Mission Issues

Well, I’ve returned to my home after my time in Russia. I often compare the Russians to the people in Swaziland, the one difference being the colour of their skin. There’s a few other differences as well. The one is the Russian’s love for flowers, something which I have seldom if ever noticed in Swaziland. The Russians just love flowers and in spring people selling flowers have a blooming (pardon the pun) business. The other difference is the Russian’s love for dogs. In the building where the Bible Centre in Samara is situated (they rent some rooms in an office block) a big dog wanders around. It was a stray and the people in the office block started taking care of him. One things I have always noticed in Swaziland is that nearly everybody does have at least one dog but very few dogs are in a good condition. Most of them are extremely skinny and look unhealthy.
But in many other aspects these two groups of people are much the same: things like poverty, their musical ability (the Swazis are better, but the Russians are also good), their almost simple faith in God. And yet a few things happened on my visit to Russia that did show me that, in spite of the things God is doing through our church in Swaziland, we still have a long way to go in other aspects. On three occasions I was invited to share with groups of Russian church leaders the story of our ministry in Swaziland, how it had started and what God is doing for us and through us. On two of these occasions I was deeply humbled when the people who were present asked me for our bank details as they would like to collect money to help us in our ministry. What impressed me about this was that I know something about the financial situation of most of the Protestant churches in Russia. Their expenses are huge (in most cases they do not have their own church buildings and they have to rent buildings, mostly theatres or something similar for their weekly gatherings) and their income is low. Nobody would blame them if they felt that they would rather use the money which they receive just to survive. This is the reason why it surprised me so much that, in spite of their own poor financial situation, they are still willing to offer to help others. This made me think of the words of Paul in 2 Corinthians 8:2-3: “Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity. For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability.”

George Barna recently released the results of research he had done on people’s attitudes towards donating and tithing. The full report can be accessed here.
One of the things which he reported was that more Christians believed in tithing than who actually did it. According to his research only 5% of adults (in the USA) actually tithed. Surprising to me was to see that those who would describe themselves as evangelical Christians had the largest percentage who tithed (24%). What was even more surprising was to see that of the charismatic or Pentecostal Christians, only 11% actually tithed. If anyone had asked me, I would have dared to say that the numbers would have been switched around.
Writing on the origins of tithing, Barna says: “Strangely, tithing is a Jewish practice, not a Christian principle espoused in the New Testament. The idea of a tithe - which literally means one-tenth or the tenth part - originated as the tax that Israelites paid from the produce of the land to support the priestly tribe (the Levites), to fund Jewish religious festivals, and to help the poor. The ministry of Jesus Christ, however, brought an end to adherence to many of the ceremonial codes that were fundamental to the Jewish faith. Tithing was such a casualty. Since the first-century, Christians have believed in generous giving, but have not been under any obligation to contribute a specific percentage of their income.”
I would agree that the strict law of tithing will not be found in the New Testament. But in the New Testament we find principles which, I think, speak even louder than the laws about tithing. One of these examples would be to give cheerfully. And when I give cheerfully, I could easily give more than 10%.
One of the terrible mistakes which earlier missionaries made in Swaziland was to force church members to give a certain amount (in those days it was 2 Emalangeni, about 25 US cents) per year, otherwise they would not be allowed to take part in the holy communion! A system was developed where each church member had a little book, known as a “ticket” (amatikhedi), in which their contributions were recorded and only after they had given the prescribed amount were they allowed to take part in the communion. This system had the required results. Due to the shame linked to not being allowed to take part in the communion, every church member diligently paid their 2 Emalangeni. But that was all. They paid no more than this - whether they could afford it or not.
Fortunately those times are past. From time to time some of our members will still mention the “amatikhedi”, but nobody uses this system anymore. Of course, it is much more difficult to teach people to give cheerfully than it is to force them to give in order that they can take part in the communion, but it is definitely worthwhile to do it in this Biblical way.

After having started in January 2006 with one home-based caring group at Dwaleni, in the southern region of Swaziland, I had the privilege yesterday of attending the “handing out of the towels” ceremony at the eighth group which had been trained last week. I previously wrote about the background for this ceremony which you can read here.
Our latest group in an area known as Mantambe totalled 51 people! Before we start with the training, I always personally meet with the potential caregivers. When I met this group initially, there were 40 people which is actually not an ideal group to work with when you are training them in all the aspects of HIV/AIDS, caring, prevention and other related topics. As part of my “speech”, I stress the fact that we do not have the finances as yet to be able to support them financially for this work. They have to know beforehand that they are volunteers who will not be compensated for this work. I therefore invite anyone who had been attending with any other expectation to leave, ensuring them that there would be no hard feelings. I also emphasise the servant nature of this work, where they will often be doing thankless work for no other reason than because they believe it’s the right thing to do. As in the past, instead of my “speech” frightening people away, the group which eventually attended the training grew, this time from 40 to 51!
As we met yesterday, together with one of our previously trained groups working in a nearby area (Ezikhotheni) and also with leaders of the area, including representatives from the chief of the area, the local MP (Member of Parliament) and a number of others, my personal feeling of joy could hardly be contained. The church building which we had used for the week of training was too small to accommodate all the people present and we had to meet outside under some trees (which did not help much, because the sun really burnt me while we were busy.)
At one point the chief’s representative came to speak to me. I know him from the time that we trained the group at Ezikhotheni. He mentioned to me that the Swaziland government also have a home-based caring project. These people are known as “health motivators” and they receive a small stipend from the government for the work they do. However, as he mentioned, the system doesn’t really work. Having seen and experienced the effectiveness of the home-based caregivers which we had trained, he really felt that there was no comparison between the two projects. And he wanted to know from me why the one is effective while the other doesn’t really seem to function well.
I answered him that the one group is motivated by money. Not much - (I think they get less than $20 per month, which for many Swazis is still a substantial amount) - but at least something. Those belonging to our home-based caring project are getting virtually nothing. If and when we get donations of used clothing, we hand these out. At this stage we try and give each of these volunteers a small food parcel once every two months. But none of this can motivate anyone to do the work we expect of them. And my conclusion was that they are doing this work mostly because they are driven by God’s love to do it, in the words of Paul, they feel “compelled” to do it.
Jim Collins, in his magnificent book, From Good to Great, first opened my eyes for the truth that money can never motivate someone to do something. And after more than two years where I have been involved in establishing home-based caring groups in the southern and poorest region of Swaziland, working with hardly any money and where nobody (including myself) has any financial gain from this work, the truth of this has been confirmed over and over again.
But then the opposite is also true: When you are motivated by love to do something, you will probably continue with this work in spite of onslaughts which may come against you.

I was really frustrated today. Towards the end of last year we received an offer (which we did not ask for) from a certain European country, through aid organisations in South Africa, to assist us with our home-based caring project. The amounts mentioned in the offer was astronomical (measured against what we are used to in Swaziland). However, at the start of this year the initial amount promised had been cut by 75% and when the first (and up to now, the only) amount was received in February, this had been cut with a further 70% leaving us with approximately 7.5% of what we had initially been promised. Well, I have more or less an attitude that the Bible warns us in Psalm 146 that we should not put our trust in princes and that this episode has once again proven the truth of the Bible.
Today I found out what the excuse was for not paying out anything more to the project. Each country donating money to other countries have a set of forms which have to be completed every month to explain how the money is being used. But every few months, these forms change! And I had a look at the latest forms and there are parts of these forms (seven pages per project) that I don’t even understand, let alone people whose knowledge of English is much less than my own. And because the forms have not been completed correctly, all the money is being kept back (probably to teach the people in Swaziland a lesson). The person who had been appointed by the subsidising organisation in South Africa to help the caregivers to complete the forms have not received any salary either nor money for fuel or money for the tax to pass through the border every time she enters Swaziland from South Africa. Obviously, she also needs to be taught a lesson to ensure that the forms will be completed correctly next month.
And I just thought to myself how easy it is for us who have more money to sit in our air-conditioned offices and make decisions about other people’s lives without caring one bit about their circumstances, whether they have food to eat, money to send their children to school or clothes to wear. All that matters are the forms (most of which will be filed unread in any case).
To make matters worse, I had to travel to Manzini in mid-Swaziland today to apply for a permit. Someone had donated about 2.5 tons of rice to us. But this was donated from South Africa and it cannot be transported across the border to Swaziland without a special permit. The food is not contaminated. Swaziland does not produce its own rice. But one company has the monopoly to decide whether rice may be brought across the border. After phone calls and faxes sent from South Africa to Swaziland, eventually the permit was given to us. But even though the food was donated and even though it is not going to be sold but given to those in need, we will still have to pay 3.5 % of the total value to this board which graciously gave us a permit to bring rice into Swaziland to feed the hungry.
And I couldn’t help asking myself what God thinks about all the red tape involved in obtaining food and other necessities to care for the hungry and the sick.

I’ve been busy with some reading from the book of Deuteronomy (just slightly more interesting than reading from the book of Lamentations - or so I thought!) We had a professor in Old Testament when I was still busy with my theological studies who really helped us to focus on these seemingly uninteresting parts of the Bible to find out why God had wanted these parts to be written. I was focussing on chapters 24 - 26 and it was just amazing once again to realise how much God cares for the poor and the destitute. Some of the laws God made sounds really crazy. If a poor man offers you his cloak as a pledge after borrowing something from you, you may keep the cloak up to sunset but then you have to return it to him so that he can sleep in it! Why do you take the cloak in the first place if you are going to return it in any case? Because by returning it, “it will be regarded as a righteous act in the sight of the LORD your God” (24:13). If you hire a poor man to work for you, make sure that he receives his wages daily before sunset. He’s dependent upon that money to live. When beating the olive trees to harvest olives, do it only once and whatever is left belongs to the poor, the orphans and the widows.
The motivation for this gracious conduct lies in the fact that the Israelites were ill-treated in Egypt and that God had saved them from the Egyptians. Therefore they also had to live graciously towards others and allow them to live with dignity. And in doing this, we discover the true source of joy in our lives.
I realise that I write a lot about the joy we’ve experienced in Swaziland since we started with our home-based caring projects. But things were not always like this and in fact, there are still people in our church who have not made this paradigm shift in their lives. The amazing thing is to see how people change once they start focussing outside of themselves. It is as if they get a new meaning in life (which in fact, they do) and this new life which they have discovered brings them true joy.
When a Christian really starts focussing on the needs of others and witness the joy that it brings into those people’s lives, it becomes impossible not to be filled with joy because of the joy that the others experience. We know that Acts 20:35 says that “it is more blessed to give than to receive”, but for most people, Christians (and churches) included it sounds far-fetched. And yet, every person involved in helping the helpless will know that this is indeed the truth. True joy is found when we learn to focus outside ourselves.
This was our experience in Swaziland as well.

Yesterday was again one of those days that I was out most of the day, reached home around sunset, flopped down on a couch, too tired to do anything else and just thanked the Lord for allowing me to be part of what is going on in Swaziland at present. The day started when I went to meet a group of volunteers who had come together with the desire to be trained as home-based caregivers. I cannot get over the fact that these women (in this specific case no men were present), some of whom themselves are HIV-positive, are willing to step forward and get involved in the caring of people who are even worse off than themselves. Forty women turned up! In spite of my warning that we do not have money to give to them and that anyone not happy with this may leave, all remained and if the same happens as in the past, even more people will turn up when we officially start with the training on 25 March.
When I was finished there, I travelled on to Nsalitje. There I met up with an American couple. The man is a medical doctor and his wife is a professional nurse and together they are involved in the Luke Commission. You can read more about them on their website. How we met up is a miracle in itself. Maya, one of the regular readers (and responders) of this blog, attended a missions conference in Seattle some time ago. There she heard of a certain woman who was a missionary in Swaziland. Hunting her down, Maya obtained her contact details, sent it through to me and I was able to make contact with them while she and her husband were still in the USA. On 15 January Harry and Echo van der Wal returned to Swaziland for four months and are now running mobile clinics all over the country. Being fairly technically minded, one of the most amazing things was to see how glasses are distributed. They arrived in Swaziland with around 40,000 pairs of used glasses which had been donated, tested in order to determine the prescription and then placed in a plastic bag with a computer-printed label by which it is catalogued. People in need of glasses are then tested with the use of a simple but very efficient eye scanner linked to a computer. Within less than two minutes a slip is printed with the prescription needed and the catalogue number of glasses which would be suitable for the patient. A few minutes later the patient leaves the room with eye sight restored! Take the trouble to read the story found here.
Echo and myself then had a chance to sit down and speak about the devastating effects of AIDS on this country. This is a fairly new field for them as they are now venturing into the field of VCT (voluntary counselling and testing) for the first time. After discussing the issue of counselling people before and after being tested for their HIV status, I was invited to be “counselled” by one of the Swazi volunteers helping them. She even insisted on testing me for AIDS, but I politely declined her kind offer
As I listened to this young girl explaining to me all the issues that I had to keep in mind when being tested and discussing it last night with a friend of mine who is also very interested in the AIDS problem in Swaziland, I realised that there is a need for a Christian counselling course for people being tested for HIV. On the one hand the counselling given at government hospitals and clinics are more or less meaningless. On the other hand Christian counsellors also have to realise that their clients are not all committed Christians. To preach to people being tested will not always be very effective. This may be a challenge which we will have to take up if we want people to be properly counselled when they are tested. If anyone has any knowledge on this, please let me know.
When I eventually arrived home, I was tired after a long day and lots of travelling in high temperaturs, but so excited because of what I had experienced.

Well I’m back home after a really great weekend in Tzaneen. It was my first visit to this town, although it is well-known because of the sub-tropical fruit grown in the area. I was accommodated on a farm of a family, both man and woman medical doctors with two really great children and the man’s father, who is a retired pastor, presently 87 years old with a great brain and a healthy body. Actually, it was this old man who had arranged for me to visit their congregation for their “mission weekend.” The amazing thing about this “medical couple” is that they had decided to devote their lives to work in the poorest of the poor communities where people cannot afford medical services - the type of work usually snuffed at by other doctors with “greater aspirations.” What a privilege to have been in this house and to experience the love and devotion within this family!
On Friday evening I met a group of around thirty people. After initially wondering how I should present my talk, I eventually opted for a more informal discussion, focussing on the following three topics:

1. What is AIDS and why is it such a terrible disease?
2. What is the church’s task in this time of AIDS?
3. Our story in Swaziland. This part also included a personal testimony of what God had done in my own life to change me concerning this issue. I have written something about this very personal experience that I had with God in a previous post which you can access here.

I could sense that for many people this was their first real exposure to the problem of HIV and AIDS. Only about four people had ever had anything to do with this illness before. I ended the evening by sharing one of the most remarkable things which ever happened to me when I saw some of the home-based caregivers building a house for a drunkard, “because they wanted him to experience the love of God as well.” If you don’t know this story, you can read it here.
On Saturday we drove out to a black community some miles from Tzaneen. They had shown interest in building a pre-school and kitchen where orphans could be cared for and the white church had indicated that they would assist in collecting money for the project. Exactly why I was asked to go there, I’m still not sure, but I also shared with them what we are doing in our home-based caring project in Swaziland. But I had the fear, as the afternoon went on, that the planned project would end up in disappointments and accusations. This often happens when white (western) people get excited with a project. They collect the money, do all the planning, find a builder, ensure that everything is done correctly and when the building is completer, they “hand over” the building to the black community. But then, more often than not, there seems to be a lack of ownership towards the project. It is as if the black people cannot understand why the white people withdraw. I therefore facilitated the further discussion, asking the black people what they felt the next step should be. And as I expected, they wanted to appoint a committee to represent them. I was glad that this had happened and after choosing the committee and dedicating them to the Lord, both groups (white and black) promised that they would work together from day one, neither group going forward without consulting the others. If they can keep to this commitment, I am sure that things will really work out well and I am looking forward to see the end result. I hope that they will invite me to attend the official opening of the centre.
On Sunday I preached during the morning service, focussing on Luke 5:12-16, especially on the words in verse 13 where we read: Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man.
Sunday evening I led a Bible Study on Revelations 21:1-8. Probably the most important thing happened during this Bible Study when the present pastor of the congregation said that the time is past that they can afford to listen to someone speaking for a whole weekend, go home and forget about what had been said. He proposed that a meeting be held within the next two weeks to discuss plans on how to get their own congregation involved in some form of project where people outside the church could really experience the love of God through Christians. Wrapping up the weekend, I told those present that if they should forget everything that I had said during the weekend and only remember what their own pastor had just shared, I would be more than happy, as this was, in my own estimate, the most important thing that had been said.
I had a really great weekend, made lots of new friends and am looking forward to what the Lord will do in their congregation in the future.

I’ve had a pretty hectic week. On Wednesday I made a trip up to the north of Swaziland, to the capital, Mbabane, where we have now started the official process of getting our home-based caring group registered as an NGO. From time to time we have people, churches or other groups wanting to donate clothes, medical supplies or food to assist us with the work we are doing and although the customs officials at the border are VERY friendly and lenient, always allowing us to take the products through, we also realise that the correct way in which to do this is to be registered as an NGO and then to get a tax and customs exemption form from the department of customs and excise. Because we have obtained a lot of credibility with the local people as well as their representatives in parliament, we are fortunately also receiving a lot of assistance to speed up the process, which can, in Swaziland, take up to a few years to complete! From Mbabane I drove to the eastern side of the country, drove all the way down the eastern border to the south, then turned west again to see how things were going on with the training of the people at Matsanjeni, focussing on traumatised children before returning home - a round trip of about 330 miles in extreme heat. (Air conditioning isn’t a luxury - it;s a necessity!) Along the way I came across four American girls stuck with their vehicle after they had a flat (or a puncture, as we know it). They are also working in Swaziland for some mission organisation. I stopped to assist them with the tyre. Fortunately, before the hard work started of loosening the studs on the wheel, help arrived from their mission organisation (how did we survive without cell phones?) and I could continue on my way. So, if any of the mothers of these girls are reading this, I’m pleased to report: your daughter is safe!
As I was making the trip I just kept on marvelling at the beauty of this country. Swaziland is often called “Little Switzerland” and a trip like I had on Wednesday makes it clear where Swaziland got this nickname.
This weekend I’ll be visiting a church in South Africa in a town called Tzaneen, not too far from the Kruger National Park. This is a typical white, Afrikaans-speaking congregation (which is found all over South Africa) who had decided that they want to take hands with another congregation consisting entirely of black members speaking one of the indigenous African languages (I’m not sure what language - but I’ll find out on Saturday when I’ll be meeting up with them - probably Venda or Pedi.) Because the black communities are so large and also because of their culture where communities are much more closely linked with each other, they also experience the AIDS problem and the related deaths much more personally. They have now invited me to meet with the white congregation this evening (Friday) to inform them about the problem of HIV and AIDS and also to explain to them what we are doing as a church to help people. On Saturday I will meet the members from a number of black churches and discuss the situation with them to inform them of our work but also to try and plan with them how they can tackle the problem in their own communities. On Sunday morning I will be preaching in the white congregation and during the evening service we will try and have a question and answer session, aiming to find a way forward that these two groups can take hands to fight against this terrible disease. Neither of these groups can make a real difference on their own. Thye black churches have the man (woman) power and the white churches have the resources. If these groups can take hands, there is enormous potential within them.
I’m really looking forward to this. I believe that we have developed certain principles in Swaziland (with the help of other people who guided us in the right direction) that can be duplicated in other areas outside Swaziland. Obviously each area and each situation is unique, which is why I cannot merely implement our model in another place. But if the principles are applied, then a group of Christians can, within their unique circumstances, really make a huge difference in their communities, becoming - as we have formulated it in our vision - the hands and feet of Christ within the community.
Just an interesting remark: My good friend, Tim Deller from the USA who is helping us in Swaziland, will this evening be going to his first rugby match ever with some friends of mine from South Africa. He’s travelling up to Pretoria for this occasion. Oh boy - he’s really so excited!
Please also read Tim’s latest post which you can access here.  It will really open your eyes for what we experience on a daily base in Swaziland. He even has a few links to Youtube video clips that he posted if you want to experience Swaziland as he sees it.

It seems to me that the Bible has two distinct viewpoints about money. On the one hand we are told in Luke 14:28: Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it? On the other hand Jesus says in Matthew 6:34: Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.
Churches and para-church organisations also seem to have two distinct ways in thinking about finances. Some will work on a strict budget where every project is planned for and budgeted for and never turning from the budget, neither to the left nor to the right. Others say that God will provide, praying for each need and trusting that the Lord will provide in time everything that is necessary to complete the project.
Both possibilities have their advantages and their disadvantages. I myself, being someone who is strongly focussed on detail (a 100% “C” on the DISC scale), naturally feel much more comfortable working within the strict boundaries of a budget. There’s a lot of safety in a budget. But there’s a definite downside to this way of working. When planning everything strictly according to a budget, I believe that we restrict ourselves not to be able to hear when God wants to do something new. A friend of mine came to visit me some time ago and I could just feel his frustration after their church council had approved such a strict budget. He was frustrated, because he felt that God wanted to take their church on a new road but due to a lack of trust in God’s provision, all funds not considered absolutely essential for the normal continuation of activities, were cut. I think we not only restrict ourselves but we also restrict God when we work in this way.
I have however also seen terrible things happening when missionaries (they seem to be notorious for doing this type of thing) claim that God had told them to start a new project, sometimes costing millions and eventually other people or churches have to save the project because the finances never came in. This is also wrong. But then, I have also seen and experienced myself how God does provide for unplanned things. The feeling of exhilaration when one had committed something to the Lord and then to see how He provides in every need, will seldom if ever be experienced by those only willing to work within a strict budget. The downside I’ve seen (mercifully not experienced) when always working “in faith” are peptic ulcers, stress and other psychosomatic illnesses (which I also believe is not to the glory of God.)
So what’s the solution? I think churches and para-church organisations have to implement both these methods. Draw up a budget and deviate from this only in extreme circumstances. This teaches us to be responsible in working with Kingdom finances and to plan in advance. Obviously part (a large part) of the budget should be used outside the boundaries of the congregation. This would be our mission budget. But then I believe that at least one project should be identified which is not on the budget and this is the project which the church council and the church members will have to pray for in order to get the finances to do what needs to be done.
As leaders in the church we expect our members to trust the Lord to care for them as they tithe. But then the church council needs to set the example, trusting the Lord for the finances in order to do something which falls outside the normal budget.

I was invited to attend a cell group meeting this evening in order to inform the members about our home-based caring projects in Swaziland. The evening got a bit longer than we planned as questions were asked and I tried to give answers. Eventually the topic also turned to the responsibility of churches to become financially involved in mission. Which made me think of a conversation we had had in our home a few weeks ago with our two youngest children. When our children started receiving pocket money, we also taught them to tithe from their own money. Obviously, as they get older and receive more, their tithe should also grow.
What the exact detail was, I’m not sure, but our youngest child had run out of pocket money for the month and one Sunday my wife noticed that she didn’t have anything to give in church. We realised that this wasn’t a serious issue, but my wife laughingly remarked over lunch to our daughter that cutting back on your tithe is usually not a good way to save money. This led to some discussions about the importance of giving for God’s work.
It seems that churches tend to fall into the same trap. In order for a budget to work out, certain cuts have to be made. And inevitably cuts are made to the money spent outside that church. And in my opinion this is not a very good way to save money. During our gathering this evening someone made the remark that people like to give when they can sense a real need. I have said before that I am not convinced that one’s entire tithe should necessarily go to one congregation. For many years we have been giving part of our tithe to a few missionary organisations over and above what we give to our own congregation. The reason why we do so, is because we could see the need and although we cannot change the circumstances of the organisations, we can at least make a small difference.
The mistake which I see many churches making is that they concentrate almost entirely on the funds (or the lack of funds) coming in. But church members want to know that their money is being spent wisely and that it is making a difference in the world. If I can give $50 and know that the money is going to be spent in such a way that it will make a real difference in people’s lives, then I would much rather do that than throwing my money in a hole, not knowing how deep the hole is nor what the money is going to be used for when taken from the hole.
A week ago a pastor from another church asked to see me. They had received a fairly large donation from a certain individual. This church, however, also believes in tithing. Therefore they had calculated 10% of the amount they had received and decided to give it to be used for food for our home-based caring project in Swaziland. Now, I know that this church cannot afford it. But the very next day after they had given the money to us, they had a harvest festival where they asked people to bring food to church to hand out to the poor. They received so much food (from a very small congregation) that they didn’t know how they were going to distribute everything.
I’ve seen many churches running into financial difficulties and then cutting back on their mission contribution. I want to repeat what my wife said: This is not such a good way t save money: not for a child, not for an adult and also not for a church.