who: the szmara family (zach, lyndy, & isaac)
what: partnering with God’s mission (redemption, renewal, and the ongoing growth of His Kingdom) in mozambique, africa
when: leaving april 4th for our first four year term
where: initially we will be living in maputo (mozambique’s capitol) for language learning and cultural bonding, then our family will move to nampula (the hub city of the northern provinces) to partner in the training of the first generation of pastoral leaders for the makhuwa people group
why: we’re called by God and sent by His people – and further our burning desire and passion is to see people who do not yet know Jesus come into a fully committed and growing relationship with Him (currently the makhuwa people, which number near 6 million, are less than 2 percent Christian).
how: our primary vision/strategy is two-fold – 1. we desire to “kollao” or share our lives with the people who call mozambique home and in journeying with them share Jesus in both word and deed with them and 2. our mission follows in line with 2 timothy 2:2 – timothy, a young man called to ephesus (a place with few leaders and many competing worldviews), is told by his mentor paul to “take the many truths i taught you and teach them to willing, component, trustworthy individuals so that they in turn can teach others.” in other words, our family goes to teach the first generation of pastoral leader/teachers who can teach their people and teach other pastors. our heartbeat is to come with a fresh vision that is focused on oral learners – a new training model that will equip pastors in the midst of continued ministry, focus on the Bible, utilize story/narrative, and be integrative and readily reproducible.
