Episode 107: Conversation with Anthony Sytsma (Part 1)
https://youtu.be/mz-nDoldcu8
Summary of This Episode
"The Bible tells us to do church discipline, but we're like, "Well, it's hard in our culture" so we don't do it. Can we actually just think about actually doing what it says? I know it's not easy, but [in Uganda] they do it and it's not easy here either, but they do it. I remember one of the best times when they announced that someone was released from church discipline. That person stood up and talked to a whole church. Everyone clapped and it was just beautiful that he had repented and changed." -Anthony Sytsma
Anthony is a missionary with Resonate Global Mission serving in Uganda, East Africa. He and his wife Sarah have been in East Africa for 10 years and he grew up in the Christian Reformed Church. Anthony felt called to become a missionary in the 10th grade and has been on a journey ever since. He now works with pastors, teaching and providing pastoral care and mentoring, as well as leading Timothy Leadership Training (TLT) and Helping Without Hurting in Africa. He believes that raising up local pastors in the church is a huge need in missions right now.
TLT is a leadership training program that uses adult education techniques to equip pastors with knowledge and understanding of the Bible, as well as practical skills such as pastoral care, stewardship, preaching, marriage and family, and more. Through his experience in Uganda, Anthony has learned the joy of getting to know God's people from different places, the riches of God's Word, and how to deal with poverty and compassion fatigue in a wise and sacrificial way.
In the CRC, we can learn from churches in Uganda about using our bodies more fully in worship, such as dancing, raising our hands, and shouting. We can also learn about being more in touch with our bodies and emotions in order to portray our worship of God more holistically. At the same time, we can learn from Ugandans about how to pray as well as how to provide support for churches and people in need.
Anthony discusses the importance of church discipline, prayer and fasting, and church planting in a culture that is different from North America. He emphasizes the need to learn from Ugandan culture and start doing church discipline, spending more time in prayer, and planting churches.
About Anthony Sytsma
"I've learned the pleasure of getting to know God's people in different places."
Anthony Sytsma and his wife Sara work for Resonate Global Mission in Uganda, where Anthony mentors and teaches pastors. He is passionate about encouraging Christians in America to listen and learn from Christians in Africa so that they can work collaboratively to reform mission and development efforts in Africa. Anthony has worked for World Renew in Uganda and Kenya. And he hosts a podcast called Meet an African Pastor.
Make sure you check out his podcast at: https://africanpastor.podbean.com/