SOUTH SUDAN OCTOBER 2013

Here is a more in depth look at the work we did in South Sudan.  Hopefully this gives a broader picture of what Empower Sudan is doing and how I am a part of it. 

T H E  J O U R N E Y

            Getting from Dallas, TX to Torit, South Sudan takes a little bit of time.  Just to give you some idea we left Dallas Friday afternoon and flew overnight to Amsterdam.  We spent our Saturday on the 8 hour flight from Amsterdam to Nairobi, Kenya where we stayed overnight.  We were at the airport by 8am Sunday morning to take a short flight to Juba, the capital of South Sudan.  From there is took 5 hours to travel the 80 miles of unpaved road to Torit where we arrived safely Sunday Evening.  It’s a long journey but thankfully every flight was on time and there were no logistical issues, which makes such a long trip much easier. 

The journey is long but the scenery is great!

W H A T ’ S   I T   L I K E   O V E R   T H E R E ?

            Upon arriving back in the US last week the passport control officer asked me where I’d been.  “South Sudan” I said. He then asked me “What’s it like over there?”.  It’s not an easy question to answer in such a brief interaction but I’ll try to give you a little better an answer than I gave him.

            South Sudan became independent from Sudan in 2011 after 5 decades of civil war.  The government is still getting on its feet and is dominated by one party, the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement.  There is very little infrastructure although it’s improving.  It’s also not uncommon to see military personnel anywhere you go although their presence is not intimidating. 

The terrain is typical of what you think of in Africa: tall grass, trees and some small black, rocky mountains.  Some locals claim there are still lions lurking around but all I saw were goats, chickens, stray dogs and some cows.

            Juba, the capital, is busy.  It has most of the paved roads in the country and it’s full of motorbikes and cars (all 4 wheel drive).  There are no tall buildings and most of the construction is new but the city is still dusty and dirty.  If you imagine what the Wild West would look like today then that’s probably an accurate picture of Juba. 

Torit is a small town by our standards and most of the town lies off of the main road.  Even here the majority of people live in tukols, which are mud and brick houses with dried grass roofs and dirt floors.  As you drive outside of Torit on the dirt road you can see a far off mountain range that leads to Uganda.  Along this road are villages, like Helieu, spread out and hidden behind tall grass.  The people in the village grow most of their own food, live in tukols, and have no electricity.  Water comes from wells or from the nearby river and people only focus on what they need to do that day to get by.  

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Pastor Dominic Augustin Africa has a lot to smile about

The people in South Sudan are welcoming and soft-spoken and it’s easy to forget the years of war and what they do to get by on a daily basis.  When you remember these things you are struck by how tough they are.  Most people would say they are Christians but this more accurately means they are not Muslim.  The Sudanese government in Khartoum pushed Islam on them for so long that Christian and Muslim refer more to culture than faith.  This makes it an easy place to talk about Jesus but a difficult place to follow Him. 

As I looked for the words to sum all of this up to the passport control officer the first reply that came to mind was “it’s rough”.  “Rough” serves as a good summary of South Sudan compared to a lot of other parts of the world but as I thought about the work that we were doing and the progress we’ve seen I had to add “but its getting better.”

So what's it like in South Sudan?  It’s rough but its getting better. 

 

T H E  D I F F E R E N C E  A  Y E A R  M A K E S

            Last year was my first trip to Torit.  There I met Dominic, the young pastor who leads a small church in the village of Helieu outside of Torit.  Dominic is young and passionate and a very gifted teacher.  Last year we were there to help Dominic develop a vision for planting more churches and finding tangible ways to serve the community.  I was very blessed to see a lot of growth in Dominic’s ministry. 

            In the last year Dominic and other church leaders started a primary school in the village as a means of serving the people there.  The school was started initially with funds from Empower Sudan supporters but is on its way to being self-sufficient. 

            Dominic has also planted two new churches.  One in a nearby village called Africa, and the other about 2 hours from Torit in the village of Kormush.  Dominic travels to these villages regularly to teach and mentor young Christians.

Dominic rides his motor bike to other villages to teach about Jesus

T H I S  Y E A R ’S  G O A L S

            Empower Sudan takes roughly 4 short-term trips to Torit each year led by Brian Bain, the Regional Strategy Coordinator for the Torit area.  Each trip has a few training objectives for the church leaders there.  One principle we follow in our trainings is that we not only want the people we train to have new knowledge but we want them to be able to go and teach others everything that we teach them.  This makes them less dependent on us and allows more people to be affected by the knowledge we share.
             

This trip consisted of two trainings:

1. Community Development Training for Church leaders.

2. Bible teaching through storytelling.

 

C O M M U N I T Y  

D E V E L O P M E N T  

I N  T H E   

N E W E S T  C O U N T R Y 

O N  T H E  P L A N E T

            South Sudan has a lot of challenges and no one understands the problems of South Sudan better than the South Sudanese.  This is why the focus of our community development training is to teach them a process for identifying problems and coming up with solutions using resources they have in country.  Our approach is to ask a lot of questions and let them do most of the talking.

            The model we taught has 5 simple steps.

1.    Build a Coalition- Who can help you create positive change?

2.    Dream a Better Future- What good things do you want for your community?

3.    Find the bright spots- What resources do you have in your community?

4.    Develop a Plan- What are the steps you need to take?

5.    Reproduce what works- How can you do this again?

 D R E A M I N G  A  B E T T E R  F U T U R E

 

            In order to identify a better future we had to start with the challenges the people face today.  We had the trainees list problems they see in their community.  The challenges ranged from societal to physical to spiritual and I was struck by how many of these challenges we face in the United States.  Some of the challenges mentioned were hopelessness, illiteracy, language barriers, alcoholism, poverty, and idleness.  

            A common theme we noticed is that many people in South Sudan do not think ahead or plan for the future.  That is why trainings like this are so important. If we teach a few people in the village how to create a plan for solving problems they will be able to teach those critical thinking skills to others and slowly the culture will change. 

F I N D I N G  

        T H E   B R I G H T  S P O T S

            One of our major goals is to not create dependence on outsiders and outside resources.  Instead we want to help the church leaders identify the resources, or bright spots, they have right there in their village.  The members of the training were asked to identify six types of resources: natural, human, physical, economical, spiritual, and institutional.

As I reflected on which of these types of resources is the most important I came to the conclusion that it is human resources.  These include the skills, knowledge and drive that people in a community possess.  People with the passion to do something positive are the starting point for creating lasting change in any environment.  You can have all the physical and economic resources in the world but if the people don’t use them well they are useless.

Dominic, Johnson, James, Okello, Joseph, John, Jacob, Dominic

We had nine leaders from two of the churches participating in our training.  These nine are valuable resources for their villages.  They have a passion for creating positive change in their villages and now we have given them a process to follow to create that change. We were very encouraged as they sat together and discussed the next steps they will take to create hope in their communities.  They have a long road ahead of them and can use your prayers so be thinking about them. They are the bright spots.

                                                     

S T O R Y  T I M E  

O N  T H E  O T H E R  S I D E  O F  

T H E  W O R L D

            In the late afternoons we would gather the children in the village and teach Bible stories.  There are New Testament Bibles written in Lotuko, the local language, but they are scarce and literacy is low so storytelling is a great way to teach scripture.  As a visual aid we used a scarf with 21 pictures that represented different stories from the Bible.  

Ryan and I teach as the other Dominic translates

            Each day we would teach about five stories with the help of a translator and as with everything we did the hope was that those listening would be able to go and teach the stories.  By the end of the week we were thrilled to hear some of the kids reciting stories back to us.  We left some of the scarves with the church so they can use them to teach others in the village.  The Torit county commissioner told us that a lot of the hope for South Sudan lies with the next generation so it’s important that they grow up knowing Jesus.  Pray that these young ones continue to grow and share the love of Jesus with their friends.   

                                               

W H A T ’S  N E X T ?

            I am now officially on staff with Empower Sudan as an Area Strategy Coordinator.  This is a part-time, non-paid position that includes me leading a trip to Torit once a year and being a part of the American team here in Dallas.  While I will only go once a year I’m making a long-term commitment to be a part of the work in Torit.  I will be raising support solely for my yearly trip and recruiting people to go with me so think about how you might want to be involved.  It’s really fun to tell you about South Sudan but it would be more fun for me to show you.  I will be sending out more information on how you can be involved in the coming months. 

            I have to end this letter with a BIG THANK YOU to all the people who funded this trip, prayed for me, and who were excited and worried for me.  I don't take it for granted that I am blessed to do this kind of work and I want YOU to know I couldn’t have done it without you.  You are a part of this work and a bright spot for me and for the people of South Sudan.  THANK YOU 
  

            

SOUTH SUDAN FALL 2012

our team: Steven Samantha Hailey Brian Bart Me

T  H  E     M  I  S  S  I  O  N

            The purpose of our trip was to expand the church planting work that E3 ministries is doing in the Eastern Equatoria state of South Sudan.   Our destination was a village called Helieu outside of the town of Torit, which is the largest town in the Eastern Equatoria state.  The main goal for our team of 6 was to assist the pastor in Heliu with strategic planning for church planting in the region and to do evangelism in the village.   A personal goal for me was to assess if this is a place that I would like to return on a yearly basis to take part in the church planting work that E3 is doing.  As you may know I spent some time working with refugees from South Sudan when I lived in Cairo and it was my desire to go there ever since.  This trip was in many ways a fulfillment of that desire and an opportunity to see how I can serve this group of people that I care a great deal about.

T  H  E     J  O  U  R  N  E  Y                                                                            

            On our way from the United States to Torit we experienced some travel difficulties that required a little creativity and a lot of patience to overcome.  We began our trip with a flight from Dallas to Amsterdam, followed by another from Amsterdam to Nairobi.  After spending a night in Nairobi the plan was to fly to Juba, the capital of South Sudan and then drive to Torit.  This is where we had some difficulties.  The South Sudanese government had changed their Visa policy that week and said that we were supposed to have our visas before we entered the country meaning we could not board the plane from Nairobi to Juba.

Thankfully our trip leader, Brian Bain, who works full time for E3 and has traveled in Africa extensively, was able to keep us moving forward.  We were able to fly to Entebbe, Uganda and spent the following day driving across most of Uganda to the town of Adjumani, close to the border with South Sudan.  The following day we met Pastor David Kaya in the town of Moyo, on the border of Uganda and South Sudan.  Pastor Kaya is the Sudanese pastor who heads all of the church planting that E3 does in South Sudan and he was our driver and guide for the rest of our trip.  An hour later we were finally in South Sudan!

                Thankfully we had no problem buying visas at the border and after a short stop in Kajo Keji, where the E3 headquarters is located, we were off to Torit.  The roads between the major cities in South Sudan are unpaved and require dodging potholes and at times crossing rivers and streams.  To give some perspective of traveling in rainy season, as we did, it can take between 3-4 hours to go 70-80 miles.  An hour into our drive our land cruiser got a flat tire.  While were able to put on the spare it was not safe to travel the other 8 hours to Torit without a spare so we went back to Kajo Keji for the evening while Kaya and his team repaired the tire and made sure that our vehicle was ready for the trip.  The following morning our team set out again for Torit and after a long drive we arrived safe and sound that evening.  Despite all of the difficulties God brought us safely to our destination and although we were exhausted from the journey we were joyful to be there and eager to minister to the people in Helieu.  I thank God that I was with such a great group of people who had incredible patience and humor as we made this journey.

T  H  E     D  E  S  T  I  N  A  T  I  O  N

            Helieu is a village about a 30-minute drive from Torit.  The surroundings are picturesque; blue skies, green trees, tall grass, and mountains in the distance with mist on them in the morning and white fluffy clouds during the day.  I didn’t think Africa could actually be as beautiful as it is on TV but it is.  For all it’s typical African scenery there were no lions or giraffes, only cows, goats, a few stray dogs, and a lot of chickens. The people there wear western clothing and for the most part grow their own food and raise their own livestock. It’s somewhere between a modern industrial city and the dramatic images you see of people in loin cloths dancing with their faces painted in the middle of the jungle. They live in small brick and mud homes called tukols. They don’t have running water or electricity but they do have schools and books and plates and cups and no one has their face painted or carries a spear.  The men play dominoes and the children play soccer with a ball they made from rubber gloves borrowed from the local medical clinic.  It is very third world to our eyes but when you think of the history of war these people have endured and look around you at the natural beauty they call home it is a place that makes you feel very humble.

T  H  E     W  O  R  K

            BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS

The first day in the village we were introduced to pastor Dominic Africa Augustan the pastor of the church in Helieu.  Yes his middle name is Africa and I’m jealous that my name doesn’t roll off the tongue the way his does.  He is in his late 20s, is a graduate of the bible school in Kajo Keji, and has an adorable wife and three children.  He is an earnest young pastor with a sense of humor that will surprise you.  He spent the morning giving us a tour of the village and teaching us enough of the local language to at least greet everyone.  “Mong mong (Hello)”. “Ongai (how are you)?”  “Ongneeda (good)”.   We got to know some of the men that Dominic is mentoring and hoping to eventually send out as church planters.  Serrano is a middle-aged man who oversees the local elementary schools.  He is warm and has the fatherly demeanor of a teacher. John is quiet but speaks great English and came out to see us despite the fact he was getting over Malaria.  Paul seems younger than he is and surprised us with his fervor for the Lord.

Brian Bain    Dominic Africa Augustan      Me

We spent the morning learning about the lives of the people in the village.  We heard stories and sampled some local food; sorghum, some kind of dip and nuts.  So much of ministry in South Sudan is about relationships.  In a place that has known more war than peace it takes time and a lot of listening to gain trust.  So we listened to the men talk about their families and about some of the things they had experienced in and after the wars.  We showed them maps of South Sudan and the area where they lived to show where we are hoping to plant churches.  It was a valuable time of building long term relationships. 

DEVELOPING A VISION

We spent the afternoon with Pastor Dominic, Pastor Kaya, and Brian developing a strategy for church planting in the Eastern Equatoria state with Torit and Helieu as the base.  David Kaya is Southern Sudanese, was educated in Uganda during the war, and has been planting churches in South Sudan for a decade now.  He is joyful, discerning and equal parts optimistic and pragmatic.  He was able to share the broader vision for reaching the region while Dominic shared with us the needs of the people in Helieu.  The overall vision is for Dominic to continue to develop disciples who can then go and plant churches in nearby small villages and then larger towns that are nearby.  Then those disciples will mentor others who will plant churches in more villages and towns and so on until there is a network of churches in the Eastern part of the country.  Right now Helieu is one fruitful tree and we are praying that it will produce a forest.  One practical need we were able to assess is more consistent discipleship and theological training for the men in the church in Helieu.  Our short-term trips are a means of progressing this work.  Another practical need is getting Dominic a motorcycle to travel to more villages in the area. We are currently trying to raise funds for this. 

David Kaya                     Dominic Africa

PLANTING SEEDS

The following days in Helieu consisted of mornings doing evangelism in the village and holding special services in the church in the afternoon where we would share the gospel.  In the mornings we would set out with another member of our team and a translator.  While a lot of people speak enough English to communicate, most communicate best in the local Lotuko tribal language.  I spent most of my time with Brian and Dominic walking through the village and speaking with the people. When telling people about Jesus in South Sudan you run into a similar problem that you do in Dallas, TX.  Almost everyone would say they are Christian but they might not understand who Jesus really is.  Christianity became part of the cultural identity of the people in the South as a way of differentiating themselves from the Muslims in the North who they were at war with.  Many people can tell you things about Jesus but they have no relationship with Him.  This is the challenge that Dominic and the church there are trying to overcome.  We spent a lot of time praying with people for practical needs and for Spiritual fruit in their lives.  I felt great power in our prayers as we are trusting God to do a work in the hearts of the people that only He can do.

In our short time in Torit we were able to build many relationships with the people in the village, both church members and non-church members.  We fulfilled our goals of planning for the future of the ministry as well as sharing the gospel in the community and spreading the word about the work that Dominic’s church is doing.  I walked away with was a greater understanding of the people of South Sudan and how I can contribute to their spiritual well being.   

W  H  A  T  ’S     N  E  X  T  ?

            This trip was an opportunity for me to explore the possibility of serving in South Sudan in some sort of long term capacity.  Brian has been looking to develop a team of people who would be willing to go on a short term trip once a year to continue the discipleship work that is happening in Torit on a more consistent basis.  There are still a lot of details to work out but I’m planning to be a part of this team and hope to lead a short-term trip sometime next year and in the subsequent years.  Mo has a similar passion for the South Sudanese as a result of our time in Cairo and while it is doubtful that she will be able to go every year we are hoping that she will be able to go with me on the next trip.

            Thank you so much for your support and prayers concerning the ministry in South Sudan.  As I have written before it means a great deal to me when people take an interest in this part of the world because it is a place that I cared deeply about before I ever went there.  That passion of mine has only grown and I’m always eager to share with anyone who wants to learn more.     

mind the gap

IF YOU'VE READ THIS FAR THEN YOU HAVE READ PAST ALL OF MY EMPOWER SUDAN POSTINGS BUT FEEL FREE TO READ ON IF YOU CARE ABOUT WHAT I WAS DOING IN EGYPT FROM 2006-2008.  THERE'S SOME GLIMPSES OF SOUTH SUDAN IN CAIRO AND EVEN A FEW PICTURES OF ME WITHOUT A BEARD.  ENJOY.