Mumena Missions

Congregation Report–The Church at Kankuwa

2012-02-01T15:30:00.000-08:00

The Christians at Kankuwa are excited about following Jesus and bringing others to Him.
For the past month, we have been practicing personal evangelism. During the weekly Bible study on Tuesday, each person takes a turn reading and leading a discussion as if he was teaching his family and friends in the village. They enjoy these practice sessions because it makes them see that each Christian has the ability to bring others to Christ. The men are learning how to teach other men and the women how to teach other women. Those who can read are willing to help those who can’t so they can both work together to reach others.
This is an exciting time to see how God is working through them. I have been working with Kankuwa for over three years. Through that time I have seen them grow from young Christians with much confusion, to soldiers of Christ who are willing to take a strong stand for Biblical truth.
For example, during the Bible study yesterday, I had little need to say much. As I was listening to them discuss the scriptures, I had a few different important thoughts to contribute. However, before I had a chance to say anything, one of them would make the same point.
I enjoy the encouragement and love that comes from brothers and sisters who are all trying to follow Christ together.
- Rick & Karen Love

Team Blog Summary – December 2011

2012-01-16T09:46:00.000-08:00

Here is a summary of our team’s blogs for December. Click on a title to go to the full article.

Brian & Sondra Davis

MISSIONARY JOURNEY: Jason Davis, apprentice
“and all the people came early in the morning to hear him at the temple.” Luke 21:38 NIV An apprentice has to choose a mentor. (I am always humbled when someone puts that level of trust in my hands.) Apprentices also get to choose when they will accept mentoring. Jason has a habit of showing up early in the morning. This impresses me to no end! Not only does he understand the finer points of coffee consumption, but frankly, my mind works better in…

MISSIONARY JOURNEY: Mentoring
“What you have heard me teach publicly you should teach to others. Share these teachings with people you can trust. Then they will be able to teach others these same things.” 2 Timothy 2:2 ERV One of the great joys of missionary life is when one gets the opportunity to mentor an apprentice over a 2 year period. I was fortunate to have this experience in my formation as a young missionary and have endeavored to return the favor. Prior to this year, I have…

MISSIONARY JOURNEY: Servant hood Leadership
“…and whosoever would be first among you, shall be servant of all.” Mark 10:44 ASV Every once in a while, a missionary gets to see the fruit. While at a women’s Bible school training seminar among the Congolese refugees, we witnessed Congolese church leaders cooking and preparing a meal for the ladies of the congregation. They had built their little grass kitchen, prepared a traditional meal, and even washed all of the dishes. After the seminar, I asked the…

Rick & Karen Love

Needed: Home School Teacher
We just put up some information about our need for a home school teacher for our children. You might be interested or know someone else who could do this. Please see the following page for more information: Home School Teacher for Our Children

Pigs, Prayer, Praise, and Power
Our growing family is healthy and growing well. Caleb now has two and a half teeth and I call him our little snagle tooth. Even with teeth coming in for the most part he's a very contented little boy. Emily is well also. She's our little pink, poofy dress, wedding veil (piece of old mosquito net), princess shoes, singing, little darling. She loves to put layer upon layer upon layer of skirts (in the middle of our hot season) to make her dresses as big as possible. But under all those layers of…

Jeremy & Whitney Davis

Christmas or “Kimishish” in KiKaonde
We are two weeks shy of having lived in Zambia for one year.That is so hard to believe. Part of me feels like we just got here and anotherpart of me feels like I can’t even remember what carpet looks like or what DietCoke tastes like. Anyways, this post is not about our one year mark, that willcome later. Jeremy and I have been married for three years now, and wehave only been home for one Christmas so far in our marriage. Our Jamaican honeymoonfell on Christmas and now our third Christmas together…

Three Years
Three years ago today, I became Mrs. Jeremy Davis! It has been an incredible three years. I am blessed and so thankful. How do you put in to words what your marriage means to you? I don't know, but these three years have been the years I've loved the most and grown the most. We are blessed.

Fields and Christmas
After the day I had yesterday I am so grateful for a God that is so much bigger than me. I am thankful for his hand which is stretched out over those I cannot reach and over things I simply do not and will not understand. I am thankful that he is with my 91 year old grandmother as she fights back pains in Rome, GA and is having to take an unexpected 30 day stint in a live-in rehab to heal. I miss her and wish I could sit with and listen to her stories to pass the time, but God is there. On the opposite end…

Sunday Blessings
Yesterday we had a full and rewarding day. Jason, Erin,Jeremy and I all set off for the refugee camp for church. We were going toworship at Rd. 68 church because one of Jeremy and Jason’s close friends hadjust lost his baby. Very tragic situation, but all too common in Zambia. The service was great as usual. Rd. 68 church of Christ isone of the oldest churches we have worked with, and they are all Congolese.They get VERY involved in worship: loud clapping like you’ve never heard beforeand singing…

Jason & Erin Davis

Mini Update
It has been quite a while since we have given an update. We have been very busy lately having fun with my visiting parents and holiday festivities. Here a few pictures from the past few weeks! We have been having some beautiful sunsets! Ellie hosted a missionary ladies tea time a few days before Christmas. She made each of us our own little gingerbread dolls that had different hair colors. We had to go around to each doll to find our where we were sitting based on the doll that looked like us! So…

Newsletter!!
After several days of technical difficulties we were finally able to send out a new newsletter! Here it is...click on an image of a page then right click and choose "view image." That will open the image to a widow where you will automatically have the magnifying glass as your cursor. Use the magnifying glass tool to zoom in and read the articles. I hope that isn't too confusing. If it is, comment on the bottom with your email address so we can add you to our email list! Happy Holidays from…

Congregation Report - Mumbezhi Church of Christ

2012-01-14T05:59:00.000-08:00

This year we have tried to stress the need for each congregation to grow via evangelism. In a land where truth is relative and ecumenicalism is embraced as “right”, evangelism pushes people out of their comfort zone. Thus accepting this great work of the church is a challenge for our young church plants.

The Mumbezhi congregation is actually outside of the Mumena Chieftaincy and is pretty far out in the bush. The majority are from different tribes, Lunda and a few Congolese. Mumbezhi, however, has been excited about evangelism. After teaching about the Gospel for several months, one Sunday when we arrived the congregation announced that 11 people wanted to put on Jesus in baptism. What a joy!

We pray that all of our young churches will grow in this value and skill.
- Brian & Sondra

Team Blog Summary–November 2011

2011-12-12T01:10:00.001-08:00

Here is a summary of our team’s blogs for November. Click on a title to go to the full article.

Team

Congregation Report - Kayonge Church of Christ

Congregation Report - Mushingashi Church of Christ

Congregation Report - Mutanda Church of Christ and Kanda-kanda Preaching Point

Rick & Karen Love

Love Family Blog

We decided to start our family blog back up and separate it from the team blog. This will give a space to put our family news up that may not be relevant to our work as missionaries.

Raining in Zambia

Greetings from a very wet Zambia. The rainy season is now in full force. Everything is starting to turn into a beautiful deep green and flowers are blooming every where. We're doing ok. The power has been out for some time though and I hope it comes on soon. Also, our back-up solar on our house has stopped working properly. The solar batteries have gotten too old. This having to use candle light at night isn't always the most ideal way of having fun. (Batteries for flash lights are very expensive…

Jeremy & Whitney Davis

Mumena in November

I am happy to inform you that we are back in Kaonde land, Mumena. We had a huge thunderstorm to welcome us back as we were going to sleep Wednesday night. Jeremy and I have a tin roof, so when the rain gets hard enough we literally have to yell at each other to communicate. It is pretty funny. I loved getting back and seeing the sweet faces that we have been working with. I have a friend, Mesa, who is 17 or 18 years old and has an 18 month old baby. She spends each day hauling water for her family since she…

New Season

The rains are definitely here. The past few days it has rained constantly, especially at night, which I love. It always makes me think of my momma and grandmother, hearing the rain hit so hard on our roof—they always enjoyed listening to rainstorms under a tin sheet porch. Who knew that one day that would be what my roof is made of. Here are some pictures showing some of the perks of the rainy season. Since the ground is still really tough, we will wait until the end of the month to plant and garden, so I…

Quick Update

Just wanted to show a few pictures today. I am so proud of my husband and how he handles his work and passion in Zambia. I am a blessed woman. Here he is teaching some Congolese "youth" about serving and teaching the church. There are seven men who came early this week from the Maheba Refugee Camp, just 45 minutes away from us. They have been working with Brian, Jason and Jeremy (the 3 Davis men) on preparing lessons and learning how to use their Bibles to teach. These men are still considered…

Rainy Season Adventures

Last week, we had a seminar for 6 young Congolese men training them how to be preachers. I won’t write much about that experience, but you can see Jason and Erin’s blog as they tell more. However, one thing that happened proved to be very memorable. The last day they were here, we took them out to a Bible study in Mushingashi that go to every week. They were going to get a chance to practice preaching for this small congregation. So we all loaded up in the truck and headed off for the 40minute…

Happy Thanksgiving!

We had a great Thanksgiving in Mumena with our team and our special guest, Chief Mumena! All of the ladies had previously met to divide up who cooks what, and we ended up with a very, VERY good meal. I was feeling especially thankful that day for our Chief who is so supportive of our team. I was so glad he came to share in our tradition. I was also so thankful for our families many, many miles away and our amazing supporters back home. We are so blessed! We had the honor of being responsible for cooking…

Jason & Erin Davis

Shiny and Smooth Mud Floor

Yesterday morning I ventured off a few miles toward the roadside on my little blue bicycle to spend some time with the sweet ladies from the congregation Jason and I work the closest with, Kampande. The Kampande church is such a wonderful and faithful group of believers. They recently put a new roof on their church building with iron sheets. Their old one was made of grass which was not completely leak proof during the rainy season. They are so excited about their new roof and have much reason to be…

Give Thanks Unceasingly

"...for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength." -Philippians 4:11-13 Content, peaceful, thankful. These three words could be described as emotions, adjectives, and gifts. You can't have one without the other. Can you be…

The Heart of a Preacher, First Blooms, and Birthday Wishes!

It has been a great week so far. Sunday Jason and I visited the Rd. 68 congregation at the Maheba Refugee Settlement so we could transport a few young men back to Mumena for a preaching seminar Jason, Jeremy, and Brian have been teaching the past three days. I have sat in on a couple of Jason's classes and really enjoyed watching him strive to inspire these men while teaching about the "heart of a preacher." Jason has taught on the topics of love, humility, and lastly this morning, service. …

Insta-Mumena Part II

Although I have put intagramming on the back burner a bit the past couple of weeks I do have a couple of photos and one horrific story to tell: Welcome to our front yard: Lake front living; it's quite luxurious! Care packages: My sister and brother-in-law are some of the world's greatest care package givers. They always manage to fit more in one box than I thought possible and send wonderful goodies. Maeci does have an advantage above many when it comes to care packages because she sent them…

Thanksgiving in Mumena

We had a great first thanksgiving meal in Mumena yesterday. So much to be thankful for! Here are a few pictures! Turkeys at the grocery store here cost over $50 so we had home grown turkeys to eat! The turkey roasting team The Davis Families Chief Mumena stopped by to take part in the yummy food Lydia Love The Chief's yellow bug! Caleb and Emily Love. I think Caleb was wondering where all the turkey went. It was a new experience being away from family on Thanksgiving but…

Congregation Report - Mutanda Church of Christ and Kanda-kanda Preaching Point

2011-11-26T23:10:00.001-08:00

The Mutanda church is partnering with us at Kanda-kanda, our new preaching point. We have been having Bible studies there for over four months now.

About two months ago, a man named Aaron was dying from tuberculosis, so we had some personal Bible studies with him. He wanted to become a Christian so he was baptized becoming the first Christian there. Since then he has been recovering from the tuberculosis and always attends the group Bible study. Then, three weeks ago, we started studying about obeying the gospel in the group study. After Bible study there was one person who was baptized. We repeated the study the next week and two more were baptized: One, the head man of the village, Mr. Kanda-kanda Pupe.

Now we have started a study of the church from the book of Acts. They want to begin meeting on Sundays and we encouraged them to do so, all on their own. Please keep these new babes in Christ and the work at Kanda-kanda in your prayers.

The Mutanda church has nearly finished the remodeling of their building. They have worked very hard to finish before there is too much rain. Even though they are busy, they have been faithful to help with planting a new congregation at Kanda-kanda. Thank God for these faithful Christians.

- Sam & Ellie

Congregation Report - Mushingashi Church of Christ

2011-11-21T07:44:00.000-08:00

A church of about 15 adults mostly 50 year old and above, Mushingashi is a light in the middle of darkness. They have faithful members that day after day challenge the drunken atmosphere that surrounds them.

One of the recent highlights for them was the conversion of a Pentecostal leader who has a strong influence in this community. Lwendo came to worship one Sunday stating that, because of the longstanding relationship and Bible teaching he had encountered with these Christians, he was ready to join a family that was committed to following Christ and his word rather than the words of men at his previous church home.

Lwendo is a young and vibrant person with a heart to seek God’s kingdom. He is in a slave-like situation where he was convinced that if he worked, for free, for the “apostle” of the Pentecostal church that he was serving God. Consequently, this “apostle” doesn’t even allow Lwendo time to go to Bible study. He works him like a slave and is the richest person in the area. Lwendo has finally seen the lies through the persistence and outreach of the Christians in Mushingashi.

Pray for this church to continue to grow as it faces new persecutions as a local Pentecostal church has just lost their most vibrant leader.
- Jeremy & Whitney Davis

Congregation Report - Kayonge Church of Christ

2011-11-12T07:49:00.000-08:00

The Kayonge church suffered a terrible split a year ago. Two of their church leaders gave themselves over to sin and left and took others with them.
Now, there are three men leading a small group of women and children. The church has been working really hard to finish their building. For the past eight months they had been meeting in the local school, but now they meet in the church building with an almost finished roof.
The church of Kayonge is committed and willing to suffer persecution for Christ. The five faithful women that attend are learning to teach their children in Sunday Bible class. The men are learning how to be more involved leaders and are gifted in teaching. They are self-supporting and are learning more and more about what real evangelism means. Whenever a visitor shows up for Sunday worship, the church leaders follow up with them for a weekly Bible study.
Please pray for strength for this faithful congregation.
- Jeremy & Whitney Davis

Cultural Insights: Respect & Hospitality

2011-10-15T06:45:00.000-07:00

Last post, I explained a very evil tradition: The Flying Coffin. This time, I will explain a wonderful cultural value: Showing Respect and Hospitality.

Some traditions show the very image of God shining in a people group. The way the Kaonde people show respect and hospitality to each other is amazing.

Respect is key to all relationships among the Kaonde. They always greet others with a warm greeting. Even strangers great each other with a quick acknowledgement. Failing to acknowledge somebody immediately causes that person to ask, "Why is he mad at me? What have I done to offend him?"

We missionaries often fail to show proper respect. In our culture, it is not very important anymore. We are too busy to greet every person we encounter throughout the day, even if we do know them. Unless we have something to say, we often don't say anything at all. Instead we quickly go to our office, our car, our private place, to do our own thing.

Living among the Kaonde community, I have learned how to sincerely greet and acknowledge others. Also, I have learned what real hospitality is like. Here if a visitor comes to the house, the household stops what they are doing. They say welcome (and mean it) and quickly get a seat for the guest. After he or she is seated, they then give all attention and start a conversation. It is even slightly offensive to ask, "Can I help you?" or "Do you need anything?" because it seems like the guest is unwanted or being rushed. Getting straight to business is equivalent to saying, "You are not important to me, I just want to know what you can offer me."

Obviously, we have made many mistakes while we live here. I have rushed by people without noticing they are there. Later, they have said to me, "Why didn't you greet me?" I apologize and tell them I am still learning how to give respect since we foreigners are not very good at that. They are very gracious and do not take it personally. When that happens, it is a quick reminder that I am not focusing on what is important.

God has made us a family of his children. The relationships we have are far more important than any busy-ness. Obviously, there are times to rush (like in a medical emergency). However, every day life is not supposed to go by in such a rush that we don't have time to show that we actually care about others around us.

Next time you go to work, school, or even in a restaurant, take time to say hi to those you encounter. This is a great lesson we westerners can learn from the "3rd world" who put priority on personal relationships. We may have most of the money, technology, and food, but if we forget to develop relationships, we are very poor indeed. It won't take much time to greet others warmly, but it will make a huge impact on our life.

I am thankful to learn some good life lessons from the Kaonde even as I try to teach them God's word.
- Rick Love

Cultural Insights: The Flying Coffin

2011-10-13T06:17:00.000-07:00

Some traditions are just plain evil, like the Flying Coffin tradition of the Kaonde people.

Let me try to describe it from the traditional Kaonde point of view:
The flying coffin is a ceremony to destroy the evil witch who has caused the person (in the coffin) to die. This is done to bring peace back to the community before the witch can kill another person. The men who carry the coffin will take a herbal drug that will put them into a trance. This will allow the ancestral spirits to guide them to find the witch. During the funeral, they will start carrying the coffin. The spirits will guide the coffin and even make it hover over their arms to the witch's house. Then the witch will be accused and beaten to death, thus eliminating the threat to the peace of the community. Sometimes if this ceremony is not performed, the coffin will come back up out of the ground after it has been buried. Then it will fly to the witch and bring a curse to that witch or beat the witch to death itself.

Obviously, I have some problems with this perspective. Let me give my perspective:
Revenge belongs to God! He is the only one capable of judging and forgiving a person through Jesus Christ. The flying coffin is an attempt to seek revenge against an unknown enemy. However, it is based on the assumption that all physical consequences are a result of other humans bringing evil into the community. The ancestral spirits which the people trust to guide them to the "witch" are actually demonic spirits seeking to destroy an innocent person. The men carrying the coffin are acting as Satan's servants bringing murder to the community (thus they are the very witches they want to destroy). During the ceremony, I am sure Satan finds it quite humorous to see these men murder innocent people in the name of restoring peace. This is a demonic and abominable tradition which must be boldly spoken against by the Kaonde Christians.

The flying coffin is illegal and punishable as murder according to the Zambian law. However, the police cannot do much without the support of traditional leaders like the local chief. In some chieftancies, the chief has helped to punish the men who have done the flying coffin. In those places, the tradition is reduced and the men are most likely to allow the offending "witch" to pay a large fine instead of being beaten to death. However, in many places innocent people still die each month because of this evil tradition.

For example, about a month ago, a man was beaten to death in a nearby village. However, the family went to the police claiming their father was innocent (this is a good change, because in the past the family would ofter turn against their own family member and join in accusing him). The traditional leadership was very angry that this happened and the men were arrested. From what I understand, they are expected to be put in prison for 5 to 10 years.

Please pray that Christians will stand strongly against this practice and spread the message that God will judge according to his just ways. God has put governments into place to give criminals a fair trial where evidence is considered and the truth is attempted to be found. This is not perfect as human judges and criminal justice systems still make mistakes. However, it is far better than revenge killings. In revenge killings everything is led by pure anger and hatred and no sense of justice or truth is accomplished. God has taught clearly that revenge does not accomplish anything good - Romans 12:19

- Rick Love

Congregation Report - Road 68 Church of Christ

2011-10-11T05:09:00.000-07:00

One Sunday morning in the Congolese refugee congregation at Road 68, Brother Kazadi preached on how King Solomon determined who was the true loving parent of a certain child in question. Kazadi concluded his lesson with a passage from Romans 9:8…

“This means that it is not the children of the flesh who are the children of God, but the children of the promise are reckoned as descendants.” RSV

Kazadi pointed out how our Heavenly King has determined our parentage even in a world of violence and brokenness. As a result, we have both safety and belonging regardless of what Satan has done to our families here on earth. Bro. Kazadi’s lesson was all the more poignant knowing that his wife had passed away only a couple of months earlier. Kazadi continues to care for his 9 children now as a single parent and has begun children’s Bible school classes for the elementary children at the Road 68 congregation.

“For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.” Romans 8:14 KJV

Rejoicing in belonging and safety,
Brian, Sondra, Noah, & Bryson

Congregation Report - Kyongozhi Church of Christ

2011-10-03T02:14:00.000-07:00

We have enjoyed visiting the Kyongozhi church of Christ over the past months. They are very small congregation but are working hard to push forward with making bricks for a more substantial structure to meet in. They are sending four women to the Ladies seminar this weekend which are very excited about. Visiting there with Brian and Sondra has been a great learning experience as we observe their interaction with a maturing church plant. Since we will not be able to visit them during the rainy season due to road conditions we hope to spend a few more Sunday's with them before November.

-Jason & Erin Davis

Christian Chronicle Article

2011-09-06T20:54:00.001-07:00

We were just told about an article in the Christian Chronicle about our work here.

Read it here:

Article in Christian Chronicle

- Rick & Karen Love

Restarting Blog

2011-09-01T07:17:00.001-07:00

Just a quick note for everyone: The Mumena Missions blog has been redesigned and we will be using it regularly again to send out news about the work here at Mumena.

God has blessed us to see Him working in many ways here.

Remember to visit our Facebook page for the latest activities:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Mumena-Missions/289990056262

Team Newsletter: March – May 2010

2010-06-11T14:37:00.001-07:00

Read our Team Newsletter

Below is a copy of the text from the newsletter:

Harvest time is a joyful time of year in Zambia. The farmers finally have enough food to sell their surplus and buy some extras which they often do without (like soap and sugar). Living close to creation constantly reminds us who is truly in control.

April Servant-Hood Seminar – Rick Love

In April, we invited 20 men to come and continue learning the Word of God. We had three classes for one month. First, Garry Montgomery came from America to teach about servant leadership. Second, Brian and Rick taught the book of Acts. Finally, each student took his turn to practice teaching a section from Acts.

Each of the leaders continues to grow in his commitment to God and serving others in his community.

Kandemba House Church – Leonard Mujala

This little congregation is located just near the airport in Solwezi and meets in the home of Mr. & Mrs. Nyevuka. The Nyevukas used to walk a long distance to the Messenger congregation and finally thought of starting a congregation in their home with two other families. They live in a large compound and will have many people nearby with which to share the gospel. The Messenger congregation where John Maseka preaches is fully supporting this new church plant within Solwezi.

On its first Sunday meeting, two people came forward to be baptized and one restored! Twenty two people assembled together on their first Sunday which has caused them to begin looking around for a possible room for rent or perhaps a plot of land on which to build. I visited the other congregations in town to encourage them to be visiting this new congregation. Solwezi is a mining town that is growing in population. English is well spoken there. We hope to have a major distribution of World Bible School material in Solwezi later this year. I know that you will join me in prayer that God will give a great harvest!

Matenda! – Brian Davis

Each year the rains threaten to wash away our 2 mile dirt road from the paved highway to our village where we live. Three years ago, Leonard Mujala mentioned a word in KiiKaonde that might help in the road’s annual repair: matenda. The meaning of this word exists in numerous cultures here in Africa and most language groups have a single word for this idea. I haven’t found a single word for this concept in English. Perhaps the closest phrase that we have is “a barn raising”.

The idea is that the community pulls together in a volunteer effort to accomplish a task that will bless the whole community. During the last two years, we have had from 10 to 15 community volunteers come out to work together with us on the road. This year we had around 30 volunteers! We are prayerful that this indicates a willingness of the community to perceive us as part of the community rather than as a foreign aid agency. This has been a perception problem that we have been wrestling against since we began.

The acceptance of the road being a community responsibility and believing that they can help themselves with the help of God is a big step in the process of overcoming “a poverty of being” that is well entrenched in our people group. As Chief Mumena recently shared with me, “The Kaonde are a noble people with many talents. They just need to re-find themselves again.” The word matenda may be a language key that helps them to do just that!

We are on Facebook

In trying to communicate with as many people as possible, we have a team page on Facebook. Become a fan to keep updated with everything that is happening in Mumena.

Mumena Missions

Team Newsletter: February 2010

2010-03-13T03:47:00.001-08:00

Read our Team Newsletter

Below is a copy of the text from the newsletter:

February is a hard time for the farmers in Zambia. Most of them have eaten all their stored maize (corn), so they are left searching for something to replace their staple food.

Appropriate Technology – Rick

Building a compost pile

One of the major problems that causes starvation and malnutrition in Zambia is dependency on maize.

Everybody grows maize even though it is the most expensive crop to grow and has the lowest price when it is time to sell. That doesn’t make any sense, but people cannot risk change because they fear their family might starve. Before changing, they have to see something that works better.

Since I live among farmers, it is important for me to relate to their struggles. So, I started a garden this year. However, I want to introduce simple and cheap technology that can drastically improve gardening. This is called Appropriate Technology.

A rope pump is an example of that. For about $40 (which is cheaper than one bag of fertilizer), a rope pump can be made that can pump water from up to 150 feet. This can be put on any type of well (like a traditional hand dug well).

This simple pump can enable anybody to make a garden near their village (It also has the bonus of providing water for drinking, cooking, and bathing). The people can see the benefit, make the well and pump themselves, and pay for everything without any help.

A local youth testing the rope pump

As we are teaching the Kaonde we must be the salt in their community that causes them to thank God for our presence, which Jesus spoke about in Matthew 5. Even here people want to see your love in action before they trust your words.

Hopefully, by showing them a way to feed their own families on earth, they will also understand that God wants to give them spiritual food.

Rick & Karen Love

Standing? – Brian

It is quite a contrast between the snowy United States and the balmy Central African tropics! We arrived back from our furlough after a leisurely 9 hour lay-over in London. This actually worked to our advantage as we have experienced less jet lag than usual. As we have gotten back into the swing of things here, we were trembling as we wondered what we would find.

You never know what you are going to come back to. For instance my gardener decided to “skip” work for the three months prior to our arrival. Thus the garden was ruined. Thankfully our new grocery store was still in business, but our gardener is now un-employed. The much greater test is whether the new churches “skip” worship for the missionary’s furlough.

While delivering this year’s invitations to our April Bible School, we have seen time and time again young churches who are focused on being faithful and who – in some cases – are even growing numerically. This is an important test of each missionary’s work. The rains have been harsher than usual this year with many villages being flooded out and several houses collapsing. Thus we have been prevented from visiting our outlying congregations as of yet, but we hope to pass the test as the roads begin to become passable.

“The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.”
Matthew 7:25 NIV

Pray that our outlying young churches stand on the Rock!

Brian & Sondra Davis

We are now on Facebook

In trying to communicate with as many people as possible, we now have a team page on Facebook. Become a fan to keep updated with everything that is happening in Mumena.

Mumena Missions

Love Letters (News): January 2010

2010-02-20T03:49:00.001-08:00

View Love Newsletter January 2010

Above is the link to the newsletter in PDF format for printing and easy reading. You can also download it and print it out from there.

Below is a copy of the text from the newsletter:

The rainy season is an uneventful time in rural Zambia. It seems like time stops as everyone gets into a busy routine of working in the fields and seeking shelter when the rain comes. This slow-paced, down-to-earth lifestyle allows deep relationships to grow between everyone in the community.

Accountability Group – Rick

The Accountability Group building a house for an elderly man who had no shelter Among the young men who come to the Bible studies, many of them have had difficulty changing their lives. Lying, getting drunk, and sleeping around are the norm here among young people. These young men that want to change don’t know how to stop. We started an accountability group in December where everyone would have to speak openly about their mistakes. By confessing our sins to those we trust, we learn to stop lying. By speaking about drinking and sleeping around, we see how it destroys our lives. Rather than inviting each other to go drink or “chase women”, we spend time together doing good. Some of the men are finally starting to change their lives and reputations in the community. Hopefully, after many years, these men will become the future leaders of the church and leaders in their communities.

Women’s Bible Study – Karen

In January, we began a ladies’ bible study. My three closest Zambian friends are meeting so far. We have been going through the book of Romans as well as looking through the scriptures on how to live as Godly women should. Women here are silent and have been taught from infancy to keep quiet about ones thoughts and emotions. One question that has surfaced on more than one occasion is: “Karen we don’t know how to love. Many of us mamas do not love our children. Also, our husbands, our neighbors, and others in our villages don’t know. How do we love our children?”

How do I answer that? We have been studying for a few weeks now, and already, I am seeing changes in some of the women and an openness that is encouraging. There is still much ground to cover, but they have taken steps in the right direction. Please pray for these beautiful ladies and their families.

Sam & Ellie Rodriguez’s Survey Trip – Rick

Sam and Ellie visited from Cedar Hill in January. They came because they are considering joining the team next year to continue the work that Don and Rita Boyd have been doing. We enjoyed their visit and their involvement with the Bible studies while they were here. They saw the reality that they would possibly be coming back to live here in the next year. If God continues to bless those plans we look forward to having them as part of our team-family.

Christmas – Karen

Christmas dawned full of sunshine and eager little Loves longingly staring at the stockings hung with care (ducked taped to the window sill) and presents under the Christmas tree. At first we thought we’d have a quiet little Christmas in the bush since our team mates were out on furlough or spending the holiday with old friends until Rick surprised us with a nice Christmas gift. After peaking in our stockings, ripping open our presents, and enjoying fruit salad, hot cinnamon rolls, and hot cocoa for breakfast, Rick packed up the family and drove us to a nice restaurant in Solwezi. We enjoyed Christmas dinner (chicken instead of turkey) and more ‘Zambianized’ cooking which was delicious. While there, the kids enjoyed pony and horse rides, a blow-up jumping castle, a blow up water slide, and even Santa was there. Matthew and Lydia enjoyed seeing Santa though Matthew, our sweet little four year old, said in the car, “Santa is pretend, but God is real.” He’s on the right track of where his heart should be. It was a lovely family day that we will remember and treasure.

Matthew’s School – Rick

Matthew started Kindergarten when Sam and Ellie arrived with his schools books. We are using a Home School curriculum called Sonlight. The school mainly consists of reading interesting stories together and then discussing them together. So far, he really enjoys it. He is free to go at whatever pace he wants in each subject. In this way, he is engaged in the subject with understanding and enjoyment rather than slugging through boring subjects with confusion. No surprise, his favorite subject is Math and we will have to get the 1st grade Math book soon.

May God bless you and your family,

Rick and Karen Love

Love Letters (News): September - October 2009

2009-11-06T23:21:00.001-08:00

View Love Newsletter 2009-10

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New Christians at Kankuwa

Two weeks ago after the Bible study at Kankuwa, two people wanted to become Christians. We taught a brief lesson about baptism and then two others said they wanted to be baptized again because they did not know what they were doing the first time. That afternoon the four of them were baptized into Jesus.

When one of the women went home her husband was angry with her because she was baptized. However, the church met with them over the next week and helped calm him down. Please pray that he will also listen to Jesus and follow Him.

New Restoration Bible Study

Last month we started a new Bible study for many of our friends who attend denominational churches. We want to teach them to follow only the Bible. They have enjoyed hearing this new idea and are beginning to understand how they can follow Jesus himself rather than doctrines that change his teachings.

Harding Visitors

We had an excellent visit from a group of Harding students who are currently attending Harding in Zambia. While they were here, they attended some classes about missions, went to a Seminar with the Congolese refugees, and had an early Trick or Treating for our kids. Everybody enjoyed their visit and we hope Harding will come again next year.

May God bless you and your family,

Rick and Karen Love

Love Letters (News): August 2009

2009-09-23T12:08:00.001-07:00

View Love Newsletter 2009-08

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Many exciting things happened in August. We were able to participate in a marriage seminar, the churches had many great meetings, and two of our friends had babies.

African Marriage Seminar

Fieldon and Janet Allison have been missionaries in Africa for over 20 years. They are traveling through Zambia and teaching marriage seminars as they go.

We invited 10 married couples to come and attend the three day seminar. The seminar’s purpose was to train the couples so they could teach others. We also attended the lessons. They were very helpful and were well suited for the village context. The Allisons understand this culture well and taught what was most helpful for them. We hope that the couples will improve their marriages and teach others as well.

Youth Seminar at Campande

Seeing the need to reach to the youth in Mumena, Campande church held a youth seminar and invited all the young people in the local area. The meeting was from Friday night to Saturday afternoon. Two local leaders taught as well as Brian Davis and myself. We taught how each person must choose which path they will go.

One young man was baptized into Christ and many others have started to attend on Sunday morning. The leaders at Campande church have decided to have meetings for the youth at least twice a year. Pray that the other churches will also begin holding youth seminars and that the young people will dedicate their lives to Jesus.

Lucia’s Baby

Karen’s good friend Lucia had a baby at the end of the month. She wanted Karen to be there, so we took her to the hospital and Karen helped her throughout the night. The baby was born at 2AM. Karen and Emily stayed with Lucia and helped her care for the baby the rest of the night. Lucia asked Karen to choose his name, so she chose Daniel after Karen’s brother.

May God bless you and your family,

Rick and Karen Love

Love Letters (News): July 2009

2009-07-03T03:18:00.001-07:00

View Love Newsletter 2009-07

Above is the link to the newsletter in PDF format for printing and easy reading. You can also download it and print it out from there.

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Everything has slowed down a bit here since most of the visitors from America left during the first part of July. Our family has moved where the Bruingtons used to live before they left. The bigger house has been a great blessing to us now that we have three children. The people who come to the weekly Bible studies are continuing to grow in understanding and love for others.

Kankuwa Church Update

In the last newsletter, I mentioned a man named Gladson. He had been persecuted by his family because of his father Sawanda. Well, about a week after writing the last newsletter, Gladson was physically attacked by his brothers with the support of Sawanda, his father. He escaped by fleeing from his village. Since then, he has been renting a house in a nearby village, while getting ready to build a new house.

Still after being attacked, Gladson has refused to go to the police. He has forgiven his father and brothers and continues to pray that they can change their hearts and come back to God.

Gladson has lost all of his possessions and continues to love those who attacked him. His example has truly been a blessing to the Kankuwa church.

At the same time while building his new house, he has continued to help lead the church. They have completed the new church building, organized a seminar for August, and continue teaching and inviting everybody in the area to learn about Jesus.

In the past three months, they have gone from 8 people to about 40. About 20 people have returned and many visitors are now regularly attending. These people have seen the love of God through Gladson and now they are also following Jesus without fear.

Because everyone has heard what has happened to Gladson, many Christians from the other churches in Mumena want to help him. They have arranged a work day on August 29^th where they will be making mud bricks for his house.

All of this has shown how God can turn an evil situation into a blessing for His family.

John 13:35 “By this all people will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” – HCSB

Family News

This month we moved into our new house. In addition to moving, I also have been building some furnishings that were unfinished. Now we have a place for everything and can organize our house. This really helps us feel at home here. Also, Matthew’s birthday was last month. He was glad to have some of his friends, the Bruces, visit from Solwezi. We played many games like bobbing for apples and musical chairs.

With the campaigners gone, there are four families remaining: Don & Rita Boyd, Brian & Sondra Davis, Phil & Paula Sullivan, and us. Phil & Paula are here for six months to help the team and work with different projects like well drilling and education. More than that, Paula has been a great help for Karen with the children.

We are glad to be a part of this team and can see how God is blessing the Kaonde through our combined efforts.

May God bless you and your family,

Rick and Karen Love

Love Letters (Missions): Appropriate Technology – Wooden Wheelbarrow

2009-03-17T04:37:00.001-07:00

Appropriate Technology means introducing innovative ideas that actually improve peoples lives. The technology must be appropriate to the needs, culture, knowledge, and abilities of the people. It should be something they can accept and “run with” by making additional products or spreading the use of the technology. This is positive development for the people.

American Tractor VS Manual Labor

Americans can’t ship a tractor to Africa and expect the people to benefit from it. Its not realistic to the actual needs and abilities of the people. Let’s consider just the economics of a tractor among the Kaonde and compare it to hiring piecework (piecework is the wage that the Kaonde pay each other for manual labor – about $2.50/day):

	Tractor	Piecework (hiring neighbors)
Initial Cost	$20,000 - 40,000 (donated)	$0
Fuel per hectare (100m * 100m)	about 5 gallons
Cost per hectare	$20 (just fuel)	$14 (common wage)
Maintenance	$5,000/year	$0
Benefit	Makes Americans feel good about donating.	Providing piecework prevents your neighbor from starving.

The bottom line is that it is cheaper to hire piecework (and it helps the people you are hiring) than the fuel for a tractor.

So what can we do?

I believe the greatest changes are the little things that can help the people on a daily basis. It takes much time and understanding of the culture in order to see these possibilities. Since we live here and see the people’s struggles we have the time and insight. There are many ways the Kaonde could improve their lives, but we must be considerate of how they can accomplish those changes. For hundreds of years, western technology has been pushed onto the Africans. However, they have not benefited much from it because it is not appropriate African technology.

The Wooden Wheel Barrow – Appropriate African Technology

A wheel-barrow can save hours a day and relieves suffering because the women can push the wheel-barrow instead of carrying the weight on their heads and eventually injuring their necks. I asked the team about this idea and they all thought that this would indeed be a very useful tool for most people, but it is beyond their reach. A used wheel-barrow from town costs $20, equivalent to about two weeks piecework (minimum wage which is more than most people earn in the bush). Also, the transport to town to bring back a wheel-barrow would cost an additional $12.

So, I started asking my friend Nixon Mofya about this idea. (He is a young man who translates for Bible studies while he is not at school.) We looked at the idea of buying used wheel barrows from town and transporting them in bulk to the village area. However, the cost was still too high for most people.

So, we decided to design a cheap wooden wheel-barrow. It uses locally available wood (which is mostly used for firewood) and a few supplies from the market in town (nails, some short pipes, and a piece of rubber used by the shoe-repair men). The material for this wooden wheel-barrow is about $4 and is easily transported. (Compare this to a new metal wheel-barrow from town which is anywhere from $20-$70.) Best of all, anyone can fix it if it breaks. Even the wheel is made from wood with a rubber pad around the surface and a metal pipe around the axel to give it some durability.

A wooden wheelbarrow with 6 20 liter water containers (200 lbs)

Nixon and I spent about 2 mornings making the first one. This was a good way to spend some time with him and others and it showed that I as a missionary am interested in the people's lives in the community. After the first one was finished, others are building them now by copying it as a model. Every village can easily afford to make one or buy one from someone who is building them. So with a some serious thought, we can introduce simple ideas that can dramatically improve their lives. Eventually, the people will get the idea that they can improve their own lives by using the resources around them.

Love Letters (News): Emily Mutende Love is Born

2009-03-15T14:03:00.000-07:00

Emily Mutende Love was born at 18:45 Cairo Time (11:45 AM Central) on March 15, 2009.

She weighed 3.6 kg (7.9 lbs) and is very healthy. She has a full head of hair.

Since Emily is truly “African American”, we wanted her name to be appropriate. We chose the word “mutende” which means “peace” in Kiikaonde as here middle name.

A few days ago, we drove to Mukinge mission hospital which is about 1.5 hours from our house in Mumena. We are staying at the house of an American doctor who is visiting the states. This has worked out well and we have been able to relax in a home environment and wait for Emily to arrive. We will return after Karen has a few days to recover.

Love Letters (Culture): Rumors and Lies

2009-02-01T04:55:00.001-08:00

Living in Mumena, it is amazing to see the power of the rumor. Rumor is the main source of knowledge for the Kaonde people. Most everything they believe is based in what they have heard from others by word of mouth. In addition, this is a major entertainment for their lives. Most Kaonde sit around the camp fire each night listening to the latest rumors. This is their news, their entertainment, and their culture.

The best thing I can compare this to is junk email. However, most educated people who have access to email know to be skeptical of anything they read in an email forward. Even someone who is very gullible does not waste much time talking about what they have read in the latest email forward.

However, rumors are treated quite differently by the Kaonde. First of all, they don't have any concept of fiction. Everything they hear is considered true. Even the educated in Zambia are taught by rote memorization. So everybody is taught to believe everything and doubt nothing. Very few ever doubt what is spoken. Even fewer think rationally about the rumors or say to themselves, "That doesn't even make sense."

This way of thinking is often called puddle thinking. Each random belief is considered true. It is never evaluated or doubted in the person's mind. Because of this lack of reasoning, many contradictory beliefs can be "true" at the same time.

This all makes for a culture where lies spread like wildfire. In fact, the entire set of spiritual beliefs comes from these rumors. Each person's beliefs are based on what they have been told from their family, friends, neighbors, witch doctors, and others. Education and books (like the Bible) have very little input compared to the hours spent listening to these rumors each day.

In addition, rumors (just like news) focus on negative, extreme, or bizarre events. So because these are the main things that people talk about, it effects a person's concept of reality.

For example, in the 1980s a landowner killed a python on his farm. Soon after, the village where his farm workers lived started having fires. Each day a hut would burn down because of these spontaneous fires. The people started fleeing the village because they believed the spirit of the python was angry at the farmer. A local witch doctor told the farmer to make a certain sacrifice to appease the spirit of the python.

The police recommended the farmer should listen to the witch doctor. Because most of his workers had fled, the farmer finally relented and made the sacrifice. However, the fires continued.

Finally, a deranged boy was found starting a fire.

Clearly, from the story and a little thought, all the fires were caused by the deranged boy. However, if I tell this story here in Mumena, most people will have a different conclusion. Because they have more belief in bizarre spiritual events, they will believe that the spirit of the python had really started the fires instead of the boy. Even if I could convince them that the boy had started the fires, they would still believe that the python had something to do with it. Maybe the python had made the boy demented. In fact, as they retold the story to others, they would probably completely forget about the boy and embellish the parts about the spirit of the python. The focus is on strange and spiritual mysteries rather than evidence and logical thinking. After all, a story about a small boy starting fires is not nearly as interesting as an angry python spirit attacking and destroying an entire village.

I have thought about using this story as an example of how mysterious events often have logical causes. However, I am afraid if I mention anything about the python spirit, the point would be lost. The power of suggestion is so strong in this culture, that even if I tell the listeners that the story is a lie, they will still believe the story is true. Even some of my well educated friends will ask, "Is that true?" whenever I tell them about something that is obviously impossible and contradicts many of their beliefs. "What do you mean, 'Is that true?' Of course it's not true, use your brain a little bit. Why did you go to school for 12 years if you won't even think about what you hear?"

Love Letters (News): Christmas Time at Mumena

2009-02-01T04:54:00.001-08:00

Our first Mumena Christmas was a beautiful hot and sunny one with rolling hills of green grass and trees. If you just close your eyes you can imagine they are all covered with snow and you can hear the far off distance sound of slay bells ringing.

The kids woke up excited knowing Christmas morning was the big day to open all the colorful presents under the tree. Matthew woke up to a train set already set up and ready to go. First we all set down and opened our stockings or "socks or Ocks" as Lydia would call them and try to put them on her feet. After that we had some fresh out of the oven blueberry muffins and hot chocolate. Then, with our bellies full, we tore into the Christmas presents patiently waiting under the tree. The kids had a ball. Every time Lydia was done opening a present she would look at us and say, "More, more, more." She sure picked that word up quick. Matthew was a great big brother and helped pass presents out to little sister as well as help mommy and daddy open theirs. Matthew and Lydia got a new marker board (with washable markers) that they absolutely love as well as a "car mat" to drive cars on through a little town. Even though Lydia is our sweet little girl, she has a fascination with cars and trains.

After our exciting morning of presents, muffins, and hot chocolate, we all (the team and some other missionaries who drove down for the occasion) met together at the Bruington's home for a delicious feast of turkey, ham, pork, and all the traditional Christmas trimmings. We even had our favorites pumpkin and pecan pie. We then spent the rest of the day playing games and enjoying one another's company. The whole day was a fun and relaxing day. We thank God that as much as we missed our families back home we were able to enjoy our "African" family and grow closer together praying for each other and for our families far away.

God bless all of you far away and know that we are well and love all of you so much.

Karen

Matthew and Lydia in their new chairs

Karen and baby showing a baby outfit

Rick, Matthew, and Lydia playing with a toy

Love Letters (News): November 2008

2008-12-03T11:35:00.001-08:00

Everything is going well here in Mumena. The rainy season is here and strong. In fact, every day or night it rains for many hours.

Family News

We are all healthy and enjoying life here. Matthew and Lydia continue to play every day with the other children. Karen and the baby are doing well. She is glad to be finished with morning sickness. I continue to study the Kaonde language in the mornings and practice as I am out in the community.

Mission News

This is the heart of planting season among the Kaonde. Everybody goes to their fields nearly every day. On average, each person has a field about the size of a football field. First, they plow the entire field with a hoe. As they plow, they heap the dirt into mounds. Then, they will plant the maize a single grain at a time with proper spacing. After planting, they will spread fertilizer (if they can afford it). This process takes about a month to complete. Then for the rest of the rainy season, they will continue to weed the field until the maize is ready for harvest. It takes about 3-4 months from planting to harvest. In addition to maize, many will plant ground nuts (peanuts) and have small gardens for vegetables.

Because this is the busiest time of the year, each person shows his or her loyalty. For those who continue to attend church meetings, attend Bible studies, and interact as a Christian family, they show that God is most important. For the others, it becomes obvious that their loyalty to God is lacking.

Although this sounds like a disappointment, it is actually a good situation. I believe in quality over quantity. When those who truly love God come together, it is a great joy. We are developing deep friendships with others who also want to serve God in everything.

I teach at a Bible study each afternoon from Monday to Thursday and Sunday morning. I always focus on teaching about Jesus Christ. He is the king and only by becoming loyal and faithful to Him, can Christians understand and do what He wants.

Love Letters (News): We Have Internet Again

2008-10-30T01:39:00.001-07:00

In case you were wondering what happened to us and why we haven't posted any news in a few months, our Internet provider has had a hardware failure for the past 2 months. We use a radio phone and the radio tower had a problem. Since we live in the middle of the bush, we don't really have any options for alternatives. Thankfully, the Davises and Boyds have a satellite Internet connection, but it just doesn't work as well so we could only keep up with high priority emails.

Family News

The biggest news for our family is that Karen is about 5 months pregnant. We are planning on staying here for the delivery and going to a medical mission hospital (Mukinge). We have visited an American doctor who works there. His wife had a baby there two months ago. The hospital has everything we need and they have an experienced surgeon who has done thousands of C-sections if that were needed.

(Spoiler alert: If you don't want to know the sex of the baby, don't read the next paragraph.)

Last month we went there for a check up and did an ultrasound. The baby is growing well and it appears to be a girl. The main problem is that we don't have any baby clothes anymore. The smallest clothes we have are Lydia's when she was about a year old. So, Cedar Hill is putting together some things that will be sent over to us on the next container. (There is usually a container shipped to Zambia about once a year which contains various supplies.)

(End of Spoiler)

Matthew and Lydia love being here in Mumena. We are especially blessed because the Bruingtons are here again. (They were in the states this summer.) True and Matthew are best friends, Savanna loves to play with Lydia, and Lane is often playing with them also. This has also helped Karen. Having Stacey next door is a constant encouragement for her. We usually eat a few meals together each week.

Mission News

A few months ago, it was recommended by the team that I try to work with the church at Campande. They are one of the oldest churches around here. So for the past many weeks I have been going there every Sunday. On Sunday morning, I teach from the book of Matthew for the Bible class. Then, on Thursday we have been going through the book of James. The people there have been focused on a few basic doctrines for the past few years (which misses the point). So, my goal has been to teach them to focus on Jesus our King, not just a few of his rules.