-fives as traditional dancers enlivened the dawn with Dholuo songs and chants of </span></span><i style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Obama!</span></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"> in several parts of Kenya. '</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: normal; font-family:Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; font-family:Arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">We won! Victory is ours!' Nairobi residents shouted in the streets as the sun broke through the grey sky."</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: normal; font-family:Georgia;"></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; font-family:Arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: normal; font-family:Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; font-family:Arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: normal; font-family:Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">The Luo's, most of whom live in the western part of Kenya, have ranged from enthusiastic to wildly e</span><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj1yiX0tyv1pAhUqKYyedZe1VwnNqIYLp96fEE3hrmtvbq5Be1nH7m51dblEAsvFVxCtEN0-z42_7ideo-x3kEvq584BN1UsKaG_CRvxJiIU0eOuwBUqyh_fZczY5wG4HaezPdzRsA8t9Z/s200/obama+cartoon.jpg" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 135px; height: 108px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5265127399189809106" /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">nthusiastic. Thoughtful Luo's are quietly appreciative that it's possible for someone connected with their tribe to reach this level. Poor, uneducated Luos (understandably but very unrealistically) have declared on television that they see this as having PERSONL impact: more money, new jobs, gifts from America. (The Kenyan man in the cartoon at the left is asking Uncle Sam for new favors because of the projected president-elect.) This comes from the historic fact that, rightly or wrongly, the person who wins presidential elections in Kenya tends to make sure his immediate family and his tribe benefit directly from his time in office.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; font-family:Arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: normal; font-family:Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 19px; font-family:Arial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: normal; font-family:Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;">Kenyan editorialists and television commentators have rebuked Kenya based on what they are observing in the US. "How is it," they ask, "that Barak Obama, a Luo, can be elected President of the United States, but could not be elected a Member of Parliament in Central Province (a stronghold of the Kikuyu who oppose the Luo)?" "How is it that America can have an orderly transition in power from one party to another, that Obama can ask McCain for his help and McCain can call Obama 'my president' when even the hint of a transition in power in Kenya can leave 1400 people dead (as it did in January)?" </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></li></ul><div>Again, we understand that the Kenyan euphoria is not shared by many, many faithful Nazarenes. Even so, just as a historic event connecting Kenya and the US, we thought you would be interested in what the American election looks like from Kenya. </div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thanks for reading, and don't forget, you can find the pictures and past posts at www.africonnection.org. Thanks for your prayers and love. Mark and Nan</div>Mark and Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07325748585359702442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1239339204752487527.post-22721950702722105252008-10-29T16:53:00.017+03:002008-10-29T17:59:31.912+03:00A Hindi "Vacation Bible School Program"<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi32eCWq7hSGCi6oLMeoCoFiTt7t3aTdSceCwKWI4pxTNgJllC6L9Jch58T2w6nqDMbfjmwOucrDDdmVu4tcw4XEV24hnvgRouDGyvEmLcBjtfB9YTE8I36j-wJbReekxXqe1Idm3pNzgo0/s200/HappyDiwali+(Large).jpg" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5262579351158873922" />This past Saturday evening, while Nan stayed home and graded papers, Mark and ANU Chancellor Jerry Lambert accepted an invitation from a professor at the University of Nairobi to attend his temple's annual Duwali Festival--Christmas and New Year's wrapped up in one for the Hindu community. As it turned out, the evening was very interesting but also very moving. The temple itself looked like a modern secondary school with a gym and a nice park-like lawn in the back.<div><br /></div><div>Mark and Jerry arrived 40 minutes early and could see that a worship service was going on in a room on the second floor at the back of gym. As </div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz44-cG3UFbQDXj1pwkQFVPxOB9yoE6U90oofsYCyVWsMfVZV1VF-mwZYlT9EZqR4VOQT9J3IattpuYcPo1qLwNjMakzgTvoQq64AEV0YXSFGNa8GzUN3QCqVTrk2XeGDuGJgGytNZ-4pr/s200/_39494465_diwali1_afp+(Large).jpg" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 143px; height: 200px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5262578309723518322" /><div>people saw them, they made motions to join</div>them in the worship room. As Mark and Jerry took off their shoes and entered the room, they were hit by a wave of heat from perhaps 10 gallon-sized pots with foot-tall flames of incense burning above them. Since most of the program participants were going to be children, it was<div> mainly children in a variety of regional Indian traditional clothing</div><div> gathered around each incense pot with adults in chairs around the outer edge of the room. The part of the</div><div> service we witnessed included an explanation of Duwali, a prayer by a child and some singing by </div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTIlbP5qwDg1KzGazRbuCBxYUdSr_num4RDFLJ65N56qS2GxSKsZeV9OPRBX7LqpSlx3XXad0Kvi9G3Vg1xLeXBzZ4iBhQd0_S4SQ7gFoZpKBNV6Epwahi3mQYBIqzya3s3oEaL4SUWVNJ/s200/Harmonium+Sangeet+portable+(Large).jpg" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 149px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5262587123542851042" /><div>an eldery priest who accompanied himself on a "harmonium", a portable, hand-pumped organ with room for a hymnal on top.</div><div><br /></div><div>Jerry and Mark stopped for awhile on a balcony after the service, so most of the seats in the front of the gym were taken, but a very determined, elderly Indian lady met them at the door (does your church have a</div><div> greeter so determined to welcome visitors?) and, in spite of their protests that they could sit anywhere, ushered them down to the FRONT ROW. As it turned out, the determined woman was the wife of the temple chairman, kind of like the "chairman of the board of trustees", who was a distinguished and kindly-looking professor of mathematics at a respected government university. </div><div><br /></div><div>As the program began, the fact that he was a teacher became even clearer. He would lean over to Mark and whisper part of what the</div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoZBfxZvyo4ezaQuh7a_sUaEtdZPSarfg6pZ7rhGay0iHAWvUyffkaKn_86ApHrB2fkH2cz9y3W34hQYIQKgHrQk5AT0v3-17Qs1mxGfZ61RLvtWzigqz3SEBbpP5ey-_mpJDxuenwIHV-/s200/dancing-girls+(Large).jpg" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 136px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5262586660827800962" />speaker was saying or the singer was singing: "When the sun goes down, a little candle gives great light." "The greatest success is the greatest humility." "Nobility of spirit is God's wish for his people." Not everything was serious. There was a Hindi comedian telling corny and familiar jokes: a man who said his newborn twins should be named "Pete" and "Repeat." A man advised to have his daughter eat an apple daily to avoid the advances of an undesirable doctor because "Everyone knows an apple <img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx1rTX9rornt_NgfYginw3FF44FSHeZhFpA-8CuoN6Wvu1wm1m4Ii2kAPY0SisquvjSqoMxxGWzEKaBMAwEuiXKY519CrLzd-iCd1EzZs-Oxht1Li5LYPO-HO830cu-Yz3XmKj7ilKsX3i/s200/tabla+(Large).jpg" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 200px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5262588268160743650" /><div>a day keeps the doctor away." Mark and Jerry silently cheered for a little girl in full, elaborately embroidered Hindi costume who was clearly terrified but began to smile as she concentrated on the dance she had</div><div> practiced. Same for a 10-year od who had been asked at the last minute to play the "tabla", a set of Indian drums for the adult traditional singers.</div><div><br /></div><div>Parts of the program felt alot like a Hindu version of a "vacation Bible school" program: <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; ">: A lady MC who kept forgetting that the microphone stayed on even when she went behind the curtain. A "rap" by some teen boys in sunglasses that the older people pretended to enjoy to affirm their slightly rowdy boys. After the service and program, we stayed for a great vegetarian Indian meal and fireworks! Great, great evening with good folks. </span><div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:Arial;">What's the moving part? The songs reminded us that there are some common yearnings of the human heart, put there by God: love of family, a yearning for something more than money or earthly success, a desire for virtue and, for want of a better word, "wholesomeness." Jerry and Mark were not tempted to join the temple, but they were reminded that in the strangest setting, with people who seem very different than ourselves, there are pathways to conversation about the living God and His son Jesus. We'd ask you to pray that God would give us the right time and the right words.</span></p></div></div></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thanks for reading, and don't forget, you can find the pictures and past posts at www.africonnection.org. Thanks for your prayers and love. Mark and Nan</div>Mark and Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07325748585359702442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1239339204752487527.post-13243695731194108372008-10-29T16:00:00.007+03:002008-10-29T19:55:46.499+03:00Another "tale from the road"It's beginning to look like we could volunteer to do a whole missionary book on "things that<img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2RehB9S2LPFLwL9AA4kWhBEGJ4G-7Sddkces3Ja1ELQAATehv5wpXgtk96Fu6R9JcDVV98wXezpECLlaRWJCbyEj14rn35aA1HR29OQhCjGEf7nkAiRiCB1AQQJNHLLF2PSDKVc7oCjPl/s200/mercedes-design.jpg" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 150px; height: 200px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5262568341553618946" /> happen on the road." Epaphras, one of the ANU drivers, and Mark were headed toward Kenyatta International Airport about 7PM last Sunday evening in ANU's venerable Mitsubishi Pajero to pick up Dr. Jerry Lambert, our new chancellor; Dr. Tom Parks, dean of the MVNU School of Business and his son Thomas. Traffic was heavy. For those of you who've been here, remember the "rough dip" just after you've left Bomas and before you get to Nairobi National Park? As they started up the hill traffic was fairly light on our side of the road and heavy on the other side. So far, so good. <div><br /></div><div>Perhaps three city blocks ahead of them in the distance they could see th</div><div>e headlights of a car that was pulling out of the oncoming lane and coming toward them in our lane. They assumed he was trying to pass several of the cars in his own lane. It didn't take long for Mark and Epaphras to begin getting nervous, however. The car continued to close the distance between them. Finally, the inevitable happened: The Mercedes bumped into the front of the ANU Pajero with a crunch and a tinkle of glass! Since the Pajero is equipped for rough travel, it has an after-market front grill made of strong pipe which was not damaged.</div><div><br /></div><div>Mark and Epaphras could clearly see that the other driver was seriously drunk. In a couple of minutes, as they watched in astonishment, the Mercedes driver put the car in reverse, turned the steering wheel slightly, put the car in drive and hit the Pajero again! At this point, the Mercedes driver lumbered out of his car and walked shakily to the collision area. Epaphras also got out to hear the Mercedes driver say in Kiswahili what was true: "My car is damaged but yours is not. Drive on!" </div><div><br /></div><div>As Mark and Epaphras pulled around the Mercedes on the busy Langata Highway, the Mercedes driver had left the car running with its lights on and driver's side door opened and was trying to climb up the bank to reach the fence where Kenyan men traditionally answer the call of nature. Unfortunately, because he was drunk, he was climbing and sliding, climbing and sliding as Epaphras and Mark drove on toward the airport.</div><div><br /></div><div>Unfortunately, the Pajero did not QUITE emerge undamaged: the combination of rain and a frayed headlight wire meant they completed the trip to the airport and back in the rain without headlights! University Chaplain Randy James came out with his own car to light the way for the Pajero to get back to campus (it's a metaphor!). </div><div><br /></div><div>Regularly our good readers like you write us or tell us in person--"we're praying for the two of you." We know God expects his children to use their brains and to be careful. Even so, more than anytime in our lives, we're feeling those prayers. </div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thanks for reading, and don't forget, you can find the pictures and past posts at www.africonnection.org. Thanks for your prayers and love. Mark and Nan</div>Mark and Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07325748585359702442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1239339204752487527.post-66602730809961122292008-10-02T14:25:00.003+03:002008-10-02T15:05:24.295+03:00Passing of Mark's Mom<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr4osftVZ5OQUqPNEh9EMTD1VZo2xcHUyrvdVguczJ41QoFvrv0IpV7U0OoEJMmbqkcUwXw-4LxoJjbOw6vXuegu1w4iM0GJZkNxcuhx9MsfqDi5x0O-jzq9xsJ-UyG9zh-2h70P1AJlv9/s1600-h/IMG_0005+(Large).JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr4osftVZ5OQUqPNEh9EMTD1VZo2xcHUyrvdVguczJ41QoFvrv0IpV7U0OoEJMmbqkcUwXw-4LxoJjbOw6vXuegu1w4iM0GJZkNxcuhx9MsfqDi5x0O-jzq9xsJ-UyG9zh-2h70P1AJlv9/s200/IMG_0005+(Large).JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5252518372375609682" /></a>Tuesday, while we were having lunch with four students in our flat, Mark got a call from his Dad to indicate that his Mom Charlotte had passed away during the night. Those of you who have been reading our blog for awhile and our friends know that she has been in decline for a number of years and has been in a care facility beginning early this year. She suffered from memory loss, but continued to be sweet and cooperative and to be loved by all around her. The funeral service will be in Brazil, Indiana this Saturday, with burial at the family plot in Morristown, Indiana, east of Indianapolis. Mark and Nan will be flying to Indiana this evening to be part of the service and celebration. Charlotte Pitts was a wonderful wife and mother, an excellent elementary school teacher, a warm and welcoming hostess, and a vibrant lover of Jesus Christ. Nancy says when people are pressed, their essence comes out, and Charlotte's essence was sweetness.We will miss her physical presence, but we rejoice in her home-going. <div class="blogger-post-footer">Thanks for reading, and don't forget, you can find the pictures and past posts at www.africonnection.org. Thanks for your prayers and love. Mark and Nan</div>Mark and Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07325748585359702442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1239339204752487527.post-63294104647309253142008-10-02T14:00:00.002+03:002008-10-02T15:21:45.700+03:00An Encounter with BanditsFirst, the good news: Nancy and Mark, our son Isaac and our automobile are safe on the ANU campus with no physical damage and after a good night's sleep. We have a better understanding of God's grace and mercy, and are a little less skeptical about warnings regarding bandits in Kenya.<div><br /></div><div>Now, the story--on our way into town on Wednesday, a Kenyan Muslim holiday--we noticed a huge sign from the Ministry of Transportation announcing the completion after a couple of years of the new Langata Bypass. Since Langata is a road that leads toward ANU, we decided to take it as we headed home. About 5km down the road, 6 men in dark clothing came out from behind a mound of dirt with pangas (machetes) and what looked like guns and motioned for us to stop. For the next ten minutes, they took watches, cell phones, rings, the car radio, Nan's "second best" camera, and billfolds. Mark remembered a story Wellington Obote, a Kenyan, but now a mission coordinator in Malawi, had told him about reminding his captors that Jesus loves them, and so he told his captors the same thing as they did their work, and Nancy said a blessing on "her" bandit.</div><div><br /></div><div>Just as they were finishing with us, a car came roaring toward us from the opposite direction and then seemed to lose his nerve and slow down. The bandits yelled at us to get in our car and get going so they could attend to this new "customer." As we moved to do so, we could see that the new driver's speed had angered the bandits. They pointed their guns at him, but the motions they made convinced us that they were either pellet pistols or toy guns...who knew? As the new driver stopped, they knocked out the driver's side and passenger side window, unlocked his door, pulled him out of the car and threw him on the ground. As we drove off, they were slapping him with the flat side of the pangas, which was actually a good sign that they were not interested in doing real injury with the blades. We remained worried about this second customer, but glad he wasn't being cut and glad to have our car and to be uninjured.</div><div><br /></div><div>After waving down a couple of cars we encountered to warn them of the danger ahead and taking Nan and Isaac back to campus and picking up the University security head, Mark drove back to the Karen police station to make a report, and then to go with the security head and two policeman back to the scene of the crime. They found the broken glass on the road, but no sign of the bandits or the man in the second car.</div><div><br /></div><div>Last evening, we had a steady stream of staff and students who came with food and cards and to say "pole sana", "so sorry." As we mentioned earlier, as a result of the lightening-fast Nazarene grapevine, we have gotten expressions of sympathy already from around the world.</div><div><br /></div><div>As you might imagine, we're still kind of processing this. You may not be able to believe it, but we slept well last evening and are able to laugh and joke without effort today. Mark has written earlier about "living in stereo", and that is what we are doing: this robbery happened, but as followers of Christ we can't allow ourselves to be fully defined by our challenges. We must be defined by the "hope that is within us." We are reminded again of the importance of salvation and education in Kenya.<br /></div><div><br /></div><div>When you pray, we are so grateful for your prayers for us. We always need them, but more importantly, we would appreciate your prayers for Mark's dad as he begins this new chapter without the love of his life. We also can't get those bandits our of our minds. One of our students who is the son of the pastor of the Nazarene church in the slum from which the bandits come said--"I bet I know one of those guys." The police who accompanied Mark back to the scene said they have killed 10 of the bandits in 2 months. We are safe and secure. The bandits are in immediate and eternal jeopardy. Would you join us in praying that the Lord of Second Chances will use Christians in the lives of these young men to bring them to the Lord while there is still time? </div><div><br /></div><div>What have we learned or been reminded of by the death of Mark's mom and the encounter with bandits: A good marriage is a wonderful thing, a faithful life is its own epitath, the Christian life must be lived in stereo, God is faithful, God's people are warm and loving and prayerful, and the calling of God on our lives becomes purified and tempered as it deals with trials. </div><div><br /></div><div>Thanks as always for your prayers and for your interest in us. We are privileged to call you are friends. In closing, two Kiswahili exclamations:</div><div><br /></div><div>Asante sana (thank you very much) and Bwana asifiwe (Praise the Lord)!</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Thanks for reading, and don't forget, you can find the pictures and past posts at www.africonnection.org. Thanks for your prayers and love. Mark and Nan</div>Mark and Nancyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07325748585359702442noreply@blogger.com0