Friday morning we were able to make several visits with people from the church and with other contacts that the missionaries have in their village. In the afternoon, we headed into the bush to find the nomads. We arrived at our destination a few hours before sunset. The guys got to work setting up the generator, screen, and projector for a showing of the Jesus film later that night. We were able to mingle with the nomads during that time (although most of us couldn’t communicate with them at all). It was incredible to see how these people live. They are true pilgrims. These people herd their cattle across the desert throughout the year. They travel in a fairly predictable pattern, returning to Makary about the same time every year. Compared to the material possessions these people have, we are kings and queens! The nomads don’t even own tents. Their homes consist of a bed covered with a mosquito net and blankets, set up in the middle of the desert. That’s all they have! Someone from our group mentioned that if they were to get saved, they could truly understand the meaning of being in the world but not of it. Once darkness came, we started the movie. I was amazed: in the middle of the desert (with absolutely no electricity or anything), we were able to show the Jesus film! What an experience that was. A total of about 75 people came to the showing. Please continue to pray that the truths shown in the film will impact lives.
Friday night was a rough night. Let me tell you, the nights in the desert get cold—very, very cold. We had each brought a blanket, thinking that would be sufficient. It was not. I was glued to Rosemary the entire night, just trying to get some of her body heat to warm me up. (And if you know me, you know that is not something I would normally do!) But the next morning, we woke up refreshed enough to pass out some tracts to the people and spend time with them before heading out. The needs, both physical and, most importantly, spiritual, are so great among the nomads. They have no medicine, no teachers, and the list could go on and on.
In the afternoon, we headed toward Lake Chad to visit the island where Dr. Dreisbach spent several of his last months. We were hoping to be on the lake by noon, but due to complications securing transportation, we didn’t end up on a boat until after 3:00. Once we reached the island, we had only about an hour to spend there before we had to be back on the lake in order to reach the main shore before sunset. Pastor Julius was able to give a short salvation message to some villagers there, and we passed out several tracts. But, we spent a little longer in the village than we had planned. As we left the island, we witnessed a beautiful sunset. Unfortunately, the sunset meant that we would be on the lake during nightfall.
When we were about half way back, the man steering the boat sat down and started washing his feet. We wondered what he was doing, but then realized that he was doing his evening prayers while the boat was moving and he was supposed to be directing it! Shortly after that, the motor on the boat died, and we were stuck in the middle of Lake Chad. The boatmen pulled out their oars and started rowing us. The guys from our group decided to help and grabbed whatever was handy to use as a paddle. A couple of them started rowing with sugarcane. (And yes, I did get a few pictures!) Finally after a little while and several attempts, our motor started up again and stayed on. We were able to make it back to shore safely. God in His goodness even gave us a full moon that night so that we could see.
