Courtesy Africa Inland Mission
...AIM’s “Team Shepherd” is serving the shepherd boys of Lesotho through the Training In Mission Outreach (TIMO) program. TIMO places a team of new missionaries under the leadership of an experienced missionary or missionary couple. While each team is different, they all share the same 12 core values, one of which is to learn the local language and culture.
Team Shepherd learned Sesotho. Lacking literacy, the Shepherds have an oral culture of songs and stories. The team wants to share stories of Jesus in this manner–a powerful witness. Along the way, there’s delightful creativity and friendship blooming in a harsh environment.
For their part, the herdboys have accepted the newcomers. They enjoy eating with them, playing games, having stick fights, shepherding herds of sheep together, and teaching the team the language.
In an AIM Facebook update, Eekhoff explains that the herdboys enjoy music and dancing. To that end, he writes, “I have a long way to go in learning the latter, but I am really excited to share music with them. One particular shepherd, Matlanya, is very skilled; and he is rarely seen roaming the highlands without his homemade 3-string. I am in the process of learning the basics of open-tuned 3-string guitar playing from Matlanya and have almost finished constructing my own. For me, sharing music with the shepherds has been a highlight of the ministry here...”
Team Shepherd learned Sesotho. Lacking literacy, the Shepherds have an oral culture of songs and stories. The team wants to share stories of Jesus in this manner–a powerful witness. Along the way, there’s delightful creativity and friendship blooming in a harsh environment.
For their part, the herdboys have accepted the newcomers. They enjoy eating with them, playing games, having stick fights, shepherding herds of sheep together, and teaching the team the language.
In an AIM Facebook update, Eekhoff explains that the herdboys enjoy music and dancing. To that end, he writes, “I have a long way to go in learning the latter, but I am really excited to share music with them. One particular shepherd, Matlanya, is very skilled; and he is rarely seen roaming the highlands without his homemade 3-string. I am in the process of learning the basics of open-tuned 3-string guitar playing from Matlanya and have almost finished constructing my own. For me, sharing music with the shepherds has been a highlight of the ministry here...”
