Seeking lost sheep in Lesotho - the herdboys story
The Lesotho herdboys include more than 120,000 boys and men that are still to hear the gospel, making them the largest unreached group in the ‘Switzerland of Africa’. But, as John Barry reports, AIM is making a difference.
A tough start: At midnight the initiates are woken from deep sleep and immediately put under pressure. Each is told to recite, word-perfect and with the correct rhythm and intonation patterns, one song from a repertoire. Mistakes are beaten out with sticks by the initiation school teachers. These privately run initiation schools serve to reinforce traditional African beliefs and witchcraft is a common factor in their ceremonies. Naturally, graduates have a wide command of songs and stories, and the ability to compose the complex songs that faithfully convey cultural teaching for the next generation. At graduation each candidate presents his new praise song and returns to normal life – and for many men that means a return to shepherding.
Where AIM helps: AIM is reaching shepherds through Saturday literacy schools in the Mokhotlong district, run by volunteers and co-ordinated by ‘M’eMatankiso who receives a volunteer salary and travel expenses through AIM’s ‘HELP Lesotho’ project fund. This is the closest many shepherds come to church. There are 15 of these schools covering 450 students, and when students graduate they are presented with gloves, socks and a bible.
The first all-African TIMO team has recently commenced as an outreach to an unreached people group in north-east Kenya.
TIMO, Training in Ministry Outreach, has been a program of Africa Inland Mission (AIM) for more than 20 years. The two-year program is focused on a multi-cultural team being placed in an unreached area to learn culture and language, study mission and practice ministry, often leading to the planting of a new church. Generally, African team members have been added to the multi-cultural teams bringing diversity and new skills. Now, in partnership with Nigerian-based mission agency CAPRO, the first all-Africa TIMO team has commenced. This 2010 team includes six Kenyans from four tribes; a couple with four children from Rwanda; and a couple from Sudan with two children. The team leader is a Kenyan.
According to AIM TIMO leaders, this is a great step forward as we seek to partner with Africans to have Christ-centered churches among all African peoples. A TIMO representative said TIMO has been partnering with CAPRO for a good number of years already. A couple were on the Mozambique based Ndau team, a single lady on our UK team and now, another couple on the Ndengereko coastal Tanzania team.
CAPRO, also known as Calvary Ministries, is a mission organization with more than 400 missionaries already spread around the world. “One of CAPRO’s major thrusts is to mobilize the existing local churches within countries to be mission minded.
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with more than 400 missionaries already spread around the world. 
