Blossoming Deserts

The Changing Face of Missions

The world of missions is changing. It used to be that Western countries were taking the gospel to unreached peoples in other parts of the world. But now Christianity has taken root in many of those places and they are sending out their own missionaries. So now missionaries are being sent from everywhere to everywhere!

It was my privilege this past weekend to take part in commissioning a good friend and former NETS graduate who will be heading off as a “missionary” to Scotland. He’ll be working at a Christian hostel where he will have many opportunities to share Jesus with those he interacts with. It’s exciting to see Namibia not only receiving, but also sending out people for Christian ministry around the globe!

Fishers of People

When was the last time you explicitly talked to someone about following Jesus? Religion is always one of those taboo topics that most people don't want to talk about, yet religion addresses the deepest questions of life that everyone must answer. What's the point of everything? What am I here for? What's truly satisfying in life? Am I accountable to anyone? What happens when I die? These are questions that Christianity has good answers for. But we tend to keep those answers to ourselves because we're afraid people might think we're judgmental or too religious or just plain weird. But sharing the answers to questions like those with people who don't know Jesus is exactly what we're here for! But instead we tend to walk around hiding our light under a cover and thinking if somebody asks me about it then maybe I'll mumble something religious before changing the subject.

I've mentioned before that I'm involved in a young adult Bible study on Sunday nights that specifically addresses this topic. We meet together weekly at the park to encourage each other and keep each other accountable on how we're doing with sharing the gospel with others. We share testimonies of opportunities we've had the past week or of struggles we've had. We do Bible studies to challenge and motivate us and to help us learn how to better share the gospel. We worship together and pray together and weekly send each other out on mission. Obedience is a lot easier when we're doing it together in community.

The Great Commission in Matthew 28 isn't optional. It's a command. And if we're not doing it then we're being disobedient. So let me ask again, how's your sharing going?

Village Life

Everything is a bit slower in the village. You can take your time waking and getting ready for the day. Meals take longer to cook. Recreation takes longer to organize. Preaching messages (as they're translated) takes longer. Even slow conversations in the shade of a tree fill the long afternoon. The only thing that's shorter is the amount of time you can run the water in the shower.

I was invited to speak at an Easter Conference for Grace Reformed Baptist Church. One of the members was hosting the conference at his homestead in the village, over 100km off the tar road and some 30km into the bush past anything even resembling a town. What I mean by village is a number of spaced-out plots each with a house and a cattle krall, surrounded by some communal grazing land. It doesn't even get a name on the map.

We were the first to arrive at the homestead in the late afternoon and helped others set up their tents as they continued arriving throughout the evening. After dark the men sat around the fire drinking tea while the women were preparing a late dinner on the same fire. The meal was pap and soup and of course, some meat. Fortunately they served me chicken, figuring I probably wouldn't be interested in what everyone else was having . . . cow stomach. They were right. (Note: I wasn't just copping out. I've tried cow stomach before and was not a fan!)

The theme of the conference was "The Wrath of God." I was asked to do four sessions on the doctrinal aspects, while another speaker was doing four talks on the practical side of it. At first the prospect was a bit intimidating, but the more I prepared and studied the more excited I became about it. The doctrine of the wrath of God is certainly under attack in our culture today. It makes God seem judgmental and angry, when really we just want Him to be tolerant and loving. Therefore, I presented a defense of the wrath of God based on the consistency of His character. The first morning we looked at God's wrath as a response to His holiness (2 Sam. 6:1-11). During the second session we looked at God's wrath as the necessary response of His justice (Gen. 18:16-33).

The third lesson was reconciling God's wrath with His mercy, seen in Christ's death on the cross satisfying God's wrath on our behalf (Lev. 16; Mark 15). And then the last evening we looked at the wrath of God still to come on those who reject Christ (Rev. 19:11-21), and God's patience allowing them more time to repent (2 Pet. 3:9). I never thought I would be much of a fire and brimstone preacher, but sometimes that's what teaching the full council of God's Word requires.

By the end of the weekend I had heard a lot of encouraging feedback. One guy, being challenged by the over 2 million people dying in Namibia without Christ, wanted to leave his job in the city, move back to his town and start a small business to support the family, and commit his time to sharing Christ in his own community. In reality I don't imagine he will go to those lengths, but it shows that his heart was stirred to action. And that was our goal, as our final prayer together was that we may be doers of the Word and not hearers only.

We had a friendly guest crash the conference, usually at meal time.

We organized a game of volleyball despite the gusty wind.

Speaking at one of our morning sessions

A baptism after our Sunday morning church service

The whole crew at the conference

Photo of the Day

Last summer sunset

Commencement

You always hear it said at graduations that it's not an end, but a beginning, and that's why it's called Commencement. Our four degree graduates from NETS are now off to the beginnings of different kinds of ministries, pastoral ministries for some or further training for others. Our two diploma graduates are also setting off in new directions, one for further studies and the other was hired as the new NETS distance coordinator in Rundu. All four of our Certificate graduates are continuing on into our Diploma program at NETS. It's great to see all our students using their education to continue in ministry, whether pursuing more training or jumping right into ministry.

All dressed up and ready to graduate!

The NETS student choir performing a song

Keynote speaker Rev. Katenda

One of our Certificate graduates receiving his certificate

One of our Degree graduates receiving his hood

All our NETS graduates and faculty (minus one photographer) - Green robes
are Distance Program graduates; Black robes and no hoods are Certificate
graduates; Black robes and green hoods are Diploma graduates; Black robes
and purple hoods are Degree graduates.

Our excited Degree graduates tossing their caps

Sossusvlei

The funny thing about living in a tourist country is that you never actually do any of the touristy stuff unless visitors come. We currently have two short-term volunteers from Germany staying here with SIM and one of their sisters came to visit, so we had an excuse to go play tourist for the weekend. One of my local friends who has worked as a tour guide planned out a great camping weekend for us down to Sossusvlei in the southern desert. Sossusvlei is the one place where you can get way out into the Namib sand dunes because of the path cut by the Tsauchab River bed. The river runs through the desert, through the Sesriem Canyon and finally empties into Sossusvlei where it has no place else to go. But since the river only runs once every 4-5 years when there are good rains, it's extremely rare to ever see water in the vlei. But the beauty of the red dunes and especially the Deadvlei have attracted tourists for years.


Oryx enjoying the shade	Hiking out to the Deadvlei


This is why it's called Deadvlei	Inside Sesriem Canyon

One of the perks of traveling with a local tour guide is that he knows all the cool campsites and off-the-beaten-path places to stop and visit along the way. Who would've known that out in the middle of the dry desert we would stumble across this little oasis of cool, clear water. The perfect setting for a swim in the heat of the day and of course some cliff-jumping!

Another random treat in the desert is found in the little town of Solitaire. One could hardly call it a town because it's really just a few buildings on the side of the road, surrounded by wide-open desolate desert, that acts as a pit-stop on the way to Sossusvlei. It certainly lives up to it's name, Solitaire. But randomly, an exiled member of Hell's Angels named Moose McGregor happened upon the lonely town and decided to settle down there. He started a bakery which has been serving hungry travelers Moose's famous apple pie ever since.

One weekend is such a short time to enjoy God's astounding creation. But it's certainly great to get out of the city every once in a while, so I'll take what I can get!

The Silver Lining

My previous apartment was up on a hill and had a second-story balcony with a gorgeous view over the valley. I used to sit out on the balcony with a book and enjoy the breeze and the view. Now I live in a valley. The bottom of the valley specifically. I don't look down on anything, but every other house around looks down on us. It's easy to moan and complain about what you don't have (and believe me I did!), but that's actually what coveting is. It's not being satisfied with what God has given you. It's being discontent and wanting what God gave to someone else.

Contentment, on the other hand, is being satisfied with what God has given you. When God took away my view, He replaced it with a garden instead. My last place was in the city, surrounded by streets and concrete and loud trucks driving by. But my new place is more in the suburbs and has a lovely garden with all kinds of birds flying around. So rather than complaining about what I don't have and coveting what others have, I need to be content in what I do have.

So now my new hobby is sitting out on my patio with a book enjoying the breeze and watching the different birds visiting my bird-feeder. They come in all colors of the rainbow. So sometimes when God takes one joy away, rather than complain about it we should look out for another joy that He's replaced it with.