UBUNTO (ooh-bun-to)…

On Monday morning the full team got together for the first time to plan our next three weeks of conferences.  What a incredible honor it was for me to sit in the same room with some of the finest leadership giants on the Continent of Africa.  It is amazing to watch how God is blending our hearts together.

Left to right:  Bonifes Adoyo (Bishop of CITAM Churches – Nairobi and Chairman of PAOA -Pentecostal Assemblies of Africa) Rev. Steve Chaloner (Regional Director for Africa with the Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada) Marg Foreman (Administrator for PAOA) Bishop Simon Peter Emiau (Bishop of Pentecostal Assemblies of God – Uganda and Secretary General of PAOA) and Me (not a Bishop but honored to represent the PAOC as a missionary).

Originally we were to be running a conference in Malawi this week, but just three weeks ago that conference was cancelled.  A hasty plan was put in place to bring pastors together here in Nairobi.  Today, 70 pastors from the PAG Kenya ( Pentecostal Assemblies of God – Kenya) met in a little church to hear the team talk about change.  I cannot tell you how humbled I was to participate in such an event and I can tell you I have not regrets in stepping out of the boat (my place of comfort).

I preached about Reinventing the Church to a group of pastors who are facing the challenge of balancing the traditions of their denominational fellowship with the need for change if they are to survive in the future.  As each speaker shared from the Word, you could see how the Holy Spirit was blending our messages together to meet a very pointed need.  As we opened the floor up for a time of discussion, it was obvious from the comments that God had put on our hearts as a team topics that were relevant and timely to where they are at.

So what is “Ubuntu”?

I was introduced to this word through a book lent to me at the beginning of my trip.  Ubuntu is an African word that is the essence of what African culture is all about – community.  Below are the four core values of “ubuntu”:

Respect for the dignity of others

Group solidarity – an injury to one is an injury to all

Teamwork- none of us is greater than all of us

Service to others

As I read about this word in the book, I realized that it is also the essence of what Reinventing the Church is all about – a call for the Church of Jesus Christ in the 21st century to return to being an Acts 2 church in the community.  By the way, at the end of the seminar, I took a few shots of pastor’s in community.  Thought I would attach one to my blog.

Until next time…

Don