Enjoy the video.
Gorilla
Friday, November 1, 2019
History of Chinese congregation in Kigali, Rwanda
Enjoy the video.
Friday, August 23, 2019
Getting kids to eat vegetables, and other ravings
Well, this is late August, and you know what that means. The pioneer time is mostly done, and since I am recovering from a bad cold (called "flu" here) that started last Sunday, perhaps getting some rest is just as well. Except that the brothers and sisters in the congregation are telling me that they like my voice in this condition (sounding like Darth Vader), but of course it won't last.
There was an outbreak of Ebola in the border town of Goma in DRC recently. Previously, Ebola was found hundreds of kilometers away. But now, it has hit closer to home. So we have had several letters from the branch read at the congregation level about the need to wash your hands several times a day, to go immediately to hospital or clinic at the outset of any symptoms, and to follow the instructions of the authorities carefully. But, folks, not to worry unduly! Ebola hasn't made it into Rwanda yet (though it is awfully close) but we are taking every precaution to protect ourselves.
It hasn't been as hot in July and August as it usually is, so that is definitely a blessing. So what has been happening in my life lately? We had a wonderful English regional convention in mid-July. I gave the baptism talk, which is a first for me. There were three candidates. There was supposed to be a fourth one, a sister, but unfortunately the previous day her fleshly sister passed away. So this sister, the candidate, was at the convention on the day of the baptism, in tears. Many were trying to console her. Another thing is that she was pregnant. So it was decided that she would return home and not get baptized this time. So, as I was giving the talk, I wondered, should I say something about this? A brother mentioned this sister's loss earlier that morning in his prayer. Interestingly, the baptism talk outline had a section describing Jesus' feelings of love expressed toward Mary and Martha and the friends of Lazarus after his death. So I had this subject already prepared for the occasion.
Another first: during the circuit overseer's visit earlier this month I interpreted his two weekend talks from English to Chinese. On stage. Sentence over sentence. With two Chinese people in the audience. I tell you, that was more nerve-racking than giving an actual talk in any language! On his previous visit, I was also assigned to be the interpreter, and spent 10 hours preparing from notes, but didn't actually do the interpretation because on the day of the meeting, no Chinese people came. But I guess...it was good practice.
Another development: during the last three months I had to move out of the Kibagabaga house and back to Remera because relatives of the family in Belgium would be visiting during the summer holidays. As it turned out, there were seven relatives, most in their late teens or early twenties, most not Witnesses, as well as several unauthorized "sleepover" guests occupying the house. I don't want to get into details here, but suffice it to say that they drove my friend Jacques almost insane, to the point that he swore never to have kids in the future, never mind the fact that he isn't even married yet.
But they're finally all gone. Completely. So now, as of the beginning of September, I can move back, and it will be just Jacques and me living in the house, that is, until the next onslaught. But we will cross that bridge when we come to it.
But, now, to the theme of this post: getting kids to eat vegetables. I'm not married, I don't have any kids, and so I don't have any firsthand experience with kids and vegetables. But I can only imagine: you can entice, you can cajole, you can try to make the vegetables appealing in every possible way. And still the kid will refuse to eat them. So what do you do?
Well, getting Chinese learners to study characters must be a similar experience. I should say this: everyone in our congregation is doing very well in learning Chinese. They're improving in their vocabulary, pronunciation, usage, grammar, etc. Brothers are now giving meeting parts and even full public talks in Chinese, and their progress is amazing! But there is one exception: learning Chinese characters. During the language class almost two years ago, we had them study the 120 most common Chinese characters. To date, the average number of characters remembered is probably less than 10. Or even 5. The brothers and sisters are so heavily reliant on pinyin (alphabetic pronunciation system) that they cannot break away from it. We have had Local Needs parts on the subject of learning characters, how doing so dramatically improves one's understanding of Chinese. We have had fascinating explanations of the various parts of characters. We have encouraged everyone to use flash cards, to take a few minutes every day to learn characters. And still there is resistance.
A few months ago, the body of elders decided that we would project on the screen during the midweek meeting one out of the three songs in characters. The other two would remain in pinyin. The one song chosen and announced weeks in advance would be a song that is not too fast and has characters that are easier to recognize. We encouraged everyone to prepare this one song as part of their normal meeting preparation. It went well for a few weeks, but now most have reverted to looking at pinyin on phones and tablets when the character song is projected.
So again I ask: What do you do to get the kid to eat vegetables?
Of course, setting a good example is important. Me, I always use characters when conducting a question-and-answer meeting part, doing a reading, or singing. It's true that I have many years of experience with learning characters. And perhaps that's the problem: the brothers and sisters think that of course Brian knows characters because he is Chinese. It comes in the blood. NOT! Just because I look the part, it doesn't mean that I didn't experience the blood, sweat, and tears of learning these things from scratch (as an adult, no less), just like they are doing.
So perhaps the solution lies in something our coordinator said to me once: we need to get a Rwandan in this congregation to set an outstanding example in learning characters, and then others will follow. (By the way, the coordinator and his wife are making good strides in learning characters, but then, they are very serious about everything.)
So...that brings me to an interesting development this week. One of the young brothers, Samuel, decided on his own and even told me in advance that he would be doing the student presentation Bible reading completely in characters. This would be a first for anyone in the congregation! Well, he succeeded, and got hearty applause for that reading. After the meeting, I asked a few brothers, okay, who will be the next one to do a character reading? So I think this will start to catch on, now that the ice has been broken.
Last thing: I will be going to California for a visit from mid-October to mid-December. Time to fatten up! The next post may be from there, unless something dramatic happens here. 😃
There was an outbreak of Ebola in the border town of Goma in DRC recently. Previously, Ebola was found hundreds of kilometers away. But now, it has hit closer to home. So we have had several letters from the branch read at the congregation level about the need to wash your hands several times a day, to go immediately to hospital or clinic at the outset of any symptoms, and to follow the instructions of the authorities carefully. But, folks, not to worry unduly! Ebola hasn't made it into Rwanda yet (though it is awfully close) but we are taking every precaution to protect ourselves.
It hasn't been as hot in July and August as it usually is, so that is definitely a blessing. So what has been happening in my life lately? We had a wonderful English regional convention in mid-July. I gave the baptism talk, which is a first for me. There were three candidates. There was supposed to be a fourth one, a sister, but unfortunately the previous day her fleshly sister passed away. So this sister, the candidate, was at the convention on the day of the baptism, in tears. Many were trying to console her. Another thing is that she was pregnant. So it was decided that she would return home and not get baptized this time. So, as I was giving the talk, I wondered, should I say something about this? A brother mentioned this sister's loss earlier that morning in his prayer. Interestingly, the baptism talk outline had a section describing Jesus' feelings of love expressed toward Mary and Martha and the friends of Lazarus after his death. So I had this subject already prepared for the occasion.
Another first: during the circuit overseer's visit earlier this month I interpreted his two weekend talks from English to Chinese. On stage. Sentence over sentence. With two Chinese people in the audience. I tell you, that was more nerve-racking than giving an actual talk in any language! On his previous visit, I was also assigned to be the interpreter, and spent 10 hours preparing from notes, but didn't actually do the interpretation because on the day of the meeting, no Chinese people came. But I guess...it was good practice.
Another development: during the last three months I had to move out of the Kibagabaga house and back to Remera because relatives of the family in Belgium would be visiting during the summer holidays. As it turned out, there were seven relatives, most in their late teens or early twenties, most not Witnesses, as well as several unauthorized "sleepover" guests occupying the house. I don't want to get into details here, but suffice it to say that they drove my friend Jacques almost insane, to the point that he swore never to have kids in the future, never mind the fact that he isn't even married yet.
But they're finally all gone. Completely. So now, as of the beginning of September, I can move back, and it will be just Jacques and me living in the house, that is, until the next onslaught. But we will cross that bridge when we come to it.
But, now, to the theme of this post: getting kids to eat vegetables. I'm not married, I don't have any kids, and so I don't have any firsthand experience with kids and vegetables. But I can only imagine: you can entice, you can cajole, you can try to make the vegetables appealing in every possible way. And still the kid will refuse to eat them. So what do you do?
Well, getting Chinese learners to study characters must be a similar experience. I should say this: everyone in our congregation is doing very well in learning Chinese. They're improving in their vocabulary, pronunciation, usage, grammar, etc. Brothers are now giving meeting parts and even full public talks in Chinese, and their progress is amazing! But there is one exception: learning Chinese characters. During the language class almost two years ago, we had them study the 120 most common Chinese characters. To date, the average number of characters remembered is probably less than 10. Or even 5. The brothers and sisters are so heavily reliant on pinyin (alphabetic pronunciation system) that they cannot break away from it. We have had Local Needs parts on the subject of learning characters, how doing so dramatically improves one's understanding of Chinese. We have had fascinating explanations of the various parts of characters. We have encouraged everyone to use flash cards, to take a few minutes every day to learn characters. And still there is resistance.
A few months ago, the body of elders decided that we would project on the screen during the midweek meeting one out of the three songs in characters. The other two would remain in pinyin. The one song chosen and announced weeks in advance would be a song that is not too fast and has characters that are easier to recognize. We encouraged everyone to prepare this one song as part of their normal meeting preparation. It went well for a few weeks, but now most have reverted to looking at pinyin on phones and tablets when the character song is projected.
So again I ask: What do you do to get the kid to eat vegetables?
Of course, setting a good example is important. Me, I always use characters when conducting a question-and-answer meeting part, doing a reading, or singing. It's true that I have many years of experience with learning characters. And perhaps that's the problem: the brothers and sisters think that of course Brian knows characters because he is Chinese. It comes in the blood. NOT! Just because I look the part, it doesn't mean that I didn't experience the blood, sweat, and tears of learning these things from scratch (as an adult, no less), just like they are doing.
So perhaps the solution lies in something our coordinator said to me once: we need to get a Rwandan in this congregation to set an outstanding example in learning characters, and then others will follow. (By the way, the coordinator and his wife are making good strides in learning characters, but then, they are very serious about everything.)
So...that brings me to an interesting development this week. One of the young brothers, Samuel, decided on his own and even told me in advance that he would be doing the student presentation Bible reading completely in characters. This would be a first for anyone in the congregation! Well, he succeeded, and got hearty applause for that reading. After the meeting, I asked a few brothers, okay, who will be the next one to do a character reading? So I think this will start to catch on, now that the ice has been broken.
Last thing: I will be going to California for a visit from mid-October to mid-December. Time to fatten up! The next post may be from there, unless something dramatic happens here. 😃
Wednesday, June 19, 2019
Kampala, Nairobi, Dar es Salaam, Zanzibar
With my visa securely obtained, and no possibility of getting booted out of the country (just leaving voluntarily), I decided that being ahead on my pioneer time for the service year entitled me to take off two weeks to do an East African tour. As a "four-star" Chinese restaurant manager, I can benefit from my Rwandan work permit, which allows me to cross into Uganda and Kenya without paying a visa fee. The plan was that another brother visiting from the U.S. and I were to travel together. He was halfway through a worldwide tour that involved 27 countries. I went alone from Kigali to Kampala and met him there.
Here was the itinerary:
Kigali to Kampala (Uganda): 10 hours on bus
Kampala to Nairobi (Kenya): 15 hours on bus
Nairobi to Dar es Salaam (Tanzania): 17 hours on bus
Total: 42 hours on bus
Even just the thought of this is exhausting.
Anyway, we had a reservation to stay three nights at Kampala Bethel, which of course was a great experience. We also took some local tours, namely, to Idi Amin's torture chambers (seriously), and to Jinja, which is two hours away and where there is a place called "Source of the Nile."
In Nairobi, we had lunch at Bethel (their accommodations were full) and stayed locally with a couple who have an interesting history. The husband is Kenyan and the wife is Canadian. She attended Gilead School in the 1960's and was assigned to Kenya, where she served and for a time was also in Benin. But after only about five years, she married a Kenyan, had four children, and stayed in Kenya for the last 50 years, except for a couple of years when they went back to Saskatchewan, just so the husband could get a taste of those Canadian winters (no, actually, they were there for some other reason). Their oldest son and his wife are in Bethel (he is overseer of the Computer Department), and they attended Gilead School a few years ago. Another daughter, who is single, also works at Bethel in Sign Language Translation.
As far as tourist stuff is concerned, we went to the Giraffe Center in Nairobi, where you can stand on the second story of a round building and have giraffes literally in your face, eating pellets out of your hand. Or, if you prefer, you can place the pellet sticking out of your mouth and have a giraffe lick your face while trying to grab the pellet with its big blue tongue. They say that giraffe saliva is antiseptic, but I'm not sure.
Next was our leg to Dar es Salaam, which means "House of Peace" in Arabic. It was a quick overnight there, and then the next morning we took the two-hour ferry ride to the island of Zanzibar.
Next was our leg to Dar es Salaam, which means "House of Peace" in Arabic. It was a quick overnight there, and then the next morning we took the two-hour ferry ride to the island of Zanzibar.
I have to say that Zanzibar is as exotic as its name sounds. Of course, there are a lot of tourists, but despite that fact, prices are very cheap. There is an area you can stroll through in the evenings that has stall after stall of meats on skewers, including fish of every type, octupus, squid, etc. And each skewer is less than $2.00!
Due to the Arab influence, Zanzibar is heavily Muslim. The architecture and the narrow alleyways take you back to the last century. We saw the sultan's palace and the outdoor amphitheater where the East African slave trade took place.
We attended a Swahili meeting in Zanzibar. There is only one congregation on the entire island. Due to the Muslim and government influence, the brothers have been prevented from having a Kingdom Hall for 30 years. So, the congregation has meetings on a brother's property, under what looks like a carport. Before every meeting, they have to take 80 plastic chairs out of a storage room and set them up. (We spent an hour helping to do this.) They also have to set up the entire sound system for each meeting. Then, after the meeting, everything gets dismantled. However, recently they finally got approval to turn the house on the property into a Kingdom Hall! Jehovah has indeed blessed their patience.
Of the three days in Zanzibar, we spent only a few hours on one day at the beach. That's because we were staying with a family of pioneers, which means that field service took priority. This was fine with me, because now I can say that I did cart witnessing in Zanzibar!
Okay, the return ferry ride to Dar es Salaam was unfortunately very rough. People on both sides of us were throwing up. We were spared that experience only because at the beginning of the trip, this guy was selling these large chocolate bars for 50 cents each that normally would cost you 10 times that in the U.S. So eating that chocolate actually helped us avoid seasickness. Good trick to remember.
Back on the mainland, we had only enough time to attend a weekend meeting and then go out to eat with the family that put us up.
But in case you thought I was willing to sit for 35+ hours on a bus from Dar es Salaam back to Kigali, fuggedaboutit! We had bought plane tickets for the 3-hour flight, including a stopover in Kilimanjaro Airport. My sanity was saved.
Friday, May 17, 2019
Visa miracle
Up to now, which means for the last five years, I have managed to get visa renewals from Immigration. But recently, I hit a roadblock.
The language school I was working at, Edugate, closed its doors, and I was left with a visa expiring in March of this year. A month in advance of the expiration, this is what happened. There is a Chinese restaurant close to the Kingdom Hall called Lao Tangren that is owned by a Chinese man and his Congolese wife. The wife is studying the Bible with a sister in the French congregation. She comes to the French meetings and is progressing well spiritually. After hearing about my visa plight and appreciating what I am doing here in Rwanda, this lady came up with the idea that I could become the manager of the restaurant, but only on paper in the form of a work contract.
Well, Immigration sent three representatives out to interview the lady and me at the restaurant. No, they finally concluded, we don't need a foreigner to do this job, we can get a local person. I asked, you mean a Rwandan who can speak Chinese? Yes. So they denied my visa.
Then, I found another language school called Wibena Language Center, where I got a work contract to teach Chinese. The visa for this, too, was denied, on the basis that Wibena is not certificated with the Ministry of Education. Well, Edugate wasn't either, and they approved that one, but that just shows that you can't figure Immigration out, no matter how hard you try.
Then, an elder in the Chinese congregation who owns several companies for his electrical contracting business offered to put me on as a shareholder of one of his companies. We had to go through the involved process of creating minutes of shareholders' meeting (although he is actually the only shareholder) to add me as a 30% shareholder, change the name of his company to show that its purpose is the acquisition and leasing of real estate (in harmony with my field of "expertise"), and get all these documents notarized. For the notarization, I had to produce my passport, which, you should realize, was still being held captive at Immigration. This required a trip there in the pouring rain and some convincing, but they were willing to let me have it if I promised to return it by no later than the next morning.
I had another interview with Immigration in the brother's office. They asked the brother, if you are intending to have this foreigner train others in the processes of real estate acquisition and leasing, where is your training center? And moreover, as a shareholder, has he invested any money in the business?
The brother was actually willing to open a "training" center and also deposit a sizable amount of money into an account just to satisfy Immigration, but it wouldn't have mattered anyway because at the end of the interview, Immigration said they could not approve my visa for this purpose. In case you are counting, this is now the third denial.
Finally, in a fit of frustration, I went to Bethel and spoke with a member of the Branch Committee. They said, well, we can provide a letter on branch letterhead stating what you have been doing here for the last five years. However, it is not strictly speaking an endorsement because I am not in special full-time service and so the organization is not "sponsoring" me or taking responsibility for my support. (This is the situation of all "need-greaters" who serve at their own expense anywhere in the world.) However, because I have been here for quite a while, the branch was willing to send this letter along with a brother in the Legal Department to speak to Immigration.
Well, it was a two-hour interview with Immigration. Their basic message was: Okay, you've done private teaching, and you've worked at a language school, and then you're a shareholder in this real estate company, and now you come in here with a letter from Watchtower stating that you teach the Bible to Chinese people. So...what are you really doing here?
I pointed to the letter and said, this is what I'm really doing here. But because our organization doesn't sponsor or support people in my situation, I have had to pay for my own plane ticket, my own rent, and my own food, and since I don't make any money teaching the Bible, I have to get secular work to support myself. So, I added, I haven't deceived you (Immigration) in any way; I really did do private teaching, and I really did work at a language school.
The immigration officer was nice, but she said, sorry, we can't approve this. Normally, we give people in your situation a week to get out of the country, but since you've been here for years, we'll give you two weeks to wrap up your affairs. But you really have to leave then. And, if you ever come back to visit, just be aware that you're in our computer system and so if you stay, say, longer than a month, we'll come looking for you. We know how to find people. (How comforting.)
Four denials....
I went back to Bethel highly discouraged. A brother invited me to his room for lunch. And then, something amazing happened....
My phone rang, and it was Immigration again. The officer said, Do you have a work contract with Wibena? I said yes, you should have it in your file (which, by now, must be several inches thick). He said, well, we're considering giving you a visa for that employer. If we gave you a year, would you be happy with that? I replied, yes, yes, indeed!! Okay, he said, we're still considering this, and we'll call you back to confirm. I said, can't you confirm right here and now, over the phone? No, he said, we'll get back to you.
Well, this is one thing that Immigration almost never does: get back to you. So, with a glimmer of hope, I waited a week and then went to Immigration and asked about my visa. The officer returned from the back room and said, "You've been approved." I looked in the passport and, what do you know, the visa was not for Wibena, but for the Chinese restaurant manager position that was the first denial. On top of that, it was for two years! More than I expected! Jehovah performed a miracle!
So the upshot is that I'm now a restaurant manager. Of course, I don't really have to manage the restaurant; the only thing I am required to do is teach the owner and his wife's 8-year-old daughter piano (per the father's request) for a half-hour a week and conduct a Bible study with her (per the mother's request) for a half-hour a week. Also, as "manager," I would have restaurant privileges, which means I get to eat at the restaurant for free anytime I want.
By the way, the father is in his seventies, and the mother in her forties. How these two got together in the first place is beyond me, but it is quite hilarious to see them try to communicate, the father speaking only Chinese (and with a heavy northern accent) and the mother in her broken, Congolese-accented Chinese. And their daughter can understand French, English, and Chinese!
You may remember that most of the year I also stay in a mansion in Kibagabaga, which is managed by my friend Jacques while the family who owns it lives in Belgium. The only time I have to vacate is during the months of June through August, when family members come back for summer holiday. But otherwise, it's free rent!
Free rent, free food....
Can't beat that! Jehovah really takes care of his servants!
The language school I was working at, Edugate, closed its doors, and I was left with a visa expiring in March of this year. A month in advance of the expiration, this is what happened. There is a Chinese restaurant close to the Kingdom Hall called Lao Tangren that is owned by a Chinese man and his Congolese wife. The wife is studying the Bible with a sister in the French congregation. She comes to the French meetings and is progressing well spiritually. After hearing about my visa plight and appreciating what I am doing here in Rwanda, this lady came up with the idea that I could become the manager of the restaurant, but only on paper in the form of a work contract.
Well, Immigration sent three representatives out to interview the lady and me at the restaurant. No, they finally concluded, we don't need a foreigner to do this job, we can get a local person. I asked, you mean a Rwandan who can speak Chinese? Yes. So they denied my visa.
Then, I found another language school called Wibena Language Center, where I got a work contract to teach Chinese. The visa for this, too, was denied, on the basis that Wibena is not certificated with the Ministry of Education. Well, Edugate wasn't either, and they approved that one, but that just shows that you can't figure Immigration out, no matter how hard you try.
Then, an elder in the Chinese congregation who owns several companies for his electrical contracting business offered to put me on as a shareholder of one of his companies. We had to go through the involved process of creating minutes of shareholders' meeting (although he is actually the only shareholder) to add me as a 30% shareholder, change the name of his company to show that its purpose is the acquisition and leasing of real estate (in harmony with my field of "expertise"), and get all these documents notarized. For the notarization, I had to produce my passport, which, you should realize, was still being held captive at Immigration. This required a trip there in the pouring rain and some convincing, but they were willing to let me have it if I promised to return it by no later than the next morning.
I had another interview with Immigration in the brother's office. They asked the brother, if you are intending to have this foreigner train others in the processes of real estate acquisition and leasing, where is your training center? And moreover, as a shareholder, has he invested any money in the business?
The brother was actually willing to open a "training" center and also deposit a sizable amount of money into an account just to satisfy Immigration, but it wouldn't have mattered anyway because at the end of the interview, Immigration said they could not approve my visa for this purpose. In case you are counting, this is now the third denial.
Finally, in a fit of frustration, I went to Bethel and spoke with a member of the Branch Committee. They said, well, we can provide a letter on branch letterhead stating what you have been doing here for the last five years. However, it is not strictly speaking an endorsement because I am not in special full-time service and so the organization is not "sponsoring" me or taking responsibility for my support. (This is the situation of all "need-greaters" who serve at their own expense anywhere in the world.) However, because I have been here for quite a while, the branch was willing to send this letter along with a brother in the Legal Department to speak to Immigration.
Well, it was a two-hour interview with Immigration. Their basic message was: Okay, you've done private teaching, and you've worked at a language school, and then you're a shareholder in this real estate company, and now you come in here with a letter from Watchtower stating that you teach the Bible to Chinese people. So...what are you really doing here?
I pointed to the letter and said, this is what I'm really doing here. But because our organization doesn't sponsor or support people in my situation, I have had to pay for my own plane ticket, my own rent, and my own food, and since I don't make any money teaching the Bible, I have to get secular work to support myself. So, I added, I haven't deceived you (Immigration) in any way; I really did do private teaching, and I really did work at a language school.
The immigration officer was nice, but she said, sorry, we can't approve this. Normally, we give people in your situation a week to get out of the country, but since you've been here for years, we'll give you two weeks to wrap up your affairs. But you really have to leave then. And, if you ever come back to visit, just be aware that you're in our computer system and so if you stay, say, longer than a month, we'll come looking for you. We know how to find people. (How comforting.)
Four denials....
I went back to Bethel highly discouraged. A brother invited me to his room for lunch. And then, something amazing happened....
My phone rang, and it was Immigration again. The officer said, Do you have a work contract with Wibena? I said yes, you should have it in your file (which, by now, must be several inches thick). He said, well, we're considering giving you a visa for that employer. If we gave you a year, would you be happy with that? I replied, yes, yes, indeed!! Okay, he said, we're still considering this, and we'll call you back to confirm. I said, can't you confirm right here and now, over the phone? No, he said, we'll get back to you.
Well, this is one thing that Immigration almost never does: get back to you. So, with a glimmer of hope, I waited a week and then went to Immigration and asked about my visa. The officer returned from the back room and said, "You've been approved." I looked in the passport and, what do you know, the visa was not for Wibena, but for the Chinese restaurant manager position that was the first denial. On top of that, it was for two years! More than I expected! Jehovah performed a miracle!
So the upshot is that I'm now a restaurant manager. Of course, I don't really have to manage the restaurant; the only thing I am required to do is teach the owner and his wife's 8-year-old daughter piano (per the father's request) for a half-hour a week and conduct a Bible study with her (per the mother's request) for a half-hour a week. Also, as "manager," I would have restaurant privileges, which means I get to eat at the restaurant for free anytime I want.
By the way, the father is in his seventies, and the mother in her forties. How these two got together in the first place is beyond me, but it is quite hilarious to see them try to communicate, the father speaking only Chinese (and with a heavy northern accent) and the mother in her broken, Congolese-accented Chinese. And their daughter can understand French, English, and Chinese!
You may remember that most of the year I also stay in a mansion in Kibagabaga, which is managed by my friend Jacques while the family who owns it lives in Belgium. The only time I have to vacate is during the months of June through August, when family members come back for summer holiday. But otherwise, it's free rent!
Free rent, free food....
Can't beat that! Jehovah really takes care of his servants!
Friday, May 3, 2019
First Memorial as a congregation!
I don't know how your Memorial campaign was, but ours was beyond expectation! The previous year, when we were a group that was part of a congregation, we distributed around 100-150 invitations. So this year, we printed about the same number, and they ran out in the first week. Then, we printed another 100, and those lasted another week. The bottom line is, we distributed over 300 invitations!
I was to give the Memorial talk, which was to be held under a big white tent erected in the Kingdom Hall parking lot. (The English and French congregations had the upstairs and downstairs Halls.) Unfortunately, the previous week I had gotten a bad cold, with coughing, from a house guest from Congo who arrived at our place sick from day one. So, on the day of Memorial, my main concern was getting through the talk without having a coughing spell. I fell back on my experience in Colombia when I had to give two public talks in the same day while recovering from the flu. Then, I prayed not to cough, and it worked! That is, until I got off the stage.
Also, my thought was, maybe one Chinese person will come...okay, at the most five. I'd say five was being pretty liberal, eh?
Well, when the meeting started, it was a bit sparse. But then, they came...and came. The final tally: 14 Chinese persons! (Some count me as the 15th, but I would tend to dispute that.) Including our 24 publishers—none of whom, thankfully, defected to another language Memorial—the total was 38!
One of the Chinese guys actually ate the bread, but didn't take the wine. (I would have thought the wine would be the bigger draw...) Of course, we didn't count him as a partaker. The Chinese sang the songs enthusiastically, probably because we projected only characters on the screen and not pinyin.
Afterward, we got a number of WeChat contacts, and they are all being followed up. One of them, Mr. Zhou (same as my surname), also came to our meeting last Saturday. He has expressed interest in knowing more. We helped him to download the Bible, as well as the study edition of The Watchtower.
Everyone was ecstatic about the turnout! This experience motivates us to persevere in our work of preaching to Chinese people!
I was to give the Memorial talk, which was to be held under a big white tent erected in the Kingdom Hall parking lot. (The English and French congregations had the upstairs and downstairs Halls.) Unfortunately, the previous week I had gotten a bad cold, with coughing, from a house guest from Congo who arrived at our place sick from day one. So, on the day of Memorial, my main concern was getting through the talk without having a coughing spell. I fell back on my experience in Colombia when I had to give two public talks in the same day while recovering from the flu. Then, I prayed not to cough, and it worked! That is, until I got off the stage.
Also, my thought was, maybe one Chinese person will come...okay, at the most five. I'd say five was being pretty liberal, eh?
Well, when the meeting started, it was a bit sparse. But then, they came...and came. The final tally: 14 Chinese persons! (Some count me as the 15th, but I would tend to dispute that.) Including our 24 publishers—none of whom, thankfully, defected to another language Memorial—the total was 38!
One of the Chinese guys actually ate the bread, but didn't take the wine. (I would have thought the wine would be the bigger draw...) Of course, we didn't count him as a partaker. The Chinese sang the songs enthusiastically, probably because we projected only characters on the screen and not pinyin.
Afterward, we got a number of WeChat contacts, and they are all being followed up. One of them, Mr. Zhou (same as my surname), also came to our meeting last Saturday. He has expressed interest in knowing more. We helped him to download the Bible, as well as the study edition of The Watchtower.
Everyone was ecstatic about the turnout! This experience motivates us to persevere in our work of preaching to Chinese people!
Monday, February 18, 2019
Out-of-town preaching trips
As a congregation only three months old, we have accomplished quite a bit!
Of course, we have all the meetings in Chinese (by necessity), which means all the brothers have had to 'step up to the plate' in handling parts. Yes, it is somewhat like jumping in the deep end of the swimming pool, but they are doing admirably. Treasures From God's Word talks, Living as Christians parts, and even public talk symposiums!
So last month, imbued with a newfound adventurous spirit, we planned a trip outside of Kigali to do Chinese preaching. A group of 9 of us traveled to Kibungo, which some of you long-suffering readers may remember was a place I went a few years ago to try to find a Chinese Bible student. Though I didn't find him, I did take note of the fact, for future reference, that there were other Chinese in the place.
So one Sunday in January, we set out east of Kigali two hours, armed with plenty of literature. The scenery was beautiful, the spirit high, and the singing loud. We visited a stone quarry. We talked to Chinese overseeing road construction. Many of them were happy just to have someone speak in their language.
We made a record of 15 Chinese people we spoke to that day. We obtained contacts by means of WeChat (微信), a messaging app used by Chinese almost exclusively (mainly because China has banned WhatsApp and its parent, Facebook). Chinese love to exchange, by scanning QR codes, their contact information. We like to use WeChat to establish a friendly relationship with Chinese people, then over time gradually introduce spiritual subjects.
Well, our trip was so successful that we planned another one in February, this time to the north, to Musanze. It was another 10-hour trip, climbing higher and higher to this mountainous region that is about 3-5 degrees cooler than Kigali. This is also a touristic area, where people come to see gorillas and volcanoes. A local brother said he would accompany us and show us where all the Chinese people were.
One experience from this trip: Two publishers arrived at a house where a Chinese lady was standing outside the front gate talking on the phone. Then, she went inside the gate, the gate opened, and a car pulled out. The publishers talked to the driver, a Chinese man, who said he was rushing to work, but would they like to get in the car and continue the conversation at his office? So, they went with him, and in his office, they showed a video from our website about a lawyer who came to the conclusion there must be a Creator. (This video is very effective with Chinese people.) He agreed with the reasonableness of the lawyer's position, and said he would be willing to have further contact with us.
These trips have invigorated our ministry in the Chinese field!
Of course, we have all the meetings in Chinese (by necessity), which means all the brothers have had to 'step up to the plate' in handling parts. Yes, it is somewhat like jumping in the deep end of the swimming pool, but they are doing admirably. Treasures From God's Word talks, Living as Christians parts, and even public talk symposiums!
So last month, imbued with a newfound adventurous spirit, we planned a trip outside of Kigali to do Chinese preaching. A group of 9 of us traveled to Kibungo, which some of you long-suffering readers may remember was a place I went a few years ago to try to find a Chinese Bible student. Though I didn't find him, I did take note of the fact, for future reference, that there were other Chinese in the place.
So one Sunday in January, we set out east of Kigali two hours, armed with plenty of literature. The scenery was beautiful, the spirit high, and the singing loud. We visited a stone quarry. We talked to Chinese overseeing road construction. Many of them were happy just to have someone speak in their language.
We made a record of 15 Chinese people we spoke to that day. We obtained contacts by means of WeChat (微信), a messaging app used by Chinese almost exclusively (mainly because China has banned WhatsApp and its parent, Facebook). Chinese love to exchange, by scanning QR codes, their contact information. We like to use WeChat to establish a friendly relationship with Chinese people, then over time gradually introduce spiritual subjects.
Well, our trip was so successful that we planned another one in February, this time to the north, to Musanze. It was another 10-hour trip, climbing higher and higher to this mountainous region that is about 3-5 degrees cooler than Kigali. This is also a touristic area, where people come to see gorillas and volcanoes. A local brother said he would accompany us and show us where all the Chinese people were.
One experience from this trip: Two publishers arrived at a house where a Chinese lady was standing outside the front gate talking on the phone. Then, she went inside the gate, the gate opened, and a car pulled out. The publishers talked to the driver, a Chinese man, who said he was rushing to work, but would they like to get in the car and continue the conversation at his office? So, they went with him, and in his office, they showed a video from our website about a lawyer who came to the conclusion there must be a Creator. (This video is very effective with Chinese people.) He agreed with the reasonableness of the lawyer's position, and said he would be willing to have further contact with us.
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| Kibungo group |
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Musanze group
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These trips have invigorated our ministry in the Chinese field!
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