Rachel's Reflections

The first time the grandmother saw me, she thought I was the Red Cross coming to bring food to her family. Instead, I offered her something of far greater value. The Good News of the Cross of Jesus Christ. Wednesday arrived overcast and threatening rain. Around midday, it poured. Thirty minutes before leaving for the Bible study at Mama N's house I called the M believer that I had asked to go with me. She told me she didn’t want to risk the muddy, treacherous path in Chibubuare. She would go with me another day. God, should I still go?   Yes, this family is hungry for the Word of God. How can I deny it to them? I grabbed the Kimwani Bible and turned to leave, but decided to grab all of the booklets at the last minute. Wrapping them in a plastic bag in case it rained again, I placed them in my bag and walked out the door. As I descended the path I said a quick prayer. “Lord, I don’t know what I’m going to do or what I’m going to read. Please guide this Bible study today.” When I rea...

How can one tiny culture blunder change the entire tone of a day? I laughed frequently with Mama R, Mama S, Mama F, and Maureen throughout Women's Day,  enjoying the most important day of the year for many Mozambican women . We took pictures, cooked, and dressed in our new capulanas.  We then ate our picnic of grilled chicken, potato salad, tomato rice, and the chocolate cake I had made for them.  At the end of the special day, I gathered all the things that I had brought to Mama R's house and went home with Maureen. Not twenty minutes later Mama R arrived at the back door, fuming. She yelled at me, telling me she did not like that I had taken her chocolate cake. In shock and confusion, I responded defensively. It was my cake and I wanted to give the leftovers to another friend. Of course, that made the situation worse. She glared and walked out with a humph. I turned and stared at Maureen. I understood the words, but not the cultural implications of what had happened. Sh...

In a culture where most men have two or more wives in different locations it is strange to find a man living with his only wife 24/7. It is even more unusual when that man is willing to lead his family in seeking the Truth as a seeker himself.  I arrived at Mama N's house Wednesday afternoon for our Bible study. Her husband, Papa N, came out to greet me first. The other family members gathered around with eager expectation. A hunger to learn more about God shone in their eyes. We all found a seat under the shade tree in their backyard, some on the woven mat, some on empty rice sacks, and one or two on the rocky ground. I opened the storybook to where we had left off the previous week. I read of Jesus' birth, childhood, miracles, and his riding into Jerusalem on a donkey. A teenage girl in the yard on the hillside above us started calling to someone in the yard below. I paused and looked up. She had no idea she had interrupted an important moment. Papa N asked her to be quiet an...

What does it look like to cook Mozambican style? I arrived at Mama R's house at 8:00am for my Kimwani cooking lesson. She set me to work pounding peanuts. What an arm workout that is! Usually, early morning is a bit cooler, but I was dripping in sweat after several minutes and I was nowhere near done. After pounding the peanuts I pounded leaves into a pulp. Do you know how long it takes to pound leaves into pulp? A long time. After pounding the leaves, Mama R put them on to boil. Thankfully, she saw that I was tired and needed a break; she had me go home and rest while the leaves boiled. When I came back, she told me to grate two coconuts in order to make coconut milk for both the rice and the Matapa we were making.  I sat on the little bench and used the sharp, metal end to grate the coconut. Then I poured water over the coconut and squeezed out all of the coconut flavor to get coconut milk. I put half in a pot and put it over charcoal to boil before adding the rice. Most women I ...

Oh, what a tiny booklet can do to open the door to huge opportunities! On Monday I walked into Mama R's yard for my regular Kimwani lesson. I sat down next to her and greeted her. She greeted me back, then jumped up and went into the house. She came back with a small booklet. "Read this," she said. I stumbled through the Kimwani words, with pronunciation help from Mama R. An African father tells his children the story of Creation, Adam and Eve's sin, Jesus' birth, childhood, miracles, love for children, death, and resurrection. At the end, the son tells his parents he wants to be a child of God. He prays and asks God to forgive him and save him from his sins. What an incredible resource ! I thought to myself when I finished.  "You need to practice this so you can read it well," Mama R told me, "and teach it to children." A great idea,  I thought, surprised that she was the one suggesting it. "Can I borrow it to practice reading it to other...

Imagine being in your 80's and walking to the hospital with your granddaughter because you're not feeling well. She carries your great-granddaughter on her back and waits patiently as you hobble along. Going to the hospital isn't so bad, downhill all the way in the coolness of the morning, but coming back up the hill in the heat of midday? Oh, it's excruciating as pain shoots through your joints and lines your already wrinkled face. -- I went to visit Mama N Monday afternoon. When I arrived at her house an elderly lady on the porch thought I was from one of the organizations passing out food. Mama N told her no, I'm family. My heart warmed at those words. My friendship with Mama N began just over a year ago around the time her baby was born. She had a hunger for God's Word and desired to learn more about Jesus. She wanted to attend the next Bible study we held, but then Covid shut everything down and people started arriving from the northern villages. Now, she h...

I can be independent and stubborn at times. It's true. I think back to two years ago when Mama R asked me when I was going to hire a house helper. I didn't want to. I was capable of cleaning my own home and didn't need any help. Mama R helped me understand that it was expected of me to provide jobs for those in the community when possible. She introduced me to Mama F, a wonderful house helper! Now, I'm thankful for Mama F, for her friendship, hard work, and incredible ministry opportunity God has provided through her. When Mama F came to clean on Monday, I played the song,  O Grande Eu Sou (The Great I AM ) for her. She broke into a huge grin, singing along to the parts she remembered. It's her favorite song but she hasn't heard it since I left in July. I wanna be close / Close to Your side So Heaven is real / And death is a lie I wanna hear voices / Of angels above Singing as one Hallelujah / Holy, Holy God almighty / The great I am Who is worthy / None beside ...