Imagine believing in God, but not actually trusting that what he says is true. Instead, you proclaim to believe in God, but when something bad happens, you wonder what you did wrong. Maybe you start to doubt God’s goodness and faithfulness. Maybe you start to doubt that God is sovereign over all. Maybe you start to let the doubt take over and before you know it, God is not Lord of your life. 

Does this sound familiar? This scenario is not all that uncommon in America. What do you tell someone who finds themselves in this set of circumstances? You probably tell them to run back to God, study the Bible for who God truly is, spend time in prayer, and just trust him. 

This scenario of doubting God is also not uncommon in Africa. Christians find it difficult to wholeheartedly trust in God because of a religious tradition deeply rooted in their culture–animism. Animism is the belief that “personal spiritual beings and impersonal spiritual forces have power over human affairs and that humans, consequently, must discover what beings and forces are impacting them in order to determine future action and, frequently, to manipulate their power” (Gailyn Van Rheenen). Animists do whatever they feel will appease the spirits so they will be blessed. They fear they will be cursed if they do wrong. 

These animist beliefs constantly spill over into the church and lives of Christians in Africa. How do you eliminate ideologies that have been so deeply ingrained in a culture for hundreds of years? According to Johnmichael Poulin, Regional Coordinator for Africa and South America, the answer is simple. 

Johnmichael says that the key to overcoming animism is to repeatedly share the gospel and show who God is, reminding people that we can’t do anything to earn God’s favor. Johnmichael recommends to our pastors in Africa that they should spend at least 12 weeks teaching gospel-based studies to new believers before moving on to teaching anything else.

Without a solid understanding of grace and what it means to follow Christ, it’s impossible to overcome __________.  You fill in the blank. Animism. Doubt. Fear. This is true for those of us here in America as well as our brothers and sisters in Africa. Johnmichael says, “The answer for Africa is the same answer for everyone else–it’s the gospel.”