As I look over the map of DR Congo
hanging on the wall just next to my desk, I realize that I don’t know how to
fully express my recent trip to Pweto.
My map shows all cities in Congo with more than 50,000 inhabitants and
so Pweto doesn’t even merit a little dot to represent the time that we spent
there. I suppose that it’s not quite
fair, there has been no censes in this country for more than 50 years and I
suspect that Pweto has far surpassed the 50,000 inhabitant mark. It makes no difference all the same; you can
easily locate this town on the map as it is just at the start of the Luvua River
feeding in from Lake Mwero. In any case,
I’m left with the same problem. How do I
express all of the amazing things that we encountered after just four short days
in this place? The summary is that God
is at work and changing hearts and lives in the DRC.
From our home in Lubumbashi, Pweto
lies 480 km (298 miles) to the northeast.
Only one fifth of the journey is paved.
The other four fifths lead you through hundreds of small thatch-roof-hut
villages, beside the beautiful Kundelungu Plateau National Park, alongside the
swamps where local rice is grown, over steep hills, above and into countless
rivers, and finally skirting the length of Lake Mwero. We made this 10-hour journey with only one 30
minute stop along the way to visit and encourage another new church in a small
village. We arrived at the Luvua River
at 6:02pm and to our surprise found that, for perhaps the first time in the
history of the DR Congo, the time was strictly followed. This meant that we had to leave our vehicle
at the side of the river and cross by canoe.
Two men paddled, while another continuously scooped out the water we
were taking on over the side of the miniature vessel. From there, a 10-minute motorcycle ride
brought us to the pastor’s house where around 40 church members were waiting to
welcome us. They were so happy to
receive visitors from far away. After a
few hours of fellowship, we ended the long day to rest and prepare for the days
ahead.
 |
| Pweto's City Center |
Amongst those of us who made the
trip, perhaps the person of honor should have been Méchak (who is named for one
of the three brothers thrown into the furnace as recorded in the book of
Daniel). Méchak is a young man with a
good job working for a company that sells and maintains large vehicle and
equipment for construction. For this
reason, he travels around to different areas for several weeks or even a month
at a time. In January, his work sent him
to Pweto. Méchak met another man who
worked for a nearby non-profit organization and began to speak to him about
Christ. Before his month was up in
Pweto, Méchak had led his new friend to faith in Jesus Christ. During the two months that followed, this new
convert had continued to also share the good news and bring people together for
prayer and bible study. Before long, one
of them was identified as the pastor and they began calling Méchak to come back
and bring others to see them. This is
where we came in; the District Superintendent, Méchak, two other pastors, and
myself were led to come and continue the work that the Lord had already
started.
 | |
| Candidates for baptism confess their faith in Jesus Christ. |
After a day and a half of teaching,
21 people gave their lives to Christ for the first time. We went immediately to the lake that
afternoon where 28 men, women, and children were baptized. That evening, we showed the Jesus Film in a
near by soccer field and still others gave their lives to Christ and were put
into contact with the new church. As we
prepared to leave the next morning, it was evident that we were not responsible
for the hearts and lives being changed in Pweto. Rather, the Holy Spirit would
wait no longer to reach those who the Lord was calling back to Himself. The Catholic Church does exist there, as well
as a handful of other small churches, but the people of Pweto are still today
largely unreached with the Gospel and its message of holiness.
 |
| Mwero Lake from the beach in Pweto |
The way back allowed us to see what
the failing light and anticipation of the trip had caused us to miss on the way
there. I am convinced that the Congo is
amongst the most beautiful countries in the world, seen through both its
amazing scenery and the warmth and hospitality of its people. One time on the return trip, the rain sent us
sliding down the mud hill with no way to stop.
Luckily, our slide came to an end only a mere 10 feet before hitting a
rare passing vehicle, which had stopped to wait out our uncontrolled
descent. While still four hours out from
Lubumbashi, the truck’s forward differential was damaged sending out loud metal
grinding and banging sounds throughout the vastness of nature around us;
scaring us to death along with the entirety of the village we were passing
through. A quick modification to bypass
the four wheel drive and we were off again with limited noise. We stopped in another town, Kilwa, where one
of the pastor’s nieces lives. The family
received us well and fed us as we talked to them about the Church and starting
the work in that place. All of these
things turned our 10-hour trip into 14 hours, but not a person complained. I confessed to the DS as I pulled up to his
house that I nearly canceled the trip because I was extremely sick the day
before. He then confessed that he nearly
did the same thing and we both remarked that we would have never known
that the other was ill the entire time.
This fact, together with the hassle we received from the police, which
caused us to turn back on our first attempt to visit Pweto, confirmed in us
that God wants to do amazing things throughout the region. We thanked God for his grace and prayed for
continued strength so that we may go if he sends us; respond if he calls us, no
matter the difficulty that we may encounter along the way.
We are excited to see what’s next on this
journey and how God will continue to change hearts and minds while calling
people back to Himself. For now, we are
reminded of this verse: The
one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it (1 Thessalonians 5:24).
 |
| A local school made of mud bricks and a grass roof. |
