Catch Up . . .

Again, with my internet having been down for 3 weeks, I have a few moments of life to share, one of which began today . . .

The Rains Have Come:

Though we have had 3 rain storms during the nighttime, they have all been fierce storms with heavy blowing wind. The thunder here is amazingly much louder than ever at home! Today though, a good rain has come. It started at 5am this morning and at this point (9am) it is still falling gently. It is such a joy to sit in my office and listen to the rain and the chorus of frogs in the street - and the coolness this rain has brought is wonderful as well!

This is a good rain for the crops, the water is staying on the ground and the wind is not strong. The crops were in desperate need of this type of rain. And the people of Niger even more so. Since they started planting the crops after the first storm (see: May 21 post) it has continued to be hot (48-50s) with just 2 other rain storms which lasted 2 hours each.

As the rains were not good last year, and consequently the harvest was poor - some people only receiving 3 bushels of millet (as opposed to 80-120 in a good year) - the need for good rains and a good harvest this year is doubly important. Our partners who work with Samaritan's Purse report that one of their villages is already out of food - and harvest is not until October. The rising food prices around the world have impacted Niger as well. The women in this village are scavenging the area for wild nuts and food to eat - sometimes gone from 7am - 9pm and ofttimes for a week at a time.

Please pray for our team as we work among our people groups in this desperate situation. Pray for continued and good rain that their crops may be plentiful this year.

Giraffes:

I was able to go out and see the giraffes a few weekends ago with a visiting team from Edmonton and some of my teammates as well. The herds of giraffes are about 50km outside of Niamey and are the last wild herds of giraffes in all of West Africa! It was amazing to see the beauty of these animals up close and in nature. And we all giggled a bit over the creativity of God - they are kinda bizarre looking too.

Bennett: "If I carry this tree - perhaps they will think I am a tree and not run away!!"

My African Name:

As the people of our Fulani village have had difficulty in pronouncing my name - with varying degrees of success - Lisa and I introduced my African Name during our last visit. My name is no longer: "fiptsi, siptsi, fisti, taxi", but . . .

Khadiza

I love this name for a few reasons:

I get to keep my "K"

though, the "K" is sometimes silent - so like my last name with a silent letter, I now have a silent letter in my first name too!

Khadiza is the name for: "Esther"

God has called me to this time and place to minister to these people and to share His message of salvation with them. Esther too was called to a time and place to save her people. In fact, the other day in the village, one of the village elders mentioned that they had been concerned as to what they would do during Lisa's absence this year while she is on home assignment. He concluded that of this whole big world and places to go, God has chosen to send me to Niger to be in relationship with their village. It was a humbling experience to be welcomed thus in their village with open arms! What an answer to prayer, for this is what I have come to Niger to do!!

When I started looking into my options in 2006, I wondered perhaps if I could stay at home in Calgary and work with an organization that would send me out a few months at a time during the year. However, as I continued down the path, it was evident to me that God was calling me to full-time career missions. I committed to searching for this in my heart; but God called me to a public declaration during a church service in June - when my Pastor spoke from the book of Esther.

And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this? Esther 4:14b

Our pastor urged us in the divine moments to:

dream God-sized dreams

live an obedient life

choose resolved over fear (courage)

To this I committed and as I walked down the path of application to work with the Christian & Missionary Alliance, I have felt that God has opened the door and appointed me to this time and place.

With my African name to remind me of my call, I live in Africa dreaming God-sized dreams. Hoping to bring relief to some in their physical suffering - lasting change. And most of all, dreaming of the day when we will sing around God's throne, complete with our Fulani friends from Niger!