Saturday, April 4, 2020

Decision Time

For months now, we have been saying that the final decision as to where we will carry on this work would be made in April or May. April has arrived. The leaders of the schools we first considered have urged us to decide, and we have done so.

Before stating the decision, I first want to say that it was not an easy decision. I believe that we could have done good work and honored our Lord in any of the places that were considered. I also want to say that when we first began this process, we perhaps made the issue of housing too much of a consideration. We only looked at places where there were existing schools that could offer us free housing. While there might have been a significant financial advantage at an existing school, there were other considerations that now seem to loom larger.

At any of the existing schools that we considered, it seemed likely that Thayer would have been entangled in administrative work for the school. As time went on, this problem appeared larger and larger to us. Another disadvantage to the existing schools we considered was that they are in areas that are either high crime areas or areas where medical care is poor (even from an African point of view). In some cases, both of these objections applied.

Still, despite those difficulties, we could have done much good at Nigerian Christian Bible College or at Daybreak Bible College. And we would have gone to one of them if something else had not happened. It all came down to dialing a wrong number.

Several people asked us, “why not go back to Swaziland, where you already know people and where the communication infrastructure is so much better? Would it not be easier to do this work there?” Our minds had been on the cost of housing, and we had not considered going there – since doing so would involve renting a house. But we decided to phone a brother in Eswatini (as Swaziland is now known) to ask, “How much would it cost to rent a house?”

I dialed the wrong number; but the right person answered the call. I accidentally dialed the home of Ella Magongo. Her son Jonathan “happened” to be visiting his mother, and he took the call. I had never even considered phoning him. But, as soon as I heard his voice, I realized that the Lord had guided us to the right person. I had been trying to phone a retired plumber, but instead I was talking to brother who has worked in banking and is currently in the insurance business. Jonathan was in a good position to help us find a house and to help get permission from the Eswatini authorities to do this work in their country. The person I was trying to call could have answered my question, but Jonathan has been able to do so much more. And I called him “by accident.”

The Decision
So, as you have surmised by now, we feel led to return to Eswatini. It will cost a bit more per month, but we believe that it will be better in the long-run.

I want to emphasize that this decision does not cast a negative light on either Nigerian Christian Bible College or Daybreak Bible College. Both are very good works and the State-side administration of both schools were very cooperative. But the technical difficulties of working in a place where the electricity is (at best) spotty, where safety is questionable, and where Thayer would likely be sucked into a time-consuming administrative role weighed heavy in our thinking. We want to thank the board of African Christian Schools Foundation and Chad Wagner, their president, for encouraging us to move back to Nigeria. We want to thank David French of Daybreak Bible College for his encouragement to consider that work. We deeply appreciate everything that these brothers did for us.

Flexibility
Working from Eswatini we will not be directly associated with any school, but that may be an advantage. The road system in Eswatini and the Republic of South Africa is good. We will be able to visit several schools in the region. We will be in a better position to get input from a larger number of students. We will be able to be of assistance to a larger number of native teachers.

Leadership Training
Of course, the textbook project will not take up all our time. There is also a tremendous need in this area for programs to develop local leadership in the churches. When we moved to Eswatini in 2000, the Bible school that was there had been in existence since 1965. Many evangelists had been trained and several congregations had been planted. But none of those churches ever appointed elders or deacons. Very few of those churches held Bible classes to train their children (or any of their members) for the work. Unconsciously and unintentionally those who set up the work in Eswatini had created a clergy system. Only the preachers received any training, and so the preacher had to do all the work.

During our three years there, we were able to set two of the congregations on a path that led to the appointment of elders and deacons. We were able to make a start on getting the churches to see that they need to train all their members to take part in the work. In returning to Eswatini, we will not be housed on the campus of a school but will move about among the churches, offering training at night and on weekends so that the entire church (not just the preachers) can be equipped for every good work.
Now that our sons are all raised and on their own, Chery will be able to be even more actively involved in this. Women outnumber men in the church. The ladies need training especially adapted to their needs and their expected roles.

We believe in this work and are willing to accept a sizable reduction in our income to do it. But we cannot do it for free. We are seeking monthly support of at least $3500. It is not a huge figure. This work will make a huge difference.

Monthly support pledged as of 26 March
Since a decision has been made on location, our figures for moving fund and monthly support will need to be revised. We are working with brothers in Eswatini to get a more accurate estimate of cost. That may take some time (especially under the current conditions). But it currently appears that the monthly support figure may need to increase slightly, while the moving cost may come down significantly from what was indicated earlier.

In addition to the monthly commitments, we currently have $5750 of one-time gifts either pledged or in hand.

Any excess in one-time gifts beyond actual moving costs will be used to supplement the monthly support needed. For example, a one-time gift of $4200 could be used at the rate of $50 per month for at least 7 years. Or (to think big) a one-time gift of $120,000 applied toward monthly support could almost eliminate any need for raising more monthly commitments over a 5-year period! I know that $120,000 may sound outlandish, but it is not.

We know of a building and parcel of land that will soon go up for sale. It has been indicated by the brothers and sisters involved in that sale that the African Textbook Ministry will receive at least a large portion of the proceeds. None of us knows what the sale price will be, but this might be how the Lord intends to provide. This land is in an area of low property values, so the sale may not bring in that much. But then again it might bring in more. Real estate auctions often surprise us. Pray about this! And give some thought to assets you might want to dedicate to a good work.


The Effect of the Pandemic on our Plans
You will not be surprised to learn that the current pandemic has forced us to make changes in our plans. We had hoped to have all the funds raised by the end of May and we had hoped to move back to Africa in October. Both target dates are now out of the question.

Once travel and assembly restrictions are lifted, we will set new dates. At this point it would appear that a delay of two months to complete the fundraising will be needed. The actual move is likely to be delayed even further. A two-month delay in moving would mean moving in December, and that is never a good time to move. Our target date for getting moved will now have to be pushed forward into 2021; but how far forward is uncertain.

Keep us in your prayers. We will try to keep you informed.

By the way, for those who really were hoping to get to see us as we raised funds in April and May, check out the Flanders Road Facebook page. I have quite a few videos posted there.
https://www.facebook.com/FlandersCofC

Even during lockdown, we will be very glad to hear from you. Please drop us a word of encouragement – or a major commitment! 😊



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