“I remember her taking off all her clothes and crouching down in front of us.”
I listened in shock as Pastor Peter was recounting these details of his life to Wendy, Stephanie and myself one Friday afternoon. We thought we were returning to Destiny to judge a debate between the grade 9 students and another local school, but God (as usual) had greater plans.
We sat in Pastor Peter’s office waiting for the debate to begin. Well… Three hours later (Africa Time) the debate began. But those hours had flown by as we heard story after story of his life and his call to ministry in Zambia.
When we entered his office, he was on the computer. I could see that he was tired and had a lot on his mind. He told us he had been searching for sponsors for the children in his school. Then he proceeded to tell us about the great need for finances in his school. Not only to provide school fees but to pay the teachers as well. At the moment, only two teachers at Destiny are employed. The rest volunteer.
Some of the students are sponsored by an organization called Arise Africa. The organization has been a huge blessing to the school but the money donated doesn’t fully go to the students. The donations get broken down as they trickle through the organization and each child ends up getting $5-7/year instead of %100 of what is donated.
Destiny also has another school, the original location, about 700km from Lusaka in the Copper Belt. The need is even greater there. Some classes have up to 70 students and there are no permanent teachers. Most teachers decide to leave after only a month, which creates added instability in the lives of children that desperately need some love and stability. Poverty is extreme in this village.
“Why even bother? Why do we even have a school there?” He asked us as we sat listening.
And then his expression changed as he ventured down the hall of his memory pulling chapters from his past and dusting them off to share with us.
“Because that is my village. That is where I grew up and I was one of those children myself.”
I could see that just talking about it was opening the deepest places of his generous heart.
He told us how he lost his father at a young age. His father was an alcoholic for many years. He gave his life to The Lord. God changed his life but he passed away three years later leaving his family in abject poverty. He remembers his father’s funeral. His father’s side of the family completely disowned them believing this was the result of a curse. His aunt specifically performed the horrific African ritual of disowning.
“I remember her taking off all her clothes and crouching down in front of us.”
He told us how, with great embarrassment, he watched his aunt symbolically kick them out of her life. In African tradition when one family member disowns another they must completely disrobe in front of that person, turn their back on them and crouch down.
“Imagine I am a child who has just lost my father and now his sister is disrobing in front of my whole family.”
But he didn’t allow the unfortunate circumstances of his life to defeat him. His faith was placed in the Most High and he was determined to get an education.
“I struggled. I grew up sponsoring myself. I never had shoes or a uniform for school. When I went to sleep at night I never had a blanket.”
He regularly went several days without eating. In fact he only had 2-3 meals a week. But in his hunger he would cry out to God in prayer. He got a job working for an Indian man who took advantage of his need for a job. He promised $8 a month but at the end of the month would only pay him one dollar. He was too desperate for work and money to quit.
He told us of God’s provision in his life. He was able to finish grade 12 and college, only paying for one single term. And this wasn’t because he was deceitful or dishonest. In ways that shout of God’s miraculous provision, his debts were always clear when he went to settle up at the end of the year.
“As I knew my year was drawing to a close I would begin to cry out to God. ‘God how am I going to pay?’ I wasn’t even excited about my exam results because I was afraid I was going to have to settle all of my school debt. But when I stood before the accountant expecting him to tell me to pay, he just asked for my signature.”
“So,” he said with a pure, honest smile that shone in his eyes too, “you see this is not a project. It is our heart.”
Destiny in Matero, where we were working, was founded in direct response to the widespread destruction caused by HIV. Most of the children there are orphans because of it. Some of them, more than 10% of the students, are also infected. Pastor Peter and his wife, Beatrice, have been so obedient to God’s call to change their community.
“People say that Africa is cursed. But the bible does not say Africa is cursed. We named the school Destiny because there must be a future produced. Regardless. Every child deserves a future.”
But Destiny isn’t just teaching children reading, writing and arithmetic. It is teaching them the ways of Jesus Christ. They are teaching love and hope and how to be a child of God.
“Education without Christ is just a big crisis. We are sending them to hell with a smile.”
And as I sat listening to him I was so in awe of God and his love for this nation, this man, these children. I also realized…God was answering my prayer, too. Hopefully you read my blog “Meet My Friends”. Sitting across from this incredible man of God, I got some answers to those questions of how we can help.
If your heart is moved by this story, and you would like to help, please read part 3 (coming soon).
When we got out of the van that morning, before I knew any of what lay ahead, I commented to Stephanie that this place (Destiny) is special. Now I know why…
