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Monday, June 30, 2008

Kansas City, My Home Of 2 Years

I packed up in the morning, and my new friend Helene came at 9 am to drive me to the airport. I was ready and all set. I was wondering whether I had made a mistake to shorten my time in Quebec, as it hadn't worked out to meet with this one guy, plus this pastor emailed me that he wanted to meet me. Had I stayed, I could have met both. It is as it is.

I said good-bye to my friend Helene, and started the US customs and immigration process that is done on the Canadian side of the border. I had to think back to Toronto in 2003, when it was the same situation, and they wouldn't let me go to Kansas City. It was pretty bad, but God used it to open the door to go to Mali. It's a long story, but you could look it up going to the email archive, looking for July 2003.

I got on the plane, flying first to Detroit, and then on to Kansas City. It's kind of lonely to arrive in a city and not be picked up by anyone. After having gone the wrong direction, I find the right baggage claim area and got my bag, and then made my way to the shuttle bus to go to the rental car agency. They have a central place with all the agencies.

This is the third time ever I've rented a car, and all three times it was in Kansas City. The first time I ended up paying double than what they'd said on the internet. Then last time, I was really happy with the agency, and the people were extra friendly. However, I went with another agency this time because it was cheaper online.

When I got there, the guy asked all kinds of questions, and in the end, wanted to force me to take an insurance that would cost a lot of money. He released me to go to another agency, and I went straight to the one from last time. The guy there was super-friendly again, and very kind to find me the best rate they had to offer. I told him it needs to be as cheap as possible, and I couldn't pay for any insurance. I got a good one. Praise God!

As I drove away on the familiar highways of Kansas City, I poured my heart out to God, telling Him He was my Insurer, and affirming that He was my Provider, however bleak our financial situation is right now. He touched my heart deeply as tears were running down my cheeks, realizing this was absolutely the truth, and that He was with me. I was overwhelmed by the goodness of my awesome God.

I enjoyed my ride from the north of Kansas City to the south where I was staying with friends of mine. When I got there, nobody was home. I called them, and made it into the house through the back door. That was a good thing, because my hosts' son only came back after midnight, and my hosts are out of town for a week.

I was gonna settle in and drive to IHOP, before getting a good night's rest, but it turned out differently. I got online and watched the Lakeland Revival and got stuck with it. I never left the house, and ended up going to bed late, taking advantage of the internet connection.

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Sunday, June 29, 2008

Alliance Et Vie

Another short night. I grabbed a quick breakfast, before we headed to church. These past few days I've come to know a good number of people from the church ALLIANCE ET VIE, and I have to say they are really wonderful people. I was looking forward to being in their church.

I wasn't prepared for a 5-hour service, though. We got there at 9:30, and they started shortly after. It's a very prophetic church, and what they do is to worship and prophesy over people during the first half hour, before they enter into "worship only", the real worship time. Many were in the front worshiping, when they started prophesying over the first person. Then, suddenly, they called on me to receive a word. I was at my seat and walked forward. Three different people then prophesied over me, and it greatly blessed me. I had tears in my eyes by the time they were done. It's all in French, and I'll need to transcribe and translate it. In any case, God had not forgotten me and was encouraging me big time.

The worship time was wonderful, as they were singing a lot of their own songs. Worship songs written in French, and it's very obvious they're not translated. I wished we could sing those in Mali! They might possibly give me the chords. In any case, I've got their CD.

Then Charlie Robinson came up to preach. He preached for over 2 hours, and it was good.

The service was over by 2:30 pm. I had been waiting all week to get to a Christian bookstore with French stuff, and went there right away. They only had a little book corner, but I saw lots and lots of books that would enrich our Christian library in Mali. If I could, I'd have bought them all! So I just looked through what we'd need most. Unfortunately there weren't any French worship CDs or DVDs. I chose a few books, including a children's Bible, and they had to check whether I could pay by credit card.

In the meantime I took the opportunity to talk to Charlie for a few minutes. Unfortunately we were interrupted and couldn't finish the conversation.

I was allowed to pay by credit card, but my card wouldn't get through. I already saw myself leaving all the stuff there.

One of the ladies I had met that week came up to me and asked where I'd be the rest of the day, because she needed to come over and see me before I leave. I said I'd be home in the evening.

One lady now said she could drive me to an ATM to withdraw money from - but would it work there? Suddenly someone decided to buy me the CD of the church worship group. Then another lady said she wanted to pay me the one French worship CD. Then they said I could have the sermon on CD for free. What I had to pay was down to a $100.

Then the lady who was gonna come by tonight came over again and asked how much money I still had to pay. I told her, exactly $100. She gasped and said that this morning God had told her to give me $100. So instead of coming over, she'd just pay my bill, and she did. Wow! I needed those books for Mali, and was ready to spend money I don't have on them. Right now, all we have are debts, and I don't like it. But when do I get a chance to buy Christian materials in French? God saw the need, and provided. Praise God!

Exploring Montreal

It was 4 pm by the time we arrived at the restaurant to have lunch. I was pretty hungry by then! And now I was in a restaurant for the first time since my departure from Mali! I chose a steak :-).

The 9 of us had a great time together. As we finished eating, some had it on their heart to show me Montreal, even though rain was on the horizon. So a few went home, and six of us started out on our tour.

We went downtown Montreal, to the harbor, where I took these pictures. The picture below shows "weird" apartment buildings that were built especially for the world EXPO in the seventies.

From their we walked into the old city, through little streets with restaurants and gift shops. Much reminded me of France or Europe. This picture shows the flag of Quebec to the right.

There was this fountain, and there were all kinds of artists, from juggler to painters.

My new friends were burning to introduce me to a local speciality called "queue de castor", which means translated "beaver tail". It is like a flat donut covered with whatever you want, in my case chocolatey nut creme. It was really good!

We got back to the car, and continued our tour in the car. We drove up on "mont royal", a mountain in the city from where you have a nice view of the city. It was raining by now, but we went up there and looked out over the lights of the city, since it was dark by then.

Suddenly I saw this animal very close to me. I was told it's a racoon, and it wouldn't hurt anyone. In fact, people were feeding them, and they came all the way eating out of their hands. It was my first time seeing racoons in reality. Though it was raining, it was fascinating.

We continued our tour, and stopped at a coffee shop for coffee and hot chocolate, before continuing on to the olypmics stadium. A very impressive structure from the eighties!

We started dropping off people, and it was time to say good-bye to everyone. In these few days, they've really become friends. We drove home, where we arrived just before midnight. Now it's after 2 am, and high time to go to bed.

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Saturday, June 28, 2008

Montreal Prophetic Conference

Over three days, and 10 meetings - that was the Montreal Prophetic Festival, which was a conference with Bobby Conner, Paul Keith Davis, and John Laframboise, organized by Charlie Robinson. It was a wonderful three days, but also a very tiring few days. The ride back and forth to the location of the conference was about an hour, and my host church was very involved in the conference with its worship team and dance team. They were the last ones out at night, and sometimes the first ones in. It meant short nights and constant tiredness for me.

The speakers were great, as was worship. It was all very much focused on Montreal and the region, but I still got something out of it. I enjoyed getting to know the people from the church here, especially during our long car rides. During break times, I usually went to the grocery store nearby to get some bread and cheese, and then just sat outside the church eating and reading a book.

These are my hosts here in Montreal. They had to work during the day meetings, but were able to join for the last day Saturday. I've really been impressed by their church, how close-knit everybody is, a real family. They are a very prophetic and art-oriented church, with a woman pastor. A unique place.

Though tired all the time, I was encouraged during the conference and thankful I participated.

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Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Day Of Rest

I got up at 7:30 am; I had slept nearly 12 hours! And I had sure needed it. I had woken up a few times during the night, and realized I had a pretty bad headache. My nose hadn't stopped running either. I felt pretty bad when I got up, and took something against the headache. I had some tea and toast, and started the day slowly. My hosts were already off to work.

I watched some local TV - interesting - and then went to my room for some rest, reading, and worship music. Around noon I got really tired again, and fell asleep. I woke up when my host came home at 2 pm. We finally met, and started talking. I got some lunch, and then she had to lie down for a nap.

My hosts don't have internet, and so I called the lady from the church here who's organized everything for me. She said she'd find out whether the church where the conference is has internet. The conference starts tonight, and I'm going with my hosts. They said we'd have to count on driving for an hour to get there.

Conference Start

We had dinner at 5 pm, and I found out that there is no internet at the church. And even now, nobody knows yet where and how I could connect.

We left at 6:15 pm to drive to the church. We were 7 people in a minivan, all people from the local church here. It did take us an hour to get there, with all the traffic. But it wasn't boring. They made me tell them my life story, how I ended up in Mali, and I gave them a short version.

Arriving at the church, it was already 7:20 or so. The service should have started at 7 pm, but hadn't yet. It wasn't that full, and some church people had reserved seats for us, thank God! So I sat in the fourth row or so. I met the church administrator for the first time, who'd organized everything for me. And then, to my greatest surprise, I met a family I know from Mali. The husband is in Mali for his job, and I know especially his wife. I had emailed them a few weeks ago, since I was told they were in Montreal now, but never had an answer. They never got them.

As the service started, I also walked up to Charlie and John, who I had both emailed repeatedly, and told them that. John said he'd never received an email from me. And Charlie said the same thing, adding he'd been having problems with his email. Bizarre, isn't it? God must have wanted me to make contact with this church here.

Worship was in English, and though it was good, I didn't really connect with God. It just showed me how much I needed God right now. John then did the first session, and it was good. He shared his story, and he did a healing part. In the end he said he wanted to pray for impartation, as he's just spent 10 days in Lakeland. So we all lined up - only about 250 people - and he prayed. The power of God touched me - how I've missed His presence! And I need so much more!

After the meeting, I talked with my friends who I know from Mali for some time. I'm gonna see them more the days to come. Then we were standing in the lobby, waiting for someone else, and Charlie's son came by. I addressed him, reminded him that we were both in Malawi in 2003, and he asked what I was doing now. He was very interested. Then John came by, and he said to grab him in the morning so we could talk. Wonderful!

We finally left there, nearly being the last ones. It was 11 pm, and it was midnight by the time we got home. Construction work on the highway caused some traffic jams that slowed us down.

Now it's time for a short night, as I have to get up early for my ride back to the conference.

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Tuesday, June 24, 2008

On To Canada

The overnight flight from Mali is crueling. You leave at 11 pm, and fly 5 hours, so it's 4 am when you arrive in Paris, yet 6 am local time. I had only an hour of sleep before they woke us up again.

We set a record for arriving early as well - a full half hour! It was 5:50 local time. My flight to Canada wasn't leaving until 1:15 pm.

So I passed through more checks and arrived at the lounge for frequent travelers. I'd have many hours to rest!

I got some breakfast, and turned on my computer. I purchased a few hours of internet, which was perfect. That way I got some stuff done, and watched the Lakeland Revival for the first time, and time went by quickly. I enjoyed it! It didn't seem so long after all!

But when I got to the gate to board the plane, we were informed that Air France personnel was striking. Our flight was delayed. Great! While waiting, the Canadian next to me started talking with me, because he recognized me from Bamako - he'd also come from there. He was from Montreal, so I tried to find out more from him. He works for some humanitarian organisation, traveling to Africa.

We finally took off with a 1-hour delay. I was shocked to see that there are still overseas planes that don't have individual screens! Great! I guessed I wouldn't watch a few good movies this time. Flight time was 7 hours.

The tiredness and sleepless night were catching up to me. Again and again I'd fall into a deep sleep for some time. But also, I had to hold tissues to my nose constantly, and it started turning red. Did I have a cold? The climat change? The plane air?

We arrived in Montreal after 3 pm local time. In Mali, it was four hours later. It took ages to get my bag, but I finally did and walked outside into the hall. There were so many people waiting there, I was wondering how I'd find Helene who was picking me up. I didn't know what she looked like, but she'd seen a picture of me.

It didn't take long for her to address me. She welcomed me warmly, and left with my bag to get the car, while I withdrew money at the ATM. She then drove me to my hosts' house, which took quite some time. I enjoyed talking to her, and finding out more about Quebec - a place I've never been to before.

My hosts were both gone. It was a public holiday in Quebec, and they were visiting with family. Helene stayed with me for some time, and we just talked and talked. I really enjoyed her company!

She finally left at 6 pm or so, and I was told my hosts would come home at around 8 pm. I took a shower. It was so wonderful! Hot water coming out of a shower! And LOTS of it too! Awesome!

And then the quietness - I loved it! I got my book out and started reading it; even on the plane I'd been thankful I had taken it along. I'm gonna finish it soon. After some time I got really tired. I wanted to wait for my hosts' return before going to bed, but it finally was after 8 pm and couldn't stay awake any more. It was midnight in Mali, and I decided to go to bed. I wrote them a little note, and went to bed at 8:15 pm.

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Monday, June 23, 2008

Last Day In Mali

I think I got everything done before leaving for my long trip. It wasn't easy though, since we had more power problems than we've had in the while. Now that it rains more, there are clouds, which means even less electricity. So today, we had no power from the panels, but only when the generator was one. So we had to have it running for longer, and pay more gas. Half an hour before leaving for the airport, as I was finishing up packing, suddenly the power went out because the generator was out of gas. What timing! It was 8 pm, and I couldn't see a thing! At this point, I didn't care any more - I'd be leaving behind this electrical mess real soon! I got my flashlight out...

Last day or not, I also had to go to Daniel's house to work on our papers. I was there for 2 hours. To my great surprise, he wasn't actually there at the appointed time, but had me wait for 45 minutes! After that, we got some work done, and I had "homework" to take home with me, that I did in the afternoon. So I was still pretty busy with all that.

Paul had his first of four days of final exams at High School. It was English today, and he said it went very well. Please pray for him until Thursday, which is his last day. Pray also for the kids, who'll be alone during the day, until he gets back from school each day.

I've told you that Emma is revamping our accounting, which is an answer to prayer. We'll have to do contracts for those working with us, and find a good system for fair salaries. The problem in Mali is that people only see the cash you put into their hands, but don't count what you spend on food, schooling, medical, etc. Taking all these into account, Seybou gets far too much money. And then I realized that Elisabeth wasn't getting any, only these services for her 5 kids, which just isn't fair, so I decided to make some changes even before leaving, until we implement Emma's system. I'm just talking about the cash given each week. Paul is done with school, and will receive more as a full-time "vice-president". I slightly reduced what Seybou gets, and also reduced what Fanta gets, and Elisabeth gets less than anybody else since she's only with us half a day right now.

I told Seybou there'd be slight changes now, and he came into my office in the afternoon to ask about them. I was already scared of him, because when he "loses it", he makes irrational unwise choices with big consequences, which he has proven a few times in the past. Thinking of Hama and Sarata, and their future, the thought of Seybou and his family leaving scares me.

So Seybou asked, and I answered. As expected, he wasn't happy. He said he can't live with a little salary like this and will leave us. I told him, when Emma comes back, everything will be settled justly. He simply rambled on and didn't hear a thing I was saying. I've tried to make him understand in the past that the food etc. also costs money, but he simply doesn't get it.

Seybou had a stone face for the rest of the day and refused talking to me. Not only that, he'd do the opposite of what I was saying on purpose.

Time was running, and I was nearly half an hour late when it was time to leave for the airport. I said good-bye to my kids and walked to the car. Seybou would drive, and Paul would also come along. I had called Emma, who is from the same ethnic group as Seybou, and who has a very calm way of dealing with people. He said he'd call Seybou later to talk to him, and recommend I'd go through with my changes.

I arrived at the car, but no Seybou. He's the only other person with a driver's license, and he knows it. He knows I don't want him to leave. He knew I had to leave for the airport, yet he wasn't there. Finally he strolled over to the car, but didn't have the key. I told him to hurry up, that I was already late, and he walked away even more slowly.

We finally left - Seybou driving, me next to him, talking with Paul in the back seat most of the time. I noticed he was going extremely slowly, so I asked him to speed up. He then drove far too fast, endangering us, and so I told him to slow down. Again, he would go extremely slow. I said something a few times, and finally I gave up. The last part of the trip, we moved VERY slowly towards the airport. Better than too fast. No point in saying something again. I was shocked, to say the least, at Seybou's childish behavior. Seybou will be 30 in July.

I said good-bye to Paul, and they had to leave right away to not get into trouble with the police.

I was sad as I left, and wanted to call Emma and let him know what the situation was with Seybou. Unfortunately I had no credit left on my phone.

Flight To Paris

I checked in, and went into the full lounge for frequent flyers. There wasn't that much time left anyway. I felt like I had accomplished everything I needed to do before leaving, and did have peace that they'd have a good summer here while I'd be gone.

Finally it was time to board the plane. The plane is close to the terminal, and they check all carry-on bags right in front of the plane before you climb up the staircase. These past few years, we'd always walk from the terminal to the line for the check. However, today there was a bus. For us? Curious, I got in. The bus then did a tight turn and stopped. It was so close, he only turned! How funny!

I had my "traditional" seat on the plane, and this time I didn't feel as tired as most of the time I leave. I watched two movies, before getting one hour of sleep.

 

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Sunday, June 22, 2008

Departure Minus 1 Day

The air is out, the balloon deflated, as we would say in German. I've spent all I had to give, and now it's time to get recharged again. So I'm looking forward to my 2-month-trip, and amazingly, even that seems tiring right now, as I look at my itinerary. But I know some wonderful things are ahead.

This past week I've gone over to Daniel's house nearly every day to work for an hour or two on our papers with him. We've made good progress, and the papers for the church will be deposited this week. He said it should only take about two weeks to get the recognition, since it's a Malian association. Once they're here, Daniel's gonna deposit the children's center papers. So by the time I get back to Mali, all the papers should be there. Daniel is gonna follow up on everything while I'm gone. I have to work with him even tomorrow, the day of my departure. My plane leaves at 11 pm.

All week I've been wanting to take pictures of the complete Ongoiba family, including the new addition. We finally did it yesterday, but the sun was rapidly disappearing. I guess better pictures will have to follow in the future.

Sarata has become such a beautiful little girl, only 3 years old. I sometimes fear for her, growing up in this environment of street children with all kinds of brokenness. She needs special protection from God.

Emmanuel left for the south of Mali today, where YWAM is doing an accounting seminar for its accountants. I was allowed to send one person there to participate, and Emma has just agreed to start working for us as an accountant, among other things. I'm very excited about that, and Emma's brain has already been working on finding the best system for salaries and pocket money etc. Thank God!

Paul's High School finals start tomorrow. It's 3 or 4 days in a row - they don't know yet. Tomorrow he has to leave the house at 5 am - poor guy! I'm paying him a taxi this week, since the school he has the exams at is a long way from here.

Today I distributed clothes to my teenage boys. In the current system, they have to wait three months before receiving the same item again, for example pants or shoes. Abdias destroys everything right away, but the others are not that much better. Today they each received 4 pieces of clothing, and were very happy. Now they should look decent for their different programs while I'm gone.

I'm gonna miss my cat, Hama, and Sarata the most. Sarata and Hama always want to be with me. Every time Sarata sees me, she runs to me, and doesn't leave my side, and Hama would too if he could. I thank God for them, and even when things are tough, and you wonder why you are here - it's been worth it just for those two, if that was all the fruit there is!

Please pray for our finances; things are not looking good, to say the least.

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Thursday, June 19, 2008

Office Work

My days have been rather quiet, doing paperwork, getting things done that have been waiting for a long time. I wanted to keep teaching my kids in the morning, but I simply didn't have anything left in me to do so. I just really need a break, and my mind is only set on getting everything ready for my departure.

I spent some time with Saloum and Fousseni, who will go to Koutiala for a 3-week evangelism camp with YWAM. We talked about some of the details, what they have to take along. I hope it will work out fine.

Abdias, Souleymane, and Sarata will do a one-week program for kids organized by the international school. Since none of the kids is going to Dio, they could do a second or even third week there, if they like it and we have the money. Right now our financial situation is extremely bleak.

In the evening, Emma and Jean came by. It was Jean's first time on our compound, and it's a shame he came when it was dark. He was still very impressed. He had some questions about what I expect of him if he helps us out, works for us.

Emma's brain has already been at work for us, thinking how to optimize our accounting, how to restructure food expenses, salaries, pocket money, etc. It all needs to be redone. He had some questions about details, and I ended up explaining everything to him, showing him how I'm doing all the accounting. It helped him big time to see how to change things.

On Sunday, he's going to Koutiala for a two-day seminar on accounting organized by YWAM. I'm thankful they let him participate, though he's not YWAM. I have good friends with YWAM.

So, a lot of good things are in the making. That's encouraging. Daniel kept working on our papers today. He called me to say it's more complicated than he thought, so he's not done yet.

Yesterday I had lunch with a friend who doesn't live in Bamako, but was here for a few days. It was good to see her and talk to her. She had just spent three months in France. He echoed what Daniel and others have said - I need people to help me out. And she emphasized that I need non-Africans to come help.

Send them, Lord!

Construction Clips

I made a few little clips that show construction work on individual buildings from the same angle from beginning to end:

Comprehensive View

Building 2 - First House - side/back view

Building 2 - First House - front view

Building 3 - Dining Hall - side/back view

Building 3 - Dining Hall - inside view

I also finished the updated version of my presentation; you can watch it on my homepage or VIDEO page.

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Tuesday, June 17, 2008

Lawyer As Consultant

This was the second day I went to Daniel's house to work on our church and children's center papers. Daniel is an old-time Christian who was still formed during better days in Mali. He's much sought after, and we thank God that he's willing to be our consultant for a year. He's charging us the minimum price, which is still a financial burden for us at this time.

Daniel loves our work, and has good instincts recognizing the situation. He told me if I don't get help, I'm gonna break down sooner or later. I know he's right. He told me I need some mature Christians, but he also knows how hard those are to find.

Emmanuel and Jean came over today as well. Emma is part of the executive committee, together with me, Paul and Seybou, and so he had to sign some papers.

Jean is Emma's long-time friend. He's catholic but doesn't really know God. He's just finished his law studies and has agreed to help us out. Daniel was looking for someone he could form during his year as a consultant, so that that person can take over then. We'll see whether Jean is that person, I hope so. I hadn't seen him in two years or so. He's coming over some time this week to see our compound and we're up to.

Some news on the legal front: Our church name is still CENTRE APOSTOLIQUE MALIEN, but Daniel suggested we'd change the logo. So I split up the logo, one for CAM, and one for CAMAEI which is the name of our children's center - CENTRE APOSTOLIQUE MALIEN D'AIDE AUX ENFANTS INDIGENTS. The red cross is with the church, and the children are with the center.

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Sunday, June 15, 2008

Special Service

Today was a very special service, because we had Fanta's baby to dedicate, as well as the graduation for our Bible School.

I've been bothering Seybou for weeks so he'd tell me the baby's name. He finally explained to me that it is his father - the baby's grandfather - who has to choose a name, not him. So he had to send word to the village, and somehow hear what he's decided. He said he'd tell me this morning.

This afternoon, half an hour before needing to get ready for the service, I finally called him to tell me the name, so I could write the certificate for the baby dedication. He said his name was Oumar. Then I asked him what his second name - his Christian name - would be. To my great surprise, he told me to choose that name myself. I had told him to pray about it and ask God what it was. Now the ball was in my court, and I only had half an hour! I would have liked to spend more time before God and find out what name He has chosen for him.

I sat down at the computer, and discovered that Oumar means "eloquent" and "speaker". I then prayerfully picked out a few names, always looking at the meaning as well, and finally narrowed it down to Jonathan. It means "gift from God". So, may I introduce to you:

Oumar Jonathan Ongoiba. His Mom Fanta is on the left, and the Albino lady is Elisabeth, her best friend, and the one who's been at her side since the birth. Both ladies cook for all of us every day.

Baby Dedication

As always, only the neighbors' kids were there when we started the service. What was different from usual was that Seybou wasn't back yet, and a goat was occupying our unfinished dining hall. The big celebration for the baby is tomorrow.

Unfortunately Firmin didn't show up for the service, though he told me yesterday that he would start working with Hama again Monday. Too bad he missed it all today.

So Paul led Bambara worship with Souleymane helping him out. Saloum played the drum set, and Abdias and Fousseni each played a Malian drum. While they were praising God, more and more people showed up; including the two other graduates from Bible School. Annie came with her whole family.

Then I did 4 (usually 3) worship songs in French, and a few people entered in with me. I then welcomed everyone, and it was Saloum's turn to do the offering. This was the first time I had given him a task like this. Saloum now is 18, and I have a few months to transition him from a child to a team member. This was his first big assignment.

I called him up for the offering, when I was informed that he hadn't prepared anything. I was disappointed. He told me later that he had told Paul in the morning already, but Paul failed to let me know. Saloum said he just hadn't find any verse on giving.

So I did the offering myself. We have this beautiful silver box a friend gave me, and everyone came up putting in their offerings, while Paul sang a song.

Then it was time for the baby dedication. Seybou was sitting all the way in the back, while Fanta was up front. After some time, I finally asked him to join Fanta in the front, since what I had to say was for them primarily, and for the others secondarily. It was an atypical sight, seeing them sit together, as they are never all together - Seybou, Fanta, and their three children.

I read from Luke 2, about Jesus being brought to the temple on the eighth day to be presented to God, and coincidentally, it was the 8th day of the baby on this earth today. I talked about the way baby Jesus grew in stature and wisdom and favor, and also talked about the parents' responsibilities.

I finally asked Seybou and Fanta to come up front with the baby. So far I had not revealed his name. Even Seybou didn't know the Christian name I had chosen. Seybou didn't want to come up front, and asked several times if he had to, the same way he hadn't wanted to sit next to his wife, but finally he came.

I asked them two questions whether they'd raise the baby up according to God's will and standards, and they both replied yes to both questions. Then I took Jonathan into my arms and started praying for him, blessing him, and dedicating him to the Lord. Then Fanta sat back down with the baby, while Seybou went back to his last row seat.

Bible School Graduation

Then it was time for the second part of today's special service - the Bible School graduation. I continued speaking from the Word of God for a while, about spiritual milk and solid food, and shared about our Bible School, and our three students. Once I got more into that, I asked Paul to sit down and asked Emmanuel to take over interpreting, which he joyfully did.

I asked whether any of them wanted to share anything, and both Hyacinthe and Paul did. Then I gave them each their grade reports for the whole five semesters, before I asked them to come up front to receive their diplomas. They all got an associate degree in Biblical studies.

After having given them their diplomas, I prayed for all three of them. Then I congratulated them a second time, and we took some pictures. They were all happy! All of them would like to continue their studies, going for a bachelor's degree next, and I'll have to see whether I can teach myself again, partnering with Faith Bible College in Kansas City. It's just a challenge time-wise.

The service was over, and people left. Seybou drove back those from our old neighborhood, and Hyacinthe wanted five minutes to talk to me before he left with Annie and her family.

I still wanted to talk to Emmanuel as well, and he and I were the only ones left. We ended up talking much longer than I had expected. And while I've been discouraged about being director of a kindergarten - because my team is young and immature - and about our need of more team members, and mature Christians at that, I was somewhat encouraged by the time Emma left.

I've known Emma since 1999, and he moved to Bamako the same time I did. He started his studies then, and he's just finished them. He should have his diploma in July. Emma has grown up in a Christian family, and has known since childhood that he is called to be a pastor. His family pressured him into studying economy, and now they're pressuring him to take certain job.

Emma has been around us little these past five years, mainly due to the pressures of his family. He's suffered a lot that way, and has therefore never entered into God's calling for his life. He loves doing ministry, and you see him come to life when he has a chance to pour out. Tonight, he showed me again how much input he has to give, what a blessing it would be to have him on board. We've talked a lot, and he said he'd slowly start telling his family that he's gonna work for us. Please pray for him that he'll have the strength to do God's will. It would not only make a huge difference for him, but also for us.

At night, there was another incident in our house again that just confirmed how much we need a father in this house. A mature Christian man. God, unite me with my husband soon, please!

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Friday, June 13, 2008

Big Dosis Of Adrenaline

I just looked where I always keep my passport, and it wasn't there. I had it with me at the police station, since they don't like other forms of ID in Mali, and remembered taking it out of my bag to put it where it belongs - and now it wasn't there. I panicked, and started looking everywhere. How could it not be there? Being a pessimist, I wondered how to travel, how to get a new one, etc., all the while asking the Lord to show me where it is.

And He did. I suddenly remembered that I had scanned it to send a copy to the Austrian consul here in Mali. It was still in the scanner! Great! Those were a few anxious minutes!

Weekly Prayer Meeting

I had rather been discouraged today, realizing how much we are in need of skilled people, of mature Christians, because I cannot do it all alone. The email from the Malian Christian lawyer said the very same thing, and he showed some empathy for our situation.

I wasn't very keen on doing tonight's prayer meeting, after the way the last one went. But Paul had told me that he had spoken to the kids after last time, since their behavior had been totally unacceptable. And so I was surprised tonight, to see that that had made a difference. Thank God!

All our three generators are in the repair shop right now, and so I've been trying to use less energy today. We've been spending lots of money on gas for the generators, but today they stayed silent. So the power will probably go off some time during the night.

The keyboard needs power, and I need light to read the music. But I asked them to leave the fans off - however, I myself couldn't stand the heat after a short while, and so we turned them on.

And tonight, to my great surprise, we really entered into God's presence. We hadn't had a meeting like this since my return from Austria, as far as I can remember. It was wonderful. Paul and two of the boys had little images from the Lord that were encouraging.

While leading worship, I remembered the video clip from Kansas City I had seen last night, and felt I needed to show them. It's from the church I was part of during my two years in KC, and where I also went to Ministry School. This video shows a 9-year-old under the power of God, praying for people:

 

I always show them videos and clips that show the power of God, to show them there is so much more in store for them, to stir the hunger in their hearts. I then said a few words about hunger, about God wanting to come down and visiting us, but it depending on us, since He responds to hunger and not need.

Time was nearly up, and so we spent some time praying for the street kids, handing out the food tonight, and the program tomorrow.

However, our car broke down once again today - same problem again - and it's in the repair shop. I was hoping Emma would come back with the Americans in time, so we could use our new car. Emma showed them around Dogonland these past three days. In the end, Paul took Fousseni, and together they went to the bus station using public transportation. It will also mean no children's program tomorrow.

By the way, it's Hama's 7th birthday tomorrow!

Ordination

Good news! I just got word from HIM - the network I'm a part of - that they have agreed to ordain me this summer. Hallelujah! The ceremony is July 30th, a day after the first board meeting of H2TNI.

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Thursday, June 12, 2008

Lawyer Coming To Help

Today Daniel came over to help us. He's a Christian lawyer, one who's solicited by everyone because of his competence. Three of his children also study law, and with the school system deteriorating, chances are they'll never be as good as Dad, but it's still encouraging to have people like them.

We didn't work that long today. He just wanted to get a better grasp of the situation, and what needs to get done. I believe he understood very well where we are at. He saw that I'm doing all the work, and that we need some competent people. He admitted himself that it's hard to find those.

He also understood well that this big vision we have, it needs a solid foundation in every way. He's gonna help us to get the legal, administrative, side up. He said he'd commit to one year of helping us, for a minimal fee. And it's up to us to find a law graduate during that time who could work for us, and who he would train. Good luck!

School For Our Teenagers

This week it was high time to continue teaching our teenagers. Their French really needs to improve dramatically, and so we're are solely focusing on that now.

Saloum - our oldest - is the most motivated. Fousseni can be motivated at times, and does take school seriously. The problems are with Abdias, who is not serious, not concentrating, and not putting any effort into school. And it's such a shame, because he's very intelligent. When I first started teaching them over two years ago, he was my best student. My guess is that the abuse he's lived through in school as a little boy is now haunting him in school.

Getting Ready For My Trip

In 11 days I'm leaving on my long trip, and so it's time to prepare. I've started printing out flyers, and I should also update my video presentation; I don't know though if I'll have time for that.

Next week, I need to work with the lawyer for two days, so we get all the paperwork done and can deposit it at the Ministry downtown before I leave.

And I still don't have any place to stay in Montreal, which is a mystery for me. I was convinced God wanted me to go there, and still am. In the end, all these troubles must be a good sign. However, it would be nice to know there is someone I could stay with. Several people are trying to help, but no success so far. In any case, I'm coming to Kansas City a few days earlier because of this. Home, sweet home - KC, I'm coming! On June 30!

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Monday, June 9, 2008

Summoned To Police Chief

We had to get up early, since it was a long drive to the police station downtown, especially during rush hour. It was the first time having the new car saved us, since we were able to go there without worrying how to get the kids to school and back, how to pick up Elisabeth and get them to the market etc.

It took us - Paul and me - about 50 minutes to get to the police station, and then we couldn't find a parking spot; cars were already parked everywhere. We were 10 minutes late, and the police chief already called Paul where we were. How remarkable in a country where punctuality is usually unknown.

Abel, the guy representing the Malian association of churches, wasn't there. I called Baba who works right there, and he came some time later. So we walked in by ourselves, and the commissaire welcomed us warmly. He then took us to the police chief.

He had a very simple office, and asked us to sit down in the chairs in front of his desk. I gave him the copy of our registration papers, and he started asking us questions. He told us that their suspicion had been child trafficking which is what they try to crack down on. They take that very seriously now, which is encouraging for me to see.

As we talked, he become more and more favorable towards us. Before long, he told us that once we've finished our building project, we should tell them so that they could send us children. He said that when they do raids on the streets, they need to put the children somewhere. He said to just tell them what ages we take - even from birth onwards since they find babies on the streets - and they'll send them to us. Wow! Baba hadn't even come in yet. When he joined us, he did speak up for us, speaking in highest tones about us. He then told us that he had been in Darfur together with the police chief, so they are friends. Awesome. The chief even said he'd help us where he can. Wow.

We left there encouraged. Isn't it amazing how God turns around what the enemy means for harm, and uses it even to further His kingdom? Now they know us there, and we are in good standing with them. Praise God!

Having fasted because of this whole situation, I decided to go eat with Paul before returning home. lt was good to talk and have a nice meal.

More Interviews

In the afternoon the tiredness - all the tension etc of the last few days - hit me in such a way that I could not get any work done. Later in the afternoon, some of the Americans came over to do more interviews, this time with our children. Paul and I interpreted. It was a precious time to hear them talk.

They also saw Fanta's baby for the first time. He was sleeping when I took this picture. I'm glad Fanta is taking time to rest.

This morning, Hama didn't scream when he saw the baby, but was still wary. Later in the day, when someone carried him to the baby, he was screaming again, being totally terrified. Pray for him.

Construction Update

As you can see, they are putting up the beams, preparing everything for the roof. Tomorrow is the last day of them working, since we've run out of money. The roof needs 10 tons of cement, plus more steal, and all that costs a lot of money. Tomorrow Kossi is gonna tell me how much money we need to just put the roof up. Every time it rains - and it's raining right now - it breaks my heart as I think of the children out on the streets, wet and unable to sleep.

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Sunday, June 8, 2008

Fanta's Baby Boy Born

This morning Fanta informed her husband that the time had come. Seybou put her in the car, went to pick up Elisabeth, and then they went on to go to the clinic downtown. They got there in time.

Fanta's little baby boy was born at 10:55 am. He was 52 cm and 3250 g. He doesn't have a name yet. Seybou informed me today that his father has to choose the name. That worried me, since Seybou now is a Christian and shouldn't go down the pagan path of all that needs to be done when a baby is born. But he doesn't understand that yet, and refuses to listen. His family's power over him is very great. Please pray for protection for the child, and for Seybou to want to do this God's way.

At 3 pm - four hours after the delivery - Fanta was ready to go home. I couldn't find Seybou, and so Paul, Sarata and I got into the car to pick her up. It's quite a long ride.

We found Fanta & the baby, and Elisabeth, and I saw the baby for the first time. You can tell that he's a healthy little boy! Fanta looked tired, and sad, which is the way she looks most of the time. I asked her whether this wasn't one of the most joyous days in her life, and she said no. I said the little boy looks good, and other women around said no, to my puzzlement.

Elisabeth took the baby, and we all got into the car to drive him. Elisabeth stayed at Fanta's side, and did a little cooking for Fanta and the two little kids. It was good timing since we were all fasting today and didn't need any meals cooked. I told Fanta to get some rest, and she laid down. I then told them to not let her work tomorrow, when Seybou told me that Fanta couldn't leave her room for 7 days now - another tradition. In any case, I hope we can dedicate the baby to our one and only mighty God next Sunday.

Sarata was excited and interested in her new little brother. When we arrived home, I told Hama that his baby brother has arrived. He excitedly came towards me, and I took him inside to show him his little brother. As we came close, he suddenly started screaming from the top of his lungs. He was terrified of the baby! I had to take him out of the room! I was totally shocked! I've seen Hama scream for fear like this. We have this video made for children, with babies on it, and he'd be scared all the time, seeing those babies. If that's not spiritual, then I don't know!

Different Kind Of Sunday

We cancelled the service in the last minute. Instead, we had a family prayer and worship meeting in the evening. I think it was a good time, though the kids were so hungry because of the fast that they had a hard time concentrating on God.

Legal Help

On Saturday, a Christian Malian lawyer should have come by to help us with all the paperwork still needed - so the timing of the police incident was amazing. Instead of yesterday, Daniel came by tonight. I had met him once before, which was about two years ago, and so he was amazed when he looked at the property and the construction work. He said how visible God's hand is on all this.

We sat down and had a good time discussing everything. He said he'd help us write all the different papers, and all we need to pay is gas money for him to get to us. That's awesome! We need to get it all done before I travel in two weeks. He's also very confident that our summons to the police chief tomorrow will go well.

We now have to create two more organizations, one for the church, and one for the children's center. We will then have three registered associations in Mali, two Malian ones and one foreign one, which is the one we have right now, and which will serve as the mission that works with the church and children's center. With the way things have been going, it's gonna be somewhat of a challenge to fill in the four positions with each organization.

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Saturday, June 7, 2008

Street Kid Program

Picture from May 26.

It was time for a "regular" street kid program again. Though our American visitors came, they only came as observers, and to do more filming.

We didn't have many children, because the police had done a raid at the bus station last night and put many children in prison. Still, there was a good number who came, and we had a great time together. The program went really well. I gave three mini-teachings on different subjects, and we did a few different games. Time passed quickly, and things had gone really well.

We then had lunch together, which is a precious time, before it was time for the kids to leave.

Police Shows Up

The rest of the day is "history". To read what happened, I invite you to read my email update here.

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Friday, June 6, 2008

School At Home

It was high time to start working seriously again. What they need most of all right now is to learn French, especially to improve their writing skills. So that's what we focused on today.

Americans With Us

In the afternoon, the Americans came over to our house to do some more filming. One of them works for CBN (an American Christian TV station) and was charged to bring back good material so they can put a report together. I'll let you know when it will be aired.

At first they filmed the time of worship, Bible study and prayer that we have every morning. (They just repeated this morning's.) Right now, that is still in "Claudia unavailable" mode, with the kids taking turns in teaching. That's a great opportunity for them to get to share and develop a skill.

After they were done, I was wired to explain everything on the property to them to be filmed. Then we sat down and I was interviewed. I felt encouraged by the time the interview was done.

Daouda Leaves Us

The Americans had put all their bags into Paul's room. As Paul and the kids were rearranging the living room, one of the Americans went into that room to put something away. As he entered the room, there was Daouda, money in one hand, and one of the Americans' wallet in the other. He was caught, and no excuse stuck.

On one hand I was shocked - after just having typed out his testimony with him yesterday - on the other hand I was not surprised. He was caught stealing off the property at night more than once. A few days ago he had a fight and said it's no problem if he has to leave. Recently he's been totally unmotivated in terms of school, and I've noticed boredom and indifference when it comes to God.

So Daouda simply started packing. Having been caught stealing several times the first time, and gone to prison for it, before returning to our house, he had vowed never to do it again. But here he was. It's sad and disappointing.

Daouda packed his stuff, and we gathered around him to pray before he left. After our prayers, we said our good-byes, and he walked off our property.

Later at night, we went to the bus station to hand out food to street children and invite them to the program tomorrow, and there was Daouda. He told us he's leaving town to go to Sikasso, a town in the south of Mali. He has some family members there. Only a few days ago we found out that Daouda is not 15 years old, but 18. He's adult. May he never forget what he's lived at our house, and find a true relationship with Him.

What really amazed me was that the other boys seemed totally untouched by his departure. I brought it up in the family meeting, and they said that after what he'd done, it was only right for him to leave. That brought up the subject of Firmin. I had never explained to them yet why Firmin had to leave, and now they were open and ready to hear. So I explained it to them, and they seemed to understand.

Another one has left the house, but it felt as if our family only drew closer because of it. I love my kids, each one is precious to me. We prayed for each one before they went to bed. In the midst of all this, I had amazing peace. God is in charge of everything. I still felt sadness as I removed Daouda from the page of our kids, and looked over the kids that had been with us but are no more - Sekouba, Solomani, Eli, Abdiel - wondering where they are today and what will become of them.

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Thursday, June 5, 2008

Schools For Our Kids

This morning we took Hama and Sarata to the international school for a trial day. They wanted to have a look at Hama to see whether it would work. I was amazed how easily Hama fit in from the very beginning. He immediately loved it, and enjoyed being with the other kids. The teacher (see picture) was also wonderful with him! We dropped them off just after 8 am, and when we got there at 1:30 pm to pick them up, they were having lunch together, and Sarata and Hama were each sitting on one side of their teacher, obviously feeling "at home" already. The teacher said that it had worked wonderfully, though Hama's concentration left before the end of the day. She said it would work for him to be in the school, which was wonderful to hear.

I think it would be great for both of them to go to this school, though it's not a Christian school. They would get a great education, and in Hama's case it's the only school that would take him. The only challenge now is financial. They would get to pay only half-price as Malians with poor parents, but for this coming year, that would still be over $3000 for both - and only if we enroll them by June 20. Afterwards, the enrollment fee will be higher.

Please pray with us for God to provide if He is the one who's opened this up.

From there, we went to Hyacinthe's school, which is where all the other kids are gonna go next year. I hadn't actually been to the school yet, so it was good to see it with my own eyes. The one thing that concerned me was that I noticed the absence of older kids in lower grades. Hyacinthe said it wouldn't be a problem to put our kids into the school, but now I'm not so sure any more. Being 18 and in a class with 8-year-olds is really not fun. So let's pray for the right solution.

Construction Update

As you can see, the floor is done in the dining hall, as are the pillars. The roof is next, but we don't have enough money yet to put it up. It's rained 3 times in 4 days, and while it is a blessing in this dry country, I don't rejoice any more but can't stop thinking of the kids out in the street who cannot sleep when it rains but try to stay dry.

Today they put the AC back in my office, after it had been cleaned and the gas exchanged. I thought it would work with the generator on, but I was wrong. We simply do not have enough electricity for an AC.

Village Update

Enoch was with us. He said that LOTS of people come for his weekly teaching in Diago. He wants us to come and teach. Now that we have a second car, there is no more excuse not to. I've had it on my heart to go teach an intensive basic course. Pray we'll know what the right day is, and that I'll be able to pull away from the work in Bamako, and have the strength to do this.

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Wednesday, June 4, 2008

Huge Surprise

Seven Americans came back to Mali yesterday, and found their own way to their house. Today Seybou brought them over to our property at noon, since they wanted to do more filming. They told me they'd like me to show them around the property, and film my explanations. They said to start at the gate. One half of the gate was open.

Suddenly a car appeared, wanting to drive inside. One of the Americans was inside, and I was all puzzled. "Protestant mission" was written on the side of it, so I wondered whether a mission had lent them a car to use for their time here. And then there was a big, red bow on the hood of the car. They pulled the car inside and closed the gate. Dannie was now filming, as I was told that this was a gift from ORPHAN'S PROMISE to us. I was speechless!!!

Terry Meeuwsen (sitting on the left -picture from Aug 2007) - co-host from the 700 CLUB - heads up Orphan's Promise which is linked to CBN and Operation Blessing. She'd indicated her desire to help repeatedly, which blessed me every time, and now she had arranged for this. WOW! No more excuse for not going to the villages. No more wondering how to get kids to school when our car is in the repair shop. Now there are two of them! Praise God!

The picture on the left shows our family in front of the car, and the one on the right Ryan (the American team leader) and Saloum, with our unfinished dining hall in the back.

American School

The BAMAKO INTERNATIONAL ACADEMY does a summer school that is open to any kids, and since our oldest three do a 3-week evangelism camp with YWAM, I enrolled the two younger ones for one of those summer school weeks. The theme of their week will be animals.

As I looked at their website, I started wondering whether Sarata couldn't go to this school in fall. It's a great school, with tiny classes, good teachers, Western standards, where children really learn something. It's all in English, and since Sarata is only 3 years old, she'd pick it up easily and learn it as if it was her mother tongue. Wouldn't it be awesome for her to attend this school!

So we took her along today, as I went to look at the school and give them the papers and money for the summer school. We left Sarata with the other children, who were just on break, and she had fun. You can see her on the very left on the picture, with a tricycle. Doesn't she fit in well?

The director showed us (Seybou and me) around the school and told us more about it. This picture shows the classroom Sarata would be in.

Then I found out that they also have two handicapped children, and so I asked them whether Hama would also fit in. They told me to bring him over, and they'll have a look, but they were very confident. How exciting!

The only downside is cost - it would cost us $2000 each for them to go to school there next year, and it's even more if we enroll them after June 20. Do we have the faith to believe God for $4000 to put them into this great school? And the costs rise with each grade...

Family Time

In the evening, I finally showed my Austria pictures to my family - after all, many of the pictures I take are just for them. We sat down around the computer, and they enjoyed hearing the stories and seeing the pictures, though they didn't want to hear about the wonderful food and great mountains, without them being able to be there or eat it themselves. It was a good time we had together.

This morning, Paul did the teaching in our "chapel" time, and after that, I was totally amazed as the kids came over to me to say good-morning and hug me. Wow! What a change! However, after what happened yesterday, they're grounded for now. No leaving the property, and no video games.

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Tuesday, June 3, 2008

Disastrous Day

I'm too exhausted to write about today. In short, the kids chose to not obey and do whatever, it escalated, and they were all gonna leave together. Paul wasn't home. When he came back, he talked to them, and then they talked to me. They chose to stay.

I'm going to bed early; maybe I can write more tomorrow.

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Monday, June 2, 2008

Away

The restful night I was looking forward to didn't materialize - but it was long. For some reason I kept waking up throughout the night; I don't know why. But I got up 11 hours after having gone to bed.

Then I had breakfast with my friend. The first thing I noticed was the silence. It was so quiet! No generator, no bunch of kids. Wow.

After breakfast we sat down to talk. My friend has been in Mali for 23 years, so she has a lot of experience and insight. I was hoping to glean from her accumulated wisdom, hoping for some helpful input into all the challenges and problems I'm facing with my team/kids.

However, while I didn't get any answers, what I got was a lot of nods and understanding. I found out that they and their mission have had exactly the same problems with Malians all those years, exactly the same frustrations, and they haven't found the answers either. People's mentality here makes working together hard or impossible, and it takes a lot of time of growing in the Lord before they are able to overcome those mentality and cultural issues.

While it comforted me to know I'm not the only one facing these problems, it did not help to solve them.

After another plunge into the swimming pool, it was time to go. I called another friend of mine who was meeting with me for lunch at the nearby restaurant.

I hadn't seen that friend in over 6 months either, and so it was good to catch up. Especially since she's leaving Mali in a few weeks and might not come back.

Going Home

Seybou then came to pick me up from the restaurant, after having dropped off the kids at school for their afternoon classes. I rode home in silence with him, while he told me about another flat tire, and more money that needs to be spent. I sure am tired of spending that much money.

Back home, I received an icy welcome - or rather no welcome at all. The kids didn't return my greeting, and Paul didn't talk to me either. I was dreading our nightly family meeting, and turned out to have reason.

If eyes could kill... I asked them whether they had anything to say or discuss, but there was only silence. So I told them the program for tomorrow, which was starting school again, plus some other things. Then I got out the verse and topic we'd pray over them tonight, before Paul and I split to pray for 3 children each. After every prayer, we hug each child. Saloum - our oldest and most spiritual right now - refused to hug me. So I finally spoke up and said that if they had something against me, if they were angry with me, then they should speak up and tell me, and let's discuss it. I told them not to let the anger boil and grow and create bitterness inside of them, because it would destroy them and separate them from God. However, they did not want to listen. I had to let them go.

I expected Firmin to come to his daily session with Hama, however, he did not turn up. He had simply not told me that he had chosen not to work for me - but Paul already knew. I called him and found out that his family had put a lot of pressure on him to not work for me, since I had just sent him away. I was shocked that he had given in, since I know he loves Hama and the other boys. Firmin now lives closeby with his uncle, and working with Hama, he'd be able to do what his gifting is, and still see the boys every day. That was the whole idea. A few friends are gonna talk to him, and hopefully he'll change his mind. He'll need the money, in any case.

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Sunday, June 1, 2008

Introspection

On Sundays, I spend my day with the Lord until 3 pm, when our service starts. This morning, I did a lot of crying before the Lord, as I felt the hostility from my kids when I went ouside to get something. They gave me a list of things that bother them about me, that Firmin had written. I gave Paul Numbers 12 to read, just as a simple warning.

Once again, we are at a breaking point as a family, and once again I'm very much aware of the consequences of my decisions and the weight of it is crushing. I thought back over different situations, different people - young and old - that had come and gone, finding fault with myself in each one of them. What if I had been more like Jesus? What if I had loved more?

All I know is that I don't make these decisions lightly, which is why I wait a year (Solomani) or two (Firmin) or several years (Simeon), after having tried everything else, with no other choice left, before they need to leave our house. All I know is that I try to always hear God and do what He shows me. All I know is that I always try to do what's best for everyone.

And that must be good enough. I believe it's all God asks of me. Even when those around me disagree and blame me, I have a clear conscious having done what I felt God had shown me.

Pitiful Service

I wondered what to preach, and wasn't even very keen on preaching, but had the story of Joseph on my heart. At noon, the power went out, and nobody went to buy more gas for the generator, though they know to do so. So because of that, we didn't have any power for the service. No keyboard, no sound system.

Strangely enough, none of our regulars showed up, only neighbors' kids. Where are all those who were saved and healed?

Not today's picture.

But it might have been the best thing today, because we probably broke our record of the shortest service ever; it only took an hour. Bambara worship was pitiful, and then I did the 3 French songs a capella, and nobody sang with me but Paul, so it was rather pitiful, and then my sermon was totally unanointed. I was so glad it was over. And I was so ready to leave the compound for my night away.

However, Hyacinthe showed up with a guy from another church who also works with children. He wanted us to exchange experience and work together. I really wasn't in a mood to talk ministry, but did some polite small talk. And then Hyacinthe had the audacity to invite me to preach in another church in two weeks, which that pastor had asked him to pass on. Nothing could be furthest from my mind! I was so glad when the two left, and I packed my few little things.

Away...

I got into the car with Seybou and Paul's family who he always drives back and forth, plus a few street children that had come out of their own desire, which is great. As we pulled out of our compound, Fousseni yelled after me, "don't even come back!". It hurt. It hurts to have your family hate you.

Seybou dropped me off at my friend's house, where I'd spend the night in an airconditioned room, plus they have a swimming pool. I was glad to be there. I hadn't seen my friend since some time last year.

I jumped into the pool, and then had dinner with my friend and her guests. After the guests left, we spent a little time talking, but we were both very tired. It was only 8 pm, and I was fried! A few days ago I had looked into the mirror and seen black rings under my eyes - if that is not proof that nights are difficult in this heat.

So we both went to bed early. I had deliberately not brought my computer with me. I turned on the AC and lay down, looking forward to a long, restful night.

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