We learned that when Mary was young, her family lived near a
Barabaig village, so she grew up with friends and neighbors among the tribe, allowing
her to become fluent in the language. When she married, she and her husband were
educated and employed as teachers in the Catholic church.
Mary always maintained a heart for the Barabaig people,
hoping to work among them someday. She and her husband reared six children and
became leaders in their community. After her husband's death a decade ago, Mary
retired from teaching and turned her attention to managing a handful of small
businesses that the couple had started over the years. However, her evangelistic
gifts and ministry heart for the Barabaig never left her, and she has the
freedom to minister as old friends seek her out.
Mary has now created a small shop where she can sell the beautiful
goods (pictured above), and she advocates for them amongst government officials with whom she has
connections.
While attending the AIM Discipleship training, Mary recognized
that God has put her in a very strategic place. Not only does she have the
responsibility to bring the Gospel to the Barabaig widows, but she also has
been commissioned to make them reproducing disciples! Thus the very thing that
she is doing with the widows in the physical (activating them with knowledge
and skills for their lives), is also the very same strategy she can use for
their spiritual growth and development. . .making them disciples who are ready
and able to make more disciples!
But Mary can't sit still! And so, she is not satisfied with
only a little activity! She also helped to begin a community-wide prayer group
in Katesh, meeting 3 nights a week to bring interdenominational leaders
together for prayer for their community. She took the necessary steps to register
the prayer group with the Tanzanian government as a legal nonprofit
organization! The regular meetings have numbered between 20 and 150 in
attendance at various times of the year, faithfully gathering together to address
the spiritual issues of the community with prayer, often lasting well into the
night.
As I sit in awe of
this prayer group's commitment
to their God and to their community, I wonder:
Is AIM's involvement here among this community and people
an answer to their
prayer?
Are they an answer to our prayer?
After all, they are praying for laborers to come and help them with the
Harvest, and God has burdened our hearts to join in. But likewise, AIM has been
praying for laborers to come and help us with the Harvest, and we now realize
here they are! They have been planting, watering, and praying, and God has sent
us to them! And together we will rejoice at the Harvest-time! (John 4:35-36)
