As Told by Nancy Dahdouh

Let me just start by premising that Zambia must have some of the most humble and kind hearted people on this Earth.  I have never met such warmhearted men, women, and children – of all ages.  I really don’t know exactly how to put all of this into words, but I will try my best to capture for you just how the Lord is working through the missionaries and people here in Zambia. 

The group hit the ground running from the first day, reaching out and preaching to Zambians in the busy market place.  However, the second and third days were such a blessing!  We visited church members and non-members in their private homes to share the Word of God and show them His love, and honestly, I was blown away by their respect and kindness for strangers – and not just any strangers, but foreigners (FROM AMERICA!!)  Women and children are quick to grab small tree trucks that they use as chairs as soon as arrive and offer us food if they’re eating.  I think the most amazing thing is that they do not reject us!!! In the Western world, if someone comes on your property and rings your doorbell for anything, we get so defensive and may even rudely reject them, but here, that’s nearly impossible. 

People are truly thirsty for the word of God and praise Him; they praise the Lord with all their hearts and in their loudest voice!  I was so overwhelmed when I walked into the church in Munguli, which is about 2 hours from Kenyama (where we are staying).  We could hear the congregation singing and clapping in the church from down the road.  They had been waiting for us to arrive for one or two hours and all they were doing was praising the Lord and singing!  I cried as soon as I walked in… all the children were in the front and the men and women behind them.  It was so lovely. I’ve never seen or heard praising with such fervor in any church before.  These are people who live in huts… hours away from the city, who have taken nothing from this world and they are so thankful to the Lord!  We honestly have learned so much here and I believe the people here are serving us more than we are serving them!

I have so many stories to share already and it has only been three days!  One man who really touched my heart was in Munguli.  Abouna Abraham and I went to share God’s word with Him and I shared the story of the sower (Luke 13:6-9) with one particular elderly man.  He said to me, “That was so beautiful, I have never heard a story like that. The Lord truly is great.  Praise Him!” Then he asked where the church was and said he will start to come to hear more stories like this!  I was so touched, praise God!  I thought to myself, how many of these people attend the church and love the Lord so much, without even knowing that much about the Lord or about what He has done?  It made me realize that faith and love in the Lord does not come from memorizing His words or knowing every story in the Bible. It comes from praising Him, glorifying His most holy name and thanking Him for every condition and in every condition.  These people have nothing, yet they have everything!  God bless them and may He grant us His grace to be just as thankful, kind, and loving as the people here in Zambia.

As Told by Salwa Salib

Good morning, “mwauka Buanji,” this is in Nyanja (Zambian language).

What a unique opportunity it is to be among the Zambians. I felt lifted up when I prayed together with them.  Yesterday, we visited St. George’s church in “the Bush” (Munguli). The people had already gathered and unfortunately, we made them wait, but the amazing thing is that they were getting themselves prepared for our meeting by cheerful singing and clapping.  We were even able to hear them from a distance.  Most of them came from a long distance walking through rough land.  What an awesome fellowship when we are with other members of the Body of Christ!  It only shows the greatness of our heavenly Father.  Also, medical mission was part of the service in this lovely church.  We were able to examine the need of many patients, ladies, children and men.  It touched me to see how thankful the men at the end were despite the fact, that we could not give them enough attention as we did with the ladies and children due to lack of time.

The church members meet once a month for Liturgy, but they have weekly visitations by the servants and Father Mark, the Zambian priest, is originally from this area.  We met his mother and his oldest sister, who all members of the church. 

Filed under: Africa Winter 07