Very CRAF-ty!

For the past week, I’ve been participating in the Consultation Regionale d' Afrique Francaphone (CRAF.) This is a gathering of French-speaking ministry leaders who have met every two years for the past sixteen to share best practices in mission outreach across their continent. The venue of a vintage seaside hotel in Dakar, Senegal has been a great place for this meeting as men and women not only enjoy lively African worship in the lecture hall, but all sixteen workshops and training forms have been able to function during the day in the available boardroom/classroom facilities.

Despite the fact there are quite a few white faces in the mix (usually Western mission staff working in Africa) CRAF is totally run and managed by Africans themselves. Having attended way too many consultations dominated by Westerners, particularly Americans, I’m finding this distinct African flavor of CRAF to be very refreshing.

One of the sober highlights of the week was a poignant personal report brought by Anatole Banga, the representative from Central African Republic. The accounts he shared and even a short video taken secretly by a cellphone of the atrocities carried out specifically against Christians by the foreign insurgents was simply too horrendous to even explain or repeat. How governments like my own can stand by and give political excuses for non-involvement in such a human tragedy is simply beyond belief. And despite a few French troops now guarding the Bangui airport, Anatole claims there are still street killings every single day.

My reason for coming to CRAF was in response to an invitation to be one of the trainers for the CRAF Institute, a set of nine elective courses offered morning and afternoon. My topic was Biblical Stewardship and Resource Development – a fancy title for how to do local fund raising. Because many had never heard the word “intendance” (stewardship in French) before, hardly anyone signed up at first for my course. But by the time the word got around, I had about thirty of the 120 total CRAF participants joining me. And, it’s cool seeing how “intendance” has become a real buzz-word of this conference.

What really blew my mind, though, is how the folks in my course started making applications of Biblical stewardship to other areas of life besides just fund raising. “This would totally change how we ‘do church’ here in Africa!” said one person. “We simply have never really been shown that the Gospel is not just about spiritual restoration but also restoration of all areas of life.” As a result, I now have a standing invitation to return sometime to Senegal and lead a more in-depth exploration with local pastors of how to create practical applications in their own context of Biblical stewardship.   

One thing is for sure: it’s great working together with such CRAF-ty people!

Downsizing for Survival

It’s not what I came out here for. The original plan was a follow-up visit to this national Bible translation organization in northwestern DRCongo to provide the next stage of training in management and board governance principles.

 Instead, I discovered my friends here were grappling with a serious financial and management crisis that threatened their survival. Within two hours of stepping off the airplane in Gemena, DRC, I found myself addressing the board of directors and offering counsel towards an action plan than meant drastic downsizing.

Part of the reason I was recruited by Wycliffe Associates to provide organizational development training for national groups like these is because many of them have faced sudden transitions from being implementers of Western projects to now running complete programs all by themselves. Often feeling like they’ve been dropped into the deep end of the pool, many struggle to implement the basics of management without adequate training.

Meeting with board members and an after lunch shot at the director's home

 

 

That’s why I wasn’t totally surprised to find myself trying to explain to both management staff and board members that an approved budget that has twice as much expenditure as expected income simply doesn’t work!  Even then, it took some colorful graphs and cash-flow charts to help them see how they had no more options left but to cut costs and downsize--immediately.

So, although this week here in one of the most remote parts of Congo did not unfold the way I had expected, it has certainly been one of swapping earned friendship and credibility for some tough advice that hopefully will allow this important Bible translation ministry to survive onwards and even rebuild itself on a new, stronger foundation.

Of course, not all has been hard-nosed management discussion.  I’ve been treated every day to a lunch and dinner of very authentic Congolese food consisting of fufu (boiled manioc), pondu (manioc leaves), chiquong (fermented manioc) and boiled plantain bananas!

Ministry Update

Here are two ways that we are sharing updates about the past year of personal ministry.

The first is an infographic of ministry activity in 2013.

 

The second is this 2.5 minute video clip which you can watch on YouTube by clicking here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vhH6TtM8bk8

When I especially think about the 170,051 airline miles flown this past year, I am so grateful for God's hand of protection and safety every step of the way. PTL!

Under His wings,

Jon Lewis