Oh when the Swiss comes marching in ....

Ever so often we are blessed when short-termers come over from all over the world to make a difference.  Matthias Gasser from Switzerland was one of those guys!  He completed a YWAM discipleship course in New Zealand and learned English before he decided to come to Africa to submerge in the culture here.  I realized again as I listened to his story how GOD will simply use everyone to fulfill the big commandment - 'To love one another - and share the Good News of God's Grace with all."  Matthias is a robotic engineer (imagine that .... a robot engineer serving God in Mozambique where we have no robots, no electricity - basically only a hammer and screwdriver (maybe)).

Matthias changed our world as he got going and served wherever we needed him. Although is luggage was lost and he only arrived with his passport and his laptop.  Although he received his baggage after 8 weeks he kept his spirits up ... and SERVED.  He has an amazing testimony which he shared with probably hundreds around us.  He was a great blessing to all who worked with him.  Matthias just left after 2 1/2 months back to Switzerland to continue his career in robotic engineering.  We wish him well .... and bid him farewell with a tear .... until one day again!  Ate a vista ... amigo!

Here is how Matthias rolled ... the last few months:

SCHOOLS:   Participating in our reading and writing project at our Primary Bush school.

FEEDING PROJECT:  Helping kids to unload their monthly food stocks for the school kitchen.  Never a shortage of help.

MEETING NEW FACES:  Always many new friends to be made!

AGRICULTURE:  As engineer Matthias was very capable in planting beans for our school project on the Green Mamba tractor.

FOOD:  Matthias had no problem enjoying the local delicacy - sugar cane.  He enjoyed many other dishes too ... from maize meal porridge, blue legged chickens, dry decomposed fish and many more Mozambican specials. 

COMMUNITY PROJECTS:  Painting houses in the community.  A South African group joining Matthias to get the job done!

ANIMALS:  Matthias helped our shepherds in our animal husbandry project. 

"PUMP IT ...... MR. SWITZERLAND .... "  the kids screamed!

Mozambican Olympic fever before London!

If you cannot fly to London but you got all the kids supremely exited about the upcoming Olympic Games you have to come up with a very good plan!  And indeed we made a very good plan by holding our own Olympic Games .... in the dust of a forgotten African village.

Athletes registering for the various athletic events!

We might not have had any equipment at all but between a few rocks, a very short 100 m sprint lane and an extreme hard landing for high jump we covered the main numbers for our athletic program.  And of course having the best team possible to act as Olympic officials.  Tension ran throughout the event as kids were competing against each other.  For many pre-school kids and the very inquisitive grade 1 athletes ... this was a first!  Their excitement was so contagious that we all wanted to participate.   We kept on reminding the kids that Maria Matola was Mozambique's first gold medalist in the 800m for women.  Which even motivated everyone more!  After warming up ..... the whistle blew .... and off we went.

PS  The great news was that no 'steroids' were detected throughout any event with more than 250 athletes participating.  This record has not been beaten yet by any country participating in an international event!

The day was captured brilliantly by our Olympic photographer all the way from Switzerland.

Olympic officials trying to figure out how the 'High-jump' will work when bush athletic standards are applied!  There seems to be no consensus on the matter ... yet!

After all the hard training ..... when we said:  On your marks ... get set ..... and before the GO all the pre-schoolers decided it's time to R UUUUUUUUN!  I tried my best to bring order ... but to late!  A false start if you ever need to see one! 

Much better - as you can see in the photo - we had a professional sprinting athlete showing the way.  I think it was north!

Shot-put for girls.  The lack of equipment was no problem.  We weighed some rocks ... taught the basics .... and new records were set in the process.

High-jump in action!  The landing is terrifying without a carpet to land on ..... but then again - it's AFRICA ... we can take it!

Extreme concentration (as the tongue will tell you)!  Shot-put for the upcoming stars.  Athletes loosening up in the background while Marius and Paulo watches new stars in the making.

Long-jump in skirts.  Let no one tell you we make it easy on the athletes.

Volleyball was also an official number on the program.

A time to say goodbye as the team left - dirty and tired.

THE TEAM - they can be hired directly from our offices in Mozambique - if you ever need your own Olympic Games in your backyard of the world!

When the church leaves the builiding!

A missional friend of mine reminded me the other day of a T-shirt he saw someone wearing in a church which read:  "The church has left the building!"  I immediately loved it!  And if I am not mistaken a book with the same title was written by David Fredrickson.

A group of very active students from Stellenbosch visited me a few days ago.  They so reminded me of this phrase.  They kept on talking on relational values rather than institutional structures and systems.  If I didn't know better I could have been at a meeting a thousand years ago at a small group of believers during the 'Acts church'.  I love it!  Seeing them in action and the way they submerged into our local Mozambican culture was something I have dreamt about for many years.  These young people got it from the word 'go'.  I was reminded recently of a child's nursery rhyme:  "Here's the church;  here's the steeple - open the door and see all the people!  Even the youngest among us know where to find Christians today - in the church building itself.  But maybe it's time the church leaves the building.  It maybe time for churches to be less program-driven and more mission-driven by taking people outside of the church.  And I am not just talking about mission trips.  In essence, we shouldn't just DO missions - we need to BE the mission every day.  YET, the financial reports I read in churches today reveal that the majority of the budget is allocated toward maintaining a building, staffing the church and funding programs inside the four walls.

Thus ... I am so glad to have had these vibrant young people for a few days ... who understood much of God's heart.  I have hope for the new generation:  It seems many of them are less church-centric and many are entering into a more kingdom-centric culture.  And well ..... interestingly enough Jesus' ministry was not inside a church either.  With these heavy words on my mind ....  I got great joy watching these young students ... 'getting it right'!

The Stellenbosch group back-to-school mode.  Listening at the vision in action at the  "Dream Center" in the bush. 

Mixing with the 'attention-seeking' primary school students!

Teaching reading and writing skills with the students from the bush school!

A brand new gardening project was started by the students.  Stellenbosch loosening up the African soil.

Sharing a moment with the kids in the African soil.

A lot of emphasis fell on career development and training.  Creating a dream, verbalizing it, drawing it and DREAMING it was a special program run by the team leader, Francois (a Business Psychologist in Career Development).

The first 'make-over' of one of our houses for kids in the bush!

What does a 'NASDEQ specialist' and a Theologian have in common?  Brightening up the day for 10 of our students by painting their house ..... I would think!

Traveling pictures

Mozambican hospitality is something you have never experienced unless you eat in the bush .... and the last chicken is being offered to serve you! Humbling experience.

On the Donna Ana bridge between Sena and Mutarara. Relaxing after a long day's work!

Fish from the Zambezi river. They closed the eyes with a tomato ... not sure why?

This plane landed in Sena! As you can see it never left after the wing decided to retire.

Signs of the old bush war is still everywhere. On our way to Morrumbala in Zambezia province, Mozambique. Blown up by using dynamite.

On our way back from the north we had a fuel truck explode due to an electrical fault. Needless to say .... this cost us many hours on the road.

 — in Mozambique.

ONLY IN MOZAMBIQUE - people on the side watching. Nobody seemed to worry as explosions kept on taking place.

 — inMozambique.

Nearly home ... in one piece.