Somewhere I read that the missionaries of the olden days, would when they packed their stuff, often use their coffin as an extra suitcase. Now use in sending it over empty, is there. And then I would always shake my head with amazement at their commitment. Or you would read a book like Bruchko or Peace Child and you would be filled with appreciation on how much these people sacrificed to live in the bush like they did.
And when we speak of bush here, it is usually real wild places. Ask William Carey whos one son, Felix died or dysentry. This was the final straw, and his wife had a mental breakdown. Yes the wife of a missionary became crazy because of the stresses and strains of living somewhere in the bush.
My point being that we/I often romanticisize living in the bush serving God. Somehow we think these people are immune to malaria. They don’t get jiggers and there fingers or toes will never be lost because of these pests. They wont feel the heat, or get as tired as normal people when they walk 87km from there village to the road.
But, let me tell you from my own personal experience, living in the bush is not easy or fun. To be quite honest, often it is a great struggle. Now, not for a moment am I denying that God helps us and enables us. Not for one second am I saying that He drops you and wait for you to come and visit him in his airconditioned office. No, the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, sweats with you, shares in your stomach cramps when you getsome form of diarrhoea for the seveteenth time in 3 months. He experiences the shakes, chills and headache when you have malaria.
Yet, God’s presence in our lives and work is not somekind panacea that soothes away all that is difficult.
So what I am saying is this: To live in the bush is not easy. It is hard. It is dangerous. It is not comfortable.
So, please spare a thought for our students like Seheno, Martin, Glauco etc. who are now serving God in places that do not make the Top Ten Travel Destinations list. Seheno lives and works in Andolofotsy It is a smallish village without electricity. If it just pretends to rain the road is impassable. They do have cellphone reception, but this is an accident. A tower on a nearby hill just happens to reach parts of the town.
Seheno is a city girl. She was born in Tana and grew up here. But now she faithfully serves God in Andolofotsy.
Seheno at the pulpit
Recently I had the opportunity to visit Seheno. It was unplanned, and I “accidentally” realized that she is just around the corner when I went to Ampefy. I wish you could see her smile when I arrived there! She has been stationed in Andolofotsy for just over six months, and I was her first visitor. Her husband and two daughters were in Tana. The one girl fell and broke her leg, about three months ago. Dad took her to the doctor, only 200 kilometers from there, or about six hours by road.
What really struck me is how happy she was to see me. She smiled all the time, and repeatedly told me how glad she is that I came to visit here. I was, it turns out, her first and only visitor in the six months that she has bee working there.
She had the opportunity to tel me about all those little things. Like, the previous pastor, who is now retired, but still keeps on meddling and in so doing is busy to polarise the congregation.
Unfortunately, I could not solve this problem, but it just confirmed something in my heart.
For a long time now, I have had this desire in my heart to visit our students after they graduate. We have graduates all over the country. In nice places and in horrible places. Martin and Ando, for example are situated in Ankarongana. It is 90km from the nearest “real” town. However many of the Tsimihety people from that town have never visited Befandriana-North. This is like a 75 year old inhabitant of Pretoria who has never been to Johannesburg!
These students are often posted to very remote places without adequate medical services. Martin tell about children and adults who lose fingers and toes because of sand fleas!
Also spare a thought for the children of these Bush Pastors. Often the local schools are pathetic, to say the least. What can they do to help their children. Furthermore, these rural churches often do not take care of their pastor. The pastors often do not receive their salary for months on end. And if they do receive it, it is usually less than $20 a month! Lova’s wife Perle, does sewing work to supplement their income
Seheno and some of the parish kids
A few weeks ago I told Pastor Rodolphe, one of our teachers about my dream. He looked at me and said: “It seems that the Holy Spirit has been working”. We have been praying together, seeing that the Holy Spirit created the same desire in our hearts. We hope to embark on our first trip in July. We will be going to Ambovombe, in the south of Madagascar. (Here you can read about the famine in the Ambovombe region.)
Currently this whole area is experiencing a huge socia upheaval. A new mining development is taking place. The easy money attracts a lot of people to the mines. Read here about the situation and here about the resultant prostitution.
Currently there are three of our graduates working around Ambovombe.
Why do we want to travel some of the worst roads in the country, roads that leave the Camel Trophy Adventurers amazed, to go and see these people?
We would like to:
- Encourage them spiritually and emotionally
- To see the way they live? What is available locally? What do they need? What are the most common problems they face?
- How do they apply they knowledge they gained? Is our training sufficient? Should we adapt the course?
Rodolphe and I both realise that this will be a long and often difficult process of building relationships.
We want to invite you to participate in this program, by
- Praying for us
- but also remember that we will need moeny to travel, etc.
And by inviting you to put your money where my mouth is, I am saying that I belive that this program is sanctioned by God.
Please pray about joining us in this endeavour.
God bless
Jandre
Andolofotsy
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