I am posting these last blogs from the states. We have returned home, leaving Sandee, Susan, Elmer, Bruce and Laurie to hold the fort. I expect they’ll finish the new building in the EERN compound by the end of the month. (Just kidding! I can’t begin to guess which month, or even which year this project will be completed.) I confess that a part of me wonders if this project will ever be completed. Without any mechanical help – no backhoe, no cement mixer, no power equipment, every brick having to be made by hand – it’s going to be a long and difficult journey to that day when the project is finished. But the workers are motivated by faith and an eagerness to master the new skills they are learning. With God, all things are possible.
Our trip back home was long, but uneventful. Every flight was on time, every transfer was made, and praise God – every single piece of luggage arrived with us in JFK airport. I attribute such miracles to the power of prayer. Thanks again for offering them on our behalf!
Now that I have been home for a while, and my tired body is adjusting to Eastern Standard Time in the USA, some vivid images and memories are rising to the surface for me. I think of David, one of the Christian workers at the compound. He and his fellow workers are being trained in construction as they build the new center. He was quite delighted that we shared the same name. He spoke very good English, so we could converse. He was such a kind and gentle young man, always addressing me respectfully as “Pastor David.”
He shared with me that he has sickle cell anemia. Apparently in that part of the world, having sickle cell is a mixed blessing, for it provides you with immunity to malaria. That’s the good news. The bad news is that it makes you weak and can be painful and very tiring. Untreated, it can be life-threatening. Because of his condition he was delegated to some of the lighter work that was less physically demanding. Still, he worked steadily and faithfully.
One day he came to me and asked if I had an extra Bible. He said he had one in his own language, but that he wanted one in English, so that he could practice his English. He went on to request that my church back in the United States keep him in their prayers. He especially wanted prayers for his personal dream that he will be able to go to school and study electronics. He knows that he won’t be able to do the arduous physical work of construction, so he hopes to practice in a trade compatible with his health challenges. It was an absolute joy and thrill to be able to give him my Bible. I request your prayers on David’s behalf.
Another memory lingers with me. It’s a conversation we had with one of the church leaders in Niamey. He spoke of the possibility that the next election in Niger might establish a Muslim government. The current government is secular and practices a separation of church and state, even though the country is overwhelmingly Muslim. I was stunned when he recounted an ongoing discussion in the Christian community in Niamey. They are seriously debating what they would do (and should do) if Niger followed the path of other African nations that have adopted Muslim governments. Some have outlawed Christian practice and have actually broken up worship services and raided homes violently. He said that there have been discussions among Christians in Niamey about whether or not they could find the courage and faith to live up to Jesus’ teachings if such violence came to Niger. He honestly shared that he wasn’t sure if he could “turn the other cheek” if the lives of his wife and child (they have a brand new baby daughter!) were threatened. I appreciate his honesty, for I am not so sure what I would do myself if I faced so horrible a situation. I appreciate his brave faith even more.
Another thought lingers with me. Jokingly I said several times to my fellow travelers that our Niger experience was very much like the television show, Survivor. I had fun saying, for example, “Elmer, the tribe has spoken. It’s time to leave Africa.” But now that I am home I have been thinking more about Survivor, the show. Leave it to us Americans to come up with a show in which we go to some remote place and live like most of the rest of the world lives, struggling to barely survive – and we make a game of it! The contestants go out and “survive” for five or six weeks while off camera a first rate medical team stands ready if there is any real danger. They endure the hardships because someone might pay them a million dollars to do so. And besides, they know they can escape at any time if surviving gets too difficult.
The people of Niger live a daily survivor game. They are camped in their makeshift little huts or little lean-tos made of whatever scraps of metal, sticks or palms leaves they can piece together. They scrounge for fire wood to cook the bits of food they have managed to secure. It looks and feels just like the Survivor game. Only there are no off camera conveniences for them. They have no modern medicine or affluence to return to. They can’t just check out when they’ve had enough. And certainly no one is offering big dollars to any of them for living such a life. I wonder: If they showed Survivor on Nigerian television, would most watching it there say, “Hey, they’ve got it pretty good!”?
Another thought (I’ve got a million of them . . .) Now that I am back in the USA, many have asked me, “Are they happy there?” I know what’s behind that question. As Americans, we can be struck by the quick laughter, the light demeanor or the warm smiles and friendly greetings among the people we meet who are living in third world poverty. They seem to us so “carefree” and spontaneous. I have noted during other mission trips that people living in such poverty are apt to have a more trusting and joyful faith in God. Are they happier than we are? Implied in that question is the idea that since they have so little and live their lives without the stress of trying to maintain an ever expanding and ever demanding materialistic lifestyle as we do, they are somehow “happier” than we are. Perhaps.
But I wouldn’t want to romanticize their poverty. Maybe they are happier because they are free from the stresses of the American lifestyle that takes so much out of us as we try to maintain it. But they have other more dreadful stressors in their difficult lives. Like having a sick child for whom they cannot possibly provide medical coverage. Or there is the mother who doesn’t bother sending her children to school because she says they’ll probably die before they can use their education anyway.
Previously in this blog, I mentioned Hazura, the wonderful woman who took care of us by cooking and cleaning for us. I noted that her little baby was always wrapped tightly to her as she worked around the compound so lovingly and joyfully for us. Hazura seemed always to smile, always humming a song of praise to God. Initially, I would observe that she is so “happy.” And she is.
But as the week progressed, and I got to know Hazura more, I found out that the baby she carries with her every day should be more like a toddler. She is over 14 months old. I was told that just the week before we arrived in Africa, this 14 month old baby sat up by herself for the very first time. She hasn’t yet learned to crawl. In our land, that baby would have had a battery of tests and treatments and been whisked off to the best hospitals and specialists. In Africa, Hazura can only shrug and speculate, “Something must be wrong. We are worried.”
Are they happy? Yes, in many remarkable ways their faith and dependence on God gives them a joyful outlook that is enviable to us self-sufficient self-sustaining Americans. But all around that joy there must be a haunting dread and helplessness that I would never call “happy.” Let us never try to justify their poverty by saying they are happier for it.
Which brings me to my final thought (final to this blog, anyway). It’s simply an echo of the lay preacher’s stewardship sermon I heard the Sunday we worshiped at an EERN church. At first I thought it was ironic that he said to the congregation gathered there that they were blessed greatly and they ought therefore to be a sacrificial blessing to others. I thought how amazing that they could count themselves blessed. By our American standards, the people there live a rather modest lifestyle. But later I found out that most people in that congregation were indeed blessed by Nigerian standards. They are mostly educated and employed. Many are professionals, professors or government workers. Transfer their homes and lifestyle to America and we would call them poor or perhaps lower middle class. But in Niger, they are living the good life. So yes, he was preaching to blessed people and challenged them to be generous to those in need.
But he was also preaching to me. And the life I live is even more blessed (materially) than any other person in that sanctuary that day. The preacher thrust God’s Word on me that day: “David Corlett, you have been blessed. So now, are you going to be a blessing?” The challenge that word has given me must be responded to. How am I to be a blessing for others who have so little?
A question kept running through me as I lived and walked among the Nigerians. It was, “Why me?” Usually we ask that question in a whining tone when things aren’t going well for us. “Why me? What did I do to deserve this?”
But in Niger I asked that question in incredulous disbelief, wonder and guilty gratitude. Why me? Why do I have so much while so many here have so little? What did I do to deserve the abundance of my life? The quick answer is “nothing.” I have been blessed for no other reason than the grace of God. And the preacher that day said I am to pass it on. I have been blessed to be a blessing to others.
I have to do a lot of praying and discerning to determine how exactly I must answer that call. How can I and the wonderful congregation I serve be a blessing for others who are in such need? May we be open to the answer God wants us to make to that question . . . .
God Bless,
Pastor Dave Corlett
Ephesians 3: 16-19
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
A SAFARI ADVENTURE
Thursday: Today we went hunting for big game. Well actually, we “hunted” giraffes; and the only weapons we used were our cameras. In the countryside just outside Niamey there is a natural preserve program for the endangered giraffes that dwell in Niger. There are no boundaries or fences around this preserve. It’s just a territory in which the government has declared the animals to be protected. This protection has enabled these beautiful animals to rebound in numbers from fewer than 65 to over 220!
We paid a guide to lead us off road into the arid landscape of the country. Our “GPS” was a bamboo pole used by the guide to point the direction he wanted us to head. He sat on the luggage rack on top of the SUV and tapped the windshield, pointing Jeremy Beebout our missionary – and today, our driver – in the direction of the giraffes. I’m glad he knew the way, for seeing these animals was a thrill of a lifetime! Weighing about 2 tons and standing as the tallest animal on the planet, they are a spectacle to behold! They move with grace and are constantly nibbling at the dried leaves of the sparsely scattered trees in the area. We saw two groups (should I call them “herds?”) of about a dozen each. Each group had several “babies” about four to six months old, so apparently the population is still growing.
One of the striking things about these animals is how effectively their “spots” function as camouflage. When the giraffes are next to brush or trees, they virtually disappear – all two tons of them!
As we went searching for the giraffes, we drove by many farms. Seeing how parched and sandy the land is now, I marvel at how difficult it must be to farm it - especially without any machinery. Apparently most spring seasons bring enough rain to grow millet and other grains. They build grass structures elevated on stilts to store the grain. Often they are surrounded by crude fences or other barriers to prevent the animals (giraffes?) from helping themselves.
The homes the farmers live in are the traditional Niger huts with thatched roofs. But most are a little more substantial than the ones we see in the city. The huts are circular, with thick stucco covered walls. Typically they are clustered into groups of 3 to as many as 10. They are “tribes,” usually connected by family ties. The land is granted to them by tribal chiefs. If these “villages” are any distance from a road, there is little chance they have electricity. Water is drawn from a community well. As we drove by them, children hearing the sound of our approaching vehicle would run out to greet us with friendly smiles and enthusiastic shouts of glee. I doubt if any of them have ever driven in any kind of motorized vehicle like the one they chase after today. And I am quite certain that they or anyone they know has never driven a tractor over the fields that gives them food, either.
One farmer who came up to us while we were watching the giraffes proudly showed us his farm tool. It resembled a long handled hoe that was designed to lightly cultivate the sandy earth and remove any dried growth on the surface. It was explained to us that they have been told that it would be better if they turned the soil over and folded the growth into the ground. Instead they insist on keeping their long-standing tradition by gathering the old growth into piles and burning it.
I can’t imagine scratching out an existence in these harsh conditions. There is no shade, no air conditioning, not even a fan. Today it is over 100 degrees. What do they do in "the hot season" of July and August? They are living as we do when we stay at a campsite with no “hook ups.” Only after we get sick of that kind of living, we can return to our comfortable homes with all their luxurious amenities. And we can go to the grocery store for our food, rather than depend on a sandy field to give us the only food we will ever have.
-Pastor Dave Corlett
We paid a guide to lead us off road into the arid landscape of the country. Our “GPS” was a bamboo pole used by the guide to point the direction he wanted us to head. He sat on the luggage rack on top of the SUV and tapped the windshield, pointing Jeremy Beebout our missionary – and today, our driver – in the direction of the giraffes. I’m glad he knew the way, for seeing these animals was a thrill of a lifetime! Weighing about 2 tons and standing as the tallest animal on the planet, they are a spectacle to behold! They move with grace and are constantly nibbling at the dried leaves of the sparsely scattered trees in the area. We saw two groups (should I call them “herds?”) of about a dozen each. Each group had several “babies” about four to six months old, so apparently the population is still growing.
One of the striking things about these animals is how effectively their “spots” function as camouflage. When the giraffes are next to brush or trees, they virtually disappear – all two tons of them!
As we went searching for the giraffes, we drove by many farms. Seeing how parched and sandy the land is now, I marvel at how difficult it must be to farm it - especially without any machinery. Apparently most spring seasons bring enough rain to grow millet and other grains. They build grass structures elevated on stilts to store the grain. Often they are surrounded by crude fences or other barriers to prevent the animals (giraffes?) from helping themselves.
The homes the farmers live in are the traditional Niger huts with thatched roofs. But most are a little more substantial than the ones we see in the city. The huts are circular, with thick stucco covered walls. Typically they are clustered into groups of 3 to as many as 10. They are “tribes,” usually connected by family ties. The land is granted to them by tribal chiefs. If these “villages” are any distance from a road, there is little chance they have electricity. Water is drawn from a community well. As we drove by them, children hearing the sound of our approaching vehicle would run out to greet us with friendly smiles and enthusiastic shouts of glee. I doubt if any of them have ever driven in any kind of motorized vehicle like the one they chase after today. And I am quite certain that they or anyone they know has never driven a tractor over the fields that gives them food, either.
One farmer who came up to us while we were watching the giraffes proudly showed us his farm tool. It resembled a long handled hoe that was designed to lightly cultivate the sandy earth and remove any dried growth on the surface. It was explained to us that they have been told that it would be better if they turned the soil over and folded the growth into the ground. Instead they insist on keeping their long-standing tradition by gathering the old growth into piles and burning it.
I can’t imagine scratching out an existence in these harsh conditions. There is no shade, no air conditioning, not even a fan. Today it is over 100 degrees. What do they do in "the hot season" of July and August? They are living as we do when we stay at a campsite with no “hook ups.” Only after we get sick of that kind of living, we can return to our comfortable homes with all their luxurious amenities. And we can go to the grocery store for our food, rather than depend on a sandy field to give us the only food we will ever have.
-Pastor Dave Corlett
Thursday, February 19, 2009
OK, SO IT’S NOT ALL FUN(BUT IT’S NOT ALL MISERABLE, EITHER!)
OK, SO IT’S NOT ALL FUN (BUT IT’S NOT ALL MISERABLE, EITHER!)
The things that were not so much fun today (Wednesday):
• The water shut down and stayed down all day. And since the workers were using a lot of water making cement, we ran out of our backup supply by mid-afternoon.
• The internet and telephone still aren’t working – that’s two days in a row.
• No paint tray for the roller I am using to paint the ceiling.
• I am using the world’s worst brush too.
• The paint I am using is not adhering properly to the surface I’m painting.
• In other words, the painting project is not going at all well.
The things that were really great today:
• We are all finding out that we can live on very little water.
• We are all finding out that we can live without the internet.
• We found out that we could make a paint tray out of a cardboard box lined with a plastic bag. Ingenious!
• We found out that even when we use the world’s worst brush and very temperamental paint, we can make things look better.
• We are getting to exercise the two most important fruits of the spirit: patience and flexibility. (Yes, I know the bible doesn’t say that flexibility is a fruit of the spirit, but I feel it should be - especially here in Africa!)
Things that were even better today:
• Hazura’s bowtie pasta with meat sauce. (How did she make such a great meal without running water?)
• We had a wonderful bible study devotion with Chako in which we spoke about the impact our visit can have here – both on us and those we are visiting. He shared that we will never know what our visit means to the people here. He told us about some people in his church that only come to worship. As soon as the service is finished, they run out the door and never stay for fellowship. (Sound familiar?) He said that people in the church were delighted to see that those same people who usually depart quickly actually stayed after worship to greet the Americans. And then they were astounded to see that they have continued to stay after worship on subsequent Sundays – even when the Americans weren’t there!
• We took a wonderful trip into the country along the Niger River, seeing a very different life in little villages along the way. At several places we literally drove through herds of long-horned cattle. We stopped for a picnic on a huge sand dune overlooking a dried river bank where water flows only in the brief rainy season in May. It was the most unique picnic of my life.
By the grace of God, even a day that starts out with frustrations can end wondrously in Africa.
-Pastor Dave
The things that were not so much fun today (Wednesday):
• The water shut down and stayed down all day. And since the workers were using a lot of water making cement, we ran out of our backup supply by mid-afternoon.
• The internet and telephone still aren’t working – that’s two days in a row.
• No paint tray for the roller I am using to paint the ceiling.
• I am using the world’s worst brush too.
• The paint I am using is not adhering properly to the surface I’m painting.
• In other words, the painting project is not going at all well.
The things that were really great today:
• We are all finding out that we can live on very little water.
• We are all finding out that we can live without the internet.
• We found out that we could make a paint tray out of a cardboard box lined with a plastic bag. Ingenious!
• We found out that even when we use the world’s worst brush and very temperamental paint, we can make things look better.
• We are getting to exercise the two most important fruits of the spirit: patience and flexibility. (Yes, I know the bible doesn’t say that flexibility is a fruit of the spirit, but I feel it should be - especially here in Africa!)
Things that were even better today:
• Hazura’s bowtie pasta with meat sauce. (How did she make such a great meal without running water?)
• We had a wonderful bible study devotion with Chako in which we spoke about the impact our visit can have here – both on us and those we are visiting. He shared that we will never know what our visit means to the people here. He told us about some people in his church that only come to worship. As soon as the service is finished, they run out the door and never stay for fellowship. (Sound familiar?) He said that people in the church were delighted to see that those same people who usually depart quickly actually stayed after worship to greet the Americans. And then they were astounded to see that they have continued to stay after worship on subsequent Sundays – even when the Americans weren’t there!
• We took a wonderful trip into the country along the Niger River, seeing a very different life in little villages along the way. At several places we literally drove through herds of long-horned cattle. We stopped for a picnic on a huge sand dune overlooking a dried river bank where water flows only in the brief rainy season in May. It was the most unique picnic of my life.
By the grace of God, even a day that starts out with frustrations can end wondrously in Africa.
-Pastor Dave
Tuesday: Another Day in Niamey
(Sorry for the delay in posting updates. The internet here has been down for three days, so here is the blog I wrote on Tuesday evening.)
We are getting down to a routine here in the EERN compound. We wake up and lay out the makings of a continental breakfast. We help ourselves to local fruit (washed with Clorox water of course.) We boil water for instant coffee or tea and make some instant milk for cereal. Someone else makes oatmeal, and if you are real nice to Laurie Hawley, she’ll cook some eggs for you. After breakfast we have devotions. Our theme this week is “Faith is . . . .” So far we have had Bible studies on “Faith is journey,” Faith is hoping,” and “Faith is wrestling.”
After devotions we are off and running on the various work projects on site. This time we saw real progress in the building project. They started mixing cement (by hand, of course) and poured it in the pits the others dug. They pour it one wheelbarrow at a time.
At about 1 pm we have our largest meal of the day. It’s prepared by Hazura, the “housekeeper” who sweeps our floors and prepares this mid-day meal. It’s always a wonderful African dish! Typically, it is some meat (chicken, beef or mutton) in a thick sauce served over a starch such as rice, couscous, or African yams. She carries her little baby (her sixth child) strapped tightly on her back as she sweeps, cleans and cooks.
A local welder came to us today. You would not believe his “rig.” He came with a wheelbarrow carrying a large wash tub filled with motor oil. Sitting in the oil were two transformers wrapped in old wires. He took a cord with no plug – just two open wires – and stuck them in the socket of an extension cord. He took another line with a metal flap at its end and used it as a ground, laying the flap on a piece of piping lying on the ground. He then connected his welding line and the bright sparks flew. His eye protection? A cheap pair of sun glasses!
The infrastructure here is so fragile! The water stops flowing several times a day. All my “showers” so far have been cups of water splashed on me from a tub of water we have saved as a back up when the water shuts off. I am writing this blog on the Hawley’s laptop computer, but I have no idea when I will be able to post it; the internet has been down for more than 24 hours. The phones are down too. But hey, it’s been a great day for electricity! It shut down only once today.
But today, as I was inside scraping paint off the ceiling in preparation for a new coat of paint, I heard Hazura humming a lovely African praise song as she was sweeping the dust on the floors:
“Zo ka dandana ka gain
Abun al’ajabi
Zo ka dandana ka gain”
Or: “Come, taste and see
For the Lord is so wonderful,
Taste and see.”
In this place where things don’t often work very well, God is working. And God is wonderful indeed.
- Pastor Dave Corlett
We are getting down to a routine here in the EERN compound. We wake up and lay out the makings of a continental breakfast. We help ourselves to local fruit (washed with Clorox water of course.) We boil water for instant coffee or tea and make some instant milk for cereal. Someone else makes oatmeal, and if you are real nice to Laurie Hawley, she’ll cook some eggs for you. After breakfast we have devotions. Our theme this week is “Faith is . . . .” So far we have had Bible studies on “Faith is journey,” Faith is hoping,” and “Faith is wrestling.”
After devotions we are off and running on the various work projects on site. This time we saw real progress in the building project. They started mixing cement (by hand, of course) and poured it in the pits the others dug. They pour it one wheelbarrow at a time.
At about 1 pm we have our largest meal of the day. It’s prepared by Hazura, the “housekeeper” who sweeps our floors and prepares this mid-day meal. It’s always a wonderful African dish! Typically, it is some meat (chicken, beef or mutton) in a thick sauce served over a starch such as rice, couscous, or African yams. She carries her little baby (her sixth child) strapped tightly on her back as she sweeps, cleans and cooks.
A local welder came to us today. You would not believe his “rig.” He came with a wheelbarrow carrying a large wash tub filled with motor oil. Sitting in the oil were two transformers wrapped in old wires. He took a cord with no plug – just two open wires – and stuck them in the socket of an extension cord. He took another line with a metal flap at its end and used it as a ground, laying the flap on a piece of piping lying on the ground. He then connected his welding line and the bright sparks flew. His eye protection? A cheap pair of sun glasses!
The infrastructure here is so fragile! The water stops flowing several times a day. All my “showers” so far have been cups of water splashed on me from a tub of water we have saved as a back up when the water shuts off. I am writing this blog on the Hawley’s laptop computer, but I have no idea when I will be able to post it; the internet has been down for more than 24 hours. The phones are down too. But hey, it’s been a great day for electricity! It shut down only once today.
But today, as I was inside scraping paint off the ceiling in preparation for a new coat of paint, I heard Hazura humming a lovely African praise song as she was sweeping the dust on the floors:
“Zo ka dandana ka gain
Abun al’ajabi
Zo ka dandana ka gain”
Or: “Come, taste and see
For the Lord is so wonderful,
Taste and see.”
In this place where things don’t often work very well, God is working. And God is wonderful indeed.
- Pastor Dave Corlett
WE WERE PUT TO WORK TODAY
(Patience, please: The email system here in the compound was down for three straight days, so I could not make any blog updates until now, Thursday evening here in Niger. I have been making the blogs and saving them until I could post them. The following is Monday's blog.)
Monday in Niamey: We scattered today to work on many different jobs around the compound. Some painted the lettering on the new sign for EERN (The Evangelical Church of the Republic of Niger) on the wall that surrounds the compound. Walls divide the private properties in most of Niamey. Inside the walls you can find a variety of dwellings around an open court in which the people live. They may be huts made of straw with thatched roofs shaped almost like acorn caps. Or they can be stucco covered brick homes. Many of the poor can only afford the wall and can only afford to live in shelters made of scrap materials such as corrugated steel or mats woven out of some sort of grass. Others crowd many family huts inside the walled enclosure to share the costs.
The EERN compound has a stucco covered office building, a temporary shed for the materials and tools we are using to build the new center, and a dwelling for the family that lives on site. The father/husband of the family is the guard of the compound. His job is to keep the compound’s exterior clean and orderly, and keep people out (kids mostly) who don’t belong inside. Day or night he’s always there to open the gate when we drive up to enter. And every morning he washes the EERN vehicle clean, a daily necessity because of the incredible dust.
Some others in our group cleaned and scraped the ceiling and walls in preparation for a fresh coat of paint in the office building. Some others in our group helped with making the steel frames that will support the cement foundations. Others worked on building a new shelter as a temporary dwelling for the workers EERN has hired to build the new complex. (We are their volunteer assistants.) Most of the workers are Christians from a distant town, so the daily commute is too much for them. For example three men work together to make the bricks that will be used to build the new building. They earn eight cents for each brick they make (split three ways). Since they make so little, they prefer to live on site rather than commute the distance.
This is the core of the Nigerian economy. Non-governmental development organizations (NGO’s) are the number one employers in the country. That fact boggles my mind – Niger’s economy depends on the generosity of people from around the world. I wonder how the current global recession will impact so fragile an economy.
It’s good to roll up our sleeves and get busy. We feel a good tired this evening; the kind of tired that comes after a hard day’s work. And we are enjoying that deeper and even better feeling that you have when you have done something to help someone else less fortunate than yourself.
Again, thanks for your prayers.
Pastor Dave Corlett
Monday in Niamey: We scattered today to work on many different jobs around the compound. Some painted the lettering on the new sign for EERN (The Evangelical Church of the Republic of Niger) on the wall that surrounds the compound. Walls divide the private properties in most of Niamey. Inside the walls you can find a variety of dwellings around an open court in which the people live. They may be huts made of straw with thatched roofs shaped almost like acorn caps. Or they can be stucco covered brick homes. Many of the poor can only afford the wall and can only afford to live in shelters made of scrap materials such as corrugated steel or mats woven out of some sort of grass. Others crowd many family huts inside the walled enclosure to share the costs.
The EERN compound has a stucco covered office building, a temporary shed for the materials and tools we are using to build the new center, and a dwelling for the family that lives on site. The father/husband of the family is the guard of the compound. His job is to keep the compound’s exterior clean and orderly, and keep people out (kids mostly) who don’t belong inside. Day or night he’s always there to open the gate when we drive up to enter. And every morning he washes the EERN vehicle clean, a daily necessity because of the incredible dust.
Some others in our group cleaned and scraped the ceiling and walls in preparation for a fresh coat of paint in the office building. Some others in our group helped with making the steel frames that will support the cement foundations. Others worked on building a new shelter as a temporary dwelling for the workers EERN has hired to build the new complex. (We are their volunteer assistants.) Most of the workers are Christians from a distant town, so the daily commute is too much for them. For example three men work together to make the bricks that will be used to build the new building. They earn eight cents for each brick they make (split three ways). Since they make so little, they prefer to live on site rather than commute the distance.
This is the core of the Nigerian economy. Non-governmental development organizations (NGO’s) are the number one employers in the country. That fact boggles my mind – Niger’s economy depends on the generosity of people from around the world. I wonder how the current global recession will impact so fragile an economy.
It’s good to roll up our sleeves and get busy. We feel a good tired this evening; the kind of tired that comes after a hard day’s work. And we are enjoying that deeper and even better feeling that you have when you have done something to help someone else less fortunate than yourself.
Again, thanks for your prayers.
Pastor Dave Corlett
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
