Are there any of you out there fluent in French? If so, we need your help translating testimonies and other materials we brought back. Please call Matthew Beish at 978-887-5701 if you can read French well and would be willing to help us! Thank you!
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Need To Translate For the Brochure
Are there any of you out there fluent in French? If so, we need your help translating testimonies and other materials we brought back. Please call Matthew Beish at 978-887-5701 if you can read French well and would be willing to help us! Thank you!
June 17 The going is over, the partnering continues
The going is over, the partnering continues
Matthew, 12:14 p.m. Tuesday June 17: Thank you again, senders, for an amazing trip! Thank you God for an amazing partnership You have given us with the Center for Lutheran Theological Studies in Togo!
We arrived safely into Logan airport yesterday afternoon (Monday) at about 4 p.m. Holly, TJ, and Virginia Betts were there to greet Bill and Dan Schlueter came to pick up Brian and I. What a blessing to see those faces when we got to the baggage claim! All 3 of us 'goers' feel priveleged to have been a part of this mission trip.
Even though the going is over, the partnership continues as now, with the help of our gifted designers and media folks, we create the brochure to recruit African students to come to the Center (these brochures will be in French and need to get to Glenn Fluegge by August 8); a 3 minute DVD promoting the Center to American churches to recruit partner congregations for the Center; a brochure to accompany the DVD that promotes the Center to American churches. Our goal is to get 20 new partner USA congregations for the Center for Lutheran Theological Studies in Togo.
We will also send the DVD and brochures to congregations already financially and prayerfully supporting the Center. Please keep reading the blog as we will also share some final summary entries in the next few days! Again, we love you and praise God for our senders!
Matthew, 12:14 p.m. Tuesday June 17: Thank you again, senders, for an amazing trip! Thank you God for an amazing partnership You have given us with the Center for Lutheran Theological Studies in Togo!
We arrived safely into Logan airport yesterday afternoon (Monday) at about 4 p.m. Holly, TJ, and Virginia Betts were there to greet Bill and Dan Schlueter came to pick up Brian and I. What a blessing to see those faces when we got to the baggage claim! All 3 of us 'goers' feel priveleged to have been a part of this mission trip.
Even though the going is over, the partnership continues as now, with the help of our gifted designers and media folks, we create the brochure to recruit African students to come to the Center (these brochures will be in French and need to get to Glenn Fluegge by August 8); a 3 minute DVD promoting the Center to American churches to recruit partner congregations for the Center; a brochure to accompany the DVD that promotes the Center to American churches. Our goal is to get 20 new partner USA congregations for the Center for Lutheran Theological Studies in Togo.
We will also send the DVD and brochures to congregations already financially and prayerfully supporting the Center. Please keep reading the blog as we will also share some final summary entries in the next few days! Again, we love you and praise God for our senders!
Monday, June 16, 2008
On The Way Home - The Road Ahead
June 16th Brian – Paris Charles DeGaule airport We just finished the first leg of our journey home, and we are in Paris for a few hours.
Graduation Saturday was another great African event. It was neat since we got to know the students somewhat, and we got to meet some of their families. It was a 3 hour service in French, (the last hour was tough) and a meal afterward of rice and goat. The goat was good, but I am looking forward to a quarter pounder. We were honored to sit at the head table, actually, there was only a few tables, people just ate in the pews.
I have had some interesting food in Africa for sure. The goat, as I mentioned, Guinea fowl (pentade), Coca fruit, and rabbit. The rabbit was…err…very fresh, as was any chicken we had. A lot of dishes are just eaten with fingers, as messy as the meal is, that’s the way they do it. When in Dapaong…
Church in Dapaong was a blast. This is the regular church for Pastor and the students who live or stay nearby. The drums, again, were just awesome. After the service, Matthew spent some time with a short lesson to the kids. We had the parachute and the kids had a great time. I am not sure how they could have had more fun, having their picture taken and then seeing it, parachute games, or having candy. Bill got literally mobbed passing out candy.
Pastor Glenn gave us a ride to Ouagadougou yesterday. The road from Dapaong to Ouaga is a crazy one. It is the 1st national route, or Route 1! You think our Route 1 is hectic? First of all, there is not a speed limit, so traveling at 170 KMH (105 MPH) is common. That’s the least of the weird things you see on this road. There are a lot of Toyota vans, that seat 12 or so, traveling on this road, with stuff for 12 people on the roof. The stack can be quite high, 7 feet or more on top, that is strange to see, but whoever doesn’t fit inside, rides on the roof with the stuff, or stands on the rear bumper, and that is just nuts!.
We drove by a bad semi accident, it seemed recent, since we traveled the road 2 weeks ago anyway, but its hard to tell past that. I saw 1 ambluance in Ouaga, other than that, no emergency vehicles at all. Unfortunately, a guy on a moped hit Pastors new truck in the back, as we were slowing down. The man was alright, but the truck has some little damage. Pastor was a fine example of grace as he checked on the man, shrugged his shoulders and off we went. No insurance of course, and there are not any body shops, so its fair to say that the damage is permanent.
Mission accomplished! Pastor Glenn said the he was “encouraged” by our visit. Just the ability to talk to someone from the same culture was good medicine. Don’t stop reading the blog, more to come when we get back!
Graduation Saturday was another great African event. It was neat since we got to know the students somewhat, and we got to meet some of their families. It was a 3 hour service in French, (the last hour was tough) and a meal afterward of rice and goat. The goat was good, but I am looking forward to a quarter pounder. We were honored to sit at the head table, actually, there was only a few tables, people just ate in the pews.
I have had some interesting food in Africa for sure. The goat, as I mentioned, Guinea fowl (pentade), Coca fruit, and rabbit. The rabbit was…err…very fresh, as was any chicken we had. A lot of dishes are just eaten with fingers, as messy as the meal is, that’s the way they do it. When in Dapaong…
Church in Dapaong was a blast. This is the regular church for Pastor and the students who live or stay nearby. The drums, again, were just awesome. After the service, Matthew spent some time with a short lesson to the kids. We had the parachute and the kids had a great time. I am not sure how they could have had more fun, having their picture taken and then seeing it, parachute games, or having candy. Bill got literally mobbed passing out candy.
Pastor Glenn gave us a ride to Ouagadougou yesterday. The road from Dapaong to Ouaga is a crazy one. It is the 1st national route, or Route 1! You think our Route 1 is hectic? First of all, there is not a speed limit, so traveling at 170 KMH (105 MPH) is common. That’s the least of the weird things you see on this road. There are a lot of Toyota vans, that seat 12 or so, traveling on this road, with stuff for 12 people on the roof. The stack can be quite high, 7 feet or more on top, that is strange to see, but whoever doesn’t fit inside, rides on the roof with the stuff, or stands on the rear bumper, and that is just nuts!.
We drove by a bad semi accident, it seemed recent, since we traveled the road 2 weeks ago anyway, but its hard to tell past that. I saw 1 ambluance in Ouaga, other than that, no emergency vehicles at all. Unfortunately, a guy on a moped hit Pastors new truck in the back, as we were slowing down. The man was alright, but the truck has some little damage. Pastor was a fine example of grace as he checked on the man, shrugged his shoulders and off we went. No insurance of course, and there are not any body shops, so its fair to say that the damage is permanent.
Mission accomplished! Pastor Glenn said the he was “encouraged” by our visit. Just the ability to talk to someone from the same culture was good medicine. Don’t stop reading the blog, more to come when we get back!
June 16 - Monday Morning - Paris Update
June 16 - 9:00 AM (Paris)
we are safe in paris and hope to board within 30 minutes for jfk
thank you all for your prayers and being wonderful senders
we love you all
matthew
June 15 Missions Moment
*There is a photo with the team and the entire Fluegee family—including Eliana. We thank God so much that He used us to bring them love and encouragement.
June 15 Missions Moment
*There is a photo of the students practicing with the evangecubes we gave them
June 15 Missions Moment
*There are some photos from graduation with all the students and faculty and one of Pastor Glenn and Dr. Dongo dancing. Fred Reinhardt speaking to the graduates.
June 15 Missions Moment
*There are some interview photos where we gathered student photos, testimonies, professor testimonies, etc…all that will be used for the promo DVD and brochure
June 15 Missions Moment
*There are some ‘men at work’ photos—that are pretty self explanatory as to what we are doing
MJune 15 Missions Moment
Thank you so much for all your prayers. This truly has been an awesome trip. Brian and Bill have been great blessings. God has used them both in tremendous ways. Attached are photos and below is a summary of what they are. Use as many as you want. Edit as needed!
Missions Moment on Sunday, June 15
*There is a photo of the 7 students who completed the 1 year program—they received a diploma today and then are invited to attend 2 more years of training in order to become pastors
June 15 Missions Moment
Thank you, OSLC family, for being awesome senders! God has amazed us throughout this trip as to what He is doing here in French-speaking Africa and how a small congregation in Topsfield, MA can be a part of that. Please continue to pray for us as we worship tomorrow here in Dapaong, do some children’s ministry at the church and then drive 5 hours to Ouagadougou and then fly over 18 hours or so to get home on Monday afternoon. We are so honored to have represented Jesus and you during this trip! We love you!
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Matthew and Tanpo--Togolese pastor in training and graduate of part one of training
praising God with music during graduation
This was a two part ceremony. The first part was a church service with four hymns, an OT and NT reading along with the Gospel and the longggggggggggg sermon. Like the service in Nano village last week, the offering was the most joyful time of the service with many people getting up to do the butt dance. Even Pastor Glenn and Dr. Dongo got up and joined in. It was a lot of fun even though one of our team members (who will remain unnamed) dropped the offering with the left-hand – a cultural no-no.
After the church service, there were several speeches from the attending dignitaries, and all of the students were awarded their diplomas. The wives that attended also went up front and shook hands with the faculty and offered some small tokens of affection to their husbands. Apparently, this is the first time that the wives and husbands have shown any public affection at this ceremony. Even holding hands is considered taboo. So this was perhaps a brave step forward in showing that Christian households can be affectionate and loving in a public way. Glenn and Ron were really surprised by it.
Graduation Day
pastors praying before graduation ceremony begins
pastor in training and his son on graduation day
Bill – 7pm on Saturday, June 14
The graduation ceremony today was in a building on campus that held a few hundred people, with no air conditioning. The local church members were told that the service would start by 8am. It was really scheduled to start at 9am, but it takes people so long to show up for events like this that it was necessary to tell them 8am. Evenso, the service eventually started around 9:30am with student pictures starting around 7:30am and final chairs being set up as people walked in.
Dinner With Ron Mudge and Glenn Fluegge
The 3 amigos, Pastor Ron Mudge and Pastor Glenn Fluegge
Last night, we went to dinner with Pastor Glenn and Pastor Ron. Pastor Ron is working on his dissertation for his PHD based on Ezekiel 36. He gave us a description of his study on the verses he focused on, and we read through them before dinner. We were happy to relax for a few hours last night. We did quite a bit of work around Pastors Glenn’s house and his office at the Center.
We repaired some doors, painted basketball courts and more. We were able to get ourselves around with the truck to the hardware store (I call it ‘Hut Depot’) and a few other errands. It can be very confusing! There are no street signs, and every dirt road looks like the rest.
We had time before dinner to take a little ride to a monastery in a village called Daulwalk. We walked out to the edge of a bluff, and the view is amazing! Bill and I sat on the edge and watched a few children move a herd right below us. They yelled hello and waved, and we did the same.
Today is our last full day, so tonight we will spend a few hours in ‘evening fellowship’ on the roof with Pastor Glenn and Ron. Tomorrow we will go the local church, and head to Ouaga to do a little shopping, and then to the airport. See you a few days!
June 14 Graduation
women preparing celebration meal at Center for after graduation
June 14, 2008 Brian 8:30 a.m.
Good morning. I am writing from the campus at CLET. Today is graduation! We have taken many photos of student and faculty, and the ceremony should begin shortly. They have a picturesque cross in the center of the campus that has been the focus for these pictures. People are all busy with last minute preparations. Just around the corner several women prepare a celebration lunch for the graduation that will take place shortly. We have noticed that the campus is at least 1 goat less than yesterday. Apparently, that’s lunch…bon-appetit! The women are preparing some large pots over open fires with what looks like corn pot. The corn pot will be made into balls, and the idea is to pinch off a piece and dip in the peanut sauce.
June 14 Last Full Day
Antoine, one of pastors in training, reading his Bible before graduation
Antoine from Congo Brazzaville receiving diploma
Saturday, June 14 10:30 p.m. Matthew
We love you all and continue to thank God for our senders! Today was an amazing day witnessing God's faithfulness to the students and faculty as we celebrated graduation with them. I got to sing 'To God be the glory' with Dr. Dongo at the graduation ceremony--he in his native language from the Democratic Republic of Congo and me in English. Awesome! We were able to visit with Fred Reinhardt and Ron Mudge tonight, our OSLC missionary past and present. We are honored to encourage both of them. Ron is here to teach an intensive seminar on the Greek language and Fred came for the CLET graduation. Tonight we've been sorting photos, checking brochure outlines, making sure we've got all we need to come home with to complete our projects here. God willing, we will worship in Dapaong tomorrow and then drive 5 hours to Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso where we depart for Paris at 8:15 p.m. We'll try to blog from Ouaga or Paris, but if not we'll send a note when we get back into JFK before arriving into Boston on Monday at 3 p.m. Keep praying and know that you are prayed for and loved!
Friday, June 13, 2008
June 12 - A Chronicle of Daily Life
June 12th, Brian
What's out there? Last night, I was able to speak with the owner of the house, Bouk. His English is a lot better than my French. He is in Dapaong for a funeral that had events lasting several days, and he is staying for business. He is an entrepreneur, with some real estate, a tree farm and other ventures. A very nice man, not yet a believer. That fact was a little awkward for us, as he was grieving the loss of his Muslim friend. What words of comfort can we offer? His perspective of life in Africa, though, brought an appreciation of several ‘luxuries’ to me.
9:30pm I tried to enjoy a Flag bier, and forget that I ate too much at the restaurant while I plugged in all the camera batteries. The ceilings fans were on, but it’s a tick hot. I will get my AC tuned on so it will cool off and be a somewhat decent temperature for nite-nite time in an hour or so. Bouk micro waved some leftovers, and got a cold drink. That is what spawned an enlightenment. He was drinking filtered water! I thought Africans where more or less immune to any water borne disease, such as typhoid. But first, let me set the scene…
The house we are staying in is a 4 bedroom, 2 story (plus the roof deck). It is the nicest house we have seen since landing in Africa, other than possibly the local Governor’s house close by. We have a cook, and a guard. I have a nice private room, with AC and a comfy bed. I have a private bath since Bill and Matthew sleep upstairs ( I snore). The house is situated on the highest hill surrounded for miles (20 in each direction) by flat plains. We have running water, something Bouk reminded me that very few in the area have. I have not enjoyed hot water yet, which really opens your eyes wide and makes you gasp when stepping into a shower, even in hot Africa. Most drink and use water from rivers, the same that animals use. Illness is frequent. Clearly, Bouk is a wealthy man here.
Just 200 yards away, is the local television station. I am not sure who watches it, other than a few wealthy people, or some bars. It is guarded with military personnel. Communication is a first target in war. Driving by a young man, or men with semi-automatic rifles casually slung over their neck, will make you sit up straight, smile and hide the camera. We have been warned by Pastor Glenn, and Matthew, no pictures!
All around us, as Bouk reminded me, are mud huts. The cloak of darkness hides reality when Bill, Matthew and I, sit and talk on the roof while gazing over Dapaong. A few lights make it look like Anytown, USA. He reminded me that out there, under the star filled sky, there are no kitchens, no running water, never mind hot. No electricity, or anything that goes with it. Coffee makers, microwaves, refrigerators, lights, shavers, can openers, TV, computers, fans, AC. That means no ice cream, cold beer, stored food, leftovers, light, cool relief, internet. There is little privacy and plenty of dirt.
There are many buildings here without roofs on them. Pastor Glenn told me that anyone who has money will not put it in the bank, as they are unstable and/or may be taken over during war, and saving it or having any extra, means that you would have to take care of any family member who needs it. And families here are large. Kids take care of parents when older, that’s retirement. So the more kids you have, the better likelihood of a comfortable ‘retirement’.
He noted that the people scurrying around the market can deceive one who does not take a deeper look. The woman have lovely colorful clothing, as do the children. The women are busy carrying things, always with their head somehow. Huge bundles of branches, trays of fruit marketed so that they are as appealing as possible, just anything. Where are they going? They seem happy, at least to me. Everyone waves at the white people, so maybe that’s unrepresentative. Come to think of it, I don’t hear laughter, or see them hugging, but there are quite friendly to us. They don’t seem to be complaining, or arguing. What good would that do, if you don’t get the wood home, you don’t cook! It is the time square of Dapaong, in some regards. It’s very busy. Horns toot from mopeds and an infrequent car. Trucks wiz by. There is a lot of commerce happening here! It almost alive, and like NY, you can’t help but wonder, …did that woman close a big deal today? Did she sell X amount of beans? How about that cloth stand over there, good sales today? Did they beat their quota? I wonder if the shop owner we saw again today will be blessed by our purchases, and say “Honey, lets go out to dinner tonight.”
But tonight, when the smiles and waves are gone, the stands and stores closed, they will be sleeping on the ground in a mud hut with a straw roof.
Living in this house in this area isn’t all that great. My cell phone doesn’t work, I can only call home every 2 days or so until we leave, I forgot my favorite shirt and shampoo (I know, what does he need that for) I bought for the trip. The beer is not as good as Budweiser, the shower is cold, the running water has to be filtered, the refrigerator doesn’t work that great, the roads are very bumpy in a car and the electricity goes out on a daily basis.
Wow, am I blessed.
June 12 - Matthew, Ron, Bill , Brian, Glenn
Pastor Ron Mudge arrived today in Ouagadougoo and got to Dapaong at 6 p.m. It is so good to spend time with him again! It seems right to have him in Togo since he and his wonderful family--wife Lisa and children Jonah, Isaiah, Ella and Aaron were our wonderful hosts in 2005 and the missionary family OSLC supported for nearly 3 years. Brian, Bill, Glenn and Ron are over fellowshipping on our roof and that's where I'm heading after getting the blog out to you. WE LOVE YOU ALL!
June 12 - Planning the DVD
Thursday, June 12 9:42 p.m. Matthew: We are so thankful for all of your prayers. Today was a great Thursday! We were able to complete more projects this morning--this time at the Center. Bill also got the basketball court outline on the tennis court all ready for me to paint--and then the rain came --so we'll have to try again tomorrow. We spent the afternoon working on the brochure for the USA churches and the USA DVD outline. We just returned from a wonderful evening meal and time of fellowship with the professors of the Center and their families. We were able to encourage them and thank them for all they are doing to train pastors in French-speaking West Africa. They send their love and prayers back to all of you--our wonderful senders! Dr. Dongo said 'you must have a very special church and special friends' and we agree!
June 11 Fellowship Time
We took some photos of a few of the students that were not interviewed. Another note; Africans do not get in lines. So there was a little confusion making notes as to what order and who the pictures where of.
We then took Francois and his cute little daughter out to dinner to La complimade. (the encampment). Valerie was kind enough go and help translate. We learned a lot about him. He had some markings on his neck, for example, that Bill asked about. He explained that at 8 years old, he was taken for 40 days (yes, 40 days) in to the bush, where he was taught a secret language, dances and received tribal markings. He wants to learn more about farming, and has concerns about his crops. He wishes to have prayers for his family health, his family relations, and his jobs. His jobs give him some social status. Also, he is Catholic, so he has abandoned any other tribal/animist beliefs.
Pastor Glenn & Pastor Mudge will here on Thursday afternoon, so we will get a few more projects done before then.
Good night Felicia and Monica! I am very glad I talked to for a minute tonight! I wish it could be longer, but our phone cards are about a $1 per min, and only have 15 min on them. I love you!
June 11 Fellowship, Jokes, and Evangi-Cube
June 11th Brian Today, we finished a few things on the Fluegge ‘to-do ‘ list. We fixed a few screens, replaced a light assembly, and cleaned the truck. These little chores are some things that they really needed done, and have not had time.
Mid-day, when its hottest, we did some work inside such as reviewing the interviews, picture logging etc. It about 90 or so, and dry. So I guess we are cooler than Boston. That’s a little weird, since we are in Africa.
At 5:00, we met all the students at the center. We have met all of them, but as I blogged before, culture says formal presentations must be made. So each student introduced himself, and the OSLC ‘Twas Amis’ each said a few words. We had a devotional by Matthew, and then handed out some of the gifts we brought. Nice leather journals, pens, evangi-cubes (which tell the Christian story in the form of something like a Rubiks cube) and enjoyed a bucket of Chockba. I wish we spoke French. These guys were having a blast telling jokes and stories. I told one and Valerie translated, then they would tell one. Its hard to tell a cross cultural joke, some of the language just does not allow the humor.
June 11 Dinner With Francois and Alice
Dinner with Francois – Valerie was gracious enough to come to dinner with us tonight and be our translator again so we could actually have some semblance of a real conversation with Francois. Francois is our cook and helper at the home where we are staying. We invited his whole family, but only his youngest child could come. She is Alice (say Aleece), she is four years old and is in kindergarten. She speaks Moba, and is only just learning French now. It costs about $10 a year to send her to the local Catholic school. She is very cute and quiet as are most of the children here when their parents or other adults are around.
Francois lives in town during the week to work for Mr. Bouk (where we are staying) and the Fluegges, and goes home to the village on the weekends. He met Mr. Bouk and his wife through the local Catholic church and it was Mrs. Bouk who taught him to cook. He enjoys cooking, but is ready to be done with it. He would prefer to go back to school and learn modern agricultural techniques, but the loss of income during school and the cost of school itself prevents him from doing that right now.
June 11 Faculty and Students
June 11, 2008 9pm – Bill: Bon (well), we don’t understand French, but that didn’t stop us from having a good time with the faculty and students. Everyone introduced themselves, again, and exchanged greetings and words of encouragement. We gave all the students an evangecube, a journal, some pens, a bar of Ivory soap, and some Christian literature in French. Then, they opened up the chockpa bucket and Dr. Dongo and Rev. Souk started telling jokes.
Rev. Souk comes across as a quiet man, but he and Dr. Dongo really had everybody in stitches. They spoke too long for us to get a verbatim translation from Valerie, but the jokes mostly revolved around language barriers getting in the way of communication.
After the party, we took headshots of all the students again for their student profiles and we all tried to communicate a little more individually with the students. Some speak better English than others, but a smile goes a long way towards communicating friendship and unity in Christ.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
June 10 - More Interviews
.
.
Photo of Lare Dabirsoa, from Togo, a pastor in training at the center
We interviewed 6 students today, and heard some really great testimonies of coming to faith. Quite a few of the students found Christianity despite family practices of animism. These Animists use things such as dead birds, little statues and trinkets called fetishes. With all of the pressure to stay true to the cults, these believers broke through. They are a real testament to the work that has been done, and needs to be done. Another cultural difference – Africans do not smile when having a picture take. Head straight, posture, no emotion. We managed to coax a few along into a grin.
Tomorrow, we will work on more projects around the home and center. We will continue working on the DVD and brochure. At 5 p.m. we are hosting a party for the 16 students at the Center. We will have a bucket of Chokba to share, which is a millet cider, like beer, as well as food and fun. We will give them the gifts that we brought for them.
June 10 - Dinner With The Fluegges and Valerie
Photo of Matthew, Samuel, Abigail, and Caleb
Tuesday, June 10, Brian: Water water everywhere…as Bill noted, its hot. Everything here is so hard, including getting water. We drink filtered water. Going to the store is not an option. If one of us forgets to fill the filter bucket, no water. Even brushing your teeth is an effort that must be thought out. Yesterday, I put my toothbrush under running water by mistake and had to thoroughly wash it with filtered.
Last night, we went out to dinner with the Fluegge’s and a woman who has been here for quite a while, Valerie. Valerie translated for us for the interviews today, and is an English teacher. She has taught many missionary kids while she has been here. It’ss so strange that with all the mud huts and poverty, a decent restaurant can be uncovered.
We are on dial up internet, which is OK, but we must intrude on the Fluegge’s to do it. If you remember, dial up is sloooowwwww. Waiting for pictures to upload and web pages to complete is a test of patience. Susan and the kids left for the States for 2 months today, and Pastor Glenn is gone until Thursday, so we can surf the net! We have Susan’s cell phone as well, and bought 2 phone cards to charge it up. Phone cards are as common as chickens.
June 10 - Worship Music
Photo of Bill and Tanpo - a gifted musician and pastor in training.
Worship music – We spoke with two students today who are also musicians. Tempa (pictured) is a singer and he says that singing praise to God is like praising him twice. We also spoke with Remy who is the choir leader at the church we worshipped at on Sunday. Because he was leading the service, a teenage girl filled in for him. If someone wants to join the choir, they must commit to live a Christian lifestyle and stay out of trouble. In Remy’s church, they are all teenagers so this is a challenge!
June 10 -
Photo of Jesse Fluegge with water for the trip to Ouagadougou
.
Photo of Brian and Bill repairing windows on the kids school next to the Fluegges house.
Tuesday, June 10, Bill : Boy, did those screens need fixing. We made some great progress this morning and I came back after the student interviews to finish up. I got swarmed by mosquitoes!
I did get some clarification on Togolese polygamy from Glenn last night. I had previously thought that a Christian who wanted to be a minister would have to separate from his wives, but that is not the case. Instead, the marriages are recognized as valid as they were recognized as part of the civil society. However, a man with more than one wife may join the church, but may not be a minister. And, once a man with one wife becomes a Christian, he is not allowed to have any more.
I missed my family today. When saying goodbye to the Fluegge’s, Jesse, the 3-year old, gave he a stranglehold hug and a kiss on the cheek – just like TJ.
I missed my dog, Baxter, today, too. I dropped some food on the floor and he wasn’t around to eat it.
The Heat – The heat can really sap the life out of you here. I don’t know how anybody can work a full day doing anything. The temperature is between 90-100 on a daily basis, but there is really no escape. Air conditioning is infrequent, and there is none where we are. By the end of the day, it can make thinking and communicating a difficult task.
June 10 - Fixing The Screen Door
Tuesday, June 10, 2008 Matthew 10:07 p.m.: This morning we were able to fix screens on the missionary kid school classroom door and window. The screens are to protect the kids from mosquitoes. We are thankful to be able to help with these practical projects to save Glenn time. This afternoon we had the honor of interviewing 6 students from the Center. They were: Tamba from Guinea, Pierre from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Antoine from Congo Braazaville, Tanpo from Burkina Faso, Anselme from Benin and Lare from Togo. Each one of the students told us how they came to faith in Jesus and how God called them to come and study at the Center. They also testified as to how their training at the Center has made a profound impact on their lives and how they are being equipped to plant churches and teach God’s Word. It was a great honor to hear of God’s faithfulness in their lives. Many of them come from animistic/pagan backgrounds. Tamba from Guinea learned about the saving grace of Jesus through a Liberian who came and taught them. Pierre from the Democratic Republic of Congo was committed to pagan gods at birth. Not long after, a Christian came into his mother’s life and taught her the powerful, freeing grace of Jesus Christ. Amen! Only God knows what He will do with these men after their training at the Center is completed—but the possibilities are exciting! We pray that all of French-speaking West Africa will come to faith in our awesome God!
The Fluegges left for Burkina Faso at 12 noon. It was sad to say goodbye to them. It was also quite strange that the short termers—us—were waving goodbye to the long-termers—the Fluegges. In just 6 days we were able to develop a wonderful friendship with all of them. God has placed them in our hearts and we love them all! Hopefully they will be able to come to Topsfield one day to meet the OSLC family! Glenn will be back with Bill, Brian and me on Thursday.
One of the projects Glenn asked us to do is to paint the lines for a basketball court.. There is an old tennis court next to the Fluegge’s home that Glenn put a hoop at the one end. We will paint the lines on one end of the court so Samuel Fluegge can teach his Togolese friends basketball. Bob and Kyle Uhlig emailed us the measurements today for the court—so thank you Uhlig men! You are helping start a basketball craze in Togo! We also learned that the Celtics are up 2 games and it was 100 degrees at home today! Together we’re sharing the heat!
Monday, June 9, 2008
June 9 - Men At Work
*More promotional work. As soon as we got back from the weaver, we went right to work on the DVD and brochure. We roughed out the brochure for the CLET staff to review, reviewed photo and video materials, and composed the DVD outline. We are now taking more photos of the CLET campus and beginning to interview the faculty and students. This will take us well past 6pm, which isn’t unusual for us. With the longer lunch breaks, work usually continues into the cooler hours of the evening.
We will be on our own for the next few days since Glenn is taking Susan and the children to Ouagadougou for them to fly home to California for 7 weeks. We plan on fixing screen doors, lights, and fans at their home and at CLET. We’ll also be continuing our interviews and work at the Center with the help of another American missionary who works in DaPaong. Her name is Valerie Stonebreaker.
June 9 - Customs in Togo
June 9, 200 Bill, 4:00 p.m. : Going to see the weaver this morning was very interesting. I rode in the back of the pick up and bounced around a bit. Half of the ride was through bumpy dirt streets in downtown Dapaong and half through smoother faster country roads to the village. Trash litters the city, but the country is quite clean. People remain friendly, but there are the occasional teenagers and street toughs who don’t seem too welcoming. Susan says that Dapaong has changed a lot since they first came.
Gangs have begun to move in. Girls are wearing pants. And the city is growing. Almost whenever Susan goes to town now, she hears a few people call her “yoo-hoo”. It means “white dog” and is similar to calling somebody [ the N word] in the US. It’s very upsetting to her. Even so, she says that the vast majority of Togolese want white people here. They bring money and to discourage that would be detrimental to their own employment. Even so, Dapaong is a far cry from a tourist destination.
*Polygamy in Togo. Susan also explained that when a man takes multiple wives in Togo, it’s usually for the purpose of raising children to work on the farm. Children usually nurse for 2-3 years and marriage relations are forbidden from the time the woman is pregnant until the child is weaned. Hence, if a man wants more than one child a year, he needs to have more than one wife. But, it’s less common now than it used to be.
This is an issue that the Lutheran church has discussed here and their approach is to allow men who become Christians after taking multiple wives to keep their wives. But, if they want to become pastors, they are strongly encouraged to discontinue relations with all but their first wife. I’ll have to ask Glenn for more details.
June 9 - The Weaver
June 9, 2008 Brian 1:30 p.m.: This morning, we saw Africa. The real Africa. We were Africans. Susan Fluegge, along with Francois (Frans-wah) our cook, took us to a cloth weaver. We have been looking forward to this since we came. We are off the beaten path, to say the least now, this place was off the path that is off the path.
Families here live in compounds. Small rounds mud huts with grass roofs, in more or less of a circle, with a wall connecting the huts. The center of this is a common area, where cooking, eating etc. takes place. We drove (more like 4 wheeled) through some fields and down a small path, and parked near on compound. This compound had 2 egresses, and we were able to walk, essentially, through their living room. There were 2 bulls, a dog, chickens of course (they are everywhere) and the family. Not the type of thing one usually sees in a living room! We walked down a trail, and into a second compound, where there were more kids, chickens (of course) a crippled man who sat on the ground, and the weaver.
The weaver sat under a 5 foot high shelter, made of sticks. He sat on the edge of a hole, with his feet in the hole. He had an elaborate system of branches that each had a function in the total rig that is his loom, with 2 strings hanging down that he controlled with his feet. The cotton thread was strung out to a rock so that it was taught and able to be fed as needed to the weaver. This weaver is a farmer as well, and grew the cotton that the Paña I bought is made from. The Paña is about 3’X4’, and takes about 4 days to make. Obviously, this does not include the labor to grow the cotton. The Paña cost about $12.
This afternoon, we are at the center working more on the brochure that we are going to produce. We are meeting with Pastor Glenn right now, and taking some pictures of the campus.
June 9 - Videos, and Dinner
Photo: Interviewing Pastor Souk
Photo: Interviewing Dr Dongo
June 9 9:24 p.m. Matthew: What an awesome Monday we had--thank you all for your continued prayers and love! Brian and Bill captured most of the day in their blog entries.
Our video interviews with the professors went very well. With the amount of promotional material that the Center needs--a brochure to recruit African students to come train to be pastors, a DVD to promote the Center's work to USA churches, and a brochure that promotes the Center to USA churches--we will need the help of many OSLC Graphic Designers and DVD producers in the days to come!
We've been thanking God every night during our prayer time (which is on the roof) that He would allow us to promote this awesome theological school so that more pastors may be trained so that more people may come to saving faith in Jesus in French-speaking West Africa! Awesome! We just returned from a wonderful dinner with the Fluegges and Valerie Stonebreaker. Susan and the children are leaving tomorrow and we will miss them! They have been gifts to us and we hope we have been a blessing to them. God is doing great things through their entire family here--the children are missionaries too--all 5 of them!
Please continue praying for us as there's much to do in our 6 remaining days. We 3 amigos work very well together and enjoy one another as we partner in this amazing work--so your prayers are being answered! By the way--one of the nicknames Bill has received during our trip thus far is 'Beaker.' Can you guess why? Love and prayers from across the Atlantic where the drums beat loud and the sun shines bright! (but none of us are too sunburned which is great!)
June 8 - Photo - Ops
We were thinking of you all throughout the day, and what might be happening in church. Hope you liked the Mission Moment!
Well, Bill already calls me ‘Hemingway’ for my long blog entries ( I can’t help it!) So I better sign off. Good afternoon from Dapaong, Togo, Africa. (where am I?)
June 8 - Lollipops
We passed out candy to the kids, and when we were done, I asked Pastor Glenn to ask if we missed anyone. Quickly, a member in broken English said, ‘Yeah, the adults!’ I reopened the bag, and stand back! They love candy!
June 8 - Worship, Lesson and Parachute Games
After the service, Matthew spoke to Pastor Glenn, who interpreted and spoke to the Pastor in training, who translated French to Moba, and taught to the kids. Its great to hear a question in English, like, “Why did Jesus die on the cross?” have it translated twice, a child answers, translated twice again, and hear “To save us from our sins!” The work the church has done here is saving people, that’s the great commission. After a short lesson, we unpacked the parachute that Matthew brought. The kids had a great time, as well as the adults.
June 8 - Bonjour !
I have mentioned before, everything here is formal. We met the leaders, shook hands, “Bonjour, Enchante” (Hello, nice to meet you) then Pastor Glenn ‘presented’ us, and we did it again. There are so many cultural differences here. Even Pastor Glenn was tired when we got home, citing that there is rarely a moment when something is familiar, that you don’t have to think…”don’t eat with your left hand, don’t cross your legs, always wave with your right hand, etc”, that you are constantly thinking and being keenly aware not to offend.
June 8 - Service at the church in Nano
Later in the service, the women slowly came out of their seats, youngest first it appeared, and danced. Not just arbitrary, but not too in sync. Slowly shuffle your feet, and shake it! When the older women danced, the men danced. Never at the same time, always separately. We were formally presented to the congregation, and gave a donation as a sign of our appreciation of the lunch they were planning for us. They were very grateful.
June 8 - Church Service at Nano
As the service progressed, every bench was full! Pastor Glenn sat next to me, and although he does not speak fluent Moba, he has studied it, and could tell me some of what they were saying. (e.g. Apostles Creed). Other moments were somewhat the same. We knew when the offering took place, for example. Each row, starting with the chorus, then women (Men and women are on different sides of the church) then me, would clap and sing as they went to a wooden box on a stand to tithe.
June 8 - In The Church Service
We had the only car at church. Several mopeds, but most walked. The service began late because, well, no parishioners had showed up yet. They are busy in the fields during this, the beginning of the rainy season. The music consisted of a large drum, and a set of …other drums. Wow! The chorus is loud! And the music was really great. I am not sure what they singing, but the tune is in my head. They are not fooling around!
June 8 - On The Way To Church in Nano
June 8th Brian – Today we worshipped in a village called Nano (Nah-no). Traffic was good, not too many goats or animals to avoid. The ride through Dapaong and Nano is interesting, but looks almost the same everywhere. Huts, shacks and people (women and children) working in the fields. Even places that look remote, are not. There seems to be people everywhere…in the fields, on the roads etc. Universally, they are extremely friendly, at least to us. They wave, and children sing a song that Pastor Glenn interpreted as, “White man, white man, good evening. White man, white man how are you. White man we are fine” Always with a laugh or smile, and a wave.
Sunday, June 8, 2008
June 8 Missions Moment
*There is a photo of Bill and Brian with the Fluegge family. God is using us to encourage this dear family and we are so honored. They have been lonely and our prayers have been that we be a cup of cool water to them. We love them!
June 8 Missions Moment
Matthew with Dr. Dongo, Center president and Pastor Joseph--President of the Lutheran Church of Congo Brazzaville.
June 8 Missions Moment
*There is a photo where I am explaining the brochure outline for the center—this brochure will be in French and will be used to recruit students from Africa to come and attend. We will need the help of our OSLC graphic designers upon returning!
June 8 Missions Moment
*There are photos of the Center campus, the city of Dapaong where we are staying and the landscape around Dapaong
June 8 Missions Moment
*There is a photo of the team with the faculty at the Center—we will begin interviewing them on Monday, June 9.
June 8 Missions Moment
*There is a photo where Brian, Bill and Glenn Fluegge are presenting the OSLC gifts to the professors. The second photo shows the professors praying prayers of thanks to God for these gifts.
June 8 Missions Moment
*There are 2 ‘men at work’ photos—Brian helping Glenn Fluegge work on his truck and Brian and Bill helping change lights at the Fluegge home. We are so thankful to be able to help with their home projects to practically show the love of Jesus to them.
June 8 Missions Moment
*There is a photo of our team with the 16 students from the Center—they are from 6 countries—Guinea, Benin, Togo, Burkina Faso, Congo Brazzaville and Democratic Republic of Congo. This coming week we will teach and interview the students, and have the honor of praying for them and encouraging them.
June 8 Missions Moment
*There are 3 photos of Togo people—children, a woman storekeeper and older woman. Please share that the harvest field is great here—50% of the people profess Christianity but often blend their beliefs with animistic practices; 25% are Muslim and 25% are animist or tribal. The life expectancy is only 52 years old—so the time is now to reach these dear ones with the Gospel
The Home Where The Team Is Stayng
This is the home where the team is staying -- not far from the Fluegge's residence.
June 7 - Trip To The Market
Saturday, June 7th, 2008 – BRIAN--Last night (Friday night) we spent some time under the amazing African sky on the roof. It is a flat roof with a railing, like a patio. Pastor Glenn came over and we talked until the wee hours with the sound of drums in the distance. Pastor claims it is a signal at a ceremony, in this case, a funeral. The funeral happens to be for a friend of the man who owns the house we are in. He came back for a few days to attend his friends ceremony. Mr. Bouk is a very nice man, who’s English is a lot better than our French. Daily we hear the chanting of Muslims at the Mosque a couple miles away. There are few trees to deaden the sound, so it travels over during their 5 prayer times a day. Anyway… Pastor Ron Mudge who was a professor here, and Pastor Fred Reinhardt, who OSLC supports with our prayers and finances, will be here in few days. Pastor Glenn’s family is heading to California, so we will have time to discuss many things. I am looking forward to all I can learn.
Saturday morning, we headed to the market with Pastor’s wife, Susan, and their baby, Eliana. The market is huge, and packed with vendors. We weaved our way through people selling beans and vegetables, farm implements, hardware, radios, fish (they looked days old, with flies all over them. Yuk) The people LOVE the little white baby, as well as the white adults. We got a taste today of what being famous would be like. We were stared at, followed and when we stopped, a crowd gathered. We bought a lot of cloth from one vendor that Susan likes, so we were there for 20 minutes or so with a crowd. I am sure we made the vendors’ day as we bought about 10 pieces. Mine were 5000 Franc, or $10. It will cost about another 5000 Franc to have them tailored this afternoon.
I took a picture of a group of the cutest little kids on a ‘platform’. I waved and smiled, and the next thing I knew, they were tugging at my shirt. I sat down and showed them the picture. I took another picture, and showed them. They thought that was just the greatest thing, to see themselves in my box (camera). I took so many pictures of each child and then showed them, and the excitement and the crowd grew. We got the approval and smiles of the African adults nearby. Taking pictures otherwise is risky. We cannot just snap a picture of any African that we think looks like a good shot. Some want money, and some believe that their spirit is captured when a picture is taken.
We just had lunch at the Fluegge’s, and we are going out tonight. I thought I might lose a few pounds here, but the food is sooooooo good! The Fluegges have a cook and a guard as well. Hopefully the constant sweating will help. The days are hot hot hot, but the nights are so cool, I sleep with the window open only, no A/C or even fan. Today is 95deg (but it’s a dry heat!).
June 7 - Visiting with the Fluegges And A Trip To The Market
Saturday, June 7th, 2008 – Bill
Last night we enjoyed a late-hour “evening fellowship” session with Glenn, covering topics from the sacrament of baptism and the difficulty Africans have with accepting it, spiritual warfare among Christians and pagans with the Moba tribe, and contemporary worship in America. Apart from his wife, Glenn doesn’t have the opportunity to sit on a roof contemplating these theological issues with other like-minded people so it is good for us to be here. We are learning a lot from each other.
We also spent some time talking about the dependency Africans have on foreign aid and the balance between weaning them away from this dependency without making them feel abandoned. It’s a real struggle for American missionaries who come to Africa to make a difference. They (we) come to help, but help must be provided in a way that does not hinder the long-term advancement of the church in a culturally accepted and sustainable manner.
This morning, Sue and Eliana took us to the market. This is definitely the place to be on Saturdays and Wednesdays. Hundreds of people are at the market selling goods for everyday living. Food, clothing, cooking utensils, moped fuel, and a small amount of packaged/processed goods. Brian, Matthew and I did purchase some of the beautiful cloth that we will bring to the tailor later this afternoon. Susan helped us negotiate and we appreciated the opportunity to engage local people in the marketplace. Brian played pied-piper to the children who flocked to him once he started taking pictures.
June 7 - Plans For Sunday Services
The CLET Grounds
Togo landscape tour with the Fluegge kids
Saturday, June 7th, 2008--Matthew 9:40 p.m.
Hello family and friends! We have had a wonderful 'cultural' day here in Dapaong--exploring the market, visiting the tailor and fellowshiping/encouraging the Fluegee family. Here's what our tomorrow--Sunday, June 8-should look like. We are going with Glenn to a village church in Nano, Togo. It's about an hour drive from Dapaong. We will lead a special children's education time at the service. After the worship service they will host a feast with cultural dancing. The worship service will go from 9 a.m. until about 12 noon and then the feast and celebration will be after that. So when we are feasting--you will be starting worship services at OSLC since we are 4 hours ahead of you. We are so thankful for your love and prayers. God has given us great unity as a team! We are so thankful for one another and all of you. We are humbled that He is using us to bring His Word and love to these dear ones in Togo.
Saturday, June 7, 2008
June 6 - Bill Makes a Photo of Professors at CLET
Friday, June 6th, 2008 Bill: We spent most of the morning meeting with the faculty of the center discussing their vision for promoting the Center. They have some dedicated and thoughtful staff who really care about training pastors through excellent theological education. I was quite struck by how they shared their vision for West African church leaders to know the hearts and minds of the Center’s leadership.
In Africa, knowledge isn’t valued in and of itself. The value of knowledge in Africa is determined by who gives it. So, in order for church leaders throughout Africa to send their future leaders to CLET, they need to know the hearts and minds of the men to whom they are entrusting their students.
This is very difficult to do without a large enough budget to send recruiting staff to visit church leaders so it must be done through DVDs and print brochures. But, like any educational institution, the graduates of a program are the biggest indication of success – and more of them are needed to grow the African church and be ambassadors of the Center. Thus, our primary task in this trip is to provide materials that will provide such a connection in the absence of direct physical introductions.
June 6 - Students in the Library at CLET
We also interviewed the President of the Lutheran church of the Congo. We were blessed that the goats were quiet during our interview. The Pastor has three people that have passed their entrance exam as well every other requirement to attend the Center, but financial support for their education has stopped short of the funds needed for the trip to and from the Center. We are praying for The Lord to help them find the means.
Tomorrow (Saturday), we are going to the market. It should be quite an experience. We drove through and made a stop so we got a glimpse of what we are in for, and we have been told of a couple special stops to the weaver and a tailor, who will make darshikis (African shirts) for us.
June 6 - Talking About The Brochure
We have a guard who watches the house at night and sleeps outside. The chance of anything happening are remote, (I hope-- I just walked to the Fluegge’s in the pitch dark with a flashlight to get the power cord for this computer, and he was sleeping!) but it is something common among the higher culture, which the Fluegge’s are part of. Make no mistake, his home is not nearly what you think of when you think it is being guarded. We are a short walk from extreme poverty. Small grass huts and shacks. Roadside stands that have a few cans of beans and other products to sell, or a basket of bread.
June 6 - Meeting Dr Dongo and Reviewing The Brochure
Today, we met with Faculty of CLET. The Director of the center, Dr. Dongo, he is from the Congo. (I know, it rhymes). Although we have met Dr. Dongo (the Director of the Center) , Pastor Souk (professor and pastor of the Dapaong Lutheran Church), and Abby Pierre(the administrator), formal greetings needed to take place. Each speaks and introduces himself while Pastor Glenn translates. There are some other interesting cultural nuances that we are trying to keep mindful of, such as; Only a superior, in this case Dr. Dongo, is allowed to cross their legs. Women may never cross their legs. Any gesture, a wave, giving of gifts, eating etc, must be done with the right hand. The left would be an insult, as it is the hand one would use in the bathroom. Shorts are not accepted in this part of Africa. All men wear long pants, and although it is hot, one Pastor reminded us as we were speaking to him, that we are in Africa, …’please move under the shade of this tree’, which we did happily. The days are hot, but from roughly 12:00 to 3:00, stores close, workers go home to eat lunch and ‘Siest’ (nap). At 3:00 or so, back to work. Time is almost irrelevant here. We had lunch with Pastor Fluegge, Pastor Joseph, and Pastor DeMoss. We were having such a good time eating Foo Foo (yams) and peanut sauce (preparation picture attached) that Pastor was ½ hour late for a meeting. No worries, we cleaned up, and drove back to the Center where it was as if we were right on time.
June 6 - Brian's Long-Distance Anniversary
Friday, June 6th, 2008 Brian: Happy anniversary, Danielle!! I am missing you on our 21st!! I wish that we could have more frequent access to telephone or internet, but we are doing what we can using the Fluegge’s dial up right now. Hopefully we will be able to do more e-mail on Monday from the center (CLET) and I pray we will we will be able to make some calls. I love you!
June 6 - Making Foofoo - Friday Lunch
Brian is making Foofoo
Note: Foofoo is a ubiquitous and much-beloved staple through most of West Africa, whether topped with a fiery Palava sauce (or Shoko) or served as the bland accompaniment to a main dish.
Foofoo is traditionally made with cassava (aka yucca and/or manioc), but it can be prepared as well with everything from rice, yams, and plantains to instant mashed potatoes! It is also somewhat harder to make than it would seem. This version of yam foofoo -- traditionally made by pounding and beating the yams in a mortar with a wooden spoon -- has been adapted for a food processor.
2 lb yams
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp salt 1 tsp butter
1. Place the yams in cold, unsalted water, bring to a full boil, and cook 25 minutes, or until soft.
2. Remove the yams, cook, and peel. Mash with the other ingredients.
3. Place in a food processor, and run briefly to remove lumps. DO NOT PUREE! (If a processor is not available, go directly to step 4.)
4. Remove foofoo to a bowl, and beat with a wooden spoon or wire whisk until smooth. The foofoo should have a sticky, slightly resilient consistency.
5. Shape the foofoo into balls with your hands, and serve warm.
June 6 - Matthew June 6
Thank you for your kind words and prayers. We are enjoying doing the blog. We type it all up, resize the photos and then send it from the Fluegges dial up in their home. We have peeked at the blog but don't have much time on the internet. It looks awesome! Thank you for your dedicated help.
Friday, June 6, 2008
June 5 - Meeting Professors and Students
From Matthew, 9:30 p.m. Thursday, June 6: What a gift today was! We were able to spend time with Professor Dongo from the Congo--who is the President of the Centre. We were also able to meet the 16 students training to be pastors! What an amazing privilege to be with these men of God from Benin, Democratic Republic of Congo, Togo, Guinea, Burkina Faso, Congo Braazaville! We look forward to being with them, encouraging them and building them up in the LORD during our days together.
Samuel, Abigail and Caleb Fluegge took us on a walking tour of the area near their home--in the heat of the afternoon! I said to Caleb, who is 6, 'wow it's hot today!' and Caleb replied 'We're in Africa silly!' Later today we spent 2.5 hours planning with Glenn and Susan the remaining of our time together (from the roof of the home where we are staying!)--scheduling teaching times, interview times with pastors and students, projects that we can help with at the Centre and the Fluegge home. We believe God has sent us to encourage this awesome family and help build His Church in French-speaking Africa--and all of your prayers are helping us to do that! We're healthy, thankful and honored to be here!
All of God's grace to each one of you from across the Atlantic!
matthew
June 5 - Students at CLET
CLET--BILL continued (Centre for Lutheran Theological Studies) - Glenn took us to meet the students and professors at CLET. Social introductions are an important part of life in Africa so we meet first and talk business later. Matthew is our leader so he spoke for us and Glenn interpreted. We met Dr. Dongo from the Congo who is the Director of CLET. He has an infectious smile. We also met Reverend Joseph Tehibinda, the President of the Lutheran Church in the Democratic Republic of Congo, who is teaching a course on evangelism.
Then, we met sixteen of the students. They are very gracious and thankful that we have come, but most of them have left their families to come to this school for a year, which is a big sacrifice. Our plan is to interview the Director of the Center and several students for our promotional materials to give potential partnering churches a visual presentation of the type of student they will be supporting when they partner with CLET.
Thursday, June 5, 2008
June 5 - 6:00 AM in Dapaong
Bill, June 5, 2008:
The guard dog and the rooster woke me up by 6am this morning. I don't know what the dog was trying to scare off, but I didn't mind once I got out of bed. Night time and morning are very pleasant here right now. The cool breeze carries the gentle sounds of the city as well as of the surrounding farms. After scrounging for some instant coffee and a granola bar, I headed up to the roof to see what I could see.
Local girls pass the house on their way to the city and the dogs. Women start working in the fields. Sam Fluegge starts shooting hoops in the basketball court around 6:45am. Dogs chase something through the scrub brush. Chickens and pheasant-like birds peck for food. The onion skins rustle in the cool breeze, too.
When Brian and Matthew wake up, we get ready for Glenn to come by so we can head to the Center. He purposely didn't give us a time although we asked. This is to help us get accustomed to Togo time. So we bide our time by beginning a study of A Man's Guide to Spiritual Disciplines.
When Glenn and the family show up we show him the supplies the Our Savior Lutheran Church donated and he is very grateful. Getting any sort of administrative supplies is difficult and requires that visitors bring them. Delivery of shipped items is not guaranteed.
June 4 - More Travels With Brian
We left 'Ouaga' and headed for Togo. I thought 'Uaga' was crazy! Its barely a 2 lane road that we were on, paved, but broken edges, Seemingly, a very remote road, it reminded me of the road to Hana in Maui. Despit e appearances and surroundings, this road was anything but remote. Very busy with bicycles, walkers and trucks, coming from the port city of Lome΄. Very few huts came into view, but there were a lot of people on the road, and women working in the fields digging furrows for crops they will soon plant. Glenn weaved around crossing goats and pigs at 160KPH, about 100MPH. I have never heard a car horn sounded so often.
At one point, we stopped for a bathroom break roadside. I saw and took a picture of a farmer plowing his fields. He came over and we tried to communicate. Matthew got out of the truck and came over to Bill and I visiting with the Farmer. He was muching on some chocolate wafers. The farmers eyes told what he was trying to say. Food, food! So we gave him 1 cracker, then two, with those gone, we gave him the box, and filled my water bottle for him (water bottles here are 1 liter. Even bug spray cans are HUGE) He was quite pleased, as were we. Back on the road and warp speed. I am talking inches between us and mopeds and people walking. Passing trucks with trucks oncoming and not much room to spare.
Glenn has a new Diesel Land Cruiser. Nice, great A/C.
I wish I could have taken a picture of the border crossing. A dingy building with an old desk and a bench in front of it. Again, people swarmed the truck. Clearly the nicest vehicle I have seen since landing, and white people driving means money. They sell maps, boxes, drinks books.anything. We made about 4 stops, including immigration for each country. (Burkina Faso and Togo)
We arrived in Dapaong about 5:45. we have a private house nest to Glenn's with a great view from the roof. We had dinner, sent our first blog, and went onto the large flat roof to marvel at the African sky for an hour, and said good night.
June 4 - The Drive From Ouaga To Dapaong
Taxi apprentice holding on at high speed on road to dapaong.
June 4th, 2008 Brian: 'Ouaga' (Ouagadougou) Shopping is a challenge. If we do not keep moving, local street merchants just converge on us. They speak French, but universal language of gestures that mean 'No, thank-you', don't deter them, they are very persistent. Never the less, we had another great meal. We all had Ham and Cheese omelets for breakfast that were amazing. After breakfast, we went to the market to get some food. Glenn did some shopping as well. This is where he has to go in order to get some items such as cheese, wine etc. I have discovered that the better stores have guards in the parking lot to keep out thieves, and dissuade merchants. This store was well equipped, with security inside as well.
June 4 - A View From The Fluegge's Home, Dapaong
The Fluegee family--Glenn, Susan, Samuel, Abigail, Caleb, Jesse and Eliana--are living in the home where the Mudge family lived three years ago. That's where I stayed 3 years ago--so it's awesome to be back! (but I miss the Mudges being here for sure!) But the Fluegees are amazing hosts! We, the 3 Amigos, are staying in a home next door to the Fluegees--we have the entire 2 level home to ourselves with a kitchen, living room and awesome roof where we can look at the amazing African sky. Bill, Brian and I are so thankful to have this opportunity to encourage Glenn Fluegee especially.
The Fluegees are the only American Missionary family with the Lutheran Church here in Dapaong and it can get lonely for them. Glenn just handed in (via email) his thesis for his Masters of Education Degree at Capella University yesterday. His thesis is all about Theological Education in French-speaking West Africa--so he has shared much about the joys and struggles of witnessing God build His Church here already during our short time together. Our prayers from our first team meeting in March have been that we would be a refreshing blessing to folks here--and God is enabling us to be that for the Fluegee family--so praise God! Thank you for sending us to encourage and build up these servants of Jesus. Tomorrow we will head to the seminary to start interviewing some of the pastors and set up a schedule for our days here. We are all healthy and so thankful to be serving on this amazing continent!
We love you, senders! We are better together!
Matthew Beish
June 4 - Dapaong
Dapaong (also known as Dapaongo or Dapango) is a city in northern Togo, It is situated 638 km north of the capital Lomé, near the border with Burkina Faso. It is a market town and has a small museum.
June 4 - The Road To Dapaong
Thank you so much! We love you and our OSLC family!
From Matthew, 9 p.m. Dapaong, TOGO:
Greetings from DAPAONG, TOGO family and friends! We are doing well, praise God, at the close of our 2nd full day in Africa! Our morning was great in Ouagadougou running errands with Glenn--we went to exchange money, get groceries at the market and more. The drive from Ouaga to Dapaong took about 5.5 hours and went well! It's an awesome way to see Africa--huts gathered into circles where large families live, Africans on scooters, bikes; goats crossing the street until Glenn blows the horn; lots of fruit stands, etc. The paved road was much better than it was 3 years ago.
June 4 - On the Ground In Ouagadougou
Brian: June 4 8:55 am ‘Ouaga’
From the air, there is amazing amount of huts, shacks, shelters and compounds with cement buildings. We had a great meal on the plane again and enjoyed the air conditioning, wine, water…whatever we requested. As soon as we deplaned, wow. We are in a very different place. The building that we went into for customs is right out of an Indiana Jones movie. A little scary. No A/C, half the lights work, old paint, and police in different uniforms than the States, military looking. Well, we got through that no problem.
There was a little confusion with our pickup time, and we waited for about 2 hours. To say that we were approached by several entrepreneurial vendors does not quite show their enthusiasm and determination. Phone cards is the hot product, and eventually, we bought one to call Pastor Glenn Fluegge. That call cost $10, as we were not aware until later than the seller had loaded the minuets on his phone. Oh well, the call was worth it. Glenn got there just in time, a wild wind storm blew in and as we were driving, cut visibility to 75 feet or so. We traveled along a normal 2 lane road, but picture this…cars in both directions, then mopeds next to them, bicycles and then people walking. A LOT of people around, and just craziness of darting mopeds, pedestrians, blinding sand and roadside markets. One of the wildest scenes I have ever seen.
Amidst all of this, where are we going to stay? We are at a guarded walled compound where missionaries translate the Bible. Very nice (with A/C). we then went to dinner, an event that I almost laughed thinking, sure…where? Glenn took us a to a very nice open air restaurant where I had a calzone and ice cream to rival any in the states, we are off to do some errands with Glenn in Ouagadougou, and a 5 hour ride to Dapaong. (Hi Danielle, Felicia, Monica and Ashley)!
Photos are coming in the next email!
June 4 - A view of Ouagadougou
Bill: June 4, 2008. 8:30am Ouagadogou, Burkina Faso. After a plane ride across the Sahara Desert into sub-Saharan West Africa, we arrived late afternoon yesterday in Ouaga. Glenn picked us up and we made our way through a sand and rain storm to a mission compound to drop off our bags. The rain cooled down the hot weather and we ate outside at Glenn’s favorite restaurant in Ouaga called Les Verdoyant. Owned by a Frenchman, the food was excellent and was all cooked in a brick oven.
June 3 - Itinerary
Brian: Greetings from Paris! We are halfway there with a 7:40 hour flight ahead of us. The flight from JFK was terrific. Wonderful food, a TV and an empty seat next to me. We will arrive in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso at 4:45 Tuesday. (Togo is 5 hours ahead of Massachusetts) We will meet Pastor Glenn and Susan Fluegge who are the hosts at Center for Lutheran Theological Studies (CLET ). Pastor Glenn is the Academic Dean. We plan to have a nice dinner and hit the hay early. Wednesday we have a 5 hour drive to Dapong which should be very fun. No worries, there are not any Lions or Tigers or Elephants!
June 3 - Words From The Team - In Paris
Matthew: Thank you so much for helping us. Here are some blog entries from the past few days. Attached are some some photos too, and then I hope to write a short blog entry from here as well.
Bill: June 3, 2008. 3am EST ( 8am Paris) We’ve arrived in Paris and seen the Eiffel Tower. Well, we took a picture next to an artist’s rendition of the Tower and had a bite to eat. A medium coffee costs 2.70 €, which is about $4.30. And, we think the US is expensive. I’ve also seen a woman in the men’s bathroom and a man go into the women’s bathroom. I can’t tell if I’m really confused or if that’s the way things work here. We are traveling well together and I can tell we will work well together once we get to Togo.
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Picked up At The Airport
(photo from the web)
Tuesday afternoon, when they called Holly, on Glenn's cell phone, Holly said she could hear rain falling on the tin roof... before they lost the call.
They were picked up at the airport by Glenn Fluegge, who was taking them out to dinner.
After a good night's rest, they will drive in Glenn's car to Dapaong, Togo, on Wednesday. This is a 4+ hour ride.
The team have written impressions of their travels and experiences, which they will e-mail, along with pictures, when they get a chance.
Ouagadougou Burkina Faso
Ouagadougou is the capital of Burkina Faso. The administrative, communications, cultural and economic center of the nation, it is also the country's largest city, with a population of 1,181,702 (as of 2006)[1]. The city's name is often shortened to Ouaga.
Ouagadougou's primary industries are food processing and textiles. It is served by an international airport, rail links to Abidjan in Côte d'Ivoire and to Kaya in the north of Burkina, and a highway to Niamey, Niger.
Being such a focal point, there are many cinemas, nightclubs, and French, American, and Zaka cultural centers. Ouagadougou was the site of Ouagadougou grand market, one of the largest markets in West Africa, which burned in 2003 and remains closed. Other attractions include the National Museum of Burkina Faso, the Moro-Naba Palace (site of the Moro-Naba Ceremony), the National Museum of Music, and several craft markets.
Tuesday Afternoon - The Telephone Rings
They're on the Ground in Ouagadougou.... at last. Holly received a call from Bill. They're in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. Matthew and Brian slept on the flight from Paris. Bill looked out the window at the massive expanse of the Sahara.
Bill remarked at seeing large dust storms, as they came in to land at the Ouagadougou airport.
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
June 2 - Update From NYC
Dateline: Monday June 2, 2008 1:45 p.m. Phone call from Matthew
Bill Betts, Brian Dahn, and Matthew Beish were spending a little down time at the Greenwich Village Bistro at the JFK airport in New York, waiting for their 4:30 p.m. flight to Paris.
How Do They Get There ?
"It's A Long Way To Tipperary"
And over a day to get to Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. It goes something like this:
( all times are local )
Sue Clark drove them to airport Monday morning where they boarded a plane to JFK.
Depart Boston Monday 11:20 AM
Depart New York (JFK) Monday 4:35 PM
Arrive Paris (CDG) Tuesday 06:05 AM
Depart Paris Tuesday 11:00 AM
Arrive Ouagaoudgou, BF Tuesday 4:40 PM ( stop in Naimey Nigeria)
Drive to Dapaong, Togo Wednesday morning ( 6-hour drive )
Ready to go
They had some great assistance at baggage handling to insure their overweight luggage met the guidelines. After switching around a few items -- all systems were go! They were served water and peanuts during their flight.
Many people are praying for the Three Amigos as they travel to Togo -- they counted people in twelve different states in the U.S. and some friends in Ireland.
June 2 - At The Airport in Boston
Team members -- 3
Luggage -- 9
Tips to the baggage handlers -- ??
The grace of God -- priceless
Monday June 2 - Getting Ready To Go
Monday, June 2 was sunny and bright. A perfect day for a trip.
Bill is checking the weight of his luggage, to see just how "overweight" they are. each of the team had multiple suitcases packed with supplies for the Lutheran Center for Theological Studies.
Sunday, June 1, 2008 - Sending
In today's church services, we had a formal ceremony commissioning the team. This consists of a prayer. During the prayer, people from the congregation place their hands on the team members.
The significance of this is: a) It is a practice that was done in Biblical times; b) it's a symbolic acknowledgment that the team is representing the people of the congregation; and c) it is an act of corporate involvement of the congregation.
Sunday June 1, 2008 "A Mission Moment"
During the church services on Sunday, team members described the mission trip and their itinerary. they thanked members of the congregation for their support.
Sunday Morning, June 1 07:30AM
Matthew is hard at work, at his desk. Getting things organized for Monday departure. But first, he and the team have to find a way to pack many suitcases with supplies that they are taking for the missionaries, pastors, and students in Togo.
By the generosity of the congregation and many outside individuals, the team has got office supplies for the Center:
Gel Pens - black, blue, red
Post-It notes
USB drives
Blank CD's
ink jet cartridges
Photo paper
Bibles
computer mouse
and other supplies
Small Towels
Toothpaste, combs, and soap
polo shirts
medicalfirst-aid supplies
Meet the Fluegge Family
Rev. Glenn and Susan Fluegge serve God as missionaries in Togo, West Africa. In 1998, Glenn began serving his vicarage in Togo. He completed his vicarage and graduated from Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, Mo., in May 2000, and was ordained on June 11, 2000.
Glenn’s primary responsibility is serving as director and professor at the Lutheran Center for Theological Studies (CLET), which trains pastors from Lutheran churches in several different French-speaking countries in Africa. He is also involved as advisor and liaison missionary to the Lutheran Church of Togo.
Meet Frederick Reinhardt
Frederick Reinhardt is a Missionary in Darkar, Senegal, West Africa, where he serves as the area facilitator for French-speaking Africa. He previously served in northeastern Togo, from 2000 to 2007.
Sunday, June 1, 2008
Togo Lutheran Center for Theological Studies
BWFF4N1266.JPG)
From the LCMS web site:
The Lutheran Churches in Africa are in desperate need of well-trained church leaders and pastors. The Church in Africa is growing very rapidly by God’s grace. However, this rapid growth has also spread church leadership extremely thin. In some places, families wait for months for a pastor to be available to baptize or confirm their children. In others, pastors travel long distances and lead five or six churches.
The Lutheran Center for Theological Studies (CLET) strives to meet this need by training more pastors for the African Lutheran Church. CLET is located in Dapaong, Togo and serves the French-speaking West African Lutheran church bodies of seven countries: Togo, Ivory Coast, Guinea, Benin, Burkina Faso, Congo and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In 2001, the church bodies established an international board to ensure that African leadership will promote and govern the center. "This marks the beginning of forming an 'African' seminary for an 'African' church," said LCMS World Mission missionary Glenn Fluegge who gives leadership to the seminary program developement.
The CLET program also has grown to include two tracks—a novice (pre-seminary) track tailored for leaders who have little formal education, and a track leading to ordination.
The LCMS missionary team in Togo developed this approach based on the realities of the fields—where the people are and what they need—rather than trying to take a syllabus from the United States and transfer it to Africa. Many church leaders have had only five years of formal education, and read and write at a low level. Courses are all contextualized; they speak to West African issues.
Your prayerful and financial partnership in preparing French-speaking African Christians for service in the church will be multiplied greatly as trained leaders return to their homelands in seven countries to serve the Lord with gladness.
What Time is it There ?
Togo Standard Time is GMT +0 But... Togo does not use daylight saving time.
So, Togo is +4 hours ahead of Boston
Purposes of the Trip
Our Purposes
* To strategically fulfill the Great Commission of Jesus
* To take photos and video clips of the Centre for Lutheran Theo. Studies ministry; to create a DVD and brochure for recruiting purposes
* To interview West African pastors—creating profiles for partnership opportunities
* To serve in whatever ways we can on the seminary campus—to be a blessing to the missionaries, their families and the African pastors
* To teach children and to help train Sunday school teachers
* To encourage Fred Reinhardt, OSLC missionary in Senegal. Fred will be in Togo during our time there.
* To learn from and be challenged by the lives of the missionaries & African Christians; to pray and worship with them
* To encourage and equip the African church leaders with resources and teaching –to strengthen our partnership
* To strengthen our relationship with Jesus Christ and one another
Can you say Ouagadougou ?
+FF4N1226.JPG)
Can you say Ouagadougou? That's one of my favorite words to say and that's where our Togo team lands! We don't land in Togo, but instead Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. Now if you don't know your Africa map--Mel Bellott, our blog master, is putting one on the blog so you can find where we will land. We'll stay in Ouaga on Tuesday night, June 4 and then drive south to Togo on Wednesday.
Team Meeting May 31
Hello OSLC family and friends!
We just finished our final training time today (Saturday) at about 6:30 p.m. We are very excited to see what God has in store for us. Thank you all for donating funds and needed supplies that we are taking.
We will be 'commissioned'--set aside for this mission trip through your prayers--tomorrow morning at all three worship services at OSLC.
Bill and Brian will spend part of the morning packing the supplies into suitcases. From post it notes to theology books in French and English; from children's ministry resources to ink cartridges and gel pens--we are bringing God's blessings from all of you to our dear friends in Togo. We are so thankful they told us what we can bring to bless them and help them in their ministry.
It's been three years and 2 months since I was last in Togo with Hank, Ted, Erica and Karen. I am so thankful to be returning! We will miss the Mudge family, our missionary family we prayed for and financially supported from 2004-2006. Ron, Lisa, Isaiah, Jonah and Ella were our hosts in 2005. Ron is now teaching at Concordia seminary in Wisconsin and they've added a fourth child--Aaron Mudge!
Glenn Fluege, the director of the Centre for Lutheran Theological Studies in Dapaong, Togo is our missionary host. He has been an awesome blessing. I'm headed out tonight to continue to pick up supplies. But not until I have a calzone--we won't eat much italian in Togo!
We love you, senders!
Matthew
Map of Africa
The French-speaking country of Togo is located between Ghana to the west and Benin to the east. More than 78 ethnic groups comprise its 4.6 million population.
The Togo Team
This card was handed out in church, so that all of us as senders can remember the team and pray for their mission work.
Specific prayer points to remember:
-- For the encouragement of the Fluegge family
-- That they will be an encouragement to the teachers, students, and pastors at the Center for Lutheran Theological Studies in Dapaong, Togo.
-- For wisdom in documenting the center's misinstry through video, photos, and literature
-- For team brotherhood, safety, and health
-- That God will build the church in French-speaking West Africa, theough the Center's ministry and our partnership with them.
The 2008 Togo Mission Team
Please pray for our OSLC Togo Missions Team as they will be serving in Dapaong, Togo from June 2-16, 2008. Team members are: (L-R) Brian Dahn, Bill Betts, and Matthew Beish, pictured here at their planning meeting, after church on May 25.
In Togo, they will be encouraging teachers, students, and pastors at the Center For Lutheran Theological Studies, in Dapaong. While there, they will see Glenn and Susan Fluegge and their family, who are LCMS sponsored Missionaries to West Africa.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
