A Praying Church

Options seem limited when you’re faced with war.  Almost 20 years in refugee camps through the 80s, return to Sudan in 2006 after the war only to be displaced again 5 short years later in resumed fighting in Blue Nile state.  What can you do in such a situation?

One by one, they prayed quietly.  Without show and pomp or with a preacher’s inflections.  They prayed just loud enough for a person sitting in front of them to hear.  As though the person they were talking to was a whisper’s distance away.  They were intimate conversations.

SIM’s motto has always been ‘By prayer’ but we have sure learned what it is to pray and seek the Lord from our brothers and sisters from Sudan.

What is prayer?  Is it ‘giving up’ or a ‘last ditch effort?’  Is it throwing up our hands in despair and giving in?  Or is it more than that: is it an intimate conversation with our loving Father?  Is it lowly man talking to Almighty God who knows all things and orchestrates all things?  Prayer displays not only trust in God but a deep love for brother and sister.  Only after visiting with the church did we come to know that they were praying for us by name during our time in Ktm when we were being kicked out.  Is this ‘giving up’ or is it love for their brothers and trust in God?

Oh, Lord, help us to have a faith that endures and that acknowledges you as infinitely aware, infinitely wise and infinitely involved in all that is happening in your world.  Help us to pray and seek you because we love you and love our brothers and sisters.

(March 2013)

From our past to our future: the continuing work of training Gospel ministers

Joshua with his family in 1982

Yoel with his family in 2013

Since 1969, when man first landed a man on the moon, Joshua has been a Christian.   Two friends shared with him the message when he was sick and he believed.  Since then, he has served the Lord in the church.  In the 80s when the opportunity came, he studied at Gideon Theological College (GTC) after which he served faithfully in the Chali church in Blue Nile state in Sudan.  War came back into his area in 2011 and Joshua and his family fled to neighboring South Sudan.  In the fighting Joshua lost a son and ultimately his own life after succumbing to chronic illness while in the refugee camp.  An ending like this would have you question the legacy.  It would  have you wonder about the fate of the church.

From among the believers in the Chali church, Yoel had been chosen to study in the very same GTC where his predecessor pastor Joshua studied.  Today, he represents part of the hope of the continuing work GTC has in training ministers of the church.

Even now, there are opportunities to sponsor students during their 4 year studies.

Short study before class

For more information on how to provide scholarships for students, contact the academic dean at

gtc@securenym.net

When words fail: Bitter sweet reunion with the Uduks

When there are no words, a hug is best understood.  What words could you use to express how you feel about their short 5 years back in Sudan after being refugees for over 20 years only to find themselves as refugees again in South Sudan?  What words could you use to describe how you feel seeing someone you haven’t seen for over 3 years?  What words could you use to express the joy of finding friends in a sea of people in camps?  What words could you use to express back what you feel when you see their eyes welling up with tears?  It’s best just to let your heart be understood in silence.

Visiting Rebecca

When they caught sight of one another they dropped everything and ran to one another.  Rebecca and Claire have been the best of friends for almost 14 years.  As they locked in a long hug other women followed and took turns embracing one another.  The older women, much more quiet, started welling up with tears and could be seen quietly wiping them away.  This is a holy moment where God is present.  Where friends you didn’t know whether you’d see again suddenly appear before you.  This is a holy moment.

(March 2013)

Light unto my path: Dedication of the Shilluk Bible

"We are here to dedicate ourselves to God, not His Word to us.” Opening words of the message preached to us by pastor Peter of the Sudan Interior Church on the dedication of the newly printed Shilluk Bible.  It is the culmination of the translation work of both Old and New Testaments after a long 20 year translation process.

A thousand people crowded the stadium in Upper Nile’s capital, Malakal to witness and take part in this historic event.  Choirs from different Shilluk churches massed together to celebrate each wearing lawas (traditional shawl worn over one shoulder) representing their church colours.  As the day wore on, what was a tidily organized grouping of colour coded choirs became a rainbow of worship.  Choirs from different churches mixed together in jubilation.

We are celebrating God’s Word coming down to us.  But this must surely require a response.  Pastor Peter’s words circle back and compel us to take a stand about ourselves.  It is, as he says, more to do with our own position with regard to His Word than the pages itself.  It is a reminder that we must dedicate ourselves to Him.  The Word came and dwelt with us and demands our all.  Will we take this opportunity to evaluate our standing with Him and dedicate ourselves to His service?  The Word of God is not only our light but it is a light unto our path.  This path of actually following after Him.

Praise the Lord that with this new Bible many more will have a chance to say “yes, I too dedicate myself to You!”  May His name be praised for the great things He has done.

(April 13, 2013)

Shilluk Bible dedication

http://youtu.be/785vnzCDo28

Shilluk Bible dedication celebration

http://youtu.be/nq_FjyPsU4w