Today's pic is different than usual. It is a picture of Josh handing a stack of kwacha to a maize grower. We get pics like this as a part of our effort to maintain some level of control of the funds as they flow throughout the country. Josh is our lone representative in a northern part of Zambia called Solwezi. He is a grower trainer, as well as being a farmer himself. So, yes!! The harvest is actually underway to the point of buying some maize. It's a little earlier in Solwezi because their climate is a bit different than the eastern part of the country where most of our growers live.
For the challenge today, I want to go back to the very beginning of those two chapters Paul used to explain his "collection for the saints" ministry. This was his first century S2S program, under which he collected funds during the entirety of his missionary journeys to assist people back in Judea who were living in deficit because of a regional drought. Here is how he starts those two chapters:
2 Corinthians 8:1-4
Now, friends, I want to report on the surprising and generous ways in which God is working in the churches in Macedonia province. Fierce troubles came down on the people of those churches, pushing them to the very limit. The trial exposed their true colors: They were incredibly happy, though desperately poor. The pressure triggered something totally unexpected: an outpouring of pure and generous gifts. I was there and saw it for myself. They gave offerings of whatever they could - far more than they could afford! - pleading for the privilege of helping out in the relief of poor Christians.
Now, if you study a little geography and the rest of the New Testament, you will learn these people in the Macedonia province were actually from Phillipi. Paul traveled through there; maybe saw the difficulty they were having and was sort of hesitant to do his typical fundraising for the starving church back in Judea. But they BEGGED him to allow them to participate!! It seems Paul starts his two-chapter emphasis on generosity towards the poor with this story as a sort of a prod to the wealthier congregation in Corinth to get in the game!
Let me try a little of that here...
This week we received our FIRST ever donation from outside America. And it came from a source that was totally unexpected. In February of 2000, I went on my first ever "mission trip" - to the Philippines. I was part of a group that was expecting to help put up a church (no, I don't think I actually swung a hammer - mostly shoveled rock and moved a wheelbarrow to put in a concrete floor!) and play some basketball (yes, I was a giant in the Philippines). I can say I "saw it for myself" - the people I met there were not very wealthy but were very happy. Our newest board member is living in the Philippines, and he has been talking about our efforts in Zambia with several local churches there, and they wanted to help!!!
They collected $2,100. I don't know how many churches. I don't know how many individuals. But it feels like one of the most generous gifts we have ever received for our beloved Zambian brothers and sisters.
Let me jump down to verse 8:
I'm not trying to order you around against your will. But by bringing in the Macedonians' enthusiasm as a stimulus to your love, I am hoping to bring the best out of you.
I feel just like that every Sunday morning when I type up a blog post. Together those of us with a little bit (or a lot) of surplus can make such a huge difference in the lives of our brothers and sisters who are struggling to feed their families in Zambia.
The team in Zambia is going to be VERY busy for the next several weeks. Please keep them in your prayers as they work to accumulate the maize in the right spots so that we can then use it to feed our brothers and sisters for the next twelve months. Thanks!
