some pictures for you all

camp week

Not a whole lot to say so I've just given you some pictures to enjoy. This past week was camp week and this year I was assigned to the junior camp with about 120 kids or so. The week was a lot of fun but of course it was tiring and energy draining. This past Sunday I preached at EBC and then I preached yesterday(8-23-09) the second part of the message. This week I will travel and be gone for about 3-4 weeks and should be back mid-late September so I've also been preparing for what I will do when I visit the place I am going. So, with camp week, back-to-back preaching, and preparing to travel for a month all happening at the same time, I've found myself a little tired but excited about everything God is doing here in Nigeria.

Enjoy the pictures...

Pic of the week

This weeks picture(s) of the week were taken out in the bush as my pastor and I traveled interior into the bush to baptize five new believers from one of our daughter churches. The road was rough all the way into the village and one point we had to just ditch the car and trek by foot to where the believers were all waiting. It was a neat experience trekking with the believers to the water where 5 of them were going to be baptized. As we trekked we sang songs along the path and then returned to the fellowship hall for communion.

My pastor could really use a nice vehicle that would enable him to go interior to where others will not go. If this interests you let me know.

Here are some pics of the day.

picture of the "weak"

With three weeks to go before I return to the states I find myself laid up on my bed nursing a badly sprained ankle. The injury took place on Saturday afternoon while playing a game of ultimate frisbee with some Westerner's and a few of my Nigerian friends. I sprained my left ankle as I went up for a pass and came down on another player’s foot. The result was what you see here. As I lay in bed I’ve really enjoyed the time to read and just think. Injuries are tough because pf the pain and the lasting effects but I believe God uses them to slow you down and encourage a little introspection. Paul says “examine yourselves”, which, is exactly what I am trying to do.

"sermon on the mount"

This past Sunday I had the wonderful privilege of preaching at the site where our local church formerly met for fellowship. During the Jos crisis in November of 2008 the building was tore down and left in a pile of rubble. The believers at the church are strong and committed and will not de shaken. The last Sunday of every month they go up to the mountain to worship together and hear from God’s word despite the onlookers who don’t like us being there. This past week I went up to the mountain for the first time and I preached from “Yahaya sura goma sha hudu, aya shida” which of course is “John chapter fourteen verse six”. It wasn’t exactly a “sermon on the mount” but it was a sermon on a hill. I wish I had better pictures but what you see here was taken by a 10 year old boy who I taught how to take pictures. The boy just so happens to be my pastor’s son, his name is Emmanuel.

The picture of the week is in honor of the courage and determination of the believers to press on despite the fierce persecution and tribulations that the last 8 years have presented to them.

Picture of the Week-Ibraham

For those of you who remember my friend Ibraham, here is a picture of us recently. I was talking to him the other night (through a translator) and found out that he used to have a Bible but it was taken from him when he went out to farm one day. He said he would love to have another one so I asked him in which language. He said he would like one in the Hausa language. This week I will be able to present him with a Bible to replace the one that he had stolen. There are many other’s like Ibraham who hold another faith but it is my prayer that they will come to salvation. Pray along with me for Ibraham and his students. He reminds me of Nicodemus in John chapter 3 who was a teacher but still didn't know the things about Jesus Christ.

The picture of the week is of Ibraham and I sitting in front of his house...

In Nigeria, if you are a father or a mother it is common and appropriate to just call you “baba” (father) or “mama” (mother). If your child’s name is Joseph, or Stephen or Bryan then you can be called “baba Joseph, or Baba Stephen” and so on. The same works for the women. My mother can be called “mama Joseph, or Mama Julia, Valerie, etc..”. My pastor, Reverend SundayGwomna, has become a Nigerian father to me so it is fine if I refer to him as “baba”. We spend a lot of time together visiting members of our church and just talking and having a cold minerals (bottle of soda) together. He has become a great friend and source of encouragement and wisdom. He is a very busy man because he is the only pastor of our local church plus he has had a lot to deal with the last 8 years with the attacks upon our church but he has handled it all marvelously and with much love and patience. I’ve really grown to love and appreciate him and his/my “family”. The picture of the week is honor of a man that has stood strong in times of persecution and hardship and of a man who is steadfast in his walk with the Lord.

Meet my pastor, my friend, my baba…