Join the Pilgrims via Video

It's been months now since we returned from Congo, but I've finally found time to edit the video footage that we took.  Here are links to 4 videos, if you'd like to get a better sense of the experiences we had along the way.

1.  Morning In Mampoko
A six-minute video that will provide a look at a journey by boat on the Congo River, plus a look at life in the village of Mampoko, 60 miles upriver from Mbandaka.

2.  Congo Nutritional Clinic
A 16-minute video about a nutritional clinic run by the Mbandaka District of the Disciples of Christ in Congo, where they are treating malnourished children and educating their parents.

3. A Musical Evening with Congolese Choirs
A lively one-hour video where you can experience the amazing energy and uplifting singing of several choirs from the Mbandaka District of the Disciples of Christ in Congo.

4.  Indiana Pilgrims in Mbandaka, Congo, May 2011
An overview of the time the pilgrims spent in the Mbandaka District of the Disciples of Christ in Congo - 25 minutes, many pictures of Congolese life and worship.

A Journey of a Thousand Miles

Mbote! (Greetings in Lingala). This is my first attempt at a blog. I'm going to use it to keep my journal for a really exciting journey that lies ahead of me.

The first steps have been taken. Next May, I will be leading a group of Hoosier (that's Indiana) Disciples of Christ to visit our Disciples partners in Mbandaka, Democratic Republic of Congo. In the three years since we formally signed an Partnership Agreement, we have been learning how to share our gifts and faith. Truly, those "who were once far off have been brought near ... strangers no more ... citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God." (Ephesians 2: 13-22) We have trembled at the news that rebels disrupted their Easter services, we hear of floods and tornados, our children have studied their life and worship in Vacation Church School, we have been blessed by visits in our churches and homes, we Skype on occasion and share lots of emails, phone occasionally. We are learning what it means to be "moko" ("one" in Lingala) in a shared faith with people who are thousands of miles away.

This journey will be the next step in cementing the partnership. So far, seven of us are committing to the trip. We have decided to call ourselves pilgrims - those "who journey, especially a long distance, to some sacred place as an act of religious devotion; a traveler ... in a foreign place." (dictionary.com) Yep, that's us for sure.

I freely admit to some fear and trepidation - not so much of the travel, but of the responsibility to lead these pilgrims on a journey that will change their lives forever; to help them prepare to connect to the "other" in ways that honor the great gifts that our partners will give us; to be able to return and share those gifts with their fellow Americans.

I pray to God to continually remind me that this is His journey, not mine, and that He will provide all that I need if I will just ask and listen.