Ministry in Pointe Noire

I really enjoyed being able to go to Pointe Noire, Congo (across the river) for some HIV training. I am a part of a continental task force that helps to implement and strategize our HIV/AIDS response across the continent. There are many spots where missionaries and/or national pastors have a desire to be involved in HIV/AIDS education and ministry, but they don't know exactly how to go about it. Everyone has their own area of training and specialization. So, along with missionary Emily Johns from South Africa, I went to Pointe Noire to help educate and train pastors and bible school students. We had a great group of very motivated learners. Pastors are such a strategic group to target for effective HIV ministry in any country. Our Assembly of God statistics are really quite impressive - over 49,000 churches or "preaching points" on the continent with over 14 million members! Imagine the effect that could be had on the continent if even just one half of these churches decided to do AIDS education on a regular basis! We had a great time with the students.....skits, lectures, Q&A, group work, etc. Participants were challenged to talk to their churches and organize HIV response committees that can help with AIDS education and ministry.

We also met several mornings with a group of at-risk girls. These girls were all mid to late teen-agers who, for various reasons, were not succeeding in school. They had been marginalized by their families and in an effort to help them have a brighter future, while keeping them off the streets, they were admitted into a girls center. At the center they learn a marketable skill (sewing) and are given personal help in learning to read and how to do basic math. What a great time we had with them! We did devotionals on their value to God and personal purity. We talked about HIV and how to prevent becoming infected. And we did role playing in how to say "no" to sexual advances. Many times girls such as these feel powerless in the face of aggressive men. It's a very male dominated culture and they have a hard time realizing that they can and should say "no" to a man.