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"This is Alaska calling!" |
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KNLS English Service |
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Transcripts for IWitness Life Well Lived, Page Five |
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Partnership & Sustainable Development |
MIKE: As has often been pointed out by our critics, Christian mission efforts have sometimes done more harm than good. Well meaning Christians have occasionally been paternalistic, even overbearing in their outreach to other cultures. But at the dawn of the new millennium, there are two expressions that define a new spirit in Christian missions: partnership and sustainable development. A Seattle based ministry working in Central America exemplifies both ideals.
SFX: construction traffic sounds
MIKE: Just a few short years ago, the sounds of war echoed across the mountains of the Ixil highlands. Today, the den of battle has been replaced by the sound of local people working together to rebuild their lives.
SFX: village work sounds
MIKE: The Ixil Indians occupy the central mountains running along the spine of Central America. Several long running conflicts in the area have left the Ixil war weary and desperately poor. A Seattle based Christian ministry named Agros is working to relieve the tribe’s suffering, but not with free handouts or unsolicited advice. Instead the ministry has formed a partnership with local Christians for sustainable development. Agros representative John van Kepple.
JOHN: We buy large plots of land and we help landless peasants build villages, with the goal that they be self-governing, self-sustaining, and privately owned. After the villages are built, homes are built, church is built, water system is put in, schools put in, then they begin to pay us back for the property, so that they own their property outright as well. Each of the families gets clear title to their land. Land that’s enough for them to farm, to be able to feed their families, care for themselves, pay us back; enough for their homes as well, so they can have a home. We are committed to spiritual care, health care, micro-enterprise opportunities, and education for the children.
SFX: sounds of children at play
MIKE: New communities are formed around volunteer families willing to invest what John calls "sweat equity".
JOHN: They have to be willing to participate in the building of their homes, of the organizing of their community, of the governing of the community, of the building of their community center, church, water systems; whatever else they choose to have as a community.
MIKE: The Agros concept shows every sign of succeeding. John says that success can be attributed to a people who know how to work hard and are deeply spiritual.
JOHN: They have a lot of ingenuity. There are entrepreneurs there, and they are willing to take risks and try new things. They just need to have the opportunities. The thing that really strikes me is, I know Jesus in my head. I’ve been to seminary, and I’ve been to Bible studies ad nauseum, and I read my Bible on a regular basis. But I’m not so sure Jesus is in my heart the way Jesus is in the heart of these people. He sustains them, and I am driven to a deeper hunger to know God in the way they know him, but, the expense that they have had to go through to know Christ in this way is more of an expense than I want to pay for at this point.
SFX: children singing
MIKE: If you would like to learn more about the Ixil people and the work of Agros, you may visit the ministry website.
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Rebuilding Lives and Faith In Kosovo |
MIKE: The ethnic Albanians forced from their homes by the conflict in Kosovo in 1998 and 99 are slowly rebuilding their lives, but what will heal the scars left by the ethnic cleansing they endured? A small part of the answer can be found half a world away in Nashville, Tennessee.
SFX: Carla Lawson doing a traffic report
MIKE: Nashville radio traffic reporter Carla Lawson spends most days shepherding drivers through congested streets and road construction. But the news veteran recently traveled to war torn Kosovo to provide a very different kind of direction. Carla joined a team of Christian missionaries rebuilding the small village of Sematesht (SIM-uh-tesh-tt) where all but thirteen of the town’s one hundred fifty homes were destroyed by the Serbs.
CARLA: "And I think about all the hard work that everyone did, but as I look back it was completely about building relationships with these people. You know…life long relationships."
SFX: Construction sounds, up and then down and under to..
MIKE: Carla and her team went to Kosovo to rebuild more than homes, schools and clinics. They also went to repair the shattered trust that the mostly muslim Kosovars once had in their Christian neighbors, and in God Himself.
CARLA: "We have this view and I think they do over there too of God - especially in their Muslim culture – as this vengeful God, not the graceful and merciful God that He truly is."
SFX: Carla with kids…
MIKE: Carla has a special love for teens and spent a great deal of time interviewing young people in the village.
SFX: Carla interviews a young man…
MIKE: A high point of the trip came when Carla was able to help a young girl named Buhara (buh-HAR-uh) catch a renewed glimpse of God’s grace.
CARLA: "And I shared with her from Jeremiah, you know, ‘For I know the plans that I have for you. Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’ She was stunned by that, as I was by that scripture years ago."
SFX: Music playing in the town square…
MIKE: Carla is keeping in touch with her new Kosovar friends, and God willing, plans to return to Sematesht next year. Carla Lawson helping the pepole of Kosvo rebuild their homes and renew their faith…a life well lived.
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The New Life Station is pleased to provide transcripts online for a number of KNLS programs. Please note that all scripts are the property of World Christian Broadcasting and/or SeedSower Productions. They are provided here for your personal enjoyment only and may not be disseminated in any fashion without prior written permission.