We are grateful for those of you
who prayed for this process as the church delegates told me that
this year was the most harmonious gathering that anyone could
remember. The president and treasurer were re-elected while a
new vice president and secretary general were chosen. Please continue
to pray for this officer team. They have some ambitious goals
that will require lots of energy and wisdom to implement.
I was named to the governing board of the EERN’s new computer
training school in Maradi and attended its first board meeting.
Again, this is another example of me helping the church with some
of its organizational needs, although I have no computer expertise.
The school opened in October with a contract to give computer
orientation training to public school teachers. In the future,
it hopes to be recognized by the government and offer degrees.
Computer literacy is very low in Niger, yet more and more businesses,
agencies, and organizations are using computers, and they need
competent operators, so the market exists. We are now searching
for a qualified Christian with vision to be the school’s
director.
Do you remember that I spent September writing a proposal for
infrastructure investments for the Bible School at Dogon Gao.We
just got word that the Presbyterian Outreach Foundation has given
us a grant to install electricity, install a pump and elevated
water reservoir and to build three more latrines for the students!
Yeah and thank God! Since we’ll be living at the school,
this is especially good news for us to have running water and
electricity! I’ve been working in November and early December
on another proposal to restart the Maza Tsaye Farm School as a
center for training in Christian development. This involves an
EERN partnership with SIM, but we are hopeful that it too may
be fruitful.
It looks like we will spend Christmas in Niamey this year. We
had hoped to visit Aïchatou’s family in Zinder, but
we decided that since we will be traveling to Niger’s interior
three times in January and February (with volunteers and visitors),
our visit can wait. Fuel prices are still terribly high ($3.60/gallon
of diesel) and with the fall of the dollar, (38% in 3 years) we
really have to be wise about how much we travel. We’ll participate
in the Niamey church’s activities that surround Christmas.
Praises and prayers
- Give praise for the peaceful elections that Niger had in November
and December. The president was reelected and the population
generally seems satisfied with the results.
Give praise for Outreach Foundation’s grant to Dogon Gao.
Pray that we will be able to quickly and efficiently be able
to complete the infrastructure work.
- Continue to pray for the health of our family. We are thankful
that we got Marie over her illness.
- Pray for EERN leaders, particularly those who are newly elected.
Pray that the new team will work to reform the church’s
policies and operations so that it can be more effective in
ministry.
- Pray for preparations for our visitors and volunteers. Lee
De Young of Words of Hope comes in early January, a group from
Faith Reformed-Zeeland, Michigan, follows him, and then in February
we get a visit from Prairie Ridge of Ankeny, Iowa.
In Christ,
Tom, Aïchatou, and Marie-Florence
The 2005 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p.
316
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