Marked Man

I know about five foreigners who have been kicked out of The Location because of Christian witness since the time I first moved here.  All five of them worked in the same province.  Some of them are back in The Location in different provinces.  Some are gone indefinitely.  But all of them ran into problems in the same area. 

This area is the hotbed of opposition to Christians in The Location.  This is also where VK was arrested and jailed for "human trafficking."  Though he was released briefly, he was re-arrested and put back into prison.  He remains there to this day. 

What I've just learned today, is that I have been named.

I suspected this was the case after VK named my worker and my worker and I were called into the police together.  I was away so he went without me.  Since I've been back I haven't yet been called in.  But I've been told that my name is now "loud" in that province.  And I've been warned to lay low for a while.

VK's arrest is completely unjustified and he should be released immediately.  At the same time, he did several things he could have done differently that would have completely avoided this whole situation.  VK made three major mistakes:  One, he lied to us about the people he was sending to work with us.  One of them was not one we wanted.  Two, he disrespected his village headman by sending one of the young men even though the village headman refused to sign that man's documents, which would allow him to go.  Three, he announced openly at his church and elsewhere that these two young men were "going to study the Bible."  We had told him to emphasize that they were going to work.  We told him about the Bible studies we do, but there was no need to mention it to anyone else.  Apparently VK thought he could get away with it and that it would impress others in his church. 

Pray for VK.  Pray also for me and my family.  I need to remember that it could all end any day and that we might be called someday to walk away from everything here in The Location. 

Pastor Back in Prison

I just received word yesterday that the pastor who was arrested for human trafficking and in prison for two months, was just re-arrested after being set free last week.  Apparently, the village headman in his village saw that he was released and reported it to the provincial authorities, bypassing the district authorities.  They required him to be put back into prison and the money the police recieved to let him go to be returned.  It appears that the provincial authorities were trying to clamp down on corruption, assuming that the pastor's release was the result of an illegal bribe.  It is unclear if the provincial authorities are aware of his bogus arrest in the first place and the charges by which he was being held.  

We are very sad about this.  But please continue to pray for VK who is back in prison.  Thank you.

Pastor Released!

I just found out yesterday that the pastor who was arrested in September has been released!  Prasie God!  A lot of people have been praying for him.  Thank you, also, for praying for him.  We pray more good news is on the way as 2010 approaches.

Some Cool Stuff

Hi everyone.  Sorry to leave you hanging for so long.  I've been doing some traveling and will be preoccupied with meetings and conventions for most of the rest of the year.  Don't know if I'll get to blog much here.  But for now, check out some cool stuff that is going on here. 

Thanks,
Koffijah

What did I learn?

The last couple days of CPM training were pretty intense as we had to draw up our own "Master Plan" based on CPM principles and present it to the whole group.  So, I didn't blog the last couple days.  But now we're finished.  I presented my plan and had a very good response from those who listened.  I hope they will pray for me and the work here in The Location.

What did I get from the training?

Besides a library of information and concepts to consider...

God really planned to have me here.  There were about four major things that should have kept me from even attending in the first place.  I can't go into all of them on here, but one of them was the fact that I had missed the deadline and all the slots were full.  Still, one man in my agency kept praying and just a week before the training a spot opened up.  I didn't really want to go at such a late date and so many responsibilities where I am at, but after talking with my wife we concluded that God must want me there.  And now I can see way.

I have felt more like quitting the mission field in 2009 than I ever have since I came to work here nearly a decade ago.  We have been hit with problem after problem after problem, and indeed were hit with yet another major problem just this past week.  Yet, in the midst of all of this, God also did a miracle--our paperwork for an important enterprise here was approved last week after waiting for over three years.  When I told some of our faithful supporters who had been praying for this for three years--they cried. 

I feel that my heart has gotten off track in a lot of ways and this training helped me to get it back on track.  I certainly have a much clearer focus on the mission that lies ahead.  Along with that, I have regained a passion that I must have lost along the way.  I have been pretty depressed at times feeling like I am not making any difference, that I'm wasting time, money and resources, and that I do not have what it takes to be an effective missionary.  I have become stressed over too many things to do and little help to get it all done.

Mostly, I am convicted to pray, stay focused, believe that God WILL act and work through me, and obey him in everything.  It is God who sustains us and empowers us.