Unlocking the
Gospel Door
With the
Key of Medicine
April 2009
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Unlocking the Gospel Door With the Key of Medicine |
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April 2009 |
Approval Received
I did not accomplish all of my goals on the just concluded outreach to Nigeria.
I had hoped to:
1) get approval from the district chief for the
donation of land and to build a clinic,
2) choose the land, and
3) begin to demarcate it with trees, walls, etc.,
Of these, only the first can be checked off. We were told by the area chief that
the district chief had given his approval as had he and the local chief! Praise
God! However, now the politicians of the area are resisting the project
questioning the area chief why he would want Christians in his villages
preaching the gospel. His reply was that his father had invited us into his
village over 10 years ago and we have been a blessing to he and his people ever
since. And if we preach the gospel, it will be a blessing to his people as
well!!! This from a young Muslim man whom we have seen grow from a teenage
leader into a mature ruler of his people. In addition, this young man told us
that if the local government would not give their approval he would go to the
state government to get the approval. He stated that he did not need us to join
him. That he would do it on his own!!! So, we are just waiting word from the
team as to the progress of these talks. Continue to agree with us in prayer for
the grace and favor of the Lord to go before this young man that the approval
will be granted and we can begin to build. If this can happen soon, I would like
to return before our usual outreach in November to check off the other 2 goals
of this trip and begin pressing forward.
Ask and Ye Shall Receive
The local chief of the village has already offered us 2 plots of land as sites
for the clinic. Both are several acres in area with one right next to the
village while the other is somewhat farther removed. The consensus among the
team and Christian villagers is to choose the land farthest from the village.
The Bible says, "ye have not because ye ask not; ask and it shall be given you".
So we are ASKING for 5 hectares (just over 12 acres) to be GIVEN to us for the
compound upon which to build and grow. I say grow because the team is already
talking that we not only need the clinic but also a school as well as a
dedicated church and of course housing quarters. Praise God! "Where there is no
vision the people perish,"
No Slippers
My main focus of this trip, of course, was to procure the land. Therefore, I did
not go prepared to minister in as many villages as we normally would. Also, the
new airline regulations concerning the number and weight of the bags that you
can check limited me as well. As usual though, I bought slippers (flip-flops)
when I got there to take to 2 of the villages that we planned to minister in.
Chaos and bedlam ensued. The villagers came through the line 2-3 three times
just for the slippers which when we realized we stopped the clinics. This made
those that had not gotten slippers angry so we tried to hand out slippers in an
orderly fashion to those who had not received them. This quickly degenerated
into pure chaos and bedlam. In one of the villages, one of our team members was
so mobbed by the people as he tried to hand out the slippers that he just gave
up the package to the mob. They in turn tussled and struggled for it until one
young man came away with it and ran off to his hut. We were told that he will
probably sell them to make a profit. In the other village, it was the same
scenario except that the chief himself tried to distribute the slippers with the
same result. Chaos! So even the chief told us that we should not give out
slippers anymore. A conclusion that we all had already come to.
No Patients
Therefore, when we went to the last village, we had nothing but medicine to give
out. "No sweets, no lotion, no slippers," is the way one lady put it. And she
could have added, No Patients. For when the villagers found out that we had no
slippers, they did not come to be seen! "Ye seek me,... because ye did eat of
the loaves and were filled." This, Jesus said to those that followed him looking
for handouts. And though the entitlement mentality can be frustrating at times,
I hold on to the belief that there will be ONE that we freely give to, even when
there is no need, who will be touched by the Spirit of God through our actions
and turn to Him for salvation.
Budget, OOOPs!
I somehow greatly under estimated the cost of this trip and still find myself
needing $2000 to finish off the expenses of this outreach. We are grateful to
all of you our partners who have helped with this need. May the Lord richly
bless you one hundred fold.
Your Servants in Christ,
Larry - Sarah