By Stacey
But Moses said to the LORD, “Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue.” Then the LORD said to him, “Who has made man’s mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the LORD? Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak.”
Exodus 4:10-12
We are spending a couple days in the capital in order to get all dressed up and meet with “elites” who have incredible sway over our people group. Being an American who greatly values equality, I have been a bit surprised at how hierarchical the culture is here. For instance, in order to create awareness for our project, we do not go pass out flyers in the streets but instead meet with the most powerful people among the group and ask them to promote what we are doing to the rest of the people. Thus, if we are granted the “OK” from the powers that be, the entire group follows. Conversely, if we make a bad impression, in the words of our Cameroonian co-worker, “we might as well go home.” These meetings, then, make or break our project.
That being said, we find ourselves asking our friends if we can borrow their clothes, learning how to use an iron, and praying that the Lord would help us know when to shake people’s hands and when not to. We have a meeting tomorrow with one official, and if he grants us approval, we will then seek to meet another elite in Yaoundé. We are feeling a bit out of our league and more or less feel like Moses when God called him to speak in front of Pharaoh…and thus we are asking people to pray.
Please pray…
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That we would not step on any cultural toes (that we would remember to use the formal French “you,” that our appearance and how we conduct ourselves would show respect).
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That we would communicate our vision well in French.
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That the Lord would “be with our mouths and teach us what we shall speak.”
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That the government officials would not be suspicious of our motives but that they would trust us.
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That we would find favor in their eyes and that they would both promote and fund the project.
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That we would represent the Lord well and bring him glory.
