Along with Pastor Jolly and Elizabeth, Gremar and I were asked to participate in a Christian Marriage Seminar for the students and their wives at the Warari Bible School.  Many of these couple were married by a traditional religious ceremony. Under that system marriages are not as permanent as what we understand as Christian marriages.  Traditionally extended families have much to say about a couple’s relationship. The wife leaves her husband if told to do so. A husband may send his wife away for several reasons, particularly if there are no children or if only daughters are born. In many ways traditional marriage is much like marriage in the  Old Testament including multiple wives. When couples turn to Christianity there is a radical change in relationships with family and with each other. The image of God in mankind dictates that men and women are of equal value because God created man in his image, male and female he created them (Gen. 1:27).

Secondly, God ordains marriage as an exclusive monogamous  relationship. Extended family is excluded and man cleaves to his wife as she cleaves to her husband. They become one flesh: in body, in mind, in action, and in each other’s existence. (Gen 2: 23). Paul quotes this very text  in Ephesians 5: 21-33. Our TLT classes struggled with this very passage coming to grips with how to be good husbands and good wives as a way to prevent violence in the family. To be submissive to each other is to be submissive to Jesus. We keep our wives and husbands pure and our families pure by keeping ourselves pure.  This  is a profound mystery as Paul says in ( v. 32) the commitment that Christ the groom has for his bride the church is the example and the basis for the commitment a man and a woman have for each other in every aspect of their relationship.

Thirdly, we can’t talk about marriage without including ( I Cor. 7:1-7) this passage raised a lot of questions. The answer is that each couple need to sort out their intimate relationship. Men need to be gentle and patience with their wives, always telling them how much he loves her and tell her that she is beautiful.  One more important item to know is that sex starts in the kitchen or wherever the husband is willing to help his wife domestically.

Jolly spent a lot of time on comparing traditional African marriages with Christian marriages.

Gremar  spoke on the importance of leading the children by example and caring for them as Christ cares for us in as far as families are able.  Give the kids adequate food (which is not always the case even if food is available) and provide adequate medical care (often girl children are given less care) and adequate education for both boys and girls.

Over all it was a great day for all of us highlighted by the Christian wedding ceremonies the next day, Sunday. The whole thing was an amazing experience.

There is constant treat over our heads Christians in Nigeria are subject to attack any time and any place. I am sure you have seen the news. Several churches have been car bombed.  Attacks random and unpredictable.  We pray for the Christians in Jos, indeed for all people in that city, where the latest bombings have taken place. One thing is sure our God reigns, his reign is just, predicable, righteous, and merciful. We look to Him for our protection and for guidance. The church has from her beginning been persecuted and in Nigeria persecution continues. We are caught in the middle. Yet, missionaries are Christian as well so certainly persecution will come our way.  It is a time to trust God, and it is time to continue our work as long as we are able, our God reigns! Praise be to God!

We have had our share of computer problems so we have not been able to get much published on the web page.  Thanks to Mat Lancer we now have an adequate computer. We are teaching three different TLT coarses this year.  For the first time Gremar is teaching the Warari  Bible School student’s  wives the same courses I am teaching the Men’s class.  We have two 45 minute periods for Work and Worship and one period for Preventing Violence in the Family. These three periods, daily chapel, and a half hour break take up most of our Wednesday. It has been a challenge to teach in Hausa and the extra challenge  for Gremar is that wives do not read or write as well as their husbands.  This is the last year of four years for this group and they all have come a long way. This week ten Bible School couples, some married in traditional religion ceremony had church marriages. It was a great experience; couples married for twenty years, renewed their vows, gave each other rings and dedicated themselves to Christian marriages. Wow! It was amazing!  Next year the school will have an English track and a Hausa track for the next four years. The importance of this school in terms of developing indigenous leader can’t be over stated.  The church is growing faster than evangelist can be trained with the result that most evangelists now working  cover several areas. We praise God for their work and for the work of the pastors sent by the Christian Reformed Church in Taraba State.

We are also doing continuing education using TLT material for pastors, evangelist and their wives. This year those elders leading churches are also included. Attendance varies depending on the availability of transportation but up to 27 men and 17 wives come to Mahula once a week. We are teaching preventing Violence in the Family and How to Teach the Christian Faith. This activity takes up most of our Thursdays. The response is very positive; they are encouraged and rededicated but no value can be placed on the fellowship and interaction over the length of this day. We are blessed and thankful for the results, we praise God.

We are nicely settled into the Mahula house. We did have a lot of work getting it ready because four people came from the States to work with Water Wins, the non profit organization digging wells. They are World Partners people who work for Inotec and support the water project and help with paying wages for four of the evangelists I work with as well. They are rebuilding the old digging rig and will be here for two weeks. Bill and Alie Hart plus three also have arrived. Bill is supervising the Classroom/Chapel building project and Alie is also a nurse/midwife. We are happy to have them around. Their children, Brenton, Aaron, and Tye will be returning to the States next Sunday. Bill and Alie will be here for most of Feb. To get the house ready we had to remove the eight owls who took up residence in the attic and blocked their way back in. We repaired four screens and the screen door to keep the mice and lizards from free access. I added some panels to the solar system to assure adequate power for this busy time and we cleaned the house water tanks. In March more people will be here for Water Wins. It is busy but it is good to have people from different backgrounds around, we are enjoying their company.

We started teaching at the Bible School, both Gremar and I have three 45 min. periods on Wednesdays. On Thursdays we hold the TLT Continuing Education course for the pastors and evangelists and their wives. We had a good turn out for the first session, twelve men and nine wives. We plan to hold the course on Teaching the Christian Faith and the course How to Prevent Violence in the Family for the next 12 weeks. Continue to pray for us we are off to a good start and are thankful to God. We include some pictures of our activities. The one thing we miss is information from home. If you have the opportunity e-mail us if you can. Thank for your support and prayers.

Jos,  01/19/ 2012

Over the weekend the Nigerian Government reinstated half of the former gas subsidy, and as a result the national strike and protests have been called off. Things are almost back to normal. We thank God! We now have permission to travel and will do so in a few days, still finishing up on last minute details. Jos, situated on a 4800 foot elevated plateau, is a beautiful place. Yet, everyone was complaining because the temperature actually dropped down to 47 degrees F. a couple of days ago. That sounds good to you I’m sure but for those of us who have lived in Africa and are now living here will never again adjust to the temps you are experiencing now.  Andy and Linda Horlings, one of our long term missionaries,  have a wonderful garden and we want to share some of it with you. Like streams in the desert, in the midst of conflict God is faithful and refreshes us.

The Sermon on the Mount reminds us again and again that God is in control of our lives Matt. 6: 25-34. Further, we are commanded to be proactive as an alternative to worry verse 33 “But seek you first his kingdom and his righteousness”…. The kingdom for Matthew is the reign of God through Jesus in our hearts. The kingdom is in our hearts and God’s righteousness, Jesus,  is in our hearts. It’s the Gospel: repentance, turning away from sin and turning to the righteousness of God (a  Jesus like life) as we see it in the Sermon on the Mount. When we turn to God and away from the world all the things God knows we need are given to us (v.33b). “Therefore, (pointing back to verse 33) do not worry about tomorrow”.

Case and Gremar Van Wyk

cgvanwyk5@gmail.com

www.heavenhigh.org

June 2011

Plant Churches at home (USA) and around the world.

As we reflect on the four months we have just completed in Niger State with Classis Niger of the *CRCN we are aware of God’s amazing grace and blessings. We appreciate the Bible School staff and also the students, it was a blessing to be part of the Bible School community.  Sometimes we forget the amount of encouragement *CRWM’s involvement gives to the staff and the students at the School. The Lansers are very much appreciated at the school   This is also true for the pastors, and the evangelists. Jeremiah Jongo said to me that since we have offered *TLT courses to his evangelists they have been encouraged in their work in Niger State to the point that they have recommitted to the work there.

Just to be there, working, giving advice, teaching, providing transportation and becoming part of the community is an encouragement we underestimate.

On that note, how is it that *“Water Wins” is able to dig a well relatively quickly but cannot get an evangelist to that same village as was pointed out by one of the village elders. We must reconsider our priorities as a mission in Niger State!  We need to get back to planting churches and helping Classis Niger to do that. Providing a teacher for the Bible School is just the beginning, we also need a missionary church planter to encourage the evangelists and pastors.  Twenty years of working in Taraba State has taught us that the evangelists and pastors are completely dedicated to the spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ. Are we to be less dedicated? I think not! The Good News demands we go back to the basics of planting churches and move past the maintaining of our  comfortable fellowships that look like the  church but is not.

We cannot say enough good things about our missionaries in Jos! They did everything possible to make our stay easy and fruitful, we thank them. We would like to return in 2012 the Lord willing. We would like to return for four months to teach: “How to Prevent Violence in the Family” and “God’s Plan for Sustainable Development” to the pastors and evangelists and their wives as continuing education.   Thank you for the opportunity to serve. It is a blessing for us and for the people in Niger State. Praise God!

Submitted  by Rev. Case and Gremar Van Wyk

*The Christian Reformed Church

* Christian Reformed World Missions

* Timothy Leadership Training Institute

*Water Wins is a non-profit Organization drilling wells in Nigeria, Africa