I had the privilege of going with Kevin Rogers, a missionary in Chongwe, on one of his river ministry trips a couple of months ago. It was something I had wanted to do and I just decided to make the time to do it. Kevin picked me up at the tar road at about 8:30 and we headed east to the Luangwa River. It is 200 km from Chongwe. It was a beautiful drive out there. We stopped along the way and picked up Pastor Zulu, who assists Kevin in the ministry. We crossed the bridge and put the boat in on the eastern province side. But first we had to put the boat together. These 2 guys have it down on how to put this thing together in very little time. Our destination was about 10kms up the Luangwa then off on to the Lunsemfwa River. There had been a lot of rain as of late and it showed on the river. Kevin said he had never seen the river so full. There were all kinds of debris that Kevin had to dodge as we went along. And the river’s current was so fast that at times it appeared we were not even moving even though the 15hp mercury was maxed out. The river looked as though it was boiling. There were many that looked like toilet bowl swirls all around. Pastor Zulu mentioned that if one of the canoes gets caught in one of them, it will take them under.
Once we arrived at the village they put out the call that Kevin was there for the lesson. Kevin teaches in Nyanja, which he is fluent in. The teaching is done verbally due to the fact that very few read. So you tell a story/lesson over and over until people are able to tell it back to you. Part of their responsibility is to share the story/lesson with someone else in the next week. The lesson when I was there was on the Lord’s Supper. It was an interesting discussion that they had. It reminded me of the discussion we had at MTI on the same topic. What can you use? How often should you observe it? Kevin has noticed over the years here that it is not observed very often. By the end of the time as a group they had decided what they could use. Someone still needed to volunteer to go down river to purchase the items. Yes, Kevin could have provided them with everything they would need. But he didn’t. Why? Because they need to invest and sacrifice in it so they will take ownership in it. He knew that if he gave them what they needed, they would never do it again unless someone else gave them what they needed. In the short time I have been here, I have to say that I agree whole heartedly. Giving is not always the answer. People need to make it personal, give of themselves, their time and money. God will honor that and bless that. Who are we to deny them (or ourselves) the blessing of sacrifice?
It was a privilege and an honor to make this trip with Kevin, it will be a memory that I will cherish.
Once we arrived at the village they put out the call that Kevin was there for the lesson. Kevin teaches in Nyanja, which he is fluent in. The teaching is done verbally due to the fact that very few read. So you tell a story/lesson over and over until people are able to tell it back to you. Part of their responsibility is to share the story/lesson with someone else in the next week. The lesson when I was there was on the Lord’s Supper. It was an interesting discussion that they had. It reminded me of the discussion we had at MTI on the same topic. What can you use? How often should you observe it? Kevin has noticed over the years here that it is not observed very often. By the end of the time as a group they had decided what they could use. Someone still needed to volunteer to go down river to purchase the items. Yes, Kevin could have provided them with everything they would need. But he didn’t. Why? Because they need to invest and sacrifice in it so they will take ownership in it. He knew that if he gave them what they needed, they would never do it again unless someone else gave them what they needed. In the short time I have been here, I have to say that I agree whole heartedly. Giving is not always the answer. People need to make it personal, give of themselves, their time and money. God will honor that and bless that. Who are we to deny them (or ourselves) the blessing of sacrifice?
It was a privilege and an honor to make this trip with Kevin, it will be a memory that I will cherish.
This was the boat
A pod of hippos we saw
one of the fishing villages
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