Jesse: Telling THE story

The Creation to Christ story is roughly 15 minutes long and missionaries use it to find people interested in knowing more about who Jesus is and why he is our savior. Tessa and I walked through a neighborhood looking for people willing to listen to us practice telling the story. I like telling the story and listening to it be told. They way it flows from God creating the world to Abraham’s sacrifice to Christ’s resurrection and then the story of the prodigal son. The story shows the need for a savior and how he receives us.


Tessa, Agness and I wave goodbye to our friends on the minibus as we prepare to go into the city, sharing the Creation to Christ story.

kristen: learning to tell stories

today we learned about creation to Christ. tim, a missionary from south africa, told us the story of salvation, from the creation of the universe to the death and resurrection of Christ. this method of evangelism is particularly effective in africa, where oral learning and stories are passed from generation to generation. i am learning how important it is to really know the stories God has given us. how remarkable it us that God has chosen to give us his word in narrative form. that he has chosen stories to tell us the great truths and mysteries of the universe.



jesse practices sharing the story with her teammate, tessa.


tim shares with us the creation to Christ story.

kristen: death and funerals

today was the day to learn about sickness and funerals and death. we took a minibus to the city and stopped at a small dark shop off the main road. there, bridget advised us to purchase cooking oil, soap, sugar, and juice. it was a hot, hot day, and we began asking bridget questions as the sun beat down on our necks. she told us we were going to visit her friend, cynthia, who had been sick for a couple weeks.

as we approached the house, cynthia’s mother, eunice, ushered us in with a warm handshake. she invited us to sit, and offered us cold fantas. cynthia sat in the corner, with her hand to her forehead, her eyes glossed over, looking miserable. she had a deep cough, and told us she had been sick for maybe a week. but her mother told us quietly that she had been coughing since 2005. her son, duma (age 5), was also coughing.

soon her brother, kennon joined us. he also was sick, and his wife had died a couple years ago. he told us the sickness was difficult for him, because he was unable to work. we gave cynthia the gifts we had brought, and told her they hoped they could be of some comfort and help to her.

the neighbor, mrs. sikhosna also came in, and was sharing her difficulties with us. she has arthritis in her knees. she told us that she had expected to be able to visit and minister to people in her old age, but instead she was in constant pain. i was overwhelmed with the amount of pain and suffering in the lives of these brothers and sisters. i asked if we could pray for them, and we did. i was so convicted in my lack of faith, and my own self reliance.

it was good to fellowship with these brothers and sisters. we talked a lot about the diseases that are common in africa: malaria, HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis. There was little to say about the pandemics. life is difficult for most of the world. the sin and the fall seems to touch every atom of the universe, every part of our lives. how rarely do i realize that all of my hope is in Christ.

they asked us if things were different in the states—if our wealth makes life easier for us. we admitted that we suffered much less in body, but that other diseases—greed, arrogance, promiscuity, and drug abuse were common to us. it to was strange to realize how much sin has affected every culture. the human condition is universal. as we continued visiting, eunice disappeared into her room, and emerged with two chitanges (zambian skirts). she kneeled in front of us and told us that now we were true zambians. and that when we wear them, we can remember her family. it was humbling.


cynthia sitting in the doorway of the small room she shares with her mother and son. though she's never been tested, bridget tells us it's likely she is suffering from HIV/AIDS.

kristen: what is a missionary?

today we visited bridget’s role model, mrs. mukupa. mrs. mukupa serves as a deaconess in the local baptist church. as we sat down in her living room, she served us cans of cold coffee and roxie (very bravely!) tried a dried catipillar. she said it wasn’t so bad. tasted like crunchy liver.

our DFA today was "what is a missionary" so we asked mrs. mukupa her opinion. she told us that missionaries are the ones who follow in the footsteps of Christ, and those who brings others closer to God. she told us she considered herself a missionary.

she shared her testimony and talked about the church in zambia—one of the problems in the church here is non-believing church-goers. i was surprised to see this same issue across the ocean, so far from home. i told her that even in america, there is nominal christianity in the church.

i asked her about some of her struggles as a missionary. one of my greatest struggles in living overseas has been seeing the great gulf between the poor and the rich—seeing street kids begging barefoot, or young mothers unable to feed their children. after a moment’s hesitation, she began speaking rapidly, with bridget translating:

“this is a problem even i deal with. even among zambian people; there's is a difference in way of life. when i see someone with not enough money for some food, and God has blessed me with more, i must share. this is what God requires of christians. if that person dies of hunger, and i feasted on much, i will have to account for that someday before God."

her words have echoed in my head all day. as a missionary, or maybe just as a human, there is a real tempataion to just turn away from need, to just give up on compassion. living in a world, a country, a city, where you know you can never do enough. thre will always be empty bellies and injustice. girls sold into prostitution and people suffering from HIV/AIDS. there is the temptation to do nothing, because you can't do everything. to isolate yourself and live in a bubble. compartmentalize your life—misinisty in one box, and the suffering of others in another, as if you could be a Christian without love.

kristen: family day

today was family day. we all worshipped together, and then had some time to just chill out. i spent the afternoon wandering around with my camera.
lots was going on around the seminary campus:



fequiere helped give elijah a haircut. elijah was a little bored, but didn't seem to mind.


the ladies spent some time just visiting in the cool evening weather.


madi gives her father bruce some flowers, and a kiss.


after every meal, each participant is responsible for washing their dishes. even madi (with a little help) knows how to clean up after herself.



we dry our dishes, too.