The latest from Zambia

Hi, Sorry I've not posted sooner. It's tough to find the net around here.

July 26, 2008

As of this writing, I am sitting in the Johannesburg airport waiting for my final leg on the way in. I will be in Lusaka, Zambia for the first week. I will have been in a plane or in an airport for 24 hours by the time I get there. So far, it has been uneventful except that I did not know I would have a stop over in Darkar; we did not even de-plane though. All appears to be in order for my luggage to arrive with me in Lusaka. I figured out that this trip will take me to seven countries and three continents (ok, some are just lay overs).

Well, airports don’t make for exciting reports. Just keep praying. I start teaching on Monday, July 28. The only anxiety is not knowing what to expect in the teaching setting.
Pastor Joe

July 27, 2008 (Lusaka, Zambia)
It’s not even noon yet, and I’ve had a great Sunday. We visited Pastor Kenneth’s church for service. Services started at 6:00AM, but we did not have to be there until the 8:00AM service. John, the TPI leader, preached. I spoke just to give greetings from the church in the US and from Zion. They return greetings to you. (I should be able to preach next week). Lot’s of life and great music. Despite the jet lag, I had a wonderful time. We will take care of logistical needs today and then start teaching on Monday.

We drove through the street market which was full of people, but Pastor Kenneth said it was not crowded at all. He told us about the crime and poverty issues in the area. We had to make sure we did not hold our cameras out of the car window as they could easily be grabbed. The area was filled with squatters: people who would just build on a stake of land. That was home – no plumbing or electricity. There is a ditch in front of the house to dump waste. They just make do. The children, of course, are very cute and play with whatever they can find. At church, a group of kids wanted just to come over and shake hands.

All luggage and supplies have arrived with me!
Pastor Joe

July 28, 2008

I taught for the first day today. We had about 176 pastors and other visitors. We got a late start with registrations and setup and our lunch plans hit a snag. But, we made through our day well. The students are very responsive, appreciative, and interested.

My first teaching session is in Romans (1:1-3:20). I covered introductory material on the book, and then we dove right in. We examined Paul’s three purposes for his letter: Announce his visit, present the complete Gospel message, and address the Jew/Gentile conflict. He then states his thesis that we need God’s righteousness and can only access it by faith. We start with the bad news: we are horribly in need of a savior. Not only are people sinful, we revel in it. We would rather look to idols rather than our Creator. There is no excuse, and there is no hope for us on our own. Indeed, our situation is dire. I left them with the “bad news” of Romans (up to chapter 3). Tomorrow, we start the “Good News” of the rest of the book. I’m looking forward to it.


The second teaching session is in theology. Due to scheduling issues, I did not have a whole ninety minutes. As with Romans, we started with introductory material including various theological points of view and various types of theological study. Continuing, we discuss bias and interpretation/linguistic issues. Time ran out! I should have opportunity to catch up.

Keep praying!
Pastor Joe

July 29, 2008

Perspective is everything. I woke up this morning to find I had no hot water. It’s not that the water was not hot, no water came out. The frustration is not the water but the cost of the hotel does not match the level we should get. And, this place is considered a bargain. Then, later on, we were reminded that many of the pastors left for the training institute today at 5:00AM so they can get there by 8:30AM. It took so long because they had to walk. It’s hard to gripe about cold water now!

We received a great letter today from one of our attendees. He mentioned that he has attended other Bible conferences. He complained that they are more about the accomplishments or testimony of the speaker or that many go just to get a gift at the end or a free Bible. He appreciated that they are getting actual help for their ministries. Cool.

In Romans today, we covered 3:21 to 5:21. I was glad to leave the bad news section and give them the good news. We discussed how we are justified by the work of Christ. He has paid for our sins. Our original state is utterly hopeless by ourselves. Because of all this, we have reason to rejoice even in hard times. We discussed the terms justification, redemption, atonement, propitiation, and reconciliation. After the session, one of the men asked me about when a believer sins and confession. He also asked about this in relation to Romans 8:1, “There is now no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus.” It seems to be a hot issue here. I discussed it individually, but I will cover it when we get to that passage (Wednesday).

For the Theology class, we finished some preliminary thoughts and then moved to Theology Proper, the study of God. We discussed his attributes and how they relate to our lives. With that, I like to tell people about the infiniteness of God. It applies to all the attributes. While we say that God is loving, he is infinitely loving. While he is wise, he is infinitely wise. He is not just powerful, but infinitely powerful. We also tackled the Trinity. It’s a difficult subject, but we made it through. And, since we are behind a bit, we were able to catch up a bit and get to the Bible. We started with inspiration and how that works.

I am very blessed by the influence of these people. It’s true that we get more from those we serve than we give to them.

Pastor Joe