Friday Nov. 20

Setting Up for the Jesus Film at the Front Gate to Our Compound

Kids Helping Gather Grass Seed for the Rocket Stove

It's been a good week in Boma. A little too much rain but a lot has been accomplished. Showed the Jesus Film on Tuesday evening and it was well attended despite short notice and late afternoon rain. The pastor training is going very well with Dr. Nandi and Pastor Godfrey covering a lot of excellent material. I had the privilege of being involved in a very beautiful thing last evening. A woman whose family lives near the compound passed away on Wednesday. Some of us from the staff went with the pastors to visit the family. There were about 20 of us and we circled the family, sang several Murle worship songs, offered some words of comfort from the Lord, prayed for them, and as we sang another song, went by and blessed each family member. We also took a bag of millet and some cooking oil to give them. Sudanese do not show emotions, other than anger, but most of the family members were wiping away tears as the pastors sang and spoke to them. It was a wonderful teaching experience for the pastors regarding what pastors do to comfort the grieving.

There are mangoes to be eaten and the kids bring several to school each day. I have had mangoes from various places, but those in Boma have to be the best. We had a fun devotion time in school yesterday. I am doing an OT story one day and a NT story the next. This story was of Elijah and the Prophets of Baal. I made a Baal idol out of buckets, balloons, toilet paper and mangoes. It was quite impressive. I told them how the prophets of Baal were shouting and dancing and cutting themselves yet Baal was not responding, so I suggested they may need some help. I taught them the chant, "Come on Baal, you can do it, put a little power to it!" I made it a contest between sides of the room as to who could be loudest and I am sure they could hear us in Lower Boma. Needless to say, Baal just sat there looking impressive but doing nothing so Elijah took his turn and after pouring a can of water on the alter, an orange blanket came down and burned up everything.

Tomorrow, if it does not rain, we are taking the truck to get sand for construction. It is a 90 kilometer round trip to a river where the sand is located and there is no road. This should prove to be an adventure. I am going to begin training the pastors in how to make a Rocket Stove in the afternoons next week. The stove I made on Monday is working very well and people have been coming in to watch each time I fire it up.

Thank you for continuing to pray for our staff here, the Murle people, the pastor's training and all the other events that are taking place as God's purposes in Boma are becoming reality.

Blessings from Boma;

Micheal