cult because African evangelists have been very active for years in going into places where we, as missionaries, have never gone. I recall the statement made by Dr. Redpath, pastor of Moody Church, when he visited our Mission work in the Oriental province: he said he was impressed with the fact that if ever a church was ready to stand on its own feet, it was the African Church. Now you have heard that word of prophecy and have definitely seen it come to pass. It is interesting that the Lord al lowed us to evacuate twice, actually, and almost a third time. In the first evacuation we got to the border but did not go across because, as we came to the coastal area, we felt that the panic of the Belgiums was born of fear. In talking to Congo leaders and officials in charge of the area we found it was very calm. We had the privilege of going across if we wished or returning to our Mission Station, which we did. In the second evacuation we actually crossed and remained three weeks. At the time we could not understand why the Lord permitted this. However, as we look back now, these evacuations were the thing, as it were, that shook the church and brought them to real ize that the stay of the missionaries might be short. Before this they were reticent, leaving the responsibility on church leadership (missionaries) say ing that “you’ve had more training than we.” But when we returned from the second evacuation, which was three weeks, they had come to the realization that they must take over. My conviction is that the Lord, not the missionaries, has begun a work, and the Lord will perform it until the Day of Jesus Christ. We are thankful for the godly men that He has raised up among the African Christians. These are marked men—however, they are faithful and I am sure that they will prove, under the Lord, to be stead fast as leaders. The question often arises, why should these people, who have been 4
CONGO CRISIS (con*.) session of Belgium, they have designed a Colonial course for all missionaries, doctors, and nurses who intend to go into the Congo and serve. They have designed this for them to become aware of Belgium’s attitudes and their de sires regarding strangers who go into their Colonial possessions and work for them. We finally arrived in the Congo at our field of appointment about 1960— the first of the year—and were assigned to the Oriental province. The Africa Inland Mission, under which we served, has a work in the Oriental and Kivu provinces. Mr. Sanders, you have indicated that folk, generally, would like to have me give them some idea of the size of the Congo by comparison with the United States. The answer to the query would be that the Congo itself is as large as the United States minus Texas: this means that it is 3000 miles from Leo poldville in Oriental province to the North East corner of the Congo. The territory varies in character. In our area it is rather hilly and rocky. Down toward the Kivu province you have large mountains, and toward Leo poldville it is a thick brush area, or what we call jungles. As to our work: I was first put in charge of the Station Bible School after I had become accurately acquainted with the language. This school was used, largely, to train Africans in the Word of God so that they could take care of Sunday School classes in the villages. After a short period of teach ing in the Station Bible School, we took on the responsibility of teaching in regular Bible School, training pastors and evangelists. In preparing for this work, I thank the Lord for every hour that I spent here at BIOLA. The great Africa Inland Mission has been in the Congo forty years. But it would be difficult to answer the ques tion of what the harvest of souls under the work of AIM has been. It is diffi
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