The place was the Sudanese Refugee Camp in Kakuma, Kenya. The occasion was the arrival of special guests to the Confessional Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Nuer people in the camp. The temperature was 100.4 degrees. The visitors had just traveled over 4 hours by taxi on a very bumpy and dusty potholed road. When they arrived in the camp, the choirs burst into song.
Peter Bur, a Sudanese Refugee and WELS Pastor living in the USA, was the first to be welcomed. This is his congregation. He was instrumental in helping this group to gather and form a congregation in the middle of a refugee camp. This was Peter’s second visit to the camp. They welcomed him with open arms. Peter led the other visitors to chairs prepared for them in front of the simple church building the congregation had constructed. They invited Allen Sorum from Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary, Terry Schultz from Multi Language Publications, Mark Onunda from the Lutheran Congregations in Missions for Christ – Kenya, Elias Mututwa and Dan Sargent from the Lutheran Church of Central Africa to take their seats in front of the singing crowd.
A group of women began to remove the guests’ shoes and wash their feet – it was a moving ceremony. With the choirs singing and the women ululating, the guests received a special spa treatment. The cool water washing their feet refreshed the men…but even more, they could not miss the significance of this humble gesture. The words of Jesus, after washing his disciples’ feet, came to mind; “I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.” (John 13:15) A very special welcome…but it was even more.
The songs of the choirs and the words of the leaders echoed what was on the minds of everyone; “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news”. The visitors had come with a gift…the Gospel message. They would be there for over a week to teach, encourage and equip this group to grow in the Word and reach out to others with this beautiful gift.
Missionary Daniel Sargent lives in Zambia
Please pray for those working in fields that are ripe for harvest. Share their story, engage with future news and receive updates. Go to this link to learn more about our mission fields in Africa and how the Holy Spirit is working faith in people’s hearts https://wels.net/serving-others/missions/africa
