Opportunities (by Thom)

Note: I don't like to write in generalities but sometimes missionary work is sensitive and I need to remember that this is a very public website so for the safety of several people I'll have to be intentionally vague in this post.

Yesterday I had the joy of speaking with a Malian pastor who has become a great friend to me. He had just returned from a trip to a small village far from any main road with wonderful news: they baptized 11 new believers in the church! This village isn't close to any other C&MA churches. 20 years ago my pastor friend started going there once a year on evangelism campaigns. The Bamako district of the church sponsored this after several years the fruit is really appearing. To me, the oddest part of the story was where this village is. It's completely in the desert. There is no farming, no fishing, none of the usual ways people live in Mali. The only industry there is commerce. The village is near the border of another country (one that is openly hostile to Christians and missionaries) so they have a lot of traders crossing back and forth. Ever since the civil war broke out a few years ago in the country to our south this other border has seen a marked increase in trading and thus exposure to the Gospel. When I heard this story I instantly thought about the Roman Empire shortly after the time of Christ. The Empire was cruel and openly persecuted Christians but at the same time it provided open routes for trade, a unified language, and so the Gospel spread quickly crossing cultures. We often think that if things are going well for people that they will be more open to hearing about Jesus but let's not forget that the ugly things of this world (like the civil war) may be opening other, far-flung doors.
Oh, and in addition to the joy of the eleven being baptized the town's mayor gifted two hectares to the church so they now will be able to build their very first permanent building! Praise the Lord!