Africa

Home Again

2009-03-10T08:04:00.000-07:00

I arrived in Seattle right on time last night to be greeted at the airport by my entire family. They tried to sneak up on me but that was a little difficult as Carol was carrying a bunch of "welcome home" balloons.

Thanks for staying abreast of my adventure in Africa during the past few weeks. I'm trying to think about how I will answer questions about the whole experience. I'm sure there will be opportunities for conversation but let me sign off on this blog with the following excerpt from my journal dated March first.

The mornings in Africa begin with a mixed chorus of dove's cooing and rooster's crowing. The air is cool and refreshing to the lungs. Small birds with sky blue bodies flit from twig to ground and back looking for breakfast.

Only two days separate me from the plane that will take me from Yabus back to Nariobi. I wonder what I will remember from my time in Africa. First will be the people, their smiles and singing. Their joy in the midst of such a difficult setting is hard for me to understand. Simple survival is a chore. Add years of war on top and life should be unbearable.

Yet, somehow the spirit of these people grasps the dusty, cracked land in which they live and the hand of God and pulls the two together. The Sudanese clearly understand what rebuilding their country will entail, and yet, they do not lose heart. And even though I have but glimpsed the tenaceous spirit of these people - as much as I do understand, I want to take back to America. The Dinka, Uduk, and Mabaan people don't readily speak of the horror and autrocity of war. The potential for tribalism to continue to divide the country is self evident, but instead of despair, they talk of sing of hope. Even when they are silent, you can still see hope on their faces or in their eyes. I wonder if I were in the same circumstances if I would have a Sudanese sized hope. I feel weak and insignificant next to these people. They fully understand how to rest fully on the rock in the midst of the storm.

A few days ago Anter prayed, "Our ears are tired of hearing gun shots and our feet are tired of running to safety." Peace is possible when people like these stop looking out merely for their own interests and also look out for the interests of others. Someone might shoot me if he wants my shirt unless I first say, "Here take my coat as well." A man who lives with abandonment as if to lose his very life will in the end save it. This way of living in the world makes absolutely no practical sense to those who rob the poor and leave them for dead. The teachers and students in the Sudanese Interior Church Secondary School are learning to practice these truths and will take what they have learned back to their villages to become leaders of hope for the future.

Grace and peace to you.

Day 18+ Beyond Africa

2009-03-08T00:24:00.000-08:00

I've been traveling again. Flights from Africa to London (2 of them) also went without a hitch, and my luggage arrived with me in London of Friday. I've been learning to ride the "Tube", London's subway, and spending long days sight seeing. The downtown area is full of people, it seems almost twenty-four hours a day. Although, I don't know first hand after around midnight.

I've stayed a bit out of town in the community of Ilford to save money. Today I move to Paddington, a large central transportation hub, to be close to the Tube stop that will whisk me off to Heathrow tomorrow. Thankfully it is sunny today but pretty cold. Yesterday I rode on the top of a double decker tour bus and nearly froze. The temperature differential between Yabus and London is nearly 70 degrees Fahrenheit. I understand Seattle/Bellevue area is a bit chilly again as well. Hopefully they have restocked the deicing fluid at Sea-Tac so I can land Monday night. Maybe I'll land before the white stuff is all gone!

I look forward to seeing everyone soon. I leave you with a few transition pictures.

Day 16-17 Back in Nairobi

2009-03-03T22:40:00.000-08:00

We made it back to Nairobi. It took most of the day Tuesday. This time we flew both 2 1/2 hour flights in a small 15 seater. After a while it was a little claustrophobic. However, the scenery in Kenya was green, lush and mountainous.

I will be here today and tomorrow (a safari is planned tomorrow morning). Then Thursday night I fly back to London and will be there for some site seeing for three days. I'm looking forward to seeing you all next week. I arrive back in Seattle on Monday evening the ninth. Below are some last pictures from Yabus.

Termites are a real problem in Yabus. They eat anything wooden which makes it difficult to build any type of buildings.
Here is the whole gang at the compound in Yabus.

The Village of Yabus from the air.

The compound from the air.

P.S. Today is an important day on the political scene in all of Sudan. A decision by the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) could cause major stress to an already fragile climate. Click here to read an article about the decision from the BCC.

Grace and peace,

Day 14 & 15 - Last Days in Yabus

2009-03-02T05:04:00.000-08:00

My recorder playing friend Thomas . . . see below for details

The feast I prepared . . . four loaves of bread . . . whew! An Itialian treat - Chicken Alfredo.Finally the garden is complete. Now we're hoping for a lot of vegetables. Phalice will have to send me a picture when they are full grown.

This is my last day in Yabus. The last two days have been very busy. Yesterday, Thomas and I played recorders in church. Thomas works in the other SIM school in the compound. It is an accelerated primary school for adults. He is a short-term missionary from Switzerland. It just so happened we both brought our recorders to Africa, and he even had some music.

On Sundays the cooks for the compound have the day off. Phalice and I volunteered to cook the Sunday dinner. After scrounging around in her food trunks we discovered we had enough for a small feast. I made four loaves of French bread and baked them over charcoal embers in a big aluminum “oven”. Chicken Alfredo was the main course along with Ramen Cabbage salad. We had quite a few dried apples so we made crisp in the same oven and used vanilla pudding on top instead of ice cream for obvious reasons. I worked from right after church at 12:30 to about 6:30 pm.

It’s cooler today for the first time. In fact, last night was even “chilly”. The cooI temperature was just what I needed to finish up the garden by surrounding it in chicken wire to keep the roaming flock of chickens at bay.

Just before noon Eli took me four wheeling to a huge rock a couple miles from the compound. We climbed to the top, and I got a panoramic view of the whole area. A thick haze hung over the horizon so we did not see far, but it was beautiful none-the-less.

Tonight we celebrate another birthday. James, a teacher in the secondary school, turns 30 today. For me the celebration will be bittersweet as tomorrow I fly back to Nairobi. I’m sure I will need a few weeks to process this whole experience. I’ll keep blogging as it will help me be accountable to think about what has happened over the past few weeks.

So the landscape of the Sudan is dry and hot during the dry season and wet and muddy during the rainy season. Eli said from this rock the whole scene is very green when it rains.
So I climbed to the very top! No problem!

Grace and peace . . . next post will be from Nairobi.

Day 13 - Saturday

2009-02-28T05:50:00.000-08:00

Phalice takes herding cattle very seriously!! She'd also kill me if she knew I put this picture on the internet. . .

Gone fishin'

You may wonder what this donut is for. Well ladies, you'll be glad to know that it cushions your head when carrying a heavy load.

That's it for today . . . just pictures as I'm working hard to finish Phalice's garden.

Grace and peace,

Day 12 - End of Week Two

2009-02-27T03:53:00.000-08:00

This is Camerra, a missionary from India. She teaches Bible, is learning to play the guitar and has an amazing smile & heart for the Lord
Sudanese children find ways to recycle discarded items into toys.
An early pickup game of soccer with a few young boys from the village.

In my spare time I've been hunting cow pies. Interestingly enough it is so dry here that it is easy to pick them up by hand. Reminds me of growing up on the farm, but we used pitch forks to clean the barn. I found two buckets full for Phalice's garden!!

As I wrote the first part of this entry, it was the hot part of the day, over 100, and I was sitting on my small patio under a thatched roof. I've been gardening all morning trying to get Phalice's garden up to snuff before I leave next Tuesday. So I picked up two buckets of donkey and steer manure, installed a drip irrigation system, and weeded the whole thing. I need to put up a fence to keep the chickens out. I'll take pictures of the finished product. Reminds me of a passage of scripture from Luke 13:

⁶Then he told this parable: "A man had a fig tree, planted in his vineyard, and he went to look for fruit on it, but did not find any. ⁷So he said to the man who took care of the vineyard, 'For three years now I've been coming to look for fruit on this fig tree and haven't found any. Cut it down! Why should it use up the soil?'

⁸" 'Sir,' the man replied, 'leave it alone for one more year, and I'll dig around it and fertilize it. ⁹If it bears fruit next year, fine! If not, then cut it down.' "

Adding a little fertilizer, if you think about it, is buying us some time - preserving the wait time as Earl Palmer would say. Eugene Peterson has a lot to say about this parable in his new book, Tell It Slant - I highly recommend it. You wouldn't think that putting a little manure in a garden was the Lord's work . . . but maybe that small act will have spectacular results in green, fresh vegetables . . . splendor in the ordinary stuff. (End of sermon)

I've been here nearly two weeks. I'll only have one more day, Monday, at the school. I fly back to Nairobi next Tuesday. It is hard to believe I've been here for two weeks of school. It's also hard to believe it snowed in Bellevue yesterday. Can anyone overnight some of the white stuff to Yabus?

I can't deny that it will be great to be home, but I'm going to miss the people from this school.

Grace and peace,

Day 11 Pictures

2009-02-26T03:08:00.001-08:00

Here is another picture of "professor" Praise and I. He wanted to try on my specs.
Stephen is a missionary from Nigeria teaching at the school. His wife and two small children are here as well. (His son Praise is pictured above.)
Barnabas, the oldest student in the school and an elder in the Yabus church.
This is James a teacher in the school. He teaches business and history.
A few of my essential tools while working in Yabus, my water bottle with improvised cooling sleeve, my straw cowboy hat, my Bible, and below it a journal.
A pretty spectacular way to end the day . . .

Day 10 - 11

2009-02-26T02:51:00.000-08:00

Today I saw God’s hope for Sudan. I looked into the clear, black eyes of the young men who are students in the secondary school. I saw their earnest desire to follow God and to choose obedience over personal gain. They have already sacrificed much to be here. They have chosen to be away from their families for months at a time to study and learn to become godly leaders.

I see in their eyes a longing for peace in Sudan. They talk of peace, pray for peace and dream about peace. Today Anter, the geography teacher, prayed, “Our ears are tired of hearing gun shots and our feet are tired of running to safety.” Peace is only possible when people not only look out for their own interests but also for the interests of others.

Someone might shoot me if he wants my shirt unless I first say, “Here, please take my coat as well.” A man who lives with abandonment as if to lose his very life will in the end save it. This way of living in the world makes absolutely no sense to self-centered people who rob the poor and leave them for dead. There are people like that in the Sudan. There are people like that in America. They are after their own gain and peace is not a friend to them.

So this is Sudan. It is not unlike Nineveh in the story of Jonah or in the book of Nahum. The choice is the same as it was thousands of years ago. People will repent and follow God or they will destroy one another.

Our choice in America is very similar. We cannot serve God and money at the same time. Serving money makes us weak and fat, and we crave amusement instead of God. Our thinking is no longer transformational but is conformed to the ways of the world. When investments fail, we worry about tomorrow. Will we have enough? In the Sudan people hope there will be peace tomorrow, but they also live very much in the moment. To live in the moment in Sudan is to have shade and enough food and water to survive.

Day 8 & 9 - Micah 7:11-12

2009-02-24T09:36:00.000-08:00

Students listening in class

Anter teaches agriculture and geography.

Garang is teaching math here. He also teaches physics and loves to play soccer.

I am sorry that these entries have been a bit uncertain. The compound internet has been having problems again. A matter for prayer I guess! I know that you only got part of this one yesterday so have republished it.

The last two mornings I've taught Bible class. They are in the minor prophets which is not exactly a specialty of mine. Yesterday was Jonah and today was Micah. There are some amazing parallels between Micah and the Sudan.

11 In that day, Israel, your cities will be rebuilt,
and your borders will be extended.
12 Your people will return to you from everywhere -
from Assyria in the east (for the Sudan it is Ethiopia)
from Egypt in the south (for the Sudan this is Kenya)
from the region of the Euphrates (in Africa the Nile)

These people have big plans and bigger hearts to rebuild their country. The was has been very hard on them and on their land. But they have not lost heart. They are committed to doing justice, loving mercy and walking humbly with God. It is truly amazing that they would leave their families for three months at a time to come to be educated. Education is the means by which they will rebuild their country.

I was never quite able to upload the video from Sunday but here are some recent pictures.

DAY 7 - Sunday: Church in Yabus

2009-02-22T09:51:00.001-08:00

We joined the Mabaan church service in Yabus today. I was asked to sit in the front. They sang for at least an hour. Part way through I was asked to introduce myself, tell where I was from, about my family, and bring greetings from my home church. Thankfully I was warned about this in advance. I did bring greetings from the church on Mercer Island to the church in Yabus. At the end of the service I was ushered out with the elders and we made a big circle. Everyone came around and shook my hand. The singing and dancing continued. Check out the video to get an idea (couldn't get the video to upload but will try again tomorrow).

We relaxed the rest of the day and later in the afternoon took a hike to the very first SIM compound build here in the 50's. All that was left was a few concrete slabs and a flowering Bougainvilla. Apparently missionaries plant it when they start a new project. It is very hearty. The plant is still at the old compound after 50 years. It has pink flowers. We hope to start some at this location.

Grace and peace,

Day 6 - Saturday, No School Today

2009-02-21T09:10:00.000-08:00

Today there was no school so I relaxed . . . some of the time.

For part of the day I did recovery work in Phalice's garden. You can see the before (on the right) and the after (on the left). I rescued the squash and melon plants from the grass. We moved the platform from somewhere else, so when the fruit comes, it can be raised off the ground away from things that eat it (including chickens). Oh yes, if you look carefully, you'll notice something around each of those plants. I used my background in farming to round up donkey droppings. They were very dry and easy to pick up. I made a nice mulch out of dry grass and donkey manure. I'm glad I brought gloves! :)

The students relaxed by playing soccer. The Sudanese say soccer, not football. It was too hot for me to run around like that.

The end of another day in Yabus. I don't know what kind of bird that is but I caught a pretty good shot as the sun was setting.

Grace and peace,

Day 5 - Yabus: Happy Birthday Stephen

2009-02-20T09:56:00.000-08:00

At Stephen's birthday celebration he let his wife Victoria have the first piece of cake . . . she said it was a little like their wedding. Victoria is holding Hallelujah!! She's Praise's sister.

To celebrate Stephen's birthday we "Went Down to the River to Pray", I mean Play . . . They play river soccer in the Sudan!!
Meet Anter, Garang, and Stephen, three teachers from the secondary school. The two on the left are Sudanese coming back from Kenya to help their country. Stephen is a missionary from Ethiopia. His wife and two children have joined him. You met Praise last night. He was in the picture sitting on my lap. His sister is in the first picture.

I did work a bit too today. I helped figure out a foot pumping system to irrigate the school garden down by the river. So far it is a dust bowl inside a barb wire fence. The students of the school built the fence. Now they will have to use two foot pumps set up in tandem to get the water up from the river 28 meters to the top of the garden. I "did the math" and put in an order to a larger nearby village for pipe. I also had a long conversation with Garang. He's a great young Sudanese man. His grandfather was a general in the southern Sudanese army. His father was also a leader. Now from his family there are only three male leaders left, his uncle, cousin and Garang. Garang teaches math and physics in the secondary school.

Grace and peace,

Day 4 Yabus: Pictures Say It All

2009-02-19T09:30:00.000-08:00

My new friend Praise and I!!

The class of teachers that I taught today during teacher training.

The bathroom and a place to washup!

The shower on the end of Phalice's house.

Home Sweet Home, I know it can't be all that bad. After all there's a hammock out front.

Day 3 - Yabus

2009-02-18T09:22:00.000-08:00

A deep throated croaking rises from the Yabus river. The bullfrog chorus has begun. Crickets ratchet the refrain. They are an accompaniment to the chanted choruses of the students at Yabus Secondary School. I joined their worship tonight for a short time. It was easy to distinguish the melody . . . What a Friend We Have In Jesus . . . but the words were foreign to me. They invited me to sit down and join the circle. I don't understand the joy I see in their faces highlighted by flashlights. Their life and land is torn by years of war. Yet, they sing with joy of God. Education is their hope for a better future. Phalice and these teachers are bringing that chance to these adult men so they can go back to their families and villiages as capable leaders. The children of the next generation like the ones in the pictures yesterday will be the benafactors of this great work.

I'm feeling much better today. I think a combination of jet lag, not sleeping on the plane(s), and the heat here was not a good one for my health at least temporarily. That's all for now . . .

Day 2 - Yabus

2009-02-17T09:21:00.000-08:00

,

Today was hard for me. After visiting two classes in the morning I basically tried to stay cool. I think I had a minor case of heat exhaustion, was sick to my stomach, head achy, and sleepy. I slept in my hammock (I have a hammock in the shade on my covered porch) for a while and that helped. Pray that I will acclimate to the heat.

The school is having trouble with the Internet so it is only up for 1/2 hour each evening and is very slow. However, I want to get two pictures to you if I can . . . Just tried and the connection is very limited so I'll do my best tomorrow . . . Second try here they are; ultimately this is what makes a trip like this and the ministry of starting a school all worth it. These children just had a lesson by the tall women, Victoria, in the back on the left. She is the wife of James, a teacher at the school. She is volunteering to teach this group of kids simply because she was there and saw the need.

Tomorrow morning I'm teaching the students about Biblical leadership for Bible class. I have Henri Nouwen, In Jesus Name, along so I have good material. I'll try to get you a picture tomorrow. I also just had a great conversation for about 2 hours with Phalice. Please pray for her strength and wisdom. A female attempting to do what she is doing is unheard of. Those of you that know her know she is a trooper.

Grace and peace,

Day 1 - Yabus

2009-02-16T09:45:00.000-08:00

The ride from the airstrip put a whole new meaning to the idea of bumpy. I rode in the back of the pickup with my new friend John. He is a builder, a mason really. He flew up with me from Nairobi to put up a couple more teacher houses. I'm using the term "house" loosely.

Things to be thankful for:

It is so hot there are no misquotes
There is a fan running on a small battery in my tent
I made it here on six different airplane rides; only one was late
I gave Phalice a big hug from everyone today, she is very glad to see me. I also gave her lots of chocolate. We ate dark chocolate m&m's while we sipped warm water with Crystal Lite mixed in
There are a billion stars in the sky and I can see them as I use my laptop from the patio to my tent

Thinks to pray for

The missionaries here: Phalice, the compound manager, Eli and his family (wife and three very small boys), the teachers in the school (three of which are Africans)
The students, more on them as I get to know them
My state of mind as I live in a safari tent in 100+ degree heat. IT IS SO HOT HERE THERE ARE NO MOSQUITOES!!!

Tomorrow I'll start visiting classes. Phalice wants me to mentor some of the teachers. The three African young men that are teaching have only been up through high school. None of the teachers including the three missionaries are trained teachers.

There is a lot to do just to survive here. I've probably drunk 2-3 liters of warm water today. Of course I sweat 2-3 liters of water today too. I don't understand how they do it . . . well I guess I really do.

Grace and peace.

In Yabus

2009-02-16T01:27:00.000-08:00

Wanted everyone to know I'm in Yabus, but I don't have much time. It is really hot. I have my safari tent setup. It is good to see my friend Phalice. There will be more time to fill you in later this evening. It is noon and I'm touring the school. I just stopped briefly to check in. Please ignore typos . . . I don't have my glasses on! :)

Sunday Morning

2009-02-15T00:27:00.000-08:00

I'm adjusting to this time zone with a good night's sleep. This morning I walked through an outdoor weekend market where I was mobbed by anxious traders wanting to sell their wares.

This afternoon I fly to Loki on the northern boarder of Kenya. It has a large airstrip built to help the relief effort in Sudan. I'm traveling with Thoro and Ricky so I'll have company and people along who know what they are doing.

Tomorrow morning we fly in a twelve-seater to Yabus. It is around a 2 hour flight.

Touch Down Complete . . . Welcome To Nairobi

2009-02-14T00:06:00.000-08:00

Well, I made it. My last flight was 45 minutes late because they had to wait to load an extra 4 Kenyans on board who did not have the correct "documents" to stay in Dubai so they had to leave on the next available plane which was mine. So we were about an hour late leaving Dubai, sitting on the tarmac of course.

David (a Kenyan taxi driver who owns his own company) and Claire were patiently waiting at the airport. David's a kick . . . great sense of humor and will likely drive me several other times during my stay. He also arranges for my trip to the animal park when I return to Nairobi. They whisked me off to a very nice boarding room. It has an open air restaurant where I had breakfast: an omelet with two kinds of peppers, an interesting type of meat, and cheese; sweet potato; a cooked banana in a green peel; a plantain (a little banana); and pretty good coffee. Then I was off to the shower (cold as it was) to scrub off 36 hours of traveling. I tried to take a nap, but I'm a little too wound up. I'll sleep really well tonight since I'm operating on about 6 hours of sleep over the last two days.

I get a brief orientation at noon delivered by Claire and her husband, Thoro (sp), who is Japanese Canadian. After that a nurse talks to me about what to avoid (scorpions, snakes, the water, etc.) Then tonight I have dinner with, Claire, Thoro and the other team from the Eastside who just returned from visiting Phalice in Yabus yesterday. I'll be able to get the scoop on what to expect in the Sudan. Tomorrow at noon I leave for the boarder town/airstrip where I'll spend the night. Monday morning I fly with Thoro and a few others on a 12 seater to Yabus.

No WiFi but I'm able to charge my laptop as I was smart enough to bring the right (Great Britian) adapter. YaYa Center, a large indoor shopping mall, is one block from my room. I'm having my watch band repaired and buying extra suntan lotion. While I'm waiting for my watch, I found this Internet "easy surf" cafe. So I'm able to update my trip information.

There are some electrical problems at the school so my messages might have to be much shorter and probably won't be daily. But, I'll try.

That's it for now . . . I'm in AFRICA!

Almost there . . .

2009-02-13T13:37:00.000-08:00

Dubai . . . 2 am . . . Seattle 2 pm . . . works nice for the time thing. No problems save a small bag checking issue. I had to pick up my checked bag in Dubai, walk outside to the departure terminal and check in. It took two passport stations and three bag screenings to do it, but I'm about to board the flight to Nairobi.

UNBELIEVABLE . . . I just saw a past BCS student Tobias Westen and his dad walking through the Dubai airport. His dad works here and they're leaving for a skiing vacation in Switzerland. Amazing, there are no mere coincidences.

I'm looking forward to keeping my feet on the ground for a while. Sunday I fly to an airstrip in northern Sudan and Monday on to Yabus.

London

2009-02-13T00:08:00.000-08:00

On the ground in London right on time . . . already checked in for the next leg.

London time is 8 am . . . Seattle time should be around midnight, I think.

My cold is better, thankfully no altitude issues. I'll be glad to give Phalice her new laptop. Carrying two computers, plus an extra battery, is HEAVY. At least at Heathrow security, you don't have to take them out of the backpack.

According to the count down I should be on the ground in Africa in under 19 1/2 hours.

One more thing, no one has a laptop out at this airport. There's a wall of about 8 desktop computers from which you can pay to get on the Internet, and about 1/2 are in use. In Chicago I discovered GoBoingo, a WiFi service. A month's subscription is under $10. When I paid my money it downloaded a little program to logon. Seems to work fine at Heathrow!!

Oops one more, one more thing. A Skinny Carmel Macchiato from Starbucks tastes exactly the same as in Bellevue.

Touch Down in Africa in . . .

2009-02-12T13:42:00.001-08:00

Get this widget!

. . . 1 . . . LIFTOFF

2009-02-12T11:16:00.000-08:00

So far . . . so good.

In Chicago on time at 10 am Seattle (noon Chicago) time.

3 . . . 2 . . .

2009-02-10T08:52:00.000-08:00

I'm at that place in planning a trip when you just want to get on with it. I'm tired of thinking about flying and packing. I want to be there to experience the intense heat; the dry, earthy smell; the pace and sounds of Nairobi; and all that is the beauty and the beast of Africa.

I want to meet Garang Ayiel. He is the recently selected math and science teacher at the school. He has little training past secondary school and no teacher training. Garang is Sudanese and a member of his clan, John Garang, was the first president of Southern Sudan, so the name is quite famous. John was a hero in the war and died in a "mysterious" plane crash. See John Garang de Mabior for more information. I want to listen to Garang's story.

Garang and I have corresponded through email over the past few weeks. His writing is somewhat stilted but very understandable. He ended a recent email with, "We are waiting you eagerly and with open arms to receive you. Safe journey. Garang."

Now you know why I'm anxious to get going.

5 . . . 4 . . . and counting until liftoff . . .

2009-02-08T14:11:00.000-08:00

Sorry to have missed writing an entry yesterday . . . thanks to the praying community at Mercer Island Covenant . . . I appreciated having the opportunity to talk about my trip during church today. Thank you Chris Campbell for the creative work on the powerpoint slides. They were perfect.

I stated earlier that Sudan is the largest country in Africa. The total area is 2,505,810 sq km or slightly one-quarter the size of the United States. The terrain is generally flat. There are mountains in the far south, northeast and west. The north is primarily desert and the south is tropical.

The northeast boarders the Red Sea. The highest elevation is Mount Kinyeti at 10,456 feet in the southern Imatong mountain range. Natural resources include petroleum, small reserves of iron ore, copper, chromium ore, zinc, tungsten, mica, silver, gold, and hydro-power.

The prevalent religion is Sunni Muslim 70% (in north). Christian is 5% (mostly in south and Khartoum) and indigenous beliefs 25%. The median age is 18.9 years compared to 37.9 years in the U.S.

These facts gleaned from the CIA World Factbook Website.

6 - Weather. . . A Few Facts

2009-02-06T08:07:00.000-08:00

Southern Sudan is hot. Phalice warned me of this, but today I checked the weather. She is right . . . daytime temperatures are in the high nineties to over one hundred. Thankfully it looks like it cools off at night to the mid-seventies to low eighties. Nairobi appears to be a little cooler and showery over the next five days.

Sudan Facts:

Africa's largest country, 2,505,813 square kilometers
Population is 39.4 million (UN, 2008)
5 million refugees are returning to southern Sudan
Sudan Interior Church has a membership of 100,000
Major religions: Islam, Christianity
Life expectancy: 57 years (men), 60 years (women) (UN)
GNI per capita is $960 (World Bank, 2007)

Watch a slide show of rebuilding the church and nation of Sudan. - Click here!

7 - Darfur Fighting Continues (Still answering the "Is it Safe?" question)

2009-02-05T08:41:00.000-08:00

So the north/south civil war between the mainly Muslim north and the Animist and Christian south ended with a peace agreement in January 2005 , but fighting broke out in the western region of Darfur in early 2003. According to the BBC the fighting is between pro-government Arab militias and the non-Arab groups in the region. In my opinion it seems that the civil war just shifted to a different part of the country.

"International experts say 200,000 have died and 2.7 million have fled their homes since Darfur rebels started a war against Sudan's government in 2003. Khartoum disputes these figures, claiming that only 10,000 have died."

"Sudan's name comes from the Arabic "bilad al-sudan", or land of the blacks. Arabic is the official language and Islam is the religion of the state, but the country has a large non-Arabic speaking and non-Muslim population which has rejected attempts by the government in Khartoum to impose Islamic Sharia law on the country as a whole." BBC Article, January 2009

SIM (Serving in Mission) is partnering with Sudan Interior Church to start the Secondary School of Sudan Interior Church. It is the only school beyond 8th grade for nearly one million people, many whom have resettled the area after the civil war. The Village of Yabus, home to around a thousand, has the Yabus river (a year round water supply), an all-weather airstrip and old SIM buildings that can still be used with a minimum of repairs. Along with a secondary school is a teacher training institute. This region is the home of the Uduks who are free to return to Chali, Sudan and other villages like Yabus after fleeing to Ethiopia during the war. Approximately 6,000 of them are back in their home territory, while about 10,000 remain in Ethiopia, expecting to return home over the next few years.

So to completely answer the, "Is it safe?", question is difficult. I'm sure there are some risks but the fighting in Darfur is about 500 miles across the country. That's like from Seattle to Missoula!

8 Days (Answering the "Is it safe?" question)

2009-02-04T10:08:00.000-08:00

Yesterday afternoon my oldest son, Brian, said, "So you're not excited to go to Africa." He's the barometer in the family always ready to shoot straight to the point and tell it like it is. After reading yesterday's post, I have to say I didn't exactly say I was or was not excited. I meant to dig a little deeper into the substance behind a question like, "Are you excited?" So let me pointedly answer the how are you feeling question: excited, yes, and also apprehensive, a little scared, curious, and a kind of sad to be leaving for a month.

A second question that hasn't exactly been squarely asked but lingers behind another one I've heard is, "Will it be safe?" The question that is frequently asked from behind raised eyebrows is, "What part of the Sudan will you be visiting?"

Most of the fighting in the news now is on the other side of the country in Darfur indicated by the large oval. I'll be in Yabus on the eastern side almost in Ethiopia. Phalice, my friend who runs the school, tells me she has never felt unsafe, but if an issue arose, they would evacuate into Ethiopia just a few miles walk.

I'm no expert, but in the little study I've done I have to tell you that Sudan has been torn by civil war for over twenty years. In July 2005 Omar al-Bashir formed a government of national unity as part of a deal to end Africa's longest-running civil war. The fighting has historically been between southern, non-Arab populations and the northern, Arab dominated government. When the British ran Sudan as a colony, they administered the northern and southern provinces separately. The south was more like the other east African colonies - Kenya, Tanganyika, and Uganda. The north was similar to Aribic speaking Egypt. However, in 1946 the British gave in to northern pressure to integrate the two areas. Arabic was made the language of administration in the south, and northerners began to hold positions there. The southern elite, trained in English, resented the change as they were kept out of their own government. After decolonization most power was given to the northern elites based in Khartoum causing unrest in the south. This fueled the first civil war that ran from 1955 - 1972.

Yabus was definitely affected by the fighting which was mostly in southern Sudan. Several hundred thousand women and children were enslaved and many more southern people were killed. Villages and land were destroyed. Now, years after the peace accord, people are slowly moving back to their villages. Yabus is one being re-inhabited, and the school is being salvaged from buildings that used to be the Blue Nile Academy.

If you're interested in more information, I've found good current articles on the BBC website.

9 The Undiscovered Country

2009-02-03T08:10:00.000-08:00

As the time for me to travel to Africa draws near, people ask me if I'm excited. I don't know how to answer. Today Henri Nouwen helped me find an answer, although an indirect one.

Since right around the turn of the century I felt God tugging on my heart in a new direction. The way opened from a cozy warm room through a weathered wooden door into an undiscovered country. A central aspect of the journey has been to create chunks of time to wait for God and to listen intently. It was to turn from the absurd (surdus meaning deaf) and lean into God. "Absurd living is a way of life in which we remain deaf to the voice [of God] which speaks to us in our silence."1 All of my running about from one urgent activity to the next was keeping me deaf to God's 'gentle whisper'. I Kings 19:12

This past summer I uncovered another aspect of the undiscovered country while in the Trappist Monastery of Gethsemani, Kentucky (the monastery where Thomas Merton spent the last half of his life). In the garden at Gethsemani, while waiting near a statue of Christ I heard, "Watch with me." I felt like I was being drawn into obedience (from the root audire which means listening) toward a more mature way of life. "To be obedient means to be constantly attentive to this active presence of God and to allow God, who is only love, to be the source as well as the goal of all we think, say, and do."2 By saying "watch with me", Christ was inviting me to be fully aware of His presence in my life by making the time to lean forward and listen carefully to the whisper from the One across the table.

So, I can't really say I'm excited to go to Africa. I'll be traveling thousands of miles for days to arrive at a place of stark resources, entirely unknown to me. I'll be away from my lovely wife, two sons and my friends for almost a month. I know I'll learn far more from the people of Africa than I could ever hope to provide to them. I go to Africa in obedience knowing that spiritual maturation is the willingness to stretch out my arms, to have someone else dress me and to be led where I would rather not go. John 21:18b

1 Henri Nouwen, In My Own Words (Liguori, Missouri: Linguori Publications), p. 89

2 Ibid., p. 90

10 Days Until Liftoff

2009-02-02T08:43:00.000-08:00

I was wondering about Africa this morning. I wish I knew more about the people, culture and geography. I'll share a little of what I'm learning each day between now and when I leave. Thanks to Claire, a contact working for SIM in Nairobi, plans are taking shape.

I'll leave Seattle Thursday morning (6:10 am) and arrive in Nairobi, Kenya on Saturday (6:40 am). That's 48 hours - the 11 hour time difference = 37 hours of travel. To save money I'm taking the milk run through Chicago, London, Amsterdam, and Dubai.

PLEASE START PRAYING NOW THAT ALL THE CONNECTIONS WILL WORK OUT!!

I'll be in Nairobi for a few days before taking two more planes (probably smaller than the ones before) to Yabus in the Sudan. I've found some helpful tools online to help you keep track of me. For today let's just look at the time difference.

The first nifty little internet gadget (NLIG) is that I've got a counter going for when I touch down in Africa! I'm hoping this link will work for you: http://www.timeanddate.com/counters/customcounter.html?month=2&day=14&year=2009&hour=6&min=40&sec=&p0=170. For those of you who might want to calculate the difference for yourself:

Nairobi is 11 hours later (I'll be there 2/14 - 3/5)
London is 8 hours later (I'll be there 3/6 - 3/8)

So for Africa just think same time but switch to PM or AM and subtract an hour!

Check in each day mid morning for an update . . . you can follow this blog by clicking on "Follow This Blog" on the top right!

Grace and peace,

Secondary School of the Sudan Interior Church

2009-01-26T14:18:00.000-08:00

Established in partnership between SIM and the Sudan Interior Church, the secondary school will provide Christian education to prepare Sudan's young people to lead their nation.

For more information please view this video:

www.sim.org/index.php/project/98019

An article about the school:

www.sim.org/index.php/content/sudan-secondary-school-begins-classes