The Strange Ways we end Up doing Missions- Under the African Stars!

The Malian security guard comes every night to guard the house from robbers and thieves. They arrive at dark and stay until sunrise.

When I was in the town of Abengourou (Ivory Coast West Africa), it was just me and the night guard. I did not have much to do to pass the evening while in town because my friends were in the US. So when not out to the village, I was alone in the big old empty house. (It was nice and quiet). In the village there were always people around, and things to do. The evenings always passed quickly.

Anyway, I knew Nouhou from years back when I lived in Abenourou with my family. When I arrived in Ivory Coast to do village church planting work, Nouhou and I talked a lot over that month. We would order achekkie and smoked fish from a street side vendor and have a great feast while laying on a mat on the drive way. We would eat and talk about his family in Ivory Coast, and his family up north near Timbuktu, Mali.

He and his brothers were in Ivory Coast for the sole purpose of making money to send home and support their families up north in Mali, who were terribly poor. He shared about how a drought had killed many of their families cattle the year before and the family up north had nothing. He shared the frustration and discouragement he and his brothers face as they try to convince their family to leave their home and move further south away from the Malian desert, because it is simply to difficult to live there anymore. But you know how it is, how could the old people and chief and village leaders ever agree to the idea of abandoning their home?

We talked a lot about the Muslim faith, and about Jesus. The truth is he did not know much about this faith other than he needed to pray 5 times a day and celebrate Ramadan. He knew the daily rituals but did not really know why he did much of what he did as a Muslim. But I have seen that in Christians as well so I guess I can’t criticize him for that.

Together, we watched portions of the Jesus film in Jula as we ate. Over 5-6 nights scattered over the month, when I was in town, we managed to watched the whole Jesus film. Nouhou's conclusion was that Jesus was a incredibly smart and wise man. I tried to give evidence that Jesus he was more than a wise man. Nouhou told his brothers about our visits, and they invited me to sit with them at night as well. I spend 2 hours with them one evening, but I was not able to get back to them because of lack of time.

When in Town, other evenings I would came out with an arm load of bananas and oranges and we would roll out the mats and lady down under the stars and eat like pigs and talk and laugh. You know that is the part of mission work I miss so desperately. In Africa people are so open to relationships. They take time for each other. Here in Canada we have to work so hard just to try and break in to people’s lives. Often it’s just seen as an intrusion, unless they initiate it. In Africa one has greater freedom to initiate things. There are days Africa and the people’s demands can suck the life right out of you. However, there are the times when they seem so patient with us and eager to just “BE”- and BE with us.

I miss the way people smile when they hear for the first time about the love Jesus has for them. Sorry, but I have not had much opportunity to see that happen here. Maybe it’s my fault, I really don’t know. But it frustrates me to no end.

I miss being so free to talk about Christ every day. I miss being so free to spend time with people who really want to spend time. I miss hanging in the hammock at night in the village just “being” and chatting. I miss our Malian guards and the time I spent under the stars with them. I really hope to meet some of them in heaven some day. But I’m so so far away to do may part. Lord, send your Spirit to do what we feeble man can not.