Friday, March 20, 2009

SENEGAL, WEST AFRICA

SENEGAL: A very special place with a very special need.Copy of IMG_2365

Recently we drove across the dry and sandy countryside of Senegal seeing the ever-present baobab trees scattered across the landscape. Legend says that the baobab tree was a very proud and arrogant tree and so God turned the tree over and planted it upside down with only the roots showing. How much of the world today is like the baobab tree with heads planted in the sand and not seeing the needs that are all around us.

We stopped in villages Copy of IMG_2372and at farms and again and again we saw the need for fresh water. The few wells that we found were either seasonal, had completely dried up, or the water had become salty and was not usable for crops, animals or human consumption.

Senegal is 95 percent Muslim and in desperate need of the Living Water and fresh water. All thCopy of IMG_2354roughout the day you hear the haunting chant of the call to prayer coming from one mosque or another. The prayer beads are constantly in use as people go about their daily lives, whether they are doing the deadly dance with the impossible traffic of Dakar or walking the sandy lanes of the country side.

Pastor Raphael DioCopy of IMG_2438ne, the President of the AssemblĂ©es de Dieu National Church in Senegal, feels it is his responsibility to set an example for other pastors, young and old, that God can and will sustain them as they plant new churches. Pastor Raphael left his larger church in the city and is now planting a church in a rural area called Khalambasu and he is wCopy of IMG_2402orking to support himself and his family with an agricultural project; a large garden. In this Muslim country it is very difficult to start a church and bring it to a place where it financially supports the pastor and the church. Many Muslim women who accept Christ are forbidden by t heir husbands to pay tithes or offerings. Pastor Raphael has planted corn, tomatoes, manioc, rice and other vegetables to eat and to sell. He needs a good open well to be able to water his plants and for drinking water. Pastor RaphaelCopy of IMG_2465 said; “The women are going 10 kilometers looking for water to drink. Many have lost their animals because their villages have no water.” These are very special needs.

The Africa Oasis Project can help the people of Senegal WITH YOUR HELP. The “simple wells” can be put in for only $2,000 each. This makes plentiful, fresh water available for the people, the animals and the farm crops.

There is also a need for a deep well at the Bible School near Dakar. The students are currently drinking unhealthyCopy of IMG_2337 water from a shallow well. This will be a more expensive well since it involves a well, tank, tower, and pump. We are also piping the water to the campus, so the Bible School well has an estimated cost of $30,000. The Bible School is a beacon of light in this dark country as they are training pastors to face the battles ahead of them.

Please do not be one of those with their heads in the sand. Look at the need for water in Senegal and;

FIRST: Thank God for Copy of IMG_2424the blessing you have of plentiful, healthy water.

SECOND: Pray for the Pastors and believers in this special place called Senegal.

THIRD: Prayerfully consider helping financially. If you want to give please contact us at mark.alexander@agmd.org.

A river cannot be stopped forever. The WaterCopy of IMG_2401 of Life is flowing in Senegal and we pray that it will produce a bountiful crop for this very special place with very special needs, and very special people, …by the grace of God.