Easter 2007

I must go with God to any land,
No matter the roughness of the road.
I must go, I must go . . .
You must go . . .
We must go . . .

These lyrics became the theme song for the evangelistic outreach trip to the Nuba Mountains by the students of Nile Theological College last Christmas. Although some of the roads in the area of Kadugli were rough, and the logistics of the trip were at times difficult, yet in the minds of the 23 students, led by the Dean of Studies, Rev. Ismail Kanani, there was no question whether or not to go. “We must go,” they sang, and they did go.

In their going, God richly blessed the group with signs and wonders of the power of God at work. There was evidence of God bringing people to faith in the Lord Jesus and a powerful witness to the love of God not just by their words but simply by the students’ presence. It was a cooperative effort on the part of many partners: Students gave their time and energy to go to the Nuba Mountains, NTC was there with prayer and support for the trip, gifts were received from their churches, and the major financial support came from the Outreach Foundation of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). This was the second evangelistic outreach trip by the students, and it was a wonderful testimony to God working through all God’s people working together.

You must go . . .

The trip was envisioned, planned, and implemented by the students. They presented the vision to others who saw the plan of God at work in it and wanted to support it. At the end of the trip, they provided a report of the results, both spiritual and financial. As partners here in Sudan, let us encourage their ability to see where God is at work here and their vision as to how best to join God in that work.

Too often, we have found that we, as outside donors, determine what they should be doing by what we’re supporting financially. Then the ownership of the work isn’t theirs, and it is doomed not to bring desired results. In fact, we have often created divisions and competition instead of unity and cooperation. When we see that the churches here are already doing this work with the little they have, then we see that they are truly committed to this work and then we can join in their efforts to help the work grow. The roughness of the road may well be in passing the leadership and ownership of the planning to the Sudanese churches and institutions and then learning to wait until they make a commitment before we help.

I must go . . .

We have been given a great many experiences of God’s grace and love in our time here in Sudan. We are now coming to the end of our fourth term of service here as mission co-workers of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). At the end of every term, there is prayer and discernment of what God wants us to do next. At the end of the past three terms, we felt a clear call to continue the work God has given us to do here. Betsy has been at Nile Theological College teaching courses in spiritual formation, pastoral ministry, and Hebrew. The College is in the process of accreditation, and she has been working with the academic committee on the curriculum.

Last semester NTC opened the evening diploma program, a two-year diploma degree for students who work during the day. Barry has been continuing his work as regional liaison for the PC(USA). His most recent joy has been the successful mission trip for a team of seven medical doctors from Trinity Presbytery who came to work in Akobo in southern Sudan. Despite numerous delays and obstacles that almost caused the trip to be scrubbed, the team was able to travel to Akobo and treated close to 1,800 patients in seven days.

Now we are nearing the end of our fourth term, and we have a clear sense of God calling us to return to the United States to continue our service there. The decision to leave Sudan is a difficult one, for we will be leaving many friends and colleagues. The blessings we have received of seeing the deep faith and commitment of Christ’s disciples in Sudan far outweigh what we could possibly have given to them in our ministry. We have experienced God using the strength in the gifts and leadership abilities of men and women and expatriates and Sudanese in the churches.

God has shown us what it is like when God’s people work together towards a vision of fulfilling Christ’s Great Commission. Seeing how people from every part of the world, women and men, young and old, are taking an active part in the life of their congregations has given us great hope in the future of what God will do in the lives of all those who are called by God to serve in the leadership of Christ’s church here in Sudan.

We have been inspired by the work and witness of Sudanese and expatriate believers together and hope that we will in some small way share with believers in the United States this unity and vitality of faith and service. We trust that God will use our experiences here to further strengthen the mission of the PC(USA). God has given us a better sense of what mission is like, having lived it firsthand for 12 years. Now it is time to put that learning to use in the States.

We will be returning to the States in September for our three-month interpretation assignment. We look forward to being with the churches and individuals who have been supporting us these many years—to say thank you for the tremendous encouragement and joy you have given to us. If you would like to schedule time for us to visit you, please contact us at by email at barrybetsy@cs.com. We are very grateful to the PC(USA) for giving us the needed provisions for our being here. We trust that God will continue to raise new mission personnel who likewise feel a sense of call to serve here in Sudan. Betsy’s position at NTC is one that is open to receiving a new mission co-worker from PC(USA). The Rev. Michael Weller will be the regional liaison for the Horn of Africa (Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea, and Somalia). Please pray for Mike as he comes to Sudan for the “handing over” of Barry’s work. Please pray for us as well, that God will continue to direct us to where God wants us to serve in the United States. Barry is completing a certificate course in project management as a beginning part of a master’s degree in non-profit management. Betsy will be submitting her personal information form shortly. For both of us, it will feel like being strangers in a foreign land for some time!

Our model for this new mission opportunity is the Apostle Peter. He was given a vision of God bringing all people to salvation, and then God sent him to Macedonia to the house of Cornelius (Acts 10). But after that, Peter went back to Jerusalem to explain to these Jewish Christians the significance of his mission trip to the “Gentiles.” Later, he came to the defense of Paul and Barnabas who were continuing to work among the Gentiles (Acts 15). God is now calling us, like Peter, to return to the United States to tell American Christians what God is doing among the Sudanese Christians and to work there in order to bring together all God’s people in God’s plan of salvation for the whole world. May God continue to bless this good news for all people!

Barry and Betsy

The 2007 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 323