My African Ordination, and the Spirit that Holds my Hand

Ministry has been incredible. Far too many awesome things have happened for me to include them all in this blog. You guys will just have to settle for the ministry highlight reel.

When we finally, after much ado, began to do ministry here in Zambia, God showed up and showed out. Or ministry contact and his family are incredible, hilarious, powerful, inspirational people of God.

He took us to housing compounds, similar to villages, and paid us with local pastors. Or teams went out into the neighborhood and began door to door evangelism. Civanna and I went with pastor Teddy to Libuyu compound and shared the gospel.

After the first house, apparently I got ordained. Or translator and brother in Christ, pastor Teddy, decided that I was “Pastor Chris”. So that’s new.

After a couple of exceptional visits, we ended up at the house of a young mother who’s two year old son was born with an inability to hold up his head. His neck is weak and frail and so is forced to mostly low around. Upon our arrival, the boy had been suffering for nearly two months with various illnesses. The mother greeted us warmly to her home, and took chairs from inside placing them in the shade for us to sit and talk. After sharing with her some powerful, spirit-led Scriptures and words of God, the young woman asked us to pay over her son. She went inside to wake him from his nap, and brought him out side to us. My heart was not prepared. The young child was extremely thin, possibly malnourished. His teeth were black and browned from extensive illness. His eyelids had to have weighed a thousand pounds, because he could hardly open them to acknowledge us. His head rolled a bit, sometimes rating on his mother’s am or leg, and sometimes hanging limply.
He was wearing only a shirt because covering–literally covering–his mouth were large, open sores. The same sores covered his crotch and the back of his legs and thighs. His skin was pulled tightly, dried and cracked. Red, open oozing wounds attracted practically every fly in Africa. The child looked as if he were dead and decaying even before or eyes.

It was one of the hardest things I have ever seen.

Through tears and sniffles we were able to come out a powerful prayer over the boy and his mother. I cannot attest to what God has done in that situation since because we have not been back to her home, but I can promise that he brought hope to that home and to our team.

In another instance on the same day, Civanna and I shared words of Scriptures with a woman. God directed our words and spoke to us. He said that he wanted to use this woman as a Beacon for him in her family, her church, her community, and in Zambia. Its just what God spoke to me.

When we were leaving, pastor Teddy shared that only a week before, he and this woman had talked about her taking over some of leadership positions at church. That was only God.

Again, Civanna and I shared similar words of encouragement with a rural farmer. We told him to hold tightly to his faith through trials. That sometimes, hardship is the soil in which we grow best. That there could have been no resurrection if there had been no death. Again upon leaving, Pastor Teddy affirmed the Spirit’s work by telling us that the man lost his wife about six months ago and was left to take care of his 5 children as a struggling, poor, farmer.

Another day, we went to the house of Mrs. Mandi, who is one of the most powerful women of God I have ever met. After evangelizing with us, her husband had been attacked by a spirit of infirmity. He’d been sent home from work with stroke-like symptoms. He had apparently had 5 mini strokes before we arrived. We played for him, rebuking the enemy in the authority of Jesus Christ. By the time we left, he was praising God, raising both his hands to the Lord, and singing with his formerly paralyzed jaws.

These are the high lights–the bench marks. These are short stories residing to the work and the power of God. There is so much more to tell. There is so much more glory being recieve by the Father. His spirit is undeniably at work in Zambia.

I feel like I am in exactly where God wants me to be. I have been mud in the healers hand. I have brought the water, and he has been faithful to make the wine. And I don’t think he will stop here. There are months of this ahead.

Thank you all for your prayers and financial support. Without you, these things could not have happened.

Praise Him, and exhaust your view of him. He won’t fail to show up. He won’t fail to amaze. Be encouraged, brothers and sisters. Boldly jump out in faith and allow him to catch you. Declare his truth and be led by the Spirit.