Title:  Wisdom

Francois Sieberhagen

Be wise in the way you act toward those who are not believers, making good use of every opportunity you have.  Colossians 4:5

During a visit to a school in Niamey, Niger I stood in awe of what Christians here had managed to do. Niger is about 99% Muslim.  In this particular school there are 500 pupils.  Only ten of these children come from Christian homes.  It is also a church school and all of the teachers are Christians.

With great compassion the headmaster shares the schools’ viewpoints in a country that challenge Christians in various ways.  This Christian school provides quality education for its pupils.  These two facts are non-negotiable, but of course this is also the kind of behaviour that one would expect from a Christian school.  Every morning a Bible lesson is presented and the children sing Christian songs before they start their day.

The parents who are unhappy with this manner of teaching are free to take their children out of the school.  The sad thing about this country is that their educational system basically has collapsed.  Parents do not have many choices when it comes to quality education.

I noticed no hint of arrogance from the principal or teachers within the school.  For them Christianity is a serious matter and expressing it is a priority.  They bring the message loud and clear without offending anyone.  There is no bigotry.

The children take part in my photo shoot with much excitement.  Many boys behave like clowns and some of the girls are shy.  I manage to take many colourful pictures of happy and playful children.

Opportunities for witness cross our paths daily.  Sometimes these opportunities come at very unlikely times.  This mean we as Christians have to be aware of these opportunities and we must be willing to witness.  We then have to act with sensitivity and wisdom.  We have to work with a soft touch.  All of this in order for the love of Jesus to be evident in our actions.

Prayer: Lord, please help me to act with wisdom today and help me to be a faithful witness when I have the opportunity.