Missions Done Well
The most difficult part of doing missions well is figuring out how to live, relate, and explain the gospel in a foreign culture. Although we speak the language, eat the food, and have done our best to become part of the Tonga people, the fact remains that we are still outsiders. And it is very difficult for someone to completely trust an outsider on issues as important as faith and eternity. The best solution? Raise up missionaries from within the culture to reach their own people for Christ.
New Day does not exist to house poor orphans in sub-Sahara Africa. God has created every one of these children for a specific and unique purpose. And it is so much bigger than simply surviving. We are training this generation of children to know the truth of the gospel, and to take that truth to their families, friends, and neighbors. Don’t think of New Day as an orphanage. Think of us as a Zambian missions sending agency. After all, these children will do a far better job of conveying the message of Christ to their people than we could ever do.
Here’s our three-pronged strategy for equipping these missionaries to reach their own countrymen for Christ.
Christian Worldview
Our children are taught from a young age to see the world as Jesus does. They are learning the truth of the Scriptures and how reliable God is. At New Day, the kids are involved with daily devotions, scripture memorization, participating in outreach ministries, discipleship programs, and prayer meetings, to name a few. Perhaps most importantly, they are surrounded by godly examples in our staff. Although we love feeding and providing for the physical needs of the children, we feel that if we miss this crucial element, our time spent serving the Lord will have been in vain.
Quality education
As indigenous missionaries, our children must be able to provide for themselves and their families. The educational process at New Day will allow them to do just that. With an on-campus school, quality teachers, and a challenging curriculum, the kids are finding themselves well ahead of their peers in an average Zambian school.
But education is not limited to the classroom. Our children are also learning life skills to help them thrive no matter where God calls them. From caring for animals and sewing while their young, to more specialized skills as they get older, education is a key element in raising a generation of children equipped to change their nation.
Zambian culture
Of course, to be an effective missionary, one must relate to the culture. Our children are not raised to be Americans. They are fully immersed with the good parts of the Zambian culture. Every child is raised in a home with a Zambian mother. She cares for the children and teaches them things about Zambia that Americans would never know. The gate at New Day is always open, allowing for a constant influx of Zambian culture for the children to observe and absorb. Although they are fluent in English, conversations outside of school make it abundantly clear that the children very much prefer their own language.
New Day exists to care for the most vulnerable in Zambia by providing them with a Christian worldview and a quality education, all while retaining vital parts of the Zambian culture so that these children may one day reach their own country for Christ.