Merry Christmas!

Today is a beautiful day! It is a day of remembering the most important gift ever given in Jesus Christ. It is a day to remember what an amazing God we serve. It is a day we spend with family (or, when overseas friends who are like family). It is a day to be thankful! 

It has been 3 weeks since we arrived in the States for our three-month Home Assignment. Already, we have had the opportunity to share about God’s work in the Congo and what a blessing it is to be a part of that! We have been able to spend valuable time with our family and eat some delicious food we’ve missed the last two years.

However, today, more than material gifts we receive, we remember the precious gift sent for us from God; Jesus Christ, our Savior.

We pray your Christmas has been beautiful and full of joy, peace and love!

Fothergills In The DRC: The First Two Years

January 2013 - 3 weeks after we arrived

I can’t believe that our first two years here in the DRC is nearly at an end.  23 months ago, we arrived in Lubumbashi tired, hot, and ready to serve the Lord.  It’s hard to believe that this first term is at a close. The things that were the most difficult at the beginning are the things that barely faze us now.  Of course, we think about electricity, water, internet and other things related to comfort as the things that were hard for us at first. Though now we realize that the difficult things are much deeper than these minor annoyances.  The hard things are the mindsets that bring people down and hinder the work of the Kingdom.  We have come a long way in these 23 months; we are forever changed by the Congo.  I can’t quite explain how we’re different, but it’s clear that we have all been deeply impacted. 

October 2014 - 6 weeks before we leave

Connor doesn’t remember the US at all, except for his family members that we keep in contact with via video chat.  He arrived as a scared, shy boy who wouldn’t shake anyone’s hand but gladly frowned at everyone.  The Congo hasn’t made him an outgoing person, but he greets people in whichever of the three languages that they choose to use and almost always shakes hands with a smile.  Macy came to the Congo excited to live in Africa, but was the first of us to be thrown deeply and fully into the French world a few days after we arrived.  Through school and church she has made many friends and grown up with a diverse understanding of cultural differences; specifically concerning opportunity and justice.  I know that Jill is different too.  She has grown in her confidence as a minister and is being used to empower other women to do the same.  Not only does she keep our family afloat in an ever-evolving process of problem solving, but she also inspires others with gentleness through relationship building.  I know that I’m different too, but it’s hard to explain how. Perhaps we’ll ask Jill for a synopsis of how these last two years have changed me.  I can tell that I’m different in the way that I see people and am filled with hope.  My close friends know that I like to play the part of the pessimist and the complainer, but the Congo has striped this of me.  There is too much potential, too much that God is poised to do, for me to not be changed by His hope and to see it in the people and the powers here in the DRC.  The Congo, no less than any other place, needs the saving grace of the Lord.

We have seen many amazing things, proof of God’s power and love for the DRC.  New churches have been started, new leaders have been raised up, and the Gospel has been spread.  We have become witnesses to the Lord’s mighty hand and redemptive Spirit.  People at war have laid down their arms, people in personal conflict have come to peace, and God has brought physical and spiritual healing to so many.  We have seen with our eyes, and heard with our ears, felt with our fingertips and we cannot forget what the Lord is doing in Congo.  There’s no way to know what the Lord has in store for us or how long we’ll be in the DRC, but I am sure that God will make us witnesses to many more examples of His goodness and will continue to use them to change us.  Let us be changed!

Even Greater Things

I have always believed that the Bible was true.  But it wasn’t until I moved to Africa that I realized how true the Bible was for me, personally.  I had studied the Word, meditated on it, prayed over it, and taught it to others.  But for some reason, there are certain things that I just didn’t fully grasp, various instances where it seemed that the message wasn’t entirely relevant.  Again, it wasn’t that I didn’t believe the Bible to be true, but perhaps living in Africa has helped me to realize that the Bible is true, even for me.  Take the following verse:

“Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.  You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.” (John 14:12-14)

Jesus tells us clearly that if we are his believers, we will do not just what he has been doing, but even greater things than those.  At times, we have misused this verse, thinking that it is telling us that Jesus will provide us whatever possessions or desires that we ask for in his name.  A simple examination of this passage in context with the proceeding and following verses reveals these words as an exhortation to continue the work that Jesus himself was doing.  Even though Jesus will go away (v.19), he assures his disciples that another advocate (v.16) will come and give us the power to continue Christ’s work on this earth.  It is for this work that we have the promise that Jesus will not hold anything back from us; the Holy Spirit will provide all that we need.

Since coming to live in the DR Congo, I have experienced many things that I haven’t experienced in other places.  Crowds of thousands have followed me as I walked through city streets; God has made me a witness to his power through divine healing; and at times the Word has flown through me to prophesy to those needing redemption.  Perhaps living in Congo has reminded me so much of the stories that I’ve read in the bible, that I have allowed the Spirit to work through me in ways that I didn’t understand and couldn’t claim to be my own power.  

One of these times, the Holy Spirit positioned me to know a man who would soon be on his deathbed.  Upon arriving in Lubumbashi, I made it a habit to speak to my neighbors.  Most people are locked up behind their walls in my part of town, so I began to spend most of my time with the workers and other people who were more accessible.  Shortly after making friends with the young men of the neighborhood, they began asking me to teach them about the Bible.  Most of them had been conditioned to accept that they weren’t allowed to know much about the Word of God.  We started meeting as a small group for prayer and bible study.  They soon began to ask for a church, but sensing that I myself didn’t have the time to devote to it, I declined.  God had other plans.

Six months after the bible study had started, I arrived home late at night from a meeting with local pastors.  At first, the two men running at full speed behind the car unsettled me, but I soon made out the figures of brothers Shadrak and Mechak.  “Come quick” they shouted through tears, “our father’s dying!”  We ran quickly around the corner and while still a good distance from the house I could hear wailing.  – In the Congolese context, wailing is a required process that goes on for days with family and friends after the death of a loved one.  People from the neighborhood had already started gathering around the house to pay their respects and wail with their friends. – I hesitated to go in.  I started to doubt what I could do, me, alone.

The air in the house was thick as people were crowded in; crying and wailing at the top of their lungs.  I reluctantly pushed passed the other family members and saw Papa Jean – as he is known in the neighborhood – laying on his back, still.  I began to call out to him, but there was no response.  I put my hand on his chest to feel if it would rise and fall with his breaths.  Even through his shirt I could feel that he was burning hot.  The young men beside me were openly weeping.  I shrugged my shoulders and turned to them looking for the right words to say.  Just then, a small voice rose in the back of my mind.  “Ask in my name,” it said, “and I will do it.”  My hands returned to Papa Jean and I began praying and asking God for healing.  A few minutes later, as we were still praying, he began to move in his bed.  After another few minutes, he was sitting up and responsive.  I put my hand on his shoulder to steady him and noticed that the fever was gone.  The boys tried to keep him in bed, but he stood up and walked out of the house.  There in the presence of the small crowd he began to testify that God had healed him.

My head was spinning.  “Is this what really happened?” I asked myself as doubt began to creep in.  The Holy Spirit had just done a mighty work through me, and yet I found it difficult to believe.  I was humbled and bewildered, and did the only thing that I could.  I prayed thanking God for what he had done and asked for forgiveness for my disbelief.  In the three months since this time, the Holy Spirit has continued to use Papa Jean to build the Kingdom.  We started a church soon after that night, and another one a short three weeks later.  Even now, more preaching points are being established through Papa Jean’s connections.  When we are open to being used by the Spirit, the Spirit will accomplish these “greater things” in and through us.  Let us pray that we may be open, sensitive, and obedient to the Spirit.

A Meeting With God

Today, I find myself overwhelmed by God’s goodness, by His mercy, by His presence. It’s one of those times when you feel Him, you are moved by Him and you sense the Holy Spirit among the others you are with.

I was seated on a couch, packed in the living room of one of our pastor’s homes, with 21 other pastors and their wives. It was the 4^th monthly meeting of pastors to take place in Lubumbashi. The air was a bit stuffy, mostly because the temperature is starting to rise again, the room smelled of fish, rice and beans in preparation for our fellowship meal. Macy and Connor were outside playing, talking just loud enough that I could make out what they were saying in French and the District Superintendent was sharing from Isaiah 60.  “Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord rises upon you. See, darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is over the peoples, but the Lord rises upon you and his glory appears over you.” Quietly, a voice began to sing a hymn, another joined and soon the room filled with beautiful harmony and rhythmic clapping. With united voices, we prayed for our churches, we prayed for each other, we prayed for those close to us who are sick and we prayed for different needs around the world. And, in the midst of it all, the Holy Spirit was moving.

I’m so thankful for times when God reveals His glory; those precious moments each day when he says, “I’m here.” 

Happy Birthday, Connor!

I know every parent says it...every year...but, we really can't believe our little guy is 5 today. 

So proud of him! 

Giving the Jesus Film Another Look

“Please come back, don’t leave us here alone!”  Those were the words echoed by many people in the small, isolated community just outside the dense city of Kinshasa in the DR Congo.  Being the capital city, Kinshasa has many paved roads, electricity (albeit unreliable), and city water.  It also has many of the amenities that people come to expect in Western cities, if you can afford the outrageous prices.  Downtown Kinshasa is cut in half by an eight-lane road, alleviating the horrendous traffic jams of just a few years earlier, and many modern buildings painting the skyline.  However, this bustling urban area was a world away, or so it seemed, from the community where we showed the Jesus Film earlier this month. 

            In contrast to Kinshasa, which is lush and green most of the year due to its tropical climate.  This community is perched on the side of a mountain with sandy soil, earning it the name of “Tchad” (or Chad) because of its more dry, desert-like conditions.  There are no paved roads, and at times we wondered if the path we were using was meant to be any kind of road at all.  There is no running water, so people are forced to carry it in from long distances and families usually live off of 5-10 gallons a day.  When heavy rains do come, they displace the sandy soil and damage even small buildings, so practically every house is in need of repair. 

            It was hard to get there, and I admit that I was annoyed at first.  When the vehicle got stuck for the third time, and the 10 of us piled out of the 7 seats, for the third time, to help push the car out of the hole, I wondered to myself, “How could this be worth it?”  These feelings of frustration seemed to melt away as we began the first phase of showing the Jesus Film; invitations.  People were so excited to welcome us to their home, most invited us inside but we declined so that we could continue on through the community inviting more people.  These days, the equipment goes together quickly and all the components fit into one large backpack.  As the sun starting setting behind the mountain, night fell quickly and we started the film. 

            Having seen the film many times, I was more interested in taking in the faces of the audience.  Children whispered to each other, perhaps about the film or other things that children whisper about.  Most people didn’t turn away; they barely blinked.  They all cheered at the miracles of Jesus and cried for his suffering and death.  Fortunately, they were given the opportunity to cheer again, and even dance and sing because of his resurrection.  Around fifty people accepted the Lord that evening, but we didn’t expect the pleading, almost begging, that came next.  “We are all alone here, without churches or pastors or bibles.  There is no one to teach our children about God.  Please come back, don’t leave us here alone.”  We agreed to start a church there in the home of one of the families and they have been meeting ever since. 

            In the academic setting, I remember many people scoffing at the idea of the Jesus Film.  I won’t name names, or electronically point fingers, but many people that I have encountered have related showing the Jesus Film in a place like rural Africa to using magic to dazzle viewers into accepting the gospel.  Some of these pastors are now preaching to congregations using hundred thousand dollar audio/video equipment today.  I suppose that is a soapbox for another day; because the truth that I want to share today is that the Jesus Film works.  It brings ministers into direct contact with the lost, it preaches the Good News in a vibrant way, and it contradicts the idea that people have to come to Church before they can be saved.  God isn’t only in the temple or the developed city centers.  Through the Jesus Film and the teams that show it, God is in the outskirts and the forgotten places.  God meets people where they are at and offers grace and love to those who need it most.  For this reason, I’m giving the Jesus Film another look.  For this reason, maybe we all should.

A small village called Kafubu

Kafubu - Site of future school

When God gives a vision, it doesn’t always come with a clear path for how it will be accomplished.  In some cases, pieces of the same vision can be given to multiple people at varying times and places.  Like pieces of a puzzle, they don’t make much sense by themselves and we can be overwhelmed when trying to sort through them on our own.  Like Noah building the arc, Moses going before Pharaoh, and so many others, God reveals the end of the vision, or the promise, before the path, or means.  When the vision comes, we must have the faith to follow the path that God’s vision leads us down even when the end is not in sight.  Such was the case for those who received God’s vision to start a school in the small village of Kafubu in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

More than three years ago, Pastor Aimé Mutombo from Lubumbashi was starting a church in the nearby village of Kafubu.  As he began to pray over the community and the needs represented there, the long distances children had to walk in order to attend school overwhelmed him.  In addition to long distances, he was also struck by high school fees, which caused most families to only send their oldest boys leaving many children without the opportunity for a basic education.  Together with Celestin Chishibanji, the superintendent of the South Katanga District, the two men began to receive a vision to build a school that would provide a good, affordable education to the families of Kafubu.  As a part of this vision, the two men felt led to purchase a plot of land near the church where the school would be built. 

In February of this year, my sister and brother-in-law (Andy) came to visit us at our home in Lubumbashi, DRC where we serve as missionaries.  They enjoyed many things that first-time visitors to Africa would naturally enjoy; the music, dancing, interesting foods, and beautiful landscapes.  They also immensely enjoyed fellowship with their Congolese brothers and sisters in Christ.  One of the places that we visited was Kafubu, and although they were deeply touched by what God was, and is, doing in this small village, they never imagined how God would use them to accomplish the vision that was given to Pastor Aimé nearly three years earlier.  God put it on Andy’s heart that he was to help build the school, but he didn’t know how.  The first Sunday after they returned to Ocean Springs, MS where Andy leads the worship team at Crossroads Church of the Nazarene, he was approached by one of the members of the band.  This person told Andy that God gave him a vision that their band would be playing in a concert on the beach, and this concert was going to help accomplish a call that Andy had already received.

 Over the next few days an event was planned that would draw bands together from several states to play a concert on the beach with the goal of raising eight thousand dollars for the school in Kafubu.  They sought donations, booked a venue, secured permits, and advertised diligently.  A short four months later, Congo Jam (www.congojam.org) took place.  With God’s help this one church was able to raise more than eleven thousand dollars for the construction of a school in Kafubu.   It is so humbling and rewarding to be reminded of the ways in which God works.  Even when we seem incapable, He will use us to accomplish His purposes.  Even when the road seems long and difficult, He will be with us at every step.  And even when the vision seems too big, He will follow through with his promises.