Dear Friends,

We’ve just returned from a few days in the bush. The “wilds” of Africa are not what they use to be in this part of Nigeria. The only wild animals we saw on the whole trip were a rabbit and squirrel. I was even surprised to catch a glimpse of these since so much has already been hunted out in the area where we camped. Oh, you can still occasionally find monkeys and smaller wildlife such as hedgehogs and various types of parrots, but you do have to look close.

The main purpose in our recent trips has been to scout-out the land as we map bush roads with a GPS, and pray about where our long-term home in Nigeria will be. When we came to a fork in the dirt road, instead of just wondering what’s down it, we’d turn to see for ourselves. We’ve ended up in some very interesting places doing this.

  

Yesterday we found ourselves in the middle of an old tin mining town, remnants of the British presence. The houses were packed so close together that I really had the feeling we would soon find the road taken over by them. Jeff and I stopped to buy some puff-puffs (a fried donut-type bread). Children, teens, and even old men turned out in amazement at two white men in their village. Over fifty children gathered to watch us eat. One old man shooed them away and then sat staring at us with equal interest. The children then returned and the whole process started over.

When Jeff spoke to one of the old men in Hausa, this initiated a moment of great wonder on behalf of the spectators. A younger man kept telling everyone around, “These men speak Hausa!” The truly funny part about this was that he was mainly speaking in English. As we were about to leave I pulled out an assortment of cartoon “Chick” tracts (click here to see a sample from our webpage). All of the young men were excited to get them and began reading at once. These tracts have been very effective here. Not only do people ask for them, but they come running after us begging for their own copy when they see a friend with one.

We were also able to give out two Proclaimers (an audio Bible of the New Testament in Hausa) to two primary schools in remote villages. They are the size of a small radio and are powered by a hand crank generator and solar panel. One of the teachers was a Muslim. When he heard the “radio” speaking Hausa he had an even bigger smile than the “Christian” teachers. Knowing full well that we were missionaries, he heartily shook our hands with a big smile saying, “Na gode, na gode!” (“thank you” in Hausa).

Our hope is to head back out near the middle of next week. Please join us in prayer that our old 1956 Willys truck will hold up, that we’ll find safe places to camp for the night, and that we’ll find heart’s that are longing for God’s Word and His holiness.

We have also added a few new pictures to our photo album (click here to visit the page).

In His service,

Patrick & Jeff