Mutombo, Juresse Numbi
Juresse Numbi Mutombo is an international Global Mission Fellow with the United Methodist General Board of Global Ministries, engaged in a two-year term of service.
The Global Mission Fellows program takes young adults ages 20-30 out of their home environments and places them in new contexts for mission experience and service. The program has a strong emphasis on faith and justice. Global Mission Fellows become active parts of their new local communities. They connect the church in mission across cultural and geographical boundaries. They grow in personal and social holiness and become strong young leaders working to build just communities in a peaceful world.
Juresse is a lay member of Francophone United Methodist Church, Kamina, DRC, related to the North Katanga Annual Conference. He is a liturgist, choir member, youth group participant and Bible reader in his congregation. He earned a diploma/certificate in commercial computer science and a Bachelor of Science degree in economics at Africa University, Mutare, Zimbabwe.
“I was born in a Christian family,” Juresse said. “For me, it is a grace and blessing from God. I spent a significant amount of time in a Christian environment where I met Jesus.” At age 14, he started participating in church activities such as choir and youth group. “I was trained how to interpret and lead a service, sharing the word of God and learning Scriptures,” Juresse recalled.
Receiving a scholarship to attend Africa University was a special Award. “For me,” he said, “it was God’s plan because I got to discover myself and the gifts that God has put in me.Thereupon, I was an active choir member, a prayer-group leader, a liturgist in the chapel and a preacher. I was born to preach the gospel.”
As a Global Mission Fellow, Juresse is eager to go into new communities, striving to understand their challenges and assets. “This is going to help me to stand still and embrace the opportunities,” Juresse noted. “The mission is committing fellows to work in social justice. For me, it is not only working in social justice but also to fight for it for the sake of others. I would like to be somebody’s prayer response.”
He considers his own story as a testimony. “My school fees were not paid 100% by my parents,” he said, “so why can’t I stand for others? I usually do what I feel passionate about, and serving people is my passion. We cannot say we love others when we are not able to spread the love of God to others.”
Through God’s grace, Juresse has been able to put smiles on the faces of those who struggle to meet basic needs.
Juresse believes that Global Mission Fellows will prepare him for the future. “It’s new work, new opportunities,” he declared. He also looks forward to meeting new friends.
“The skills, interests and education I have acquired are not supposed to be benefited by myself alone, but others, too,” he said. “Each problem is an opportunity to create an activity. In fact, experiential education, where learning occurs through a cycle of action and reflection, seeks to achieve real objectives for the community and deeper understanding and skills for [the creator].”
One goal for Juresse is keeping his eyes open to real-world situations where he can test his understanding.
“Very few things we learn are purely theoretical with no practical application,” he said. He wants to be creative and find practical applications for the skills he learns.
“Practicing them in real-world situations,” Juresse asserts, “will embed my new skills much more effectively. It has been said that if you can’t explain it simply, you don’t understand it well enough. One of the best ways to test my understanding of a subject is to explain it to someone else. Once I am reasonably sure I have a good grasp of a subject, why not supporting others in learning it too? This can be very informal, such as helping a friend studying, or through more formal arrangements such as mentorship and peer-learning programs.
“I always remember that my goal is to break down a complicated concept and explain it in simple terms. In other words, to make something that seems difficult feel more accessible. I’ll help someone else. I will feel great about how far I have come, and they will be able to put new skills to good use.”