You could actually have a roomy home inside of this thing. Kyle found it on his way to the border in one of the many villages that he passed through. He told one of his WATSAN guys, Sackie, that it was as big as he is…Sackie is a small man- but nonetheless.
The pineapple to the left is a “normal” size pineapple. The one to the right is the victim of some type of nuclear experiment. We paid $1.25 (90 Liberian dollars) for this beauty. Now we just have to find a chainsaw to cut it with!
In the last week we’ve felt like a pinball machine being shot all around Liberia. Ganta to Monrovia, Ganta to some of the border villages, back to Ganta from Monrovia, back from the border villages only to turn around and go back out. We’re exhausted. Kyle especially.
The situation in Ivory Coast continues to deteriorate and it doesn’t look like our work will be letting up any time soon. UNHCR is establishing a second camp and the rumor is that there could be up to 12 camps established. The total number of refugees in Nimba could be close to 200,000 by the end of the month! We’ve definitely seen the direct effects that it is having on the clinics that we support and the water points that EQUIP is responsible for. Our facilities are stressed and resources are scarce. Please pray for us as we respond to these needs.
EQUIP has been distributing jerry cans for safe water storage among the Liberian host population and the Ivorian refugee population.
Remember the bats? Yeah, this is Frankie, aka Batman. Totally non-refugee related, but still relevant to our life in Liberia- note the sport coat he is rocking on a Monday morning- our drivers are class-eeeee
On a non-refugee note, I (Jessica) had a great time last week taking two of our Liberian staff to Monrovia to do a presentation. Genni and Lawrina are our Reproductive Health Supervisors and they work with traditional midwives in the communities surrounding our 23 health centers and clinics. They are constantly working on strategies to improve the rate at which women give birth safely in the clinic. Their success has been impressive, so impressive that the big wigs with USAID wanted to hear about it! So me and our Medical Coordinator, Kristen took them down to Monrovia to present! They did an amazing job and received extremely high praise from a very tough audience! It was a really proud moment! I wish I had pictures, but in the rush to leave I left my camera here in Ganta- boo-hiss!
So that is a brief overview of the last week- minus the giant spiders and detailed accounts of bumpy car rides and sketchy nights sleeping in illegal gold operations- wait what am I talking about? I’ll safe that for another post…if you’re lucky.
Weekly Prayer Needs:
Pray for our sanity- really it’s quite stressful right now!
Pray for Christ to overflow our hearts and out weigh our stress.
Pray for the current Franklin Graham Festival that Samaritan’s Purse is putting on across the country this month. Pray that it would be a fruitful work that leads to dedicated disciples of Christ.
Pray for rest and refreshment for our bodies, hearts and mind.
We’ve got one for you!
One of the greatest needs that we have seen here in Liberia- particularly the rural area that we live in- is the lack of access that the churches have to discipleship materials. There is no Lifeway Christian Store that pastors and church leaders can look to for access to books, curriculums, training materials. It’s hard to imagine that being the case in our American Churches. We have an over abundance of materials. Here in Liberia the materials either have to be made- which requires things like computers/printers/copiers which are expensive and subsequently require electricity (money and electricity- commodities in short supply here) or they have to be donated from outside of Liberia.
Kyle has been in touch with Desiring God- the resource ministry of Pastor/Author/Generally Awesome Guy John Piper- to arrange the shipment of a pastor’s library. My grandmother has taken it upon herself to do a collection at her church of used Sunday School materials. She’s had a really great response and the collection has spread from her Sunday School class to all of the Sunday Schools! The need is for Sunday School/discipleship/pastor’s training books and materials that are in good shape (no writing and intact) and tailored to all ages and education levels.
We spoke with the pastor that heads EQUIP’s Church Empowerment Program, Pastor John Troseh, and he was very excited and thankful for the possibility of much needed church resources making it here to Nimba County. These resources will provide foundational teaching to encourage churches all over Nimba to reject harmful (sometimes literally) traditional religious practices and cling to the truth of Scripture. What believer doesn’t want to be a part of that? What believer doesn’t want to be a part of providing life changing resources to brothers and sisters in Liberia? Resources that will encourage and strengthen the Body of Christ in Liberia ultimately encourage and strengthen the whole Body. So rummage through your shelves and find your old Sunday School quarterlies or the Teacher’s Guide from the children’s VBS you did 2 years ago and contact us to find out how you can get those materials into the hands of Liberian believers.
If you are interested in getting involved with this project please contact Kyle and I either through the comments here or via email for more information.
