Visit to Tonj

My last stop in south Sudan was in the village of Tonj. It is a small village about 80 miles south of Darfur and north Sudan. As we flew southwest from Malakal, the land became very green as we flew over the Sudd, which is the world’s largest swamp. As we finally crossed the Sudd, the landscape began to resemble what you would imagine the safari areas of Africa to look like- areas of grasslands with clumps of trees and forest scattered about. Everything was still very green here since it is the rainy season.

We landed on yet another dirt runway. Almost immediately a white Landcruiser drove up. It was driven by our host for the next two nights, a Dinka man named Sebat. He and his wife Suzy, a Brit, operate a well-established ministry in Tonj called In Deed and Truth Ministries. They have an incredible compound that includes a school and a medical clinic that is the only one available to 30,000 people in and around Tonj. We slept in a concrete building- I actually got to sleep in a double bed! These were truly 5-star accommodations as far as south Sudan goes and very comfortable by any standard really. It was a real blessing to get to know Sebat and Suzy and their 3 wonderful children. They have an incredible heart for the Sudanese who live in this area and have done so much already to help them. Sebat also has a school for pastors and as we discussed the possibility of the radio tower, it was clear that it would benefit greatly his efforts to train pastors in the areas around Tonj. The tower will likely be built in some empty land that is a part of his compound once the money is raised and once we have permission from the local officials.

On our second day in Tonj, Sebat drove us to a nearby village called Mapel. This area is home to a tribe called the Jur Cho, and they are renowned in south Sudan for having the most powerful witch doctors. If a Sudanese in another part of the country is having problems that the local witch doctor cannot solve, he will often travel to this area to the witch doctors of the Jur Cho. After 45 minutes of bumping along the dirt road we arrived at a newly-built church built from cinder blocks. Apparently the old church was bombed a few years back, and Samaritan’s Purse helped to build another one. We waited a few minutes for the pastor of the church to arrive and then we sat on plastic chairs under the shade of a large tree and shared with him about the possibility of the radio tower broadcasting to this remote village. He listened with great interest as Peter shared the vision with him. He then shared with us what a blessing it would be to have the Bible broadcast to the Jur people. He compared it to Jesus feeding the 5000, saying that it would allow them to use the minimal resources that they currently have to reach thousands of additional Jur people. It was an incredible time, and I was impressed with this pastor’s love for his people and with his intense desire to see them embrace the Gospel.

As we drove back to Tonj, I thought about how God used this meeting as additional confirmation for us to place a radio tower in the village of Tonj. I was really overcome with emotion as I thought about the journey that God has taken me on my life to get me to that tiny village in south Sudan. I felt an amazing sense of purpose as I considered how I could be part of bringing the Gospel to over a half a million people in and around Tonj, many of whom have never heard the message of the Gospel before. I didn’t sleep much that night- my stomach was giving me all kinds of trouble, but I also felt a huge burden to pray and to give God glory for His hand in my life and for bringing me to that moment where my role and my purpose in the expansion of His kingdom to all the tribes and nations crystallized right before my eyes.

Malakal, Sudan

After one day in Nasir, we boarded a plane early the next morning bound for Malakal. Malakal is one of the larger cities in south Sudan and lies along the River Nile about 30 miles from the border with north Sudan. It is a very diverse city with Arab and tribal peoples coming together. Arabic is the common language spoken on the streets here. Unlike most of the rest of south Sudan the city has power lines and a public water system, although the power only comes on here for 2 hours in the evening. The city is a busy place with many taxis and rickshaws going to and fro on the well-kept dirt roads and a bustling market area near the city center. The population is estimated to be about 120,000.

We stayed with some other missionaries working with Serving in Mission (SIM). They have a very nice compound not far out of the city center. It has a couple of houses and several large Kenya tents, which is where we slept. The accommodations were excellent- a comfortable bed covered by a mosquito net. The food was also great. We enjoyed meals like beef fajitas and chili for dinner and oatmeal for breakfast. We also ate lunch in the city a couple of times- fried fish and bread or schwarmas, Arabic style sandwiches where bread is cut open and stuffed with ground beef. All in all the food was very good, although both Peter and I picked up a stomach bug that would haunt us for the rest of the trip.

Our visit to Malakal was a success. We were scouting the area out to see if a radio tower might be beneficial. The idea would be to either have the tower support the work of the SIM missionaries who are here or to send a team of Ugandans into the city to plant churches. Our research led us to conclude that a tower placed in the small village of Atar about 10 miles south of Malakal would be a very effective way to reach the many Nuer and Dinka who live in this area. Later on programming in Arabic and in Shilluk could also be added as a way to reach these groups of people who make up over half the city’s population.

We spent three nights in Malakal and then were picked up by a Cessna 206 on Monday morning. We took off from the airport and headed for the village of Tonj, about 2 hours away by air. Along the way we had hoped to land quickly in Atar, but we had to settle for a low flyover because the runway was too muddy to land on. But it gave us a good idea of where we would place a tower if the Lord provides the funding for that to happen.

Spending the day in Nasir

My first stop in Sudan was the village of Nasir. It is located along the banks of the Sobat River about 15 miles from Ethiopia. Nasir has a lot of history and seen its share of tragedy as well. Tens of thousands died here during the fighting and famines that occurred during the civil war in the early 1990s. Even more recently, a week before I arrived in Nasir, 27 United Nations boats carrying food to a nearby tribe were attacked and as many as 40 soldiers were killed and several women and children traveling on the boats died as well.

After landing on the dirt airstrip Peter Swann, executive director of Aid Sudan, and a short term team that had been in Nasir about a week met the plane. The team left on the plane leaving Peter and I behind. We headed first to Aid Sudan’s compound in Nasir. The compound consists of 4 tukuls, or mud huts, and a larger rectangular hut where we have our Bible school. The first class of 18 graduated back in March. Some of the women helped with our luggage as we headed to the compound. Three pieces contained equipment for the radio station and weighed about 60 pounds each. But it was no problem for these women who placed the suitcases on their heads and led the way to the compound.

Once getting settled into the tukul, we had rice and beans for lunch and then headed over to the latest addition to the Nasir skyline- Aid Sudan’s radio tower. As we approached I could see a crowd of about 70 or 80 people, mostly children, watching the construction of this tower which will rise about 200 feet above the plain once it is finished. Each element of the tower is about 10 feet in height and is hoisted up by rope and pulley to two guys waiting at the top of the tower who then bolt that section into place. When we got there, they were about to lift the last element to the climbers. Once the rope was attached to the element, all of the kids and several adults including myself got on the rope to help lift the element to the top. It was awesome to see so many kids participate in this project which will be a source of pride for this village and which will help to bring about so much change here. In a couple of months this tower will broadcast an “oral Bible” in the Dinka and Nuer languages. It will support the church planting work of the pastors in the area, many of whom graduated from the Bible school, and also the work of Jengmer Yat. Jengmer is a missionary with Aid Sudan. He was one of the “lost boys” who was forced to flee Sudan many years ago. Now he is returning to his people and training them to plant churches in villages all around Nasir.

As I went to sleep that night, I reflected on how my first day in Sudan had given me a great picture of what Aid Sudan is all about. We want to be a blessing to the people of south Sudan, but we do not want to do everything for them. We want them to take pride in and ownership of the projects we do. We encourage village members to participate in projects like the radio tower and therefore feel a part of the work. Likewise Sudanese are hired to maintain and operate all aspects of the Aid Sudan compound. We seek to train and equip a few Sudanese in the area of church planting, people like Jengmer. He can then identify future Christian leaders among his people and train them in a way that is culturally appropriate. We want to provide the infrastructure that will help to prompt change in the villages of Sudan, but then allow the Sudanese to do the real work of changing their own culture. We believe that this will result in change that occurs on a deeper level and that the churches that are planted will truly be Sudanese churches, founded upon the authority of Scripture, yet culturally Sudanese, and therefore better equipped to bring about spiritual revival in south Sudan. It reminded me of why I felt led to join this organization, and it was a great confirmation to see it in action during my day in Nasir.

Getting to Sudan

After two very long flights I arrived in Kampala on Wednesday night June 24. The Henderson family was waiting for me after I bought my visa and collected my bags. As we drove from the airport back to their house, my first thought was of how dark it was. There was hardly any street lighting, and even the headlights of the cars were all very dim. I also got to witness some very questionable driving maneuvers as we made our way along the two-lane highway to the city of Kampala.

When we arrived at the Henderson’s home about 45 minutes later, they had sandwiches and lots of fresh fruit waiting. It was great to get a good meal after 20 plus hours on two airplanes. We talked for a while, and then I headed off to bed. I was pretty tired and I had to get up very early the next morning to meet the plane for my first flight into Sudan.

The next morning after cinnamon roles and hot tea, Kerry drove me to Kajjansy airstrip. I would be flying with a pilot from Missionary Aviation Fellowship (MAF). The plane was a Cessna 208, better known as a caravan. The caravan is the plane of choice for most transport throughout Africa. It can hold up to 12 people and has the ability to carry a pretty hefty payload. However on this flight it would just be me and the pilot, Akim, a German who has worked with MAF for about 4 years. The plane would drop me off in Nasir and then pick up the short-term team that had been working there for the last week. We took off from the dirt airstrip at about 7:30 and flew first to Entebbe airport about 10 minutes away. We needed to pack the plane full of fuel for our long flight to Nasir.

About a half hour later we took off again. Our flight path would take us due north about 500 miles over Uganda, Sudan, and a tiny piece of Ethiopia. The flight took about 4 hours. I got to sit up front next to the pilot wearing a headset that allowed me to hear all of the communications between Akim and the people on the ground. As we crossed into Sudan we flew over some very high mountains just over 10,000 feet in elevation, but after that the land flattened out quickly. Below was nothing but desolate swamp and plains. From the air there were no signs of human existence- no roads or buildings of any kind could be seen. Finally after an hour or so we began to see the round mud huts called tukuls that are characteristic of the tribal peoples who inhabit this land.

Nasir lies along the banks of the River Sobat about 15 miles from the Ethiopian border. As we approached the village, I could see herds of cattle below and several more tukuls. Finally we approached the airstrip. There were a lot of people and goats milling around and walking across it, so Akim decided to make a low pass to let everyone know we were about to land. We flew over the runway about 50 feet above and the people began to scatter. Then we banked hard to the left and circled around for our landing. It was a smooth one, at least as smooth as landing on dirt can be! We turned around and taxied back to the other end of the airstrip. I unlatched my door, dropped the steps down, and set foot for the first time in the country of Sudan.

Back from Sudan

I arrived safely back yesterday. Thanks to all of you who kept Suzy and me in your prayers while I was gone. My time in Sudan had a profound impact on me. Never have I been a witness to such poverty and lack of infrastructure. Yet, there are so many southern Sudanese people who are embracing this time of peace and who are hopeful about the future and working hard for change. But make no mistake, change here will come about very slowly and there will be many roadblocks along the way.

More than anything else, this trip confirmed God’s call for this season of my life to work with the southern Sudanese people and to share the love of Christ with them. From the research I have done and now from the things I have seen with my own eyes, it is even more evident to me that true and lasting change will only happen here as the people experience the love of Christ and apply it to their daily lives.

Thanks again for your prayers, and please continue to pray for a powerful movement of God to take place among the people of south Sudan.