MEHANNA ROAD

It has been exactly a year since my last trip to Niger.  I remember sitting at the Kings guest house in village M and eating Nerds last October 31st.  God is still mightly at work on the Mehanna Road.  I am continually amazed at the way God and his people in HIS strength continue to do battle with the enemy here in Texas and in Niger.  2009 has been hard for both the Songhai team in Africa and First Hurst.  The economy, job fears and losses, Al Queda in Niger, resident missionary changes, etc. etc. have been used by the enemy to stop the spread of the gospel into the literal darkenss on the road.  Satan will not have the victory in the end we know - thank you Jesus.  But I am convinced, convincted and confident - thank you Jeff Burnett - that Satan will not have the victory in the short term in Niger either!!!

What is our role in this.  1) Keep praying. The mustard seed prayers daily go up for the Mehanna Road and we have seen answers to prayers in 2009.  A first believer in village Y; seekers and persecution in village K; Abdourahman joining Lawally on the road; new discipleship methods pioneered by our teams and disciplers; many new folks at First Hurst stepping out on faith to go to Niger and minister, the list goes on and on.

2) Keep on going.  First Hurst has become such a wholistic Acts 1:8 church with strong mission ministries locally and globally that we joke "you don't have to go to Africa to be a missionary!"  This is true, but someone has to go.  The bottom line is even in many place our church does ministry the people that are seeking can find the gospel. Most can read; many have computers; most even have born-again churches nearby.  In Niger on the Mehanna there are NONE of these.  Most cannot read.  They have little to no access to media; there are NO churches.  They are truly lost.  This breaks my heart and gives me passion to keep on going.  Jesus said in Luke 10 verse 2 "the Harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the Harvest, therefore to send out workers into his harves field. Go!"  This verse and others don't specifically say pray for the lost - God wants them to be saved and is extending the Gospel to them. It says pray for workers - i.e. the Church to be the Church - to go.  That is what my prayers are for the Mehanna Road. For workers to be raised up to pray, give and go. 2010 holds such great potentially for blessing for our church and the Songhai on the Mehanna Road. I want to be able to say at the end that God once again found our church and specifically me faithful to the call!!! 

Be encouraged 2009!!!!!  Marc

Post by Marc from Songhai Team (September Update)

I have some information that I would like for you to share with all of the Hurst Church:

 Abdourahaman shared that last week his motor cycle was broken down and they were walking to do visits.  They thought they had timed it right to get back before the rain and had asked God to keep them dry until they were finished.  It started pouring and they were far from the house they were staying in – out in the bush heading back.  Abdourahaman started to complain to Lawaly, does God not know what is happening to us.  He let our motorcycle break down and now He is allowing the rain to come before we can make it home.  Does He not care?  Does He not see what is happening?  They continued on home in the rain, wet and tired from the walk.  Abdourahaman was not happy that all the non believers were home, in their houses not getting wet. It was only he and Lawaly that were out in the rain.  When they got home, they saw that the rains had made the house where they were staying cave in.  If they would have been home, both would have lost their lives.  Lawaly said, “Well, I do guess that God knows and cares where we are.  Look what He just saved us from?”  They both rejoiced in God’s provision.  The village gathered to see the house and began to ask why they had been spared?  Lawaly took the chance to tell how God had promised to be with them ‘even until the end of this age” and many started to understand that these men were bringing truth. 

 Lawaly shared that they are now welcome in every village, by the chief and the people.  He said that the people hold them in great respect.  He said this is because of the work that FBC Hurst has done.  He said that all are talking about the amazing work that you have done in the schools, clinics, shot clinics.  He said that they marvel that white people have come and done the work and that they have given so kindly to each village.  He said that your trips, giving and work have opened the door for the Gospel to be shared along the Mehanna Road. 

 In His Love

 The Songhai Team

Post by Dave Adcox (June/July 2009 Trip - Village K)

On Tuesday, 6/30, we spent part of the day looking for people in Village K with whom we could share the Bible stories, but found few because of the work in the fields. Later in the afternoon, we returned to the school where Abdrouman and I spoke with "Paul" at the school about the gospel. Paul said that he needed to understand more about Jesus because the children in school often asked about the BC/AD division of history. This offered an ideal entry into a discussion of how Jesus was central to all of human history and why He is so central. We gave Paul a French New Testament, a tape with stories from Songhai believers, a set of the John tapes, and a video cassette of the Jesus film in Zarma. He said he had read the New Testament in the past with a nurse who worked in Village K and had gone to university in Niamey next to a church where he also read some of the New Testament.    "Paul", in Village K  

Near the end of the discussion, I asked him what he thought about Jesus and the truth of His claims. He said that he believed that love was very important and that he would need to think more about our discussion. Abdrouman said that this was typical of initial discussions with Songhai about the gospel, and that he and Loualy would follow up with further discussions.

Post by Dave Adcox (June/July 2009 Trip - Village K)

The chief allowed us to show the Jesus film in Village K on Wednesday, the second night we spent in the village. Because we showed it in the evening, many people had returned from their work in the fields. Well over 100 came to see the film based on the gospel of Luke, and translated into their native language. After the film, we passed out more tapes, with some team members being almost mobbed by the crowd seeking these tapes. On our final day we headed north into Village M itself to share the stories with the crowds that had gathered for the market there. The people in M listened attentively to the stories, with crowds pushing for tapes afterward to the extent that Abdrouman was knocked down trying to hand them out.

While we were pressed from every side in many ways while we were there, we have already learned some of what God is doing on the heels of this trip. The tapes had Loualy’s cell phone number on the labels, and five people have already called to discuss the gospel with him. This is a first for our work among the Songhai—those who have heard reaching out to learn more.

Post by Dave Adcox (June/July 2009 Trip - Village K)

I write this less than a month after returning from Village K and other towns along the Mehanna Road. During our time there we experienced Songhai hospitality, a broken-down bush taxi, camping in the village, and having our personal space invaded by crowds in pursuit of gospel tapes.

We painted two of the four classrooms in the Village K school. Cindy Tyndall and Laurie White created beautiful murals of river scenes in both rooms between windows overlooking the Niger River. Each of the three days we worked on the school , Paul, provided us with a traditional lunch of either noodles or rice, and a spicy fish sauce. By the third day he had even found three spoons for eight of us to share. While this sounds primitive by Western standards, he offered us the best his family had, sacrificing food they would otherwise have eaten in a hungry and thirsty land.

Our team shared stories with many people in Kduring the Sunday market day, our first day in the village. These Bible stories focus on the love of God and his forgiveness through Jesus. Breaking into two sub-teams we were able to speak with more than 200 people and distribute tapes that included the gospel of John and stories from Songhai believers. When we returned to share more stories on Tuesday, however, we found the town nearly deserted, with most people having left to plant their crops outside of town because of the rains that arrived shortly before our team. We found the same situation in Village Y the following day.