Tiptoeing: it’s something my cat Magic does when she wants to go outside. She tiptoes to the threshold, noses around, and then suddenly bounds through the doorway and dashes off on the hunt.

For the past year, the One Africa Team (OAT) has been “tiptoeing” around the Democratic Republic of The Congo (DRC). I was called to Africa to connect with French-speaking church groups. As soon as I arrived in Africa, I was given an interesting French-speaking contact: a Lutheran pastor in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. This pastor soon put me in touch with his church group’s secretary-general.

For a year, we texted and talked on WhatsApp and email and eventually held regular bible studies on Zoom, along with the pastors and evangelists. This year, they formed their own synod, la Mission Évangélique Luthérienne au Congo (“Evangelical Lutheran Mission to The Congo”—MELC).

A Country with a Painful Past

Although Zambian and WELS pastors have made occasional, brief visits to The Congo, this hasn’t happened since the 1990s, and it has never happened using French. As the MELC began the process of exploring the path to church fellowship with the WELS, we at OAT felt it was important to visit our friends. After getting approval for the trip and taking some special precautions, Missionaries Howard Mohlke and Keegan Dowling (me) flew to Lubumbashi, DRC, for face-to-face meetings with the leaders of MELC.

What do you know about The Congo? It suffered terribly for generations under the brutal, exploitative rule of Belgium’s King Leopold and then of Belgium itself. In the 1990s, it was flooded by refugees from the Rwanda genocide, which led to an international African war that killed millions in the DRC. Today, The Congo is famous for its rich deposits of “rare earth metals”—scarce elements essential for the manufacture of advanced electronics, such as phones, missiles, and computers. Warlords still exploit the mines for these—and other—precious minerals, causing much turmoil and pain. If you follow current events, you probably wonder why anyone would dare to go to The Congo.

Spoiler alert: it wasn’t dramatic for us at all. The DRC is a huge country (the world’s 11^th-largest), and Lubumbashi turned out to be a sea of tranquility while we were there. We went because we have Lutheran friends there who want to walk together with the WELS. Face-to-face visits show honor and respect, which is why OAT missionaries live in Africa: so that we can regularly visit WELS’ many partners and prospects throughout the continent.

Evidence of God’s Kingdom at Work

In The Congo, we visited MELC worship services at a house church and a large meeting tent. The people of MELC use both French and Swahili, two languages that are mushrooming in their significance for OAT’s current outreach efforts. The pastors of MELC have a heart for sound doctrine and a heart for evangelism. At the end of the visit, OAT and MELC shared a traditional Congolese meal in celebration of our friendship. Our goal is to see each other—and as many people as possible—at the Lamb’s ultimate, eternal feast in heaven!

The Democratic Republic of The Congo: been there… done that… going back. God willing, OAT missionaries will return in 2024, after the DRC’s elections, to conduct a doctrinal workshop with MELC. Over the following months and years, we hope to grow in our understanding of God’s Word and each other. We are tiptoeing no longer, but taking the plunge. Diving into ministry in a land of people Jesus loves.

Missionary Keegan Dowling 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. Learn more about our mission fields in Africa and how the Holy Spirit is working faith in people’s hearts at https://wels.net/serving-others/missions/africa

A little flock gathered in Douala, Cameroon Monday, August 28 through Friday, August 31.

We were six sheep. Six shepherds.

Two from Christ the King Lutheran Synod of Nigeria— Pastor Idorenyin Joshua Udo and Pastor Aniedi Paul Udo;

Two from the Lutheran Church of Cameroon— Pastor Mesue Israel Muankume and Pastor Ngalame Gervase; and

Two from the WELS One Africa Team— Pastor Dan Kroll and Pastor Dan Witte. Kroll lives in Lilongwe, Malawi. I live in Lusaka, Zambia.

My brother in Wisconsin asked me before the trip, “Why are you going there?”

I told him, “It’s kind of a week-long faculty meeting.” Four West African pre-seminary and seminary professors meet with two missionaries. They have experience helping West African Lutheran seminaries.

But it was more than a faculty meeting, brother. Sister, it was more.

It was a prayer meeting. We prayed before all our meals together. We prayed at the start, middle, and end of all our meetings.

One of the Cameroonian pastors set the tone on the first day.

Pastor Israel led us in singing and prayer. He focused us on  Luke 12:32. There Jesus tells his twelve disciples, “Have no fear little flock, for your Father was delighted to give you the kingdom.”

The kingdom. The reign of God is most merciful in human hearts.

But the men Jesus is talking to will run away from him in fear the night he needs them most.

One of them will deny Jesus first. One will betray. Jesus knows. Oh, does he know.

So, “Have no fear little flock,” Jesus says, “for your Father was delighted to give you the kingdom.”

The kingdom. The one-and-only.

The cumulative impact of all the Father has always been doing, royally, redemptively, through his Son and Spirit, and always will.

Imagine.

Who is this man, talking to these twelve other men in Israel?

How does this man know what made their Father happy?

He is God’s Son, you say.

Okay. How can he claim that his Father is their Father too?

How humble is Jesus, not telling these men, “My Father was tickled to give you our kingdom”?

How humble is he, when he should be the one most afraid, as he goes to the cross, telling them not to be afraid?

And you, brother. You, sister. You, sheep of the Good Shepherd.

In Doula met six sheep for a week-long faculty meeting, a prayer meeting, a preparation-for-the-upcoming-school-year meeting, a let’s-become-better-educators meeting.

We were six men from four countries in a friendship meeting. We laughed a lot.

We could have cried a lot too.

We discussed problems. We could have opened up more about our worries. So many fears, we harbor. Those are hard to admit. We six—secretive sinners. But Jesus laid down his life for us all.

And Jesus lives.

Who are you with today as you read this? Are you by yourself? Are you with a few other believers?

Your Father was thrilled to give you the kingdom.

Why do you ever fear anything, when Jesus’ Father is giving you everything?

Have no fear, little flock.

Pray for the same fearlessness in the five students who will soon start again studying for pastoral ministry in Kumba, Cameroon. Pray in Christ for the ten students starting a new school year soon in Uruk Uso, Nigeria.

Our sister ministry training schools in West Africa are small. Difficulties? Huge.

Bigger than anything: “Your Father delights to give you the kingdom.”

Missionary Dan Witte lives in Lusaka, Zambia.

Please pray for those working in fields that are ripe for harvest. Share their story, engage with future news, and receive updates. Learn more about our mission fields in Africa and how the Holy Spirit is working faith in people’s hearts at https://wels.net/serving-others/missions/africa

I often question: What does HOME mean? Obviously, it depends.

After all, during our 30 years of marriage caring for 12 cats and 2 kids, John and I have set up households 16 times.  The longest we have lived in any dwelling is 8 years.  We have been involved in church work in Europe, North America, and now Africa.

“Home is where the [blank] is”: What is the best way to fill in the blank?  Where can we get clarity? This impacts my life now! How you answer shapes your well-being too.

The Word of Christ in our home

Recently my husband and I assisted with running a marriage workshop with Kenyan Lutheran couples. The majority of them live in their communities as pastor families. The schedule emphasized the importance of our relationships as we serve others in and out of our own households.  I especially was intrigued to be there since it was my first time in this part of Africa.  John started visiting Kenya in 2019.  It was fantastic to share this experience with him and all the other attendees.

We encouraged each other to practice the unique roles clearly given to husbands and wives in the Bible:

Wives, submit to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord (Colossians 3:18)

Husbands, love your wives and do not be harsh with them (Colossians 3:19)

Together we put our married lives into context: We are “God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved” (Colossians 3:12) who are to “let the peace of Christ rule in [our] hearts, since as members of one body [we] were called to peace. And be thankful (verse 15).  

We practiced what St. Paul encourages all of us to do in the next verse:

“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.“

So here is how I would fill in the missing idea in the opening paragraph:

Home is where THE WORD of CHRIST is.

We focused on the Bible’s spiritual guidance for our married life as well as digging into practical themes. We adapted “God on Marriage” by Dr. Daniel Akin and “Distracted Marriage” by Pastor Randy Hunter (WELS Adult Discipleship). Pastor Onunda presented in both English and Swahili.

My husband directed whole-group activities and ensured private couple time to discuss God-given roles and overcome problems. We recommitted ourselves to give our marriage the attention it needs and to initiate meaningful conversations with each other. We reviewed how to build in time to discuss issues and to understand each other better. Most importantly, we realized we can forgive each other because of how God forgives us through what Christ did for us.

And quite fittingly, our marriage workshop concluded with the baptism of baby Milan, the only child in attendance.

Living together on this side of heaven

God gives us this gift of Christ’s promises in that Word. From it, we have the vital message that Christ has saved us and has prepared an eternal heavenly Home. This puts our earthly situations and relationships into perspective.  Christ gives us faith, peace, unity, thankfulness, wisdom, and fellowship even as we may struggle with where exactly we belong here in our lives.  

Sometimes we show frustration with how best to relate to others–even to our spouse whom we promised to love! But because Christ lived perfectly and died instead of us for our stubbornness and pride, we have forgiveness. This is not because of what we couples do but because of what Christ did for us. His sacrifice is perfect whereas our material and emotional sacrifices are not. Because Christ draped us in His perfection, God welcomes us to His home. Meanwhile, He gives us the strength to love our families even better each day.

Here are some of the comments we received after the workshop ended:

• “On behalf of my family l would like to thank the LCMC Kenya office for planning the retreat in Mombasa, It has refreshed our family and taught us new things that will strengthen our staying together and our work in the Lord’s vineyard too. It was a good encouragement too. Be blessed.”
• “I and my dear wife want to thank God and those Leaders who planned the pastors’ trip to Mombasa. May almighty God bless you all servants we are so grateful for the unity and love we had.”
• “I too and my wife dearly say thank you to almighty God, the Lcmc leadership, and our mission partners for the opportunity of bringing us together. We wish to have this annually for the health of the family of which we are the role model.
  Any member with useful material please share.”

Please pray that God uses the time we spent together to strengthen Christian love in our homes.

May God help us keep the Word of Christ in our relationships as we are headed for our heavenly HOME!

Nancy Roebke lives in Malawi with her husband John.

Please pray for those working in fields that are ripe for harvest. Share their story, engage with future news, and receive updates. Learn more about our mission fields in Africa and how the Holy Spirit is working faith in people’s hearts at https://wels.net/serving-others/missions/africa