MID JULY 2018

Dear Friends,

While in Germany, I received word that a German lady living in the same part of the country was very keen for us to meet up. A few days later, she came to where I was staying with my cousin. She and her husband and daughters had been working in Uganda. They had thought that relating to Ugandan people would be straightforward. Instead, they have met a plethora of unexpected issues. Hence, she came to me, having read some of my books and articles, hoping I would throw light on how they might best go forward relating to the people they are working with. I hope that what I was able to share with her was helpful. They as a family are planning shortly to spend a year living in Uganda.

My colleague Frank Paul and myself were given one of the ‘tracks’ at the CCD conference held in Stuttgart, Germany. That gave us opportunity to spend many hours with a select group of people interested in knowing how to minister in a vulnerable way. One member of our group told us that the main reason he attended the conference was to experience our track. Dave (false name) and his family have already been in Asia for years. They are shortly to move to a new part of the country. This will give them opportunity to start a new phase of ministry. Dave was looking for direction on just how to do that. He wants to minister in much the way that I do in Kenya. That is, to travel from home regularly by motorbike (a bit different from me, as I use a bicycle) to meet and encourage national believers in outlying villages. That is the work that Frank Paul also used to do in Argentina. Give thanks for Dave, his orientation to mission, and the privilege we had of being able to discuss that with him and encourage him further in it.

I got back to Kenya on June 28th. I immediately went on a 5-hour bus trip to Meru. There I visited one of my children, and then spent Sunday with some friends at a local church (see picture). I was very much looking forward to getting home, which I managed to do on 3rd July, finding all to be well.

Please pray for me to find the right balance between home-life, ministry, study, relationships and other things. I am convicted that I should be making more efforts at improving my knowledge of the Luo language. I often fail to follow when indigenous people communicate amongst themselves. Improving my Luo will take more time in indigenous contexts.

Coming back to Africa after a spell in Europe is always interesting, in terms of the new eyes it gives me, causing me to reflect and meditate on contrasting worlds. In Europe, I can feel like someone announcing a crisis, while people look at me with weary sleepy eyes . . . The West controls Africa, yet it almost NEVER LISTENS TO AFRICA. This, it seems to me, leads to a dangerous situation. Like rearing your children having taped their mouths shut. For the West to listen to Africa requires Western scholars to engage vulnerably with Africa, using African languages.

Jim