A few months ago, a small church in rural Tanzania was kicked off the land their church had been meeting on, leaving them without a place to worship. This was devastating, but they had faith that God would provide.
First they needed a place to meet. Miraculously, someone offered them a piece of land where they could build. So, they started gathering sticks to make the walls. It was the only resource they had and they were determined. After a while, someone saw their need and donated a tree. A tree is a valuable and scarce resource, so this was a sure blessing from the Lord! The tree provided much needed wood to replace the stick structure and build the walls of the church.
With land and a structure, they next needed to protect it from the rain. They couldn't afford much, so they bought two tarps to use as a roof. When the community heard about this, they started arriving with donated tarps to help.
Around this time, Mosaic heard of the need for a more sustainable roof and with the help of a few Stateside church partners, was able to provide the metal sheeting for a roof and a local solar light system from Solar Sisters, a Tanzanian company. This was all provided to the church through our local partners. Miraculously, God had provided everything the church needed.
While in Tanzania recently, Mark got to worship under that roof with two churches who came together to have a time of thanksgiving and praise. Both had received roofs from Mosaic, but it was not Mosaic they were thanking. This was a day of thanksgiving for how God had provided above and beyond, taking care of them every step of the way. It was a beautiful sight to see these churches united to share God's faithfulness!
You see, even before Mosaic got involved, God was already doing the work. He was going to provide for these churches in one way or another. That He allowed us to be a small part of it is a privilege that we are continually grateful for.
When we provide financial or physical resources on the field, it has nothing to do with patting ourselves on the back. In fact, most of these provisions are credited back to the local church with God receiving the glory. He is the one who provides the land and provides the tree, provides the roof and the pastors to serve. It is God who has made everything we do possible and we continually seek guidance through prayer and study in order to be His most effective ambassadors.
Pastors Elifuraha and Eliotosha have a place to worship because of a community who saw value in their mission. What a joy to be a part of such an amazing Tanzanian community.