Day 8: Oyibo! Oyibo! Oyibo!

The morning started early so we could pile in the van to start the trek to Kafanchan and Bakin Kogi. Greg (the most sacrificial driver in the world!) drove my trio out with our new English friends the two hours to these villages where Faith Alive is reaching out. The ride reminded me how beautiful this country is, landscape and people. When we reached Bakin Kogi we took a little trek up a muddy hill to the nearly completed House of Hope where a doctor and nurse will soon take residence to give aid to the farmers living in the area. Once this first phase is done (they are planning on the end of this month) then they will start the process of building a small satellite clinic on the same piece of property. I got to walk with some of the local kids for a while and talked to the groundskeeper who is very proud to be taking part in this new development right behind his home. He even let me take his picture. After that it was a short drive to Kafanchan, a city the size of Fresno, where a satellite clinic was started a couple of years ago. Not the most fancy place by any means, their “lab” was a small shelving unit, but still reaching out to its neighbors with love through medical care. The lead doctor there named Andrew told us that through Faith Alive they have discovered that nearly 25% of the community there is HIV-positive. They have more than five thousand on ARV drugs currently. Statistics make you sad when you read them in a textbook, but to be living amid the harsh reality...that is something else altogether.

 

            We made it back in time for staff devotional and prayer meeting where Pastor Ben discussed the need for evangelism from all who worked there. There are people here who actually have never heard the name of Jesus or have completely misguided ideas about Christianity because of tribal rituals and religions. I can’t say the same for the States. Ben actually made someone come up to the front and tell us without any preparation what she would say if she were presenting to Gospel to a villager who had never heard it prior. It was an interesting talk, not one I thought particularly applied to my home situation, and I am glad I am starting to pick up more on Nigerian spirituality. More alphabetizing with Naomi and George followed and I am pleased to say we are almost halfway there!

 

            Tiredness is starting to set in earlier during the day with all the projects we have been put on so we came home to a great dinner of what Baba described as “River Fish” (What kind of fish is this Baba?) and afterwards Adrie and I played Phase 10 with John and Kristin. I won, but no big deal. It’s nice to have other Americans around who can understand where we are coming from, share stories about things back home, and enjoy this adventure together.