Archived Blog
Still not much rain
Coming from Ireland, I never thought I’d want rain to come. However, the lack of rain here over the past months has caused so many problems for this country, it is essential that it comes soon. The power cuts are very frequent now, though they are not predictable so annoyingly you cannot plan around them. It is quite frustrating, though perhaps more dangerous, to preserve power, they have turned off all street lights, including those on the Ring road. Which means that it is much harder to see the maniacs running the gauntlet on the road, there is no hope for reflective clothing here. To make matters worse, the cars coming towards you have their headlights on full beam to help them see better, so usually all you can see going down the pitch dark ring-road is a few feet in front of you as you squint in the light of oncoming cars.
As well as the slight inconvenience for those of us in the city of electricity off more than it is on, there is a more serious situation down country of imminent famine. Because the short rains did not come at all, many crops have failed, animals are dying; many cattle are lying dead on the riverbank where they had gone to drink but were so weak that they have collapsed and died. Decaying bodies infect what little water there is. Local government officials are embarrassed that they do not have enough money to put fuel in the water tanker to take water to outlying areas. The country badly needs rain, so please pray for this.
Street ministry continues to function as normal; we have got a local church involved with the boys so that they can have someone checking up on them during the summer months. The boys are such an encouragement; it’s so great to share time with them each week. Their faith is a constant challenge to me, every time that we come to speak to them, they all gather round and listen intently; bringing their bibles and study materials with plenty of great questions that they have thought up during the week. They let very little distract them; some will mention at times the Champions League football matches that they are anxious to see, but they are quickly dismissed by others who explain football’s importance when compared with the word of God. We were talking with some recently who told of how one of them was feeling sick recently and when taken to a hospital and offered medicine, refused it to have instead his friends pray over him. One of the teachers here has been given a large donation by someone in his local church which he is going to use to send some of the boys to school. It’s great to be a part of how God is working in these kids lives.
My timetable here has been greatly reduced now because the senior students are off for exam leave. My GCSE IT exam students took their exam on Thursday, they all seemed to find it easy, and I hope they all get the grade they want. However, that means that I can start winding down here. There is only 4 weeks left of my 9 months, I really can’t believe it. So many people want me to stay on for another year, and to find something else other than Bingham to do with my time. I’m really tempted; I will just have to seek God’s guidance on the matter.
Niall
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