Outrageous

Someone has remarked that suffering “is any experience that causes internal or external duress physically, emotionally, spiritually, or relationally…In this fallen world all mankind suffers. [But] it is God’s people alone for whom suffering brings the outrageous opportunity for both temporary and eternal benefit. Indeed, it is in the context of suffering that God's redemption work can be powerfully experienced” (Tender Care, p. 146). What a remarkable perspective!

This summer we have watched, in several different contexts, God's people have the “opportunity” to experience suffering.

• Christian Nigerian widows and their mentors. Being a widow in Nigeria can mean losing your home, your primary means of support and retirement, and perhaps your children to the father's family. Some Evangelical Missionary Society (EMS) widows lose their husbands because of their testimony. See, for example, the story of Rev. Isma Dogari, the late husband of widow Agnes.
• 

  Cheryl Pridham fills the tank to give the house running water.

  I recently visited an ECWA school for widows two hours from Jos, where two SIM missionary sisters, Donna and Cheryl Pridham, are training sixty Christian widows are training in Biblical studies and life skills. The goal is not only spiritual growth but also to help them support themselves and their children.It's not an easy location, especially when there is civil unrest in nearby towns. I also met with the teen-age daughter of one of the widows, who is continuing to recover from a traumatic experience during the post-election violence.
• Alex, the Nigerian “father” of the former street-boys at Transition House, and his wife were eagerly anticipating the arrival of their first child after nine years of waiting and praying. His wife died fifteen minutes after delivering their beautiful baby girl.
• A number of our long-time friends and supporters are going through cancer treatment. One of our home church pastors is experiencing over-the-top levels of back pain.
• When we attended the Breathe conference for missionaries in Switzerland this summer, we met other missionaries who serve cross-culturally, some in extremely challenging environments. We heard stories of great opportunities, extreme difficulties, and holding on to the promises of God's care and faithfulness when there's nothing else to hold on to. It was an incredibly beautiful setting, and our family greatly benefited from having a break and receiving excellent medical care and the counseling provided for each missionary.
• 

  Adena talks to women inside damaged church.

  Our Nigerian brothers and sisters challenge us with their resilience as they face continued and repeated civil unrest, including earlier this month when tension levels were again high in Jos as different ethnic & religious groups violently clashed. Sometimes our brothers and sisters suffer simply because they are in the wrong place, and directly because of their identity as Christians. Since the latest violence, rumors have been flying about possible attacks during Sunday morning services, but attendance at services has been pretty much the same as before. Sunday night a bomb exploded in a Jos neighborhood. Amazingly the number of casualties was very low.

The book Tender Care talks about coming alongside those who are suffering to listen and to give of ourselves. One of our ministries is the Churches in Crisis Partnership Program Committee. One of the things we are trying to do is to listen and give of ourselves by holding trauma healing workshops for church members affected by the unrest in Jos during the last two years.

We had planned to have the first workshop in September, but because the recent unrest and schedule conflicts it has been postponed to October. During this weekend workshop, twenty church members and leaders will consider from a Biblical perspective such topics as,

• If God is good, why does He allow suffering?
• How can the wounds of our hearts be healed?
• What happens when someone is grieving? and
• Forgiveness.

The church told us that helping their members deal with their own issues in this way will free them to reach out to their unbelieving neighbors including those of other religions. We hope to follow the model of this weekend trauma workshop in other affected churches.