Lozi Update - September 15, 2009

"To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. . . . This is why I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand." (Matt. 13:11, 13)

Dear family and friends,

Greetings again in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. It's been some time since my last update, so before I report on our most recent trip to the bush, let me give a bit of personal info and explain my silence for the past several weeks.

In early August, we set a new record for the worst trip yet to the bush. The trip started with the theft of some camping gear and went downhill from there. Our trials included vehicle trouble, sickness (our families, our American guests, and Dominic), and unexpected demands on our time that "robbed" 2 of our 3 teaching days. (Yes, I know God is sovereign and His schedule is not our schedule, but when you see these souls perishing under the curse, it hurts to lose precious teaching time. It's not about our agenda, it's about cherishing every chance to proclaim our Savior to a wicked and depraved culture.)

Immediately after our return from that disastrous trip, we headed for Lusaka (a miserable 7 hour drive) to attend the annual Zambia Reformed Baptist Conference. It was an exhausting week, but there were a few pleasant moments - sitting under Conrad Mbewe's preaching, and the time our families spent with the indigenous missionary couples that HeartCry serves in Africa.

We returned from Lusaka to severe problems with the water supply to our homes. The last 2 weeks have been a constant battle every day just to collect enough water for basic daily needs. (Allen H, where are you?! Please come rescue the city of Livingstone from indescribable ignorance, incompetence, and laziness!) We are gaining a fresh appreciation for Jesus' self-description as the living water.

In summary, there has been almost nothing pleasant or enjoyable for the past several weeks, and so to avoid whining I've just kept quiet. After a few months in Africa, contrary to our hopes, life has not become easier but progressively harder. We are reaching the stage of culture shock that many forewarned us about. As we approach the 6-month mark, the blunt truth is that we hate life here and wish we could just pack up and go home. There, now you really know how to pray for us. Sorry if that shocks you. Most missionaries feel it at some point, but maybe you've never heard one admit it. Maybe you think a missionary shouldn't say such things. That's ok, I will gladly boast in my weakness that Christ's power might rest on me. One thing is for sure...if we persevere and someday a church is established among the Lozi, none of you will look back and talk about what great missionaries the Reeces were. Hah! Instead you will marvel at how a mighty God can work through such weak and pathetic tools.

Besides...how can we quit when you have given and prayed and helped? How can we climb out of the well with so many precious saints holding the rope? How can we quit when the biographies of so many missionaries make our trials pale in comparison? How can we quit when we think of what Christ suffered for us, and we have His promise that all of this is for our good? How can we quit when our Lord is not worshiped among the Lozi as He deserves? No, there's no quitting. This too shall pass...

Now, on to other things. We just returned from a trip to the bush that was the answer to many prayers spanning at least 2 years. In our 5 day trip to Dom's village, Shannon and I were accompanied by 3 Zambians from Trinity Baptist Church in Livingstone. Evans M. and Alfred S. are deacons at TBC, and Enoch is a young man whose father is Zimbabwean but he grew up in Mongu, the Lozi capital. We had heard of Lozi hostility toward other Zambian tribes, and we were nervous about the reception the men from Livingstone would receive from the villages. Hakuna matata (no problem); the men were warmly received.

Enoch is fluent in Lozi and helped as an interpreter while Dominic was away working for our regional chief. Enoch also provided a valuable service in listening to the men who usually interpret for us and evaluating their ability and accuracy. Now we know that Dom is the only one we can trust to get it right. Enoch also brought his guitar and the folks in the villages were delighted by his playing and singing. He even taught us whites a simple Lozi song, which amazed and amused our audience. Evans and Alfred preached the gospel beautifully while sharing their testimonies in the village. Evans was saved out of the New Apostle cult and Alfred was saved out of Catholicism - 2 of the 3 false religions that plague Western Zambia. The people seemed to listen intently as these deacons described their deliverance from dead works and the life of grace they now enjoy.

Shannon and I preached the same broken-record messages of salvation by grace through faith and not by works of the law. Let me give you just a taste of how frustrating our task can be. Meeting with a small group of men in Makanda village, Shannon had just read Galatians 2:16 "yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified." Three times in one verse Paul emphasizes that we cannot be justified by keeping the law. After reading the verse, Shannon asked, "Does anyone know what the word ‘justified' means?" One man answered, "It means to keep God's law." I'm not making this up! Anytime we discuss salvation, the Lozi are like parrots that can only repeat 2 phrases, "Squawk...Keep the law...Do good works...Keep the law...Do good works...Squawk."

Sadly, this has proven true even with some of our Lozi friends whom we hoped were converted. Some of these men are fairly weak in English, but Enoch was able to quiz them in Lozi concerning their spiritual condition. Alfred was also relentless in pinning one young man down about his view of salvation. Some of you know these men, others have only heard their names - Vincent, Evans, Jethro. In all 3 cases, the men spoke much about the "churches" they attend, and their efforts to do good works, and their search for the truth. None of them said anything about Christ. Our hearts were grieved. Some of these men have heard us preach many times. We are faced with the sad reality that Dominic is still the only true believer that we know in his area. The rest have ears but cannot hear, and eyes but cannot see. They "indeed hear but never understand, and...indeed see but never perceive." (Matt. 13:14)

More than ever, we marvel at the miracle that the Spirit has worked in Dominic, revealing the Gospel to him and opening his heart to receive it. How can the American church speak of conversion as a "decision"? What a foolish notion! The Lozi will never "decide" to follow Jesus. They despise the Gospel, but enthusiastically embrace any works-based religion. We bring them the greatest news humanity has ever heard - a holy God has sacrificed His Son to rescue us from His wrath and reconcile us to Himself - and they mock our good news. We preach a message of salvation by grace through faith, and they defend their law-keeping, questioning us with a sarcastic smirk on their face. The proud heart of sinful man doesn't want grace or faith; he wants to earn his way to heaven and boast of his goodness.

Oh, when will Christ unleash His judgment on all the false teachers of works and law?! When will His sheep hear His voice and flee the thieves that are leading them to destruction?! When will the song of the redeemed rise from the banks of the Zambezi, declaring the praise of Him who called them into His marvelous light?! I almost feel physical pain in my gut every time Christ's work on the cross is mocked by proud men who do not feel the weight of their sin against a holy God. I would soon lose hope if my Master had not said, "ALL authority in heaven and earth is given to Me. Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations . . ."

Not only do we face the resistance of proud legalists, but we also continue encountering traditional beliefs. In the village of Kapani, we were looking at Eph. 2:1-10. We asked why following the "course of this world" (in their case, witchcraft and ancestor worship) is sin against God and deserves wrath. One man cynically challenged us, "I go to the witchdoctor because when my daughter is sick and I get medicine from him, she gets better." We asked who would want them to trust in witchcraft and ancestors rather than trusting in God. Another man answered without hesitation, "Satan." Please pray that the Light of the world will penetrate the deep spiritual darkness of Western Zambia.

God, in His kindness, did allow our trip to end on a high note. In our last teaching session, we taught on Jesus' parable of the Pharisee and the tax-collector. Some in this village actually seemed to "get it." I watched one man taking notes and writing down every Scripture reference. More than one agreed that no one could ever boast before God about their good works. After reading Rom. 3:9-20, someone commented that they could clearly see the difference between our teaching and the "church" in their village. At the close of the teaching session, 2 people followed us to the truck. One woman complained that we don't teach in their village often enough, and pleaded with us to come more. A young man asked one of our friends from Livingstone, "What do we do if some get converted in our village?" Praise the Lord that someone is thinking that way! All of us could sense that the Spirit is at work in that village. Please keep Salumanu village in your prayers. (By the way, if you remember one of my earlier updates, this is the village that played ‘stump the missionary' with the questions about Cain's wife and the Trinity.)

Before closing, let me mention a couple of prayer needs. We visited the headman of our village, Nduna I., and again stressed that we will not begin building our homes until the land issue is settled with the Lozi royal council. He agreed, and promised to push the issue with the royal council in the next 2 weeks. He is a good man, respected by his people, and seems to sincerely want us in his area. Please pray that God gives us favor with the Lozi "royalty" and speeds our case up the chain of command.

Nduna I. did agree that we should begin construction of a structure at the campsite on our land. This structure will house a small camp-kitchen for each family, 2 restroom facilities with toilet, sink, shower, and laundry area, and a lockable storage room for tools and building supplies. We hope this facility will keep our wives sane during the long months of constructing our homes, and then it will serve in hosting mission teams for years to come. Of course, we will attempt to construct this during the hottest month of the year. The temperatures are supposed to reach into the 100's by week's end and remain there until the rains begin in early November. Please pray for the Lord's provision of resources, His protection over the workers, and perseverance for our families.

Grace and peace to all of you,

Sean