The Talk Place

AT MONATELE

Accompanied by two brothers,  we visited the town of Monatele.  It is situated just 100 km from Yaounde, the capital of Cameroon.  Monatele, is situated on banks of a large river called the Sanga. This area is the food basket of Yaounde.

At Yaounde 

 

The Swiss arm of Global Recordings Network in Chad has faced the usual problems that overseas contributors face in mission.  They want to tell the story of Jesus in every language but they needed local knowledge and contacts to make the recordings and do the distribution.  The Lord has wonderfully answered their

I'm excited about my latest project for GRN. It involves re-writing some Bible stories for children in a way that is fresh and has not yet been done. As a writer of fiction, I find this project filled with promise and creativity.

Let me tell you a story from Cameroon. It is about a a distributor of cassettes called Ndongo Jean. He took six hours to get to Dimaka from Yaounde, the capital, and on the way he was chased by whirlwinds and dust storms. When he arrived he found a small town begun when a forest plantation was established in the area.

What a great time was had over Easter by a group of twenty new storytellers. I joined them as we gathered at Northmead Uniting Church, attending for three day over Easter.

I wondered if this way of storytelling would be a helpful tool in the hands of our new recordist trainees.

When I wrote my last blog I scarcely had enough courage to pray for this outreach. The distances were too far, the temperatures were too cold, the transport was too fragile, the communications were non existent, the villages too far apart, etc etc etc. But we prayed anyway.

And, away they went through the snowy wastes of Siberia!

The five of them arrived back last week, very happy about their
trip. The wife of one of the pastors reported:

"They drove 7 000 kms, the Australian

Just look at a map of Russia and go right. Then go up above the Arctic Circle to the Arctic Sea.

There you will find a form of outreach going on - an extreme form!

Five intrepid believers taking Christian literature, "Good News" recordings and a CD of testimonies in the  YAKUT language.

They are headed for Cherskii and the isolated villages there.

Their journey takes them to the icebound wilds of the Siberian heartland, then up to the Arctic Circle and to the Arctic Sea.

I have a problem, theologically, with delving into my past and seeking forgiveness.

Matt. 5: 23-24 Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and you remember that your brother has something against you; Leave your gift before the altar, and go and first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.

Is this the epitomy of taking communion or what. We are so often admonished not to eat the bread or drink from the Lord’s cup in an improper way. We are called upon to examine ourselves to avoid this. In many churches, children and non members are excluded from communion just in case they eat and drink judgment against themselves.