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How lovely are the feet

Bryan Born

For many of us, the idea of dancing through a dusty village, loudly singing songs of worship and inviting everyone in sight to join us in praising the Lord Jesus sounds more than just a little uncomfortable. Yet, as strange as it seemed, all I felt was an overwhelming excitement and anticipation as I joined with my brothers and sisters of the United Evangelist Church of Christ in Africa in their joyous dance.


Together with a large group of people from this congregation in Molepolole, Botswana, I had travelled to the desolate village of Mahetlwe near the edge of the Kalahari Desert to share the gospel of Jesus. One of the villagers was a member of this church, and she had shared the deep spiritual needs of her village: widespread drunkenness, sexual promiscuity and a general sense of hopelessness.


As we traversed the village that Sunday morning, we found many people at the backyard shebeens (bars) who had already began drinking their problems away. Various members of the church boldly, yet tactfully, encouraged them to join us for the music, drama and preaching that was soon to come. I marvelled at their persistence even in the face of derision and abuse. And some of those invited did decide to come along.

Soon we had gathered in the yard of the elderly lady who had called her church to come. We met under a crude shelter of tarp and burlap sacks, but no one seemed to mind. The choirs sang and danced, and their enthusiasm was contagious. More and more people began to show up. Then it was time for the main event. The church youth group had worked hard to produce a top quality drama which displayed the futility of the various answers the world gives to our problems. They progressively exploded the myths that traditional medicine, alcohol, sex or witchcraft can bring lasting happiness. By turns both incredibly humorous and deadly serious, the drama tightly gripped everyone’s attention.

Following the drama, I was called upon to preach. Not wanting to deviate from the powerful message just acted out before the audience, I focused on the abundant life promised by Jesus in John 10:10. Everyone needs to know that there truly is only one way to God. Jesus is the way, the truth and the life (John 14:6). When I finished, pastor Thebe Monyepele stood up to challenge people to commit their lives to Jesus. Several people responded to his call to repent and let Jesus take control of their lives. Among them was a young man who had been drinking in a shebeen earlier.

Later, as we packed to leave, I overheard pastor Monyepele making arrangements to help the young man get a job and get on with his life. It is people like the lady who had called her church to come and share the gospel, people like my friend Thebe, people like the youth with their crazy acting, and even someone like me – all of us have a part in helping people enter Christ’s kingdom. As I looked at some of the dusty feet I saw around me, I thought, “How lovely are the feet of those who bring Good News, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation!” (Isaiah 52:7).

Bryan Born is an Africa Inter-Mennonite Mission/MBMS International missionary in Botswana. This article was distributed as an AIMM news release.

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Last modified May 17, 2000.

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