Trip Update Three

WEDNESDAY 
LT24 DISCOVERY MISSION
Words cannot describe the love of the Nigerien people. Our experiences today began in MGD day care. There we were blessed with the opportunity to do crafts with the children and help take care of their daily needs. 

Afterward, on the way back to the LOC, we stopped in at a Sara Mission, a sewing school for women. This school's mission is to sow the word of Christ into the students while teaching the life skills of sewing and embroidering. 

After lunch we headed out to visit two schools supported by The LINK™, throughLiveTen24. 

Unlike back home, where roads are well-defined and maintained, the roads in Niger are often just tire tracks in the sand. On our way to one of the schools, we encountered one such sand trail. Our van sank right up to the chassis. 

In just a few minutes a little boy from across the street came over with a board for traction and six adult men. They took over the vehicle rescue, sent us off to walk to our destination, and delivered our truck to us about a half hour later. 

The next stop was REMAR orphanage which is self- sustaining, using solar power for electricity, drawing water from their own well and providing most of their food through amazing gardens. 

We traveled 6000 miles to one of the poorest countries in the world to see a 21st century farm...all under the guidance and care of our great God. How amazing is His love for all of His children.

CHURCH REPAIR MISSION
It is great to be serving an unshakable God. The church repair team set out this morning and arrived on site to a disturbing scene. When we opened the gates of the wall surrounding the church, we noticed some gashes in the gates. We were informed the February protesters, who burned many churches in Niger, used machetes, axes, and whatever other tools they could find to gain access to the church. Once inside the gates, we saw the true extent of the damage. The pastor's home had been destroyed and will need to be torn down and rebuilt. Inside the church, burned bible pages littered the ground. 

There were holes in the windows and roof, the purpose of which, we learned, was to fuel the fire with more oxygen. 

As we prayed with the pastor and his wife, Tommy reminded us of Genesis 50:20 "As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives."  

As those words resonated, we got right to work. With the generator running and both paint sprayers roaring, we were able to finish ahead of schedule. 

When the pastor returned and saw the church, he had the biggest smile on his face. We heard him mention that this was miracle work, We don't know if it was truly a miracle but we do know God is alive and well in Niger and these dedicated pastors and their families are living proof. Originally, we had only one church to paint on our schedule today, but obviously no one got the memo we had brought two secret weapons (Tommy and Kennie) and we were able to complete the painting of two churches.

There was a lot of laughter, a lot of ribbing, and a few tears. We count the biggest blessing of the day as being able to serve God and our brothers and sisters.

From all of us on the 79th LINK™ Mission, we want to say thank you for your support and most of all, for your prayers.