Along the Way

A World of Difference

Just read a great article that was recommended by my daughter, Amie, in her blog, A Small Part. It's a National Geographic piece from the September 2005 issue about the Mbuti Pygmiesof the Congo, in Central Africa. I found it significant since Amie and her husband are planning to go to Kenya, Africa, in 2011 to serve in a seminary for the training of African pastors. Anything I can absorb concerning the needs of this dark continent inspires me to pray for them.

Also we met a fellow driver a few weeks ago, who is from Sudan, East Africa. He has come to Canada as a war refugee. He too, is a follower of Jesus Christ. Listening to his story has motivated me to pray for this war-torn country. Here's a quote from the article that is indicative of the hopelessly violent situation:

"Africa is the most unpredictable continent in the world. Yet no African nation confronts a future so unscripted, so fraught with disaster and sheer possibility, as the misnamed Democratic Republic of the Congo. Will war resume and Congo shatter into smaller, squabbling states? Possibly. Can the frail but hopeful peace last, allowing Congo finally to put its fabulous riches to work? Conceivably. Everything is so unclear, so unfathomable. . . . But UN experts warn that more than 100,000 rebels, bandits, militiamen, soldiers, and assorted other killers have yet to disarm. And the ethnic and political rumbling along the rift won't likely stop with a mere presidential poll. So with astonishing patience and good humor, millions of people in the center of Africa hold their breath."

The only hope for the hopelessness of this situation is found in the Prince of Peace, Jesus Christ. God bless all those who reach out to those who are trapped in the midst of darkness.

This is how the Mbuti men harvest trees from the Ituri forest.

This is how the DeGraaf men harvest trees on the Fourth Chute Road forest.