Saltshaker 06 Burundi

7-10-06

2006-07-10T01:29:00.000-05:00

Hey Blog,

This may be our last entry while in Africa. It is late on Sunday night. Camp was really incredible. We had 3 sermons today, one Saltshaker, one Kenyan, and one guy from Georgia that was an evangelist traveling with the Kenyans. A lot more beautiful music and prayer. We ended camp with lunch (2:30 pm as usual) with the pastors and had a great time of affirmation and prayer with them. Then we had supper at the usual Magarama guest house location, except we had the enjoyment of the Governor and his beautiful family (wife and 3 kids) joining us. We had lots of speeches and had some great sharing time tonight as we are starting the process of saying goodbye to our African friends. We will finish some more packing (we bought souvenirs over the weekend - and we've received a few gifts) in the morning and drive to Bujumbura. I don't believe anyone is sick right now! So maybe we'll come home in good health.

Please pray for us as we travel and deal with long layovers.

God has been really good to us!! We have received way too many blessings to list. It is hard to believe how much the team has grown!

We look forward to seeing you!!

Matt

7-7-06

2006-07-08T01:12:00.000-05:00

Youth Camp started today and it has really been fun. The music is really great and the spirit of worship celebration has been refreshing. Samuel preached followed by David Williams giving a teaching - both excellent and food for my soul. We also heard a Burundi Pastor preach as well as Nicodeme from Rwanda. Their is a guest speaker from Kenya speaking tomorrow (as well as Chris Stanfield, Brad Carpenter, David Williams and other Burundians). Camp here is really different - even much different from Burundi Camp in 2001 when Saltshaker was here last. We are meeting outside, and the weather is perfect - they have set up a temporary covered stage built out of branches with cut lumber on the floor, and the perimeter has temporary branch-framed tarp-covered shading for seating, with a large area in the center open for the alter calls and much worship dancing.

Brad lead us through some more cross-cultural teachings tonight, which came at a great time as we are debriefing the camp experience with 'right, wrong...or different? (does our 'culture' and the way 'we do it' say it's wrong, or does the Bible have anything to say about it?). The speaker from Kenya did the alter call for Nicodeme from Rwanda, and it was VERY different from what we are used to - even different from the way we have seen the Burundians do it.

Sorry we haven't had time to give more detailed reports. We have had so little free time. Thanks for continuing to pray for us. We are having a really wonderful time and the 8 seminars we gave really went well - the students are all doing such a great job!! And the adults with us have been a wonderful blessing as well. We have such a great team! God is blessing us and teaching us in so many ways we could never write them out. He has been challenging us daily and growing our character.

Esther stayed home today (the second day) with fever and diziness - sounds the same as what Sarah had last week - so please pray for her - maybe she'll be fine before you see this note. Also, the cold has gone around the team, I finally got over it yesterday, but others are just getting it and it really takes some physical energy out of you.

Matt Macy

Sunday Morning Worship Celebrations

2006-07-06T01:53:00.000-05:00

Sunday, July 2, 2006

This was a great day of worship and celebration with our friends here in Burundi. Each of our team members were divided into five groups and sent to different churches in the area. Here is a brief summary of our experiences:

Group 1: Marumane (Dave, Brad, Esther, Mindi). This church was started by Kibimba and Pastor Josias leads both congregations. We had the privilege of meeting in their new building which is almost finished. There are many signs of new life in this fellowship, including new school facilities and an unusually high percentage of children. Mindi, Esther and Brad shared greetings with the congregation and Dave gave the message on "Going Deep With Jesus," based on Luke 5:1-11. The music was wonderful, as usual, and there was a strong response when an invitation was given to go beyond a superficial relationship with Christ and follow His call to a deeper level of loyalty, love, faith, forgiveness, suffering and service. After the service we enjoyed lunch with the church leaders and listened to Josias tell his story about the way God delivered him from death during the war. His story illustrated the truth that God answers prayer very specifically. When he escaped from his captors, the Lord told him to run in a "zig-zag" pattern, which helped save his life!

Group 2: Rurengera (David Kellum, Celia, Sarah, Homer) The church is pastored by Pastor Sebastien. They have 521 members and a new building they are completing. Rurengera and Chandler Friends are sister churches. The congregation is very spritually alive and growing. This is their third building which is much bigger to accomodate the crowds. They also have a new mission point that they are starting and some of those people were there too. Their music was beautiful and heart-felt. A men's group of about 20 men from another Friends church visited and prexented several songs and skits. The entire service was planned by God in two different continents several weeks ahead as the skits and the message given through Homer blended perfectly well. The message was from Hebrews 12:1-3 challenging them to rendure the long race that God has given us to run by putting off distractions and sin that entangles us. Many peole responded for prayer following the message. Following the service we enjoyed gracious hospitality and a meal that the Burundians always give.

Group 3 (Chris, Debbie, Katie, Julie, Kai) We had the privilege of going to Mubuga to worship on Sunday. The building was packed and we heard from several different choirs which were all excellent. It was a special treat for those of us from Northridge because it is our sister church - what a blessing to finally be able to meet the people we have prayed for and supported for so many years! Chris gave an outstanding sermon on the life of King David: being men and women after God's own heart and clothing ourselves with His characteristics every morning. Pastor Josef had a great follow up, and the congregation really enjoyed how God spoke through Chris. In case no one else has told you yet, Josef is the one whose second wife died (he has already had one pass away) one day before he arrived, due to complications with the birth of the child they lost two days before Marianna passed away. He is so strong though, and has let God be his sustenance - what a testimony! Afterwards we were treated with a wonderful meal afterwards. The Burundians always put out their best and it was more evident than ever this Sunday.

Group 4 (Samuel, Zac, and Mae) On Sunday we had the opportunity to visit Ceru. The church was only a few miles outside of Gitega, so we didnt have to leave very early to get there. The man that interpreted came right before we left for the church and we had not met him before. His name was Eloise and he is an evangelist and also works at the Hospital in Gitega. He was a very funny man and it was a good time watching him interpret for Samuel. Samuel preached a very practical message about how different people react to the times when God test us and allows us to grow. Everyone was into the message and I believe it was something that the church needed to hear. I had the opportunity to share my testimony and a quick word of encouragement with the church. One of the coolest thing about the service was the harvest offering they had. The youth chior had bags of beans, rice, and other crops to give to God as the first fruits of the harvest. After the service we had fantas/cokes and a lot of bread for our lunch. We were back to the guesthouse before noon. The shortest service I have attended here in Africa thus far.

Group 5 (Matt, Jeff, Michelle, & Andrea) On God's Holy day (Sunday) we traveled to Ruawiko. This is Fidele's home church. We were greeted with music and singing. They have a lot of movement in their singing but I wouldn't classify it as dancing. The church was packed. The fire marshall would have had a hay-day. Oh yea, they don't have fire marshall's here. They have a new church built but it needs a floor, windows and doors to make it complete. Matt said that this was a sister to the North Central Kansas area (which is made up of 3 churches) I (Jeff aka Swish) got to preach and Michelle shared a testimony about her sister. My translator was Fidele: we made it work. They seemed to respond to God's word and really got with the singing. After lunch (hard-boiled eggs, bread, bananas, Fanta) they took us down in the valley to show us how they make bricks. As usual no matter where you go or where you are the children flog you. It's funny because they don't know English and we don't know Kurundi but we still laugh and play together like you would in any other country. God is truly working in the lives of these people. You can see it in their smiling faces. We will always keep them in our prayers.

Update: 7-5-06

2006-07-05T01:12:00.000-05:00

Hello,
It is Wednesday morning: We just returned to Gitega last night (we are glad to be 'home'), as we were up North over the weekend and held two seminars in two quarterly meetings Monday (Mutaho) and Tuesday (Cugura). We are about to go to Kwisumo for our 8th and last seminar. The Saltshakers are doing really well and improving their presentations every day. They are also really growing - we have had plenty of challenges with food and conditions, but we are well taken care of with what we 'need', even while our 'wants' are usually missing. In this last leg of the trip, we are learning to lean on 'the Body' more as our flesh is really starting to scream at us.
Tomorrow (Thursday) we will have a much needed day off. We have really been working the team hard, so it will be very refreshing to have some shopping and play time for the first time. Camp starts Friday.
We are short on time this morning, but we'll try to get more written and sent tomorrow! All 5 groups had great experiences Sunday morning!
Matt

Prayer Calendar: July 2 - July 5

2006-07-01T08:01:00.000-05:00

July 2- Sunday
Split into smaller teams to attend Church services
Time of Prayer

July 3- Monday
Mutaho Youth Seminar

July 4- Tuesday
Cagura Youth Seminar

July 5- Wednesday
Kwisumo Youth Seminar

Picture at Kibimba Hospital

2006-07-01T07:02:00.000-05:00

Sarah Williams at Kibimba Hospital
(click to enlarge)

Update: July 1

2006-07-01T06:44:00.000-05:00

Hey,

We had a great day yesterday (Friday) at Kibimba. After the seminar, we received a really good tour of Kibimba Station, which is huge. It is the first site for the Friends Church in 1934, and includes a hospital (see picture in maternity section) and schools for all age levels, dormitories, a youth center, as well as a large church. It is really great to see how the school is doing well with 585 students and 32 teachers, a clear sign of peace in Burundi, as Kibimba was shut down for several years due to the war and the fear of that site (some really awful things happened there including a bunch of students being locked in a gas station and burned near the beginning of the war). We also saw a new 12-room guest house that was just built with funding from the U.N. as well as the new youth center the Burundi Youth Superintendent, Fidele Bizamana, is excited about and is still in-progress. It was also fun to see several houses where our missionaries lived years ago and hear some more great stories from Kellums and some of the Nationals. We ended the tour with a great time of fellowship with some church and school leaders over Fantas, roasted peanuts, and scones. Being my fourth time to Burundi, it is refreshing to see how the church is 'on its feet' after the war, and with peace in the land, they are really making some tremendous progress and have some vision.

Every day is so full of experiences it is really impossible to say all that we do and experience, and all that we see God doing, in a brief note! Our Saltshaker youth are really doing well, facing lots of challenges without complaint. They are so flexible and ready to face any challenge. Their teachings in the seminars are excellent and being very well received by the Burundi youth and their leaders. We have had some exciting worship services (long!) and even got to do some 'dancing' with the Burundi youth 2 days ago. I'm not sure how many people have been at each seminar - probably around 400 at yesterday's. We are looking forward to youth camp next week where they expect seven thousand youth to come.

We have learned that the Burundi Friends church has about 17,000 members and have around 35-40 thousand people in attendance every Sunday morning at about 80 churches (not including many church plants). They expect around 19 thousand kids at VBS this summer (total at all churches).

Today (Saturday) we are about to go to the Gitega Stadium for the Independence Day Celebration. It will be a wonderful, surreal, cultural experience!! Then after the stadium event many of us are headed up North for the night to attend church in the Northern part of Burundi. We will be attending five different churches on Sunday morning.
Those headed North for 3 nights starting tonight:

Mubuga Church - Chris, Debby, Kai, Julie, Katie
Rurengera Church - Homer, Celia, David Kellum, Sarah
Rwamiko - Jeff, Matt, Michelle, Andrea

Those staying in Gitega tonight but will come North after church to join the Saltshakers for 2 nights:

Ceru - Samuel, Zach, Mae, Mindi
Marumane - David Williams, Esther, Brad

We will all be staying together at a Catholic Seminary for sleeping and eating, and we have wonderful, competent Burundi leaders staying with each of the groups when they travel to the churches.

Monday and Tuesday we will be having seminars at two huge churches in the North: Mutaho and Cugura before we come back to Gitega on Tuesady evening for the remainder of the week and youth camps.

We are all safe and doing well. A few team members had had some sickness, but we are coping well and most of the sickness has not stopped anyone from doing their ministry. We have had water most all the time, which is a blessing, and electricity is off and on. We had a birthday granola bar with a candle for Homer Smuck this morning and sang to him.

Another big blessing for the team has been story time with Kellums and teachings from Brad Carpenter. We are learning so much about missions, about culture shock issues and how we handle them, and about Burundi Friends. I had a light bulb moment last night as I realized that in the culture clash, and as our flesh/human nature screams out, the natural thing to do is 'blame' someone or something to justify our reactions, embarassment, frustration, anger, etc. I have seen this on many mission trips, blaming the Nationals or Satan for cultural awkwardness or stage fright or sickness. Please keep praying for us as we keep our eyes on Jesus and conquer spiritual battles!! We have really appreciated your support and prayers!! We are all doing very well and learning so much as we have these incredible, hard-to-believe experiences, but we are at the point in the trip where there is higher potential for home sickness and even negative response to culture shock that may tempt us to withdraw from the people - so please pray that we will continue to acclimate and be a tremendous blessing and encouragement to the Church here!

Internet is not easy to access, so the team is not able to check the blog.

Matt

Update 6-29-06

2006-06-30T09:23:00.000-05:00

Dear family and friends,

Today the Saltshaker Burundi Team was at the Musama Friends Church, which is the sister church to Derby Friends Church. The church is only about six miles from where we are staying in Gitega, but the ride there took much longer than you expect for a six mile drive. The roads were really terrible, and the amazing thing was that the founders of the Musama church carried trees to build the church the whole way.
We had a great time fellowshipping and worshipping with the members of the church. The church services here are really amazing because they literally last all day, but you are definately never tempted to fall asleep. There is too much of their culture to take in to miss anything. Their choirs were amazing and there was more dancing at this church than there has been at the others. They were all very pleased when we joined in with their dance after our break for lunch. The energy in that church was electrifying. The youth of our team were dancing, and jumping up and down in a see of African children. It was such a blessing to be included in their dancing because it is such a big part of their worship here.
We delievered our teachings, and continue to do a better job everytime we present. Julie Penna's lesson was last because it is about purity, and we give all the youth in the church the opportunity to come to the front and make a promise to God to stay abstinate until they are married. We always have a very good turn out of not only youth but all ages come and make this commitment.
Right now we are in the middle of dinner. If you havent heard already, the food here is excellent. We have already had soup tonight and are now eating spagetti, roast, peas, and various fruits. We always have the best fellowship at dinner time. Please continue to pray for all of us here in Burundi, we love and miss you!

Update: 06-28-2006

2006-06-29T11:58:00.000-05:00

Saltshaker Team with Governor

(click to enlarge)

Dear Friends and Family,

God is good and for the past week He has truly shown His light on us and our trip. The devil doesn't want us here and he has tried to put obsticles in our way to stop us from doing God's work, but God is truly good and nothing is an obsticle to God. It has been a blessing to be here and experiance the power of our Father. He has kept us strong in our weakest moments and He has given us the strength we need daily. The Spirit of our Father is working through us to touch the lives of Burundi and Congo. The Kellums have been a wonderful blessing to us as they are telling us the story of Burundi Friends Church and teaching us missions wisdom. One thing David Kellum talked about that I liked was how they as missionaries let the Burundi people figure out things their own way at their own pace so that they would own their decisions and it would be in their own cultural context. He used an example of wearing a shirt; it doesn't matter if we put it on differently, we all get the shirt on.
Today, the 28th, has been a glorious day. We started our day with visiting the Govenor of the Providence of Gitega at his office. It was a big honor, he is a friendly man, and he sends his greetings to all of you at home. We prayed together and shared with each other for almost half an hour. Around nine-o-clock in the morning we were scheduled to arrive at the youth seminar in Kwibuka, which is where Kellums lived for 16 years and where David started the technical school. We received a warm welcome at the church and it really was a wonderful day. We introduced ourselves, sang some songs, and started with our lessons. This was our third youth seminar of our trip and our perspective of our subjects that we teach have grown. Our team handed out Bibles to the youth of Burundi which is also a big blessing, because many of the youth don't have Bibles [the youth had already paid their youth leaders $1.5 and we matched them with $2.70 for the total cost of $4.20/Bible - we are handing out a total of around 2600 Bibles - there are around seventeen thousand members in the Burundi Friends Church]. After the seminars David and Mae Kellum showed us around the mission station, where there is a lot of history. We are starting to learn some about the wars that were here. It is very sad, but it makes me very thankful I live in the US and that there is peace being made now here in Burundi. A lot of stories are on this land and it has been an honor to listen to the stories and hear testimonies.
We are all doing alright, there are amazing people here that are almost treating us like royalty, so we are doing great. We miss you all and you are in our thoughts and prayers. You are also in the prayers of the people of the Congo and Burundi; they send their love. I would also like to send my love and the love from my team.
I want to thank all of you for your thoughts and prayers. It means a lot to have the support back home while here in Africa. I hope everything is doing great and I can't wait to see all of you! I encourage you to pray for us, the church of Burundi, and the church of Congo, and the work God is doing here for the Friends Church of Burundi. Thank you all, God bless you, and don't worry, just have faith. Good morning and good night!

I Love You All,

Esther Campbell
(Riverton Friends Church)

Update: 06-27-2006

2006-06-29T11:54:00.000-05:00

Greetings from the Saltshaker in Burundi,

Today, June 27, we left Bujumbura and headed upcountry to the second largest city in Burundi: Gitega. This will be our home for the final two weeks that we are in Burundi. We traveled up through the most amazing country that most of us have ever seen. The mountains here in Burundi are smaller and spread out more and are full of green vegetation. In the Rocky Mountains there are pine trees and evergreen trees, but these mountains were full of banana trees. We were relieved to be up in the mountains because of the cool weather compared to the warmer climate in Bujumbura.
We were planning to leave early this morning so that we could visit the Kibimba hospital up here in the mountains but we were delayed because of paper work issues. But God is good and we made it in time for us to enjoy some of the most amazing drum playing we have seen or heard. This performance was by members at a church before we got to Gitega and it was our official welcome into Burundi. It is hard to explain with words but the drumming and singing told the story of the people of Burundi struggling with war disease and how Jesus has given them hope and peace throughout their land.
We checked into the guest houses that we will be staying at for the next two weeks and we were welcomed to attend a church service. There were two different choirs there performing and they asked us to sing a few songs for them. We had Samuel play a guitar that was available and led the rest of our group in "The Mountain Song" that is all so famous on our Mexico trips. The Burundians got a huge kick out of it because of all the white people trying to dance and sing.
We continue to covet your prayers because we have sensed God's presence and protection over us since we have left the airport in Wichita. We ask that you continue to pray for us daily that we would be an encouragement to the youth here in Burundi throughout the next few weeks as we proclaim the love that Christ has for us. Thanks you all so very much.

In Him,

Zachary Johnson

Prayer Calendar: June 28 - July 1

2006-06-27T21:56:00.000-05:00

June 28- Wednesday
Kibimba Youth Seminar

June 29- Thursday
Musama Youth Seminar

June 30- Friday
Kwibuka Youth Seminar

July 1- Saturday
Gitega for Work Project

Amahoro!

2006-06-27T10:46:00.000-05:00

Dear Friends,

Amahoro! (that's "peace to you", a common greeting in Kurundi, the primary language of Burundi). We are completing our first week here in Africa, and the Lord has been pouring out His blessings upon us in many wonderful ways. Here are just a few highlights:

Safe travel all the way from Wichita to Bujumbura, and across many miles in country, by car and by foot;
We have had a few minor bugs, but the Lord has protected us from any major illnesses or injuries;
A much-needed day of rest and renewal in Nairobi, which included a trip to Lake Nukuri Game Park where we were able to view African wildlife such as zebras, cape buffaloes, flamingos, baboons, gazelles, giraffes and white rhinos;
A wild, wonderful weekend in Congo, during which time we were able to visit two of our Friends Churches and worship with our Congolese brothers and sisters. We sent them warm greetings from all of you, and our students had the opportunity to lead a seminar for their youth, encouraging them to remain faithful to the Lord in the face of great hardship. The church at Abeka gave us one of the warmest welcomes anyone could ever receive, and they showered us all with much love and many gifts - they even presented us with a live chicken! (photos to follow!)
We enjoyed our first full day in Burundi, where we were able to worship at Kamenge Friends Church (many of you know their pastor, David Niyonzima). Our Saltshaker Team did an excellent job in making their presentations to the youth on topics such as brokenness, purity, accountability, witnessing, acceptance, spiritual growth, prayer and obedience. Many of the youth made commitments to remain sexually pure until marriage, and others indicated a desire to follow God's call to serve as ministers of the gospel. It was heartbreaking to view the lingering effects of the civil war (bullet holes in the roof and walls of the church building, families missing loved ones who were killed, children missing portions of their arms or legs due to injuries inflicted upon them), but we were greatly encouraged to see signs of new life in the church and community as well, including a continual decrease in tension and fresh hope for a lasting peace in Burundi. This is not only great news for our African friends, it also gives us a tremendous sense of peace as we travel around the country as a team.

We just want to thank you all again for your partnership in this important ministry. Even though you are not here in Africa with us, rest assured that we could not be here to represent Christ without your support. As we enter into the heart of our ministry schedule this week, please continue to hold us up in prayer so that we will be able to have good "spiritual reflexes" and be fully faithful to the mission God has given us here in Burundi.

"Iman' Ishimwe" (God be praised!)

The Saltshaker Burundi Team

Photos from the Congo

2006-06-27T10:37:00.000-05:00

[Click on any photo to see a larger version]

Here is Samuel Vasquez, Pastor from Coahila, Mexico, preaching at Abeka Friends Church in Congo.

Here we are with our Friends in Abeka, Congo on Sunday 26th after the morning worship service.

Here we are at the guest house in Congo before we left for Sunday morning church.

HELLO FROM BURUNDI!

2006-06-23T14:27:00.000-05:00

Greetings to everyone! We have arrived in Burundi safely! The trip has been so easy. God has revealed His greatness and power to us so many times! We got all 34 trunks to Burundi! Had a great time in Kenya. Africa is so Beautiful! We will be going to the Congo tomorrow! Please pray for our team and that God will be glorified. We will send word as soon as we can to let you know about the things that God is doing!

Saltshaker Burundi Team

Arrived Safely in Bujumbura

2006-06-23T12:33:00.000-05:00

from email forwarded by David Robinson, MAYM General Superintendent

Dear Robnison,

Greetings to you.
I am glad to inform you that Burundi Yearly Meeting Leaders were at the airport to welcome the team from America. The Kellum's and Brad were there to show us the guests.
Tomorow we will take them to Congo for two days.
We are thankful for their parents and famillies who sent them to us. May God bless them.
Elie

Prayer Calendar: June 24 - June 27

2006-06-23T07:45:00.000-05:00

June 24- Saturday
Travel from Bujumbura to Congo
Youth Seminars

June 25- Sunday
Attend Congo A.M. Services
Meet with Congo Pastors
Travel from Congo to Bujumbura

June 26- Monday
Kamenga
Youth Seminar

June 27- Tuesday
Travel Upcountry to Gitega

Prayer Calendar: June 20 - June 23

2006-06-20T21:37:00.000-05:00

June 20- Tuesday
Flight Info:
Wichita 7:32am to Minneapolis 9:25am
Minneapolis 3:15pm to Amsterdam 6:30am

June 21- Wednesday
Flight Info:
Amsterdam 1:15am to Nairobi 7:20pm
Arrive at Mayfield Guesthouse

June 22-Thursday
Mayfield Guesthouse
Afternoon Safari
Dinner at the Carnivore

June 23- Friday
Flight Info:
Nairobi 11:15am to Bujumbura 11:55 am

Team Prayer Requests

2006-06-20T21:27:00.000-05:00

Physical and Spiritual protection
Team unity and witness
Discernment and obedience of God’s leading
Maximum encouragement and blessing to Burundi and Congo Friends Church and youth.
Team ministry that is effective and produces long lasting fruit

Team List

2006-06-20T21:16:00.000-05:00

Matt Macy- Primary Director (Youth Sup)
Zach Johnson (Bethel)
Celia Martin (Riverton)
Dave Williams- Assistant Director (Barclay College)
Mindi Hall (Rose Hill)
Esther Campbell (Riverton)
Chris Stanfield- Assistant Director (Rose Hill)
Julie Penna (Northridge)
Kai Adams (Riverton)
Homer Smuck (Chandler)
Katie Henderson (Northridge)
Samuel Vasquez (Mexico)
Sarah Williams (Barclay)
Debby McElroy (Northridge)
Andrea Holguin (Fowler)
Jeff Adams (Riverton)
Michelle Andrews (Riverton)

Special Hosts:
David and Mae Kellum
Brad Carpenter

Travel Schedule

2006-06-19T21:10:00.000-05:00

June 20	Fly out of Wichita
June 21	Arrive to Nairobi (stay 2 nights)
June 23	Fly out of Nairobi to Bujumbura, Burundi
July 10	Fly out of Bujumbura
July 11	Arrive to Wichita

Team Photo

2006-06-18T18:35:00.000-05:00

Prayer Calendar

2006-06-14T21:42:00.000-05:00

With most graphics (including these first two posts) and photos you can "click" them to see a larger view.

Burundi Team & Mission Statement

2006-06-14T21:17:00.000-05:00