Burkina Faso/ Final Post from Krista

“Je voudrais une coca, si vous plait.” (Meaning: I’d like a Coke, please)

Coke is a big thing here. I’ve never been much of a Coca-Cola fan, but nevertheless, I’ve had many cokes this week. When we visit people, we either bring coke for them or they offer it to us. When people visit where were staying, we bring out the coke and offer it to our guests.

Marcel said when he was in America, it was like we had endless fountains of coke! (He was referring of course to the free refills at McDonald’s, in which the supply is pretty much endless). We’re like the land of milk and honey, but with coke. Coke has also indirectly humbled me this week. It’s not cheap for the people here and it’s not often drank by them. We have been offered a coke (or a Fanta) many times, and it humbles me that these kind people would offer us what is so precious to them. They could probably feed their whole family a dinner of sagabo (their millet staple) with the money it takes to buy us coke. In fact, most people drink one coke a year, at Christmas, when people often get it as a special gift.

When Nicholas spoke last week at a church, they rushed us offstage afterwards to sit us down and offer us coke. I was so thankful, not just for the cold fizzy beverage on a hot day, but for the heart behind it. The generosity and selflessness that goes into supplying the white people with coke astonishes me. It reminds me of the widow that gave out of her poverty, all she had in the two small copper coins, not out of her abundance, as I know I usually do.

Coke is not the only thing that has humbled me this week. We have so much stuff in America, yet many (even Christians) lack real joy. The Christians here have much less material stuff, yet their joy is evident in their daily lives! We have many distractions in the States that draw us away from focusing on the Lord. We usually know where our next meal will come from and we can afford to put gas in the car. When kids are sick we don’t think twice about taking them to the doctor, and we have so many books and Bible study aids that we don’t know which to pick up and read. None of these are innately bad things. I thank God that my cupboards are full and that health insurance covers a trip to the doctor.

I also know I need to have some layers stripped away. I need to be bare and exposed so that God can work in me.

Waiting in the Paris airport to fly here, I noticed flight entertainment listed on the screen. The French translation was “Le distraction”, so accurately depicting what entertainment is: a distraction. We distract ourselves from real life. I get so easily distracted by what people think, by my comfort and safety, and relying on my own ability. We have hobbies, careers, television, and so many other things that make us believe we can do everything on our own. Not that there are none of these things in Africa, but we have them to such a greater extent. I don’t even necessarily feel like I need to come home and sell all my things, in order to send all the money to Africa. There is indeed great need here, but I don’t want to give them an American lifestyle. They have a Burkinabe lifestyle, simple and devoted to the Lord. The people we’ve met eat one good meal a day and have a Bible per family. They have livestock to care for or a church to shepherd. They know Jesus and love Him with all their heart. They know daily how much they need Him. Do we really know that every day, that without Him we’d be completely lost and incapable of anything?

What I want, as I return to America, is to find the pure simplicity of loving Jesus when I’m home. Despite being immersed in an over-stimulating culture, I want to be stripped of complexity and filled simply with love for Him and love for others.

-Krista

Burkina Faso Update From Peter/ “Laafi Bala”

“Laafi Bala” (Wellness and Health) in Moore`

I would like to share a chapel style sermon I had the privilege of sharing at the Bible college at Nagabagiri a small village to the east of Ouagadougou about 25 kilometers. “I have been given a great gift, that of traveling to Burkina Faso from America. Back in America I have a Beautiful family, I have ONE wife, ( great laughfter and applass) She loves and supports me. I am very Blessed to have her because she is a Good Cook(more laughter and applause). She can make anything taste good I also have been blessed with two beautiful children. My oldest, a girl, is named Charis. Her name means “One who is governed by the power of Devine grace”. She is eight years old and is gifted in music and language. My other child, a daughter is named Olivia, symbolizing fruitfulness, dignity and beauty. She is six years old. She has a big heart and loves her Daddy. My home is greatly blessed with sound of Laughter and Music. One day my pastor, Loren told me about this place in West Africa called Bukina Faso. I had never heard of this place, but as he told me about the beautiful people that were in this very warm place, and about how their hearts were even warmer than the Air. My heart began to burn. I was feeling that I needed to go and meet these people. Pastor Loren told me he was planning a trip to see his friends from many years before. I told him I wanted to go with him to africa. I asked what we would be doing while we were there. In america when someone thinks about missions to Africa, they usually think about building something, or digging wells, or helping the sick, or even just feeding the hungry. These were the sane thing I had on my mind. I figured that since I am a man who works with my hands, I could do just about any of those things. I was only thinking about what Peter could do as merely a man. Not to mention what God wanted me to do. Pastor Loren then told me that the only thing the people wanted us to was to come and teach, I thought Ok I can teach, I could teach building, or well drilling or maybe helping some sick, and on and on as I was looking at my personal bag of skills. I can do a lot of things and even if I can’t I can usually figure it out. I figured I can handle this. Then Loren said that I would be teaching the Bible, the Word of God. Even with that I could wrap my brain around how to study, I am a pretty good speaker so I got his handled. I have sat under some great bible teachers and read a lot of good books so how hard could it be, right. So I went to work studying and reading and rrading and studying for about three months leading up to this trip. I was still feeling like I wasn’t getting any where, like something was missing. I thought about it, I have my notes, I have the chapters figured out so it must be that I have to learn some more about public speaking, that must be the missing piece. Time to go. The Lord had blessed us with the funds for the tickets, and the time to take away from work. So off I go to this country in the Middle of West Africa that nobody knew anything about. Before I had gone I had told some people about where I was going and what I would be doing there and I was told I was wasting my time. “There are already to many missionaries in Africa, the work is already done there.” Or I was told, “You are just one person on a very large continant, you can’t even speak the lanuage, how can you make a difference?” As I am sitting on the plane I began to dwell on these things. I began thinking that I was just one guy, how could I be of any help to even one person, let alone help change an entire nation. I began to doubt that I had anything to offer. I began to miss my wife. I began to miss my children. Then the plane landed in Burkina Faso. I was defeated and I hadn’t set foot on the ground. I had made a huge mistake and I didn’t even realize it yet. The whole time I had been in my preparation and travels I had not yet really sought God on what he wanted from me on this trip. I had not yet asked his help in ministering to these people. Most importantly I had not ask God to truly empty me, in order for him to work trough me. I was still operation on the premise that Peter had some thing to offer these people here. What I really needed was for Peter to step aside and for the Holy Spirit to fill me up with his Love, His strength, so that He could minister to these people not me. I was here to teach the bible to Pastors so they could than go out to their churches and teach what they had learned. This was very sobering to me. I began to realize that if left to my own devices that was an Impossibility. What I had come to do here was Impossible. Not because God couldn’t do it, but because I was still in the way. I was like a bottle filled with mud that was good for nothing. I had to be emptied so I could than be filled again. I was about to learn this the hard way, unfortunately that is how I learn a lot of things. I had been here for five day, I had struggled to give two teaching, my preparation time was a struggle. The teaching were OK I just never felt like it wasn’t just me trying to show I was capable of doing the task set before me. I was operating on my own power and that was fading fast. Saturday morning came along, I had been looking forward to Saturday because I was had been invited to share a meal in the home of one of the Pastors who lived Ouagadougou. Jean Kabore` was a missionary pastor to Niger, a very nice man who had a little English along with French, Moore` and I am sure a few others as well. I love food and new food is even better so today was going to be a great day. We were then given the schedule for the Sunday services. Up until this point I had not really thought about the services, I did not even think that I would have to share at a church. I was given a pulpit for Sunday. “What am I going to do with this?” I though. I had been given an assignment that I was not prepared to do. This was impossible. I had nothing to offer these people. This was not just reading and interpreting the meaning, this was truly share of myself to a people that had more to offer in the way of Joy, Love, and Faith than I could even hope to experience in a lifetime. I began to wilt. I was not qualified for this and I now realized that I needed something more than I had to offer. There was Crack. A little fear crept in. I looked at the guys and began to explain what I was feeling, that I was incapable of truly Ministering to these people so I didn’t want to. Then it happened. I broke. Tears began to flow down my face, I wept. I was being emptied. I had come to the end of what was possible for Peter to do now I had let God come in, fill me back up with his power so I could even continue. This was the part that I realized that I had made the mistake of not bringing in God long before. We prayed that the holy spirit would empower and fill me so I could do what had to be done in His name not mine. In his strength, not mine. In his will, not mine. As a team we were than able to than ask for the guidance in burkina Faso, that we would be the tools for Christ’s work while we are here. I finally had the realized that I was useless in this place. I had nothing. I needed to see that with out be filled with holy spirit I was useless and nothing was possible. The time here after that has been a series of beautiful events well orchestrated by God to further his Kingdom. I have been nothing more that a vessel for the Lord’s work here in Burkina Faso. I have been able to study more freely. Knowing that all I was going to say was the Lord speaking through me to these men that had taken time out of there lives to come for 10 days on there own dime to learn God’s word. Thank God for his work in this amazing place.

Peter

Burkina Update, Shock!

While driving in the car the other night we were joking around about how I mentioned the term homeless in a teaching.  Marcel stopped me and started laughing because they didn’t understand the term.  Earlier today the men had a hard time understanding homeless in a land that was so plentiful, so they asked why there are homeless.  I gave several answers from, runaways, to drugs, to mental illness etc…. but it was hard for them to understand in a land of such plenty how could people be left on the street for eve those in Burkina have “homes”.  So we were laughing about my miscue on that but then Marcel opened up in His Jolly Happy way and said do you know I didn’t know that I was poor until I came to America.  When I got to America I saw water everywhere.  He said I never thought about  walking 5 kilometers until I saw the plenty of the U.S..  Then (and this cracks me up)  I saw animals running wild in the “bush” and nobody wanted them! =)  Then I cam back home, and I got sick with Typhoid and I went to the doctor and the bill would be 100 dollars that I had to pay or else I would die, it was then I realized I was poor because nobody would die for a 100$ in America!  I then saw this first hand today on my way out to the retreat center.  In the middle of the road we came upon a scooter accident.  3 people were laying dazed/dead in the road.  It looked like a girl 18-20 on a bike had tried to cross this crazy African road when she was hit by 2 guys on a scooter.  The 2 men were totally bloodied up with broken bones lying dazed in the middle of he road, and the girl who may have been dead was totally out with a pool of blood coming out of her head and pooling up on the street.  I asked how long until medical would come (30-60 minutes) and that they would lay there until it happened.  As we drove back that afternoon the stains on the street were a brutal reminder of how spoiled and fortunate I am, how unthankful I can be.

This is important because I have written much about how God is working on my heart over here, and I want to be clear on this.  My heart is not broken because of how poor they are (they don’t know it) my heart is broken because of how poor we are.  America in General fits the laodacean church to a T!  We are neither hot nor cold, we say we are rich and we have prospered, but we ARE the ones that are wretched pitable poor blind, and Naked!

It is for this reason that I had such a difficult time answering a girls question when I was teaching the kids.  She asked  “ Is it easier in America”?  I said some things are easier (life, comfort, etc….) But some things are harder, like desiring Jesus and really needing and relying on Jesus because we are so caught up in ourselves.  I guess I would ask you back home what are you thankful for!  What things do we quickly take for granted.  We don’t need to get rid of them, but we should thank God everyday for the simplicity of what they have.

Do you have a dishwasher… Be thankful and use your extra time to love your family

Do you have medication… Be thankful you can get to it

Do you have water…. Be thankful you don’t have to wake up at 3, go to the cistern find out the water gone, and then have to drive 15 minutes to get some….

I think because we are rich, we have so much time to fill our lives with something…. For many that is malcontent, bitterness, entertainment etc…and they are sucking the life out of us.  Think about it nobody here would really have enough time to read this blog.  The men are just trying to get food, and the woman are trying to make it in a pot on the fire, and then they hit repeat.  Just a heart check TFAB.  I know mine is all messed up…

On a side not I met the new president of all the Ag churches here in Burkina.  Pastor Michael.  He said you have a open door to do whatever you want in any church at any time, because we are connected to Marcel and the Swansons.  So thankful we get to stand on other peoples shoulders and continue a work God has begun!!!

I want to say thank you for those that have donated money for the roofs.  We are trying to do 16 total from TFAB!  So please pray and see if God might have you give, to cover the household of faith here in Burkina!

Finally, I had the honor of baptizing 5 people yesterday.  3 that were muslim, and 2 that were atheists.  Then I taught on God is able, and just hit on the fiery furnace, and a Muslim woman came to the Lord!  That’s a Shocking highlight!

Much Love TFAB,

Loren

Burkina Faso/ Nicholas and Krista update

Barkwhenam! (Praise God!, in the Moore language)

There has been so much going on for us here in Ouagadougou, in our hearts, our minds, our activities, and our experiences!

Hopefully, by blogging while here, we can give you all some snapshots of Burkina Faso and life here. We’re excited to share even more in a few short weeks.

The pastors conference started Tuesday and went through Friday of last week, continuing through this Thursday. The Burkinabe (burr-kee-na-bay) pastors say they have been learning so much and appreciate us coming all this way. They have also come from great distances to hear the Word of God taught verse-by-verse. Daily we have new adventures, taste new flavors and see new things. The first day we were given lunch in a big pot to take back to our house. It was in incredibly flavorful stew of goat meat, potatoes,green beans, tomatoes, and spices. The goat was raised specifically for this conference and killed just that morning to feed the pastors. I don’t think I’ve had fresher meat than that!

I think we all spent the first few days adjusting to the heat. It’s probably about 110 here on average, and we have been eating hot food just about every day. The guys have been freezing bottles of Coke to make slurpees, so that cools us off in the heat of the afternoon. It’s very hot, but we drink lots of water and maybe by the end of this week we’ll hopefully adjust like the people here- they don’t even sweat most of the time! Well, maybe it would take more than 2 weeks…

Yesterday I was honored and humbled to be able to share with a group of Burkinbe women. We were in a brick building in the suburbs of “Ouaga”, with fans blowing much needed air throughout, and rows of handmade wooden benches. There were probably about 70 women, dressed in colorful attire, plus their adorable children gathered in this one church. They were from the surrounding area, and I heard some had even come farther.

I shared about Biblical womanhood and why it’s so important to hear what God has to say about marriage and family. I told them how exciting it was that we had both traveled long distances to teach and learn the Word of God, respectively. I had a time slot of 9am-12:30pm, so when they seemed to look tired and the room was getting really hot, at about 11am, I told them (through the translator) we could stop and do lunch soon. After some discussion with the ladies, the translator turned to me and said “no”, with a smile. They had said they came to hear me teach, and they wanted to listen until 12:30, the full three and a half hours! I was so excited to realize their hunger for the Word of God. It was more real than any hunger for lunch. Praise God that these ladies desire Him and what He says to us.

After teaching about what it looks like to submit, to love our husbands and children, to be a crown, and a little about wisdom, I opened it up to questions before concluding. These ladies asked tough questions, like “What do I do if my husband is lazy and doesn’t provide?” “What if I have problems with my in-laws?” “how can I get my husband to act differently?” And these are the same tough questions we deal with in America. Marriage and childbearing raise difficult issues in every culture. We face the same trials, though they come wearing different coats according to culture. In the end, our trials are a result of the fall, of our own sins, and of our lack of focus on Jesus, who is the only One who can help. When I went to conclude with the section of teaching about Satan’s attacks, I found the material I had prepared was answering the concerns of the ladies. Scripture confirmed that we need to look to the author and perfecter of our faith, no matter what country we’re in or how long we’ve been married, or what our culture looks like! With Nicholas and Loren’s help, I was able to answer these ladies’ questions and hopefully encourage them! It was humbling, being younger than some of them, and probably less wise than many of them, to convey what the Lord says to us all as women and daughter’s of God.

To thank me for teaching, they presented me with two chickens! Live ones! They were roosters, tied together by the feet and hanging upside down (they looked dead to me). We took them back to Pastor Marcel’s house, and they were to be lunch for the next day. And I wanted to have a part in the prep. When am I next going to have the chance to learn to pluck a chicken? I asked Marcel if I could help and he said I didn’t’ want to see him kill and pluck it. I begged to differ. He the agreed to let me help (but may think I am a crazy white woman.) Nicholas actually got to kill one rooster and Marcel killed the other. I was happy to learn how to pluck it. We let the blood drain out after the chickens’ necks were slit, and then we put the two birds in a bucket of boiling water. It cleans them and helps loosen up the feathers, apparently. Marcel’s son demo-ed the process for me. I then plucked one whole bird and cut it into pieces. Today after church we had it for lunch, barbecued! Mmm, good! (Well, a little scrawny and tough, but very flavorful!) I will never look at a package of drumsticks from Fred Meyer the same way again!

Today Nicholas and I got the privilege of returning to the church that I spoke at for their Sunday service. There are so many great things to say about it! The music was so fun, full of passion and clapping, dancing, and praise! The ladies wore the most beautiful dresses, with vibrant prints and fancy head wraps. Two choirs sang, many people danced and prayed, and my husband got to do the teaching! He shared about faith, giving examples from Hebrews 11 and stories from the Old Testament. It was really encouraging when our well-educated translator, Abraham, told Nicholas how well he did. He said he liked that the Word of God was taught and he had lots to think about and be challenged with. We went to this church to bless them, and ended up being so blessed ourselves! Isn’t that always how it is? So fun!
We then got to share a wonderful meal with Marcel’s family and our whole team here. We had split up and gone to different churches in the morning, but met at Marcel’s house afterwards. We had the fore mentioned chickens, a national dish called sagabow (millet that tasted like cream of what to me), cooked veggies with aioli-like sauce, French bread, okra sauce, fried plantains, and pasta! They treated us like kings and we thoroughly enjoyed our authentic Burkinabe cuisine!

Time to sign off for today, but we’ll try to share again soon!
Love from Burkina,
Krista and Nicholas

Burkina Faso/ Can you see…..

Ne y yibeoogo, (Good Morning)

I don’t know if words can rightfully communicate the joy that we see in the lives of the people here that love Jesus, or the impact that they have made in our lives in such a small amount of time.  We have taught them, laughed with them, encouraged them and as a team at various times we have wept over them.  There is a Moore proverb that says “until you see the dead body you will not have tears in your eyes”.  I think that our biggest fear is that when we come home we will not be able to communicate rightly the impact they have made on our hearts, and the vastness of the door that is open for us to see Christ work in an entire Nation.  After I was done teaching yesterday Marcel called me over to talk to one of the pastors that had traveled about 200 miles.  This man needed to leave to get back to His church for Sunday morning, and He would not be able to come back next week.  Our plan is to present all 100 pastors with a Moore’ bible and 10,000 cfa which is equivalent to about 22 bucks or 5% of there yearly income.  So I went outside to say good-bye to him and give him his gift, and I asked Him our time of teaching here was beneficial to Him.  With wet eyes he pulled out his notebook (college spiral size) pointed at it, and fanned through the whole thing.  It was full!  Through interpretation he told me that he would go back home and share it with his congregation, and all the other pastors in his region that he meets with.   Just Humbling……

Well today I had the pleasure of watching Nicholas stand by Kristas side as She spoke into the lives of the woman at one of the 4 churches that Marcel has started.  She did a great job teaching from 9-12:30 using many of the notes that she had taken from the biblical womanhood study.  The woman were exceedingly blessed and with Nicholas they spent time counseling some of the woman through the questions that were asked.  While they were counseling I went outside with the  children of the moms that had come to hear her speak.  I taught the kids how to play tic-tac-toe on paper then showed them how to play in the sand.  After about a hundred games of it I introduced them to another game I play on wed night with th 1-5 graders called poopdeck…. (uhhhh it’s the upper part of a boat)   While we were playing neighborhood kids and adults all came out to watch, it was really cool.  It got me thinking about bringing over some people from tfab and doing some childrens outreach or a camp.  While we were with at the church, Peter was invited to go over to a missionaries house that was sent from Burkina to Niger.  He had an amazing time there and I am hoping that he will blog about his time with you tomorrow. Tomorrow we are all teaching in 5 different churches.  I actually get to baptize some people in Marcels church, one of which is a former muslim.  I am honored to be in the water with these people!

Before I go I would ask any of you reading the blog if God would not have you give to this work this week.  IF you desire to do this you can mark a check or envolope with Burkina.  We would like to help some of these guys put a roof on a church while we are here.  We are thankful that someone from ACF gave money for 2 roofs (1700) but we would love to do a couple more.  IF this is something you would like to help with let Scott know and we will make this happen! Well I love you all and miss you, and I want you to know that your prayers are being answered!

Before I go here are some of the names I promised you to pray for…

Amos from Ougua waiting 7 years for a roof

Henry from Saaba Needs a roof

John from Sanse – Time to teach verse by verse, Financial, transportation to conferances

James from Kongoussy- windows doors, Evangelism equipment speakers, Houses that wont fall apart raining season

Paul from Boromo- Evangalism equipment, transportation

Etienne from Kaya- Evangalism equip

Maddi- Tema- Islamic stronghold in village, persecution,

Pray for the children of the pastors

Much Love,

Loren