The Gathering Place
We are Stan and Angie Burleson, missionaries in Lesotho, Africa, since December 2016. We have been sent by our home church, First Baptist Church, Perryton, Texas. We serve in partnership with the IMB Basotho team. Our mission is to make disciples that make disciples through the equipping and training of believers to carry the Gospel to others with the ultimate goal of the formation of healthy churches.
The past two years have been quite an adventure. Our faith has been stretched and deepened. God has accomplished what only He can. In May of 2022, our home lease was terminated due to area development. We were surprised by this, but knew God was not. With no other housing available, we fully trusted our Father and relied completely on Him to supply us with housing and a temporary place to stay. We knew God was not calling us back to the states, so we sat back and watched God work.
He was so faithful and provided us with land. It was undeveloped. A water well needed to be drilled, perimeter fencing built, plumbing and a septic tank planned, construction of a container home and guard house started, solar power secured, and connection to the Lesotho electricity grid started. We had never done anything like this in our lives, but God provided the people and the means to accomplish his will in a foreign country. The days were long and hard. Many lessons were taught in patience and endurance. Much was revealed to us about ourselves from God. Our faith grew and our relationship with Him and each other deepened in unimaginable ways throughout this whole process. God revealed His plans for ministry on the land He provided.
We named the land “The Gathering Place” (TGP). Our vision for TGP is for people to gather together, come to learn, and leave to share. God has already brought so many together in our first nine months at TGP. What a joy it has been to see God gather people unto Himself as He has been at work in the development of TGP. God has given us a vision to build a classroom on the land to gather the Basotho people together for Biblical training. Some of the ministries will include training in theological education for pastors and church leaders, Bible teaching and tutoring for local Basotho children, women’s ministry, trauma and healing groups, discipleship intensives, ministry to the local village soccer teams, and evangelism through English lessons, cooking classes, and sewing classes. We also are making plans for a block of rooms to accommodate volunteers from partnership churches, missionaries, and for Basotho coming for training or in need of a safe place for a short stay. The third building project planned is a rondavel, the traditional Basotho housing, which will provide a peaceful and restful retreat for guests serving with us or for fellow missionaries needing a break. We have sensed our Father’s direction, provision, and purposes in this God-given land overlooking a small valley leading to the Katse reservoir, above a “forest” of trees, and at the convergence of two mountain streams.
Pray with us as we begin this second phase at TGP and ministry among the Basotho. Pray for life transformation from God for the people that will spread throughout the country of Lesotho.