Missionary profile – Rosemary Athanas

By Mercy Kambura

Rosemary Athanas

Ugandan/Rwandan missionary to the Datoga People of Tanzania

On my first day on the mission field, my host cooked a newborn lamb that had been dead for a few days. Everyone waited to see if I’d eat it. I did. When it was time for bed, I was shown my sleeping quarters—a corner at the cowshed with a cowhide for a mattress and goats and chicken as roommates. They were testing me, and by the third day, I had passed the test and was accepted into the community.

I’m a missionary among the Datoga people in Tanzania, sent by my church, Tanzania Assemblies of God (TAG). I have been here for two years, and there was not a single Christian here when I came. Now, we have quite a number.

I was born in Tanzania to a Ugandan dad and a Rwandan Mom. I grew up with ‘Christian parents’ who also didn’t mind visiting the witch doctor once in a while. My nephew’s delayed development was the catapult for my salvation. When he couldn’t walk for almost two years, even after seeing witch doctor after witch doctor, my brother—a Christian—asked that I take him to a particular church for prayers.

I was his caregiver, and I obliged. A few weeks after the prayers, he started gaining milestones he had not attained before. Within a month, he was walking and fully healed. I went to search for this Jesus who had healed him. And I, too, got healed of my sickness of sin.

After my salvation, I joined the Tanzania Assemblies of God. I served as an evangelist until a missionary asked me if I had thought of becoming a missionary.

I prayed about it, and my pastor enrolled me in a missions course at East Africa School of Missions. While in a mission school, I met a young man from the Datoga tribe; I learned they were unreached. Six months after my mission training, I contacted a missionary who was reaching out to the Datoga and requested that he take me among them. I’m still spreading the Gospel here.

God has given me great grace and acceptance from the villagers. They have given me a local name and assigned me a clan. That’s a great blessing for me since many missionaries face a lot of opposition.

Many Christians don’t want to live in remote areas, but that’s where most unreached people are. We need to accept to be involved in missions. Don’t just work for God; work WITH God.

#Pray:

For the Datoga people—they strongly believe in witchcraft.
For the grace of God to abound for the new converts; they face a lot of persecution.
For the Datoga children—I have started a small church for children. We sit on the ground and under the trees. We’re trusting God for chairs or mats.
For God to keep me desiring to serve Him more and not to give up or get tired.