Just six cows. He didn’t ask for much. Thankfully god immediately brought sponsors to meet his request!
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t’s been twelve years since God led my wife, Christy and me to serve as missionaries in South Africa. He placed a love for the people and the country in our hearts, and we dreamed of what God could do in South Africa. We prayed that God would eventually open doors for us to bring the Gospel throughout all of southern Africa. Through the years we have established a Discipleship Center here in South Africa which allows us to train South African nationals as well as Christians from neighboring countries. The students are trained in doctrine, ministry, and discipleship and are encouraged to get involved in their local churches and communities. In recent years we have begun to make trips into the country of Zimbabwe, and we have asked God for wisdom in establishing a full-time work in that beautiful land. Ministry can be challenging in that country for many political and racial reasons. We knew that if we were going to expand our work into that country, we would need Zimbabwe nationals in leadership. We prayed that God would connect us with the right person who might be able to partner with us and who would even come and train in South Africa. Over the past three years, God brought a gentleman from Zimbabwe to help us on occasion with welding projects and other building projects in South Africa. As we spent more and more time with him, it became clear to us that Samson was the answer to our prayer for leadership in Zimbabwe. He’s a humbleman, withgreat integrity, andan incredible work ethic. He is committed to missions and passionate about helping others physically and spiritually. This year he has been studying at our Discipleship Training Center for three months at a time. In August we will partner with him for a youth camp and some conferences. It was after youth camp in Zimbabwe last year that Samson and his wife agreed that God was leading them to full-time missions work. I asked a lot of questions about what he would need to support his family. Samson
has a small farm in which he raises corn, goats, and chickens to feed his family. After much thought about what it would take to provide for his family, he concluded that he could work as a full-time missionary and care for his family’s needs (apart from ministry-specific expenses) if his herd of cows was increased by six. Just six cows! He didn’t ask for much. Thankfully, God immediately brought sponsors to meet his modest request. God is slowly building a team for Zimbabwe. What began as a burden and desire in our hearts has now grown to include Samson (a trade welder and humble, tender-hearted farmer) who only asked for six cows. It is exciting to imagine all the people whose lives will be changed because of the work that God is about to do in the land of Zimbabwe.
BY JOHN MARK (‘88 & ‘89) & CHRISTY PAGE (‘90) WO R D O F L I FE M I S S I O NAR I E S I N S O U T H A F R I CA
We Need Six cows! 13
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