We’re home from Gao, Mali, where we had a wonderful time ministering with people from our home church to help build a church building for the people there. The Pastor grew up in Gao and has a good ministry with the people, especially the Taureg and Songhai. We were blessed by the warm receptions from these believers, and of their genuine love for the Lord.
While Bob worked on the building with the other team members, I worked with another lady in the team to prepare breakfasts and suppers. Lunches were provided by the ladies of the church. We were also both involved in running others around from place to place in the vehicle that God recently provided for us. Since most of you know that I’m not especially blessed with culinary skills, the new church cookbook that arrived with our team was very much appreciated! The Pastor’s wife helped with the daily marketing, since shopping involves much more than running to the local IGA.
We were very much aware of the prayers of God’s people during this trip in so many ways, but the 24-hour trip to Gao (because of complications with the vehicle of the other missionary with whom we were caravanning) and the 18-hour return trip left us in quiet awe about our God. Because we’d heard so many missionary stories about all that can go wrong, we almost didn’t make the trip. However, we felt strongly that we needed to be a part of this team, and decided to set aside our ‘paranoia’ and go with God. The return trip especially seemed as if we were being led by angels who were going before us. Nowhere were we asked for ‘extra fees’; at all checkpoints we were waved through without questioning; and at the borders, we were able to communicate even with our limited French, and we were processed quickly and sent on our way. Our God-given vehicle made the trip without any complications, not even flat tires (one missionary had 7 flat tires when making this trip). There’s just one problem – we don’t have any ‘horror stories’ to share.
Thank you for praying. We wanted you to know how God answered your prayers without waiting for next Wednesday’s update.