How would you counsel families who get saved through the ministry of your local church, get baptized, but the dad and mom have never made a marriage covenant? This has been the typical scenario for SOS here in Kubamitwe where not a single family had parents who were married when we first arrived 8 years ago. No wonder infidelity and mistrust dominated these homes! Solution? Marriage, of course. Just buy a ring and propose already-right? Not when her dad demands an unaffordable dowry. And to marry without paying the dad (and clan) for the bride is tantamount to...stealing, resulting in eventual disowning. So solution? The church family rally around each groom and help him pay a dowry while the elders, meanwhile, assist negotiations for a discounted price. After the dowry is covered, then the wedding. But who has money left over for a wedding after such a costly dowry? Once again, the church loves more deeply than family and hosts the wedding. We told any church members who were ready to repent of their immorality and make their homes right with the Lord that we would give them a group wedding. They only had to come up with their rental dress, hair, bouquets, and cake. Their wedding was complete with an outstanding wedding coordinator (Mary Basaba) and a matching offer for a honeymoon-which all 6 couple took up!
So this afternoon, every 25 minutes, a glowing bride followed her bridesmaids and flower girl to the outdoor altar in front of a crowd of over 800 guests, including church members, family, and friends. She and her groom exchanged vows and rings before the Lord and their community, taking the next step in making their relationships with God right. The wedding was magical, yet still radiated with African flare-including authentic African army ants who attacked the first bride at the altar. Insecticide quickly came to the rescue to prevent the same mishap for the next 5!
The extended families, who just several months ago bitterly conveyed animosity toward future sons-in-law who had stolen their daughters, exuberantly welcomed these sons into their families. They witnessed the transforming power of the gospel firsthand in their children's lives and heard the clear gospel during our service, perhaps for the very first time.
We are praising the Lord for His grace to be able to provide resources to enable these 6 families to lay a proper foundation before the Lord. We trust that the successive generations will learn from this and get married before establishing families! We look forward in years to come here to witnessing, "One generation...prais(ing) Your works to another...declar(ing) Your mighty acts" (Psalm 145:4)!
