Among the Unreached (DTS Part 3)
After three weeks in Benguela, we headed out on a 20 hour bus ride to the bottom of Angola to work with local missionaries among a semi-unreached people group called the Himba. (Get ready! This was hands-down my favorite week of outreach!)
Stopped for about an hour at a police station where they checked our large pile of passports.
No fancy bus for us- rather, packed in, bags and all.
Sabinu and Juliana are an Angolan couple who felt called to the Himba people group over twenty years ago. Since then, they have faithfully worked in a small community called Chitado. They faced health scares, suspicion from the government, loneliness, lacking of good schooling for their children, and mistrust from the very tribe they came to work with. The couple had to learn an entirely new language over the first years, then formed relationships in order to foster opportunities to meaningfully share the gospel. Thirteen years passed before a single person gave their life to Christ. Sabinu and Juliana focus their energies on hospitality, opening their home to anyone who walks into the gate. Whether they have enough food for their family or not, the couple shares meals with visitors. They listen, chat, and administer medical assistance. In fact, Sabinu has walked dozens of miles to refurnish their medicine supply!
They joyfully welcomed our group of 27 people (Paulo, Noah, and two of their coworkers came along) into their home, literally allowing us to invade. Their servant hearts astounded me. Juliana insisted on cooking all our meals with the help of a handful of neighbor ladies. Sabinu sat with many of us, telling us about the local culture. Their excitement to have fellow Christians visit them was astounding, reminding me the urgency with which Scripture tells us to remember our persecuted or struggling spiritual siblings across the world as if we were going through hardship with them.
The kitchen (although a lot of cooking was also done outside over an open fire)
Living room
One of two bedrooms for the girls. The boys stayed in a small house next door that had been Sabinu and Juliana's house before they were allowed by the government to upgrade to a larger dwelling. Both houses, like most buildings in the small community, were built during a war involving the British during the early 1900's. After the British left, buildings were reclaimed and restored by locals.
Our leaders and three of us girls slept in tents in the compound. We had brought enough tents for the entire group to sleep (snuggly packed) in them, not knowing whether sleeping quarters would be provided for us. I felt super blessed to look up at the endless sea of diamond stars dazzling against the dark night canvas, before stepping into my tent to sleep.
Less pleasantly, a persistent rooster practiced his solos diligently every morning before the sun rose :)
The boy's house and water tap for both houses.
Chicken stripped of feathers and waiting to be cut up; it sat on the table where some of us enjoyed breakfast.
Daily washing clothes by hand made for time of catching up with each other.
Our leaders warned us that we may not get to interact with any Himbas, since the tribe has used their preserved culture as an income by having tourists pay to take pictures of them and see their houses. Yet God blessed us more than we could imagine (as you will see continually throughout this post!) The first morning, two Himba sisters, who attend the church Sabinu and Juliana planted, came and sat by the back door. My heart swelled with an excitement I can never put to words as I sat by them, staring while they stared back. I took in everything: their plenteous jewelry, braided hair, shy mannerisms... my pulse throbbed with giddy joy! After years of praying for unreached people groups, begging God to penetrate them with His word and offering myself to go, I was sitting with two young members of the Himba tribe!
Because the women are topless, I have edited the pictures with leaf stickers. I chose these stickers on purpose, because it reminds me of the fig leaves that Adam and Eve clothed themselves with after eating the forbidden fruit. The Himba women were not ashamed of their cultural dress; it made me consider what shame does in one's heart and the need for freedom in peace offered only by the One who can wash our sins to oblivion.
Sabinu shared that children in the Chitado area are forbidden to call their father by name. If someone asks who their father is, the child must call a relative to answer the question. I my prayer the entire week (and still today) was that the Heavenly Father will reveal Himself to these children, inviting them to call Him by name.
Forbidding children to speak their father's name stems from the norm of women not getting married, but having children with multiple men. Contrary to most cultures, in Chitado a woman chooses which men she's interested in. Men are not allowed to force a woman to be with them, and sexual assault is basically non-existent. Children belong to the mother, often living with no dad in the picture. Even married women will have children with other men. The complicated web of fatherhood stands in direct contrast with God's perfect design of one man and one woman in a covenant relationship until death.
Around puberty, a Himba girl undergoes a celebration. She is allowed to have a meal with her friends, eating a rarely slaughtered goat or sheep. Additionally, she is then allowed to wear woman's jewelry and have her hair covered with a clay-like substance.
A piece of home, atap. Atap is a casava flour starch which is quite sticky. I did not expect to find a food eaten daily in our area of Uganda halfway across the continent!
Linda, a sweet young woman whom Juliana was discipling, took a handful of us on a tour around Chitado.
One of the largest shops in "town".
We found a few fascinating walls made from mud/clay and used bottles!
One of my favorite things about Linda is her laugh. She bubbled with joy. When we would try to speak in broken Portuguese she's burst into laughter. She was a quick, eager learner and a friendly personality who embraced us like sisters and brothers.
One of my sweetest memories with Linda was the last 24 hours in Chitado. God put it on my heart to give Linda one of my dresses, a lovely blue dress that flows with every step. As I gifted it to her, I used all the meager Portuguese I'd picked up to tell her that every time she wears the dress, she must remember she is beautiful to God and pleases Him. Linda began crying with her face buried in the folded dress. The next morning, I saw her sauntering joyfully to school... in a new blue dress.
Please pray for Linda as she finishes her studies for the year and anticipates her upcoming marriage. Pray Linda will love God with all her heart and be a radiant glow of God's joy in Chitado. Pray her marriage will reflect Christ and the church.
Meeting Thimba ladies (Thimba is the name for another tribe in the area).
Sabinu and Juliana shared with us their story of mission work. It was refreshing and sobering to hear such a raw tale, struggles and victories combined in one testimony of God working through this willing couple. Junio, our leader, pointed out that missions is hard, and for African missionaries it is extremely hard. Funding, resources and connections are nearly non-existent. Sabinu and Juliana have moved through over 20 years of missions in faith, trusting God to provide for their needs each day. One student in our group asked where they get funding. Sabinu replied that they have no consistent supporters, but live by prayer and faith in God's provision.
Amy Charmichael says it perfectly in her book "Things as They Are": "The work is not a pretty thing to be looked at and admired. It is a fight. And battlefields are not beautiful. But if one is truly called of God, all the difficulties and discouragements only intensify the Call... The greater the need, the clearer the Call rings through one, the deeper the conviction grows: it was God's Call. And as one obeys it, there is the joy of obedience, quite apart from the joy of success. There is joy in being with Jesus in a place where His friends are few."
Not unusual to wake up and find visitors are joining us for breakfast (or for the entire day).
Sunday we attended the church Sabinu and Juliana have planted, by God's grace. The wooden walls and grass-thatched roof reminded me of churches in Uganda villages.
"Let the little children come to Me and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these."
"I praise You, Father, for You have hidden these things [Truth] from the wise and learned and revealed them to little children."
I have no way to describe the church service except to say it was a taste of Heaven! Multiple tribes were there, setting aside their division to unite in Christ.
The Himba ladies!
Sovereign Lord,
teach me to pray
with devotion,
trust and authenticity
of a little child
trusting a good
Father
The woman in the red head scarf I called "Queen Esther" because of her striking beauty and calm grace. I had the privaledge of praying over her baby during the church service.
This is one of two Himba men who have given their lives to Christ and attend the church. This man has faced significant pressure from his relatives since receiving salvation. He decided to stop sleeping around, a cultural norm and expectation, and dedicate himself to his wife. A visiting woman relative despised his resolve and tried to seduce him. However, he has stood firm. His wife (standing with him) was quite pregnant for their second child when we were in Chitado. She wears an audio Bible clipped to one of her traditional necklaces; the couple often listens to God's word, gleaning strength to stand against cultural sins.
This man told us how encouraged he was to have other believers visit his tribe. Hearing his testimony and gratitude showed me how important it is for us as Christians to visit spiritual siblings around the world as much as possible; not to "save" them, for Christ has already done that, but to listen to, pray with and serve them.
After church, almost the entire Himba crowd returned to Sabinu's house with us. Everyone was served lunch by the generous couple.
One of the happiest moments of my life: a Himba lady rubbed a stone-based mixture they use to decorate and protect their skin on my arms and face! I learned later that the stones they use to make this paste come from another area, so they have to buy the stones. What a gift that she was still willing to give me a piece of her world. One of the men who came with us from Benguela called me the white Himba :)
Even though I was unable to talk with the ladies, they enthusiastically invited me to eat lunch with them. Generously, several of them gave me their pieces of cooked goat (or beef) stomach or intestine to have with my share of the rice. Thankfully I've had both before at a traditional marriage in Uganda so knew what to expect! Although the taste was not great, it was one of the best meals of my life! I praised God nonstop throughout lunch that He would allow me to sit among such a captivating people He'd created, making me mute so I could not strive to "be a good Christian" around them, but sit in awe of the work God is doing among them.
One Lord
one faith
one baptism
one Father
who is Lord
of all
through all
and in all
His children,
embracing each
color and dress
uniting diversity
created by
His Almighty
Hand,
the same
outstretched arm
that parted the
sea, delivered
Israel's remnant,
reached for a
virgin mother's
embrace, purchased
redemption outstretched
in humiliation-
now conqueror,
the One who
destroys division
birthing children
into one family.
Babies nearly disappear in their mommy's voluminous hair.
Sabinu took the folks who lived farther away home in his pickup truck. Our leader (Natalia), Jordynne (a fellow student), Linda and I rode along. We taught each other songs in Portuguese as we rode home in the dark, wind whipping through our hair, and the stars glistening happily overhead.
Chickens constantly covered the yard.
Unexpectedly, God gave us the blessing of visiting a local Himba house!
Three ladies greeted us to their compound when we arrived.
The ladies kindly answered our many questions. Did their jewelry have symbolism? (No) How many people lived in the compound? (About four siblings the their families) Why did the matriarch not look at us? (It's rude for a Himba to look straight at you, meeting your eyes. The polite stance is to stand with one's side towards another person) What did they usually eat? (A few drinks of milk and a little corn-flour starch made up most day's menu) Did they even slaughter their own animals to eat? (Rarely; the animal meat is saved for special occasions- like when visitors come. Turns out the short notice between our visit's announcement and our appearance was the sole reason they had not slaughtered a goat for us)
This settlement stood out from most Himba homes because it was a permanent property. The majority of Himbas are herdsmen who take their livestock from place to place, building simple houses of wooden poles.
My prayer since I've been a child has been to live out the verse, "How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring Good News!" Being among the Himba served to fan the flame of this plea. Interestingly, God does not tell His people to pray for the hearts of those we go to when He speaks of a harvest being ready (Luke 10). Rather, the Lord commands us to pray for laborers, begging for more to be sent out that the harvest may not spoil. Praying for laborers is a prayer of submission, forcing you to ask yourself, "If He calls me, am I willing?" Begging for laborers means confronting the questions, "Am I doing the work of the laborer where I am, making the good news known to those around me? Am I being faithful where I am, willing to go to those who have never heard Jesus' name if He asks such of me?"
As Amy Charmichael says, "Praying alone is not enough, but oh for more real praying! We are playing at praying, and caring, and coming; playing at doing.. God open our eyes and convict us of our insincerity! Burn out the superficial in us, make us intensely in earnest! ... Do we count them [the lost] worth the rearrangement of our day, that we may have more time to pray? Do we count them worth the laying down of a single ambition, the loosening of our hold on a single child or friend? Do we count them worth the yielding up of anything we care for very much? Let us be still for a moment and think. Christ counted souls worth Calvary. What do we count them worth?"
Do not become discouraged at your fears, doubts or lacking. The harvest is God's, the field is God's, the workers are God's. He is the One who stirs up and sends out. "God alone can strengthen you for it. He who set His face as a flint, can make you steadfast and brave enough to set your faces as flints, till the bands of wickedness are loosed, and the heavy burdens are undone, and every yoke is broken, and the oppressed go free." (Charmichael).
Inside the main house, a bedroom for the adults.
Kid's bedroom with more storage.
Throughout my time in Chitado God taught me about a heart posture I titled "the open hand principle." It began with a pair of flipflops I bought at a fuel station on our way from Benguela to Chitado. I was excited to find havianas (Brazilian flipflops that have become a sort of country icon) with a hummingbird decoration. Because hummingbirds have been a symbol of freedom and love to me in the past, I purchased the sandals without a second thought. That is, until I was re-boarding our bus, where a couple of young boys were begging for food. Now, I've seen kids on the street begging all my life, but no amount of exposure can numb one's heart to such a horrid reality. I break inside every time I see a child pleading for food. The entire day after that, I felt intense shame over having purchased havianas I did not need when so many children around the world cannot get enough food to sustain their small bodies. In tears, I cried out to God, disgusted with myself and begging the Holy Spirit to help me know what to do with my racing thoughts. Gently, He told me, "I love to bless you, child. I want good things for you. I gave you My Son; anything else is simple for Me to provide. Will you trust Me enough to open your hands to receive blessing and keep your hands open when I ask something of you? Will you keep your eyes on Me, rejoicing both in receiving and releasing?" I humbly committed myself to doing just that. By God's grace, He gently but firmly took me through many occasions of practicing the open hand principle in Chitado. I received incredible blessing from the love, service and acceptance of people around me. And the Holy Spirit gave me strength to release time, possessions, grace and expectations when He asked me to. In receiving and giving joy filled my soul, because He turned my eyes back on Him with each action.
One example happened at the Himba house we visited. God spoke clearly to my heart, asking me to bless our hostess with a gift. I argued mentally with God, sputtering that I had come with nothing to give! "Give her your hair tie," He told me. Again, I protested, declaring that a hair tie was a pathetic gift that was more likely to offend then bless. Yet I couldn't shake the consistent nudge from the Holy Spirit. I remembered one of our leaders saying, "God's heart is to give to, bless and love on others. If you feel called to do that, it is not from your flesh or the enemy, because they do not have this heart." So, nervously but obediently, I took my hair tie and slipped it on our hostess' wrist, motioning that it was a gift for her to keep.
Much to my surprise, she became quite excited and turned to her daughters, talking quickly. The next thing I knew, she took two rubber bracelets and slipped them on my own wrist, then took my hand and led me over to one of the men translating for us. Through his help, she declared, "This girl and I have exchanged gifts. We are now sisters!" This kindness was by far one of the most precious gifts I have received in my life! This sweet woman held my hand the rest of our time at her house, never letting go. I loathed to leave her and her family when it was time to go. Please join me in prayer for this sweet family, that God will penetrate their hearts with love for Him and use their unusually permanent house as a place where other Himbas learn of the Rock on whom they can build their lives.
Another day, we trekked to a river for a swim. (We had ample time during the day because there was no scheduled ministry. Rather, we spent time fellowshipping with those who entered the compound and experience the culture, people and land around us).
On the way, we saw a "normal" Himba house. This one had recently been abandoned for a new location (the fire pit still had ashes in it).
As we were climbing over the stunningly gorgeous, rocky landscape, David- a student from Uganda- commented on the trees which were growing out of the rocks. "It seems impossible, doesn't it, that a tree could grow out of a rock? Yet isn't that what we're called to do as Christians? Christ is the Rock and we are to have our life in Him."
Reflection
of life
impossible
life
thriving
from
firm ground
unshakable
foundation;
life
reflecting
a shadow
of glory
arresting
attention
of all
around
Surprise!
During our time swimming, a fellow student asked, "Hey, Junio, can I get baptized here?" Although I thought he was joking (he wasn't), an excitement leaped inside my heart. I knew it was time for me to get baptized. I had agonized over the decision of whether or not to get baptized with the other Troubadour students before leaving on outreach, but had decided to wait because I wanted my family present. However, baptism still weighed on my heart. From 2020-2023 I had walked away from God. He wooed me back into His arms through the Psalms. In December of 2023 I rededicated my life to Him. Since that time, a desire to baptized, as a declaration of my commitment to follow Him no matter the cost, has grown in my heart.
In that river in Chitado, God beckoned me to baptism. Aside from my family's absence, I could never ask for a more wonderful baptism! I was declaring God's grace in my life amidst unreached people which God had put on my heart since my childhood... in a gorgeous piece of God's creation... on a DTS, something I never thought I'd be able to do.
Additionally, I love that God ordained that the body of water I was baptized in be a river. A river reminds me of God parting the Jordan for the Israelites to cross from a journey of learning to be His people into the promise He had for them; of Naaman being cleanse of pride and illness in the Jordan's water; of John the Baptist calling people back to the Lord in preparation of His coming; of Jesus, who is the living water; and of the River of Life spoken of in Revelation.
Natalia and Junio, two of our leaders, dear mentors and friends to me, baptized me in the river!
"We were buried with Him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life." (Rom. 6:4)
"If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord." (Rom. 14:8)
Baptism time concluded with a celebratory splash party!
"Christ is my firm foundation,
the rock on which I stand
when everything around me is shaken"
Opening the freezer to find chicken feet staring back deserved a picture :)
I once heard someone say that both the devil and Christ place high priority on children, because the formative years of childhood are when beliefs and allegiance solidifies. What a child is taught can easily craft his entire worldview.
And as a Body of Christ, we have sometimes allowed ourselves to turn a blind eye to the importance of reaching children; meanwhile the enemy actively "seeks those he may devour." Now, I do not ignore those who are giving their lives, time, resources and heart to reach children. They are fostering the very kingdom of God! (Matt. 18:1, 19:14). I praise God for those who have dedicated themselves to raising their children in the ways of the Lord! (Prov. 1:8-9). Yet no one can remain complacent. As Amy Charmichael cries, "Oh, when will the day come when this merchandise in children's souls shall cease?"
To those serving, loving on and reaching out to children, may the Lord renew your strength like the eagle as He promises. To those who are not displaying the kingdom of God to children around you, please contemplate the Father heart of God. This does not mean you have to run a children's ministry or teach in nursery. It means living out God's love to children around you and openness to follow a call to any specific acts of service or ministry He guides you into.
Our last night in Chitado we had a love feast with our hosts (Sabinu, Juliana and their neighbors). We took over cooking the meal, had a time of verbally thanking Sabinu and Juliana, then washed the couple's feet to serve these spiritual soldiers who have fought for decades where no one else would.
A group of Himba men came to see pictures of Miche, the Troubadour Himba.
The strong-willed but sweet woman in the picture bellow spent the night at Sabinu's house as well, because her baby had a bad eye infection. We prayed a lot over this child and left him when he was doing somewhat better. Please pray for increased access to medical help among the Himba, as well as hearts of faith to call on God, the great Physician.
One of the hardest goodbyes I've ever said.
Packing up our group of 23 and luggage, plus around seven people who drove along with us to the Angola-Namibia border, 45 kilometers away. We fit everyone in two pick-up trucks!
One last hurrah- a Himba man at the immigration building, also crossing the border.
Lots of bags
Goodbye, Angola. You will forever hold a special place in my heart. Thank you, God, for the privilege of getting to experience Your people in this country.
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