End of Day 3:

Peter picked us up only 15 min. late, traffic, he said. He brought Othera (O-rita) and his daughter to do my hair. So, I have braids again. We left from Moko’s and went to Peter’s. I saw Michael again. So good to hold him and kiss him. We took more pictures. I’ve gotten two different reports on his age. Othera said he is 5 and Auntie Mary said he was 8. So, I asked him if I could look at his teeth. Oh my gosh! I have never seen teeth so bad! Later I asked Peter and he said Michael hasn’t lost his baby teeth yet. I hope that is true.

So, from there we left for Bong County. Peter, Mark, Pastor Quina, another pastor, me, Pastor George and Huggins. Pastor George met his wife in Gbarga. She is a midwife and she has a great kit that she uses. I got video of her describing it to me.

Then, we drove and drove until we came to Moses Quina Town. The roads got worse the farther we went. We shared roasted almonds along the way.

Once we arrived, the people were so happy to see us. Many people greeted us warmly. Pastor Quina told the story of the killing of seven men in the village. Now those widows have to do the farmwork and their children try to stay with Pastor Quina to go to school. All those children call him father and look to him to help provide for them.

Then the bell rang for the service to start. We were invited in to eat something. Yes, they rang the bell and then we ate. It give people time to come in from the fields, it’s harvest time. We ate rice, greens and plantain. I liked to plantain. It is a mix between banana and potato. Mark liked the rice and greens better. After that, they arranged the benches so that maybe 50 people could sit in the church. Peter introduced Mark and then Mark gave the Gospel presentation. Then Peter invited those who wanted to become believers to come to the front and receive Christ. Sixteen came forward to respond to the invitation.

The Jesus film was also shown that night as well, after we left. Eight more people responded to the Gospel after the film. We didn't stay for the film, but headed to Dwight-a (no idea of the spelling). There is an old missionary house there. It was built in the 1930's and a missionary family came to live there in the 1950's and stayed until the '70s. Most believers in the area can trace their faith back to this couple and their 5 children. It was an honor to stay in the house of these missionaries and consider the legacy they left behind. I pray we can build on the foundation they built.

We brought a generator, so the house has electricity. We used batteries lanterns while they set it up. There is a toilet (bounus!) but you have to dump water down it to get it to "flush" and the bathroom "door" is a blanket, for which I am thankful. Also, Peter and the pastors were thoughtful enough to get a net for Mark and I to sleep under. Drawback: no a/c although it wasn't that hot during the night.