My World View

At left is a picture of our planet.  I pulled it off of Google images.  I searched for the word "globe," and that's what came up.

I am used to seeing globes pictured this way.

Notice the spotlight on North America.

Notice the darker shade of green on other continents.

Consider how you and I view the world - we often see it from our own point of view.  The view from home.  Home is central.  North America is home.  Thus, it feels familiar and safe to spotlight and picture the world as this picture to the left does.

Sadly, few people develop the ability or desire to see the world from other points of view.

We should be grateful for our homeland.  We should cheer on the USA in the Olympics and pray for our people around the world.

We should also be aware that the rest of the world has a lot to teach us.  We should be willing to listen and learn from people who view the globe from a different perspective.

Now, as I prepare to leave for Africa on September 29th, I know for certain that I will see a very different part of the world.  Several have told me that I'll never be the same again.  Interesting...

...I wonder how God sees the world.  What is God's "world view."  Jesus told his disciples to go "into all the nations." 

All the nations. 

I'm glad that God's "target" for His blessing includes America.  

It also includes every other nation and people group on the planet.

...I would love to have you read along as I visit Africa and experience a faraway land. 

...Even more, I dare you to pray that God would give you a heart for the nations. 

The whole globe.  Other continents.  Other people.  Different cultures.  Foreign languages.

...When Jesus left the earth, He commanded His people to represent Him "to the very ends of the earth."

From my perspective, the Central African Republic will probably feel like the "very ends of the earth."


At the same time, I wonder how our friends in Africa view the United States.  To them, our country represents the "very ends of the earth." 

Connected with GBIM for this Trip...

In late May, our church Missions Team met to discuss a variety of ways to be involved in the Central African Republic over the next 3-5 years. 

After this meeting, I wanted to bounce our ideas off of some people "on the ground" - experienced missionaries connected with the C.A.R.  So I sent a sketch of our ideas to Dave Guiles, Executive Director of GBIM.  He gave me and our team several insightful responses - one of which rocked my world...

First, Dave shared his excitement and encouraged our work to this point.  Basically, "you guys are doing great and thinking ahead based on the needs in the C.A.R. that you sense God leading you to help with!"

Second, he encouraged me to think with similar openness, prayer, and planning about other parts of the world as well.  Obviously, God's Kingdom is moving all over the world, and our church would have the resources and opportunities to invest strategically in other places as well.  (Pray for wisdom and guidance and patience on that one - and I totally agree with Dave's thoughts there!)

Third, and finally, the dude rocked my world.

He said, "You should come with us to Africa in September."

Okay, actually, he wanted me to prayerfully consider it.  To talk it over with my wife, Jennie.  To think about how it might help our church's mission efforts.  To look over the schedule, the plans for the trip, and the team of pastors who were going. 

Yikes - the trip was less than four months away.  Does God really want to open this door for me to go to Africa?  To be engaged with other leaders here and serving brothers and sisters in Christ on the other side of the world? 

That was definitely a lot to pray about and consider! 

Fast Facts about the Central African Republic...

Population: 4,511,488  (note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality, higher death rates, lower population growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2009 est.)
 

Background: The former French colony of Ubangi-Shari became the Central African Republic upon independence in 1960. After three tumultuous decades of misrule - mostly by military governments - civilian rule was established in 1993 and lasted for one decade. President Ange-Felix PATASSE's civilian government was plagued by unrest, and in March 2003 he was deposed in a military coup led by General Francois BOZIZE, who established a transitional government. Though the government has the tacit support of civil society groups and the main parties, a wide field of candidates contested the municipal, legislative, and presidential elections held in March and May of 2005 in which General BOZIZE was affirmed as president. The government still does not fully control the countryside, where pockets of lawlessness persist. Unrest in neighboring nations, Chad, Sudan, and the DRC, continues to affect stability in the Central African Republic as well.

Geography: Bigger than Ukraine, slightly smaller than France (622,984 sq km).

Average Life Expectancy: 44 years.   One of the 10 lowest in the world.  In the USA, our average life expectancy is 78 years. 

Television: Only one TV station in the entire C.A.R. 

If you'd like to find out more, here's a link to the CIA Factbook on the Central African Republic.  Nothing like a little research from the CIA when you're headed overseas, right?  =)

Our partner church... SAKPA!

Through Project Hope and Charite, our church (Delaware Grace) is going to team up with a church on location in the Central African Republic to start a school for orphans.

Our partner church is called SAKPA Church.

At right is a picture of Pastor Tizokoe, whom I plan to meet at the end of this month.  The church is in a village just outside Bangui, the capital city of the Central African Republic.

This week, people at our church will be invited to give financially to this new partnership.  The overall cost of running an orphan school for an entire school year is $4,000.  Each family in our church will be invited to give at least $19 to this opportunity.  $19 sponsors the school (food, teacher, curriculum, supplies) for a day.  Your family can sponsor an entire orphan school for a day for just $19!   Of course, many will be inspired to sponsor more than one day's worth, but it is really nice to be able to measure our family's contribution that way.

Our trip to Africa will provide many opportunities to meet with and learn from African pastors and leaders.  I am one of several pastors heading to Africa very eager to meet people from our partner church!

This just in... Pastor Gary is headed to Africa!

In two weeks, I am headed to Africa for a very unique world-missions opportunity.

I've started this blog - "Underwood in Africa" - as a way of keeping a journal of the highs and lows and lessons along the way.  I also hope that some of you will read along throughout the prep and travel and encounters - and pray for me!

I will join with seven other pastors, two missionaries, and two directors of missions for a seven-day trip to the Central African Republic.

On this map (left), the Central African Republic is right below Chad, in the very middle of Africa.


For the past three years or so, various people connected with our church have gotten involved in ministry opportunities and developed friendships within the C.A.R. 

Hunter Frey (a young boy at our church) and his mother, Robin, have taken up the cause of helping orphans in this poverty-stricken country.  In conjunction with a tremendous organization called ICDI, the Freys have helped raise awareness, financial support, gifts for children, and clean water opportunities for children and families in the C.A.R.

Bob Belohlavek, a former assistant pastor at our church, is on staff with ICDI now in the C.A.R.

Miriam Pacheco, the mother of our youth pastor (Dave Pacheco), has been to the C.A.R. numerous times with a terrific partnership ministry called Project Hope and Charite'.  Miriam Pacheco and Barb Wooler visited our church in May, and our church now enters a partnership with a church in C.A.R. thanks to their ministry.

I could go on and on about the 'unique' connections God has brought together here - connections between our church and the Central African Republic.  Our own Dave and Ruth Ann Martin now serve with Project Timothy, where people can sponsor African pastors-in-training.  Dave Guiles, a missionary we have supported for decades, is now the director of Grace Brethren International Missions.

Speaking of Dave Guiles, he's the one who invited me along on this trip to Africa.  As the trip approaches, I plan to write a blog every day (or less) to give more background and share details about the upcoming trip!