Bondage

*This post is filled with some information that young children may not need to read, please read with discretion. *

Last week we learned that a good friend of ours, Samson Lungu, had a death in his family. Out of respect, we must attend the funeral to pass our condolences and even a small gift to assist the family with the costs that they incur for the funeral. Our entire family traveled to Samson's village to see him and pass our condolences. Kendall, Easton, and Lily sat with the men who were under a tree outside the home. Several of the men were making the coffin. Lauren and I were escorted inside the home where the body was in rest. I began speaking with Samson's mother to learn more about the woman who had died. She was Samson's mother's sister-in-law. They were related by marriage, not by blood. During our conversation an older lady came in and began weeping. I inquired as to who she was. I learned quickly that this was the deceased's mother. This was then the dialogue that I had with Amai Lungu (Samson' mother):

Joy: How many children and grandchildren did she have?

Amai: 2 children and 6 grandchildren

Joy: Is her husband alive?

Amai: Yes, he is outside building the coffin.

Joy: Where did she pray? (this is how we ask where they attended church)

Amai: She prayed at the Baptist Church.

Joy: Oh, that is good. Was she saved?

Amai: No. In 1999, she left the church. She began fitting (seizures) and so she visited the witchdoctor for medicine and help. The witchdoctor gave her medicine and soon after she began dancing Mashawe (ma-sha-way) and she never came again. 

Joy: OH...not good.

After the conversation, my heart was sad, I was frustrated, and hurt for the family because she had died without Christ.

Outside the house, Kendall was learning the same story. As we walked to the truck, Samson shed more light on the situation. He explained to us that the day before, the family was instructing members of the Baptist church to make a program for the funeral because she was Baptist. When Samson came to the meeting and he began to ask about her past and if she knew Christ, the family shared the story about her dancing Mashawe. Samson looked at the congregation and said, "no, there will be no church program. This woman was not a member of the church and was not following Jesus Christ. We cannot have a church funeral because that would be a lie." Samson then told us that he was going to conduct the program for the burial and he was going to share Christ with all of the people that were there. Kendall and I were so happy to hear that Samson was not happy that people were going to run over the name of the Lord that way and that they were going to make her look like a woman of God. (I think many times in America we do that at funerals so that they don't have a bad name, but not in Zambia. They either don't say anything at all, or very little about the persons morals.) The people of the village were mad at Samson because of the fact that he was not going to follow "tradition" and give her a good funeral. Kendall and I were so proud of Samson for standing up for the Lord when everyone around him was insulting him for rejecting tradition.

I want to shed light on a subject that we face daily. It may seem very foreign to those of us who have grown up in Western Civilization. Please read this with an open mind and a VERY prayerful heart (this is not an easy subject to discuss, but we feel it is important for you to know in order that your eyes may be enlightened).

Have you ever seen something like this on National Geographic??

I have and growing up watching National Geographic, the only thing that I knew of Africa was big animals and these dancing men. Yes, these men draw thousands of spectators each year and many of them are naive about the origination of these dances and what they really mean. 

After the Lungu funeral, I began to research and ask more questions about the Nyao and Mashawe dancers. I want to share these things with you so that you can pray more intensely for the people of Zambia who are trapped in bondage by this incredible evil.

Nyao dancers (seen above) are men and women who have decided that they would like to give their lives to the satanic rituals of the Nyao. They will live this life in secret, not telling anyone but their fellow dancers. When they decide that they would like to be a part of this "gang" they will approach the leader of the Nyao near their village. They then go through an initiation that includes the killing of family members, animals, and stealing from certain people in villages. They then are initiated with inheriting a demon. They will then design their uniform for their dance according to the demon inside of them. The Nyao believe that when they put on their mask they actually become that animal. Their dancing (from what we have heard) is very aggressive and violent. Nyao have been known to pretend to sleep in the road in order to attack the driver of the truck and then sleep in churches in order to threaten the people who attend them. They are very dangerous people that want nothing but harm and evil for the people of the Eastern Province of Zambia. You will see them on National Geographic and people hire them for entertainment, but they are deceived and unaware of their true meaning.

Mashawe dancers are also in the Eastern Province but are less dangerous and more prevalent in our area of Nyimba and Mozambique. Mashawe dancers do not live a life of secrecy, they are open about their dedication to dance Mashawe. When they preform for audiences, they do not wear masks but robes with red crosses upon the chest. Mashawe dance to drums and the demons inside of them manifest during these times. The spectators watching the dances are often times overcome with a pounding heart and tears of sadness. They then will fall to the ground and will be overcome with a demon themselves. They do not kill other people, but live a life of bondage and do not know how to be set free. Many times, they do not understand what is going on at these dances, but enjoy the entertainment and walk away with a heavy burden, seeking someone to help them be free again. 

The lady that died knew the way of Christ and salvation, but she denied Him and turned to Satan. In our time here, Kendall has prayed with one woman who had a Mashawe demon. She has been set free and calls Christ her Lord now! Praise HIM! But there are many people around us each day that are in great bondage. Pray that we can be a light to them and that we would be very sensitive to the Holy Spirit's leading when we are among our brothers and sisters. May we never fail to give them an opportunity to know about the freedom that is found in Jesus Christ alone. 

"But get up and stand on your feet; for this purpose I have appeared to you, to appoint you a minister and a witness not only to the things which you have seen, but also to the things in which I will appear to you; rescuing you from the Jewish people and from the Gentiles, to whom I am sending you, to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the dominion of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Me."  Acts 26:16-18