Today is our church day.
Our involvement with
Calvary, the
church we are working with, lasts for a good portion of the day.
We arrive at 9:30 for the youth service, stay
through and contribute to the main service and then hold a Bible study
afterwards for the men and women in their respective gender groupings.
Yesterday it was my turn to preach and I did
so, preaching a message on the imminent return of the Lord and our need to be
found faithful.
Following said time we
convened for the men’s fellowship as the women went to their own.
As we talk to the men we are encouraging them and exhorting
them to be greater leaders in the community, better husbands, better fathers
and so forth.
Regardless, yesterday we
were talking about becoming better husbands and did not quite recognize the
weighty task we took upon ourselves.
Roughly twenty-five men, mostly church elders, joined in a classroom to
learn from whatever the white folks had to say.
There we were, aged and wise African men, all married, being taught by
young, single, white men about marriage.
I must say, the odds did not look practical and I questioned of what
validity we spoke with.
Nevertheless, they lent their ear and absorbed what was
said.
They were taking in the
information as a spectator would until the issue of proximity arose.
One of them asked why men and women were so
close in the
US and why they
seemed so distant there in
Kenya.
It is quite true, one never sees a husband
and wife sitting together in church or walking about in public together.
I am told some even sleep in different rooms
of the house.
Moreover, some were asking
the question (even though they didn’t use the specific word) about romance
between a man and a woman.
So there we were in quite a fix, wise sages in African society
inquiring what they could do to better serve their wives.
Knowing that even culture does not separate
basic qualities between men and women around the globe, we exhorted them in the
way we best knew how, using only the Word as the authority instead of our gross
lack in experience or intelligence.
The
time lasted far longer than we had planned as the men had many questions.
We ultimately had to depart and told them we
would continue next week.
However, I
still can’t help but chuckle at the clueless men of the church desiring to
become more romantic and tender towards their wives.
Perhaps culture and tradition will fall by
the wayside as the men begin to “love their wives as Christ loves the church.”
