This story starts all the way back at the beginning of December 2021.
I began seeing the vast need of the Word of God amongst believers, a mere 63% of people are literate in Mozambique with women at just above 44% and of these many do not know Portuguese, the national language.
Because of the severe poverty many people do not own a Bible, due to illiteracy and lack of funds most people only hear the word on Sunday mornings, where the word is preached by a pastor or leader and sometimes it may not even be properly taught and is just a thought.
Because Portuguese language is more common and materials are widely printed in this language most churches read the Bible in Portuguese and do not translate the scripture into the local dialect. This is a real misfortune to those who do not speak or understand spoken Portuguese.
Because Mozambicans the lack access to the true scriptures in the local language the Lord put on my heart to open a Bible listening group in Sena, which is the local dialect.
We started with just listening to a chapter and then after, giving opportunity for people to share. At first, it was difficult because the people did not know how to share and articulate what they had heard, they were not understanding because it was too much information at one time. I realized what was happening, so I started to pause at the end of each story or idea. Little by little some started to share but for others was still difficult. Some difficulty, was that they have fear to share in public, or they are worried to say the wrong things and other reasons.
My desire was for them to listen to the Word of God and leave the Holy Spirit to speak to them, and give them opportunity for them to practice speaking the word of God on their own. In these times I taught that all of us who are saved and follow Jesus, need to make disciples and teach others what He teaches us.
Initially I didn't want to do any teaching just listening to the word together and allow the group to have open discussion.
We were given a donation of audio bibles and each person in the group received one, after this I saw a need for some teaching because now they had a Bible at home.
Even after they received their own Audio bible many of them continued to come to the Monday listening group because they wanted more, they wanted to understand more.
Since I began the listing group, I have heard many testimonies of their lives transformed, mamas that can share the word now, fear gone, sleepiness gone and all of them stopped going to the witch doctor. Truth sets us free and builds such a trust in the Lord.
While I was out on furlough I left my disciple, Ancha, to lead the group. She is also my translator. She is amazing with the mamas, she is a very good teacher and I loved that the majority of them did not have difficultly to talk with her.
So this year 2023 the Lord gave me a strategy to get all of them talking. After we listen to the Bible I split them into groups of 3-5 and ask them to talk in their groups about what they have heard.
After one person from the group comes and shares with Ancha she translates what was discussed to me.
With the groups set up like this all of them are able to share, even the ones that were not able to before.
Now they practice talking about the word of God.
God is so amazing!