Vol. 3, No. 3

Hello everyone,

A lot has happened since our last email. Then, Aichatou and I were just getting ready to leave for our three weeks of travel. Between July 16 and August 17 we visited 13 churches or church groups in five states and two countries (my friends in Quebec, Canada). We saw many of our friends and had dozens of conversations about the work and life in Niger. We quickly learned, however, that many were just as interested in how Aichatou and I met. So, we finally decided to start the presentations with our story before returning to talking about the ministry!

We have received gracious receptions wherever we have been. Most of our visits have involved home stays either the evening before or the day after our presentations. Often, our hosts have invited church members and friends to have a meal or dessert with us. These have been special times of sharing and conversation and have been especially satisfying. While Sunday church services are wonderful ways to speak to a lot of people, the time restrictions of a Sunday often limit our ability to have meaningful discussions and to better know the wonderful people who are praying for us. Indeed, there were many people whom we wanted to see that we were unable to visit, and for that we are sorry.

Once we arrived too late at the counter to board, but we were able to catch a later flight (and arrived exhausted after midnight). Our very last flight together was delayed two hours at the gate, which should have meant that we missed our Des Moines connecting flight, but thankfully (and as an answer to prayer) the Des Moines flight, too, had been delayed over an hour from its scheduled departure and we eventually got home just 40 minutes later than scheduled.

We did manage to have about four days of vacation in Quebec where I got to see old friends and Aichatou got to speak French. (She later thought our week there set her English back!) While the weather was terribly cold and damp (their lowest July highs on record), we did get some shopping done and found several French language books and materials for Aichatou and her family and some things for the church. We drove to the St. Laurence Seaway for whale-watching and saw all of the major species of whales that are
present there (blue, humpback, Meinke and rorqual), which was a special treat.

Another major purpose of the trip was to introduce Aichatou to missions and for her to interview with the Reformed Church in America to be a medical missionary once she finishes medical school (in about two years).
While the Evangelical Church of Niger would like to start a public health ministry, Aichatou is still pondering what type of medical work that God is calling her to do. Next year she will be finished with classes and will do her rotations (surgery, internal medicine, obstetrics, and pediatrics) and hopes to have a better sense of what aspect of medicine she prefers.

However, she has done all the necessary interviews with the RCA and these have all been very positive experiences for her, bringing her closer to being hired once her studies are completed.

Aichatou left for Niger on Monday, August 18 and arrived in Niamey late on August 19 . She had a good flight and is anxious to soon see her family in Zinder (12 hours away) and share all her experiences with them before she returns to school in September. It would have been nice if we would have had more time together, as our marriage is only four months old and circumstances are keeping us apart a lot. Because we traveled so much, we didn't have as much time to ourselves or with my family as we would have wanted.

As you can see from my schedule below, I still have several more speaking engagements. I also hope to spend at least a week in the first half of September at Michigan State University and make a little progress on my Ph.D. dissertation proposal.

Prayer requests

• Give thanks for our successful travels and presentations during our time together in the United States. Not only did we enjoy meeting so many kind people, but we had no safety or vehicle problems.
• Pray that God will guide Aichatou in discovering how He wants her to use her medical skills in ministry.
• It has become obvious to us that we need to spend as much time as possible together as a couple after I return to Niger. Please pray that the Church in Niger can identify projects that I can do in Niamey (where Aichatou is studying) so that I can justify spending more time in the capital with her during these first years of marriage (as my work is based in Maradi). Also pray that the church leaders in Maradi that I work with will be supportive of this proposal.
• Give thanks for the abundant rains that have been falling on Niger this rainy season. Pray, too, that the large number of locusts which have emerged will not significantly reduce the available crops for human consumption.
• Pray for the churches and individuals who talked to us and to the RCA about coming to Niger in the next year as volunteers or with work teams. Pray that the right people will come for the right reasons at the right time.

In Christ,

Tom and Aichatou

Tom's schedule

August 24 - Central Reformed, Sioux Center, Iowa
August 24 - 1st Reformed, Maurice, Iowa
August 31 - Colts Neck Reformed, Colts Neck, New Jersey
September 7 - Elim Reformed, Kings, Illinois
September 7 – First Reformed, South Holland, Illinois
September 14 - American Reformed, Worthington, Minnesota (during their mission festival)
September 14 - First Reformed, Rock Valley, Iowa
September 21 - Village Presbyterian Church in Tampa, Florida
September 27 - Tom leaves for Niger

Thomas R. Johnson
Community Development Missionary to Niger
Reformed Church in America/Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)