Driving in the CAR

When you travel on road in the CAR, you have to expect the unexpected. Some
of the roads seemed impassable, but somehow we managed to pass them all,
through makeshift bridges, murky "ponds" and many villagers waving to us
with big smiles on their faces.

We traveled about 200 miles today toward the north of the country. We made
several stops, so it took us all day to get to Yaloké, and then to Pama, a
village of 2000 or more people where a Grace Brethren pastor labors among
some of the poorest of the poor.

Most of us are doing well, except for Jeana, who was left behind in Bangui
because she is still battling some kind of virus which she got in the U.S.
prior to coming here. Also, one of the pastors from North Carolina, Carl,
was sick most of the day, but he was able to make the trip. Please, pray for
these two. Jeana is planning on joining up with us on Thursday, and Carl and
Mike will be driving back to Bangui in Friday.

I am sitting under a kerosene lamp in the guest house at Yaloké. There is no
electricity here. We just returned from our trip to Pama and are trying to
get ready to sleep. We leave at 9:00 a.m. tomorrow to _______.

Being here in Africa is like going back in time to my childhood days. The
vegetation and the landscape is so much like my home in Brazil, the fruits
are the same we eat in northern Brazil, and even the manioc and cassava
plants are the same. The people are extremely friendly and they love to
interact with anyone. This is like being among long time friends, except
that I don't speak their language.

There is, however, another huge difference, and that is the fact that the
suffering here is so much more prevalent than what I remember when I was a
child. The pastor and his wife have eight children and he is also taken care
of several orphans. One of the pastors in our group asked him: "What is the
biggest challenge you have in your church?" His answer was unmistakable: "My
biggest challenge is having enough food for my family?"

There are 55 orphans in this village and only 35 of them are receiving some
assistance, namely, food, from ICDI. The rest are also starving, together
with the people they are living with. Most of them could go to school, if
they had the funds to do so, which amounts to approximately $40.00 per year.

Yet, the smiles on the faces of these people I will never forget. I saw in
their faces, again, the face of my Lord. They were dressed in filthy rags,
but I was thrilled to have my face touched theirs. They had not showered in
a long time, but their warmth was so contagious. I just wish I could stay
longer with them and I pray to God that we will be able to do something to
help in the future.

Forgive me for this post being so wordy. I am not able to upload pictures
here from a bush. I am sending this post from a satellite phone, graciously
provided to me by Jim Hocking.

Keep praying!

P.S. Pastor Mike Lee wants to know how many of his people are checking this
log.
P.P.S. Dave Slater wants everyone to know that the kids were precious.
P.P.P.S. Tim Harley is excited about what God can do through our
partnerships with churches here.