Not a Goodbye but a Beginning...

Clinic before and after

Sorry for the brevity of this entry, but I am trying to write it with only 10 minutes before we head out to the pygmy village. Today we ended our time renovating Dr. and Mrs. Y's clinic. You can see from the before and after picture, as well as the picture on an earlier blog how much the room has been transformed. It has fresh white walls, a newly tiled floor, baseboards up, window and frames. It will soon be ready to be used as a dental office.
Laura hard at work
As rewarding as it was to see the room transformed in a week, it has been even more rewarding to see the beginning transformation in the heart of Dr. and Mrs. Y. We truly have a friendship with them now and we know that Christ's love has touched them this week. As we prayed one last time today, it was really quiet and hard. Susan said how that room would forever be a reminder of us and our time there. I told them as we were leaving, "This is not goodbye, this is just the beginning." And I believe it is. God has begun a good work in them and I do believe He will be faithful to complete it. I ask all of you back home to pray for their work here, but most of all for their hearts and souls to be won by Jesus Christ.

Today, we will begin the second phase of our ministry out at the Pygmy villages. These people truly are the poorest of the poor. Even the little they do have is not really their own. Anything of value they do have is most likely going to be taken by other Central Africans. Pray that we can show the love of Christ to them this week through helping build a latrine, spending time with the children, and showing the Jesus film. Pray that Christ would penetrate their hearts with the truth of the gospel through it. We must truly believe and remember that through CHRIST all things are possible.

Laura Gibson

Reveling in my role

Note from Laura: For those of you following the blog regularly, you may or may not have realized that one of our original team members, Barb Teach, was unable to go out with us as she was in the ER the night before with the flu. But God was good and she was able to come out a week later to join us in our work here. Here are some of her initial thoughts after arriving here:

"Well, after 10 years, I made it to Bangui, in the CAR. The team time is precious as we share devotion time together each day. Today was Zachary's turn. He chose to share John 3:16-17.
The heart of our mission is the heart of the gospel. The message and motivation are in those Scriptures. To see Dr. and Mrs. Y and the sacrifices, hardships and devotion to their call to serve the African people make my small acts seem like nothing.

This morning going to church, the music was delivered with such joy and love. It was easy to spend time in praise to Jesus without understanding all the words, but the Spirit was the same. So many loving, generous people were at church. The adults worshiped inside while about 150 children had class outside. This worship is touching the heart of our God.

The lesson was on Revelation 3:1-6. The congregation made us feel like home. I pray when I get back to Grace I will be as friendly and encouraging as my African brothers and sisters.

I miss my precious grandchildren, but Valerie and Zac let me be grandma. Also touching these precious children here has been great. I know God chose me to be the designated grandmother of the group. I love my role on the team. Praise God I made it to the CAR."

Barb Teach

A Blog Entry's Journey

Several of you contacted me to find out about when the blog was going to be updated. I was actually encouraged to hear from you because that means that you are reading this blog. Thank you for expressing a desire that all of us have: to see more entries, more stories, more pictures.

In order to help all of us understand how a blog entry gets posted here, I decided to write this quick note.

Last Saturday (2/24) was the last time I updated the blog. And the reason for that is simple: it was the last time I received an entry from the CAR. With the exception of today, because we have staff meetings all day long and I lead a book study in the evening, I have always been posting the entries within an hour from the time I receive them.

I was anxious to get more news but also new that if there was silence on the other end it was because our team was really busy and/or experiencing difficulties with the Internet connections. Both turned out to be true.

Here is what you need to know:

1. Laura writes these entries late at night, after a long day of work, so she is extremely tired when she writes them. That's another reason we all need to write her notes expressing how thankful we are for the job she is doing.

2. Laura has to get a ride to the Internet Cafe, which is located 20 minutes by car from where they are staying.

4. Laura has to rely on the unpredictability of the Internet connections in Bangui. Sometimes she has to keep re-sending files several times in the hopes that in the next time she will succeed.

5. Laura sends me a text with the entries and attaches pictures. The picture attachments are especially trying (extremely frustrating is more like it), sometimes taking five minutes or more for one file to be transmitted.

6. Bangui has experienced daily black outs, especially in the last few days. This usually happens during the evening, which is the only time Laura has to go to the Internet Cafe.

7. After I receive the entry, it takes me a little bit of time to post it to the blog.

8. After I post the entry, your role is to read it, pray, and write comments!

Thank you again for your patience and remember that whenever there is a hiatus it probably means the team is working hard and maybe experiencing some technical difficulties in Bangui. So when you start to feel like missing the news (which is every day for me!), it is time to intensify your prayers more.

Finally, to leave a comment: if you are experiencing problems or prefer not to register, leave a comment as "anonymous" and write your name on the bottom of your comment so the team can know who is leaving the note. Keep those comments coming, it's encouraging for the team to hear from people back home.

Ivanildo Trindade

"I Want To Add to the Beauty"

Beauty of a flower

Is this land beautiful? I've been looking for the beauty, and sometimes it's hard to find. But most places we've been, I've seen a unique, brightly colored African flower. Usually, there aren't many, but the one I find makes the whole place have beauty. I have to keep my eyes open, because if I don't look for it, I might miss it and then the whole place looks dirty and dingy. But that one flower conveys hope, life, seasons…
Beauty of children being children
I think that's how we have to look at a place like the CAR. You've got to look for the beauty, its there, but you have to find it. Sometimes the beauty comes in never ending grins and handshakes from people who are so honored that you have come to their church. Sometimes it's in the totally awesome sound of African voices praising the same God we praise, with fervor and passion that reminds you of His greatness and His glory. Sometimes its in half dressed, dirty, malnourished children running and laughing, seeming to have no clue that something about their life is terribly wrong.
Beauty of fun

One of my favorite songs is by Sara Groves http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sara_Groves and it is called, "I Want to Add to the Beauty." She says, "I want to add to the beauty, to tell a better story. Shine with the light that's burning up inside." That's what we want to do here in the Central African

Beauty of friendship

Republic. Add to the beauty of

the CAR with the light of Christ that is burning up inside of us. We want to tell a better story. The story of Jesus Christ and redemption. The beauty is here in ways you may have never seen it, but it is here, there is no mistake. All I want to do is add to the beauty. Beauty the way God sees it, not the way my little human eyes see it. It's a lot more hopeful and "doable" to add to beauty the way God defines it. In his definition, it means touching the person with AIDS, sharing a meal with hard working people who need to laugh, waving to a child on the side of the road, singing alleluia with African brothers and sisters, covering a latrine for a pygmy village, having a Bible club ministry to orphans. That's God's beauty; that's His standard. His beauty requires communing with the Holy Spirit so that we know where and how to add to the beauty; that's it. We can all do that. Beauty of giving

Laura Gibson

"Dinner with the Doctor and the Missis"

"The doctor and the Missis"

We continued working on renovations at Dr. Y's clinic today. It's amazing how much time and effort painting, putting a new sink in , and tiling a room can take when you don't have the materials and expertise we have in America. But it has been so good for us as a team to be creative and work together. More than that though, our time this week at the clinic has touched the lives of Central Africans we work with and they have blessed us with their hard work and joyful attitudes.

When we met Dr. Y's wife, Susan, she was clearly in deep despair and frustration about life here. She felt hopeless and annoyed with this culture. Most things she said conveyed these feelings. I had felt a burden for her before I had left the States and now I knew why. I have prayed that the Lord would work in her life and especially use Jeana and myself to spend time with her and show her Christ's love. And then, we had the one afternoon that the power was out and Jeana and I couldn't clean, so we visited with her for several hours. I believe that was truly the turning point for her. She vented to us all the hardships and struggles of being here and we affirmed her:yes, it was a struggle here, but the Lord must be so blessed by their sacrifice and that He would give her the strength she needed each day.

Since that day, it has been as if there is a slight lifting of a dark cloud from this woman's life. She has said to me many times, "Laura, you don't know how much you all have boosted our morale. You have brought so much cheer into our lives. It was as if my batteries were dead and you have recharged me." It is amazing to see what God can do in the life of a person in just a mere couple of days if we allow Him to use us how He calls us and we respond. It was no one act that any of us did that changed Mrs. Y's demeanor, it was all of us listening to the Holy Spirit's prodding of how to encourage and show the love of Christ to these people.

We had the pleasure of taking Dr. and Mrs. Y out for dinner last night at a wonderful Chinese restaurant. Who knew they would have amazing authentic Chinese food in the Central African Republic? This night was full of laughter, joy, and the Lord reigning down His blessings on us. Dr. Y thanked us for bringing so much joy into their lives, especially his wife. He is a little more prone to except their struggles as the way life is, but He said how much it meant to him that we had touched his wife in such a way.

When we asked Dr. Y what kept Him going here amidst the struggle and despair, he said He knew that God had a specific task for him to complete in His life and He was just trying to follow that. Although, we are still unsure of exactly where they are spiritually, there is at least a belief in one God who has a purpose for their life.

This is a good starting point at least. It has been a privilege to enter into the lives of these two people that God has put in our path. They have touched our lives with their hearts and their passion for these people. And I know we have touched theirs with Christ's love. He has allowed us to sow seeds of the gospel into their lives that have brought a lift to their spirits and a glow to their faces. Praise the Lord for His goodness and faithfulness.

Laura Gibson

Blogger's note: I remember very well the day we first met Dr. Y and his wife at their clinic. They were so eager to show us their work. I asked Dr. Y if any church had ever stopped by to see if they could do anything to help. He laughed with those kinds of laughs that seem to say: "You're kidding with me, right?" Then he said: "No. You are the first church to show interest in what we are doing." At the end of our tour, Tim Harley, who is there in the CAR now, suggested that we pray for their work. Mrs. Y agreed. At the end of the prayer, she was visibly emotional and thanked us. We were the first group ever to pray there for them and their work. There were two "firsts" there in that little clinic in Bangui and I am glad that we didn't simply pray, said God bless you, and left. We came back and are actually making a difference. Here is a connection for you: it's because of funds given to our church for missions that we are able to help renovate a room at that clinic in Bangui. Dr. Y showed us the room last year. He told us what he wanted to get done. God provided the funds and we have a team now in the CAR and they are almost done with the work in the clinic. Don't tell me we can't make a difference, even in the CAR!

Waves of Hope

Jim Hocking, from ICDI, hands the Mayor a short-wave radio

Today we went to the village of Baoli for the dedication of the first short wave radio station in the CAR granted to a private organization. Jim Hocking, the director of ICDI, and many of his colleagues have been working very hard to get a Christian radio station set up for the people of the C.A.R. and today was the opening day.

What an inspiration to see the pride in the faces of the Africans who started and are running this station. Even the Mayor of the village came to the opening ceremony and spoke some words of thanks to ICDI for the investment they have made through this radio station. Praise God that this radio station will allow the seeds of the gospel to be sown throughout the entire nation!

Before the dedication took place we had a chance to meet
with several of the villagers whose homes were close to the station. They were so excited to see us and take pictures with us. They kept wanting to pose for "family" photos and to see their pictures. Oh the joy in little things -- we seem to have forgotten it in our part of the world...

Wilfred, radio announcer for ICDI

When you hear the story of how ICDI started a mere 2.5 years ago and see how the ministry has already expanded in so many ways, there is no doubt that it is God's hand that is making all this possible. The ceremony was a small one, but many of the Americans who helped the Central Africans start the station said that the Africans commented on how blessed and honored they were that we would come all the way from Bangui just for the ceremony. (It's only an hour drive for us.)


This radio station has given this village something to take pride in. It has given Christian Central Africans a ministry of their own. This is exactly what we as a church and ICDI hope to do: empower Central Africans to bring lasting hope to their own people, through love and good work, through words spoken in one's hearing, and now through the airwaves beaming the good news of Christ to a whole country.

We counted it an honor to be among the few white people here today!

Laura Gibson



Behold, a radio station!

"A Different Kind of Africa"

What's in her future?

I think we have all gotten relatively used to the nightly power outages from about 6-9pm. At least we can still work and have light during the day. But we were not expecting it to be out all afternoon. Since Jeana and I (Laura) have been cleaning rooms in the clinic, that made it a bit difficult to see anything we could have possibly cleaned. I had been wanting an opportunity to talk to Dr. Y's wife, Susan, so that afternoon seemed like a good opportunity to do that.

Jeana and I spent the afternoon sitting in the pharmacy talking with her and hearing her amazing story, which I will share more in depth with you all later. But what struck me was how she kept saying: "This is a different kind of Africa!" She gets so frustrated with the people here. She says they don't have the mentality to work for their pay. They just want to grab whatever they can take. She says they are loafers and unmotivated. And I began to think about all of these comments. I know she was talking out of frustration and hopelessness after 10 years of being here and seeing little if any progress.

The poorest of the poor

But I began to put together the pieces of everything I had learned from Tom, Dr. Y's wife, and others. Imagine if you lived in a country that had only had its independence for a little less than 50 years. And this so called "independence" comes with the terms and conditions that everything under the land, diamonds, oil, etc. belongs to France. So basically anything of value upon which this country could build an economy is in Frances' control. And the amazing thing is, France isn't even using it! I am outraged when I think about this. When you look at all the countries in the world, the CAR is sixth from the bottom on the Human Development Index http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_Development_Index. They are the sixth worst off country in the world!

To put this in perspective for myself and some of you at our church, they are more than 40 countries below Cambodia! So not only do they have little to develop their country with, but within the last 10 years they have undergone 4 different rebellions where whole cities and provinces are wiped out and people have to flee and left everything they had. These rebellions

have wiped out whole factories that employed many people. Every time something is started and beginning to progress, it seems that something happens to pull the nation down. Overtly we see it within the country's leadership, but covertly France still holds this country in despair.

This IS a different kind of Africa. It is an Africa that has seen hardship after hardship. It is an Africa that has been suppressed and forgotten by most. And we the church have the most powerful and only weapon that can bring peace and progress here: PRAYER. WE MUST BE ON OUR KNEES FOR OUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS HERE. If Jesus said that faith can move mountains, and that we do not receive because we do not ask, then we better start increasing our faith and asking more. Peoples lives and hope are depending on it.

Laura Gibson

Blogger's note: CAR Statistics:Total population: 4,038,000. GDP per capita (Intl $, 2004): 1,182 Life expectancy at birth m/f (years): 40.0/41.0. Healthy life expectancy at birth m/f (years, 2002): 37.0/37.7. Child mortality m/f (per 1000): 201/185. Adult mortality m/f (per 1000): 667/624. Total health expenditure per capita (Intl $, 2003): 47. Total health expenditure as % of GDP (2003): 4.0. Figures are for 2004 unless indicated. Source: The world health report 2006. For more information, go to http://www.who.int/countries/caf/en/

The Privilege of a Ride…

Traveling "in style" on ICDI's car

Everywhere we go, we take two jeeps. Once we only had one available and we were so "squished"! But usually there are two. When there are two and I have a "window" seat, I look out at this world of Africa and think many thoughts. Today I looked at how few cars there were and who was riding in them. There are jeeps and SUVs that are largely owned or operated for and by foreigners. There are lots of yellow taxis driven by Central Africans and the people riding in them are in general the more wealthy Central Africans. I don't know what percent of the population of Bangui is riding in these SUVs or taxis, but I can tell you that it is minuscule.

CAR's mode of transportation

The Central Africans ride bikes sometimes, but mainly they walk. They walk everywhere. They walk carrying things balanced on their head and their hips and babies on their backs. They walk pushing carts full of bricks that are so heavy I could probably not even lift the handle. They push carts full of logs that they can't see over the top of. The phrase "to walk a mile in their shoes" has a whole new meaning. I don't think I could walk a mile in their shoes… No! I probably couldn't walk five feet in their shoes.

And this is part of the privilege of being American, of being a foreigner. It makes me wonder less why they do things slowly or why they take a three-hour break in the middle of the day. When life consists of the same back breaking grueling work day in and day out, why rush? If you push a little harder, does it really even make a difference? What will make a difference in such a life that has little hope of lasting change?

Desperate needs, desperate measures

The only answer, fortunately, is the best answer and that is Christ. We need these people to remind us of the privilege of being American and the responsibility of being a Christ follower. We must reach out in love. We can offer hope in small changes like wells with clean water and latrines. And we must remember the ultimate hope of Jesus Christ and eternity as we work among these people and share Him with them. We need to pray with much more fervor for a
continent in great need of hope, both spiritual and physical. The privilege of the ride for us comes with a responsibility to Jesus Christ far greater than the ride. May we rise up to it.

Laura Gibson
Blogger's note: Thank you for praying for Barb Teach. She was able to get on a plane earlier this morning and should be in Bangui on Saturday morning. Keep those prayers going!


Don't try that at home!

Signs of Hope

Jeana and Laura's "apprentices"

Today we worked at the clinic. Laura and I cleaned a surgical room and a patient's room. Two African men helped us. Part of our job was to instruct them on how to clean these rooms so they can do it themselves from now on. The guys hammered holes in the floor to create a textured surface so that it is prepared for tiling. I think they had fun despite the constant sweat.

Dr. Y and his wife are wonderful people, but we wonder what their motivation is. We plan to take them to dinner when we are finished. We asked them to tell us their story then. Please pray for Mrs. Y. She is not happy here right now, and I don't believe she is a Christian. Laura and I have been getting to know her, and she appreciates what we are doing here. Her children are in England. She hasn't seen them for three years. It is hard work here and they cannot take a vacation because there is nobody to take their place while they are gone. She has had some traumatic experiences here as well.

It has been great to be back here and see people we know as well as meeting new friends. I was really touched when we went to the Pygmy village on Sunday night to see how things were coming. Polly, the woman who let me use her "bathroom" when I was sick last time, greeted me warmly with a hug after I got out of the truck. After viewing the latrine area, Polly and I spoke to each other. I told her two of my children were with me, then introduced them. Another lady next to here proudly introduced her daughter. Then something very special happened. Polly took my hand as we walked back toward the road. It is a sign of friendship. I was amazed that she even remembered me. I must have made quite an impression or connection being sick last time. Either way, I was humbled. She was very excited to receive a picture of my family.

What a change in the people of this village since our last trip*. Hope replaced despair in their eyes. Joy replaced despondency. It was like night and day with these people. I am so glad God put these people in our path and in our hearts. What looked like a helpless situation has been turned into a hopeful one. Please pray for a chance to show them the "Jesus Film" and for more opportunities to plant seeds with them. I long to see Polly and her family in heaven!!!

Jeana Harley

*Blogger's note: I remember that village well and the people in it. In fact their story has been the inspiration to some of the things I 've written on this blog. My heart was filled with joy as I read Jeana's words. What a difference a little help can make. Yes, bring on the Jesus film!

Dr. Y's Clinic

Tom, Tim and Rob working at the AIDS clinic

For the last 2 days we have been working at Dr.Y's clinic cleaning rooms and preparing them to be painted and tiled. It may seem like a simple task, but when you realize how much dust gets into these rooms on a daily basis, you wonder how anything ever stays clean. I thought to myself: "How does anyone stick it out here if their motivation is not Christ?"

We have yet to hear the full story of Dr. Y* and his wife, but they have assured us they will tell us their whole story when we treat them to dinner at the end of the week. Dr. Y's wife, Susan, told us that her sister is caring for her children in London because it is too dangerous to have them in the CAR. She herself told us that she has narrowly escaped death here twice in the 10 years they have been in the CAR. Not only do her children live in London, ages 18, 16, and 8, but she has not seen them for three years. Who among us can imagine doing that? She says how hard it is here and even how boring it can be for her. And yet we do not know for sure what her motivation is.

We are hoping and praying that the Lord will give us opportunity to hear what it is for her. And if it is not Christ, we are praying that the Lord will give us a chance to share the reason for our hope and the motivation behind what we do. Please be praying for opportune times to discuss such important things with her.

Laura Gibson

*Blogger's note: We know that he got his medical training and worked in Russia for 20 years. He returned to the CAR with his wife, who is from Nigeria, to help and care for patients who are infected with the HIV/AIDS virus and now run a clinic in one of the most difficult places in the world to care for sick people.

Serving God By Playing?

Zac fulfilling his "calling"

"We have been in Africa for 4 days now. I have been playing with a missionary kid from England. His name is Alexander. Today I met some African children at Madam Zokoe's.* I gave them gum and some bouncy balls. We had a real African meal with bread (mapa), spinach, beef, fried potatoes, and plantains. My favorite food was the fried potatoes. I am having lots of fun, but it is very hot here. Right now I miss the snow at home."

Zac Harley

"I discovered that playing can be a way of serving God. I met a missionary girl that has no English speaking friends to play with. She is very excited that I am here to play with her. While the rest of the team is serving at the AIDS clinic, Zac and I get to play with them. Mom said our ministry here this week is to play with these kids. Pastor Tom said that he wanted to change his ministry to play too!!

We went to Madam Zokoe's house to eat lunch. My favorite foods that we ate was the African watermelon and the fried potatoes. After we ate we came outside to have coffee and tea. We also gave the children Pringles and salted peanuts.

Last night the power went out. This happens a lot here. We played games by candlelight. Dad and Rob did dishes with lights on their heads to be able to see. I am having a good time, but I am really missing my family and friends at home."

Valerie Harley
*Blogger's note: She is the Central African lady in charge of the Grace Brethren Orphan program in Bangui.

Faithful With A Little…

Laura with new friends

"His master replied, well done good and faithful servant. You have been faithful with a few things. I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness." (Matthew 25:21).

Today (Sunday, February 18) we ventured out to one of the Pigmy villages that we and ICDI are partnering with. Farel, our driver and one of ICDI's employees, told us that he had spoken with the village on Wednesday before we came. He told them that in order for us to partner with them, they needed to clear out about an acre of land and start digging the latrine. When we arrived there today (Sunday), the chief of the Pigmy village led us to a plot of land that had over an acre cleared and a latrine dug down at least 7 feet!! They accomplished all of this in four days!

If you could have seen the pride these pygmy men had in showing our team their work. These are the people who are despised by the rest of the Central Africans. These are the people that are overlooked and forgotten. But through the prompting of the Holy Spirit some through ICDI and our church were faithful to show the love of Christ to these people and begin partnering with them. And how did they respond? With gratitude and a work ethic unmatched by most. If you look at the picture you will realize even how much more amazing digging that latrine was. All they had is one pick with no handle (Blogger's note: a six inch spud bar. I saw how they do it, which is not much different from the way we did it in Brazil when I was growing up. Hard work indeed!).

On our end, God had prompted Tim Harley to buy a pick and some shovels before we left to give wherever the Spirit led. And when we saw these pygmies and what they had worked with so hard and so faithfully, we knew that this was the place to give these tools. When we gave them the tools, their faces were filled with gratitude and joy. Smiles as big as you can believe emerged on the men's faces. Tom took this opportunity to explain to these men how God says that those who are faithful with a little, God blesses and gives more responsibility. Just as they were faithful to the work they did, God was faithful to bless them with more tools. What an awesome tangible Biblical lesson we could share with them! Please pray that they would continue to be faithful with what God has blessed them with and that we back in Wooster would be faithful to how God has called us to get involved here.

Faithful with little story

Laura Gibson

HERE AT LAST!!!!

Praise God for His goodness and faithfulness! We have safely arrived in Bangui, Central African Republic! As we stepped off the plane early this morning, we were reminded of the heat and humidity of hot July days in Wooster. Although the wait at the airport was long, we were all thankful for the one among us who speaks the native language as well as his local friend who helped us through the process of customs.

A missed connecting flight from Atlanta to Paris, led us to an extra country, The Netherlands, as a connecting point in our journey. Once we finally arrived in Paris, we were pleasantly surprised by temperatures that I can only guess where in the 50's (one can never be sure as the rest of the world talks in Celcius). We were greeted by Nicole Plaster, a GBIM missionary to France, at a train station one block from her home. We had the pleasure of taking in true French Cuisine at a little Fondue restaurant, seeing the beautiful architecture of Notre Dame, and standing in awe as we looked at the Eiffel Tower. But little Zac Harley kept putting so aptly the anticipation that was in all of us, "When are we gonna go to the airport and go to Africa. I want to go to Africa!"

And now we are here, exhausted but ready to be used by God and anticipating what He will allow us to do for His glory. As we drove from the airport to the guest house we were staying at, the physical poverty was glaringly obvious: people begging, walls with broken bottles glued to the top to protect any property that one values, and houses made out of aluminum and smaller than what we all would considerable a comfortable size for a bedroom. But already there is a joy and love in these people that we would be amazed to see in anyone living in those physical conditions. What a blessing it will be to learn from these people so full of joy!

Arriving at the guest house

Laura Gibson

PS. Bloggers note: Barb Teach, one of our team members, was not able to travel with the team, due to illness. She was in the emergency room the night before the flight with the flu. Please, pray that she will be able to join the team this week.

Because of love

From left to right: Rob Miller, Tim, Valerie, Jeana, Zak Harley, Laura Gibson, Barb Teach, J.P. Peters, Pastor Tom Peters

This afternoon, around 1:30, our team will board a plane in Columbus, headed for Detroit, then later tonight to Paris, then Bangui, Central Africa Republic, where they arrive Saturday morning, God willing.

It's not too soon to ask everyone to pray. The article below is only a reminder to send us to our news. No, we are not being irresponsible sending a team from our church to a troubled part of the world. We have consulted with our experts who are in Bangui and they gave us the "go ahead." We have spoken with our team members as well and they decided to continue as planned. They are motivated by God's love and His love for people. However, they are asking that we pray for them and I hope you will do just that!

Pastor Ivanildo Trindade

BANGUI, Feb 14 (Reuters) - Thousands of immigrants from Chad marched through Bangui on Wednesday bearing the bodies of two countrymen gunned down by police in the latest outbreak of ethnic tension in the capital of Central African Republic.
They left the corpses at the Chadian embassy as a protest against N'Djamena's lack of diplomatic action, after carrying them from the suburb where they were killed to city centre.
Members of President Francois Bozize's presidential guard fired into the air afterwards to disperse the crowd. No casualties were reported.
"We have had enough of this persecution by the Central African police. Since last year, they have killed 16 Chadian Muslims," said Hassan Mahamat, one of the demonstrators.
The two men, former members of the "Liberators" force of Chadian fighters who helped install Bozize in 2003, were accused of banditry by the police.
An Interior Ministry spokesman said the three policemen responsible for the shooting had been arrested and would face trial.
"Bozize doesn't care about us and sends his soldiers to kill us after we brought him to power with our own blood," said Mahamat Zene, himself a former Liberator.
Many ex-Liberators have drifted to the north of Central African Republic where they have since joined rebellions against Bangui and N'Djamena.
Some analysts say that is why Bozize, a personal friend of Chadian President Idriss Deby, is reluctant to dissolve his Chadian bodyguard, despite tensions with local security forces.
Twice last year, members of Bozize's Chadian bodyguard attacked local police stations after incidents involving some of their members.

We Have a Plan!

It's been a while since I wrote on this blog. The previous entry was made by the talented Laura Gibson, who is the coordinator for the internationals ministry at our church and will be blogging on behalf of the team we are sending to the CAR.

You should know by now that our church has a team that is leaving for the CAR today. This is a continuation of a dream that many of us have to see Wooster Grace more actively involved in helping the poor and suffering around the world.

As you recall, we came back last fall with heavy hearts and disturbing voices, as we saw the extent of the devastation, especially in the lives of women and children in the CAR. We came back with a resolve to act and act we did!

After much prayer and deliberation on the part of many, our church has agreed on a plan of action. Here is a summary of that plan:

We will seek to establish a three year village partnership in the CAR.

For the next three years (2007-2009) we will seek to contribute financially to help drill two wells and help fund some other village partnership projects.

I. Wells

Funding for the wells (at about $12,000 a piece):

Well #1 will be funded through the mission budget at our church. We got funding for the first one approved already!

Well #2 will be funded through raising extra funds, whether through VBS, individual contributions, or giving to Touching Tomorrow. Any contribution toward this second well will be “above and beyond” what people are already giving to the local church.

II. Village Partnerships

Funding of the village partnership projects:

Other village partnership projects will be funded by asking ABF’s to partner with us. Each year for the next three years ABF’s will be asked to contribute up to $900 per year toward village partnerships. These projects will include building latrines, closing up springs, helping get pharmacies started, and encouraging agro-forestry work. Our goal is to have 10 ABF’s participating. There is no obligation to participate and ABF's are encouraged to continue with their current partnerships with missionaries and whatever they decide to do will be “above and beyond” what they are already giving to the local church.

III. Short-term teams

We will seek to send two teams to the Central African Republic every year during the next three years.

The 2007 proposed teams are:

1. A medical/children outreach team to work with Dr. Yalipendi’s AIDS and patient care work in Bangui and assist with village partnership among Pygmies outside of Bangui. This team would be in the CAR in February/March of 2007. Pastor Tom and Tim & Jeana Harley would be part of this team.

2. A young adult team to work with village partnership and evangelism in Bayanga in August 2007. Pastor RAD and Dave & Jana Slater would be part of this team.

IV. Orphan Work:

We will promote and encourage families from our church to sponsor orphans through Project Hope and Charity. This project is ongoing and not limited to the three year partnership proposal. To get information, go to gbim.org.

Pastor Ivanildo Trindade

48 HOURS AND COUNTING...

In a little less than two days a team of nine from Wooster Grace Brethren will be out of this winter wonderland and into heat and humidity of the Central African Republic! And just to clarify: No, we are not going on a vacation to lift our spirits out of Ohio winter blues. We are going into the heart of Africa to partner with and minister to people God made in His own image and loves just as much as He loves any of us. Grace Brethren churches have been present in Africa planting seeds of the gospel and starting churches for decades. What is exciting and new about this mission trip is that we are now also addressing physical needs as another way of sharing the Gospel.


Although there is bandit activity across much of the Central African Republic, there are still many other things that a team can do at this time of year. We will be helping with some projects around the capital city of Bangui through an organization known as Integrated Community Development International, ICDI. The founder of this organization is a fellow Grace Brethren by the name of Jim Hocking. One of the projects will be to help Dr. Y & his wife in their AIDS clinic in Bangui. There are a couple of rooms in the clinic that need to be renovated to better suit the needs of the patients. Our team will have the privilege of helping with rennovations and also interacting with the AIDS patients there. Please pray for our actions to display the love of Christ to these people who are rejected by society. Also, we hope to be involved in some service projects and show the “Jesus” film in some Pygmy villages outside of Bangui. Please be praying for effectiveness for the team in sowing seeds of the Gospel in the lives of Dr. & Mrs. Y, the AIDS patients, & the Pygmy villagers while we are there. Team members include Rob Miller, Tim, Jeana, Valerie & Zac Harley, Barb Teach, Laura Gibson, Tom and J.P. Peters. Tom and J.P. will stay on until Mar. 11 to do some research of other villages that would qualify for a partnership with someone in the U.S.