Show Us the Golden Harvest There

The whole team spent some time scoping out some property for the family that plans to move over there in January and begin working with the natives.

There really were kids everywhere!

Finally! They have the Bibles, loaded the truck, and went off into the bush to find the schools. (The government doesn't know where most of their school are or who the teachers or students are... They asked the mission team to take pictures and give them a report of what they found!)

And at last, the children were each handed a Bible and book about knowing God. Twenty-two thousand were passed out before the team had to come home at the beginning of December. That's a lot of seed. The boys said it was encouraging to walk through an area where they had passed out Bibles a few days earlier and see people sitting on their doorsteps reading them!

Toward Jerusalem

O Father, help lest our poor love refuse
For our beloved the life that they would choose,
And in our fear of loss for them, or pain.
Forget eternal gain.

Show us the gain, the golden harvest there
For corn of wheat that they have buried there;
Lest human love defraud them, and betray,
Teach us, O God, to pray.

Teach us to pray remembering Calvary,
For as the Master must the servant be;
We see their face set toward Jerusalem,
Let us not hinder them.

Teach us to pray; O Thou that didst not spare
Thine Own Beloved, lead us on in prayer,
Purge from the earthly, give us love Divine,
Father, like Thine, like Thine.

- Amy Carmichael

Pray the Lord Of the Harvest That He Would Send Forth Laborers

The mission team that the boys went with to Guinea Bissau planned to spend most of their five weeks over there passing out Bibles in the schools.

Instead theu spent the first two weeks meeting with governmental officials, getting all kinds of legal documents written up that will (hopefully) ensure them a continued working relationship within the schools as well as give them an opportunity to begin a school for training teachers, etc.

Transportation in Africa is always fun!

Bible study under the tree in front of their hotel

The guys spent a lot of time having Bible studies amongst themselves. And they held services every night out front at the hotel where they were staying. They said that the hotel's main income is usually from the prostitution that occurs there every day. With the gospel meetings going on in the evening, though, the boys said that the usual customers mostly decided to go elsewhere.

'Zaiah down at the port... wishing there was a way to get into the Bibles.

And they spent a lot of time trying to figure out how to get their shipping container of Bibles out of the port (the crane was broke, and when it got fixed the operator said he just didn't feel like moving the container, even if they paid him a lot of money!). God finally answered their prayers and they were able to get the container in an accessible location!

"They Have One Thing Right in Africa... Everybody Loves Children!" - Zaiah

Quinn H. attempting to take a picture... What an audience!

Abe with some random little kid...
The kids were always happy for anybody to notice them,
hold them, play with them, love on them!

'Zaiah made friends with somebody's pet monkey.
He jokingly shows the picture off as "the day I met my grandfather in Africa" (evolution!)

Abe trying to relax in the hammock with little neighborhood kids.

When I picked 'Zaiah and Abe up at the airport, of course I wanted to hear all about their impression of Guinea Bissau.
They went on and on about what a backwards country it is... how the people don't use the resources that the U.N. and various humanitarian aid places send them. Many of them live in little huts and shacks, while a spacious new apartment complex stands in town, occupied by nobody because the people can't agree on who should get to live there. It's sat there vacant for a couple of years since it was built and donated to the people. Vandals have stolen the toilets and messed up the brand new building, but nobody seems to realize what a tragedy their wasted resources are. 'Zaiah said that it is hard to even know where to start working in that country because of the corrupted government and the lack of integrity and truth from pretty much anybody.

"But," he added. "At least they have one thing right. They love children. They see the children of Guinea Bisseau as their future and their hope. Kids are everywhere, and people value them."

What a contrast to a tone that has taken over our society in recent decades. The prevailing thought that kids are expensive, difficult, and expendable... Have a couple if you want them, but a poodle or Bull Mastiff makes an acceptable substitute. And heaven help us if we should ever "punish" a woman by not allowing her to dispose of a baby she didn't want!

My old car had a bumper sticker on it that I loved.
It said, "Children... Our most precious natural resource."

The Africans may not have a lot of things right, but I'll agree with 'Zaiah. They have one thing right. Children are valuable and precious!

Updates from Africa

As many of you know, two of my brothers, Isaiah and Abraham, are currently on a missions trip in Guinea-Bissau, Africa till early December.
For those of you who know them and want to keep up with their trip, you won't find them writing long, newsy updates... But our friend, Quinn went along on this trip and has been posting updates to his blog. We are so thankful for his updates since their chances to call home are few and far between.
Check out Quinn's Blog.