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Operation Christmas Child

26/4/2015

Yesterday we had the chance as a family to go to a nearby village church to be a part of an Operation Christmas Child box distribution. Three pastors were involved in sharing the gospel and talking about how much Jesus loves children. There were probably 80 to 100 kids and twenty plus adults at a small village church plant. Most of the folks were not church members from the village.

As soon as we arrived with the generator and speaker the program began. The 104 plus degree heat at 4:00 p.m. didn’t deter the excited children and families from sitting in the shade of a large tree just outside the church building and waiting patiently. After 30 to 40 minutes of songs, games and teaching, it was time to hand out the boxes.

As each of the kids got their box, it was great to see how they showed their excitement. Some were openly beaming with huge smiles, some were very focused, and others quickly got their box and had a seat. Some held their boxes tightly to their chest, others began looking through the clear boxes in front of them, and others held the box on their heads. We took some pictures and prayed for all the kids and their families. Then everyone was off to their courtyards to open the gifts.

Today we saw pastor Etienne and a man from the village and asked if the kids were happy after opening their boxes yesterday. Both the pastor and the man explained how the kids were so elated and pleased with the boxes and the special gifts they held. Now, we will continue to pray that God will use these gifts and the message of Jesus to reach into these children’s hearts, minds and entire courtyards to transform lives, families and communities.

Luke 18:16-17

16 But Jesus called them to him, saying, “Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God.17 Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.”

Blessings in Christ Jesus,
Aaron

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Well Drilling in Kimini

21/4/2015

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Several weeks ago Jesse and I had a chance to work alongside a well drilling team in the unreached Jula village of Kimini. The drilling team was from Friends in Action and was made up of full-time, in country missionaries and a short-term team from the states. The Friends in Action guys were awesome and really knew how to put people to work in accomplishing the tasks at hand. Three successful wells were drilled during their time in Kimini.

Colleagues of ours have been engaged in Kimini for several years and the installation of these wells is a huge blessing for the community in Jesus' name. Pastor Joel was there throughout the drilling process to evangelize and interact with the people of Kimini. Pastor Joel is the pastor of a church 35km from Kimini. He drives his moto to the village every Sunday afternoon to have evening bible studies and time to talk with seekers. He then drives back the 35km of bad dirt road back home every Monday.

Partner with Kimini

Short Term Team

Drill a Well

Kimini is an example to me of the body of Christ working together for His glory. Two women live in Kimini to minister the love of Jesus to the village by focusing on children and orphan care. They have built a clinic and drilled wells as well as many other involvements. Friends in Action came to drill the desperately needed wells in Jesus' name. The Alliance (Burkina's C&MA) church has been involved in sending a pastor to evangelize and support the work in Kimini. And the Alliance will be sending a pastor to Kimini to plant a church in this unreached village. A ministry from Ouagadougou came to run a school medical screening and another ministry came to do skits and give Operation Christmas Child boxes.

We have had the opportunity to attend and help out a bit in some of these ministry times. We are praying that we will be able to help support the church planting in Kimini through building a church building and a house for the pastor. In getting to work alongside our brothers and sisters in Christ in Kimini, God has shown us how each of us plays a unique and important role in his kingdom. Jesus is most glorified when His body works together, in this case toward the common goal of fulfilling the great commission.

Jesse loves helping drill wells and so do I. It is a great way to bless a community and often opens doors to the gospel that have never been opened before. We have several villages that would benefit from having wells drilled to support church planting in those villages. The drilling team from Friends in Action use short term teams to perform much of the labor needed to accomplish their tasks. So think and pray about funding a well or wells and putting together a team to come and work alongside us as we seek to provide clean water sources and open doors for the gospel in Burkina. Use the buttons above to find out more or email us with questions. Another great thing is that when drilling wells for ministries like ours that are focused on planting churches and evangelization, Friends in Action drills the well you fund and then does another well for free to support the local church and ministry…two for the price of one!

God Bless and keep you,
Aaron

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Drip Irrigation Kits at Poundou Bible & Agricultural School

10/4/2015

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Earlier this week we had a chance to spend two days at one of the C&MA bible schools here in Burkina. The school is a residential 4 year program for men preparing to be pastors. While it is a C&MA school, many other denominations and churches use this school for church planters. The school has about 80 students and their families, and graduates about 20 new pastors each year. There are several great things that are unique about this program.

First off, the entire program is in Jula. This fact alone allows many men whom God has called to study his word even when they don't have much formal education. Most of the students are married and it is a requirement that the students' families accompany them for training from November thru end of April each year. This allows many of the wives who don't know how to read or write to become literate and study God's word as they prepare for their role as pastors wives. Another great thing is that this program includes teaching, training and hands-on work in agriculture.

Kristi and Jana were able to sit in on some of the women's classes that were taught by the school director's wife. Lots of very young children are with their moms as they learn. The bigger kids seem to play in large groups on the campus. These women are given the opportunity to learn to read and write, they receiving training on "food fortification" techniques, and Biblical studies. We hope to be able to take a more interactive role in teaching from time to time after our Jula improves. These students are the future church planters that we work alongside in rural villages. What a blessing to see the hard work and dedication on their part in a very difficult environment. Remember…no running water, no electricity, small cinder block rooms for housing, an outdoor "cooking" area and it's very hot.

The primary purpose for our stay was to install two drip irrigation kits. Jesse, Jana, Megan and I worked with the agriculture instructor and the students to install the systems and talk about the possibilities they could provide. It's an experiment to test the feasibility of growing vegetables and other crops during the long and very hot dry season in this area, a little bit further north than Banfora. Just as I have been learning from both successes and failures at our lot in Banfora, the instructors and students at Poundou will have the chance to try things and make adjustments to these systems to see if they may be a good fit for their families when they go out to church plant in the village.

As with any project, there are important factors that must be in place for seeing any success. Some type of enclosure is a must, and then of course a reliable water source. Both things seem simple at first glance, but here in Burkina, often those two factors are enough to keep a project from helping a pastor and his family. Check out ways to get involved at Light Up Burkina.

We are excited to see how the two different drip systems will work for these student pastors and what kind of feedback we get along the way. A great question to ask is, "why won't this work"? We are confident that by working together and putting their agricultural hands-on knowledge to use we can help find solutions to some of the hardships these families face as they seek to spread the gospel.

As I process and pray for my dedicated brothers and sisters in Christ at Poundou, two things come to mind. The first is Genesis 3, (Gen.3:16-19) The Fall. Standing at the bible school, surveying the hard dry rocky soil, I'm reminded of how great a price we pay for sin. God had placed us in paradise, to work and walk beside him, but we rebelled. God's way is always best. Think of the garden and what God had created…then to see the dry rocky scorched earth with it's thorns and thistles. As the saying goes, a picture is worth a thousand words. I believe that if we could comprehend that "the wages of sin is death" and if we hated sin in our lives as much as we love comfort, it would transform us.

And this leads to my second thought, Jesus. Just, Jesus. When we truly see what we have earned (death), it makes the reality of the finished work of our God and Savior that much more precious.

All for His Glory,
Aaron

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Operation Christmas Child

Well Drilling in Kimini

Drip Irrigation Kits at Poundou Bible & Agricultural School

Aaron & Kristi

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