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To The Ends of the Earth
Part Two: The Harvest Field
By Jennifer Raynes (Class of 2006)
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It's quite a calling, and certainly not to be taken lightly. Neal and Danette Childs, along with their three children, Trae, Tanika, and Tobi, are on a mission to take the light of Christ to those who have never even heard the name of Jesus. After a time of preparation at ORU and the Agape School of World Evangelism in Arkansas, the Childses moved to Africa to "reach the unreached" of an impoverished nation. And with a Christian population of less than 1 percent, it doesn't get more "unreached" than Niger....
An Open Door
Although 95 percent of the people in Niger are Muslim, it is not considered an Islamic state. In fact, it's a democracy (insuring religious freedom)--which, according to the Childses, presents a unique opportunity for uninhibited ministry: "[Niger] is wide open for the gospel because it's free. There's freedom of speech, freedom of religion...missionaries are very welcome to come here."
When the Childses arrived in the country in 1998, they were welcomed by Neal's parents, former missionaries to Nigeria who relocated to Niger to establish a ministry called Vie Abondante ("Abundant Life"). "The main focus of our ministry is church planting," Neal says, and their primary vehicle to establish new congregations is a discipleship and leadership school. The purpose of this Bible school, according to Neal, is "to reproduce-- to train up the nationals" to reach out to their own people. To date, there have been 25 church plants through Vie Abondante, ranging from small nomadic communities worshipping under the shade of a tree, to 100-member congregations with their own buildings.
Another significant ministry that the Childses run is a primary school with 55 students, which they see as "making inroads into the Muslim community." Because Niger's educational system ranks last in the world and Muslims place a high priority on education, the Childses say, "even Muslims are willing to send their children to Christians to receive a good education." In addition to learning the standard "three R's," the students in the primary school (70 percent of whom are Muslim) "have Bible and prayer time every day." When school is out, the Childses facilitate a summer camp where they invite children (this summer they had more than 200) from local villages to stay at their compound for a week of camp, playing games and learning about their "New Life in Christ."
On the Move
The Childses liken life in Niger to "the days of Abraham," where 90 percent of the population lives in remote villages, nomadic tribes roam throughout the desert, and people "get their water from wells, pulling [buckets] up by hand." One nomadic people group in particular that the Childses have had the opportunity to minister to is the Fulani. The Fulani travel primarily in the eastern Diffa region of the country, which, according to Danette, is "a place many would consider to be the 'ends of the earth.'" Although the Childses found success in the Diffa region, Neal admits that the Fulani "are a difficult group to reach [because] they are never in one location. They are always on the move."
But that doesn't mean the Fulani are a lost cause. A key link in this particular ministry was actually the Childses' daughter Tanika. When the Childses first arrived in the Diffa region, Tanika struck up a friendship with a young girl from the Fulani tribe named Mariama. Danette recalled that when Tanika "asked Mariama if she knew Jesus...Mariama looked around and said, 'I've never heard of her. Where does she live?'" It was then, Danette said, "we knew the level of ignorance to the gospel we were facing." Living a very primitive life, this girl and her family lived under a tree, and it was Tanika Childs who played an important role in reaching out to this family. "They are not believers yet," Danette says, "but many seeds have been planted. And seeds grow."
'But the laborers are few'
When they first made plans to go to Niger, the Childses said, "most people had never heard of this nation and always assumed we meant Nigeria. We began praying that the eyes of the church would be opened to the great harvest field that is Niger." With so many needs present in the country, there has been a wealth of opportunities for numerous ministries to flourish and grow. As such, the Childses continually emphasize that Niger is a "prime target" for the gospel, a place where "the harvest is plenty, but the laborers are few. We need missionaries," Neal stresses, "We just need more laborers here for this window of opportunity. Who knows how long it's going to be open?"
They need laborers, but not just any laborers; they are looking for the best. Neal dismisses the notion that the call to be a missionary is for those who were "picked last" when it came to being called by God. Being a missionary, the Childses note, takes work and a tenacious faith--something ORU students are apt to possess. "ORU taught me to think big and to believe that all things are possible," Neal said, noting that the trend still seems to hold true for students today. The Childses "were really impressed" by the seven ORU students that came to serve in Niger for several weeks this summer as part of an ORU missions team. "We worked them hard," Danette admits, giving the students plenty of opportunities to get out of their comfort zone. Having these young Americans witness to Muslims in the marketplace, she says, "was really a stretch for most of the team members." But they were definitely up to the challenge. When one student asked Danette how the team was doing, she assured all of them that she was impressed by their attitudes and willingness to serve. But "you're ORU students," she told them. "I wouldn't expect anything less."
Expect a Miracle
With ministry opportunities popping up left and right, the most significant opportunity is still right around the corner. In January, ORU's president, Richard Roberts, is preparing to host a massive healing rally in Niger's capital city, Niamey. "Extremely excited" about the rally, the Childses are confident that the evangelistic meetings will "shake the nation. We think it's gonna be a huge impact," Neal says. "We've never seen mass evangelism in this country." Danette agrees. "You're doing good [in Niger] if you have a special meeting and get 300 people [to attend]." For this rally, the showing is expected to be in the tens of thousands--quite unlike anything the country has ever experienced. In addition to nightly services, President Roberts will also be bringing a 40-member healing team comprised of doctors, a dentist, and ORU nursing students to provide medical care through three days of free health clinics. In addition, several medical clinics are also being planned for villages outside of Niamey.
In the past, the Childses said, the government in Niger didn't allow such rallies because they "felt the church [there] wasn't strong enough to handle it." Now, however, after seeing so much fruit from their ministry, the Childses see this as an exciting opportunity for God to come through again in a big way. "We know this is bringing the nation to a new level for the gospel."
Worth the Effort
When the Childses have the opportunity to speak about their experiences in Niger, there are always those people who don't quite "get" why they do what they do. Seeing only the difficulties associated with life in this intense mission field, Danette says that the only thing they can say is, "I hope God never calls me to a place like that." Some days, Danette admits, life in America looks tempting, but those days are few and far between. "Yeah, it's hot, it's difficult," she says, "[but] the fact is, we don't want to be somewhere else." Confident of their purpose, the Childses are eager to spread the news about the amazing things the Lord is doing in Niger. When it all comes down to it, Neal and Danette say they want readers to come away with one key theme from their story: "We need [more] missionaries...we need laborers. We want people to see the harvest field [and] see how incredible it is."
