Very different experiences...

Very cool day today. Most of the group worked here at the Back2Back compound to prepare the place for rainy season (digging a trench, which is more physical labor than most are used to, so we have some tired backs tonight!) Some also got an opportunity to see a similar drilling rig to what we’ve purchased in operation, while Emmanuel, Dave and Kande went to meet with a group of pastors here in Jos. The pastors here are so impressive, with how little they have to work with. There were about 50 pastors there. Emmanuel introduced us, so we gave some VCC history, spent some time on mission, values and practices, and then talked about our core values. Even though the cultures are so different, there is always a difference between “church subcultures” and the particular broad culture of non-Christians in any city. You could see light bulbs going off with these guys. Then we did Q&A; it was totally fascinating. The questions were more about mechanics in an outward-focused church. Very cool. They were, of course, so appreciative and grateful. I think we actually stirred up a little trouble because of some of the systems/processes in the ECWA (Evangelical Church of West Africa) denomination, but they laughed about it themselves. The younger pastors were especially interested, as they are eager to reach out more effectively.

Afterwards we stopped to see a friend of Emmanuel’s who is a surgeon at the local ECWA hospital. Unbelievable conditions, but very good for Nigeria. He is actually an American who’s been here for seventeen years. What a model of sacrifice.

We left there and went to the ECWA seminary. We barged into a missions class and the professor invited us to talk about what we’re doing! There were maybe fifteen students in the class in old wooden desks with a wornout blackboard, open windows, and a mother with a nursing infant attending the class. The prof was talking about a shift in missions strategies from rural areas (traditional approach in Africa) to cities which are now overloaded and diverse. It’s an obvious mission field but a paradigm shift in missional thinking here. It was a clear fit with what we’re doing (as in: Greater Cincinnati is our mission field), so it was a great segue. This turned out to be totally a God-thing. As a matter of fact, during Q&A one of the students (who looked a whole lot like Spike Lee) spent about five minutes thanking us and remarking that the past thirty minutes had completely changed his view of ministry and were the most impacting time he’s had at seminary. No kidding. The students were all nodding their heads…and all we were doing was talking about our mission and values and spending time describing an outward-focused, relevant approach in whatever culture you’re in. I’ve never been in a classroom setting that was so much like a giant sponge. This was way worth the stop. We ended up being there for a good while and going over their scheduled class time by an hour!

It was a full day; we again skipped lunch but we did have dinner tonight at a Nigerian pizza place(!) with a Coke and, get this, ice. Beautiful. Much of the group was also introduced to Kande's favorite drink here - something called a Chapman. Yum!

The team is resting tonight, playing Scrabble, laughing, and sending emails home. It’s been a good trip.

Tomorrow we spend time taking kids from the children’s home (they prefer to not use the word orphanage) for an outing at a park. Should be a fun trip; and, as usual, Dave's hair will puzzle them.

The team is thinking more and more about seeing family and getting back to everyone we miss at home. It's been great, but we're all VERY tired!

Thanks for your support. We look forward to seeing you soon.