Angola Mission Team

Seedtime & Harvest – February 2012 – Click this link to download the full pdf version of the newsletter

Seedtime and Harvest – February 2012

An Anecdote of Our Journey Through the Province of Uige with a Delegation of Angolan Church Leaders

Prologue:

In September, Danny, Nathan, and I spent 10 days traveling throughout one of Angola’s provinces with a handful of Angolan church leaders to visit 14 church congregations. We learned an immense amount about Angolan culture, about the origins of this church movement, and about our traveling companions. This account describes our journey in some detail, with the intention of sharing a bit of Angolan culture and opening a window to the life of an Angolan missionary.

Day One: The Journey Begins

We set forth from Luanda a few hours after our scheduled departure time. First, we met at the home of Pastor André Banda, the president of I.C.A. (Igreja de Cristo em Angola), where we awaited the arrival of the other delegates and subsequently took our breakfast. We had been told to expect nine traveling companions, but for this leg of our journey we traveled with three: Banda, Papa N’Dambulula (National Director of Protocol), and Papa Luavo (recently appointed National Director of Social Assistance). The other delegates would join us at different points in our journey through Uige.

Danny and I rode in his rugged Land Cruiser with Papa Luavo while Nathan chauffeured Banda and Papa N’Dambulula in the comfort of his Toyota Prado. The journey to Uige (the capital of Uige Province) lasted about 7 hours. Danny and I enjoyed getting to know our traveling companion, Papa Luavo, who was born in Uige and worked in the province during the war with the Angolan Ministry of Agriculture. As we passed various landmarks he explained their significance during the war and narrated personal accounts of many events. Immigration officials stopped us at the provincial border in order to record our passports. The Angolan Immigration Department began this practice during the civil war as a way to track the movement of suspect foreigners throughout the country. In many Angolan provinces, it is still a common practice. As Uige lies on the border with the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the officials are sterner, with a stronger mandate from the government.

Arriving in Uige, we proceeded directly to the church. The ICA youth band of flutists and drummers had arrived a day ahead of us and were warming up for their evening performance. The local minister, Pastor André Landu, and a handful of other church leaders received us in the church office. Darkness was falling, so we unloaded the generator to provide light for our discussion and the dinner they had prepared for us. While we waited for someone to fetch more fuel for the generator we visited for a few minutes to review the itinerary for the trip. Then Banda dismissed the delegates while he remained to discuss the state of the church in Uige with the local leaders.

The band warms up for their parade

During this time, I went for a walk through the neighborhood. The young flutists and drummers were now parading through the streets, playing a lively march with a mob of dozens of children following them, laughing and dancing. The procession made a large loop and returned to the church after about 30 minutes. Then the children gradually dispersed and the musicians retired to their lodging for the evening. Nathan, Danny and I visited with the band directors and others while we waited for Banda to conclude. After Banda finished, dinner was prepared for the delegation. Together we shared our first of many meals that included “funge,” the Angolan staple made from ground cassava that is reconstituted into a doughy paste and is often accompanied by some kind of meat in a sauce (chicken, fish, goat, pork, or beef) or a leafy vegetable sauce. Once we had eaten our fill, we were escorted to our accommodation for the evening.

A church member had arranged three rooms for us at an inn near the church. Danny, Nathan, Papa Luavo, and I stood outside the first room and divided our group into pairs – one Angolan with one American. I bunked with Papa Luavo, Danny with Papa N’Dambulula, and Nathan with Banda. The rooms each had a double bed, a television, and a wall that was three-quarters the length of the room and open at the end. This wall provided privacy for the toilet and a drain in the floor over which we could bathe using water from a large trash can in the corner. Upon entering, Papa Luavo offered me the bed and volunteered to sleep on the floor. I responded, saying that I would only need one half of the bed and that he was welcome to use the other half. He smiled, asked if I was certain I didn’t want the whole bed, and then spread out his blankets next to my sleeping bag. We were tired from our travels. Papa Luavo bathed behind the privacy wall while I sat on the bed and read some from David Maranz’s African Friends and Money Matters, a well-timed selection that provided fodder for my conversation with our fellow travelers throughout the trip. I fell asleep quickly.

My bunk mate, Papá Luavo

Day Two: The Lord’s Day

We woke with the sunrise. I bathed, dressed, and disappeared to read a bit in Danny’s truck while Papa Luavo carried about his morning routine. When I returned, Papa Luavo observed that I had not ironed my shirt or trousers and insisted that I let him iron them for me. After some resistance, I complied. I later learned that he had walked back to the church to find someone who would lend him an iron. A well-pressed outfit is an important part of one’s Sunday morning attire. While he ironed our clothes, he informed me that he had requested a new room. Shortly after I had redressed, we left for the church. A typical Angolan breakfast was prepared for us in the church office – bread, avocado, boiled cassava, and peanuts, served with tea and weak coffee. Breakfast quickly became our favorite meal of the day. Nathan began spreading peanuts on his bread like a peanut butter sandwich. Danny enjoyed the boiled cassava and I was thankful for coffee.

Worship would begin shortly and Papa N’Dambulula led each of us to our seats (his responsibility as Director of Protocol). The delegation sat on stage facing the congregation. Banda sat center-stage where the pastor customarily sits. The other pastors sat on either side of Banda. Papa N’Dambulula, Papa Luavo, and the missionaries filled in the outer ranks. The service was lively. After some congregational singing and the performances of several choral groups, Banda addressed the audience concerning the purpose of our visit. He gave the missionaries an opportunity to say a few words. We each spoke briefly, expressing our excitement about our partnership with ICA and introducing our own purpose for moving our families to Angola. (In future presentations we decided to take turns speaking in order to abbreviate our comments.) Then the local minister, Pastor Landu, shared his own enthusiasm with the congregation and presented us with a letter that he had someone translate into English for the occasion. Landu then introduced the morning’s preacher – Banda again – and we listened to the first iteration of many of his sermon on Nehemiah 1. Banda had four points: The church needs love, courage, prayer, and unity. The sermon and subsequent announcements were all translated from Portuguese to Kikongo (the local language) and many of the songs were Kikongo hymns. After service, we filed out and the delegation stood at the door and shook hands with all the attendees as they exited, in procession, singing the closing song. More than 200 men, women, and children had been present.

The communion service followed the regular worship service. ICA leaders give the upmost significance and reverence to the Lord’s Supper and each observance is accompanied by a second, shorter worship service with several hymns, prayers, and a sermonette. In ICA tradition, the communion service is only celebrated by baptized believers, so the majority of those who attended worship disappeared and the delegation reentered the building with the local church leaders. After we were all seated, the doors were closed and the service began. (Banda later explained that many ICA members do not understand the Lord’s Supper well and do not return for this second service.) Those who returned sat around a table and Banda presided, standing behind the table. After about twenty minutes, we concluded a second time.

Lunch followed worship. Then Banda offered a 90-minute lecture on the Tabernacle to the ministers and deacons of the congregation (material that he presented several times over our travels to enrich church leaders). During this time the other delegates visited outside the church. We met Papa Luavo’s son, Gomes Paulo, a school teacher in Uige. He was the first of many young men whom we met on our trip that suggested we might help him attend university in the United States – a dream of many young Angolans. We also learned more about Luavo’s past experiences with the Ministry of Agriculture. Another meeting followed Banda’s teaching, then supper, and afterward we returned to the inn.

Papa Luavo went directly to the room and turned on the television. It was time for Angola Encanta (“Angola Enchants”), the Angolan spin on the American phenomenon American Idol. Four contestants remained and one of them was Papa Luavo’s future daughter-in-law. Papa N’Dambulula came over and we watched the show together. The show ended with a cliffhanger, but we felt good about our contestant’s performance. The following Sunday we learned – via a phone call – that she would progress to the next round. (In the end, she took second place.) The evening’s excitement concluded and we prepared to sleep, each in our own fashion. Papa Luavo bathed and I read a few more pages in my book.

Day Three: Visiting Dignitaries

We had a full schedule of meetings planned for the day. Pastor Landu and Pastor Domingos António (from nearby Negage) joined us for the day’s events and the rest of our travels. As we waited in the courtyard for the other delegates to emerge, I chatted more with Papa Luavo. He had taken to calling me “Chara” (pronounced sha-ra) instead of using my proper name, so I used the free time to ask why. He explained that when someone shares the same name, you may call that person “Chara.” It means something like “namesake.” I replied, “But your name is Al-berto and my name is Ro-berto,” to which he responded, “Yes. They have the same root.” I decided to leave the matter at that and accept my pseudonym.

Once gathered together, we drove to downtown Uige where our first appointment was scheduled with the governor of the province, a former colleague of Banda. We climbed the marble staircase in the government building under the gaze of Angola President José Eduardo Dos Santos’s portrait. Upon entering the first chamber of the governor’s office, his secretary offered us seats. This gesture is an important symbol of respect in Angolan culture. A traditional story tells of an Angolan Queen during the early years of colonization who was not offered a chair when visiting the Portuguese governor. To preserve her dignity, she ordered one of her servants to get down on the ground and she then sat on the servant’s back. After we were seated, the secretary politely informed us that the governor was traveling and would not return to his office for a week. Banda was disappointed, but after a moment of discussion we thanked the secretary and left.

Outside the building we discussed whether or not to go on to our next appointment early. At the provincial border, the officials who recorded our passports reminded us that the government requires us (the missionaries) to check in with the local immigration office upon arrival. We suggested to Banda that this would be a good use of the sudden opening in our schedule. The office was located in a building with a narrow, open-air corridor connected to a waiting room and several small offices. Our delegation, which now consisted of eight people, did not fit in the first small office we entered and we were directed to the waiting room. After a few minutes an official asked for the leader of our party and Banda followed him out of the room with our documents. The rest of us sat quietly and watched a Brazilian soap opera on a television set mounted on the wall.

Banda returned and we left to continue with our itinerary. We next visited the provincial office of the Ministry of Culture, a sub-department of which is the Ministry of Religious Affairs that oversees the relationship between churches and the state. The minister was on holiday, but we met with the Assistant Director after the office staff managed to round up enough chairs for the delegation. Banda inquired about the relationship between ICA and the Ministry and the Assistant Director replied truthfully that he really had no knowledge of ICA specifically, as this was not his usual post. He elaborated on the importance of an open relationship between the church and the Ministry and thanked us for coming. We left with Banda’s questions unanswered, but had paid our respects by making an appearance.

Next we stopped at the provincial headquarters for the Angolan National Radio station (R.N.A.). During our tour of the facility with the director, Banda inquired about religious programming and asked if R.N.A. gave interviews to religious figures. The director caught on quickly and offered to record a brief interview with Banda about the nature of our visit to Uige. Banda enthusiastically accepted and the delegation waited outside the recording room and listened to Banda’s thoughtfully worded responses. Five minutes later, we thanked the radio staff and returned to the Uige church office for lunch.

After a typical Angolan meal, we left Uige to visit the congregation in Negage. The journey lasted 45 minutes on a smooth asphalt road. We first arrived at the administrative offices for a scheduled appointment with the Municipal Administrator. It was payday and dozens of government employees were crowded around a door in the hallway, waiting to receive their paychecks. We were led to an office at the end of the hall where we were enthusiastically received by the Assistant Director, Jonas João. He apologized that the Chief Administrator was on holiday and thanked us sincerely for the visit. Jonas is a member of the Baptist church in Negage and a true ally of the church. After a warm, friendly visit we shook hands and departed.

We met the Negage congregation at the church building for a time of worship. About 50 men, women, and children received us welcomed us with lively singing. Banda delivered his message on Nehemiah 1, one of the missionaries briefly addressed the crowd, and Banda gave the congregation a period of time to share any needs or concerns they had regarding the church. Afterward, we shared a meal prepared by Pastor Domingos António’s wife and enjoyed some casual fellowship with our fellow delegates. Then we said goodbye to Domingos (until the morning) and returned to Uige for our last night in the inn.

Posing for a photo with the Negage Church

COMING SOON …

What do caterpillars taste like? (Day Five)

How did we end up with a sheep, three goats, and a chicken for the return trip and what did we do with them? (Day Six)

What gifts do Angolans bring home to their wives after traveling? (Day Ten)

Seedtime & Harvest – October 2011

Join us in the work by praying to God daily for us and with us.

• Praise God for the arrival of Nathan, the Meyers, the Reeses, and Jordan to Angola!
• As of July 25 Robert’s passport is traveling via DHL from Namibia to Houston, TX so that it can be taken to the Angolan consulate to have his newly-issued permanent visa put into it. Pray for this to happen without a problem. Pray for Robert’s time in Namibia as he waits for his visa.  *Update* – As of July 28, Robert’s visa is in his passport and on its way back to Namibia via FedEx!
• Pray for the team as they move to Huambo. Pray for the team as they settle in, adjust to the culture, and continue to learn Portuguese.
• Pray for the growing relationship between the Igrejas de Cristo em Angola (ICA) and the Angola Mission Team.
  • Pray for the ICA conference that will be held at the end of August.
  • Pray for the team as they form relationships with the ICA ministers and evangelists.
• Pray for each other as you look for ways in which you can become involved in the mission of God in Angola
  • Pray for the Igreja de Cristo in Portugal and the team’s supporters and supporting congregations in the USA as they look for ways to be involved in the mission of God in Angola.
  • Pray for a growing and fruitful relationship between yourselves and the Angola Mission Team and between yourselves and the church in Angola.
• Pray for a growing and fruitful relationship between each family and their sending congregation.
• Pray for our provision – Pray that God will continue to provide everything each family needs.
• Pray for the health and safety of the team.
• Pray for the Campbell family who remains in Portugal for language study and the birth of their baby.
  • Pray for heath for Laura and Baby Boy Campbell throughout the pregnancy. Pray for the Campbell family as they navigate the Portuguese health care system.
  • Pray for their remaining time in Portugal, that it would be fruitful.
• Pray for the future use of World Bible School courses in the Churches of Christ in the Lisbon area and in Angola.
  • Pray for the leaders who are stepping up to help their churches start World Bible School. Pray for them by name: Rogério, Valfredo, Wilson, and Selmo
  • Pray for the funding needed to sustain these programs
• Pray for the Angolan people. That they would come to know God.
• Pray for the Angolan Christians. That God would use them to reach the nation of Angola in a powerful way.

The Igreja de Cristo em Angola (ICA), the church group that has invited us into Angola to work alongside them, welcomed us with a celebration Sunday, July 17th, 2011. All of the ICA congregations in Luanda were represented there. During the service each of the congregations shared a song, we worshipped together, we prayed together, and we shared the Lord’s supper together. Throughout the service the idea of working together in unity was preached, affirmed, and reflected upon. Afterward they shared a meal with us. It is a great blessing to be reunited with so many friends and contacts from our past survey trips, especially now that we are here in Angola long term.

Psalm 133:1 “How wonderful and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity!”

Seedtime & Harvest – June 2011 – click this link to download pdf

Seedtime & Harvest – June 2011

After months of compiling paperwork, sending emails, making phone calls, mailing documents, praying, hoping, and waiting for our visas, we have visas! We praise God for this success that has allowed us to move to Angola.

Friday June 10^th was Portugal Day, a national holiday. Sunday June 12th was a religious holiday that many Portuguese celebrate by staying up all night eating sardines. Each year the church here in Lisbon spends this extended weekend by holding a sort of prayer vigil. This year the prayer meeting lasted through Thursday and Friday nights. For about 36 hours we took turns praying in shifts and praying together as a church. (It’s hard to believe I’ve been in Portugal long enough to have participated in this event twice now.) Among the things that we prayed about was that our team would receive our visas for Angola. Our team intended to arrive in Angola in January, but it seems that neither the Angolan government nor God had the same timing in mind. So we have remained here in Portugal improving our language skills, working with the church, and preparing for our arrival in Angola so we can hit the ground running.

Last night I was exhausted after a long weekend of praying and very little sleep, yet I somehow found myself in downtown Lisbon with friends from church. We were surrounded by thousands of people, the smell of sardines cooking on the grill, and the sound of traditional Fado music blasting. Talk about sensory overload! As I was picking tiny little bones out of my teeth, my teammate Robert called. He said that our friend Júlia from the Consulate in Houston had called on Friday (note: this was during the prayer vigil), but he and his family had been in the Algarve in Southern Portugal so he did not get the message until they returned home late last night. Júlia had called to tell him that all of our visas were ready, except for his, and that his visa would be ready later this week.

With the news from Robert I didn’t really even know what to say. I’m still in a bit of a state of shock and I still smell like sardines. (The smell seems to last forever.) I have been so eager to get to Angola for so long now, but have constantly run into one obstacle after another. Progress has been one baby-step at a time. But now the clock is ticking. I have until a certain date to arrive in Angola or my visa will expire. The door is wide open all of a sudden and I honestly don’t know what to think or how I feel. God is starting a new chapter in my life which is both exciting and frightening at the same time. It also means another chapter in my life is about to close. My time in Portugal has been one of the most blessed times of my life and I will always remember it fondly. On top of that, every time I smell a sardine cooking I will remember how God is faithful and answers prayer.

At the beginning of May, our team had an opportunity to present to another church in the Lisbon area, the Carcavelos Church of Christ, about our plans for Angola and the possibilities of their partnership with us in ministry there. You can read all about our first team presentation in Portuguese (and even watch a video!) to our “home” congregation, the Lisbon Church of Christ, by clicking here.

We visited the Carcavelos church on a Sunday morning and gave our presentation during the Bible class hour for all the adults and youth of the congregation. The presentation itself was similar to the one we did for the Lisbon church — we briefly shared Angola’s story, introduced ourselves, and presented ideas of ways the church could get involved. Afterwards, the church said a prayer over us. We didn’t video this presentation, but here are a few pictures:

Danny started things off by giving an introduction to the situation in Angola:

Then, Rusty and I gave a brief introduction to our team and talked a little bit about what we’ve been doing this last year in Portugal:

Robert asked the church members to think about ways they could use their gifts and talents to get involved in what God is doing in Angola and invited them to sign up to receive our newsletters and other updates. He also fielded a question-and-answer time at the end of the presentation:

Katie talked about World Bible School and encouraged the church to consider helping with this program by being teachers for WBS students in Angola. Since WBS is done largely via correspondence, this is an excellent way for Portuguese-speaking Christians in Portugal to reach out to Portuguese-speaking Angolans! The Lisbon church has already agreed to take some leadership in launching this program, and we hope that the Carcavelos church can partner with them in this effort:

Nathan extended the invitation for church members, especially the youth, to come and visit us in Angola:

Teague requested help in developing and translating materials in Portuguese. She also gave a list of specific ways the church could pray for us:

Jordan concluded by thanking the church for their involvement in missions, for their cooperation with the Lisbon church, and for their willingness to consider how they might partner with us in the work in Angola:

At the end of the church service, they called all of the Angolan members to the stage to pray over us.

We are thankful for the warm welcome we received from the Carcavelos church, and for their prayers and support. We pray that their enthusiasm for what God is doing in Angola will develop into a fruitful partnership that will bless both us and them, and more importantly, the lost in Angola.

Join us in the work by praying to God daily for us and with us.

• Pray for urgency and efficiency throughout the visa application and approval process.
  • Praise God that Jordan and Katie have been approved to receive visas
  • Pray for the rest of us to receive our visas for Angola quickly and without more difficulty.
  • Pray that the paperwork that we have gathered up to this point would be sufficient for acquiring our visas.
• Pray for us as we make preparations to move to Angola.
• Pray for the future use of World Bible School courses in the Churches of Christ in the Lisbon area and in Angola.
  • Pray for the leaders who are stepping up to help their churches start World Bible School. Pray for them by name: Rogério, Valfredo, Wilson, and Selmo
  • Pray for the funding needed to sustain these programs.
• Pray for each other as you look for ways in which you can become involved in the mission of God in Angola
  • Pray for a growing and fruitful relationship between each family and their sending congregation.
  • Pray for the Igreja de Cristo Lisboa and the Igreja de Cristo Carcavelos as they look for ways to be involved in the mission of God in Angola
  • Pray for a growing and fruitful relationship between yourselves and the Angola Mission Team and between yourselves and the church in Angola.
• Pray for our remaining time in Portugal.
  • Pray for our language studies that we would continue to learn Portuguese well.
  • Pray that our relationships with one another will be deepened and strengthened during our time together in Portugal.
• Pray for our fund-raising — Praise God that all team families have sending congregations! All team families are still seeking monthly and one-time support. Pray for the continued fundraising of all team members
• Pray for the health and safety of all team members.
• Pray for heath for Laura and Baby Boy Campbell throughout the pregnancy. Pray for the Campbell family as they navigate the Portuguese health care system.
• Pray for us as we continue to fine-tune our mission strategy.
• Pray for the Angolan people. That they would come to know God.
• Pray for the Angolan Christians. That God would use them to reach the nation of Angola in a powerful way.