Amadu Sandy, Post- Secondary Student, with Allen

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Auntie Elizabeth and Deborah Family

 

 

 

 

Dr. Tejan

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Marian, Fudia’s daughter, standing next to part of a CRC tree that split during a huge storm, and fell over the shared CRC / MTC wall, into the MTC.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sunday is a very colorful and joyful day in Sierra Leone!  Everyone stops work in order to spend the day worshipping and praising God for the blessings of the week.  Mother’s Day in Bo was especially joyful as everyone young and old celebrated the gift of special blessings only a mother can bestow.  Church services were filled with men, women, and children in their finest clothes.  The women were beautiful in fancy dresses in a rainbow of colors.  The songs were energetic and Spirit-filled and the message centered around what the Bible teaches us about peace-making and peace-keeping, which are key duties of women in their families and communities. 

Sunday afternoons are usually a very relaxed time where the children at the Child Rescue Centre take time to read books, play games, and enjoy sports.  The boys – little ones and big ones together – had a fantastic soccer match on the recently renovated field.  Meanwhile, some of the other children enjoyed a game of “stone ball”, which is something of a cross between kickball and dodge ball but with a much smaller ball.  Children are children around the globe and they all love to laugh and play with their friends!

After dinner, we enjoyed Bible study with the CRC children who are separated into groups by age so that the study may be age-appropriate.  The littlest ones learned about forgiveness in the Bible story about the unmerciful servant (Matthew 18:23-35).  The children gave lively examples of situations where they were asked to offer forgiveness and they drew pictures of the forgiveness described in the Bible story.  After the lesson, all of the children gathered in the CRC Dining Hall to conclude Bible Study with songs of praise and group prayer.  The Holy Spirit filled the room as the children and Aunties danced and sang.  And each time the song seemed to be winding down they would start again with renewed energy and elaborate clapping and dancing.  The prayer – offered by a 10-year old girl – was amazing!  She spoke clearly and passionately as she thanked the Lord for all His goodness and petitioned Him for safety and blessings for the coming week.

These are special children.  They not only understand the love of God, but they often embody it.  The whole team was left feeling very blessed to have enjoyed a Sunday in Bo!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Imagine going on your very first vacation. Imagine visiting places to which you have      never been. Imagine experiencing new kinds of transportation; spending the night in your first tent, first guest house and motel. Imagine using all of your senses to taste new foods; touch species of trees you’ve never seen before and feel the wide variety of bark; stand inside a “room” formed by a special West African tree that is hundreds of years old; smell the rainforest; hear the amazing sounds of monkeys, birds, frogs, and insects in the forest; and see and chase with your own eyes monkeys swinging from branch to branch, and more kinds of butterflies than you can count. Imagine . . .

Three of the CRC families, their Aunties and Uncle George Ceesay, traveled around Sierra Leone the week after Easter. Here are some excerpts from the children’s post trip reports:

“On the 9th of April 2012 we left Bo to Tiwai Island. Before we left Auntie Edna led us in prayer. The journey was started. We pass many villages and bridges. The bridges were so narrow that two cars cannot drive on them at the same time.”  ~ Regina S.

“We crossed the River Moa in a speed boat. It was very interesting. After lunch we have some rest. Then we went into the forest with our guides to look at some of the animals. We saw monkeys and were told about the different kinds: the Black and White Colobus, the Red Colobus, the Diana Monkey and Campbell’s Monkey.” ~ Mariama L.

“On the 10th of April was the traveling date for us to go to Zimmi. But unfortunately the ferry we are to use got drowned, so we had a long drive from where the speed boat left us. At the time we arrive everybody was tired and hungry. Then we had lunch and took our baths. Later we had dinner and we also had Vespers. We went to bed and we all slept well. In the morning around 7 a.m. we had breakfast and we left for the forest, which is called Gola Rain Forest National Park.” ~ Kemoh K.

“After Zimmi we traveled to Kenema where we saw the clock tower. We also saw banks, mosque, churches, hotel and the pastoral centre with so many trees. We went to the Kenema City Council and saw the Mayor of Kenema. He gave our group the key to the city and allowed us to visit the new Plaza, which has not yet opened.” ~ Joseph K.

“We visited the Hydro plant at Dodo, and the Pangoma Hospital and UMC Church in Pangoma. The church ladies made us a nice lunch.” ~ Hassan K.

“We saw how light is transferred from Kenema to Bo and other places.” ~ Aminata K.

“Thank you all for making us go on this nation journey.” ~ Idrissa K.