Dear Friends and Family,

I just had to write about our experience today. A few of us went over to the school with Sol and Manuela for our “discovery” class with our two Muslim friends from noon to 2pm. Another catholic man who is the night watchman at the school attended the class too. While Manuela, Mr. Tamba (the school headmaster) and I worked with the class, Steve Zimmerman and Mike Sayer went with Sol on a “prayer walk” around the neighborhood. They were praying that God would break the chains of darkness in the community.

In the class we read the story of Abram being called by God to go to another land and also about God making a covenant with him that his descendants would be like the stars of heaven. We focused on the principle that God counted Abram’s faith as “righteousness”. We wanted our friends to know that they don’t have to work for their salvation, they just have to believe in God’s promises. We feel like they don’t quite understand yet, but are getting a foundation for future understanding that Jesus paid for their sins. Please continue to pray that they will soon understand!

From 2-5pm we had a class with church leaders from several different churches in the area. Catholic, Pentecostal and Baptist all came together with a hunger for whatever we would be willing to teach. Steve Zimmerman felt like we should talk about “forgiveness”. He gave a teaching on forgiveness telling how we must “let go” of the person that has harmed us and release them to God. They were writing feverishly, hanging on every word. Next MIke Sayer gave a testimony of needing to forgive a man who had raped his business partner’s daughter. As they were plotting to hurt the man, God revealed to them that He wanted them to forgive the man and He would deal with the man’s sin.

It was my turn next, I asked the group of 15 folks who escaped from the civil war in Sierra Leone how many had been harmed by the rebels, or had family members killed. All of them raised their hands! My heart sank as I thought that any paltry story I could tell about forgiveness paled relative to what they must have gone through. I put aside my story and asked some of them to share their stories of how they had to forgive.

One lady told of family members being burned in their house, another of the whole family being beaten, another of her handicapped uncle being shot in cold blood because “he couldn’t keep up”. A man told of his family escaping to Gambia except his mother and sister. The sister took their mother out of the city and her mother was murdered. Actually his anger was against his sister for putting their mother in harm’s way.

The most interesting act of forgiveness was the woman whose family, including her, was beaten by the rebels, Years later she was working as a nurse in a hospital in Gambia. She went into a room and there lay the man who had beaten her family. He was under anesthesia! She knew his life was in her hands, she began to tremble, thinking she could get revenge! In her conflicted state of mind she talked to the doctor and told him of the man’s atrocities. He reminded her she was there to heal the sick and as a Christian she must forgive the man. With God’s help she forgave him. When he woke up and recognized her, he began to tremble, but she gave him her forgiveness. What a powerful story of God’s love in action!

I my mind there was nothing left to do but pray for these dear saints of God! They had weathered much more pain than I ever have! What a privilege to be in the presence of these people who are willing to do anything to please and serve the Savior who died for them! They are truly living their lives for the Kingdom of God and not for themselves.

………….a few more days of work before we head home………we are thankful to be a part of what God is doing to change a nation……..

Blessings, Grace and Peace in our Lord,

Steve