Extreme poverty, sickness, and hunger. This is what people see if they only take a glance at the people of Zambia.
Richness in the Lord, true joy, and a thirst to know God more is what you see when you actually look at the people of Zambia.
Jesus was correct when He told His disciples “The harvest is great, but the workers are few. So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask Him to send more workers into His fields.” – John 10:2. This month we have been evangelizing to anyone and everyone who is willing to hear the Word of God in a compound with a population of over 40,000 people. To the people who already know the Lord we get to encourage and pray over them. However, usually after talking with believers, they are the ones encouraging me. I have never seen so much joy that has to be from the Lord in one place before. We break off into three groups of two racers accompanied by either two or three translators in each group. Wanna give a quick shout out to the awesome translators I have been with every time Becky (19) and Joy (23). They are so wise and have such strong faith in the Lord.
The first day of evangelizing I was terrified because I am bad about rambling and talking in circles, which made me feel like God couldn’t use me. But that was me not putting my trust in the Holy Spirit. It is not about me. When I invite the Spirit to speak through me of course God does the work, He simply was asking me to say yes and go where He asks me. The first day, I got to see and be a part of three people accepting Jesus as their Savior! It is truly unbelievable how excited the people here are to hear and learn more about God. Zambians are also extremely hospitable even though they have very little. We are offered their seats when they are holding children or even too old to barely walk. The fact they stop what they are doing to welcome us into their house in the middle of the day still surprises me. They also surprise me with how vulnerable they are with people they have just met. The most humbling experience I had was when we spoke with a woman who literally lost everything: her three children, her husband, her job, and her house (she was living with one of her son in laws). Yet she still believed in the Lord. You could see the hurt and pain in her but the fact she was still holding on to Jesus was the most beautiful thing. We got to bless her with groceries two days later which was the least we could do to help this woman. The faith and joy here is mind-blowing and opens my eyes to see how thankful I should be every single day. The people here have shown me ways I want to live my life when I get home. I think sometimes as Americans we can complicate things in life and live for the world. I am talking to myself here too, but just having joy from the Lord is all we truly need! Our host presented each person on our team with Zambian names. I was again very humbled when they gave me my name: Chimweemwee, it means joy.
I could go on and on about the children here as well. I love getting to play with them and these kids know how to really play. They run around, play hide-n-seek, dance, race, make up games, and can turn anything into toys. They also bring me so much joy and you cannot help but smile when you see them. So, mom and dad, I may be coming home with a few of the kids here. This is my official heads up to you.
I would love if you would be in prayer with me for the people here to continue to seek God and have faith in Him. Also, that the people who have accepted Christ since we have been here would find a Godly community and would seek His wisdom. Pray for people to find jobs because unemployment is very high here and for the sick to be healed. I know God is here and I am thankful to be a small part of His vessel here.
“Rejoice always, pray continuously, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18.
