Greetings from Tonj!
Wow, a lot has been happeing
this month and it's not over yet!
The month started out with
the graduation of 12 South Sudanese pastors who completed their 3 year pastor's training
course here at In Deed and Truth Ministries. It was quite the celebration! For
those who think graduations are long in the U.S, this one - for 12 students -
last over 4 hours! It was a truly celebratory occasion. We had such a great
time.
I even sang in the praise band (those at Asbury UMC, don't tell Andy, ha).
Following the graduation, I
traveled with my teammates from Uganda to the village of Dhiakuei, in Lake
State. My teammate Adhanom had helped to arrange a Simply the Story (STS) training for the pastors of
that area, so Billy Coppedge, Scott Rambo, and CT (look for them in my previous
post), and I traveled there to meet up with Adhanom and facilitate the
training.
We were expecting 30 pastors
originally and 70 showed up! Had to do a little recalculating, but what a
blessing to see so many who were eager to impact their congregations and
communities with the word of God! This training helped the pastors learn to
tell the stories of the bible without having to read them directly. They also
learned a series of steps to help the participants really learn the story well,
and lead them to discover the truths of the Bible for themselves through asking
questions.
 |
| Here I was teaching a session on asking questions to apply the biblical truths to our lives today, with Bishop Isaac translating for me. |
When we broke off into small
groups I was a little discouraged at first, feeling like I was not able to
communicate well, and that people just weren't getting the concepts. But, the
Spirit prompted me to say a prayer, and within a matter of minutes it was as if
everything suddenly clicked and the whole group was really understanding the
process. It was so tremendous to see that happen right before my eyes, and more
than once! Will you say a prayer for these pastors as they practice using this
method of teaching the scripture?
 |
| Here, one small group sent "missionaries" to another group to practice telling the story they learned and working through the questions. They did an excellent job! |
My time in Dhiakuei was not
without adventures, let me assure you. I stayed the week in a hut, while the
guys graciously took the tents. We bathed from a basin behind a wall of a
broken down building. And then, there was the pit latrine. Now, using a latrine
was nothing new for me. Squattie potties aren't really an issue. But it was
definitely a new experience when 2 bats flew out of the latrine the first night
I was there. I think I would have had a heart attack had I not been in shock,
haha. But that wasn't the last I saw of those bats. Every night, when I would
go to bed and tuck in my mosquito net, bats would come into the hut where I was
sleeping and fly around all night! I think I have a much greater understanding
of Batman now.
On Oct 27th, the 3rd CHE Training of
Trainers began! This is the next step in the CHE process for our trainers and they will
begin to form committees in their CHE communities after this training is
completed. This is when things really kick into gear and the program really
starts to get moving for the local communities, so this is exciting stuff.
As these trainers prepare
for the next steps, will you commit to praying for these teams of trainers?
There is a general profile for the teams, as well as specific profiles for each
individual team. I would love to be able to cover them each in prayer. If you,
or your church or Bible study group would like to commit to praying for one of
these CHE teams, please write to me at whitney.smith@wgm.org
I'll be happy to send you the profile and more info about the CHE program!
This training will last
until Nov 1, which also happens to be the first day of the Cataract Clinic for 2012! Do you
remember the previous clinics from my newsletter? Let's cover this clinic with
prayer - for the team traveling from Kenya, for those receiving the surgery,
and for the staff here at In Deed and Truth who will be assisting. It's a
powerful way to impact lives spiritually and physically. You can donate to the
Cataract Clinic at wgm.org/sight4sudan to provide sight-restoring
surgery to someone in need!
Check back soon for more
stories of village visits, the cost of cabbage, and some of the craziest
dancing I've ever seen!
