“With people it is impossible, but not with God; for all things are possible with God.”
Mark 10:27 NASB
The very next morning I awoke with great anticipation. What would God do? I had no idea how to build two schools out of the bush in northern Zambia, but I knew that God was ready to move and calling me to be a part of His plan.
That morning, I spent time in the Word and in prayer as usual, and again cried out to God. “Show me what to do. Show me how to do it. I am Yours. I am ready.”
I went off that morning to speak and pray with the teachers at a local high school, doing my best to encourage them. As I was talking with them outside, I noticed a building just beyond them, built up to about 6 feet (2 meters) off the ground. I thought, That’s odd. I wonder why they never finished that building. But I didn’t want to be too curious about this uncompleted project. God had just told me the night before that He wanted me to build two secondary schools out in the bush. Did I really want to hear about any other building projects? However, eventually my curiosity got the best of me. After I finished speaking, I asked the teachers, “What is that building over there?”
With their eyes dancing with joy, they told me, “Follow us. We’ll show you.” With a bit of apprehension, I followed them over to the building. We walked through the large expanse of the building. “This is to be a church for our students,” they told me.
“What happened?” I cautiously asked.
“We stopped building,” they replied. “We got so discouraged because no money was coming in. We couldn’t raise any more funds. That’s why we’ve never put a roof on this church or completed it.”
I nodded with understanding as they continued.
“When families come to visit their children during rainy season, they must stand out in the rain. There’s just not enough room for all the students, faculty, and staff to worship in one place, let alone any families that come to visit. As you can see, we really need a church.”
Help Build a Roof
“Well,” I said, “Thanks for showing me.” As we walked away, the Spirit of God spoke to my heart. “Help them put a roof on this church!”
The next day, I left Zimbabwe and traveled back to the United States. Immediately upon reaching home, I gathered the elders in my California church and told them the story about the skeleton key. I also told them about the church in need of a roof. I told them that God was eager to do great and mighty things, beginning with a roof for this church.
The elders looked at me with concern. “How much will this roof cost?”
I stated a sum and they looked at me with more concern. “Let’s just pray and see what we can do,” I told them. So we prayed and sought the Lord for His blessing and provision.
God moved on our church members, and not too long after that, we sent a generous check back to Zimbabwe to help put a roof on that church. Of course, it wasn’t near enough for what they needed, but as in the story of Nehemiah, the hands of the people were strengthened. With those funds as seed money, they went back to work. The people also sacrificed their own money to multiply our donation. Then they appealed to others to come and join them in completing the church, so the students could worship God along with their families. Swiftly they put a roof on the church.
God was strategic in all this, as He always is. He wanted me to be encouraged with this small project so that I wouldn’t be so intimidated by the larger project of building two schools in the bush.
Going back again to my church and elders, I encouraged them.
“God has blessed
us to help put a roof on this church in Zimbabwe. Now let’s build these two schools out in the bush.”
They responded again with concern. “It is a difficult time! Many of us are out of work. There are people struggling just to keep food on their tables and their kids cared for. How are we going to do such a thing?”
Despite their objections, we prayed seeking the Lord for wisdom. Again, God moved the hearts of the elders and leaders in my church. They told me, “We honestly have no idea how we’re going to do such a thing, but let’s sacrifice what we have.”
And so, we all began going through our homes and coming up with things that we didn’t need. We had sale after sale, selling off unneeded items. After many, many months, we only had a few thousand dollars saved up. It was a little discouraging because I knew we needed hundreds of thousands of dollars.
“How is this small amount going to help?” we all wondered. But we offered what we had to God, and we continued to sacrifice the little that we had, and God heard our prayers.
One day, as I boarded a plane on my way back home to California, I recognized a businessman that I
had known from my childhood. Oddly enough, even though he was sitting in first
class and I in coach class, he got up and came back and sat down beside me. Silently I prayed, “Oh God, this must be my answer to prayer. You’re
bringing me someone who could easily help finance this first school
out in the bush!”
As the rest of the passengers continued boarding the airplane, this man and I began to talk. Soon the passenger who was booked to sit beside me came. Immediately the businessman told him, “If you don’t mind, please take my first-class seat. I need to sit beside this gentleman.” Of course, the passenger didn’t mind the free upgrade, and my friend and I continued talking.
Listen & Care for Him
During my entire flight home to California that day, this man sat beside me. Oh, how I wanted to tell him about how we were building two schools in northern Zambia. But the Spirit of God held me in check. “Don, just listen and care for him, and only say something about Zambia if he asks about what’s going on in your life.”
The entire flight, he talked, and I listened. When he asked questions, I answered by opening my Bible and sharing timely wisdom. My entire focus was on caring for what was on his heart.
Just five minutes before we were to land, he finally asked, “Is there anything exciting going on in your life?” Oh, this was my open door! Immediately I responded with enthusiasm, “Well, actually, there is!”
Then I told him the story of the skeleton key and how God had called me to build two secondary schools right out of the bush in northern Zambia. I shared my testimony with joy. But he didn’t seem too impressed and listened quietly.
Just as we were landing, I finished sharing. He looked at me and then told me matter-of-factly, “Don, you have no business doing such a project! You have no experience in gathering and managing large amounts of funds. You certainly are not a builder and have never done any building projects. You should just focus on your ministry of helping parents disciple their children.”
When we got to our gate to disembark, he got up and walked off the plane.
“God, what was that all about?” I asked in stunned silence. “I know You must have brought me and this businessman together on the same plane. I believe this was a divine appointment. What happened?”
The still small voice of God spoke to my heart. “Don, did you do what I called you to do? Did you listen when I told you only to talk about Zambia if he asks about what’s going on in your life?”
I responded, “Yes, Lord, I did.”
Trust God
“Then let it rest with Me. I am still working when you’re not working,” God quieted my soul.
For months I heard nothing back from that businessman until one morning when I got a text from him. The same businessman who had told me I had no business building those two schools told me, “I will match what you need on your Zambia school project dollar for dollar up to $200,000.”
Instantly I responded, “Oh, praise the Lord!” I was so excited. I couldn’t stop praising God. “God, the way You work is amazing!” I prayed with joyful gratitude. So, little by little, God began to work His miracles. He added and multiplied until we had enough to build the first disciple-making school, named Gibeon Secondary School, out in the bush in northern Zambia.
Time went on. We set our eyes on the second disciple-making school, to be built on land donated by a great chief from the Muchinga Province. I went to Zambia to visit the location and walk through the property. An old headman took me and some elders from a local church through the tall grass around the property. It was rugged but beautiful. The property was bordered by three streams that ran year-round. It was well watered and many hectares in size.
As we walked over the property, I prayed, “Lord, how are we going to build this second school? Now You have called me to be a full-time volunteer missionary. I am not the leader of a church anymore. How are You going to help me fund this specific project?”
The building of this second school was much more difficult. April and I gave our little amounts again and again and kept praying and crying out to God. While we couldn’t give much, God took our precious dollars and little offerings and multiplied them again and again and again.
My friends, God does mighty things when His people are willing to sacrifice! It’s so important that we give God what we have, even if it’s the size of the widow’s mite. When we give the little, He multiplies it many times.
Again, God did what seemed impossible by human standards. I knew I couldn’t do it; even our local church couldn’t do it. But God carved the second school, Elim Secondary School, right out of the bush.
I praise God for both school campuses, which are now disciple-making schools for Northern Zambia. Hundreds of students go through these schools every year. These students aren’t just getting a regular education; they are also being intentionally discipled to follow Jesus Christ and taught how to make disciples. These schools regularly send out students into the communities to teach others about Jesus.
As God blessed the discipleship training in these schools, others noticed. The government schoolteachers in the area surrounding Gibeon and Elim schools were so touched by what they saw happening on our campuses that they asked our teachers to train them how to be disciples of Jesus and how to make their students disciples for Christ.
In response to the request, both Gibeon and Elim campuses sent a teacher, along with two students, to offer Schools-in-Discipleship training for these government schoolteachers. At first, the public-school teachers were very disappointed when the students stood up to teach them how to be disciple makers of their own students. They whispered among themselves, “We thought that the teachers from Gibeon and Elim schools would be teaching us, not just mere students. How can these teenagers have anything worthwhile to teach us? What can we learn from students?”
However, as the students stood up and testified about Jesus Christ and how He transformed their lives and how He was sending them out to be teachers even while they themselves were still students, God moved on the hearts of the government schoolteachers. They recognized that the Spirit of God was speaking through these young students, and they exclaimed, “Teach us more!”
Call to Action
Oh, my friends, how my heart thrills in awe of my Creator God, when I remember how He has funded and built two secondary school campuses and then turned them into disciple-making schools for His Son Jesus. The things which are impossible with men are surely possible with God!
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman \ Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. www.lockman.org
