Conference in Ndola, Zambia

We had the best attendance and most attentive group that we have ever had on any of our trips. They received the message with great interest. Many things that we teach are against their cultural values, but they are very committed to the Lord. They receive the teaching because they recognize that everything we teach is Biblical.

In their culture, men dominate women. Men make the decisions and don’t consult their wives. A husband doesn’t tell his wife how much money he has; he just gives her money when he wants her to have some. She doesn’t know where it came from or how much he might have. One pastor who had been at our 2006 seminar there admitted that he practiced that with his money. He said he was going to change in that regard.

We give them a chance to write questions anonymously. We just ask that the men use blue cards and the women use pink cards. One wife asked what a wife was to do when her husband went away for 40 day fast and prayer. He didn’t leave her any money to feed the family and said that the Lord would supply what she needed. Also, one wife asked about whether it is okay for her husband to beat her.

Their culture allows a man, even a pastor, to beat his wife and children. Many wives know that is not right. But some believe that her husband doesn’t love her if he doesn’t beat her. This belief is not held by everyone but it is very common.

They also believe that a wife should bear a son and if she doesn’t then she may be rejected. Or sometimes the parents of the husband encourage him to find another wife. One wife at our conference had 4 daughters. Her husband was very understanding; he told her that they didn’t need a son. She said to him that she thought that she had a boy inside of her. So, they had one more child and it was a son!

At the end we had them write something about how God had changed their lives during the conference. Two people admitted that they were planning on leaving their spouses before they began our conference, but now they had changed their minds and were going to work on their marriages. One pastor admitted that he was very irritable at home but now he was being nice to his wife and they had a new marriage already.      

We will share more testimonies soon. Thank you for your prayers, rejoice in the Lord with us over what He has done in Ndola, Zambia.