Why Am I In Africa?

“Why am I in Africa?” A question that may be asked when you wake up drenched in your own sweat at 7am, or when you find yourself wiping down the table for the third time in a day because of the relentless infiltration of dust, or when you finally sit down to read the bible and realize that there are still people in your house at 11pm, or when the water has been cut for weeks and you need to use the toilet, but the stench of your bathroom forces you to either go find some water to try and flush the toilet or to wait till you can go at a friends house, or when you are craving a milkshake and realize the closest thing you have is a cup of warm powdered milk. However, it is NOT for any of those reasons that I ask God why I was in Africa.  I asked myself (and God) that question after getting settled in, and I started seeking out His ministry for me here in Burkina. I was worried about how and when I would start being influential. I saw little fruit for our labor, and so I asked, “why am I in Africa?”

Now, first off, I do not want to be presumptuous by saying that “I understand why God has me here in Burkina” because I know that I will still be learning from my time here years after I return.  He has definitely been showing me a glimpse of His plan. Coming to Burkina, I had very few expectations. I had never been to Africa before, and was preparing myself for anything! However, of the few expectations that I did have, I knew (or at least thought) that I would always be doing ministry and that I would be constantly serving and being a light wherever I was.  It was going to be ALL about serving the Burkinabe people, and the other missionaries and working 100% toward whatever ministry I was doing at the time. I forgot about the “living” part of the missions field, or in other words, the less glamorous side of missions that you don’t think about until you are here.

For a while I got frustrated when we weren’t doing specifically ministry related things. However, I came to realize that my priorities were totally wrong. On my own I could not possibly come to Africa and be influential. In fact, apart from the grace of God I could not even be a part of his ministry. So I realized I needed to SOLELY seek out Jesus Christ. ONLY THEN would I be in a state in which I could be used for His ministry here in Bobo.

When I asked the question, “why am I here in Africa?” He gave me an answer: “You are here to fall more in love with me!” It has been AMAZING to see how he has met me. Now, whether I am preaching at church, or cleaning a dirty table at home, I am sustained. Zackary J. Smiley and I have had an amazing time digging into his word, listening to sermons, and reading books. We have been learning SO MUCH!

Here are a few things He is teaching me:

1)     Understanding Human Depravity. Boy have I come to realize the great need I have for God’s grace. But not only the fact that I need it, but also that I can do nothing without it! The good news is it has already been given! Here is the hope that I have in Jesus Christ:

Being born into a fallen world I have been radical depraved since birth. Unaware of my daily, hourly, even minutely sin I was a God hating creature. BUT God in his sufficient grace humbly sent his son to the earth. Jesus stood next to my grave where I was “dead in my trespasses” and wallowing in my own filthy sin. And in His unconditional, incomprehensible love, the God of the universe and the one man in all of time that walked blameless on the earth, plunged head first into my filth. Jesus took upon himself, not only my burdens, failures, and sins, but also the wrath and punishment from the Father that would have otherwise been on me. THAT is the hope that I find in Christ Jesus.

2)     Understanding Costly Grace. At first glance “costly” and “grace” don’t seem like they should go together. “Costly” means effort and sacrifice. But isn’t “grace” free? Isn’t it a gift? Well in order to understand costly grace we must first look at what cheap grace is. “Cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, communion without confession, absolution without personal confession. Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ.” (Bonhoeffer) Modern day “cheap grace” is everywhere! Everyone wants to be forgiven, but no one wants to acknowledge the cost of discipleship. So what is “Costly Grace?” Costly grace is grace that costs a man his entire life! “It is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it gives a man the only true life.” Costly grace is the treasure hidden in the field; for the sake of it, a man will gladly go and sell all that he has.” That is the type of grace I want to receive! The costly grace that shatters my entire existence! That costs my entire life! I am beginning to learn about The Cost Of Discipleship that Jesus calls every Christian too! And as a disciple of Christ nothing excites me more than to follow his call: “Come, follow me.”

3)     HIS Future For Me. His answer to my question has redefined all my expectations for my time here! No longer am I frustrated when I am not directly doing evangelism or discipleship. Before, my #1 priority was my ministry, but that is not biblical at all! My #1 priority MUST be my own relationship with Him. This allows me to dig into his word like I never have before. I feel like He has brought me here to Africa to prepare for my future ministry. He’s given me the opportunity to have hours to study and learn about him without other distractions that I would otherwise have in America (school, relationships, entertainment, comfort). Jesus says that if you are a good tree you WILL produce good fruit! As long as my dependence is solely in Jesus Christ, and I continue to seek freedom from myself and adherence to Christ, I WILL produce good fruit whether I like it or not. What a comfort it is to have freedom from the pressures saying the right words, or looking like a good Christian, or converting people. Those things are not my responsibility. Absolute adherence to Christ IS. And as I conform my heart mind and soul to the likeness of Christ, all other things will happen according to the Father’s plan.

I apologize if you wanted to hear more about our ministries and the African children, and the cultural differences and such. I just realized that this blog is more like a sermon than an update, but this is what is on my mind/heart right now! And it's my blog... so ha. But I will be posting other exciting things soon! i have a list of things on my computer that i want to share about!

Now we have built strong relationships with people here I feel comfortable taking video of our different ministries.  So, I will try to get a video update to you sometime soon! Thank you all for our continued prayers! (also, prayer update to come in a few days J)

Untill next time.

Anee Saoga Ma