So, we put her to bed and then
watched a DVD at our home. For New Year’s Day, we circulated
around Niamey and extended Aïchatou’s aunts and uncles
in the town New Year’s greetings.
Marie-Florence has been a challenge this past month. After her
December viral illness, she grew terribly attached to her mother
and often cried if anyone else tried to take her away. In addition,
she has had several episodes of teething pain, although she still
hasn’t cut any teeth yet. This has also been an awkward
month for her—she has had more than her share of tumbles
as she tries to develop a sense of balance. Yesterday, for the
first time at exactly nine months and one day, she took two steps
unassisted as she walked from a couch to a coffee table. She repeated
something similar today. You can really tell that in these past
few days she is much more deliberate in her movements, and we’ve
had many fewer unplanned falls and painful wails. So now we’ll
have to keep an eye on everything waist level and below.
My (Tom’s) biggest work activity this month has been hosting
Lee De Young of Words of Hope (WoH) radio ministry. This ministry
is affiliated with the Reformed Church of America (one of my sending
agencies) and has decided that Niger will be the first place where
they will partner solely with an RCA-partner denomination, that
is, the Evangelical Church of the Republic of Niger (EERN in French)
where RCA missionaries are serving. WoH has committed to build
a recording studio in Maradi, the EERN’s headquarters, which
will be immediately given to the church. They will then train
EERN members to produce and record a 30-minute daily radio program,
which will then be placed on Niger’s private and community
radio station, perhaps by the end of 2005. It is a terribly ambitious
project, but all of us who are involved sense that now is the
right time to be doing this work. Niger is unique in that although
it is 98 percent Muslim, there are no prohibitions against paid
Christian broadcasting. In fact, we know of stories where Muslim
programs cannot be aired unless the station agrees to provide
time for a Christian program. In such an illiterate, radio-loving
society, these radio programs will be the first time many Nigeriens
will hear Christians explain their faith, as most people cannot
access the written word.
My role in this endeavor has been very challenging. I am the
bridge between the two partners and their cultures. Not only am
I called upon to serve as the language translator between English
and French (since Lee knows no French and most EERN leaders have
little English), but I often need to try to create real understanding
between the two parties as I try to translate the two worldviews
of how to partner in a radio ministry. Also, I served as Lee’s
host and at the same time I provided a lot of logistical support
for the EERN’s efforts (vehicle, computer, and communication).
It is a very draining and intense period, since Lee was with us
for only a week and needed to get done in that time.
I would be remiss if I didn’t mention our five days of
harmattan during Lee’s visit. During the winter
months, the winds blow south, with cold, dusty air coming down
to Niger from the Sahara. Lee got to experience several days that
were so full of dust that the sun couldn’t be seen because
of a brown haze. It is impossible to keep anything clean during
these times because the dust permeates all. It is plays havoc
on respiratory systems, as one is constantly breathing fine dust
particulates. This recent episode was about the worst I have seen
in my four years here. It was nice to see the sun after a few
days and the harmattan continued its southbound-drift.
This next month will be even busier. We’ll be hosting four
people from Faith Reformed in Zeeland, Michigan, and after them,
six people from Prairie Ridge Community Church in Ankeny. Both
groups have medical personnel, and it looks like most of our volunteer
activities will be related to simple medical activities. This
is new for me and for the EERN, but we hope these experiences
will help the church expand its vision of health ministry.
Prayer and praises
- Please pray for the upcoming two groups that will visit. Pray
for their safe travel coming to, leaving, and inside the country.
Pray that all our logistical details and arrangements will come
together. Pray that they will be in good health during their
time here. Pray that God will use their visit for His larger
purpose.
- Give praise for Words of Hope and their selection of Niger
as their next country of operations. Pray that all the details
of constructing and staffing a recording studio will come together
quickly and with great wisdom. Pray that God will prepare hearts
and minds for the message that the studio will record and the
ministry will disseminate in Niger.
- Pray for our family’s physical and mental health. We’ve
all seemed to be a bit more sick than normal and these seem
to be more stressful days than they should be.
In Christ,
Tom, Aïchatou and Marie-Florence
The 2005 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p.
316 |
