I hate goodbyes...shhhh...just go

After a long bus ride TK and I are now with the other HandsOn'ers in Niamey for debriefing. The photos provided here are ones taken with people as we were saying goodbye to them yesterday when we left our apartment in Ouaga.

This is Kader who came with our friend and language teacher Yaya on behalf of the church to say goodbye and give us a gift. I can't really talk to him that much, but I'm really encouraged by his family and the role he plays in the church.










This is Mariam, and she's a hoot. She's a Bissa woman who has been coming to literacy class. She cracks me up and all I can say is that if you know who Madea is... this is her sister. Pray for her and her family to come to know the Lord through the stories of God's word she hears at literacy.










On Sunday night, Albert performed at a Baptist Youth Conference and we got to see it all. I wish I could upload the video of all the people jumping on stage to dance- hilarious. It was hard to say goodbye to Albert and Vivian, they're great.










These are the two men that we spent the most time with in Africa- Yaya our Bissa believer friend on the right, and Adama, the one that we have asked you to pray for so much. It will be strange not seeing these guys everyday, and especially not being bossed around by Adama. Pray that the Lord will use our time with here to encourage Yaya in his faith and to bring Adama to Himself.










BYE SHAFTO'S! I'll miss each member of this family greatly. I couldn't have asked for better supervisors, and I feel like I was just a part of their family for the past four months. Fortunately, they call Wilmington home in the States, so I'll be able to see them on their next furlow. Damin zinda (another day).

Garango

We have had our trip to Garango, the town in the heart of Bissa Land, postponed twice, but this week we spent five days there. We mainly spent time resting and encouraging the few Baptist believers there. We stayed with Cesar, the pastor (and whose voice is on the tract and many audios we've been using the past four months) and his wife Awa and little girl Rebeka who are in the picture below. They are great.













I also will ask you all to pray for the family of Bernard, Ishmael, Bukari, and another family. The latter family is one whose father died several years ago. Naana, Silvie, Romeal, Gaspar, Elian, Rochelle, Esther, and three other whose names I can't remember. Romeal and Gaspar are young men. Pray that they would be serious about the Lord and emerge as leaders for their family and in the community as a witness for Christ. Also pray for the girls of the family, especially Silvie. She is the oldest and is very passionate about the Lord. She just made my heart warm. She is strong in that she is well into marrying age, but she refuses to marry anyone who is not a Protestant Christian man. This is a harder thing than it is in our society, and she is remaining faithful, so I just ask that you pray for her joy and sufficiency to be in Christ and for her to remain strong.

There are three small mountains that stand next to Garango, so one morning we climbed the top to enjoy the view around the Sahel. The dust was cleared pretty well that day, so we could see fairly far.

Other people to pray for...with a big praise

This is the Banse family. They are a Bissa family in the non-loti with whom we've been sharing alot. We've shared stories on tape, had the children over for the Jesus film, and tried to discuss some with them (though our Bissa is bad and they speak the dialect we don't know). Since our communication is not so clear, we can never really know what kind of impact we're having on people without someone to translate. On Saturday, our friend Rodolphe, a Bissa believer who is also a Banse, went with us to greet the family and talk with the boys about what we've shared with them. After speaking with the oldest son Hamado for a while, Rodophe said, and quite calmly, "Okay, he says that he is ready to pray to follow Jesus." WHAT!?! Hallelujah! So we left from there to go to the Christian bookstore downtown to buy a French Bible and also a book on following Jesus and one titled "Me, the Son of an Imam" because the Banse family is very entrenched in Islam.

Below are picture of me with the whole of the family. Hamado is the one holding the books. Pray that he would be truly good soil, that his profession of faith would be sincere, that he would read and be encouraged and filled with passion by God's word, and that he would be discipled and led to baptism and the church. Also pray that he would be an influence on the other boys of the family and the family as a whole. The boys' names are Sharif, Omar, Abdul Kaduz, and Elias. The girls' names are Acetu, Azarato, Awa, and, of course, Naana (mom) whose name I don't know because it would be inappropriate to ask. Pray that the Lord turns the family by His grace to all know and serve him.



















P.S. Notice the bunny in picture 1 and notice Naana Banse's arm around me with smile in picture 2

People to Pray for

I have already mentioned the two university English students named Lemin and Dramane that we met at School Radio. We have now met with them two times other than at school radio, and we are definitely going to meet with them once more in this last week. Every time we meet, they ask excellent questions about the faith...Jesus's identity as God and the Son of God, the relationship of faith and works, polygomy (especially if you become a Christian after multiple marriages), protection from witch doctors...

After talking to them for a while last time, we thought it was important to ask where they saw themselves with Christ- whether they had decided to follow Jesus. They stated that these are the most important things and that they cannot say they believe and then decide to turn back. So I told them how happy I was that they see the infinite significance of their decision about Jesus. But I also encouraged them to search God's word and that if they see the truth of it, to respond to the Spirit of God. Please pray for both of them, that the Spirit will indeed open their eyes to the glory of Jesus and that they would trust in him alone.










P.S. After taking this picture, Dramane looked at himself and said, "OH, I'm so blaaack."

For you, Mama

My mom, Joyce, tells me every time that I get to talk to her how much she misses me. Just to let her know that I miss her too, I thought I'd share this photo that I took for her. I'll see you soon, Mama.

P.S. this is a phone booth, convenience store, and gas station all in one...the gasoline is in the glass bottles you see

Church

I don't remember whether I've spoken a lot about church in Africa. I've fellowshipped with several churches since being here, each both unique and similar in its own way. When we are in Ouaga, we have met with a small group called Eglise Baptiste de la Grace. I've enjoyed our times meeting with them, and they have been an encouragement to me even though they are almost all Mossi, so I don't understand anything that's said. I usually just clap to the music and sing the English words if I recognize and know the song (but that's not common). If I can understand in French what passage is being preached on, I'll read along while it's preached. Otherwise, I try to look pensive and not let my mind drift away from the things of God too much. Here is a video of what music is like...




A funny story from church happened a couple of weeks ago. Because we are white men, they like to honor us by asking us to pray. I'm sure if we spoke French or Moure we would be asked to preach quiet often, too. So the other week, I could tell by Pastor Andre's (who is a somewhat awkwardly tall man who always has a giant smile on his face) looks at me that he had just announced that he'd like me to pray over the offering or sermon or ordinance, I can't remember. So, as normal, I began to pray out loud in English knowing that the Lord understands each language and the heart of every man. Now because Pastor Andre does not know English, I suppose he was just waiting for an "Amen" or something that signaled the close of my prayer. He must have confused something I said for that, because while I still had a good amount of prayin' left in me, I heard him say "Amina, barka Wendnaam (Amen, praise/bless God)." So I look up and see that he has moved on and kind of awkwardly sit back done. Some women on the other side of the room looked at me and could tell that I had not finished my prayer. They informed Pastor Andre, who looked over at me with huge eyes that showed he was pretty embarressed and didn't know whether he should let me finish or just keep going. I waved my hands and just said, "Se bon. Se fini. Barka Wendnaam (It's good. It's finished. Praise/bless God)." Fun times at church in Africa.

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

THE GOOD...

Here is some weird fruit that we don't know the name of. I didn't want to give it a chance at first, because it looks an awful lot like a fat little artichoke, and I didn't see how it could be sweet, but you know, it was pretty good.










Okay, so sodas in general are better in Africa because they are made with real sugar instead of high fructose corn syrup. It's also fun because you almost always drink out of big glass coke bottles. But the best thing I've discovered is a kinda of Fanta I had never heard of... Fanta COCKTAIL. It's really sweet, but really good and it has a little bit of thick fruit gunk at the bottom of the bottle.













La Baguette du Faso. Okay, this is the boulangerie (bread bakery) where we buy our bread. We're not huge on the baguettes, but du pain rond (the round bread) is pretty amazing, especially when warm. I will miss this place.











The best thing are the African donuts that you can buy for really cheap on the side of the road. They are so stinkin' good, and we also put sugar on top of them. I wish I could take a lifetime supply back home with me. They really can't be good for you though. We always eat them so fast that I've never managed to remember to get a picture of them before they're gone.


THE BAD...

Well, this isn't food related while all the rest are, and I had to put something down for "THE UGLY." It's pretty funny to go around and see t-shirts of American celebrities. The most famous are Alicia Keys, 50 Cent, Britney Spears, and professional wrestlers. However, I had to take a picture of this kid in his shirt. Look how sad he looks about his shirt (not really). This is what they should put on the 'Feed the Children' commercials.













THE UGLY...

So here we have roasted catepillars. Jay made me try one on the trip back from Ghana. You know, it really wasn't good at all; no matter how many people tried to say it wasn't that bad, it was. This is a plate of the catepillars that I saw a woman eating one day just like it was a salad. It doesn't taste like chicken.











Last, I really wanted to include a picture of this, but we haven't seen them since the first couple of weeks in Ouaga. Probably the ugliest of all the uglies are the fried goat heads. It might be better there's no picture for those of you with a weak stomach, but just imagine a pretty shabby looking hotdog stand with a grill out front, but instead of dogs, imagine gnarly looking skinned goat heads all fried up. Pretty disgusting.

School in Africa

We were asked by Adama to go one Saturday to be on the radio. We didn't know what to expect, but it turned out to be an English Club held on the School Radio for students learning to speak English. We are brought in as honored American guests. It's pretty funny to be there, but the Lord has shown it to be a ministry since we get to explain why we are in Burkina and because we have met two English students from the university who have wanted to meet with us to ask us questions about Jesus. They have Muslim names but they seem like they come from a Catholic background by their way of thinking. So pray for these young men, Lemin and Draman, that their inquisitiveness would yield true faith that would grow and spread into their own circles of influence, namely the children they help with English.











One day, we went with out believing Bissa friend Ahmed to the University of Ouagadougou where he is studying law. He showed us around for a while and it was exciting since we had been wondering what a university campus in Africa was like. A lot of the buildings kind of remind me of ancient near eastern ziggurats.











Another type of school that we've been involved in lately is teaching literacy to our contacts, mainly women, in the non-loti with Kathy on tuesdays and thursdays. When we are telling the Africans about it, we call it "Bissa Ecole" or Bissa School. It's amazing to be reminded that a majority of the adults in this country have never had the blessing of education, even to learn to read and write. Kathy uses these classes to help these women read, but the main purpose is so that they can read the Bible in Bissa or Moure (the language of the Mossi- the predominant people group in Ouaga). She tries to share a Bible story each class, but it has become clear that the enemy likes to cause noise and commotion during this time, and the women do not often pay attention. Pray that the storying time would be efficient each week and that the women would not only listen, but believe the truth they hear in their own language. Pray that these classes would yield a harvest of salvation among Bissa and Mossi people in the non-loti.











And now for a last school related picture... You know you're an MK (missionary kid) from Africa when you do your math homework with your pet python draped around your neck.

The weeks go by...

Well, I was told by my future brother-in-law that it's good to keep the blog posts up to date, even if nothing unusual or extremely exciting has taken place. But here are some pictures that I've taken recently. First, this is a typical African style bubu (sp?) I had made to wear to church and things. I wanted to get a pretty loud fabric since I might as well go all out, and I think I succeeded.












I thought I would show people the lovely Chaco tan that I've acquired while here, though this picture doesn't really do it justice. It would be more severe around the back straps if I didn't wear full-length pants everyday. And don't worry, I'm sportin' a great farmer's tan around the neck and arms to match.














While playing in part of a softball tournament in Niamey, TK somehow pulled a muscle in his leg that days later developed a pretty disgusting bruise across the majority of his thigh. I thought it was blogworthy, especially since it got considerably larger than even this.














Now for serious posting, I will ask that y'all pray for our friend Adama, he is a Bissa who knows English which is great for us. We have shared the Gospel with him, and he knows a lot about the Bible. However, he's stuck in a very pluralistic mindset. He loves me and TK, but I don't think it goes beyond us being his nassara friends. We've been trying to be more intentional with our conversations with him, and last night we were able to share more very clearly what we believe what was accomplished by Christ on the cross for those who believe and follow him. He seemed to really be thinking about it, which isn't usually the case. Pray that the Lord would bother his heart.

Also, I will ask that y'all would pray for something back in the States. I found out this morning that the wife of one of my closest co-workers from the summer, who just had a baby, has been diagnosed with stage 4 cancer in the hip, spine, and liver that I think may have spread to various other parts of her body. My heart is so broken for Krisit, Chuck, their boys, and their family at this time. Please pray, really pray, for miraculous healing for Kristi from the Lord. Please also pray for the Lord to grant strength and peace to Chuck and the family, the peace of Christ that surpasses all understanding as we rest in Him in all things. It is so hard to even believe that's possible in such a situation, but the Lord is eternally good.

Miss you all!

Life in Africa

Well, I just got back from my halfway point retreat in Niamey, Niger, and I thought while I was already posting I'd do another one to share some things that are a pretty common part of my life here. Above is the picture of us re-entering the Burkina border. We're chewing on some brochettes (shishkabob) of sheep (probably) which are pretty common. You can get five for about a dollar, but you have to pick the meat off of the bone, gristle, and skin that real Africans would eat.

This is our neighbor Albert (Al-bear), who is a believer, actually a Christian musician. He is Mossi, not Bissa. He is a great friend to us and takes it upon himself to visit and help us whenever he sees fit. While he is one of our closest friends in Ouaga, we don't know hardly any and his English, although increasing quickly, is not at all proficient. So we basically sit in silence or express things using basic vocabularies, hand motions, and a French-English dictionary.










Below are two little girls who live in our compound. The little one on the right is named Solen. She's such a cutie, and T.K. and I always greet her. She's shy, but we can tell she likes us because she always comes to shake our hands while looking at the ground, and when she passes by our door, we can see her looking for us through the window. One day she got brave enough to come inside and she had these strange horns in her hair.













This picture is me standing in the non-loti where T.K. and I will wonder around in the afternoons looking for Bissa to share the gospel or a story with.













And below is a picture that would totally blow me away if I saw it on an American highway. However, on an African road it is very normal to see any kind of vehicle loaded with stuff twice it's actually height on top. Usually this would include people and animals on top as well.

Ghana

Last week we returned from our two week trip to Ghana. In all, it was a very good trip, and as you can see above, it's a beautiful country. For the first week, we were joined by Jay and three men from a church in Clarkesville, TN. T.K. was in one village named Nomassom (sp?) with two of the men, and Jay and I were with another man in a village named Nagboo. The second week, T.K. and I were in our respective villages by ourselves continuing the ministry that we had begun the first. That was a difficult week, to be alone where you can't communicate very well and most around you are completely lost, but it was a good time of relying on intimacy with and strength from the Lord. While in the villages we stayed with host families who provided us a place to stay and cooked for us. This is the family I stayed with; the man to my right is the head of household, and the three women holding babies are his wives. For the record, Africans do not always look this depressed. They were laughing and smiling right before this picture. They think that they should look serious and respectable in photos, and smiling is childish in their minds.











But if you give the kids a chance in front of the camera, they act a fool for you- usually striking a karate pose...























unless their teachers yell at them and tell them to look serious.













The village of Nagboo is really more of a town. Within the church, there are only two believing men, which breaks my heart. This is the building where the church meets. These men are trying, but they are not very learned in the faith and suffer persecution in the form of ridicule often. Nagboo is a very Muslim entrenched village, so when we went out to share the Gospel with people, our time often turned into answering questions about Christianity. Often it seemed like a game of let's stump the Christians. Most of these Muslims don't know anything about the Koran, and even if they did, we have nothing to fear. Nonetheless, I pray that we were able to bring to light the truth of the Gospel and put thoughts in peoples heads that the Holy Spirit will stir up. The Lord did seem to really be working in the hearts of two brothers who we gave Bibles and who saw the Jesus film. I know they have been reading and hopefully they will be pierced by the heart to receive the mercy of God in Christ. There was another man who seemed to be very interested in the message of Jesus. Please pray for all of these men, especially in light of the social and family pressures of Islam.










On a funny note, if you know me at all you know that I'm not a fan of spiders. Well, the room I stayed in while in Ghana was quite infested with them, making it quite a memorable stay. Now you may look at the photo and say, "They just look like daddy-long-legs," but the photo doesn't do them justice- they were big. The other photo is of a delicacy I was feg I believe on two occassions while in Ghana- tongue (probably of a goat or sheep).






















Last, this video shows what I experienced one evening before dinner as I was sitting quietly by myself reading in my family's compound. It was the end of Ramadan, and evidently that means girls will got from house to house singing and dancing, followed by a stampede of children. I was cornered pretty rapidly and just sat in my seat to observe until it was over.

Comes with the Territory

I thought I'd put up a quick post to let y'all know I've been under the weather with a nasty cold for the past several days. I know that it's for my good, but ask that the Lord would restore me before we leave for Ghana for two weeks on Sunday. Also ask that the Lord would bless our time there: to encourage the believers, to share the Gospel clearly, to see many come to a saving knowledge of and relationship with the Savior. Miss you all.

Ouagadougou

So we've been in Ouaga now for coming up on a month... yes, it's taken me forever to post on the blog. TK and I feel very blessed to have our apartment. We didn't really know what conditions we'd be living in for our 4+ months, and we were prepared for a hut with not power or running water. We call our place a villa basically, and though the neighborhood 3rd world in American standards, we really are living like kings here. We have power (most of the time), running water (most of the time), a fridge, stove, living room, bedroom, TOILET, SHOWER (cold showers are not all that bad after the first 10 seconds)...







































These two guys are named Joshue (Joe-sway) and Rodolphe, and they are Bissa believers who know English- praise the Lord! They are great and we had them over for some greasy American Southern cookin' last night... country fried steak, mashed potatas, gravy, fried ocra, and Kool-aid...
















This is Yaya, our Bissa language teacher. We finished class today and are getting into full-fledged ministry and evangelism. He is a believer and is very encouraging. His family is all Muslim, however, so pray that the Lord would use his witness to bring them to Himself.
















This is a picture of the mud brick shanty-town area where most of our ministry in Ouaga will take place. It's called the Non-Loti (not sure about the spelling) and it's like a labrinth. Kids are everywhere all over our neighborhood and the Non-Loti, and they like to yell out "Nassarra, Nassarra", which means white person or just "Le Blanc", which is french for white. You mainly have to ignore them for sanity's sake and to get anywhere while we ride on our bikes. Sometimes it's fun to call "Mincasida" back at them, which is Bissa for black person (especially since most of them don't know Bissa). Pray that the gospel would spread vibrantly in this area.




















Last of all, right now is "La Wakati"- rainy season. This means that riding a bike around everywhere is quite an adventure, especially if you're trying to keep your clothes at all clean...

Orientation

Hands On had a ten day orientation in Niamey, Niger to allow us to slowly step into West Africa. It was great for us to ease into everything and our orientation supervisors were so helpful.

This is Ali Mozair. My partner TK and I stayed with his family for 3 days to experience African life close up. Please pray for him, his wife, and 3 children. They are Taureg people, and Muslim. He has heard the gospel many times, so ask the Lord to soften his heart and open his eyes to its truth.





















These were some cisterns at Ali Mozair's house, and, given the cracks, they reminded TK of the broken cisterns of Jeremiah 2 (which inspired the Daniel Renstrom song we've all come to love)




















The last night in Niamey, our leaders took us all by surprise to some dunes along side the Niger River. We enjoyed a beautiful sunset and some p&w by a bonfire... very good time!

Here's Lookin' at You Kid

So, for my first post, I'll briefly describe the 13 hour layover in Casablanca, Morocco...

We flew through the night and landed in Casablanca. After 2 hours of trying to claim baggage and figure out the airport, our group of 15 made our way be shuttle to a day room at a nearby hotel. From their, we took a taxi ride, six to a car (pretty standard), into the city and explored...














This picture is a cool shot of a market in Casablanca...




















The followingpictures are of a ginormous mosque on the coast in the city. It's probably one of the most beautiful and overwhelming buildings I've been to in my life. It breaks my heart that such an amazing architectural monument is dedicated to a false god and used to perpetuate a religion of lostness and dead works. Pray for the people who come here and that this building would one day be a place where believers in Christ gather to worship the true and living God.