Mango Musings
August 23, 2010Pictures:
It’s a very pleasant Monday afternoon, and I’m home catching up on office work, and preparing to take our team from Grace Baptist in Bellingham down to Lome. We finished our third roof on the hospital property at 1:00 this afternoon, and the team will be tying up loose ends and getting ready for their trip south tomorrow. We have certainly enjoyed being together with friends from our sending church, and they accomplished everything we asked of them. Rob Coty and Joel Perry repaired cars at the Village of Light in Kpalime and at the hospital in Tsiko, as well as doing vehicle repair here in Mango. Getting the three roofs on was no small task, especially with time lost to several rainy days. The women on the team put on a lot of paint to make things look good. I think we can say that our people accomplished what God wanted them to do. Here at home they repaired our couch, our oven, and the broken lock on the bathroom door! Check out the pictures.
We did have some unanticipated excitement when a lady riding a bicycle pulled out from a side street into the path of our Toyota truck, hauling the team to the guesthouse for lunch. She broke our mirror, and suffered some bruises and scrapes herself. Fortunately, Esther and I were following not far behind, and we were able to talk with the crowd that gathered almost immediately. Everyone agreed that the lady was at fault for riding out on to the international highway without first checking to see if there was traffic. She seemed to be okay, but we decided to take her to the hospital, where she was bandaged up, and given a Tetanus shot, along with some Paracetemol (Tylenol). I had her bicycle taken to a repairman who straightened out the wheel rim bent in the accident. The whole thing cost us about $10, and we were left praising the Lord that she wasn’t seriously injured in the collision, nor that any of our team riding on the back of the truck were thrown from the vehicle when the driver braked.
On Saturday afternoon Esther and the ladies invited Esther, and Catherine Nile’s Togolese friends, and the young women who are in Nogbedji’s sewing school over for a time of crafts, and a Bible story. The house was packed, and I think they all had a really good time making bracelets. And it gave them an opportunity to share some of God’s Word with our Muslim and Catholic friends. I’ll include pictures.
On Sunday we traveled to Dapaong where Pastor Bob preached, and he did a commendable job, especially considering that he had to wait between each phrase he said in English for two translations (French and Moba). It can get difficult to keep track of your thoughts while you are waiting for that to happen, and a 15 minute devotional quickly becomes a 45 minute message! We enjoyed seeing the changes that Pastor Laré’s new wife, Akofa (Nogbedji’s daughter) brought to the church. The choir has grown from five or six children to ten people, including some young adults. Now if they can learn to all sing in the same key, it’s going to really add to the music of the church. We noticed new curtains in the house, where the windows had been bare ever since Pastor Laré lost his first wife, Mana. That’s a clear sign that there is a woman in the house, and she is intent on making the house a home.
Everyone worked hard. The days were long, as we were up by 4:45 to be at the guesthouse for a time of devotions prior to breakfast and the start of the working day. The workday usually finished between 5:00 and 5:30, followed by dinner at our house. Then we fell into bed at around 9:00, and prepared to do it all over the following day. We want to thank Grace Baptist Church in Bellingham for sending such wonderful people to help build this hospital. We know there was a lot of work getting ready, and at times you may have wondered if it was worth all the time and expense. From where we sit, we say a hearty, “Yes!” They will soon be back with you, and families temporarily separated will be reunited. Thanks so much for making the sacrifice, and for coming to help build something for eternity.
Yours in His service,
Tim & Esther Neufeld
