It’s been a little over two weeks since I landed in Zambia.
Africa – the promise land of mission trips for the American church.
Having grown up in the church my entire life I’ve always seen and heard people get so excited and filled with passion for helping those in Africa. Think about all the videos and pictures you have seen in your life of African children, many of those malnourished and living in poverty. Even non-Christian organizations can flood the airways with advertisements pleading people to give even just a dollar a day to feed a child in need.
We are asked to consider going to Africa because they NEED us. Having been to 7 African countries I can tell you this….the need in Africa is real. There are people who are living in conditions many Americans can’t even fathom. Some have to walk miles and miles each day just go get water. Witchcraft and spiritual warfare runs rampant in this continent. There is truth in the statement that Africa needs our help.
These last couple weeks back on the continent have also reminded me of another thought…I believe the American church NEEDS Africa.
I wish everyone I know back home could come and live a few weeks of my current life. If you came to the Africa I know, you would discover a joy for the Lord that knows no limits. Church services that can go 5-6 hours and nights of worship where you are so wrapped up in the Lord’s presence that the hours slip away. A church service where people aren’t checking their watches every 5 minutes, antsy about beating the other denomination to the buffet restaurant down the street.
You would discover a faith that does not waver. A faith that God will not forsake you even when you parents died at a young age and left you on the streets. A faith that he will provide in his own way even when you have 9 mouths to feed at home. The kind of faith it takes to move mountains.
You would discover sons and daughters of Christ who give back until they can give no more. People whose wallets are never close to being full, but don’t hesitate to empty them to give to those in need. A continent that doesn’t believe ‘church’ means a one hour window on Sunday morning, but rather a community to fellowship with daily.
Yes Africa needs the help of the American church…but I truly believe the American church needs Africa just as much. To be inspired by their faith, encouraged by their testimonies and reminded that joy in this world is found in our relationship with God and not our physical conditions.
As I continue to serve the people of Zambia, Malawi and Mozambique I will be inspired and uplifted by each new community I encounter.
I wish all of you back home were alongside me…because we, my friends, are people in just as much need.
