Wave of Death

A few weeks ago, my car was totaled by what my insurance agency called a "wave of death."  This is what they describe as the behavior of someone who wants to be polite, who happens to have the right of way, and who waves either a pedestrian or another vehicle into traffic.  This driver may believe they are performing a selfless act for a stranger, when in fact, they are putting that person or vehicle in potentially mortal danger.

This was the case with me.  I was in the righthand lane with no stop sign or stoplight in the vicinity.  A vehicle in the lefthand lane decided, for some unknown reason, to stop to give the wave of death to an oncoming pickup truck who wanted to turn left into a side street.  That driver did not see me coming and I had no idea that this truck was about to turn in front of me, and that was it.   My 18-year-old Subaru, which had 187,000 miles on it, and could have gone for another 100,000 miles, was finished.  His truck was barely damaged and he happened to have no insurance (but still stayed at the scene, which the police said was very unusual!).

Three weeks prior to this event, I had been released from the hospital after having a number of different infections, viruses, and parasites, and was then told by my doctor a few days later that they suspected that I had multiple myeloma (cancer of the blood). I was referred to a hematology oncologist.  There was a sense of a different kind of "wave of death" that rolled over our family as we weighed this news.  The following week, I ended up in the emergency room again as my heart began to act up, and I ended up with a heart monitor for the next two weeks, and a heart rate that continues to be erratic.

And then the accident.

What was going on?  Was it a series of unfortunate events?  Was it a spiritual attack?  Was it testing? All of the above?  None of the above?  There was a lot of speculation.

Regardless, this past week we met again with the hematology oncologist and he informed us that he does not believe I have cancer.  He believes that I was sick enough that my numbers have been thrown off and continue to be off from that series of illnesses.  There is speculation that my heart issues may also stem from issues surrounding the viruses and may eventually settle down, although this week I will have an echocardiogram yet to ensure that my heart is okay.

We are very thankful to God for healing and for the ability to continue with work and ministry.  While we experience a "wave of death" which brings potentially mortal danger into our path, it is truly a gift to know that God is close by and is in control, regardless of the outcome.

I heard a song recently that has been playing in my head over and over again.  It is called "Surrounded" by Michael W. Smith and is quite repetitive, but it needed to be that way for me to finally settle into my brain.  It says, "And I believe you've overcome and I will lift my song of praise for what you've done...so my weapons are praise and thanksgiving.  This is how I fight my battles."  It then goes on to say, "It may look like I'm surrounded, but I'm surrounded by You."

Whatever "wave of death" that you may sense around you, I pray that you remember who it is that surrounds you.  And continue to fight your battles with the weapons of praise and thanksgiving.

Oh, and if you drive, resist the urge to be a good samaritan on the road when you can't fully control traffic.  You may be saving a life by denying a goodwill gesture.

Don't tell me you're too busy

I heard a speaker recently who told me the same unfortunate information that my pastor has told me for years:  don't use busyness as an excuse.  I have passed this message on to many of my students over the years.  My pastor would say, "Stop saying you are too busy.  Get control of your schedule."

I say that is unfortunate information because saying "I'm so busy" is such a nice excuse for not getting something done or for getting sympathy from the listener.  Taking the ability away to use that line means that I have to manage my time and make sure that my "yes means yes."  Think of the number of times we have either heard or used that line.  As the meme states, we can often use that line as a competition with our peers to "one-up" each other in terms of bragging about our work or demand.

But this speaker that I heard last week went further.  He told his staff that they were not allowed to say that they were too busy to get this or that done.  They were only allowed to say, "I didn't get it done, because it was not a priority to me."

Wow.

That will make you pause and think before opening your mouth regarding not getting something done.

Figuring out our priorities and how to spend our time is important.  Of the three resources that God has given us (time, treasure, and talent), time is the only non-renewable resource of the three.  Losing the ability to say "I was busy" and having to rephrase it to "It wasn't a priority for me" can really help us sort out what we can and can't do in the short amount of time we have.

May God help us!

DML is growing up

On Thursday, at our DML meet and greet event, we informed our friends and partners that Discipling Marketplace Leaders will be spinning off from International Christian Ministries by the end of 2019.  Discipling Marketplace Leaders started under ICM in 2013 and has received a very gracious growing space from them.

However, as DML has been growing quite rapidly, we believe it is time that we form our own 501c3 in order to have a Board of Directors that is more directly involved in how this particular ministry grows, especially as the number of partner ministries that we network with also grows.  The DML leadership and the ICM leadership spoke about this growing realization and ICM has given its blessing to DML to spin-off on its own.

This is both exciting and scary at the same time.  It is exciting to watch the growth of this ministry and how God is using it to build His church.  It is exciting to be told by partners that it is time for a prayerful, thoughtful team to give leadership to DML, who can be more objective than Dr. Walker or myself who are "deep in the forest and often can't see the trees."

This is the third ministry that I have been involved in starting, and the second time I have gone through the process to get non-profit status.  There is a tremendous amount of safety being under another organization's umbrella as it relates to accounting, audits, and legalities.  Dealing with bureaucracy is not my favorite thing to do, so it is scary as well.  I am the type of person who likes to "set up shop" and not necessarily "keep shop."  So I know that this is the type of thing that drains me of energy rather than gives it, but again the time is right for this to happen.

So we are going through a rebranding process, looking at DML from all different angles as we prepare for this launch.  One of the things we are looking very seriously at is how our ministry can also fulfill a quadruple bottom line: missionally, socially, environmentally, and economically.  If we preach it, we also need to do it!

This week I will be in Texas, with the Global Alliance for Church Multiplication forum, looking specifically at how the Marketplace is used to grow the church through a number of other ministries around the world.  These are the types of things that we want to get better at as a ministry - networking and continuing to watch where God is working and join Him in that work.

More updates to come!

News from Discipling Marketplace Leaders

This week is an exciting week for us.  Both Dr. Walker and Emeline Nde, DML-USA staff, will be coming to Grand Rapids as we will be doing a professional video shoot of our two-day workshop for pastors and church leaders, that can be reproduced for our teams in Africa.  They have been asking for this for a long time, and we have a number of copies of videos that were done on-site but the quality, especially sound, has not been good, so we are going to do the "real deal" this week.

Additionally, we are having a "Meet and Greet" on Thursday evening for friends of DML to hear the exciting things that God is doing to grow, build and equip His Church in Africa through DML.  If you are in the Grand Rapids area and would like to join us, please email me at renita@disciplingmarketplaceleaders.org for more details.

The opportunity to share these stories comes on the heels of the DML East Africa Regional Meeting that just took place on the Nile River in Uganda, with our teams from Ethiopia, Uganda, Tanzania, and Kenya (the teams are in the boat that is pictured).

Hearing them share their stories, their ideas, and how God is working with them to share this message AND the DML method, was inspiring for the teams.  At this particular meeting, we not only had our five teams from four countries, but we also had key denominational leaders from the four denominations that we are working with join these meetings.  This ended up being a very good investment, as the picture of how to implement this ministry became much clearer during those days together.

As the Church grows in Africa, and as the population and economy grow in Africa, we believe that Africa has the potential to fulfill the Great Commission IF it can unlock its members from the building, to be the church every day of the week in the Marketplace.

Enjoy some pictures from our teams, and thank you for praying and supporting this ministry!

Uganda DML Team, with the Pentecostal Assemblies of God reps.

Tanzania DML Team, with Full Victory Gospel Ministries reps.

Kenya DML Team, with Anglican Church of Kenya reps.

Ethiopia Teams, with reps from Kibir and the Kale Heywet Church

A Life Without Despair is a Life Without Hope

I heard this phrase recently and it made me stop and think for some time.

Can you wrap your head around this concept?  A life without despair is a life without hope.

No despair - no hope.

We like hope.  We don't like despair.

Can't we have hope without despair?  Not real hope.  Not deep hope.  Maybe superficial hope.  "I hope it doesn't rain today" kind of hope.

But hope for change...for the world to be a better place...hope for people to understand the real meaning of grace and mercy...hope for healing...hope for relief...the deep hopes that come from pain in the soul.

What are the longings of your soul?  When was the last time that you differentiated between your superficial human longings and the deeper desires of your soul?

It makes me think of Ruth Haley Barton's book, Sacred Rhythms, and her description of the conversation that Blind Bartimaeus had with Jesus.  Jesus had a habit of asking people deep questions like, "What are you seeking?" or "What do you want from me?"  He was going after spiritual hunger, reflected in the honest reflection of the person being asked.  This particular story and question comes from Mark 10:46-52:

⁴⁶ Then they came to Jericho. As Jesus and his disciples, together with a large crowd, were leaving the city, a blind man, Bartimaeus (which means “son of Timaeus”), was sitting by the roadside begging. ⁴⁷ When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” ⁴⁸ Many rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” ⁴⁹ Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.”  So they called to the blind man, “Cheer up! On your feet! He’s calling you.” ⁵⁰ Throwing his cloak aside, he jumped to his feet and came to Jesus.  ⁵¹ “What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked him.  The blind man said, “Rabbi, I want to see.”  ⁵² “Go,” said Jesus, “your faith has healed you.” Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road.

Barton invites us to imagine (just for a few seconds) being Bartimaeus and thinking through how you were going to get the attention of Jesus.  What words would you use?  What emotions would you feel?


Then imagine that Jesus turns to you, looks you in the eye, and says, "What do you want me to do for you?"  What would you say?  What answer would you give?

We may need to peel back a number of layers to get to the bottom of what we really want from Him.  It may take some honest reflection and soul searching.

A life without despair is a life without hope.  What are you hoping for?  What drives it?  Where have you been and what have you seen that drives both the despair and the hope?  And how do you take both the despair and the hope to answer the question Jesus asks, "What do you want from me?"

That is your story.  That is the uniqueness that is you.  I'm sure many of our answers would be different but in some ways, I would guess that they may point in a similar direction.

As I wait for news about my health, I consider something a friend said to me this past week.  He said, "I pray for health for you or something better."

I like that.  Maybe that is what I would say to Jesus...at least for today.

Some Not-so-good News and Some Good News

First the not-so-good news:  since being released from the hospital, I have continued to have one medical issue or another come up, leading me to cancel my trip to Uganda for the East Africa DML regional meeting.  There are some big questions about the underlying causes of my medical issues and I have some upcoming appointments where doctors hope to look closer to see if this continues to be a fall-out from the "perfect storm" of problems I had when hospitalized or something more serious.  We are praying it will all turn out to be nothing in the end.

I'm disappointed not to be able to meet with our teams from Uganda, Tanzania, Ethiopia, and Kenya.  This is a once-a-year meeting where we get to share and learn together, pray and encourage each other, break bread and laugh together, and look at best practices and new opportunities for continuing to equip the church to be the church every day of the week.  There were some exciting new components of the ministry that we have been developing that I was hoping to share with the team, and I in turn also get a lot of renewed enthusiasm as I hear stories and the creativity of our partners in the field.  But Dr. Walker will be there and I'm sure that they will have a very productive and God-filled time.  This may even allow for greater ownership of this ministry by our teams with my absence.

The good news is that Dr. Walker was able to have a successful time in Malawi doing a two day

DML workshop with the World Renew Southern Africa team, with members from Malawi, Zambia, and Mozambique.  It seems there may be invitations coming DML's way to work further with the synods of various denominations in Zambia as well as Malawi.  We thank God for these seeds that have been planted and look forward to seeing what He will do in the next weeks and months as the seeds look to take root.

Please pray with us for these seeds, as well as for the upcoming regional meeting in Uganda.  Not only will our implementing partners from each country be in attendance, but key leaders from three denominations who are implementing DML throughout their denomination will also be in attendance.  We desire to see continued ownership at a denominational level and we pray that this time together may allow the Holy Spirit to continue to encourage us to find the tools necessary to reclaim the Marketplace for Christ.!

DML Testimonies from Uganda and Ethiopia

Every quarter, our implementing partners send us reports of the work that has gone on relating to Discipling Marketplace Leaders in their specific region or country.  Some of those numbers tell us that in the first half of 2019, more than 1100 pastors in eight countries were taken through the DML workshop and more than 500 businesses were trained to do their work as an act of worship, as well as other basic business skills.

Included in the report that we receive quarterly is a testimony or two from either a church pastor or a businessperson about how this ministry is impacting their life.

I would like to share two stories with you this week:  one from Uganda and one from Ethiopia.

From Uganda, this story comes from Pastor Henry Obondo:

After the Business as Mission class taught at the Africa Theological Seminary in Tororo, Pastor
Henry organized a training in his church (Divine Destiny Church).  According to Pastor Henry, learning that Jesus was a businessman and that work was a holy calling had a great impact on the church.  The congregation had a change of perspective and are now challenging themselves to invite God in their daily routines, as well as carrying out their work in a godly way.

Pastor Henry recounts the story of a widow in his church who used to beg for money to take care of her children.  After learning that work is a good and holy thing, she became more committed and zealous in her business, selling traditional pots, because she saw it as partnering with God.  Today she can buy school supplies for her children and is in a better position to even financially support the work of God in her church.

Silverfish

Another testimony from this church relates to two women, whose husbands were drunks.  These women had quit their jobs because of criticisms that the work they were doing was "carnal" rather than serving God.  After attending the DML training, these women took back their jobs selling "silverfish."  Today they are sharing the gospel at their jobs, supporting their families without stress and they are even able to contribute to the church.

Pastor Henry also expressed his excitement at the way DML is empowering his members.  He testified of how he had always given money to his church members for business investment, but they just kept experiencing losses.  Now, with the training DML is providing, these members are being empowered to do business profitably, for the glory of God.

Ethiopia - How good customer service and setting the right boundaries are impacting businesses.

Taju Lila is a businessman who lives in a town called Mizan Tepi, which is about 700 km from Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia.  He is one of the DML trainers in that town.  He has given this testimony:

"Before this DML training, I had been providing services to many people daily.  And because my business was in the capital city of that administrative zone, I had the opportunity to meet a lot of people.  At first, I had more customers than any other businessperson in that area.  But the way I handled fellow Christians and people with good behavior versus the way I dealt with others, was completely different.  I did favors for the people I loved and ignored those I did not love.

 "My competitor was a Muslim merchant whose shop was close to mine.  He did not have as much capital as me, and when he started he had very few customers.  But he treated all of his customers with great courtesy and always had a smile for them.  After five years, his business had grown five times bigger than my own.  Today he is a wealthy and well-respected businessman in the city.  In the meantime, my business was declining.

"When I began taking the DML training, I began to compare myself to that Muslim man.  All of a sudden, I realized that my problem was in customer handling.  My weak customer service approach made me unsuccessful in business.  People even told me that I used to discriminate between Christian and non-Christian customers.  Of course, I didn't consider myself a servant of all customers.  But after attending this training, my attitude on customer relations was absolutely challenged and changed.  I started to see every customer with a different perspective - as equal and deserving of the same excellent service.  This has made me competent, successful, and created an opportunity to meet many customers and share Christ with them.  Also, this training helped me to teach, challenge, and help other Christian businesspeople to have better business practices.  I am grateful to God for DML and I want to thank God for providing me with this golden chance."

Our goal is that we do our work as unto the Lord, with the purpose of helping people flourish - all people, not just the ones we like.  I love that this businessperson caught on to that and is realizing the fruit of "loving his neighbor" in terms of being able to build relationships and share his faith.  May we all do our work as an act of worship this week and help people to flourish wherever we serve!

Morning Dedication

In all I do this day, 

In all I think and say

Father, be with me all the way.

In all my work and all my deeds,

In all I learn,

In all my needs,

Christ, go before me,

The One who leads.

In all my work as I do my best,

In all that puts me to the test, 

Spirit, help, and grant me rest.

(David Adam, "Power Lines")

Jesus, First-born Son and Second Father

August 9 would have been the 65th birthday of my late husband, Bob Reed.  It's been almost ten years since his death, and it's difficult to not wonder what life would have been like for me, for Hannah, for Noah, and for many others, had he not left so soon.  But lately, I've been thinking about his death in light of the life of Jesus and the death of his own earthly father.

Mark 6:3 says, "He's just a carpenter, the son of Mary and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon.  And his sisters live here among us."

Joseph is not mentioned in this verse.  The last we hear of Joseph, the earthly father of Jesus, was when Jesus was left behind in Jerusalem at the age of twelve.  After that, Scripture is silent about what happened to him.  Many speculate that Joseph died shortly after he is last mentioned.

I wonder how old Jesus was when he lost his father.  I think of Hannah and Noah who lost their father at the tender ages of 15 and 14.  Was Jesus around the same age as them?

He was the oldest son with quite a number of siblings.  In North America, that doesn't have much meaning, but the rest of the world still understands what that means.  It means you are responsible for your mother and siblings.  In Nigeria, the oldest son is called the "second father."  If Jesus was the oldest, and let's guess he might have been 15 by the time of Joseph's death, there were at least four brothers and maybe an equal number of sisters younger than him.  That is quite a number of mouths to feed, and I'm sure he shared that responsibility with his mother.

The way that he was likely to do raise the money to care for the family would have been through the family business, the carpentry shop. By the time Joseph died, I would speculate that Jesus was well-versed in the family business.  He would have understood the craft, having grown in "wisdom and stature."  He would have probably learned how to not hit his thumb with a hammer and how to pull splinters from his hands.  He would have learned the art of supply and demand.  He would have learned customer service.  He would have learned how to deal with the competition. He would have understood sales.  He may have had to repossess a table or two from those who didn't complete payment.  As "second father," he would have had to teach his younger brothers the trade as well.

I've wondered why Jesus waited to start his ministry at the age of 30.  Could it be that he was waiting until his younger siblings were all independent and cared for? Is it possible that the wedding of Cana (where his mother played the role of the host) was possibly his last sister and the turning of water into wine a celebration of the successful launching of all his siblings, freeing him to launch his ministry?

With all this wondering, I then understand better the significance of Jesus on the cross, looking down on his mother.  In one of his final acts, he cares for his mother by asking for John to carry on for him, as a son.  What a close relationship Jesus must have had with his mother - losing Joseph, raising the other children, struggling with a family business...the relationship with the oldest son in this context must have been very close indeed.

It makes me think of the day after Bob died with new wonder.  I will never forget that day, as Noah told me, "Mom, I think it's time we move on."  I've chuckled at this comment over the years, asking if it would be okay if I at least had 48 hours.  But as I've considered Jesus and the relationship he had with his mother, this comment from Noah has taken on much more significance to me. This was not a statement of insensitivity - rather it showed his desire to step in to be a caretaker and help his mom -  to try to get her to stop crying.  I had to fight to NOT let him take care of me.  I wanted him to still be a "normal" teenager (whatever that means).  But that instinct was there in him and showed up consistently over the years.

When I think of Noah's instinct, it makes me even more keenly aware of the emotions at the cross between Jesus and Mary.  It makes me choke up if I let it.

But more than anything, it makes the passage from Hebrews 4 all the more significant.  We have a High Priest who understands our troubles.  He understands what my children went through in losing a father.  He understands having to raise and provide for children - his siblings.  He understands working with his hands and running a small business.  He understands the depth of relationships between a parent and child.

So we can come boldly to His throne.  Hallelujah!  What a Savior!

Hebrews 4: 14-16 (NLT)   So then, since we have a great High Priest who has entered heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to what we believe.  This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin.  So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God.  There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.

Brief Health Update

Just a brief blog today. I am thankful to report that I was released on Saturday after eight days in the hospital.  I was admitted on July 27 with malaria and a fever of 104 F (40C) and then developed pneumonia while there.  Once they cleared those two up, I had a fever that remained at around 103 F and migraines that continued for the entire stay.  They conducted many, many more tests and found that I had another parasite happily multiplying in my body, as well as another bacterial infection.  In the end, I had five diagnoses given:  three primary and two secondary.  The three primary infections seemed to have all come from my last trip to Nigeria.  I had wonderful care and am thankful for the doctors (my primary doctor on the floor was Nigerian, which was a God-send!) and nurses who diligently cared for me, not to mention my husband, children, and family.

This is the second time I had malaria in about four months, in a year that has had a number of illnesses.  While I can talk about finitude and rest and while I can talk about protocols for prevention of malaria and infections related to food/water-borne diseases, my children and loved ones have let me know in no uncertain terms that there seems to be a systems issue here:  my body is reacting to the stress in my life and my immune system is not behaving as well as it should.  So I need to take this under further consideration.

In the meantime, as fever raged in my body over those days, I reminded of how many of our brothers and sisters in many countries do not have access to the health care that I was blessed to have.  While this was a very expensive malaria for me in the end, it resulted in a number of findings that will allow me to be healthier moving forward.

I will continue treatment over the next couple of weeks but should be able to steadily return to work.  Thank you for your prayers.

Africa is leading the world in plastic bag bans

In Discipling Marketplace Leaders, we teach that every Christian should have a quadruple bottom line:  social, economic, environmental, and missional. All four are important.  But the one that is often the most difficult for people to understand is the environmental bottom line.

Thomas Aquinas said, "Any error about creation also leads to an error about God."

We forget how intimate the relationship between God and the Earth is, and how it has been entrusted to us to "work and care" for it (Genesis 2:15).

About two years ago, when I landed in Kenya, everyone on the plane was warned not to take plastic bags off the plane and into the country, as those bags would attract a fine of $38,000 USD and four years in jail.  Quite an incentive to lose those bags!  It was amazing to see the plastic bags flying out of the carry-on bags.  We waded through knee-deep piles of plastic bag waste as we disembarked.  I was so proud of Kenya.



As of June 1, Tanzania has also started a plastic bag ban.  There are now 38 countries in Africa that have banned plastic bags.  Africa is leading the world in plastic bag bans (according to Quartz Africa).

Rwanda is looking to be the first plastic-free country.  They started their plastic bag ban in 2008, and Kigali is said to be Africa's cleanest city.  Kenya talks about how much cleaner the country is without plastic bags blowing around.

About 40% of solid waste in Africa is burned, which ends up in toxic pollution, causing asthma, heart disease, and other long-term medical issues.  Of the nine billion tonnes of plastic ever produced, only 9% has been recycled.  By 2050, if things do not change, there will be 12 billion tonnes of plastic litter (according to the UN Environment Programme).

Ghana, which now claims to have Africa's fastest-growing economy, struggles with frequent floods because of the plastic bags which clog up sewers and gutters.

Governments are paying attention to these challenges and there is a growing movement towards getting rid of single-use plastic, especially.  Bans on plastic straws and plastic cutlery are joining the banning of plastic bags in some places.

The higher the income and rate of urbanization, the greater the amount of solid waste that is produced.  On average, in high-income countries (for example, the US), it is 4.6 pounds per day per person (or 2.2 kg).  Less than one-quarter of that amount is recycled.  The rest ends up in landfills.


However, with China no longer buying the recycling from the US, much of the recycling from the US is also ending up in the landfill.

How I wish that the US would also ban plastic bags and take significant steps toward reducing the use of single-use plastic.

If you are concerned about this for yourself, take an assessment of how much solid waste you are producing every day and try to reduce it.  Take a careful look at single-use plastic especially (plastic wrap, straws, chip or snack bags, candy wrappers, etc) and see if there are alternatives.

Additionally, I have signed a petition for Michigan to ban plastic bags.  If you google your own city, state, or country, you will also find actions that you can join.

Let's join Africa in creating a healthier community and world for future generations!

What pain do you want in your life?

I read an article the other day that said too many of us are asking the wrong question, which is "What do you want out of life?"

The author stated that everyone wants to be happy, have a great family, and a job they love.  That is not new and it is not unique.  The bigger question he stated is what pain do you want in your life?  What are you willing to struggle for?  Because that seems to be a greater determinant of how our lives turn out.

It's an interesting thought.  The truth is that:

• To achieve what we want requires pain.  
• To be in a relationship means inevitably going through hurt feelings, emotional drama, and tough conversations.  
• To be in good shape physically means watching what you eat, exercising, sweat, soreness and hunger pangs.  
• To have a job you love takes a risk, repeated failures, education, experience (often from the ground up) and hard work. 

So what determines your success is not what you enjoy, but rather what pain you are willing to sustain. You can't have a pain-free life.  It really is the more difficult question.

Too often we want the reward and not the struggle.  We want the result and not the process.  We want the victory but not the fight.

When you can answer the question, "What pain do you want in your life?" then you can actually make progress in achieving your real goals. 

Shortly after reading this article, I was dealing with a dilemma regarding the DML and someone asked me what I wanted out of the situation in an ideal world.  I thought for a few minutes and answered that I thought the better question was what pain I was willing to put up with.  That completely changed the conversation to be more productive and helped us to really weigh the pros and cons.  We were able to move beyond the ideal to the real.

It's true that this is not a happy question. I tend to be somewhat of a realist though, so it works for me.

I have returned from a good and productive trip to Nigeria.  I now will be home for a month (which feels like a nice long stretch - first whole month home this year!) before heading to Malawi, Uganda, and Tanzania.  There are many programmatic things that need to get done as we continue to grow and learn, so the month will be busy but at least I will not be living out of a suitcase.  Thank you for your continued prayers!

Yet another exciting group picture - wish there were more exciting shots, but this is what we do!

Extreme Poverty in Nigeria

We are currently in Nigeria, where we have finished workshops in both Ilorian and in Igbaja.

In one part of our workshops, we ask the participants to answer the following questions:  Which institution do we look to primarily for alleviating poverty?  What about for promoting peace?

In most places, the two most common answers we hear are government and church.  Usually in that order.

Except, sadly, in Nigeria.  Government doesn't even enter the conversation.

And for good reason.

Our colleague from Kaduna had a kidnapping in his community just this past week.  Men came into the community in the night, shot guns in the air to scare everyone into hiding, kidnapped someone, and then left.  He was receiving calls from people, suspecting that he had been kidnapped.  His wife and children had to flee to the church for safety.  He has two doctorates and could be a prime suspect for kidnapping.  He believes that the reason for the many kidnappings in Nigeria is due to the high unemployment and the lack of effectiveness of the government to make business more conducive for the average citizen.  Nigeria ranks as 145 out of 190 countries for the ease of doing business overall, and 183 out of 190 countries for being able to trade across borders.  In a country of 200 million (currently - expected to double by 2050) that presents a real problem.

At another point in our workshop, I point out that in 1980, 52% of the world was considered to be living in extreme poverty.  Then I ask, do you think that number is higher or lower today?  Most people (from other countries) tell us that the number of people in extreme poverty has decreased.

Except, sadly, in Nigeria.

And for good reason.

The number of people living in extreme poverty worldwide has actually gone down to 25%, which is great!  But in Nigeria, it has increased from 51 million to 86 million.  Nigeria actually took the number one spot for highest number of people in extreme poverty in the world (passing India last year).

The reason that the number of people in extreme poverty dropped so significantly was not because of the work of non-profits or the Millennium Development Goals, but rather because of business.  China reduced the number of people in poverty from 756 million to 25 million primarily through manufacturing.  India decreased the number of people in poverty from 338 million to 218 million primarily through the service industry.

We tried to comfort Nigerians by saying that it's not that things have gotten SO much worse here that they are now holding the less than prestigious spot of #1 for people in extreme poverty but RATHER because China and India are doing so much better.  It is little comfort, and the truth is that the number has increased by 35 million.

We keep repeating that we need to be CREATING JOB MAKERS, not just job seekers.  The Church can have an impact on this.  By 2050, Nigeria will be the third most populous nation in the world (passing the US).  One in four people will by African by the year 2050, and by the year 2100, one in three people will be African.  But we need to make sure that Africans will own the companies, businesses and resources that will allow people to flourish (rather than foreigners)!  This trend of the number of people in Sub-Saharan Africa living in extreme poverty CAN be changed.

One other fact about Africa that is interesting is that the median age in most countries is below twenty years of age.  This is promising in terms of a labor force (median age in Europe is 40 years and median age in the US is 35 years) but it also means that jobs need to be created and those businesses creating those jobs should be owned by Africans.




Please join us in this work if you feel led - prayers, words of encouragement, and support are all needed!  We are working in five of the ten countries listed for having the highest extreme poverty in Africa, and we are seeing results in increased income and jobs being created.  For more information, go to www.disciplingmarketplaceleaders.org.

On Rest and Escape (by Hannah Reed)

I (Renita) just had a delightful nine days, starting with celebrating the graduation of my daughter Hannah with her Masters in Social Work (MSW) and then on to a one week vacation in Arizona with Michael, my mom, Hannah, Noah, Noah's girlfriend Hannah. To say it was needed and beautiful would be an understatement. I was home for just three hours from Arizon before heading back to the airport to Nigeria.

Hannah volunteered to write this blog from her perspective on these last couple of weeks, so here it is from her in her own words, written as we returned from AZ:

I officially graduated with my Masters in Social Work on June 21^st.  It will, I’m sure, feel great at some point to not have any classes to attend or homework to complete. However, on June 21, though I was happy and relieved, I was too tired to feel much of the real sense of relief and excitement that I imagine I should have felt based on how much it took out of me to get here. 

Over the past six months or so, and even more in the past month, people have asked what I plan to do now that I have attained this long-term goal.  My answer has varied but recently has been more consistent: Nothing.  At least, nothing different in the short term.  I plan to continue to be at my same job, not worrying about job applications or frantically studying for my licensing exam, and just allow myself to enjoy being where I am.  No immediate plans for change.  Changes will come- and when they do, I want to be ready for them.  

My answer to “what’s next?” has also recently included “Vacation”.  

Attending graduate school for the past few years, both to get certified as an alcohol and drug abuse counselor and as a masters level social worker (both of which require additional tests in order to be licensed) has been a privilege and something that I am very grateful for.  I recognize that I am privileged to be where I am and to have received the level of education I have been able to receive.  It has also drained me of energy.  I love social work but I also tend to want to give 100% to everything, and so when I have a class, work, church work, and an internship that I am trying to give 100% to, something (most things) loses out and I lose energy.  I thought that without class or an internship, I would have more of a shot to give more to the things that are left.  More time for friends, time to be creative and energetic at work with my clients, time to develop good, solid relationships with coworkers, time for my church community.  But I realized, coming up on May and June, that I had very little left to give.  I couldn’t recharge myself by escaping into a tv show or a book- I never wanted to leave those forms of escape and was immediately tired upon re-entering the “real world”.  Little things gave me anxiety.  Big things gave me more anxiety.  I was exhausted, lacking in joy, resentful of my responsibilities, but unable to say no to them due to feelings of guilt. I was burned out.  And felt guilty for being so, because each different thing that I had committed to and was passionate for wasn’t getting 100% from me, so how could any of them understand that I was burned out? Despite all the rational reasons for why I shouldn’t be burned out, I was still burned out.  I eventually acknowledged the guilt and the exhaustion, stopped trying to fight them or explain them away, and began to long for a break.  

Thankfully, one was planned right after the day I graduated.  I was able to leave Grand Rapids, get a whole week off of work (which I don’t think I have ever taken before, and am incredibly grateful for the job and boss that I have), and go to Arizona with my family.  

I love Arizona- it is one of my favorite places and the beauty here is breathtaking.  I spent a week not looking at email, barely able to access the internet as we were in the mountains where internet reception was spotty, and just be.  We did a lot and saw a lot.  There were good moments, great moments, and okay moments, but I didn’t worry about homework, or feel guilty about missing work, or anxious about not being a part of this meeting or that meeting.  I was able to both rest and escape, existing in the moment and in the mountains of Arizona.  

Escaping is something that I try to do too often in ineffective ways - I turn on the tv, open a book, try to drown out real life with something different and contrived.  Sometimes that is just enough of a break to help my brain feel rested.  But it is not the real rest that I need.  In Arizona, I climbed up rocky slopes, ran down paths of the Grand Canyon, stood on the edge of cliffs, felt the wind rushing through my hair and the sun warming me from head to toe.  I was not cold (which is unusual for me) and had no headaches (two years post-concussion headaches are a constant companion still). I have not had a week as free from headaches as this week in recent memory.  My body was active, but my mind was at rest.  I had escaped, in a way, from my everyday real life, but not from the real world.  I found rest and joy and escape.  

As soon as I get back on Sunday, I will go to a meeting at church.  Then, on Monday, work starts again as normal.  The difference between now and a week ago is that I do not feel like crying at the prospect of either of these things; I do not feel angry or resentful towards my responsibilities or guilty about feeling resentful, as I would have without the rest I have received.

Real rest for me comes not just in escaping to a contrived world on a page or a screen - both have their place, but neither last very long.  Real rest comes in being outside, experiencing the joys of Creation, hiking and walking and even zip lining.  It comes from exerting energy in a new way.  I needed rest.  I still need rest.  I won’t look for a new job yet - I love my job, and hope to stay there a while.  At some point, I will find a job that fits my degree, but waiting a while to make sure I have recaptured my energy and passion is important.  I am grateful for this past week, for my family who shared it with me, and for the friends and coworkers who have supported me through all the ups and downs of graduate school.  

One journey is at its end; the celebration for its ending is also at its end.  Now, I begin a period of rest and re-discovering who I am underneath the stress of this past journey, before I gear up for the next one.

I enjoyed taking pictures on this trip as well - I took more than 900 shots!

Antelope Canyon, on the Navaho Reservation - incredible beauty.  

Noah strikes a pose in the amazing Antelope Canyon

Enjoying time with my brother, Noah, and his girlfriend!

Mom and Michael taking in the si

My Oma, who joined us in ziplining at the Grand Canyon at the age of (almost) 83!  Happy Birthday, Oma!

On top of the Hoover Dam - I did say I love to feel the wind in my hair, right?