Zambia assignments completed – for now!

Today I move onwards to Uganda. All my assignments in Zambia have been completed.

With my CRED hat on, I’ve had a time of catching up with the Chisomo team, and visiting the programmes that they run to reach out to children living on the streets, provide them with a day-time drop-in centre, and where possible facilitate a repatriation between child and family, or into a foster home.

With my 360-Life hat on, I’ve led a 3-day workshop in Chingola for 56 participants who represent churches, prison chaplains, other non-profits, and community roles. And I’ve done similar in Lusaka for another 34 participants. Both workshops have been facilitated by the Good News Global team here in Zambia, headed by national director Fortunatus Mwenya, and the GNG Africa lead (who, as a Chingola resident and ex-national director, is also strongly involved in the Zambia ministry) Samuel Kawilila. I feel so honoured to have worked with these folks who are now very much more friends than just co-workers.

Obviously there has been the minor aspect of the fracture to my left ankle, but even that hasn’t been a hindrance too much. It hasn’t got in the way of delivery of the workshops – everything has still been achieved. I’ve been slightly more static in my presentation style, but the workshops have still been very interactive and participatory, with positive feedback.

A few have said to me how, seeing me smiling and laughing despite everything, they have been reminded to find the inner smile inside themselves again. It has maybe also led to me asking for help to achieve some things which in the past I’d have sorted on my own. As a result, there have been some lovely interactions and times of joint problem solving which might not otherwise have taken place.

But for me the main positives from this trip are hearing the workshop participants share about how the content of the workshops has had such a positive impact for them. That is when I really feel assured that this ministry I am taking out to others is in line with what God wants me to be doing.

I shared a few reflections from Chingola previously; these two in particular come to mind from the Lusaka workshop. At one point in the workshop, one lady shared a little of her life-story: of being in prison, and of now feeling called to minister to other women and girls in prison, and how she could see that the workshop teachings were going to really help with that. After the workshop ended, she came up to me and admitted that she had never spoken so openly before to a group of people about her previous story. She’d always kept it hidden away as she wasn’t sure how others would respond. But the workshop felt so safe, and the content tied in so well, that she felt that the others in the room, although somewhat strangers to her, would be understanding and supportive. She said that, as she shared, she could feel herself growing inside, as though something previously squashed down was now released. What a wonderful outcome to have from the workshop – praise the Lord!

Another real encouragement came from the Chisomo team as they spoke about how they could see that the training would really help in the process of preparing the child and the family for repatriation. The training has helped them to view challenging behaviours and mental health struggles from a trauma-informed perspective, as well as having insights into how we have different personal preferences which can affect why we don’t all do things the same way. As a result, the child can be supported in getting a better understanding of themselves, but equally importantly, the family can be supported in understanding the child better. In that way they can be helped to see that some of the behaviours of the child are not just wilful disobedience, or just because the child is trying to be annoying and different, but because of ways that the child has adapted to survive previous traumatic experiences, and also because the child might just find it more natural to do things in a different way to the parents. The Chisomo team were so excited about how this new learning they had received from the workshop could be implemented in some really positive ways – it was wonderful to hear, and I thank God that I could be part of it.

And now it’s on to Uganda. No workshops there, some different assignments to fulfil instead, all of them good ones! It’ll be my first time of navigating airports and planes on crutches, but God is healing me well, and I know I’ll be OK. And waiting at the other end are my wonderful Ugandan friends who know that the first thing I’ll want is a hug and a bowl of fresh pineapple, and both will be waiting!

Thank you God for my time in Zambia – what an adventure, but what wonderful friends made, and I look forward very much to my return.