We have been so concerned about the security situation that we have not written anything about our trip. Our flight from Grand Rapids to Newark N.J. was smooth and uneventful for which Gremar was particularly thankful. As you know she is not fond of challenges either on the road or in the air. For the first time we had to pay for one of two bags that were allowed to go free in the past. We had a five hour lay over so we had plenty of time to enjoy a great lunch over looking the skyline of New York City. Next, onto Frankfurt, already an eight hr. flight but we had an additional hour layover because a strong tail wind would cause us to come in too early for the allotted window for the time of arrival. We flew United / Continental, also an uneventful trip but for an international flight verily Spartan.

In Frankfurt we had a four hour layover as well. Security was tight and the airport was crowded. Our gate was closed off until one hour before the flight but all the other gates near us were open but every seat was taken. A large number of people sat on the ground looking at a couple of hundred empty chairs but they would not open it until 11:00, one hour before the flight.  Perhaps that was due to our destination, for whatever reason we’ve never experienced that at an international airport.

When we finally were on the plane ready for take off there was a delay due to weather, it was very dark and windy. We did finally take off but from the get go it was rough. The pilot seemed to be manipulating the throttles to try to smooth out our assent. The higher we went the rougher it got. This was an Airbus 300, a big airplane but the weather threw us around like the little planes I used to fly. Gremar was in a panic and the Nigerians on board started to call on Jesus out loud. At that point Gremar assumed that we were on our way to see Him. I was trying not to laugh because to me it did not seem that bad. None the less things got a little exciting. After all that it was a smooth five hour flight to Abuja.

Things went smoothly at immigration and customs, a little more security and more questions about our luggage but in the end we breezed through the gate to the van sent to pick us up. We stayed at the Paniel Apartments, very nice: air, hot water, TV, and a comfortable bed.  They allow missionaries to stay free if they have extra room. We thanked God for a good trip and a great place to stay.

The the next morning the four hour road trip to Jos was uneventful, a Nigerian Mom and her two daughters who came in from the US rode to Jos with us. We are now settled into the Mountain View Guest House. Things are very quiet in Jos and we are safe. We were able to get our TLT manuals duplicated and spiral bound. When it is safe to travel we will head out for the area where we are working. Pray for us, for the Church, and for this country.

Today four of Karo’s children came to see us. Karo and Halima were a Fulani evangelist family we worked with 20 years ago.  Karo died of TB about 15 years ago. When they were infants I had the privilege of baptizing three of the teens we saw today. God is Good!

Update:

Thank you for your concern and prayers for the situation in Nigeria.  Following a series of attacks around Christmas by Boko Haram, an Islamic extremist group based in Nigeria, President Goodluck Jonathan declared a state of emergency in portions of the four Nigerian states (including Plateau and Niger) affected by the violence.  While the government has heightened the presence of security forces in these areas, CRWM missionaries are reporting that things have remained quite calm in their areas and that people are going about their regular activities.

On January 1, the President announced the end of a fuel subsidy effective immediately that had greatly reduced the price of gasoline in Nigeria.  In the days following this announcement the cost of gasoline has more than doubled.  This dramatic increase significantly impacts the cost of other products and the general cost of living for the Nigerian people.  Some protests have been held in major cities, with a larger strike / shut down of public services in the country possible in the coming days.

CRWM is actively monitoring the situation.  All CRWM personnel are safe and well.  Please pray that these protests will not lead to further violence. Please also pray for wisdom for the government as it responds to these challenges.

Prayer Update:
Nigeria Unrest
President Goodluck Jonathan has declared a state of emergency in portions of four Nigerian states (including Plateau and Niger) following a series of attacks by Boko Haram, an Islamist extremist group, over the Christmas season.  People continue about their daily activities, albeit with an increased security presence.  Meanwhile, protests have begun across the country in response to the President’s decision to end a fuel subsidy.  Please pray that these protests will not lead to further violence and unrest.

This is a video about some of the work in Niger State, Nigeria supported by Christian Reformed World (CRWM) and by the Christian Reformed Church of Nigeria. (CRCN) We are privileged to be involved in a small way. God has called us back to Niger State This year(2012) Please pray for us, for the church, and for Nigeria. You may experience our trip with us on this Web page.

Most of this plot is destroyed, something needed to be done.

This old fence could not keep out determined hungry cattle.

We salvaged the wire from the old fence and increased the garden size by one third.

The secret for a strong fence is the corners and a wench to pull the wire tight.

Strong corners and a straight  line makes a good fence and good neighbors, in this case cow herders.

God is good all the time!

The students have a week break this coming week, but we still are holding the pastor’s and evangelist’s course this week.  It will be a nice change to have a couple of days free to do whatever, maybe even sleep in a little.  Thank you for praying for us and for the students, pray that the election will go well.

Breakfast and devotions on the veranda.

Breakfast together is the best time of the day and the coolest.

At no time are these domesticated guinea fowl fun to have around, they are noisy and persistent. If they roost in a tree near our bedroom there is no sleep that night; it’s a constant racket. Now days I guard the trees at dusk to prevent them from roosting there.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Every Thursday we have the Pastors, Evangelists and their wives  for Timothy Leadership Training. Stewardship in the morning and Biblical Preaching in the afternoon. This morning the class is divided into four groups working on different problems related to tithing in the church.

Last week was the end of term exam week.

Hezron, one of the teachers, explaining the exam in his class.

Hezron’s wife Christi explaining her exam to the students wives.

Elections are still going on, next for Governor of the state. That will the last one at this time. We thank God that it has been quiet here at Warari and at Acre. It has not been as peaceful in the larger towns and cities, continue to pray for Nigeria, for the people of Niger State, and for the church here.

During this break  we are going to try to shore up the foundation of  Matt and Laura’s house as well as sloping the ground around the house to direct the water away from the house.

We are going to give the back wall and foundation some bigger feet.

Everyone is working hard at this hottest time of the year.

Everything is done by hand. I had the easy part, I built the forms.

The finished product. We hope this stops the cracking in the walls of the back end of the house.

The next day we had our first rain of the season; our building project done on time but not under budget.

More wind than rain but it really cooled things off.

Cooler but the wind really picked up the dust and that little bit of rain did not settle very much of it.

That night we had fires all around as people burned their fields to prepare for planting.

We enjoyed the view from the front veranda. It is hard to put our experiences into words, God is working in this difficult and rugged place, life is hard but it can be good as well.  People have enough  food and enough money for the most part but there is also illness, especially among the children. A lot of  measles this year and with complications it often is a matter of life and death if treatment is not sought in time; sadly,  that is  often the case.  There is much  spiritual poverty all around us but God is at work. This week a family who moved close to Acre Bible School asked Gremar and I to come and pray for his family and his new house.  Gremar had the  opportunity to treat the new neighbor’s kids and Sunday he joined the students for worship.  Jesus is building his church and it is a privilege to be a part of it. Praise Him!

Christi with the kids.

The Sunday School kids

Monday is also a busy day, I have two classes and Gremar teaches healthy living to the women students.  Monday is also market day in Warari and we can only get there in the afternoon at the hottest time of the day.  I wish you could experience the market with us. This time I was able to take some pictures but only with permission from the persons being taken.

I bought a drinking orange from him.

I bought a nice piece already cooked and spiced.

Repairing cell phones in the market.

Dave, I thought you might appreciate his soldering irons.

A cozy little place among the trees

One wonders how bougainvillea can be so bright and fresh in 100 degree heat.

The porch is a good place to sit and work.

The yard is fenced in to keep out the cows and goats

Here many people keep cattle as well as the Fulani tribe.

Gremar, organizing her medical work.

Hard at work in the office at home.

Thankfully Gremar did not forget how to bake bread.

I started teaching on Monday; I teach two classes a day for two days and one class on Wednesdays and Fridays. Gremar is teaching Healthy Living to the student wives one day a week. Thursdays, will be spent with the pastors and evangelists and Gremar with their wives for continuing education.  We will be using the Timothy Leadership Training  material,  Biblical Preaching and Stewardship recently translated into Hausa.

This well and hand pump provides water for our compound, for the banana plot, and for the surrounding compounds.

Dormitory for the students and their families.

The class rooms at Warari Bible School.

I was talking with Pastor James Yarima this morning, every day people are turning to Christ. This fact makes the Bible School indispensable for training leaders. What a privilege to be a part of it, if only for a little while! We thank God.

First things first

Wow!  The time just flies by! Wednesday Case and I  arrived in Jos about 1130, having left Abuja at 0630, they put us up in Abuja,in a very nice apt. that a Christian business man rents out to our mission free of charge. No mosquitoes, TV, hot water what else could we wish for. The afternoon we spent getting $ exchanged, copies of passports, hearing where it would not be good area to be in  Jos and we settled in the guesthouse.  Had supper at Strydhorsts and had a great visit. Thursday we put the Hausa – English manuals together for the two  courses that we will teach here, 50 copies of each, and brought it to the AG compound where they could print it, and it would be ready by 4 PM on Fri. Well only part of it was finished and about 5 pages had turned around going from ch 1 to ch 5 then 4 etc.So we took a copy home and went there sat at 0900 to help collate it all, and the young man was terrific, and by noon we had the majority of the copies.  The rest will be coming with others on Wed. We packed and shopped and packed again and by Sat nite the pickup was fully loaded. We left this morning at 0630 and we arrived at Acre at the school at 4 PM,  We had no hassles, we chose Sun since the people that stop you for all the credentials etc are usually not there. It was a long trip, but went very well, It was 100 degrees when we arrived, and now it’s 930 PM and it’s a comfortable 84. We brought everything in the house, the students wives brought buckets of water to fill up our tank.  Case got all the solar stuff working, I cleaned the kitchen a bit, we had trouble getting the fridge working since where the gas goes in was all plugged until we found a needle to clean it out and presto, Case put it together and it is getting cooler. Many students, and of course the principal Jolly and Elizabeth , and the teacher Hezron and his wife Christy and their little boy Joshua all came to greet.  It’s good to be here, and we thank God for our good health and the opportunity to serve Him here.  Love you all so much, it’s quite nice to have internet in the house, and not have to drive 4 miles and sit in the car! Praise the Lord

We started early this morning

I have not seen a more mangled vehicle

An overload of sugarcane

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The church at Living Hope Church Camp

Our meetings where held here at the church

Living Hope Church Camp

We have been in Kyliv village for two days but with jet lag it seems like forever. We hope that tomorrow will be better in terms of sleeping and feeling rested. The food is great, not really very different except that we had pasta with a sharp cheese mix for breakfast.  Usually we have soup for lunch followed by a rice dish and hot tee, bread and cheese and some kind of baloney with almost every meal. Tonight we had potatoes for the first time and chicken. Hey, we are not suffering.

The mess hall

It is in some ways a second world country particularly away from the capital Kiev but that belies the character of the people. The Pastors are great people very friendly and open. This is obviously an eastern culture, people are very musical, out going .very expressive in speech. Every one gets to talk and not necessarily on the subject at hand. Everyone wants to talk as well.

The church service in Voronykive village. I preached a short sermon along with five pastors who also had short messages

The particapants at the conference

Our lectures and messages have been accepted well with a lot of good comments. These are very intelligent people but given the history of seventy years of oppression there was little opportunity for training yet the church survived and is now growing. Seminaries are allowed so people do have the opportunity to train more today than in the pastThey are intelligent, friendly and open and very musical.

 Yesterday we visited Kiev it is for the most part a modern city with good public transportation.

St. Andrews, Eastren Orthadox Church

Photos do not do justice to this magnificent building.

 In the village I feel very much at home; that may be our European or African background but I could see myself living here with little difficulty.