Meet Bariki. The Tanzania Mission Team met him this summer, and this is his story as told by Tyler, one of the team leaders: Bariki went from being a Maasai warrior in a traditional Maasai tribal community, to coming to know Jesus and helping others follow Him. "My parents worshiped trees, stones, and the witch doctor. When I was in 6th grade I heard about the real God who created the world. I really liked the story of God in the Bible, I liked it more than the stories of the gods of my father," said Bariki. Bariki really felt the presence of God one day in church, "People were preaching to me you need to get saved." But he thought he was saved because he got baptized. Later Bariki met a girl who said, "do you know Jesus loves you?" Bariki responded, "Yes I know. And I love Jesus." The girl responded, "Have you made you a personal commitment? Is Jesus in your heart, and are you obeying him?" Bariki said, "I teach the bible, you cannot tell me anything, you cannot tell me anything ... you are a girl but I am a man, I am a warrior." But the girls voice kept being in Bariki's head. As he went on with his life he kept hearing this whisper, "The only place you can get peace and life is in the Lord." When he was 22 he went to church and a member of the congregation led him to a personal commitment of following Christ through prayer. For the first time he experienced the joy and presence of the Lord and truly came to know Jesus. He said when he prayed to receive Christ, when he opened his eyes everything was new. In the morning he would wake up without peace. He felt life was meaningless. He woke and felt like God saying go to church where you will get peace. And that happened and more. The testimony of God's faithfulness since is amazing! He was kicked out of his family and community, he experienced intense persecution and near death in the African wilderness. He learned to forgive and love from the heart - even the people that beat him and tried to kill him. And the man never stops smiling. His joy from the Lord is amazing and he has been a huge help to us on the trip. In all this, his entire family, brothers, mother and even father have committed their lives to following Christ and accepted persecution and exile from their community. I've learned so much from him in a short time and it convicts me and pushes me to trust a God and follow him no matter the cost. Today, Bariki pastors a church of other Maasai believers and preaches with a passion that is unmatched. His sermons are simple, they are about following Christ. He retells the stories in the bible with conviction and pushes his congregation to follow God. I felt I needed to share his story. Even though there is much more to say. -Tyler "Preaching the gospel is always about risking, it is always about taking a step of faith." -Bariki
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Amy WellnerEncouraging others to intentionally live out their God-given identity. Archives
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