Community Development for Missions Update

Dear friends, family and prayer supporters

I am so sorry that it’s taken me so long to write a new update. A few of you may be aware that I got pink eye a little while ago and that set me back quite a bit with my homework (Click here for more details). Since then it’s been a mad rush to try and get on top of things again. This week is the 8^th week of my first 12 week school at YWAM Denver where I am studying Community Development for Missions.

So far we have covered a wide variety of very interesting topics including Worldviews, Community Development Principles, Water and Sanitation, Community Assessment, Project Management and Economic Development. This week we have Education, followed by Primary Healthcare, Agriculture and various other seminars. We have also read three really great books and I put my book reports up on this blog for two of them if you are interested in reading more about them. The first book is called Truth and Transformation and the second is When Helping Hurts.

I have learnt so much during this school! I didn’t come with very high expectations and I think that I learnt more in the first week than I expected to learn in the whole school! I’ve already finished filling an entire book with all the notes I’ve taken. The highlights of the teaching weeks for me thus far are the weeks on Worldview and Economic Development. Worldviews taught me that so often we want to go in and help fix the surface level problems, when actually these come from a much deeper worldview root that stems from what the people believe about themselves, God and the world. Unless the root of the problem is addressed, our community development attempts will be short lived at best.  

Last week’s teaching on Economic Development was also a highlight for me because it enabled me to see how God’s unique gifting in my life can be used to bring lasting change in the Kingdom of God. It is so easy to be caught up in the stereotypical missionary mindset where evangelism is all there is to it, but God has given me a unique skill set with a business degree and an IT specialization that he can use in many ways to bring his kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. One of the main things that God has been showing me this school is that he does not want me to conform to what others say I should do, but that the most important thing is to follow him in obedience. He will direct my path. “Obedience is better than sacrifice” (Prov 21:3) is a phrase that I’ve heard a lot in my time here! I wrote a poem in response to the economic suffering of many people in the world which you can read by clicking here.

My CDFM class is very small with just five students. I am getting on really well with my classmates and building friendships that will hopefully last a lifetime. One big prayer request that I have is for our protection. We seem to be coming up against a lot of spiritual opposition in the past 7 weeks and there hasn’t been one week where we have all been in class every day. There have been various sicknesses going around, ranging from stomach bugs, to head injuries and other serious pains that the doctors could not identify. In addition, many of us have been struggling with various other spiritual attacks that have limited our ability to engage in class and get the most out of the school.

Spiritually I have been struggling quite a lot recently, which I know seems weird given that I am surrounded by Christians who are on fire for Jesus. I think it’s just the difference between the practical focus of this school and the spiritual depth of the other YWAM schools that I have done in the past which has thrown me off guard a bit. If you could pray for me to go deeper with God and to seek him on a daily basis, I would really appreciate that. In addition, if you get any words of encouragement for me while you pray, I would absolutely love it if you could send them to me.

Finally, if you would like to support me financially for my next school at YWAM Denver which starts 2 April, School of Worship, you can do so by going to www.ywamdenver.org, clicking on the “donate/pay” tab and selecting “Student Payment” from the list. If you have any questions or would like to organise an alternative method of payment, feel free to call the accounting office on 303-424-1144.

May God richly bless you in the coming days, weeks and months and may he give you a fresh revelation of his unconditional love for you.

Love Sarah

PS. If you would like to receive more regular communication from me, you can subscribe to this blog by entering your email address at the top on the left hand side of the screen. If you have any difficulty, please email me (spalser@gmail.com) and I will subscribe for you on your behalf.   

Truth and Transformation

The first book that I read during CDFM (Community Development For Missions) is called "Truth and Transformation". It is written by an Indian man named Vishal Mangalwandi. It is subtitled "A Manifesto for Ailing Nations" and looks at the ways in which communities can be transformed through the truth of the Bible. Below is the book report that I wrote for my class, answering three specific questions. I decided to post it as a blog so that you guys can get a little glimpse of the type of stuff I'm learning about.

A - What are the key themes and principles that were communicated in the book?

The first part of the book addressed the question “Do we need transformation?” The West was transformed by the Reformation in the 16^th Century, when the moral values of the Bible became the foundation of many nations. From corruption and an uprooting of these values that originally transformed societies, it is possible that the West is slowly losing the moral ground that has helped them prosper in the last half millennium. Rationality is discussed to be rooted in Christianity and the trigger for the technological progress of the West. The value in humanity and the freedom from menial labour that Christ’s death brought enabled humans to advance societies. Instead of seeking spiritual enlightenment through meditation, they sought to develop their minds and stretch their capabilities to experience life abundantly. Societies where this has not happened still are still spiritually oppressed and burdened by menial labour.

The family unit is highly valued in the Bible and its importance in Western civilisation’s history enabled strong communities to be built. The downfall of the family unit’s importance in more recent years has been a trigger of the West’s recent collapse. Likewise, the idea that humans are made equal in the image of God shaped much of the West’s previous success. However, in societies where value is not given to all people, oppression, poverty and death result. 

The second part of the book continued by looking at the question “Can nations be healed?” When looking at what Jesus accomplished on Earth and through his death and resurrection, Vishal discusses that Jesus’ wounds are for the healing of the nations, not just to save our souls. This includes bringing reconciliation between hostile people groups. Jesus has a rebellious compassion that practically loved people, while fighting against the injustice in Israel.  We are called to do the same in order to bring transformation.

The Kingdom of Heaven comes on Earth when we submit ourselves to God’s Word. Recognising the spiritual forces on the Earth, both good and evil, is necessary in order to combat the strongholds of the enemy, which hold communities in bondage, to bring freedom and life. Truth is the key to transformation and the ability for us as humans to cultivate our minds is a gift from God. Christians need to take an active role in education and teach people to know God. Jesus came to give us the knowledge of truth, for the truth will set us free. The Law that God gave us sets the way for community development to occur. When even one of the Ten Commandments is not upheld in a community, its downfall is inevitable. The consequences of our sin lead to poverty and pain. God’s law is a blessing that can revolutionise cultures and communities.

Following from this, the third part of the book addressed the question “How does the Gospel transform?” For a society to be reformed, it needs to be made aware of what is wrong, what is right and how it can change. This requires a spiritual awakening and mass movement. Evangelism is thus vital for proclaiming the truth that sets people free. This must include both that Jesus saves and that Jesus is Lord. This revelation can only come by the power of the Holy Spirit, who gives us the strength to stand against the powers and principalities that are corrupt and evil. Through Him we are able to refuse to accept injustice, no matter the consequences.

The church has been given to nurture people into truth that encourages loving relationships. As a community of self-sacrificing love that it is intended to be, the church can stand against poverty. We need to stand up to empower the oppressed as Jesus did. Through His death, Jesus brought about restoration in our relationships with Him, each other and with creation. We can thus have hope, even in the midst of what circumstances that might seem hopeless, for in Jesus there is hope in spite of our human failures. God’s purpose was to restore man’s dominion over the earth and will not destroy it when He comes again, but will make it new and come to live with us on Earth forever (John 14:23, Rev 21:2-3). If we want to see God’s power bring deliverance, we need to act in faith and obedience to what he calls us to.

Finally, the fourth part of the book posed the question “How can I participate?” This section is an appendix to the main book and deals with three different topics: Corruption and the Culture of the Cross; From Worldview Programs to Kingdom Movement; and finally, Transform America: Retake Education.


B - How can you apply these themes and principles to both your personal life and as a community development practitioner?

This book has opened my eyes to see the amazing way that God blesses communities who are founded on his Word. I was not previously aware how influential this has been to the successful development of the West since the Reformation. I can now see that even those who do not believe in Jesus are blessed through a community that follows his commands. This has influenced the way in which I understand Jesus’ prayer, “May Your Kingdom come, Your will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven”.

In my personal life I have been thus challenged to look for every opportunity to bring the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth, no matter where I am. I want to bring freedom for the captives, like Jesus did, and stand up against injustice, no matter the cost. As a community developer practitioner I one day hope to bring restoration in communities with each other, God and humankind, through teaching them God’s truths and a knowledge of Him. This will free them from the dominion of Satan and allow them to step into their purpose as people made in God’s image.


C - Is there anything in this book that you have more questions about or disagree with?

There are a number of times in the book where I felt that Vishal’s arguments were too generalised out of a specific case study and where he assumed an understanding of a premise that wasn’t fully rationalised in his argument. From this I struggled to fully agree with some of his arguments, while still understanding the heart of what he was trying to convey. There were also times in the book where I had to grapple with his argument for a while before being able to agree with what he was saying.

His focus and case studies often came from very different cultures from the ones in which I have grown up and thus I sometimes saw times where, while his application may apply in a European and Eastern society, it was not true for an African society. An example is his illustration of the ancient societies being able to build temples to their gods but not to liberate the menial labour of their people, keeping them in poverty. In Africa there has never been significant technological progress that was hindered by an incorrect worldview. Overall, however, I found the book to be a very interesting read, with a unique outlook that broadened my understanding of Community Development.

What a way to start 2012!

Right now I'm sitting on a couch in a little house in the outskirts of Oxford. What a week it has been! Paul and I have packing in so much sight seeing and touristy stuff that we are pretty much dead men walking now. I think we may have overdone it a bit, but it's lovely to spend some time with his extended family here in Oxford for a few days and slow down the pace a bit and 'recover' from the fast pace of London before we head off to the States. 

Hyde Park Swans

The church where my uncle
 Russell works as a vicar in Ewell

We landed at Heathrow on 30 December and spent a rather interesting day slowly making our way to Ewell, equipped with two big bags, one roll-a-board bag, two backpacks and a handbag. It was a little crazy, but we made it! We ended up stopping off at Hyde Park and meandering through the Winter Wonderland for a few hours. It was a little difficult with all our luggage, but well worth it! Food in London is rather pricey, so we ended up buying a loaf of bread and having a little picnic with a jar of Nutella I got for Christmas. :) 

The next day saw us waking up around midday, having caught up on some of the sleep we lost while travelling, and heading into London for our New Year's Eve adventures. We had organised to stay with a good friend of mine for the night, who is staying with her sister near St Paul's Cathedral for the holidays. It was such a blessing to have a place so close to the fireworks to crash for the night, because getting out of the center of London is nearly impossible with the crowds! After finally locating their place, we headed over to the fireworks viewing spots. We were about 6 hours early, but had been warned that it was necessary in order to get a good spot. So we had a little picnic, watched a movie, huddled together among thousands of other tourists under an umbrella and eventually watched a really incredible fireworks display. 

New Year's on Waterloo Bridge

Gabi, me and Tyrone

Catching up with Gabi later that night was wonderful, as I haven't seen her in two months and won't see her again for another six. We had some great girl-talk time and a good nights sleep before heading off to do some tyical touristy things the next day. Paul and I went to the Shakespeare Globe, the Tate Modern, the London Eye, St Paul's Cathedral, Big Ben and Westminster Abbey. By the late afternoon the rain was bucketing down, my boots were drenched through and it felt like I was squelching in puddles with every step! But it was well worth it and we got to tick off quite a few things off our list!

St Paul's Cathedral

Westminster Abbey

Big Ben

That evening we had a wonderful supper with my grandparents. It was really nice to see them again, share stories and catch up after not having seen them for about a year and a half. I'm so glad that Paul got to meet them too, as they immigrated to the UK soon after Paul and I started dating. It was also lots of fun realising how much I have in common with my aunt, Elaine, that I didn't know about: like being fussy about the different tastes of tap water and work better late at night than in the early morning! 

Granddad, Auntie Di, Elaine, Russell and me

On the 2nd one of Paul's dreams came true when we went to see the Emerite's Stadium; the home ground of his beloved Arsenal football/soccer team! Unfortunately we couldn't go inside the stadium, but just being there seemed to be enough :) We then headed to Hamleys and did some Oxford Street shopping. We also managed to squeeze in watching the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace too! Fun times!

The next day was a little wet and there had been some terrible wind and rain the night before, resulting in a number of trees falling over railway tracks. Because of this, it took us quite a while to get into London, but we eventually got to see the Science Museum, Natural History Museum and explored Harrods a bit. We stopped off for some Starbucks and a little more Oxford Street shopping before heading home.

What I will look like when I'm old,
according to the Science Museum!

Paul outside the Natural History Musu

Then yesterday we packed up all our stuff and came with Paul's uncle, Ron, to Oxford. It's been so nice to slow the pace down a bit, put out feet up and just chill! I've really loved hearing more about Paul's family history and noticing all the similarities and quirks that mirror his family at home, even in a family that has grown up completely on the other side of the world! 

Today we went into Oxford for a few hours and just wandered the streets and stopped in at a few shops. I'm delighted with the 2 year anniversary present that Paul bought for me, and he also got himself a really nice warm Oxford University hoodie :)

We now have another 2 and a half days to go before we leave for the States (on Sunday)! YWAM Denver here we come! I'm so excited to be back and to have some awesome time growing with the Lord and spending time seeking him and worshiping him! 

2012 is definitely off to a good start and I know that there is a lot more of good stuff to come!

First two ministry days in Mthatha

At the moment I'm in Mthatha, a rural area in South Africa, the traditional homeland of the Xhosa people. I'm here with my church on a missions trip, doing some community development, running a holiday club for kids and a discipleship program for youth. The rest of this post is an extract from my prayer request to my prayer partners. Feel free to read it and pray if God leads you to.

Our ministry times have been going quite well, without too many issues. Yesterday it took a while go gather some of the kids from the community, because word hadn't spread that we were coming. We took the time to walk around the village, praying and greeting the people as we went. Within about an hour we had a whole group of kids and were able to play games, do sport, sing songs, chat and run our holiday club program of worship, Bible story, memory verse and craft activity.

After the memory verse, I went out with the teenage girls and some of the leaders to chat. We did an icebreaker to get to know each other and explained why we were there and what we wanted to do. I gave them paper, and we asked them to write down questions that they wanted us to answer during the course of the week. Some of the questions broke my heart, like "what do I do when I'm in deep trouble?" and "what should I do if I have HIV?".

Today Emily spoke about healthy eating and how to look after your body well and focused on what to do if you have HIV. There is a shortage of Antiretrivirals in the area, and since the government officials take preference, the poorer clinics never receive any antiret supplies. There is no way for people here who have HIV to prevent it's development into AIDS and thus it is still a death sentence. The most heartbreaking question we got today, aside from "how do I help my friend with HIV?" and "is it ok for me to have sex with my boyfriend on a Sunday?", was "what can I do if my parents are forcing me to have sex for money?" I nearly cried when I read it! We cannot change the culture here in one week. We can't change the parents minds, the boys actions or the government presence. Trying to tell these girls that they have worth and purpose and are created in God's image and are loved by him just doesn't seem enough.

Please pray for incredible wisdom for us all. The teenage boys are also having a ministry time now during the kids program, and they asked questions about evolution and creation, because the school syllabus teachers such contradictions from the Bible.

The weather is also another concern. It has been VERY cold and the rain today prevented us from being able to do practical work this afternoon. Part of this time was going to be for water distribution, like we did yesterday, but obviously people didn't need water from us because of the rain. It's such a blessing to the nearby village that it's raining, as their water is off for the whole village. So I don't know if we should be praying for the rain to stop or not ;) Just pray that we will be able to be productive and find things to do to bless the missionaries here when we are not able to do the work that we had planned.

On a more personal note, I'm very grateful to have been able to wash my hair in warm water today as I havent been able to since Friday. I'm feeling very clean and happy! Praise God for another good nights sleep, and earplugs that enabled me to sleep through when some girls from the other team got up at 4:30am to shower! I've been able to rest get some much needed rest and personal space this afternoon and I'm feeling good. Please continue to pray for good sleep and good health :)