THE LIFE OF RICHARD WILLIAM MUELLER, JR.
(Continued)

Dad’s Autobiography – Chapter 14 – In Book, Page 30

The Lutheran Church of Central Africa Established in Nyasaland, Worship Services and Instruction Classes Begin, Reminiscing On Our Work And Life In Nyasaland, Relaxation, Mailing Program Flourishes

THE LUTHERAN CHURCH OF CENTRAL AFRICA ESTABLISHED IN NYASALAND

Prior to our missionary thrust into Nyasaland, a member of the Executive Committee for Central Africa, Pastor Waldemar Hoyer, joined Ray, Pastor Sauer, and me in a final exploratory trip. It was a trip we would never forget. The road was dusty and rough. The trip was long – six hundred fifty miles and two long days. In addition, we were treated to seeing a snake cross the road in front of us. It was a black mamba – with the tail on one side of the vehicle and the head, window high, on the other!

In June of 1963, plans had been finalized for our move to Nyasaland. Ray Cox and his family traveled by car. So did our two boys, Dick and Tim, – with whom the Lord had blessed us by then – and I. Irene and our three girls, Deb, Sue, and Steph, traveled by air. Steph was still in her mother’s womb after having almost been lost through a miscarriage. Consequently, our doctor ordered air travel for Irene. Irene, in her memoirs, has written about our first days in Nyasaland. Our welcome will not be forgotten.

Ray and I had planned to get our bearings in Nyasaland before beginning any kind of worship services for the public. However, when Ray and Lois entered their home in Limbe, they found a note on the kitchen sideboard. It had been written by Gordon Nelson, an official of the Peace Corps in Nyasaland. It asked us to be sure to get in touch with him as soon as we arrived. He and his family wanted to meet us and to join us in worship. Our first worship service was conducted in their home the very next Sunday.

It did not take long before the contacts we had made in Blantyre – from Lusaka – heard about our arrival – and began worshiping with us. One of those contacts was Mr. Deverson Ntambo and his family. Later Mr. Ntambo became an evangelist and, finally, a pastor in the Lutheran Church of Central Africa.

A new contact was Mr. Pearson Arthur Chafuli and his family. He came to us in 1964. Forty years later he approached us when we were invited to come to Malawi for the Fortieth Anniversary of the Lutheran Church in Malawi. He wanted his picture taken with Irene and me. In his hand he held the “like-new” Confirmation Certificate he had received thirty-eight years before. Our hearts overflowed with joy and thanksgiving. He, his wife, and his grown children were in our first Confirmation Class in Blantyre.

Soon we were off to visit the contacts we had made who were living in villages to the north of Blantyre. Our main contact was a man by the name of Cylice Bowman. He was a self-proclaimed pastor of a Bible-based church – but a church which did not proclaim God’s Word in all its truth and purity. He invited us to explain to him the teachings of the Lutheran Church – which we did with joy and great patience.

Our classes with him were conducted at the church he was serving in the village of Kanyepa, twenty miles from Blantyre. Every week-day morning we would meet with Mr. Bowman and, every morning before we would arrive, he would teach his members what we had taught him the day before. A congregation of the Lutheran Church of Central Africa was being born – through the work of the Holy Spirit. We merely brought the Word of God. God’s Word, through which the Holy Spirit works, accomplished its purpose.

Yes, we learned from Mr. Bowman that it is the Holy Spirit who works not only conversion, but also the strengthening of faith in the hearts of its hearers. We had taught Mr. Bowman Baptism on the basis of Holy Scripture. We had taught him that children are sinners and are in need of the forgiveness of sins just as much as adults. We had tried to get through to him that children should be baptized – because that is how little children receive the forgiveness of sins and the promise of eternal life. All to no avail – so it seemed to us. We were about to stop our classes with Mr. Bowman. In fact, we had decided to do that very thing while riding together on a motorcycle on our way to Kanyepa. Imagine our surprise when we arrived there and heard Mr. Bowman proclaiming infant Baptism to his people in no uncertain terms. What a lesson our Lord taught us. We sow. We water. But the Holy Spirit alone makes His Seed grow.

The following week Ray and I returned to Kanyepa to instruct Mr. Bowman further in the doctrines of the Bible. When we arrived, we found that Mr. Bowman had taken his flock down to the river to baptize little children as well as older children and adults whom he had taught. At first we were dismayed. But then we realized that we had taught Mr. Bowman what the Bible teaches. It is not the method of Baptism that saves, it is Baptism itself. Or, as Martin Luther put it, “It is certainly not the water that does such things, but God’s Word which is in and with the water and faith which trusts this Word used with the water. For without God’s Word the water is just plain water and not Baptism. But with this Word it is Baptism, that is, a gracious water of life and a washing of rebirth by the Holy Spirit.” Mr. Bowman was putting into practice that which he had been taught. The water of Baptism can be applied in many different ways.

REMINISCING ON OUR WORK AND LIFE IN NYASALAND

As the years go by – it was forty-five years ago (it is now 2008) that we lived in Nyasaland – many of the events which took place there have faded from my memory. However, this I do remember. Neither Ray nor I ever were at a loss for ways to serve our Lord and His precious souls in this new mission field.

At first, in Blantyre, we worshiped in the home of the Nelsons. However, it soon became clear that we were outgrowing their home. More and more people were learning of our presence in Nyasaland – and were coming to worship with us. We needed a larger – and more convenient place to gather together.

After some searching, we decided on renting a store on one of the side streets in Blantyre. (I do not know if that is the same place that is being used today as a bookstore.) We stocked the front part of the store with tracts and Lutheran Christian literature. The back part of the store was used to conduct Instruction Classes and Worship Services. It was here that Mr. Chafuli and his family received their instructions.

During the week, Ray and I would make our trips into the bush – to instruct Cylice Bowan and to visit contacts which had come to us through the contacts we had already made. Almost all of those trips were made on the back of a motorcycle. Most of the bush paths were too narrow for a four-wheeled vehicle. Sometimes Ray and I each had a motorcycle. However, more often than not, we rode tandem. I distinctly remember one of those times. The path was wet, too wet to hold the motorcycle steady. Off the beaten path we went, slowly sliding into the mud. We went down softly, without injury to either one of us.

That was not always the case – and not because of wet, muddy, and slippery roads. To my embarrassment – and this incident has remained with me all of these forty-five years – I damaged Ray’s newly purchased motorcycle. He had just brought it home – and I had to try it out. It was at his home – a home built at the top of a little hill. I started out at the bottom of that hill, made my way half-way up it, found I could not hold it steady, turned the handlebars – and over I went. The handlebars took the brunt of the fall. I was not hurt – but Ray had to put up with a motorcycle with bent handlebars for many months to come.

In betwixt and between our work in Blantyre and in the bush outside of Blantyre, Ray and I made trips to the north and south of our headquarters. We continued to visit those who would write to us asking us to come and visit them. As a result of these visits, preaching places were established all along the roads we traveled. They were served by lay leaders who used the Christian literature we sent them. The Word of God was taking root in the hearts of its hearers – and those roots are supporting a growing, budding, and flowering plant – a plant which has borne fruit a thousand fold in Malawi (formerly Nyasaland).

Even though Ray and I devoted ourselves to the work which our Lord had asked us to do, we did find time for some rest and relaxation. With our families, we traveled to the Zomba Plateau. This was a hill about three thousand feet above the surrounding country. I remember one of those trips in particular. Ray, who apparently is not afraid of heights, walked out to the very edge of that plateau. There was a sheer drop of three thousand feet within inches of his shoes. I could hardly bear to look.  Irene gazed in fright, too. Even though she is not afraid of heights – which I am – she was fearful for Ray. Just the thought of seeing him standing there fills me with fear and shaking limbs even today.

Another outlet for us from our daily duties was a turn around the local golf course. It was a hilly course, to say the least. One tee must have been fifty and more feet above the next hole. And, of course, there was a stream to cross. However, the most notable features of this golf course were the greens. They were sand. Before putting on them, a rake, which was part of the green equipment, was used to smooth the path to the hole. On a rainy day, the greens were fast. On a dry day, they were slow. More than once the temptation arose to use the rake to drag a furrow to the cup. We did not succumb to that temptation.

Before I forget, I must tell you that the mailing program we had begun in Lusaka, Northern Rhodesia, continued and grew to great proportions. More and more names were added as a result of the contacts we already had. The news of the Lutheran Church of Central Africa was spreading – not only through our efforts, but especially through the efforts of those who were hearing the Word of God from us. I want to emphasize this. It was early New Testament times all over again. Those who heard the Word spread that Word to those living around them. Yes, in every way we were reminded of the power of God’s Word.