Dear Friends and Family,

Thanks for praying for the Listening Group seminar on Thursday! It went really well, praise God. We had 27 participants come, from Magambua, Ilasee, and Manantu, and Odilo did a terrific job leading the group through a sample Bible study, and teaching them the inductive questions to get them thinking. I was impressed by the way Odilo facilitated discussion, rather than just lecturing. He did his sections all in Kisandawe. Most of the participants said they listen to the players with their families, and some of them said sometimes neighbors come as well.
It seemed very well received, and there was some lively discussion on the use of certain words in Kisandawe and what they meant in the Biblical context. They concluded that the man being let down through the roof for Jesus to heal, was paralyzed, but not the kind of ‘paralysis’ which you get from being scared by meeting a lion in the path! They all had some time to practice in small groups, and then come back and report to the larger group. I taught a session on the qualities of a good leader, how to prepare for the Listening Group time, and different contexts that LG’s can be used in. What really excited me, was to see how animated the discussion was surrounding the passages, all done in Kisandawe. That’s what we’re looking for, to see people engaging with the Word of God in a way that goes deep in to their hearts and minds. Pray that these groups would actually use these tools and these leaders would guide their families and neighbors in Bible study discussion.

Well, this was the pilot seminar for this Listening Group training. I’m hoping to do some others with Odilo, and eventually as the ball gets rolling, perhaps he and his wife could co-lead the training.

Blessings in Christ,

Jon