My wife’s parents were dairy farmers from Wisconsin whose lives revolved around the family, farm, and church. They had a great love for Jesus and his Great Commission. In 1963 my mother-in-law read a story in the Green Bay Press-Gazette about a Nigerian pastor who wanted to know about Christianity in the United States. That article prompted her to raise money in her congregation to purchase a bicycle for his ministry, and later she sent him some clothes. In a letter he replied, “I am really fat and would need to reduce if it was within my capacity. The raincoat did not fit me. It is still very needful since my wife has begun to use it.” Over the next three decades she maintained correspondence with Rev. E. Eshiett, a pastor in the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Nigeria.
The members of One Africa Team include resident missionaries and stateside administrators
Christ for All, Great News for Africa. Seven words. One
passion. A core focus of the One Africa Team (OAT) that burns like fire in the
belly. That Godly desire. That Christ-like obsession. That Spirit-driven yearn
of the heart. I could sense the hunger in the room: a resolve to know Christ and to make Him
known.
How can we do that in the most effective, God-pleasing
way in our little corner of the world into which God has placed us? Especially considering that THAT “little
corner” happens to be the size of AFRICA!
Or better said, it is Africa.
Whew. That question hung intimidatingly over us like Malawi’s January clouds.
To figure out the answer to that question, the One Africa
Team gathered in Lilongwe, Malawi for its annual meeting. The 4-day pow wow was a call to arms of
sorts, a raising of the flag “Christ for All, Great News for Africa.” Five men
from Malawi, four men from Zambia and three from the States. A dirty dozen washed clean in the name of the
Lord Jesus Christ.
It rang true then as it does every day: the better we
know Christ, the greater the passion God fuels in us to be His disciples, His workers
in His harvest fields. Or as John Hartmann reminded us in his opening sermon based
on Titus 1:1-9, “We are Slaves of the Trustworthy Message.”
Missionary John Hartmann serves in Zambia and coordinates outreach efforts across the African continent
An appropriate theme and a timely reminder for the One
Africa Team. A slave serves. In our case – and in yours dear Mission
Partner – when the One whom we are serving is the Savior Jesus who gave us the
trustworthy message – wow – that really helps craft and shape our niche in both
life and ministry.
It did for us as the One Africa Team: “Through theological education and coordination
of WELS resources, we, the One Africa Team, assist our partners in Africa to
grow as independent, healthy church bodies.” Our partners in Africa? The Sister Synods who are located in these
countries: Malawi, Zambia, Cameroon, Nigeria, Kenya, Ethiopia.
These are the ones with whom we have an official
fellowship relationship and standing.
But there’s more. Much
more. By God’s grace the list of potential
sister synods in Africa is growing longer.
The Holy Spirit is on the move. OAT
is, too. OAT is following up with contacts and/or groups in Rwanda, Tanzania,
Mozambique, Uganda, Liberia, Congo, Burundi, Zimbabwe… The task is as BIG as it
sounds.
Understanding that it is, Missionary Hartmann succinctly
summarized the sermon text in a nutshell: 1) we are entrusted with the truth
and 2) we are sent to train others. Are we up for such a task? Nope, not in our own power! But as the Word of God impresses upon us, it’s
a mission given and empowered by God Himself. He’s behind it all. And out in
front of us all! We sang…
In your promise firm we stand;
None can take us from your hand.
Speak we hear at your command,
We will follow YOU!
By your blood our souls were bought;
By your life salvation wrought;
By your light our feet are taught,
Lord, to follow YOU!
He is a Good One to follow. Yes, Jesus is both behind it all and out in
front. A Lamb who laid down His life for
His sheep. (Already happened!) A Shepherd
who still leads His sheep. (Still happening!)
But he’s not so distant ahead that we can’t follow Him. Not so far beyond reach that He’s out of
touch.
What an impassioned desire He has for us!
To seek and to save is His focused obsession!
Oh, the deep yearn of Christ’s heart for you and me!
Missionary Paul Nitz serves as the leader of One Africa Team
Paul Nitz, the One Africa Team Integrator, set up an
agenda that rallied us around that passion. We participated in some team
building exercises, evaluated our strengths and reconfirmed our core values. We set down some long-range goals, worked
through some thorny issues and readjusted some structure. We rethought, rehashed and revisited what
needed attention.
Though the “plans of mice and men” and even OAT for that
matter, may not turn out the way we might think or expect, we have a God who certainly
knows what He’s doing and knows what is best.
He’s in control and – make no mistake about it – He makes no mistakes
about it. Even on a continent the size of
Africa.
A flash flood provided a little extra excitement to a recent publications meeting in Lusaka
Stuck. In. The. Mud. It happens (often) during the rainy season. There’s no point in kicking yourself for venturing out on dicey roads or blaming the road engineers who built the road, or shaking your fist at God for sending so much rain. When you’re stuck, you’ve only got one option – you’ve got to get unstuck.
Stuck. It happens (often) in church work. Endless committee meetings become a quagmire for decision making. Miscommunication between Gospel partners ensures zero progress on projects. A change in leadership paralyzes those who are comfortable with the status quo. But when you’re stuck, you don’t point fingers or pass judgment on others. You get unstuck.
I recently travelled to Zambia to meet with members of the two committees responsible for publications work in the Lutheran Church of Central Africa – Zambia Synod. Publications work has been at a standstill for some time. At one time, the Lutheran Press of Lusaka was cranking out tracts, hymnals, sermon books, Sunday school materials and worker training manuals for use in both Zambia and Malawi. In the 1970s and ’80s, missionaries and national workers operated printing equipment on the campus of the Lutheran Seminary because there wasn’t anyone else in town who get the work done. For many years faithful servants of the church produced printed materials that are still in use 40 years later, albeit a bit dated in appearance.
Lusaka has seen remarkable development in the last 20 years. Large publishing houses offer their services at a competitive price
But the times have changed, and Lusaka has seen explosive growth in the last two decades. Shopping malls, movie theaters, expressways and traffic jams are now part of everyday life. The technology of printing has changed rapidly too. Lusaka has several printing houses staffed with talented layout artists who paint on monitors with the flick of a mouse. Computers keep an electric eye on paper streaming and ink flowing through giant Heidelberg presses. Bookbinding machines fuse glue, pages and cover on a smoothly moving production line.
It takes an army of workers and a sharp business plan to
operate a modern printing operation today. It takes an army of church workers
and careful stewardship to deliver the Gospel to today’s audiences. It is a
blessing that the LCCA-ZS can partner with WELS Multi-Language Publications and
local printing houses to obtain printed products that are cheaper and of a much
higher quality than anything they could make themselves.
There are obstacles of course because this is sub-Saharan Africa. A sudden downpour flooded the Lutheran Seminary campus the day of our meeting in Lusaka, so after removing my shoes and socks and rolling up my pant legs I waded my way to work. Delivering printed products to remote congregations is a huge challenge that is overcome by using a delivery network of mini-buses, motorcycles and bicycles. And even the best written printed materials with an attractively designed cover have to compete with whatever’s flashing on your phone’s screen.
These reprints of the WELS Catechism were made in Malawi
Nevertheless, the LCCA-ZS publications program is moving
forward again like a Landcruiser in creeper gear. “The good news of the kingdom
of God is being preached, and everyone is forcing their way into it” (Luke
16:16). It is time to press forward.
Missionary John Roebke is the Communications Director for
One Africa Team and lives in Malawi.
