CONGO MISSION

“Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature." Mark 16:15

Congo for Christ

During Frontline Fellowship's ministry outreach to the Congo, at the invitation of Bishop Lamba Lamba, who oversees 700 congregations, Charl van Wyk had the privilege of speaking at the REDTCO (This French acronym stands for The Gathering of the Children of God for the Transformation of the Congo) Youth Leaders' Meeting, preached and taught at various Come and See Churches around the DRC and interviewed Christians deeply affected by the war. Bibles and bicycles and Christian books were delivered and more are to arrive soon.

Charl preached at Sunday morning services at the local Come and See Church in Lubumbashi. Participated in a debate on 'Violence Against Women' at a local congregation. Charl then visited Kinshasa, the capital city and war torn Kisangani.Charl relates his experiences

Off to Kinshasa

My flight from Lubumbashi to Kinshasa, the capital, was a hair-raising experience. The storm weather on the Equator around Kinshasa was throwing the Boeing around as if it were a light aircraft; the people around me were singing Hallelujah praises, and I think the rest were praying. The Hewa Bora Airline, with which I was flying, is banned from landing in Europe and America and has lately had two major accidents.

Confusion

French is spoken by most nationals in the Congo; in Kinshasa we had one of our language mishaps again

On arriving the evening, we stopped by at the local Come and See Church and my interpreter announced that he was going to "weep". I must have looked confused, so he repeated himself. When he realised that this guest had no idea of what he was talking about, he said, "I am going to the water closet.”

In Kinshasa I heard of a local church pastor who was suspended from his pastoral duties because family members attacked his wife, and he did nothing to protect her. Due to the disgrace this incident brought on the Name of Christ and the Church, he was suspended from ministry.

In Kinshasa I also met Rt Rev Deo Mwamba, Bishop of the Anglican Church Worldwide; he has a Masters degree in Islamic studies from Saudi-Arabia and later came to Christ

I had the privilege of being driven around by an officer in the Police Force and this made the bureaucracy so much easier in that very controlled society.

War Torn Kisangani

In Kisangani I was hosted by Pastor Physton who has a wonderful church ministry, amongst a war traumatised people. His ministry includes devotional meetings at 05h30 every morning, at which I ministered, and the week I visited, Gospel crusade meetings at 16h00. Ps Physton bears the scar on his forehead of a rebel attack on his home - after weeks in hospital, by God's grace, he survived and could carry on with his ministry

My friend and interpreter, Pastor Oscar, and I rode into the jungle on the back of motorbikes, and visited Oscar's training base where he was trained in the Congolese Defence Force. Another pastor I met, Ettienne, asked me to please come into the jungle with him to take the Gospel to tribes who have never heard the Gospel, some of which have maybe only one old Bible that they received many years ago.

Ex-rebel converted

In the West, one might not consider becoming a soldier at the age of 13, but in Africa, gun-free zones make this a reality.

"To take a village, we would capture someone from the village, get all the details of the layout and where the people are. We would then go into the jungle, surround the village and attack. Fleeing men would be shot, women raped and young boys forced to join our movement." Jean Botuli Kazadi was born in 1981 and at the tender age of 13 joined the Zaire (renamed Democratic Republic of Congo in 1997) Defence Force of Mobutu Sese Seko. Mobutu came to power after deposing Joseph Kasavubu in 1965.

"They changed our birth dates on all documentation so that the army could not be accused of using child soldiers," Jean comments. Jean lived with his father, mother and brothers in the diamond-rich town of Mbuji-Mayi. Rebel soldiers murdered his parents.

An urgent call came through from the east of Congo (in 1998) for reinforcements to help the defence force against one of the rebel movements. Jean and his unit were immediately dispatched by airplane to Kisangani. When they landed their plane, they discovered that they were surrounded by the rebels. The rebels announced that they would be joining the ranks of the movement. Some protested and were immediately executed. The rest obeyed

During his time as a rebel, Jean and the others received no pay, just food. "I don't know why we raped the women; there was just something that made us go crazy," Jean confesses. He knows that their food was drugged

Enemy soldiers captured were interrogated for information regarding their unit. Rifle fire, designed to intimidate, blazed next to them. Those who co-operated were sent to Kigali, Rwanda, and those who did not were executed

When the war turned against the rebels, they would try to find witches who would give them muti (medicine) to protect their lives. "We were put in the frontline of the battle. In front of us was the enemy, behind us were our leaders who would kill us if we tried to flee."

When they ran out of ammunition, they would phone headquarters with a satellite phone, and within three hours two Americans would fly in with a light aircraft, carrying supplies of arms and ammunition. The couriers were dressed in civilian clothes but had their names and the U.S. flag above their shirt pockets.

While still a rebel, Jean went to visit a sick lady. She was being prayed for by her church friends. He heard about the "Come and See Church." On visiting the church, he was confronted with the Gospel of Jesus Christ again; he repented of his sin and turned back to God. "I'm a new creature," he says with a smile.

Jean firmly believes that all his sins have been forgiven. Last April, his spiritual father, Pastor Physton Mbayo, baptized him. A month later his 4-week-old baby son was dedicated to the Lord.

Gun-free Zones

How could things have been different had the local population been armed? Jean smiles, "Things would have been much more difficult for us." The pillaging, raping and murder could have only gone on unabated because the rebels were operating in a gun-free zone

In 2006, before the first elections in over 40 years, the rebels handed in their weapons and were supposed to have been repatriated to their hometowns. After giving his life to Christ, Jean now wants to stay close to his spiritual father and "I would like to own a piece of land, raise animals and do business.”

Television interview

Pastor Physton, Pastor Oscar and I appeared on 'city wide' television with a clear Gospel message and encouraged viewers to attend the Evangelistic crusade. On leaving the war torn area I was blessed by the Commanding Officer of the Presidential Guard accompanying me at the airport to complete all my paperwork and see me off on the runway at the aircraft.

On meeting a young unmarried girl who is the only family breadwinner and responsible for bringing up her 6 siblings due to absent parents, or a pastor whose 3 brothers were taken to war by rebels - (one never returned), and the many others with similar stories, one can only be grateful for the grace of God on one's own life. You learn more than you teach under these conditions.

Charl Van Wyk