A young Karamojong man wears his traditional tribal attire with body markings. The Lanes and the Echelon Team have a vision to share the Good News of Jesus with the Nilotic people of East Africa, including the Karamojong — fierce tribes of semi-nomadic warriors who earn their living as cattle herders. Photo by Joann Bradberry/IMB
Moving to South Sudan, a war ground of turmoil and strife in northeast Africa, has been a major risk for Robert and Maridith Lane, even to the point that the IMB missionaries call in daily to assure their teammates in Uganda that their family is still alive.
Since age 8, Maridith, a Georgia native, knew she would one day lead a life surrendered to Christ on the mission field. Robert, from Texas and Tennessee, found his calling at age 19, when he became aware of the startling amount of unreached people groups, which now number more than 6,500. By 21, he was committed to reaching the unreached with the Gospel overseas.
“I thought maybe there’s a chance that I can go and in some way make Christ’s name accessible to the people who have not been able to hear it,” Robert said.
When the Lanes visited South Sudan in 2010, their hearts became burdened for the unreached peoples of the nation. There are more than 400,000 people unreached by the Gospel in South Sudan, which became independent of Sudan in 2011.
The Lanes’ journey began with two years of preparation in neighboring Uganda, where they lived among the Karamojong people. Gunshot echoes and cattle raids were common, but the couple also learned about other realities, such as cooking from scratch with local ingredients and learning which Gospel-sharing methods work best with cattle-culture people groups.
In November 2013, they moved to South Sudan. Now, they are learning to live a life more difficult than they ever experienced. They see it as a risk worth taking if it means following God in obedience to reach out to the Dinka Rek people group, numbering nearly 3 million.
“We need to be ready for those hardships, ready for those difficulties, ready to be used as a sacrifice for Christ as we try to make His name famous,” Robert explained.
The Lanes, along with their teammates Selvin and Laurel Jeremiadoss, attend language classes five days a week and immerse themselves into the culture every day, building relationships with tutors, neighbors and local church leaders.
The Lanes admit life is not easy in South Sudan because of the hot climate, political conflict, water scarcity and high food prices. Raising their 2-year-old son, Shepherd, in such an environment takes a lot of prayer and a strong marriage, Robert said.
“It’s a challenge to live and work in a country where even the local people find it at times too difficult … and move away,” he said.
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SOURCE: Baptist Press
Stephanie Lane
