Some of you may have already seen the picture on our blog (http://benandjesse.blogspot.com) of Ben and me with “Evangelist Musa”. In any case, I wanted to tell you a little bit about him. Musa is over 80 years old yet still travels frequently to conduct special spiritual meetings and evangelistic crusades. In fact, we met him when he was invited to speak at a weekend of spiritual meetings here at Waama during this school year’s first semester. It is important to realize that Musa is a businessman by profession and not a preacher. He was first exposed to the Gospel when Billy Graham held an evangelistic crusade here in Tanzania in the early 1960s and it is obvious he has not been the same since. God truly got a hold of him way back then and still today he will tell you “I have never looked back.” Others talk about how even now, as a very old man, he will sometimes ride his bicycle or walk to his engagements. From the very beginning, at his own expense, he has often accepted opportunities or even initiated special events. When meeting a person like Musa, one can hardly help but ask, “What drives him?”
The fact of the matter is we are all driven by something. What drives you? Even as Ben and I traveled during the recent holiday season, we met people serving in various places and in a variety of different capacities. From the Engineers Without Borders volunteers working in Zambia to the Peace Corps volunteers working in Zimbabwe or the U.N. employees serving in Kenya and the Bible translators working in southwest Tanzania – everyone is driven by something. Again, what drives you? Clearly, God doesn’t call all of His people to do the same thing. That is the beauty of being a part of the Body of Christ. At the same time, as Christians, regardless of our specific role, it is important that we keep our eyes on our common, final goal: reaching people with the good news of the Gospel.
I thank God for the opportunity I have to be here in Tanzania because, as I have told many of you, being in a foreign culture like this somehow seems to make it so much easier for me to keep an eternal focus…it also certainly helps to not have the many distractions of life in the U.S. all around me. Perhaps it is also that people here see their spiritual need more than the average person in the States…or maybe it is simply that my eyes are more opened to the opportunities when I am in this environment. In any case, it is exciting to see God at work in everyday life. For example, in Arusha, we have become fairly good friends with a young man who owns a couple computer shops. For the most part, our interactions with him have been on a strictly social level. When we are in town, it is common for us to get together for dinner or some other activity. Well, one night a couple weeks ago we were out having dinner and he started asking some very insightful, rather ‘deep’, spiritual questions. Apparently, he used to be quite involved in a church but now has simply gotten “too busy” to give God much attention. It was interesting to see, however, that spiritual things have, without a doubt, still been on his mind. In fact, it was amazing to see how hungry he was! In the end, God was able to use a simple dinner appointment to accomplish His good purposes in this man’s life.
Maybe you, too, have people like him in your circle of contacts? Do they have anyone to discuss their questions with? What about you? You know, you don’t have to be a “missionary” or pastor to make an eternal difference in people’s lives. What’s more, it is quite likely there are a significant number of people within your circle of regular contacts who, other than you, may never have another opportunity to hear of the hope that can only be found in Jesus. If you have discovered for yourself the unfathomable truth of the Gospel, have you made yourself available to those around you who are still seeking? God help us all. 1 Peter 2:9 says, “You are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.”
I promise, I will try to make my next email more of an update. For now, however, I thought I would give us all a bit of a belated challenge for the New Year. Again, your thoughts and prayers mean so much. You have mine as well. God bless you tons.
In Christ,
Jesse Long
Mbulu, Tanzania
