Q&A

Vision Trip to the Congo, Summer 2007

Where did the concept for this vision trip come from?

Several members of our fellowship (Pastor Martin, Cal Kierum, Stacie Kierum, Larry Short, Debi Tonsager, and Cindy Waple among them) believe that the Lord is leading us to put together a vision trip to the Congo during the Summer 2007 in cooperation with the Evangelical Free Church of America International Missions (EFCA-IM) organization, and its compassion ministry arm, TouchGlobal), as well as the Congolese Evangelical Free Church (CEFC). This belief is the result of much prayer and circumstantial evidence, and the direct tug of the Holy Spirit on our hearts. We have felt this tug in a unique way and we are seeking to respond. This leading was further confirmed when members of this committee began to engage with the staff from the EFCA-IM and TouchGlobal who have encouraged our vision for the Congo. It has been further strengthened by both the interest expressed by others at Elim in this trip and by the approval of the Missions Team of the trip concept.

What is the history of the EFCA in the Congo?

After many years of Evangelical Free Church mission work in the Congo during the 20^th Century, the EFCA disengaged from the Congo in the late 1990s. In part, this was related to civil war, but in part it was due to the realization that the Lord had allowed the missionaries to plant a healthy church in the Congo; one that could better mature without relying on missionaries to be the administrators.

During the last 8-10 years, the CEFC has grown to over 800 congregations and is the second largest Evangelical Free Church in the world after the EFCA. In the Ubangi region of northwestern Congo, there is hardly a village that does not have a Free Church congregation. As this church has matured, they have begun to send out missionaries to neighboring countries and to address the problems facing their society from Christ’s perspective. They are now asking for those in the U.S. who feel called to join them in what they are doing, to come to the Congo to see how the Lord is working.

What is the purpose of the trip?

The purpose of this vision/mission trip is to discover and get further vision for ways we could engage with our Christian brothers and sisters in the Congo to support them in their efforts to bring spiritual and physical healing to a country devastated by years of war and disease (including HIV/AIDS). It is our understanding that the trip is mainly to go, see, and hear how God is moving among the CEFC as it seeks to address these issues and spread the Gospel.

As we visit with the Congolese leadership, it is our hope that there may be opportunities to serve or evangelize with our Congolese brethren. Our goal, should God continue to lead us in this direction, is to establish a long-term relationship with the CEFC. That being said, we will go with a posture of listening and discovery. The leadership of the CEFC has identified several areas of focus that the Lord has laid upon their hearts, including community health, response to HIV (including specific ministries to widows and orphans), and equipping through education the pastors and lay leaders who are working to fulfill the Great Commission. We hope that our ultimate engagement will be some holistic combination of evangelism/equipping and compassion ministry.

When is the trip and who will go?

The trip is tentatively scheduled for July 17^-31, 2007. This timeframe has been approved by the Congolese and ECFA-IM leadership. Between 3 and 5 individuals will represent Elim on this first trip. They will be accompanied by TouchGlobal’s Rachel Martin, and Kevin Kompelien, who is Africa Leader for ECFA-IM. We will also be joined by President Selenga, Congolese Free Church president, and other Congolese leadership.

What is the relationship of this vision trip to the HIV/AIDS crisis in Africa?

Subsaharan Africa (including the Congo) has by far the largest proportion of HIV/AIDS sufferers in the world. The impact of the disease on this continent is devastating beyond imagination, and the suffering unfathomable. God is calling churches throughout the world to action, not least of all here in the U.S. where the church is blessed with significant resources and therefore has both means and responsibility to help mitigate the crisis. There may or may not be a medical aspect to our ultimate assistance. It is possible we might work with churches to provide health care or victim support or orphan support. What is exciting, even though we don’t know yet if or how we might fit into this ministry, is that the Congolese Free Church already has specific programs they are designing to minister to HIV-affected children and widows. We don’t have to come up with the solutions; we only have to be willing to serve where the Lord calls us.

Why not pour our resources into compassion or evangelistic ministry here at home?

Our team believes wholeheartedly that this effort should not be a substitute for our church investing resources in compassion and evangelistic ministry here at home, and elsewhere. If God is truly calling us to this trip, and we believe that He is, then He will see that the resources are provided. We can trust our Lord in this! He has blessed us with much and part of our responsibility is to be wise stewards of His resources that He has allowed us to control. As much as this trip is about us going to see if or how the Lord is leading us to join the Congolese in ministry, we also believe it will have impact on the regional and local efforts of our church to minister. We have much to learn from our brothers and sisters in the Congo about becoming salt and light in a decaying world. The barriers they face are surmountable only through God’s power and not through works of men.

This crisis is an opportunity for God’s people to “let their light shine” which ultimately gives glory to Him. We hope to learn from that faith and pray that this experience will provide fire, zeal, experience, and perspective for ministries at Elim. It is not merely an issue of us sending money to the Congolese or of us assuming we have superior answers to the problems that they face. There is much value in the relationships that will be formed and the Lord’s work in those who go that is not accomplished by merely sending of our excess funds. We do believe this trip is also an expression of the fact that God calls us to provide Christian love, in truth and in deed, to our brothers and sisters in the Congo. Between poverty, civil strife, AIDS, and spiritual warfare, the needs in the Congo are great. The leaders of the Congolese Free Church have asked that we would come, not to do for them the work that the Lord has given them to do, but to join with them.

Is it safe to send members of our church to such a place?

Despite its recent history of violence, there is much hope for stability in the DRC due to July 30 and October 30 democratic elections, the first free elections there in more than 40 years. The DRC is an enormous country (larger than Texas and Alaska combined) and stability is far greater in some places than in others. That said, it is our faith in a righteous and good God that says we can be nowhere safer than in His will. Our contacts in the EFCA-IM have assured us of two things; that they have felt in good hands when hosted by our Congolese brothers and sisters, and that the Congolese are very careful to look out for our safety before inviting us. We will continue to work with our Congolese brethren on this issue leading up to the trip itself.

How can I be involved?

1. Prayer – Unlike much of what we do in the American church, this effort is beyond our abilities and resources. We have to come to the point where we realize that only through God can we do this and then give Him the glory. We will need prayer before and during the trip. The spouses and family we leave behind will also need prayer. We also need prayer for the people who God would send and for their finances.

2. White Cross – Chris Bailey is working with Rachel Martin from the E.F.C.A. to see what White Cross projects might be useful to carry with us. The Free Church supports a hospital and nursing school in Tandala and they can always use medical supplies, infant supplies, etc… These would be gifts from our congregation to those in need in the Congo.

3. Finances – The per-person cost will be about $2,800 for a 2-week trip. We will be seeking to raise funds inside and outside of Elim. Each person going will probably contribute a substantial portion of the cost themselves.

4. Question (iron sharpens iron) – Please feel free to discuss questions or concerns with any of the team members listed above. As we form the group that actually will go over, we’d encourage you to do the same with each of them. We are getting more and more information all the time.

5. Orphan Sponsorship – Rachel Martin is heading up the effort for AIDS orphan sponsorship. The program is called TouchGlobal. The CEFC, under the leadership of Pastor Deolo, will be administering this program through its local congregations. You can get on the e-mail distribution list at www.globalfingerprints.org.