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| Christy and I at the FATEB Kinshasa Academy in Congo |
Let us not grow weary….
I cried this morning as I
watched a recent video link of soldiers randomly shooting at civilians in the province
of Kasai in the DRCongo. This just happened days ago, in February 2017. Tears came to me out of disgust, a feeling of
hopelessness, anger and frustration. (See link below)
Disgust -
at the cruelty of man and his ugly thirst for power, domination and taking
advantage of the vulnerable.
Congo has lost 5.4 million
citizens due to the effects of wars and conflicts since 1998. Enough!
Feeling of hopelessness - because when you have lived with and love the
beautiful, courageous people of Congo who are trying to change, and not just
look for the “quick fixes”, but because poverty, war and corruption place them
in a vicious cycle from which it is very hard to escape, one feels hopeless at times….
(but I never remain hopeless) .
Anger
- because it is the vulnerable who suffer the most. Congo has a population of 80 million. Its
median age is 17 yrs. 71% of its
population lives under the poverty level. 60% of the population lives on $1.25/day.
There are 13 million primary age children, but only 50% of those are able to
start school at age 6. War and mindless killings
have caused so many barriers to education. Poverty, conflict &
displacement, sexual violence and the high cost of education have produced an
enormous need for schools, teachers and pedagogical input and training. The
children are being held back… these children are the future and hope of Congo.
Frustration - for me today because organizations like TeachBeyond and many others
are trying to make a difference in the educational realm in Congo, but are
faced with one hurdle after another. Frustrating logistical issues such as
getting the right documents in place, high costs, and procuring a visa to get
into the country are keeping us from going.
A friend of mine and
former missionary to the Congo encouraged me with these words last week:
“The verse that God
gave me this morning was "Have I not commanded you? [in your case, to
start this work in Kinshasa] Be strong and courageous. Do not be
frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever
you go." Joshua 1:9. What you are experiencing are the
"normal" challenges of work in Congo. They are enough to make
anyone doubt whether it is possible to move forward. It takes great
courage to keep moving forward. God will provide all that you need to
accomplish His purposes through that school and through you.”
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| Our team of teacher at FKA |
My colleague Christy and I are
still hoping that on Tuesday we will be able to fly to Congo and continue the
work of teacher-training and encouragement at the FATEB Kinshasa Academy.
Christy is still waiting for her visa. It is stuck at the Congolese embassy in
Washington DC. ( Please pray we get it by Saturday!)
The impact this
little school is already having on the lives of the children, parents and other
schools in its local proximity has already made our “woes and battles” worth
it. We know who wins the battle in the
end, but in the meantime pray that:
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| Teacher training taking place at a neighboring school |
“let us not become weary of doing good, for at the proper time we will
reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us
do good to all people.... (Gal 6: 8,9)”
(
Link to the video I watched (this video is disturbing):
