Coming back to Africa has brought up all my uncomfortable feelings, once again.
Evangelism is a big deal here. Door to door, university campuses, malls, grocery stores…
If you’re a missionary in Africa, more than likely part of your time here is to go out and evangelize.
But what exactly is evangelism, you might ask?
Evangelism is sharing the gospel; Jesus came, rose again, forgave our sins & brought hope to the world.
Evangelism is showing the love of God to strangers.
Evangelism is inviting people to church.
However, African culture is distinct when it comes to evangelism. Their approach can be very traditional and pretty assertive, in my opinion. It’s a cultural difference so it’s just different than what i’m used to.
I’m a relational person. I don’t like small talk. I don’t like to bother people while they are on a mission to do or get somewhere.
God knows this. He knows how much I dreaded the days we had to go out and evangelize, which was pretty much everyday.
I literally had to pray hard. I prayed for a change of heart. I also prayed that He forgave me for not wanting to go out.
So here’s what He told me during one of our morning devotionals in Botswana. It can seem harsh but it was true.
He told me I didn’t need to like it and that I didn’t have to feel comfortable while doing it. But that I just needed to do it.
It reminded me of a father-daughter relationship. You know, when you are told something and you know not to ask any questions. You do what they say because you know they know better than you.
The only thing is, I’m one who likes to know why. I ask questions, lots of questions.
But God’s answer was definite. I knew not to ask further questions.
Just go and pray. And pray some more.
So here I am, on my way to South Africa, another African country.
Please pray for me as I tackle this uncomfortable feeling, again and again, while in Africa.
