Last Thursday we went to Kajo Keji to meet the village leaders and the school of the proposed new BSF funded school. The site of the school is along the Yei to Kajo Keji road.

The road was terrible and it took 5 hours to get to Kajo Keji! It felt at times as if we were driving through small lakes and rivers! We had taken only a few biscuits and had 5 YVTC short course students to take back to Kajo Keji in the vehicle, with no shops on road! We got excited when we saw a BBQ beside the road selling food to passers by (saw about 4 vehicles in total in 100 miles so the sellers were excited as well). We got out and saw it was barbecued mouse and rat! Immediately our hunger left…A rat was equivalent of £1.25 and the mice 25p each.

The community where delighted about the news of the new building and we had a great meeting with them with much thanks to God being expressed.

We then delivered the students into Kajo Keji town and decided to go and buy ourselves a chapatti. To our surprise there was a man who was drunk sitting on the roof of our vehicle when we returned from the shop!

We then went to the Bishop’s house and were as usual really welcomed. There was a team there from UK called Flame International who were doing training of pastors.

On Friday, John went to meet the Kajo Keji commissioner, and the county education department. Then he was taken to another school in need of a new building. We hope and pray more funding will be found to make this possible.

Meanwhile, I was doing health checks all day on 28 Kajo Keji pastors. The thing that struck me was the huge need for eye care. Three were blind in one eye and several had very poor vision. I had 4 pairs of reading glasses with me. Six more were given to me by a Flame International team member who brought them with her from Salisbury given by an old lady. She had brought them not knowing what to do with them. One man needed stronger ones which I gave him but pleaded with him to exchange the new pair with the old pair he had as they were no use to him. Reluctantly he gave them to me. So in total I had 11 pairs of reading glasses of different strengths. How many pastors needed reading glasses? 11. And to make it all the more amazing I had exactly the right strength of lens for each person, including the pair that was swapped! It made me realise that the eye clinic we are shortly to open in Yei is so needed. I have suggested 10 of the pastors come to Yei in November for full eye assessment.

Our journey back probably was more muddy than the journey there. But miraculously we got through without getting stuck once.

Then last evening (Saturday)at 7.30 pm the phone rang. There is a new ECS English congregation called Nyombe which started on August 1st with 6 people and now has 300! Could John please preach the next day at 7.30 am?

The thatched church was full. The lady who was meant to be reading the passage did not because John thought it was not fair to ask her if she had not prepared it. So he read the passage he was going to preach on. It was clearly God speaking as the passage she felt she should read was the same as John chose and the one he preached on. Pray for this church-from 6 people to a full church in 6 weeks! They meet for Bible study during the week.

It has been a packed and challenging 4 days!

Poppy