Getting Around Congo

Igor: "Could be worse..."
Dr. Frankenstein: "How?"
Igor: "Could be raining."

That's what I felt when our Land Cruiser sunk into 3 feet of mud while trying to pass a huge truck stuff in 5 feet of mud. Of course, within minutes it started raining.

We were on our way to the border. We'd cross the river border in huge dugout canoes in order to catch the once a week flight from Bangui, Central African Republic to Paris. When the engine died, I started to worry, the truck has a bad starter. Hmm, if we miss this flight we're stuck for another week - I'll run out of malaria pills - I'll have to eat more foukou and pondou - my clothes will really begin to stink.

Our driver went off looking for some gasoline in order to prime the starter (I don't understand this - the truck is a diesel). The driver of another huge truck waiting to get through found a tow cable and, in exchange for a pair of nice work gloves, agreed to yank us out.

In the end we were only stuck about an hour & a half. Then we shot down the "road" for the next 7 hours or so, trying hard to endure similar "potholes" (some seemed like moon craters), in order to cross the river before the border workers went home for the day.

We're smiling because the sun came out
and we're crossing to Bangui - one more step toward home.

The Humble Manioc Plant

The Manioc (also know as Cassava) plant is a food staple in Congo. It is easy to grow, tolerates the tropics, and flourishes despite poor soil.


The plant takes about 6 months to mature before the long, tuberous root is harvested and processed to produce a kind of flour. Along the way some of the leaves are taken and boiled to make something that looks kind of like spinach. After harvest the leftover stalk is cut into pieces and stuck back in the ground where it takes root and starts the process all over again.


The popular bitter variety, more tolerate of pests, contains cyanide, so the starchy root needs to be peeled, boiled, left to slightly ferment (which neutralizes the poison, but leaves a sour taste), dried, and pounded into a flour. Around here in Congo, people like Fou-Kou, in which the flour is boiled into a super thick glob, which ends up looking a lot like Polenta, but the taste is more sour. It must really be loved because people cut off a huge piece, about the size of a softball, out of the pot in which it is cooked and served, and eat it with a fork or their hands.

Since the Manioc is primary starch it has very little protein and is poor in nutrients, yet remains a staple of the Congo diet. In other parts of the world the root is made into tapioca.

Living in the Congo

Since there is no electricity, there is no refrigeration - so shopping for food must be done almost every day.

We visited the Gemena market one afternoon. What an experience! It was pandemonium! (Check out some of my photos by clicking on one of the Picasa photos on the right of the screen.) Crowded, noisy, hot, yet not rude like I've experienced in some tourist markets. In fact, even though the several of us were the only "anglos", I felt very safe. A good portion of the merchants in the markets are local church members. And since we are so welcomed in this region anyone "messing" with us would probably get into a lot of trouble.

There's not a lot of variety. Some items are strange, like live caterpillars. Other items raise questions, like fresh meat sitting out on an open table all day. Other things are familiar, the fresh pinneapples, bananas, locally grown coffee, and the ever present manioc. I'll write more about that item later.

African Orphans

Orphans have it rough in Africa. There are no social systems to care for their needs so relatives try to accommodate them in their usually overburdened homes. As a result, since school is not free, few of them have opportunity for education, vocational training, making an income, or even buying basic necessities.

A ReachGlobal project called GlobalFingerprints has been set up to help the most needy. It's a sponsorship program to help orphans get into a local school, have needed supplies, clothes, food, etc. It's not a residential orphanage, but an assistance program. It's unique in that it is run by local churches, so followup is natural and indigenous.

One of the pastor's on my trip made a special visit to "his" orphan today. What a joyful encounter!! He left her with a new flashlight (very handy in an area that has no electricity), a toothbrush, some school supplies, a packet of tuna (I'm not really sure what's behind that), and pictures of his family. Isn't that great?!!

Congo - July 2009 - Getting There

When the U.S. State Dept. recommended that groups of Americans avoid traveling through Kinshasa, the capital and primary city of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), getting to the Ubangi, the Northwest region of the Congo where we minister, became much more complicated.

The trip from Chicago to Gemena, one of the main cities of the Ubangi, took 4 full days. First, an overnight trip to Europe. Then a long layover before another 6 hour flight south, across the Mediterranean, the Sahara, and the northern tropical rain forest into Bangui, capital of the Central African Republic (CAR). Then, the next morning an early crossing of the river border between CAR and the DRC in large dugout canoes.

(Click for larger image)

Finally, a rugged 12 hour journey in trucks into the interior of the DRC. Every few miles we ran into a spot that felt like a real road (even if unpaved), but the bulk of the journey was brutal. We only had one flat tire. Fortunately, the spare was sound so changing it only took about a half hour.


Now we're here, safe & sound. Now we're ready to embrace the discoveries and new friendships a trip like this will provide!

A New Role

For the past several months I have been serving ReachGlobal as a volunteer.

After a week of interviews, assessments, and tests, this evening (Thurs. Dec. 4) I received word that my status has changed from volunteer to full time ReachGlobal staff. Now I will be part of the Connect staff, serving as African Advocate.

I look forward to helping churches and individuals discover opportunities for very significant ministry via partnerships in Africa.

How can I help you?

Ingenuity

I wonder if ingenuity is intrinsic? Certainly the urge to be creative is a reflection of the image of God implicit in His creation of mankind. He made us like Himself. He made us to be creative.

In a world without ToysRUs children need to be creative. In the Congo I found the kids in these pictures employing their God given creativity and ingenuity.


What do you do if you don't have a soccer ball? These boys tapped a native rubber tree and used the natural latex sap to fashion their own ball. It may not be colorful, and it may not be perfectly round, but it works!


And this boy made his own "Tonka truck" out of scrap wood!

When it comes to helping people out of poverty, one of the critical tasks is to encourage them to access their own ingenuity and creativity. When people are able to discover solutions to their needs & desires in new ways the changes are deep and lasting.

Part of our solution for the enormous needs across Africa is to cultivate a climate of creative ingenuity. Helping people realize that they were made in the image of God is a critical first step in breaking the cycle of poverty strangling many on the African continent.

Dear friends. . .

It's the people that make the difference. Long after the rigors of travel are forgotten, the friendships will endure.

Pastor Deolo Tonga

For me a life-long friendship was forged with Pastor Deolo Tonga. He served as my translator for each of my teaching sessions and when I preached. But it's not his language ability that impressed me (he knows 6!), it is his spiritual life and dedication.

Besides pastoring, Deolo is director of the HIV/AIDS project run by C.E.C.U. (the Evangelical Free Church of Congo). He directs over 900 volunteers, as well as helping AIDS orphans and widows. It was personal tragedy that brought him to this position. As a young man he lost his father, his 4 (!) mothers, and 6 siblings to AIDS. He had to take over care for younger brothers and sisters when they were run out of their home village as "cursed" with this strange illness. After surviving for several months in the jungle they came to a pastor's home. This wise pastor took the splintered family in, and not only led them to Christ, but instilled into Deolo a love for God's work. (see www.globalfingerprints.org for more info on the incredible orphan ministry taking place in the Ubangi).

When Pastor Deolo has a few spare days he rides his motorcycle to evangelize among the Pygmies. I had a opportunity to meet one of the Pygmy converts training for pastoral ministry in the city of Gemena.

Stu & Deolo preaching

I thank God for he incredible dedication of brothers like Deolo!

What was this trip all about?

I was actually participating in 2 separate back-to-back trips. The first part was, for me, a training endeavor. There were 3 of us, a physician from Lincoln, Nebraska who was working with the Congolese doctors at Tandala hospital (more on this in a later post), a theologian / missiologists, Dr. Ben Sawatsky, from Minneapolis who taught about the person and ministry of the Holy Spirit in several Bible schools, and my role of teaching pastors. I traveled to outlying villages where pastors and church leaders would gather from surrounding areas. One pastor said he’d spent 2 days traveling by bicycle to get to my seminar, wow – that’s humbling!

Sometimes the host church was very humble: thatched roof, mud brick walls, dirt floor, logs for benches.

Regardless of the setting, the participants were extremely responsive to how the context of Scripture informs the meaning of Scripture. In several instances a number of laymen and women attended. I found it extremely sad that few of these owned Bibles.

The second part of the trip concerned a pioneering project to help widows, orphans, and the disabled. The Elikya (“hope”) center is a wholistic approach to helping these needy people learn life skills, encourage independence, and care for their spiritual needs. Our team of 6 Americans met with about 20 Congolese leaders in long-range planning. This was a first for the Africans. We interviewed typical program participants to anticipate needs the center might meet, then worked out a 3-year plan to address them. This is going to be an exciting time!

What happened to this blog?

Sometimes good intentions are interrupted by technical problems. The satellite Internet system at the Congo Free Church headquarters in Gemena has been offline for 3 weeks due to a little router that eventually died by overheating. Since there is no Best Buy for thousands of miles we had to arrange for a pastor in Kinshasa to locate one then wait for the twice a week plane to bring it up to the city of Gemena.

So my intention to update this blog daily with news, photos, etc. hasn’t come together as I’d hoped. Now it’s almost time to return to the U.S. so maybe I get around to reviewing my trip when I’m recovering from jetlag.

Please keep in touch!

In Congo #1

4 Guys – How many bags???

20?!!

I was carrying an ultrasound machine for Tandala hospital. It will be their first, and they are really anxious for it, though we don’t yet know where the power will come from.

The crate, which also included a couple of soccer balls (mostly deflated), dehydrated food, and other supplies. At the Air France counter at O’Hare I mentioned to the agent that the crate was overweight. He looked at the scale and agreed, this one is overweight. Then he saw my suitcase and asked, “how much does that weigh?” “It’s underweight.” “Well,” the agent said, “we’ll add the 2 together and then your make the weight limit!” What a blessing!

The huge cardboard crates contain musical instruments donated by a church in Wilmer, Minnesota for use in some of the churches in the region.

With me on this trip is a medical doctor, Dr. Scott McPherson, from Lincoln Nebraska, Dr. Ben Sawatsky, a theologian and former missions leader, and Dr. Tom Cairns, a missionary physician. Together we brought books, other medical equipment, and the musical instruments. It’s a joy to bring needed items to people with such needs!

Water.

Since there is no power here, there is no running water. Ladies walk about ½ mile to a spring and fill up jugs with about 65lbs of water then carry it back on their heads.

Also, children, like this little girl, bring their own chairs to school!

Where in the Congo?

Formerly Zaire, the Democratic Republic of Congo is a large country straddling the equator.


It is about the size of the U.S. east of the Mississippi and is predominantly low-lying rain forest.
The particular region we work in is in the northwest section of the country known as the Ubangi.

The Evangelical Free Church has been very active in the region and now, the Evangelical Free Church of the Congo has over 900 churches in an area about the size of Indiana. Their ministry efforts include a hospital, seminary and Bible institutes, and planning is underway for the Elikya Center. "Elikya" means "hope" in the local Lingala language and the Elikya Center will be a place of hope and learning for the multitudes of AIDS widows, orphans, the disabled, and unwed mothers.

Welcome

Welcome to my Blog!

Because I travel a bit and sometimes can't keep up with other types of communication I decided this might be a great way to keep-in-touch.

Please feel free to post comments, ideas, and suggestions!