The Website of Miah and Michelle Collins

We are back from our international escapades. Michelle returned from Spain on Saturday and I got back from Liberia on Tuesday. I was very close to being stuck in Liberia until Thursday, so we were very grateful to be together just in time to celebrate our 3 year wedding anniversary on Wednesday. This article is a summary of what I was up to there. The next blog, called “From Addis to Monrovia,” is some of my writing during the trip so it has more stories and moments.

Michelle’s parents were in Spain for a NASA conference, and they flew Michelle out to spend time with them while I was in Liberia. She had such a great time with them, and we are so thankful for how well it all worked out so that she was able to see them this year. Michelle traveled NASA style, staying in lovely hotels along the coast of Spain and France, and I traveled J-Life style, sleeping in a school classroom with 10 other guys. She says that her trip was amazing, but I think we all know that my trip was way better.

Seriously though, I think God used both of the trips in really cool ways.

Michelle and I are helping to get J-Life established in Liberia with a local guy, Trokon, who I’ve mentioned on this blog before. The trip I took is the 1st of 4 that we will do over the next 6 months or so. Here is a little update on what’s happening in Liberia:

When I landed at the Robertsfield International Airport, I thought we had made a wrong turn somewhere. The landscape looked like Vietnam: flat, green, hot, forests, palm trees. I almost expected to see some US Marines walking out of the bush with green face paint and branches attached to their fatigues. It’s now been 7 years since Liberia’s civil war ended, and although things are peaceful now, there is still a strong UN Peacekeeping presence in Monrovia, the capital city.

It doesn’t take long to figure out that 10 years of war has had a crippling impact on this already underdeveloped nation. There is no electricity grid in the country.  High ranking officials, businesses and even the airport have to make do by running generators if they want to use a computer or charge their cell phones.  Other basic infrastructures like plumbing systems are also non-existent.

But the war’s greatest legacy has to be in the education arena. Illiterate and semi-literate young adults experienced constant disruption in their schooling for many years, and today there are many adult high schools that run night classes to help people catch up. One of the guys on our training started primary school at the age of 18. He graduated just 7 years later and is now in his second year at seminary. Even today there are not nearly enough schools or qualified teachers to deal with the growing population, and many churches and ministries have opened private schools to cater for the children in their communities who would not otherwise have the chance to go to school.

It was at one of these schools where Trokon and I conducted the first J-Life training in Liberia. Some of the highlights:
• Seeing how well Trokon has carried the values of J-Life into the Liberian context. He is a great teacher as well, which allowed me to hand over to him quite a lot of the teaching responsibility.
• Trying to work all of our material into a totally new context was such a fun challenge. Despite the mosquitoes and the heat, I slept well every night!
• Teaching people who place such value on education. I would find them studying the material in the evenings and discussing it with one another.
• The location of our training was beautiful. We were about a 5 minute walk from the beach. With the lack of any modern distractions, I spent some good time in the water. I even met a South African on the beach who had an extra board for me to go out for a surf with him. He grew up about 10 minutes from me, and graduated from high school the same year as me from one of our rival high schools (Kearsney College).  He is working as the financial administrator for a nearby hotel.

There were also some challenges along the way.
• Most of the trainees only started arriving on Tuesday when we were scheduled to start on Monday. Trokon was pretty unhappy about that, but once we got rolling, it was ok.
• Travel in Africa is rough. I was delayed for about 20 hours in Addis Ababa on my way there. Then on my way back, I got to the airport in Monrovia and they told me my flight was canceled. So I was delayed another 24 hours and had to be rerouted through Ghana. For a little while, I thought I was going to be stuck in Monrovia from Sunday until Thursday, and would have missed being with Michelle for our anniversary! Thankfully, I got home in time.
• Although the people there have a great passion for young people, there is almost no youth ministry happening in Liberia, so we are really starting from the very beginning. I am confident that Trokon, along with some of the other guys we have identified as potential partners in the ministry, will be able to start a movement of disciplemaking among the youth of Liberia.

The students now have 6 weeks to try to implement what they have learned before I head back there with Michelle to do 2 more weeks of training with the same group. I will be really glad to have Michelle with me there next time. With her doing some of the training, I will have more time to work with guys one-on-one.

I really feel like this is some of the most impactful work we have done in 3 years of J-Life and I can’t wait to get back there again! At the same time, our colleague, Bhuti Kheswa, is working through the same process in Zanzibar. That is the first predominately Muslim country for J-Life to work in.

We are so excited to be part of raising up young leaders who will do things differently than in the past because they follow Jesus. We appreciate your prayer and support.
Also, we are still looking for some sponsors to help finish the funding of this project, so if you would like to be part of it, please get hold of us!

Cheers
Miah

So while I was in Monrovia I spent some time writing about my day to day experiences. I emailed all this to Michelle and she felt like I should put it on the blog… it includes some more detailed stories and challenges. Enjoy!

I sat down on the airport before takeoff and realized I didn’t have my passport. I got my bags down and looked through them… nothing. I started to freak out… looking on the floor, crawling around the plane. Finally, I told the air hostess and some of the other passengers. All these guys were looking around for me. They told me to go out of the plane to the boarding gate and ask there, nothing… sweat dripping from my forehead. In my brain I’m trying to decide if I’m going to get off the plane or not. I’m 90% sure my passport is on the plane but if it’s not I’m going to be in Addis without a passport! Then some Italian or South American guy comes running down the aisle with my flight center packet! “Hey Rasta, here it is.”
“Where was it?”
“That lady pulled it out from under her, she was sitting on it.”
An Ethiopian woman in her 70s had been sitting on my passport the whole time. Crazy!

In the process of figuring out the visa and the hotel I met Welleh, a Liberian man who had representing Liberia for the Street Children World Cup in South Africa. He runs a non-profit of some sort here. I may try to connect with him again some time. He was very helpful and cool. The Ghanaians who were being delayed were going crazy at the airport. Yelling and singing at the Ethiopian Airlines people. It was crazy, and the cops just watched them, didn’t do anything.

Addis is not as overwhelming as Yaoundé, and I would say it is slightly more developed. The architecture is very similar but the people are very different of course. It was great to see a few people running on the streets in the early morning. It seems likes everybody is a hustler though, everyone wants to “help” you on the street.  I did manage to find some injera at a restaurant for lunch. I paid about $3 and I couldn’t even eat half of it so I gave it to some shoe cleaning kids on the street.

You get a lot of attention in Addis; people were totally intrigued with me. Of course most people called me Rasta, but I did get “David Villa” as well, because of my soul patch! Yes!

I tried a Cappuccino in the hotel bar while going over my notes for the training and it wasn’t good at all, so I left the hotel again and found a great coffee shop where people were just chilling drinking macchiato and Fanta. They were just relaxed and happy, the shop sold very little food while I was there, it was all about the coffee. I have to say it was one of the most sophisticated coffee shop experiences in Africa. I started reading “A Thousand Splendid Suns” and listened to the Amharic around me. Cappuccinos were about $0.40 so I ended up drinking 4 of them through the afternoon.

Then I went back to the hotel, and went down to watch the soccer. There was also a cool couple from Cape Town doing some traveling in Ethiopia. They were going to watch the final on the big screen in Addis the next day with a concert beforehand. I said I would probably try to go with them if I was still stuck there.  I thought I might be there the whole next day as well but my phone rang at 3:30am to say that the bus was leaving for the airport in 25 minutes.

I finally got to Liberia and used someone’s phone to call Trokon. They picked me up with a guy from the church who has a car and took me to Patrick’s house where there was a room set up for me. We made some plans for the next day then went to the church to watch the World Cup final. About 150 people came to watch on a small tv. They were very loud and I was super tired. I fell asleep on my chair but caught a second wind for the rest of the match. Then walked back to Patrick’s place to sleep. I was definitely in “new adventure euphoria” at that stage. Everything was just very unique and cool.

This place is very undeveloped, probably the craziest place I’ve stayed, but it’s awesome. I go back and forth from feeling “man this place is tough” to “this is paradise.” There is no sewerage system, no electricity network, no middle class. It’s just very poor, everything is unfinished, unpainted. But the beach is a couple minutes walk from the church. You can hear the waves when we stand outside the church. That makes it very cool.

We spent the day shopping for all the food and getting mattresses from a warehouse downtown, run by a Lebanese guy. And Trokon was right, he does speak very clearly compared to most Liberians. Understanding people is a real challenge. But all in all, I’m loving it. I get so stoked every morning I wake up here, even though I’ve been chewed alive by mosquitoes, and my sheets are drenched with sweat. I really feel like this is significant ministry! And being able to encourage Trokon and continue moulding him, Hannah and Patrick for this ministry is so cool. They are really what this country needs! I’m very determined to see that J-Life Liberia is a success.
I gotta hit the sack, I have my mosquito net up now, so hopefully I will get some more sleep tonight. It’s time to turn off the generator as well.

We are well into training. Yesterday I went to the room to read at 5pm and I suddenly felt super tired. It was like the adrenaline suddenly wore off and the stress of the new place, new culture, and daily training finally hit me!
The food today was little rough: Foofoo with palm oil (with fish, crab, and pork fat) for lunch and then plantain soup for dinner. They also made a tea with lemongrass and some “maringu” leaves from a tree here and condensed milk. It was weird. Everything tastes about the same… something like shrimp. I’ve actually enjoyed the food up until today. There is a lady nearby who bakes great banana bread that we’ve had in the mornings a couple of times.

I would say the training is going pretty well. I think I work pretty well with Trokon. He has done quite a bit of lecturing already and he is doing a really good job. Although he’s quite an introvert, he really does a good job in building the community as well. Hannah is great and so is Trokon’s ministry partner, Patrick. The trainees can be a bit dull in lectures but things do happen that make me think they take the training seriously. For one, they constantly tell me things they are learning, and today (after teaching the Vision section about how leaders are readers) everybody has been reading tons of books that we got from the church.

There was super hectic rain today and it actually got a bit cold. I didn’t swim the ocean today for the first time since Sunday because of the cold. The beaches are nicer than I expected and the water feels great after a long day of lectures.

You can really see how the war has affected people here. Some of the guys on training are semi-literate, but at least they speak English so I am able to help them. We are starting Strategy in the morning. I really hope its not too intense for these guys and that they are able to catch the basic principles and not be overwhelmed by the detail. But seriously, the rain here is crazy, so intense

It’s Saturday night now, a full day of teaching Strategy. It was intense getting around the new material and I was exhausted by the end of it, so glad for a day off tomorrow, you have no idea. I’ve also been really encouraged to hear a lot of guys saying how impactful the training has been so far. A couple guys went into the community today and came back with gifts for me (mangos and biscuits)… so cool.

I suggested that we go and have some worship on the beach. Wow… so cool. Liberian worship is a lot like the Ugandan music. A lot of the guys said they had never been on the beach at night. It’s like 24 degrees but a lot of them were complaining about the cold! Rocking the winter coats! The moment the breeze picks up, they call that cold.

War Stories

It’s Monday night, week 2 of training. I’ve been getting little bits of information about the war. They don’t say much about it here but when we did testimonies everyone’s story had a section that started with “When the war started” and then continued “My father passed away” or “my family was separated” or “we moved to Ivory Coast.”
Pastor Matthew also told me some stories about the war on our walk. He was talking about how there was a food shortage: “You would just find people eating grass or wading through these swamps looking for something to eat. It was so pathetic.” He also told his near death experience: “Soldiers broke into the house and were collecting things. I was walking in the hallway and I froze. The leader of the group ordered one of the men to shoot me. He pointed the gun at me and then he slowly lowered it and then they left. I can only say that God protected me because those men were not merciful.”

We talking today about hanging out with youth you are mentoring and Patrick said that he could take one of the youth to the zoo. “You have a zoo here?” – It just doesn’t strike me as a city that would have a zoo. “Oh yes,” says Patrick, “there is a zoo. But there’s no animals.” Then someone else chimes in: “They ate them all during the war.” Super.

I learned something interesting yesterday. Hannah was telling me how the guys are not going to want to go home because of all the food they have been eating. “Are they eating better here than they would at home?”
“Oh yes, in Liberia we only eat one meal a day.”

So that’s how I figured out why they eat so much at lunch, because it is typically their only meal. So we are going to probably have to work a plan to cut down on the food a little bit to save money. I’m working with Trokon for that. The other problem is that because guys eat so much at lunch (together with the heat in the afternoon) it’s a struggle for guys to stay awake. So I think we might do something like a snack at 11am and then the big meal after lectures at 3, then odd jobs and sports at 5.

It’s Thursday afternoon. It’s sticky and hot today. I spent the whole morning going to town with Hannah because she needed to buy some extra food stuff. So it was another trip to “THE ATM” of Liberia.  Seriously, there is one ATM in this country. Hannah left me with her mom who sells purses and backpacks while she did the shopping. I did a little exploring and bought some gunpowder tea from a Malian’s shop. When I was standing there with it this guy obviously figured I could speak French since I had gunpowder tea. He was from Ivory Coast and couldn’t speak English. So I fumbled through a 20 minute conversation with him in French. That was my highlight of the day so far.

Last night I chatted to Trokon and started asking about his goals for the next months and year. That was really encouraging to hear his passion for this and how much he wants to move forward. We decided today that Trokon would help them more with the implementation which he is doing right now. He’s doing a mini “programming to Strategy” and I think its really helping.

Today I tried to explain a task a few times and the guys were not getting me. Finally they asked Trokon to come and explain it in “Liberian English” – I love it!

I’ve been back in Africa for 2 and a half years now and it seems appropriate (mostly for my own good) to formulate and put into writing what I currently believe about this continent, it’s future, and what role a person like myself could and should play here.

I’m certainly no expert on Africa and I fully recognize that it is quite presumptuous for me to claim to diagnose Africa or to “know” what the solution is. And yet, as someone working here with the desire to make a difference, I have to make judgments somewhere along the line. And I don’t believe that any of my thoughts are unique. They have developed over long conversations with young Africans over newspapers and “Ricoffee,” through books about Africa and economic development, and of course through my relationship with Christ and knowledge of God’s kingdom agenda. So, with those disclaimers out of the way… here it goes.

1. Education
If there was one thing that I believe more time and energy needs to be put into in Africa, it is education. I have seen firsthand how lack of education limits lives of young people. Without a high school diploma, a young South African is severely limited. And there are schools in this country where, last year, not one senior in high school passed their final examination. All around I see victims of a failed education system.  There is a young guy in my running club who is smart and articulate and speaks great English. He is hard working; in fact he works 7 days a week for a small salary. I asked if we could help him to find a better job, the problem is he does not have a high school diploma and so he won’t get hired to do anything other than garden work. In fact, statistics would say that he should be very happy that he has a job as most people with his level of education do not.
Without options in life, young people in South Africa tend toward destructive behavior. Young girls become pregnant in order to get a monthly government grant, and then they effectively give the child over to the grandparents and use the money for themselves. Young men turn to gangs and crime. Statistics show that around the world the more educated a person is, the less children they have. I’m not saying having children is bad. What I’m saying is that as education decreases, children increase, so that the poorest people in our world today are having far more children than they can afford to raise. That means that those children will have less opportunity than their parents had.
Education has an impact a vast number of other issues such as health, the environment, peace and stability. I am very thankful for organizations like Vision and Compassion who promote education. Providing for someone’s education gives them a greater chance of being a positive force in the world, and from my experience, does not lead them to continue to be dependent throughout their lives.

2. Self worth
In South Africa, it is not really taboo to talk about race. It is a regular topic of conversation here, and people deal with it in different ways. I think that Africa and Africans believe that they are capable of less than other continents, that they will always be inferior. I don’t think they are aware that they believe that. They can say things like “It’s good enough for Africa” and go on from there. This inferiority complex leads them to accept mediocre or even oppressive leadership as part of life. It’s like a woman who remains in an abusive relationship because she doesn’t really believe that she deserves better.
There is, however, push back against this. It can take on bad forms (nationalism, African superiority). Sometimes this is done innocently like a church in Zimbabwe longing for the day when they will be coming to the aid of the West (i.e. the hope that positions will be reversed rather than everybody being able to share in God’s provisions on earth).
However, I have come to see one of the roles of Christian youth workers in Africa to instill self-worth and self-belief in young people. A youth pastor that I talked to recently said this: “We took some students from a school we are working with on a camp. And we spent the weekend talking about ‘destiny’. That’s a great charismatic word that my Baptist roots would be ashamed of. But we want to teach these students that God has a real plan for their lives, and that they learn what that is and achieve it.” I got to meet some of those students and they shared with me their ‘destiny.’ Most of it was about helping other people, opening a children’s home, becoming a teacher, spreading the love of God through their actions.
This is the reason why I have been a big supporter of the World Cup. Sure, maybe some of the money used to build the stadiums could have built people shelter or to dig water holes or to feed people in drought stricken areas. But the World Cup sends another message to young Africans. That message is that Africa can offer something to the world. Africa can host one of the world’s biggest events and do a great job at it. And if we can do it for the World Cup, why not in other areas as well? If the World Cup can be excellent, why not our schools, our hospitals, our churches, our banks, our businesses?
Working with J-Life I have seen how (through the training i.e. education) young people are released with self-confidence to start new initiatives and face the future with optimism and confidence.

3. Leadership
I really believe that raising up a new generation of leadership in Africa is the key to securing a better future here. I am thankful to work in an organization that is not about what I can do (as an American with American resources) but it’s about what Africans can do. And we always try to make sure the guys we work with understand that. Of the young people we have trained at J-Life over the past 3 years, many of them are now practicing or studying to be psychologists, teachers, pastors, political scientists, physiotherapists, IT technicians, social workers, doctors, and businessmen. They know that it is up to them to take responsibility their countries and their people. They know that God wants there to be great schools in Africa, great churches, great social services, and great business.
Although the West has caused some of the problems in Africa (the legacy of colonialism, slavery, and exploitation does remain) the accountability for Africa’s failure to progress since independence must rest with its own leaders, and I say that with upmost humility. Africa needs better leaders, people who will stand up and show the masses what it means to be a good African. Perhaps a good question to ask in regard to Africa is “Will the next generation of leaders do things differently?”

4. Trade
I am so thankful that the West gave Africa the chance to host the World Cup. I am so thankful that the skeptics are now quiet. I’m thankful that the majority of soccer fans put up with our vuvuzelas and embraced Africa’s World Cup.
My last point is that Africa needs a chance, an opportunity to be part of the world market. This is absolutely necessary for Africa to thrive without international assistance. What I am about to share is a touchy issue so I want to go into a bit of background.
During the colonial era the Western powers made the most of Africa’s rich natural resources. They would take the resources to their home countries where they were manufactured into products (much of which was sold back to Africans). When colonial powers left Africa, they left it with very little infrastructure which means that to this day Africa is reliant on the export of natural products for economic survival. The problem is that many of these products are “protected” in the West against an influx of African products. For example, to protect cattle farmers in Europe, some countries offer subsidies worth $2 per head of cattle per day. An African farmer cannot compete and therefore has no market outside of his own country for his cattle.
This is one simple example but it means that many African countries cannot gain entrance to the world economy. The West often criticizes Africa for trade restrictions while they themselves impose huge restrictions and create great subsidies which keep Africa out.
If you want to campaign for anything on Africa’s behalf, campaign for the abolishment of these trade restrictions so that Africa can have a chance to be part of the world economy.
So you might be asking: “You’re supposed to be a missionary, so where does God fit into all this?” Well then, I’m glad you asked.

1. Education
The Bible teaches us that what you know is important. Knowledge of God is important - “my people perish for a lack of knowledge.”
Education is not just knowledge but the good application of knowledge: What the Bible would call wisdom. which God’s word has a lot to speak about. I have seen how people’s knowledge of God leads them to seek knowledge and truth in other areas as well. Young people who have come to J-Life start to read books and become more involved in current events.  In fact, where this is not happening we should be concerned as Christians. If there is not a hunger for knowledge our Christian education may be incomplete.

2. Self Worth
The Christian tradition informs my belief that Africans are equal all others. The philosophy that all humans are made in God’s image stands against the philosophy of “survival of the fittest”. The Gospel (as opposed to “karma”) tells us that our need for grace put’s every human being on an equal footing before God.

3. Leadership
At J-Life we believe that if we can transfer the character and priorities of Jesus (discipleship) to the young people who come to us for training we will succeed in helping them to become the better leaders that Africa so desperately need. Jesus is our hero, but he’s also our example. The Bible clearly teaches us to live like Jesus. The life of Christ holds the keys to what it means to be a great leader, and a great African.

4. Trade
This issue is very much linked to the second point. If we claim to believe that before God African’s are equal to any other people, that would naturally lead us to desire to offer them the same opportunities that we have. The least we can do is to allow African’s the chance to part of our world economy so that they can have the dignity of living off their own hard work rather than always receiving from others.
The Soccer World Cup has been a great illustration for this. When Ghana played the US in their second round knockout game it set up the world’s richest nation against one of the world’s poorer nations. The USA could not ask to start 1 goal in the lead because they have a better human rights record than Ghana. They were not allowed an extra player on the field to reward them for their superior infrastructure and military. They couldn’t even have the ref on their side (quite obviously) just because they had a lot more money to bride him with. When they took to the field it was 11 against 11 and the scores were 0 to 0. It was Ghana vs USA. (I was rooting for the Yanks, just so you know)
The world doesn’t usually work like that, so as Christians we work to give the underdog a chance.

Maybe I can paint a hypothetical picture here:
There is a small village in Senegal that lies on prime cotton growing land. They have limited opportunity to sell their produce because of the poor road system connecting them to the main city, and the lack of infrastructure and bureaucracy at the port. Worst of all, trade restrictions and taxes make the prices of their cotton uncompetitive with that of other countries.
NGO’s help the people of theis village stay alive. They ship in food and health supplies from the West and offer primary education to the children. When the children get older, they will realize there is no future for them in the village, some will stay to care for their families but most of them, especially the young men, will leave for the city to try to earn a living. In the city they will lose their culture and along with it their values, causing many societal issues in the city. A few will make a living in the city; many will try to immigrate to Europe to better their lives. Things continue like this from generation to generation.
Here’s another scenario. The trade restrictions on cotton are lifted and the village is able to sell some of their cotton, increasing their output from year to year. The government is happy with the taxes they receive from this new export and they fix the road to the village which gives them even better access to the market. As people in the village have some money, a few small shops open, offering jobs as cashiers, doing phone repairs, and even mechanics for the trucks that travel to and from the village. Women are able to cook food and sell it to the people coming in and out of the village, meaning they are able to educate their children. Less people leave the village permanently to look for other opportunities. A small school opens and some of the young people are sent for teacher training etc etc…

So that’s about what I have so far. And I hope that’s these thoughts will continue to change and grow and be challenged. Feel free to help me with this.

Miah

I’ve been back in Africa for 2 and a half years now and it seems appropriate (mostly for my own good) to formulate and put into writing what I currently believe about this continent, it’s future, and what role a person like myself could and should play here.

I’m certainly no expert on Africa and I fully recognize that it is quite presumptuous for me to claim to diagnose Africa or to “know” what the solution is. And yet, as someone working here with the desire to make a difference, I have to make judgments somewhere along the line. And I don’t believe that any of my thoughts are unique. They have developed over long conversations with young Africans over newspapers and “Ricoffee,” through books about Africa and economic development, and of course through my relationship with Christ and knowledge of God’s kingdom agenda. So, with those disclaimers out of the way… here it goes.

1. Education
If there was one thing that I believe more time and energy needs to be put into in Africa, it is education. I have seen firsthand how lack of education limits lives of young people. Without a high school diploma, a young South African is severely limited. And there are schools in this country where, last year, not one senior in high school passed their final examination. All around I see victims of a failed education system.  There is a young guy in my running club who is smart and articulate and speaks great English. He is hard working; in fact he works 7 days a week for a small salary. I asked if we could help him to find a better job, the problem is he does not have a high school diploma and so he won’t get hired to do anything other than garden work. In fact, statistics would say that he should be very happy that he has a job as most people with his level of education do not.
Without options in life, young people in South Africa tend toward destructive behavior. Young girls become pregnant in order to get a monthly government grant, and then they effectively give the child over to the grandparents and use the money for themselves. Young men turn to gangs and crime. Statistics show that around the world the more educated a person is, the less children they have. I’m not saying having children is bad. What I’m saying is that as education decreases, children increase, so that the poorest people in our world today are having far more children than they can afford to raise. That means that those children will have less opportunity than their parents had.
Education has an impact a vast number of other issues such as health, the environment, peace and stability. I am very thankful for organizations like Vision and Compassion who promote education. Providing for someone’s education gives them a greater chance of being a positive force in the world, and from my experience, does not lead them to continue to be dependent throughout their lives.

2. Self worth
In South Africa, it is not really taboo to talk about race. It is a regular topic of conversation here, and people deal with it in different ways. I think that Africa and Africans believe that they are capable of less than other continents, that they will always be inferior. I don’t think they are aware that they believe that. They can say things like “It’s good enough for Africa” and go on from there. This inferiority complex leads them to accept mediocre or even oppressive leadership as part of life. It’s like a woman who remains in an abusive relationship because she doesn’t really believe that she deserves better.
There is, however, push back against this. It can take on bad forms (nationalism, African superiority). Sometimes this is done innocently like a church in Zimbabwe longing for the day when they will be coming to the aid of the West (i.e. the hope that positions will be reversed rather than everybody being able to share in God’s provisions on earth).
However, I have come to see one of the roles of Christian youth workers in Africa to instill self-worth and self-belief in young people. A youth pastor that I talked to recently said this: “We took some students from a school we are working with on a camp. And we spent the weekend talking about ‘destiny’. That’s a great charismatic word that my Baptist roots would be ashamed of. But we want to teach these students that God has a real plan for their lives, and that they learn what that is and achieve it.” I got to meet some of those students and they shared with me their ‘destiny.’ Most of it was about helping other people, opening a children’s home, becoming a teacher, spreading the love of God through their actions.
This is the reason why I have been a big supporter of the World Cup. Sure, maybe some of the money used to build the stadiums could have built people shelter or to dig water holes or to feed people in drought stricken areas. But the World Cup sends another message to young Africans. That message is that Africa can offer something to the world. Africa can host one of the world’s biggest events and do a great job at it. And if we can do it for the World Cup, why not in other areas as well? If the World Cup can be excellent, why not our schools, our hospitals, our churches, our banks, our businesses?
Working with J-Life I have seen how (through the training i.e. education) young people are released with self-confidence to start new initiatives and face the future with optimism and confidence.

3. Leadership
I really believe that raising up a new generation of leadership in Africa is the key to securing a better future here. I am thankful to work in an organization that is not about what I can do (as an American with American resources) but it’s about what Africans can do. And we always try to make sure the guys we work with understand that. Of the young people we have trained at J-Life over the past 3 years, many of them are now practicing or studying to be psychologists, teachers, pastors, political scientists, physiotherapists, IT technicians, social workers, doctors, and businessmen. They know that it is up to them to take responsibility their countries and their people. They know that God wants there to be great schools in Africa, great churches, great social services, and great business.
Although the West has caused some of the problems in Africa (the legacy of colonialism, slavery, and exploitation does remain) the accountability for Africa’s failure to progress since independence must rest with its own leaders, and I say that with upmost humility. Africa needs better leaders, people who will stand up and show the masses what it means to be a good African. Perhaps a good question to ask in regard to Africa is “Will the next generation of leaders do things differently?”

4. Trade
I am so thankful that the West gave Africa the chance to host the World Cup. I am so thankful that the skeptics are now quiet. I’m thankful that the majority of soccer fans put up with our vuvuzelas and embraced Africa’s World Cup.
My last point is that Africa needs a chance, an opportunity to be part of the world market. This is absolutely necessary for Africa to thrive without international assistance. What I am about to share is a touchy issue so I want to go into a bit of background.
During the colonial era the Western powers made the most of Africa’s rich natural resources. They would take the resources to their home countries where they were manufactured into products (much of which was sold back to Africans). When colonial powers left Africa, they left it with very little infrastructure which means that to this day Africa is reliant on the export of natural products for economic survival. The problem is that many of these products are “protected” in the West against an influx of African products. For example, to protect cattle farmers in Europe, some countries offer subsidies worth $2 per head of cattle per day. An African farmer cannot compete and therefore has no market outside of his own country for his cattle.
This is one simple example but it means that many African countries cannot gain entrance to the world economy. The West often criticizes Africa for trade restrictions while they themselves impose huge restrictions and create great subsidies which keep Africa out.
If you want to campaign for anything on Africa’s behalf, campaign for the abolishment of these trade restrictions so that Africa can have a chance to be part of the world economy.
So you might be asking: “You’re supposed to be a missionary, so where does God fit into all this?” Well then, I’m glad you asked.

1. Education
The Bible teaches us that what you know is important. Knowledge of God is important - “my people perish for a lack of knowledge.”
Education is not just knowledge but the good application of knowledge: What the Bible would call wisdom. which God’s word has a lot to speak about. I have seen how people’s knowledge of God leads them to seek knowledge and truth in other areas as well. Young people who have come to J-Life start to read books and become more involved in current events.  In fact, where this is not happening we should be concerned as Christians. If there is not a hunger for knowledge our Christian education may be incomplete.

2. Self Worth
The Christian tradition informs my belief that Africans are equal all others. The philosophy that all humans are made in God’s image stands against the philosophy of “survival of the fittest”. The Gospel (as opposed to “karma”) tells us that our need for grace put’s every human being on an equal footing before God.

3. Leadership
At J-Life we believe that if we can transfer the character and priorities of Jesus (discipleship) to the young people who come to us for training we will succeed in helping them to become the better leaders that Africa so desperately need. Jesus is our hero, but he’s also our example. The Bible clearly teaches us to live like Jesus. The life of Christ holds the keys to what it means to be a great leader, and a great African.

4. Trade
This issue is very much linked to the second point. If we claim to believe that before God African’s are equal to any other people, that would naturally lead us to desire to offer them the same opportunities that we have. The least we can do is to allow African’s the chance to part of our world economy so that they can have the dignity of living off their own hard work rather than always receiving from others.
The Soccer World Cup has been a great illustration for this. When Ghana played the US in their second round knockout game it set up the world’s richest nation against one of the world’s poorer nations. The USA could not ask to start 1 goal in the lead because they have a better human rights record than Ghana. They were not allowed an extra player on the field to reward them for their superior infrastructure and military. They couldn’t even have the ref on their side (quite obviously) just because they had a lot more money to bride him with. When they took to the field it was 11 against 11 and the scores were 0 to 0. It was Ghana vs USA. (I was rooting for the Yanks, just so you know)
The world doesn’t usually work like that, so as Christians we work to give the underdog a chance.

Maybe I can paint a hypothetical picture here:
There is a small village in Senegal that lies on prime cotton growing land. They have limited opportunity to sell their produce because of the poor road system connecting them to the main city, and the lack of infrastructure and bureaucracy at the port. Worst of all, trade restrictions and taxes make the prices of their cotton uncompetitive with that of other countries.
NGO’s help the people of theis village stay alive. They ship in food and health supplies from the West and offer primary education to the children. When the children get older, they will realize there is no future for them in the village, some will stay to care for their families but most of them, especially the young men, will leave for the city to try to earn a living. In the city they will lose their culture and along with it their values, causing many societal issues in the city. A few will make a living in the city; many will try to immigrate to Europe to better their lives. Things continue like this from generation to generation.
Here’s another scenario. The trade restrictions on cotton are lifted and the village is able to sell some of their cotton, increasing their output from year to year. The government is happy with the taxes they receive from this new export and they fix the road to the village which gives them even better access to the market. As people in the village have some money, a few small shops open, offering jobs as cashiers, doing phone repairs, and even mechanics for the trucks that travel to and from the village. Women are able to cook food and sell it to the people coming in and out of the village, meaning they are able to educate their children. Less people leave the village permanently to look for other opportunities. A small school opens and some of the young people are sent for teacher training etc etc…

So that’s about what I have so far. And I hope that’s these thoughts will continue to change and grow and be challenged. Feel free to help me with this.

Miah