giving up meat for the Gospel

It took over an hour's drive to reach the church. We left well before the sunrise so that we could arrive before it became too hot under the African sun. Had we been driving in the States we would have not attempted to drive on the "road" without off-road suspension  and over sized tires. We passed by one motorcyclist who had to get his bike unstuck. The bishop was well used to navigating this terrain in his soccer-mom SUV.

In fact, his whole life, even his diet, was geared toward reaching his people. One day at lunch I noticed he only ate vegetables. When I asked him why he told me:

"As you've seen the people love thier Bishop very much, and we are a generous people, especially my tribe. When visitors come we always want to show our love and feed them! If I were to take what they offered everywhere I go I would be too fat to reach my people.  I walk, ride a bike or a motorcycle,  and I drive a car to get to them.  The only thing I don't do is fly the airplane! If I am out of shape I cannot walk  through the villages and talk to people about Jesus and encourage them in their walk with God. This is very important to me"

The size of the church didn't matter to the bishop. He had to get to them simply because they were fellow Christians and all of equal importance.

"In Christ’s family there can be no division into Jew and non-Jew, 

slave and free, male and female. 

Among us you are all equal. 

That is, we are all in a common relationship with Jesus Christ. 

                                                                                               Galatians 3:28

I was deeply challenged by this man of God, but I was even more challenged by the worshipers in this House of God. One side of their church had a gaping hole where the timbers had been eaten away by ants. This did not phase them from giving God the praise and glory.

We had come that day with the bishop to celebrate with them and to dedicate a new building project. They had been saving money to buy bricks so that the ants would not eat the church again. They were giving up from what little they had so that they would have a roof to sit under where they could praise God.

This is what Easter is all about: sacrificial love.

Most of us in North America will never appreciate or understand the sacrificial worship of most our sisters and brothers.  This is our loss.