Going to Church in Botswana

As my professor put it, “ I have never been so entertained in church before.” We were blessed to see a youth service where the youth of the church ran the entire service. Two students even gave sermons! It was amazing to be apart of a community praising the Lord and teaching the truth of the gospel in a non-threatening way. The choir sang with the power of the Holy Spirit, there were dancers praising God with the gift God had given them, there was a testimony given as the “dj” broke out with a beat as we rose to our feet to welcome the person going up to the stage. The church was packed and Gods glory was shinning through

1st Botswana Church

            Then we went to see where David Livingston, who was a missionary in Botswana who introduced Christianity to the people. So we journeyed to see where he use to meet with people under the a huge tree and share the word with them, teach them to read and write, and would help them with their health (since he was also a doctor.) Then we went to where he planted his first church and where the first chief was baptized!

            This chief came to know Christ and was baptized but, people saw this as a betrayal to their culture. He was also the rainmaker and so when the rains didn’t come they became even hostile towards him becoming a Christian. He ended up coming back to his traditional ways because of the pressure he felt. When people who are native to Botswana talked about David Livingston they were not frustrated that he brought Christianity but they seemed irritated that he came with Christianity and tried to change the culture. Dr. Jotia (the professor taking us around.) He said that he feels closest to God when he can worship Him (God)  in his own language and in his own way. 

Botswana Day #3 Cave Paintings and three little children!

Today was another amazing adventure in Botswana. We woke up and went to see cave paintings that were drawn over 2000 years ago. They were drawn by the magic men who would give thanks to the gods for the animals that they had received to eat for the day. In the middle of our tour we were joined by some of the natives and by the end of the trip we were all taking pictures together and enjoying each other’s company.
After this we stopped by a huge tree with historical significance (see below) and I saw three kids standing outside their home. What did I do? I ran after them! I was so excited to chase them as they run screaming. Then I said dumela (hello) to the mother and the baby on her lap started crying. Finally, I felt like I was back in Sierra Leone!

Botswana Day #2: Seeing Botswana and the African Safari

We arrived in Botswana after 24 hours of traveling! By the time we got in it was already dark but by the looks of it, it seems similar to America, we will see tomorrow. We are living at the University of Botswana in a family style dorm with 6 bedrooms and a common living room. The next day we woke up and went on an a two hour African Safari. We went to the same place the our past presidents have been on and we ran into someone in the secret security (graduate of UCF) who was planning a trip for Michelle Obama who will be traveling to Botswana in the next 10 days. During the safari we saw wildebeests, giraffes, pumas, impalas and more… it was awesome!

I noticed that I don’t find a difference between America and here. I see certain parts of the culture that are similar to Sierra Leone, like statues, time, some clothing, some common phrases. But almost everything else is Americanized. How can the same continent be so different. Botswana is still considered a developing country but things seem to be going very well. After the Safari we went to the mall (which looked better then most of the malls near us), we walk into stores with air conditioning, there are cars high class cars everywhere, and I could shop for any and everything I could ever need in America but more cheap.

Day#2 and Im Already in Trouble

It’s amazing when you see the faith of a younger generation professing their faith and shining the light of Jesus to others! I was honored to witness this first hand with a group of girls (ages 12-17.) I sat outside as they passed me and said, “we’re going to go evangelize, want to come?” I jumped at the opportunity and followed as we walked 30 minutes to a small village through the forest. The girls decided that they would surprise a family there by making dinner for them so as soon as they reached the village they worked together to cook a meal for the family. Then they walked around the village to talk with people and invite them to join us in bible study. Everyone piled on benches in the middle of the village. I had to hide because there was a baby who would cry every time he saw my face (think about how scared you would be seeing a person who was a different color then you had ever seen.) Then the girls led worship, and gave a sermon, had a memory verse, and in the end prayed over all of the people. Praise God for these women of faith and their devotion to the Lord. They do this every Wednesday. They go into villages, make relationships, and share the gospel BOLDLY! …we went “flow flow” (fast) home because it was getting dark…and I arrived home like a child who knew she had done something that probably disappointed her parents. Uncle Magnus (who was in charge of our team) was waiting for me. Lets just say I was on strict orders for the rest of the trip to tell him if I went anywhere! J

Living in a Village

We journey to Sinhuan Sunday morning so that we could make it to church before settling into where we would be staying for the next two nights. We enjoyed worship in English and Mende (their native language) and a sermon by Father Abraham who planted the church and is also a teacher at the school. Father Abraham praised God because he has 9 children and his oldest in currently in University. For a man living in a village to have a child in university is a testimony to how God can provide miracles! After church we walked with Father Abraham to where we would be staying. They put us up in the chiefs house and so unlike many other huts with dirt floors we had a cement ground! Then showed us the bathrooms in the back of many of the huts. One was covered with palm trees and rocks at the bottom to do your business (this is also where you bath) and the other (for #2) was also covered with palm trees and a cylinder block you could sit on! After getting settled in we walked with the children to see the women making palm oil..and after helping them for 10 minutes I was exhausted and yet these women were at least 50 years of age who had been doing this for hours already! Then it began to pour and we ran to father Abrahams porch where we sat together eating mangos until the rain cleared!

            Once the women returned Courtney and I helped prepare dinner. We did not know the language very well so she would show us how to do certain things and we would mimic her. As we cooked they played music and the children, moms, and dads began dancing (MTV style) and would laugh and Courtney and I when we would try to dance with them.

            As night fell it was pitch black. We began to get out head lamps out as the children crowded around our home. Then Uncle Ben (another teacher from the school) brought out a lamp, as other brought instruments, and chairs, and then the worship party began. We danced until 11pm at night! To watch them dance is truly remarkable because, you can see the joy in their eyes as they dance, it was amazing.

            No matter how late I go to bed I always wake up early and this was no different. People begin waking up at 6am fetching water and preparing for work for the day. Children must do their chores before they leave for school so I watched as children swept and walked up and down the hill fetching water. The morning were my favorite times because I felt apart of their culture! I said BAE (how did you sleep) as people walked past and they would respond Cyangoma (praise God) and we would shake hands to greet one another. Once everyone was ready we walked through the swamp, across the forest, and in a village together to get to school!

            The next night was another night of dancing, singing, and praise to the Lord! This village holds a special place in my heart because of people like Father Abraham and Uncle Ben who have been faithful to the Lord and have brought hope into their village by shining the light of Jesus!