April 2009 Prayer Letter

How can young people keep their way pure? By guarding it according to your word.. Psalm 119.9

Some of you who donated old film cameras might be wondering what became of them. Let me tell you the story of François. He bought one of the more quality cameras donated. These cameras were not just given away, but a reasonable price was agreed on and the money was given to the church. François not only paid back the money he gave for the camera (around $60 CAN) but he took the camera home over Christmas, took pictures of people in his village, and made enough money to pay for his entire university year. Not only that, but he is becoming a quality photographer. He has a gift. He is continuing to earn small amounts of money on the side with his camera as he continues his studies. Thanks again to all of you for donating the cameras. We will let you know if we can use more some time.

We are nearing the end of a baptism course which prepares the participants for a life of discipleship, marked by a baptism on April 12. Please pray for the two young women, both with fairly similar and difficult experiences, who are learning about discipleship and being new creations.

We praise God for…

• A smooth start to the university year.
• Energy during a very hot time of year.
• A successful change of motors in our car.

We request your prayer support for…

• Our baptismal candidates.
• Wisdom for discerning the future of the Foyer Evangélique Mennonite de Ouagadougou.

We welcome your contributions for our
support and invite you to send these to:

Mennonite Church Canada WITNESS
600 Shaftesbury Blvd
Winnipeg, MB, R3P 0M4

FEMO Choir

From time to time, the city churches appreciate trying a more western style of music.

University Renovations

One of the results of the professor strike in February was that what had been a big block of student housing on campus is being turned into office space for professors. The student housing is being moved quite a distance from the campus, compounding the problems students already face at the university as they seek out comfortable places to study, commute long distances on dangerous roads, and suffer from classrooms that are too small.

Warkentin Prayer Letter

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Finally! We’ve been waiting for last year’s university year to wrap-up since we came back to Burkina Faso at the end of last August. Almost 5 months later, exam results are, for the most part, in. We are awaiting the results of 1 last student. To our pleasant surprise, every student connected to our church community has passed so far. This is no small thing.

Last Sunday, we had a meal at church to celebrate Christmas - the students were dispersed throughout the country during Christmas time and came back shortly after only to continue their exams, thus hindering our Christmas celebrations. We also celebrated the end/beginning of the academic year. The mood was grateful and optimistic – a day of pure Shalom since it was that period between the stress of writing exams and waiting for marks yet before the pressures of homework and tests that the new year brings.

All in all, we are very recognizant. After many frustrations – the university situation, lingering colds, the abrupt return of hot season, and many things breaking down, including a wrecked motor in our van – God seems to be smiling down on us allowing us to consider God’s faithfulness. The university year has restarted normally, our colds are finally letting up, and we have even had 2 days of fairly light rain – another oddity in Ouagadougou this time of year.

Soon we will give you an update on new faces in our residence. We are awaiting the arrival of 3 new students, to add to the 3 other new ones who have already arrived. This will give us 14 lodging at the residence for the year.

We praise God for…
• The positive university results.
• The little frustrations of life that are slowly evaporating in the heat.

We request your prayer support for…
• A continued smooth start to the academic year.
• Good health for our family.

Struggles and Rewards

Here is a video we made for Foothills Mennonite Church in Calgary, AB. It is based on the daily struggles and rewards of ministry and uses 1 Corinthians 9:23 as reference. There is some good music on it too. Enjoy!

http://foothills.mennonitechurch.ab.ca/media/Foothills%20video_0003.wmv

A Franciscan Benediction

May God bless you with discomfort
At easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships
So that you may live deep within your heart.

May God bless you with anger
At injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people,
So that you may work for justice, freedom and peace.

May God bless you with tears
To shed for those who suffer pain, rejection, hunger and war,
So that you may reach out your hand to comfort them and
To turn their pain into joy.

And may God bless you with enough foolishness
To believe that you can make a difference in the world,
So that you can do what others claim cannot be done.

Amen

Weddings

A wedding is a great opportunity to experience some of the important customs and values in a family or culture. Othniel, a close friend from day 1 of our Burkina adventure, invited us to his brother's wedding in Doumbala – a village some 400 km from Ouagadougou, near the Mali border. We knew it would be a long trip so we decided that just I (Jeff) would go. See our January update for more reflections on the wedding.

I show this picture because this is so typical of Burkinabé weddings. The bride and the groom seem so distant from each other. Neither shows much emotion – to the point that they seem to expressing pain, almost wishing they were somewhere else. I am told that this is expected of them. The whole day is in their honour and this is one way to show humility.

How to Have Fun at a Bwaba Wedding

At a Burkinabé wedding, you must make noise and lots of it. If you have a gun, shoot it in the air (preferably without bullets – see collection of wedding pictures). If you have less means than that, get creative. Here, Othniel’s nephew has fabricated his own noise-maker – a motorcycle wheel spoke is bent around and fastened to a stick by some old rubber tire tube. A nail is also attached. Cut off the head of a match, place it in the spoke, put the nail snugly against the match head, pound the head of the nail on a rock, and boom! You have your noise-maker. Pretty ingenious (and inexpensive). Watch the video for the demo.

Here's how the noise toy works...

Wedding Celebration in Doumbala.

Watch these videos (continued below) to see some pure, unfettered dancing. The Bwaba people (Othniel’s ethnic group) love to dance and they are amazing dancers. Even the children pick it up quickly. The wonderful part about their dancing for me was that it included people of all age-groups, genders, and abilities. Even I could give it a try with some simple steps while I marvelled at the moves of the experts. The key thing is to do it together in community, and to have fun – no alcohol needed.