Servant leadership

This was my sermon for St Edward's Day at St Edward's Church of England School and Sixth Form College on Tuesday:

Thirty years ago Judy Acheson was a Sunday School teacher at St John’s Seven Kings, the church where I work now. While at St John’s, she felt called to serve God in the Democratic Republic of Congo. She went to the Congo in 1980 with the Church Mission Society (CMS) to be a nursery nurse, but, as the children she cared for grew, she carried on caring for them, eventually training and handing over responsibility to local leaders. “When I was first simply doing Sunday school work, I trained someone to take over … I always felt that we were there in a country to share the experience we had and enable people to carry it on."

The recent history of violence in the DRC is legendary. There is a legacy of 30 years of a both brutal and incompetent dictatorship, followed by one of the worst civil wars in post colonial Africa. Almost every participating force has been guilty of massacres and rapes. And the north-east region, where Judy was originally, was described by Human Rights Watch as "the bloodiest corner of Congo".

Judy could have left the country during the civil war but chose to stay and develop pioneering youth work. She says, “it was always my philosophy to empower the young people to do the work.” Bisoke Balikenga was one of her original youth team members. “You could see his leadership potential. People would listen to him and do what he asked. When we had visitors he looked after them.” Seeing his potential, CMS gave him and his wife a scholarship to study at Daystar University in Nairobi, then he took over the diocesan youth work Judy had begun, so she could start youth work nationally. Now that she is about to retire, he has taken over the national youth work as well.

The youth department they set up, called Agape Mahagi, visited young men who joined the tribal militias during the civil war to persuade them to leave the militias, runs rehabilitation centres for young women raped and traumatised during the civil war, and, now the war is over, runs seminars to reconcile those who fought against each other during the war. When the Archbishop of Canterbury visited in July of this year, a group of about 50 former militia members spoke about how the Church, in the form of Agape, never forgot them. One by one, they gave their testimony. "We were taught to repay bad for bad," one said, "but the people from the church came to visit me." One after another they spoke about how, thanks to Agape's seminars and con­ferences on peace, they retuned to God and their families, rediscover­ing the love of Jesus. Many of them were now at college or university, slowly putting their trauma behind them.

Throughout these years Agape was been training young people to think for themselves, to have, give and express their own opinions, and make their own decisions. God began to show Judy, Bisoke and others that he is going to bring mighty changes within the country and has chosen to use children and young people as a means of doing so. This led them to write a manual for young people, Young people, with God, let us rebuild our beautiful country. With Government support this book is being used by thousands of teenagers and young adults in schools and in youth groups with the result that they are learning to make their own decisions and become aware of their role and their responsibility towards their own country.

In our Gospel reading we heard Jesus say to his disciples, ‘You know that among the Gentiles those whom they recognize as their rulers lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them. But it is not so among you; but whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all. For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.’

St Edward the Confessor is an example of that kind of leader. When Pope Benedict spoke about St Edward at Westminster Abbey last year, he described him as 'a model of Christian witness, of fidelity, of humility and obedience, grounded in the example of our Saviour'. There was something in the life of Edward, as King of England, that was regarded as out of the ordinary. He was a man who exercised gentleness and prudence in high office, whose reign between 1042 and 1066 was one of almost unbroken peace. He had a great devotion to the Church, including having Westminster Abbey built. He was humble, and opted for a certain simplicity of life, manifested by his manner of dress we're told, and who was generous, having a special love and care for the poor and afflicted.

One story told about him comes from his particular devotion to the Apostles Saint Peter and Saint John the Evangelist. He had made a promise never to refuse alms asked in the name of the latter. One day when he had no money with him, a poor man reached out his hand in the name of St John the Evangelist and the king gave him a valuable ring. Some time later, Saint John appeared to two pilgrims returning from the Holy Land. He gave them a ring and said: “Take it to the king. He gave it to me one day when I asked for alms in the habit of a pilgrim. Tell him that in six months I will visit him and take him with me, to follow the unblemished Lamb.” The King received it from them after hearing their relation of this incident, and broke into tears. According to the story this was six months before Edward died on January 5, 1066.

Edward is a past example of a leader who put Jesus’ words into practice. Judy and Bisoke give us contemporary examples of leaders doing just the same and by doing so having a massive impact on their country. Their story is particularly inspiring because they are clearly ordinary people just like us. If they can do it, so can we. Their story is doubly inspiring because it is about encouraging, equipping and enabling young people to become the kind of leaders about which Jesus spoke; those who come not to be served but to serve, and to give their lives for others.


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Interestingly, after the Service, one of the teachers at the School told me that, as a child, she had been in Judy's Sunday School class at St John's Seven Kings. Judy will be speaking at St John's on 27th November at 10.00am.

The latest news we have comes from both Bisoke and Judy. Bisoke wrote to say, "We greet all of you in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. We are well in Congo but we are approaching the election in our country please pray for it, we will start voting from 28th of November. Also pray for Judy Acheson because for the moment she is in the Diocese of Boga where she has started her work, and we are going to visit all the Archdeaconry to say goodbye before the 16th of October when she will say goodbye to many people here in Bunia.”

“We are doing well but have a lot to do, please continue to pray for our work because we have a lot of needs for our work to be done. We were in Goma for a workshop and Judy Acheson was with us. While there she said goodbye to our staff. In June we had a ladies workshop in Butembo which helped those who lead the ladies in the parishes and dioceses to manage their groups well. Also in June the Archbishop of Canterbury visited our country and he went up to Boga. The British Ambassador was also here in Bunia to welcome the Archbishop. The Archbishop had his first meeting with the youth which encouraged our young people. Praise the Lord.”

“I would like to inform you that I will be ordained full priest on 9 October. It is amazing because most of us who will be ordained on this date are from the Youth Ministry. It also makes us proud to know that most of us including the Bishop of Boga diocese are the fruits of the work of CMS mission partner Judy Acheson. Praise the Lord! Keep praying for that day and for us who are so eager for this to happen. Pray also for the upcoming general elections in Congo. We need Jehovah Shalom to dwell amongst us during this period.”

He then wrote saying, "Thanks alot for your prayers because my ordination went so well , and many people came to celebrate it with us. It is the first ordination where we had many of the people who become Pastors are from the Youth Ministry Agape. Praise the Lord. Judy was so happy to see her people become Priest and among us one of us is a lady, and that lady is the first lady to be ordained in the Diocese of Boga, and the lady is from the Youth Ministry. Praise the Lord.

Tomorrow Judy with some people is visiting the Parish of Mafifi , Komanda , Sota , Tekele , and Nyankunde . We will come in Bunia on thursday and friday we will go to Kasenyi. The purpose of her visit is to say bye to the people who she worked together for 31 years in Congo."

Judy has also written to say she has now finished her work at Mahagi and has moved to Bunia. She reported that the handover at Mahagi went really well. There is much to be thankful for at Mahagi, including guttering for rainwater harvesting and a new generator. “But the best thing has been our morning bible studies which God has used to talk to each person. We have seen such changes, a growth in faith, love for each other and understanding of what it means to be the Body of Christ. Please pray that these studies continue.” Please join with Judy in this prayer.

Judy also writes, “Only just over two weeks before I leave so much to be done and visits made.  But praise God everything is going smoothly.  We are looking forward to the Thanksgiving/farewell service on 16th October.  Please pray for Bisoke and Bishop Willy as they arrange this and that it will bring much glory to the Lord.”


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Neal Morse - The Land Of Beginning Again.