Note From The Board – Scott Genzman
Trust
Last month I was once again reminded of how thankful I am to be associated with Unite 4 Africa. One aspect of the ministry I appreciate the most is its philosophy of empowerment. – helping communities and individuals to transform themselves rather than simply offering “handouts.” Community transformation initiatives must be owned by the community and individuals to be successful and sustainable. Unite 4 Africa “gets” that and, as a result, has seen hundreds of communities and thousands of lives transformed long-term.
Candidly, the last several months have been difficult for me. Potential health issues, challenges at work, and the craziness in the United States and, frankly, around the globe, have once again caused me to realize just how little control I really have over everything. And how profoundly dependent I am on God.
At first, when so much around me seemed overwhelming, I was a bit upset at God. Didn’t He realize how hard I was working and what I was trying to do for His Kingdom? Of course, I knew He knew, but it took me several days – maybe even weeks – to stop feeling sorry for myself and to once again turn to God and ask for His help. As is often the case, the help did not come right away. But that caused me to drop to my knees and to focus on His promises and His love for me and to recognize whatever happened was going to be for my good. Needless to say, it was very humbling. Finally, after some time, I started to appreciate God’s goodness and my dependence on Him. And, at last, I was able to thank Him for the challenges.
As Christians who have a heart for helping hurting people, our first tendency is often to try to fix their problems as quickly as possible. The trouble with that is that all too often those people we’re trying to help learn to trust us and turn to us for help instead of turning to God. I have learned from my involvement with Unite 4 Africa that the better way is to first turn people to God and to pray and ask for His guidance. Then, after the person we are trying to help has some clarity and direction and starts moving down a good path, we can most effectively come alongside them to help. I’ve personally witnessed this philosophy of ministry transform communities, families, and individuals many times. And it continues to happen multiple times every day in the countries we work in. In short, at Unite 4 Africa we empower people in Jesus’ name instead of doing something for them that they are capable of doing for themselves. And it works beautifully.
As I look back over the last several months, I am so thankful that God did not send me help right away but, instead, in His wisdom, He let me deal with my problems and issues with Him. Once I was depending on Him for whatever the outcome, the help came. I am very thankful for those friends who helped me navigate my challenges with their wisdom and guidance, but I’m even more grateful to God for giving me what I needed, not what I wanted.