To be human is to hope, to set one's heart and mind on an outcome and to desire with all that I am to see it come to pass.
It doesn't take long for us to learn to hope. I ran into the Mom of one of my first graders from last year who told me that her son, all of seven year's old, has been shedding tears. He loves Sahel and he had hoped to be there again this year. He is grieving the loss of that dream because he knows Sahel is damaged by flood waters. His five year old sister, an incoming kindergartner, is sad too because she's been looking forward to being at Sahel with him.
On the other end of the spectrum, I think of one of my former first graders, now a senior, hoping to get a scholarship to play softball in college. She had been diligently practicing and working out all summer on our softball field. What will happen to that dream now that our softball field is underwater?
It's a death. It's a death of the hopes and expectations of almost every student and staff member at Sahel. It's hard and we are grieving it.
Paul's words in 2 Corinthians1:9 resonate. "Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death." But then, they go on to remind us of a glorious truth. "But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God who raises the dead."
This school, this ministry currently underwater, belongs to God, who raises the dead. Just like Paul said in verse 10, we, too, can say, "He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us again." We went through this in 2012 and God brought our campus back to life. Yes, it is far worse and deliverance may not come in exactly the same fashion - we have so many questions about the future but "on Him we have set our hope that He will continue to deliver us, as you help us by your prayers." (2 Cor. 9:10)
This is key, we are being helped by your prayers - those of our community, those of our friends and churches in faraway places and those of our fellow international Christian schools. Your prayers for us are sustaining us during a chaotic and overwhelming time. As you continue to pray, we know that God will be our help. He has helped us to locate and rent two school buildings. He will help us to see the work on these two buildings, particularly the elementary, completed so that we can fully move in and bring some order out of the chaos. He will help us, students and staff alike, to understand that He is a God who raises the dead, that in Him our hope is secure. "Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favour granted us in answer to the prayers of many." (2 Cor. 1:10 & 11)
On the left: circled in green you can see a small plaque placed after the 2012 flood to mark the waterline and commemorate the faithfulness of our God during that difficult time. Bottom right: Ken F. uses his canoe paddle to measure how far down the plaque is. Notice that the rock detailing on the side of the building is not even visible. Top right: the plaque's apt reminder -
I will never forget this awful time, as I grieve over my loss. Yet I still dare to hope when I remember this: The faithful love of the LORD never ends! His mercies never cease, Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning. I say to myself, "The LORD is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!" Lamentations 3:20-24
If you would like to help the school recover from this devestating loss you can do so through TeachBeyond, one of the organizations that partners with us to provide staff.
As a school and as a mission, we never wanted to relive this story again. 2012 was enough. God had spared us in amazing ways. He had helped us rebuild and come back to our compounds with safer walls that would protect us from the river's threat during rainy season. We were thankful that we could look back and recount all the ways that God had been faithful but had it been our choice that would have been a book we never reopened after the last chapter had been read.
But that is not the story that is being written. Instead we have had a very heavy season of rain and our team of guys watching the river kept seeing the water level go up and up, passing the level that caused the 2012 flood and going up. They sandbagged. The dyke held. The water level went down and then back up. Our section of the dyke held. But downriver from us water began pouring in filling the areas behind our walls, walls where a threat had not been anticipated in the past.
Sunday evening we sat on the steps of our Admin building trying to decide the best course of action. We would give it one more night and reevaluate in the morning. By 8 am on Monday morning the road to Sahel Academy was impassable by small vehicles and we were starting to enact our evacuation plan, going through the school and putting everything up waist high or more. I worked together with our elementary team.
At 2:26, I took a moment to look out the window from the second story of our elementary building. This is what I saw.
I could see all that water being held back by our wall and I could see houses in the distance where it looked as though the water was half way up the doors. Honestly, it felt like it was only a matter of time, especially when we began to see water leaking through several of the seams. We continued to work.
Around 4:15, the elementary principal came running around the building shouting that the wall had broken. There were three of us in the same area and we hopped in one of our colleagues cars and we tore out of that area to one of the higher points on campus. I didn't want her car to be under water. I ran by the house of a family in quarantine to yell at them and tell them the wall had broken and then I ran towards my classroom where I had left my phone plugged in to charge. I grabbed it and my water bottle and waited for the principal who had run back to the area as well. While I waited I watched the water pour in where the wall had broken. This was not a story that we wanted to be ours and yet here we were again.
When it was all said and done, we waded out to the front entrance in water that was up to our chests. It is the first and the last time I hope to be taking a selfie in the Niger river!
I lay in bed Tuesday morning with a barely functioning brain. Too tired to even open my Bible, God brought the words of 1 Peter 2:23 to mind. I add a little more here for context: "For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps. He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly." As you can well imagine there are just SO MANY questions. In the face of those questions, I have the challenge of walking the same road that my Saviour walked, one of continuing to entrust myself, my colleagues, this ministry and our mission to the Father. He is sovereign and He knows what He wants to accomplish in this that will bring glory to His name.
Here are some things He has already done:
In those last hours, He sent some strong young men who helped us move alot of things to our second floor where they are dry and safe.
Just minutes before the wall broke, several men were standing in front of it inspecting the leaks. When it broke, no one was there.
He held back the water until the last bit of chemicals in our science lab were carefully stored upstairs.
He gave one of our guys the foresight to turn off the electricity to the whole campus so that when water began pouring in we had one less thing to worry about.
He sent some men in through the wall who stuck with us and helped us put up a bunch of last minute things in the elementary, computer lab and some colleagues' houses that hadn't had time to prepare.
Passports, wallets and lost pets have been recovered.
He has given us joy and laughter even in the midst of tears.
He is good and worthy of our praise.
School was to have started on September 1. We are in the midst of trying to recover as much as possible from homes and the school and we need time to regroup and make decisions about the future. We covet your prayers for wise decision making, for health and safety for those wading into the water and for God's provision of new homes and school buildings. For several colleagues, this is the second time they have been through this. Many of our leaders, including our SIM Niger Director, treasurer and the Sahel Academy Director and their families were all living on these compounds. This means they are dealing with this loss and having to make important decisions about ministries simultaneously. Many of our Nigerien colleagues' homes are being threatened or have already been lost. Please pray that all will know and experience the loving care of the Father.
Part of the First Grade memory program at Sahel is to learn the first five books of the Bible. For such big words, music is always the way to go. I stumbled across this song and thought I would try it out this year mostly because I love the simple truth that is communicated between all the big names:
The Books of the Bible,
Time tested and reliable.
Scripture has a power that's undeniable.
The Books of the Bible,
their wisdom's verifiable.
Scripture has a power that's undeniable.
Here's what it's supposed to sound like:
It has absolutely been a hit in the classroom. So much so that if I would, they would have me play it over and over again. When I stop playing it well they just keep on singing it themselves. The evidence is all here.
So obviously, we haven't quite mastered all the names. In fact, at one point they were singing about the book of "Eccludiastes". And of course, there are times when you get lost in all those big names so why not start all over again when that happens! Don't worry if you never make it to the end!
Love that they are learning important truths about God's word through song!
I had a moment of panic last night which has now become the motivation for this post. You see, one of my students last year drew an amazing picture at the end of the year, full of detail and humour and I thought I had downloaded it and so I deleted it off my camera. But then I couldn't find it anywhere on my computer. Thankfully, my external hard drive saved the day and I can share this gem with the world.
My students were reflecting on how God had helped them in the past year and this is what this little guy had to say.
Note the towering stack of paper, the rubbish bin full of scrunched up attempts and the one about to hit the trash. Clearly it was hard work learning to write in Korean!
This little guy is Italian. He came into my classroom with no English at all. He had already begun to learn French so I could communicate with him through that. I have to say I have never seen a student learn a language like this guy did.
Two weeks ago in our Bible class we were reflecting on the blessings that God has given us. One little boy in my class drew a picture of our school - the sports court, Hope Hall, our playground platforms and even our brand new building with its detailed staircase.
It was in the middle of drawing those detailed stairs that I stopped to ask him about his picture. He told me about the first day he came to school to be tested for Kindergarten and how he cried because he was so afraid. How well I remember that day! He was terrified and cried incessantly. The teachers were afraid that he might run away at any moment. "But now," he said, "I'm not scared any more. I feel safe!" What a sweet blessing to hear these words and to know that Sahel Academy is a safe place for learning and growing!
But what happens when our students have to leave?
It was last year at this same time that I found out one of my students was leaving. He had struggled emotionally and behaviourally all year. I had worked with him diligently on some of those really difficult behaviours and seen some huge changes in him. But he was still struggling and needed a closer connection to his father. His mother decided to return to the U.S. It was a wise decision but I remember being so saddened because I knew that he was leaving a place where he was seeing and hearing about Jesus and he so desperately needed the healing that only Jesus can bring. I had no guarantee that he was going to a place where he would continue to hear that good news.
One year later and I just had another student leave. Her father was transferred to Senegal. They have known since before Christmas that this move was coming. Just after finding out, her mother came to me and asked me if I knew of any schools like Sahel Academy in Senegal. What a joy it was to be able to recommend Dakar Academy, a Christian school serving the international community in Dakar!
So on her last day at school we put her in the middle of a big group hug, prayed for her and joyfully sent her on her way, confident that she is going to a place where she will continue to hear the truth of God's love for her.
I'm so thankful that Sahel Academy is just one of many Christian schools serving the international community around the world. It is truly a blessing to know that when our students leave here, God can take them to other schools where the good work He has begun in their lives here can continue there!
Would you consider praying each day this February for Sahel Academy and other international Christian schools like it? These schools play a critical role in the building of God's kingdom in the hearts of their students and in the countries in which the schools reside. We need God's provision.
For a link to Sahel Academy's specific staffing needs click here. One of those needs is someone who will cover for me while I am away on home assignment next year. Thanks for praying for teachers!
This past week marked the second anniversary of the day that nearly 70 churches were burned across Niger. I had the opportunity to go back to my friend J's church which was ruined that day. You can read more about that here. They were celebrating the completion of the rebuilding of their church and the addition of a new building. It was a joy to see how God has restored what was lost.
January 2015 - The Church
January 2017
January 2015 - Living Quarters (I think.)
January 2017
January 2015 - Teaching Space
January 2017 - A Brand New Building with Additional Teaching Space
January 2017 - J & His Family
J has a vibrant faith and invests deeply in both his church and those that God brings his way that are in need. You can pray for him and his family. Pray especially for his son who is not pictured here but who has turned his back on the gospel and is instead following the majority religion. J longs to see him return to the Truth.
Just about two weeks ago, I stood in front of a bulletin board I was decorating thinking about the mountain of work that needed to be done around the school before we would be ready to welcome our students back. This hallway was a particular concern as it was full from one end to the other of furniture, cupboards, appliances, chairs and who knows what else that had to be moved out of Hope Hall in order for retiling to happen in that building over the summer. I can't install a kitchen or move a refrigerator on my own and even if I could have, the other building wasn't ready yet. But I can stress and pine for things I don't have!
So there I stood thinking about how nice it used to be in public school when the janitors/facilities people just came along and took care of the junk that inevitably fills the hallway in the days leading up to the start of school. "God," I thought, " why can't I be teaching in a school that has one of those amazing people to help move the mountain of stuff and get us ready?" Almost immediately I felt the Holy Spirit speaking to me, "That would be nice, Beth, but then you would miss the opportunity to trust God to help move the mountain even though it looks humanly impossible."
Convicted, I committed it to prayer seeking to trust God when what I really wanted to do was worry...especially when it was the day before students were arriving and the hallway was still filled! In 13 years of teaching I have never once begun the first day of school with junk in the hallways. My 14th year is no different except that this year, I see the faithfulness of God in the empty hallway. He brought the right people along at the right time to do what was needed. And somehow, little by little, the mountain of stuff made its way back to its rightful home. He is faithful!
Please do pray with us that God would call someone to the ministry of caring for the Sahel Academy campus. We want to be faithful with the facilities that God has given us and we need someone who is skilled and knowledgeable to help us keep our campus safe and functioning so that we can better serve our students and their families.
Henna is an art form used here in Niger by women to adorn themselves particularly in preparation for a wedding ceremony. Usually women will decorate their hands or their feet and ankles. It's a beautiful art form. I'm not sure how widely embraced it is in the church. I recently talked with an almost 30 year old Christian colleague who had her hands and feet decorated for the first time which was kind of surprising to me. Regardless, I love the idea that this art form could be used to share the stories of Jesus with women. I have some students in my class whose Moms are learning to do just that. They are practicing on their children who have been coming in and sharing the stories with us.
Here one of my students shares the story of Jesus' birth. What I love about this is that it came so easy to her because we had memorized this portion of scripture together in class.
Here one of my little boys got in on the action with a henna design depicting the story of the prodigal son.
Simple enough that even children can use them as a way to artfully share the gospel. Pray for these moms who are learning to draw these designs that as they develop these skills they would have open doors to share with the women of this country.
If you are interested in a little more of the back story of this idea here's a more professional video sharing just that.
A hymn of praise rang through the open rafters, a song made more beautiful by the stark devastation which surrounded us.
Six buildings and not one of them was left untouched.
A rope hung from the cross where the mob had tried but failed to pull it down.
A window shuttered closed became the recipient of a glaze of glass melting from the window above.
A beautiful building about to be dedicated was burned and broken right down to the newly tiled floor.
A man stood beside the goat he rescued from the mob, behind him the Sunday School room he taught in but was unable to save.
Devastating.
And this was only one church among almost 70 across the country.
Where does one even begin to wrap one's mind around what happened here?
Today, I sat with my children telling the story of Jacob running away from Laban, headed back to the land God had given to Abraham and the land he had promised to Jacob himself. We reflected together on what Jacob must have been feeling. Fear, no doubt, as this return meant facing a brother who had wanted to kill him. "But why would he have been afraid when God promised him that the land would be his?" one little guy asked. Good question. And so we talked about how we need to hold on to God's promises when we are afraid. Then I just threw the question out there, "Is there anything that you are afraid of?" It was quiet for quite a few seconds and I almost moved on but one little girl raised her hand and confessed, "I'm afraid they will keep on burning churches."
It's hard to say what fears reside in the hearts of those who have been affected by these events. But as I listened to my students' fears God brought Romans 8:35-39 to mind and I shared it with them,
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?As it is written:
“For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers,neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
And so we hold on to His promises because He has been faithful through the ages.
And while we are at it we may as well fill those open rafters with a song of praise or two!
One teaching position that has been on our list for the last few years is that of an elementary Bible teacher. I know it would be awesome to have someone come along who would be passionate about teaching Bible to our elementary kids but secretly (or not so secretly), I'm kind of happy that I get to teach Bible to my own students each year. As I take on this responsibility, I love to see how God connects the truths we learn in our Bible time to other subjects and to things that happen in our every day lives.
We start right at the beginning with the story of Creation. Last year as I searched for some hands on activities to do with my kids centered around creation, I ran across the idea of drawing the number for each day of creation and having the kids illustrate inside the number what God did that day. So my trusty assistant at the time made me some numbers that the kids could trace and away we went.
What I love about this project is that it forces kids to be creative in their drawing and how they fill the space. Here's my favorite one out of this year's projects.
After we finished talking about all the days of creation, we took a class and just reflected on Creation and what we can learn about who God is through Creation. Something crazy was going on and I had to run an errand so we turned it into a walk in "God's Creation" and as we walked we thought about what we could learn about God. What did we happen upon on our walk but two hedgehogs curled up in the hedges - a rare sight during the daylight!
(And yes, I can count. This picture was taken after one had been picked up. :)
You better believe that we stopped and took time to terrorize enjoy them. Poor little things probably won't ever let the sun rise on them again without being hidden away in a very dark corner.
After our very eventful walk, the kids definitely had lots to say about what Creation teaches us about God. Here are some of the truths they pulled out:
God is creative - all the amazing and different animals he created.
He loves color.
He is mighty - he speaks and things happen.
God doesn't have a beginning.
God loves us and created us with great care.
Some simple and profound truths about Our Great Creator were discovered in the hedges that day.
Prior to the beginning of Ramadan these hangars comprised a bustling little business, feeding faithful breakfast and lunch seekers along the side of the road. Since the beginning of Ramadan and the Muslim fast the benches and tables have been stacked up, unused, collecting dust. Across the city as I walk or drive, I notice the absence of these small street vendors who earn a living by providing food for those who pass by. With the majority of the country fasting there simply isn't a demand for the service they supply. In this nation that is one of the poorest in the world, what does it mean to lose your livelihood for an entire month? At the same time, there is an increasing demand for faithful Muslims to spend their income on feasting each night and on brand new expensive outfits for the end of Ramadan. This often leads to debt which they spend the remainder of the year paying off. During this month when followers of Islam are working extra hard to meet the requirements of their religion, pray that God would open their eyes and help them to see that fulfilling all of these demands cannot supply them with peace or a right relationship with God. Pray that many will encounter Jesus - The Way, The Truth and The Life.
They say that confession is good for the soul. I'm not sure that my First Graders have ever heard that saying before but they certainly went about confessing the error of their ways as they wrote letters for the incoming First Graders.
I no longer have to wonder who was writing on the chalkboard or using the pencil sharpener to sharpen their eraser. Pretty sure this is as good as a signed confession!
And then there is the kid who cut his head open after running across the room, tripping and falling. He might just get it now.
And notice that after confessing your own shortcomings, you can always go on to cover those of your teacher. Ha! It's totally true! I'm always forgetting stuff.
There was all kinds of sage advice given - stuff I say all the time...
Fill your water bottle at recess.
Tie your shoes.
No hair dressing!
Clean your desk.
Then there was this kid, slow as molasses, she is.
Her advice - she skipped straight to rule number 3 in our classroom. Follow directions the first time. When I asked her why she wrote that she first said that following directions was important but when I asked her why she skipped to that particular rule she said in a very earnest voice, "Because I'm trying!" I wanted to bust out laughing. She's trying all right but mostly it's my patience that has been tried. I guess I can take consolation from the fact that she at least recognizes it's a problem.
The truth is that it has been a pretty challenging year for me and I'll readily admit that I haven't always been as patient and loving as I should have been. But in reading these letters, there was so much grace extended to me from these little ones as they shared with the incoming First Graders that they felt challenged, that they laughed and had fun. And though it hasn't been easy, I rejoice with them in the growth that they have demonstrated and I'm thankful for the grace that God extends to each one of us as we continue growing.
How quickly the relaxation and rest of a beautiful respite can be snatched away! There we were, all four of us, flying off from Nairobi, having just enjoyed the beautiful Kenyan weather and landscapes for a week. We were headed back to Niger looking forward to one evening at home before jumping right back into teaching the next day. We changed planes in Addis Abba and made our way south to Abuja on the comfiest plane we had been on throughout the whole trip.
We had received a good warning from a colleague in Niger about what would take place in the Abuja airport as we made the transition from Ethiopian Airways to Asky Airways in Nigeria. Thus, none of us were surprised when around 2:30 in the afternoon our passports, tickets and baggage claim slips were collected. Those whose names were on the manifest (us) stayed upstairs while they took all our paperwork downstairs along with all of those who were not named on the list. And we waited. Over an hour later one man emerged carrying passports with boarding cards which were distributed to those waiting. Two of our party received their passports and boarding cards, A and I weren't amongst those. We were told to wait. They were coming.
So we waited again. After quite awhile we heard the call for Asky passengers to Niamey to begin boarding. We told our two colleagues to go ahead and we would join them. We continued asking about our passports and we continued to be told they were coming. Finally, someone appeared with our passports but no boarding cards and told us to follow him downstairs to the Ethiopian Airways ticket office. It was packed out with angry people, none of whom had boarding passes. It quickly became clearly we were part of an unhappy club, those without a seat on the plane. The airline representatives were close mouthed.
After a time of arguing back and forth, they finally began to fill out vouchers for hotel rooms only to take them away shortly thereafter saying that Ethiopian would only protect certain passengers. They sent us off to the Asky office to take it up with them as they claimed it was their responsibility. And back and forth it went. We were getting the...
(Please excuse the spelling error...the creators were tired!)
Finally, a cool headed guy who had been a pilot went searching for and found a man who is basically in charge of making sure the airlines are following established protocol. This official named Joshua came to the Ethiopian office and looked at everyone's tickets. Three or so more individuals were given hotel vouchers. There were five of us left and it was determined that it was Asky's responsibility to care for us. Joshua took us to his desk where we began the official paperwork for lodging a complaint against the airline. "But what shall we do tonight?" we asked him. Living out the movie The Terminal has never been a personal goal of mine and I feel fairly confident that even Tom Hanks would have had trouble surviving the Abuja Airport where the only food available was now in an area restricted to us.
Somewhere in the midst of all of this we asked about connecting with our luggage, after all we were going to be spending two days waiting. Joshua went to find out if we could have our bags. But instead when the imigration official found out about our predicament she decided that not only was it impossible for us to have our bags, it was also necessary to relieve us of our passports. In fact, she didn't even want to let us leave the airport but again Joshua took her away and talked her into letting us leave the airport with our passport numbers and names written on a sheet of paper.
By this time both the offices of Asky and Ethiopian were closed. It was about 8:30 in the evening Joshua began by calling the managers and telling them to come back. They refused. So he called their superiors and threatened to close down their office. That was apparently just the pressure they needed as they quickly returned - first the manager of Ethiopian and then the manager of Asky. The Ethiopian manager wrote us vouchers for the Pauliham hotel. With great hope, we followed them outside to the taxi line. By this time, it was about 9:30 in the evening. We had had nothing to eat and only some water to drink since lunch on the airplane.
The services of a taxi man were engaged and it was confirmed with the fellow several times that he knew the location of the hotel. We packed into the taxi. Four across the back and one in front and off we went. It was about 10 pm.
Not five minutes down the road our taxi man began to call/text his associates asking in Hausa if anyone knew where the Polyon hotel was. On and on he drove us, right into the heart of Abuja. Apparently, all his texting and calling had produced little information so he began pulling over and asking random strangers for directions, each time mispronouncing the name of the hotel. No one seemed to have heard of said hotel. At one point, we pulled into a hotel called the Belingo - someone thought it was the Pauliham and had directed him there. It was not our hotel. We piled back into the car and headed out again. By this time it was about 11 pm. A call to Joshua located the neighbourhood so we headed out in that direction. Upon reaching that neighbourhood the taxi had run out of gas. We had to stop there by the side of the road and wait for him to buy some black market gas. Two of our travelling companions were getting quite frustrated. "Take us back to the airport!" they yelled. He refused. On and on he drove, occasionally stopping for directions. But despite the fact we had finally gotten his pronunciation of the hotel name correct none of the ten or more people asked knew where the hotel was.
Having been up for almost 24 hours, we were exhausted and wanted nothing more than to crash. The writing seemed to be on the wall...we weren't going to find the Pauliham Hotel. Finally, it was decided that we would return to the Belingo Hotel and pay for a night's stay there, trusting that Ethiopian would reimburse us. So back we went into downtown Abuja, another 30 to 45 minute jaunt. Now it was nearing 1 am.
One night's stay at the Belingo was listed at $222 dollars. That was a bit of a problem for A &; I. Between us we didn't even have that kind of cash. The men talked the receptionist down to $154 dollars. We still didn't have enough. Within our group of five, there was a parent of a student at Sahel Academy (so like God). He had the money and was willing to pay for our room. We were so thankful, knowing that if we did indeed get stuck with the bill, we would have some way of connecting with him to pay.
Our hotel room did not come with towels. The light did not work in the bathroom and the door was falling off its hinges. But none of that mattered at this point because falling into bed was about the only thing on the agenda, except perhaps a drink of water.
The morning after and we were still completely wiped out.
After breakfast the next morning we headed back to the airport to take up our case with Ethiopian. When we got there and the manager heard the story of the taxi man who drove us around at night in a strange city for three hours he wondered at the injustice of it all. "It's not right!" he exclaimed. Ironic.
Anyway, we were packed into a new taxi with clear confirmation that he knew where he was going and off we went only to actually arrive at the Pauliham hotel. Wonder of wonders!
The rest of the day was spent coming off of the stress of the night before. We enjoyed a walk
with a view of the city
and flame trees and later we enjoyed a rainstorm (A big deal for two Nigerian born kids!).
Wednesday morning around noon we headed back to the airport. Was there anything else that could go wrong? We collected our passports - a definite relief and headed off to the Asky office. And the run around began again - they wanted us to go back to the Ethiopian office. Finally, Asky checked the manifest for our names. Nothing! As they looked into it further, they discovered that our names were still listed on Monday's manifest. They didn't seem positive at all that we would make it on to the plane so we camped out right outside their office while they worked. Then they moved us upstairs to the transit lounge. Finally, four hours or so after arriving at the airport we were presented with our tickets.
What a relief to arrive home and find our luggage had made it and everything was intact. That's not something you take for granted when your luggage has been sitting in an airport for three days away from your watchful eyes.
I'm not going to lie. This is not an experience I want to repeat but I will say that...
was clearly evident. Two of us were together when it could have very easily been the case that one of us had been left behind. When we needed a phone, someone let us borrow theirs multiple times. There were people on the other end of that phone who cared about us and worked hard to get us phone numbers and help in Abuja. God provided the pilot who had knowledge of the right airport official to help us. Joshua, that airport official, truly advocated on our behalf and even on Tuesday morning said that he didn't sleep very well because he was worried about us and our situation. When we were without money but in need of sleep, God provided one of our Sahel student's father who had money and was more than willing to help us. Tuesday morning after our exhausting night, I opened the Gideon Bible on the night stand and Psalm 94:12 caught my eye. "Lord, when doubts fill my mind, when my heart is in turmoil, quiet me and give me renewed hope and cheer." That was perhaps the greatest evidence of God's presence - quiet hearts in the midst of the turmoil. And so I'm thankful for all the adventure and for another opportunity to trust God and find Him faithful right in the middle of a trip gone south.
