"So, what do you want from us?"

This question came from a Ng'atom church leader after a couple of days of . well, not grilling exactly, but some intensive questioning on their strategy of evangelistic outreach. The Ng'atom are on both sides of the Sudan-Ethiopian border and are, together with the Toposa of southern Sudan and the Turkana of northern Kenya, part of the Karamojong cluster.
Good question, I thought. OOOPS! You mean no one told you? So I said (out loud): "over a year ago, Trent and I spoke at length about the vision God's been giving each of us." (Trent Cox is another CVM missionary, partnering with SIM in Ethiopia.) "He wants to send missionaries - not muzungu/ferengi
missionaries but Ng'atom - across to Uganda. I want to train Karamojong to be missionaries reaching all the way across to Ethiopia."  What I didn't say out loud was, "I WANT RED-MEAT-EATING CHURCH PLANTERS WHO WILL GRAB THE KINGDOM OF DARKNESS BY THE THROAT AND SHAKE IT UNTIL ITS DEAD TEETH RATTLE
LOOSE IN ITS BONY HEAD! AAAAAARRRR - ARE YE WITH ME, BOYS??!!" It might have
lost something in the translation. Our translator was James, a Toposa pastor from Kapoeta, south Sudan, speaking to Ng'atom of Sudan & Ethiopia, and conversing with Jean and Martha (a Presbyterian colleague who lives near us) who use Ng'Karimojong. Nice, eh?! One of the by-products of SIL's meeting of pastoralists from the cluster was this confirmation of the member's linguistic proximity to one another. This is also yet another reminder (as if we needed another reminder) that we must make progress in language study. Learning Ng'Karamojong will open up not only the whole of Karamoja but at least three other language groups across three other nations covering more than a million lost pastoralists ("lost"? But I knew where I was the whole time - you know what
I mean). Speaking of which, I've made some progress. I was able to hear some of the conversations around me and (drum roll), I can count all the way up to 10!! So, if "Sesame Street Karamoja" ever takes off, I CAN WATCH IT WITH THE OTHER 5 YEAR OLDS! Well, progress is still progress, so you guys keep praying.