Pastorial Training in Mocuba

We've been off-line a bit now mainly because of our crazy schedule. We have had the pleasure of having a team here but it limits what we normally do greatly and so we have to let quite a few things go until after, which includes writing in our blog. The time with the team went very well, which is a testimony to the wonderful job Ann does in the background making all the various arrangements, which were substantial in this case. Juka also did a wonderful job setting things up in Mocuba. A great joint-effort.

This most recent team spent a week in Mocuba doing pastorial training using a book written by an academic who took a sabatical in the middle east visiting sheep-herders and then wrote a book about it to help pastors better understand their roll as the leader (shepherd) of their church (flock). The team used the pictures as story-points to explain biblical references to sheep, shepherding, and the pastorial (sheep-herding) lifestyle and then provide practical application to the pastors and trainers in our northern churches. The team bought a stock of these books (in English) as they are not yet translated into Portuguese so that the seminar attendees could have the pictures, which are beautiful. This is an effective training method in an oral culture and is why our Chronological Bible Story Telling program also works so well, which also starts with pictures that are used to help tell-the-story.

In this photo, you see the attendees with their books. There was quite a discussion at the time of the photo as to which book should be emphasized in the photo - the new English book (that they can't read!) or the Bible. This is an interesting thing to ponder in this country where few even have books and few in rural areas even have Bibles. The team kept saying "show your Bibles not the shepherd book" but we got the shepherd book! The team included experienced Bible trainers who kept emphasizing that this was simply a training tool and the Bible was the real book, but there was a pre-occupation with receiving such a nice book. This is the second time we've seen this since we've been here where a program was brought and there was some confusion between the program itself and the Bible. I don't mean this in a negative way as the programs were great but I think it is a warning for all of us who serve in places where there are few Bibles and little Biblical knowledge. We have to get Bibles into the hands of the people and then teach them what this Book says. It is the living word of God and it transforms lives. And when our training is done, there should be no question which book is the Word of God. Something for us to ponder no matter where we teach.

We have received much positive feedback from the people who went to the training over the past few days and they were very excited that the team came and spend a week teaching them, fellowshipping with them, eating with them, and getting to know them. It always comes down to relationships. We praise God for the dedication of these men who answered God's call to teach church planter-pastors in rural Mozambique.

It was a great blessing.

Dave

"Peter replied, "Master, to whom would we go? You have the words of real life, eternal life." John 6:68