It’s the beginning of April, and the heat is here. We had RAIN in the middle of March, and clouds hung around for weeks. Of course, the uncommon rain in March occurred on two of the few days that I was traveling, so I missed it. But, now the hot season has begun in earnest. However, it is the Sahara, and the dust has been right on cue. My cleaning habits have run into a major logical conundrum. Why wipe down the kitchen table if the same amount of dust will return in a couple of hours anyway? And, if you don’t disturb the dust it just sort of becomes a protective layer…
There is a village in Niger called Karma. The name, in case you were wondering, has nothing to do with the Asian concept of cause and consequence. But, it is a village whose leaders have been historically opposed to Christian activity in the area. Several months ago, a Christian medical team was allowed to operate a short clinic for the residents of the Karma area. The clinic went well and was pleasing to the mayor and the chief of the village. There is a mayor and a chief, who are not the same person. It is difficult to explain in Western terms what a local chief does or how he is different from a federal mayor. The best example I can think of is the Queen of England. She holds no executive power but everyone listens to the old lady wearing a crown on her head. So, in Niger, the chief has limited legal authority but everyone listens to the old man wearing a multicolored man-dress. Anyway, as a result of the clinic, relationships were developed that have lead to possibilities. I have been visiting Karma and meeting with a few men who are interesting in Christ. There is also a Nigerien man, a nurse, who travels with me to Karma and who has expressed interest in becoming a pastor. Niger’s small churches need pastors who are capable of having a second job. My hope is that there will be a small core of Christians in Karma by the end of the year. Pray for Karma.
I’ve never been a great decision maker. Second-guessing is what I do. You should play cards with me. At the moment, of course things could change, but it seems that I will be leaving Niger indefinitely in October. I would like to return to Africa at some point in the future, but there are some things that I feel I need to do, and I can’t do them from Niger. While in the States, I will be extending my education in some fashion but I’m not certain yet as to what that will be. I also look forward to spending some time with family and friends. Overall, I am about to make many major decisions and transitions, and I covet your prayers.
I recently invited some of my Nigerien friends to my house for an Easter dinner. I try to cultivate relationships with people who are either quiet Christians or who are curios non-Christians. And so, I hosted three men: an open Christian, a secret Christian, and a non-Christian. Their responses were interesting. The open Christian, who happens to work for me, ate the meal happily but stood up to leave as soon as he was finished. I informed him that I was going to read the Easter story. He smiled and sat down. As I began reading from Mark about Jesus’ last meal with the Disciples, the non-Christian fled to the porch only to return just as the resurrected Jesus was giving the Great Commission. He had eaten mushrooms for the first time which were in the sauce I had made, so perhaps he needed some air. The open Christian also missed most of the story because he, apparently, was compelled to answer his cell phone. He had, after all, heard this story many times before. Incidentally, they both came back just in time for dessert. The secret Christian, who was dressed in Arab attire with his head almost entirely wrapped in blue cloth, sat with his elbows on the table and his eyes drinking in the scenes like a second-grader listening to his teacher at story time. When I stopped, he seemed almost sad. I can only imagine that he rarely finds occasion to fully embrace the faith that he has chosen. About one percent of Niger’s population is Christian, and many of those Christians come from other countries. It can be very difficult for an individual Nigerien or American to be different, to choose Christ.
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