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Daily
Snapshots of Liberia
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Aug. 9th - My digs in the
Marriott in London
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Shadrach on the upper porch
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Gertrude says hello to Mrs. Ramsey
Notice that Gertrude has on her new
glasses provided by Liberian Ministries.
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Kenyette and cousin Jerremina
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My digs in the Monrovia house
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Pastor Wesley at Greater Love Church
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These Children work alone all day
selling water. The oldest is 10,
maybe.
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$1,700 of materials to open the
Sinoe store
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Top view of Sinoe Store supplies
being unloaded into the house pending delivery.
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Vero Davis, Gertrude’s sister,
celebrates her graduation from high school
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Shadrach with Rev. Albert Stewart
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The beach at ELWA’s compound on a
gray, overcast day during the rainy season
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I believe the second coming is soon!
(see the working traffic light in
the back)
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Dr. Samuel Reeves of Providence Baptist Church
becomes our 10th member of the Pastors’ Committee
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Service at Anointing Center Ministries, a new church with a young
pastor
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Pastor Ken Hendon who is leading a leadership
conference at Greater Love Bible Baptist Church (pastor is Richard
Wesley)
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Shadrach with Michael Osegge of
World Hope assisting the L.E.A.P project
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Our own Jeremiah Davis is the first
person to test out the new blood pressure monitor that is going to the
Children’s Village Clinic
His stats? 115/65
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Our longtime friend, Rhoda
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Associate pastor G. Mango Bay of
Commission Baptist Church
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Power Point presentation at the
formation meeting of the Crown Committees
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Turnout was fantastic and 100% of
agreed to serve (enthusiastically)
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Width of column is 2.5”
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Service To Servants
Post Office Box
771
Murfreesboro, TN 37133
615.202.3517
info@servicetoservants.com
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For, brethren, ye have been called unto
liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another. Galatians 5:13
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An entire set of pictures have been added with subtitles.
View them here
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Crown
Event details will be tracked on
a separate page. See it here.
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Dates
in BLUE with an underline are linked to a full journal for the day (if I’ve
had time to put it in).
Prior
to departure:
Pray for today- That all the many items that need
to be taken care of prior to departure will come together. That business issues will fall into
place. That my family responsibilities
will be handled.
Planned- Continue to gather things, make
contacts, finalize/handoff business issues. Need to pick up a digital camera for
Shadrach and get business cards for Service To Servants in Liberia.
Actual- Things have gone reasonably well. Gayla has helped me get together the
things that I needed along with washing all of my clothes, etc. Did you know it’s hard to get
handkerchiefs and nice rain jackets in the summer time? Me neither.
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Tuesday, August 8th (click
here for the full day’s journal):
Pray for today- That God will allow me to share
the good news about His Son with someone on the flights.
Planned- Leave Nashville at 1:15pm for
Washington/Dulles Airport and then on to and overnight flight to Brussels, Belgium.
Actual- Well, something about the word Liberia
serves to completely destroy the best of airline schedules. (I’ll give you the short version
here). My United flight was
running too late to get me to Washington
DC in time to catch the connection to Brussels. They ran me to American and Delta
both of whom refused me boarding due to not having enough time before
departure. Finally, they booked
me on an entirely different itinerary which gets me into Monrovia Friday
morning instead of Wednesday evening.
I have yet to have a “normal” flight to Liberia (or maybe this is
normal). So I’ve lost a day and one-half of time before I even take
off. I must confess, I prayed
during the initial time of difficulty that God would handle it and that
I would trust Him. The
confession part is that I didn’t do too well. I was really disappointed but still
know things will work out. The
flight now goes from Nashville to Washington DC to London to Lagos, Nigeria and finally Monrovia. Perhaps that will allow more time to
receive an answer to the prayer for today (and tomorrow and Thursday
and Friday and …).
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Wednesday, August 9th
(click here for the full day’s journal):
Pray for today- That God will provide meaningful
contacts with Liberian leaders during the flight today.
Planned- Arrive Brussels, Belgium at 7:25am
(1:25am central time). Depart
for Monrovia
at 10:40am (4:40am central time).
Arrive in Monrovia
at 5:45pm (12:45pm central time)
Actual- Arrived at London’s Heathrow airport around
9:30am GMT. The flight only took
about 6.5 hours and it was all at night so most people slept. They fed us supper and breakfast so
I’m full. No chance to share the
gospel with anyone and, due to the flight changes, no one going to Liberia
on the flight that I could see.
Stuck in London
until 10pm tomorrow night. Will
work on the computer tonight and tomorrow. The Marriot Hotel - Heathrow is very
nice and they are paying for it along with 4 meals. So I couldn’t ask for better
treatment by United.
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Thursday, August 10th
(click here for the full day’s journal):
Pray for today- That I will quickly regain my
strength and be prepared to start work immediately. That Shadrach and Gertrude will be
encouraged by my visit and that they will be renewed in their call to
the Children’s Village.
Planned- Arrive in Monrovia at 5:40pm and be picked up
by Shadrach. Go back to the Monrovia house and rest up for Friday which would
likely include a visit to an attorney to set up STS in Liberia
as a not-for-profit.
Actual- I went to bed here last night about 11:30
to try to get onto this new time zone.
My body woke me up after allowing me to sleep an extra hour to
6am. Unfortunately it was 6am
central time and 11am local time.
Almost 12 hours of sleep.
That may be a first other than when I’m deathly ill. I’m sure Gayla and the girls will
hold this over me. By the way,
after I woke up I found out that “while I was sleeping” 21 terrorists
had tried to board U.S.
bound flights from Heathrow. The
airport was shut down and only now beginning to move again. Virgin Atlantic says my flight will
leave on time but they only control part of the equation. Pray that I will leave on time and
make my connection in Nigeria. It’s one thing to be stranded in London but something else entirely in Lagos. I should stop whining as STS board
member Matt Elsberry was in Mumbai with Crown when the subway bombing
occurred about a month ago.
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Friday, August 11th (click
here for the full day’s journal):
Pray for today- That I will arrive in Monrovia on time
and with all the baggage in working order. Pray also that our initial contacts
will be good ones and that we will downplay ourselves and promote our
Heavenly Father instead.
Planned- Begin meeting with pastors and
business/governmental leaders to secure the two Crown committees in Liberia. Deliver packages to SIM/ELWA.
Actual- The day dawned as we were approaching Lagos, Nigeria. We landed at 5am and I received
special treatment from the immigration officials as I was walked
through the entire process including checking in and going through customs. Arrived a few minutes early in Monrovia, went
through customs there with little trouble and was met by Shadrach
outside. We stopped by the ELWA
radio station on the way into town to drop off some connectors for the
FM cable that was cut. Then we
stopped by the ELWA hospital to meet Dr. Rick
Sacra before he left for Greenville to help with the hospital
there. The new house is nice
with an upstairs porch that catches a wonderful breeze. Gertrude says it’s too cool but I
think it’s about right. We also
went down to the Wesleyan internet café and met Rev. Wager who was very
interested in the STS program. I
invited him to study it and consider serving on the Pastors’
Committee. An employee of the
Finance Ministry (and a shipping broker) came by tonight to meet with
us and discuss the steps in incorporating STS in Liberia as a
non-profit. He also will assist
in getting the container physically out of the port and installed on
our property in Gardenersville.
Tomorrow we hope to meet with an attorney regarding the
incorporation and purchase the items for the store in Sinoe.
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Saturday, August 12th (click
here for the full day’s journal):
Pray for today- That the incorporation talks will
be fruitful and straight forward.
The new government has “cleaned house” and things are not yet
working as smoothly as they will be.
Pray that the costs will be reasonable in every case so that
more money will be left to provide teacher salaries and other related
expenses.
Planned- Meet with shipping broker about getting
the container through the port, delivered and installed upon its
arrival. Meeting with attorney (not confirmed yet) as set up by
LBTS. Purchase of products to
set up the Sinoe store with full reporting and pictures to be posted on
this website.
Actual- We left at 9am and went straight to Rev. John Russell’s office. He was anxious to serve as he believes
this type of training will benefit the church in Liberia. We also had an unscheduled meeting
with Bishop Harris of the Lutheran church who appointed his special
assistant, Peter Kpakela, to represent him on the committee. Then by the internet café to put
yesterday’s info on. Finally,
after nearly getting into a firefight with the UN checkpoint guards,
made it to the cold water business where we started the foundation work
in progress by paying the contractor.
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Sunday, August 13th (click
here for the full day’s journal):
Pray for today- Pray that today will be a day
filled with worship and that we can be an encouragement to those with
whom we worship. There is much
to sadden the Liberian soul but they remain an optimistic people.
Planned- Worship at church (not sure which one
but probably Commission Baptist).
Rest and fellowship with Shadrach, Gertrude, Jeremiah, Philamena
and the children.
Actual- Heavy rains prevented our church
attendance. We worked on the
Sinoe Store inventory pricing, celebrated Vero’s graduation from high
school (a significant event in a country with 80% illiteracy, met with
the shipping broker and, unsuccessfully, spent 2 hours at the internet
café trying to get 3 emails sent.
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Monday, August 14th (click
here for the full day’s journal):
Pray for today- That the calls to various
ministers regarding participating in the Crown committee will have
God’s favor. That is the overriding
need for today through Wednesday.
Planned- Deliver goods brought over with me and
meet with at least 5 pastors about the Crown event.
Actual-
We met with the following Christian leaders
today:
Albert Stewart – Pentecostal Churches of Liberia
Robert Dixon – Salvation Army of Liberia
Robert Cuppah –
Debey Sayndee – Bible Training
William Magee – Evangelical Alliance
of Liberia
Today
I kept Shadrach, Jeremiah and Elijah out until about 4pm without any
lunch (I have a habit of forgetting to eat when busy) and Shadrach
asked “Brother Rodney, do you thing we could get a little something to
eat?” I felt bad so we splurged
and ate Chinese in town since we wouldn’t be home for at least 2 more
hours.
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Tuesday, August 15th
(click here for the full day’s journal):
Pray for today- That today’s contacts will response
with the same enthusiasm as yesterday’s did. Here are names to pray for in this
regard: John Russell –
Methodist’s of Liberia,
Rev. Latty – Liberia
Counsel of Churches, Dr. Reeves – Providence Baptist
Church. There is also one additional “silent”
request. One of the leaders we
met with is working to help us make a key contact within the Liberian
government. Please pray that
this effort will be successful.
One other opportunity to pray about is that the University of Liberia (16,000 students) would
be happy to add a Financial Integrity course to its requirements using
the Crown Financial Materials IF they could have the materials
donated. I believe this is a
tremendous opportunity to instill key Christian truths into the next
generation of Liberian leaders!
Planned- Meet with the above leaders and set up
to have the container foundation poured. Make sure everyone gets lunch on
time.
Actual- Met with John
Russell of the Methodist
Church in Liberia, updated the
website and met and paid the contractor that will pour the foundation
for the container.
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Wednesday, August 16th
(click here for the full day’s journal):
Pray for today- I had asked for prayer among our
board members about an opportunity to meet with the Vice President of
the Republic
of Liberia this
afternoon. Those prayers were
answered.
Planned- Update email and meet with Vice
President of Liberia, the Honorable Joseph N. Boakai.
Actual- Updated the website and met with Vice President
Boakai. Finally, a day where
what was planned is what happened.
You will wan to read about it here. Don’t miss the picture at left of the
only working traffic light I’ve ever seen in Liberia.
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Thursday, August 17th
(click here for the full day’s journal):
Pray for today- That the leadership conference to
be held at Greater Love Bible Baptist Church (17th-19th)
will be well attended and pastors’ skills improved.
Planned- Attend Pastor Wesley’s conference today
or Friday depending on Shadrach’s schedule. Contact Lincoln Brownell as he
arrived, I hope, back in Monrovia
last night. Find out if the
leader of the Wesleyan
Church, Moses
Wheiger, will serve on the committee.
Visit Michael Ossege of World Hope.
Actual- The assistant pastor from Commission Baptist
Church, Mango Bay,
came by this morning so we will go to Pastor Wesley’s conference
tomorrow. I’m set to preach
there this Sunday. Michael
Ossege, World Hope’s Microfinance Technical Advisor in West Africa, agreed to serve on the
committee. While at the Internet
Café we discovered that a business friend of Jeremiah’s owned the
place. We discussed the Crown
event with Daniel B. Mulbah and he has agreed to serve on the
Business/Governmental Committee.
Met with Moses Wheiger, head of the Wesleyan work within Liberia. He agreed to serve on the pastors’
committee. Meet and spent the
evening with Dr. Lincoln Brownell of the Liberia Baptist Theological
Seminary. He assisted with
securing a place for Monday’s meeting and getting us in to see the
Mayor of Monrovia. Finally,
sleep at 10pm.
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Friday, August 18th (click
here for the full day’s journal):
Pray for today- That my teaching during the
revival services of Anointing Center Ministries International for
Pastor Mark Carr will be inspired by God’s Spirit and that people will
accept Christ as their savior.
Planned- Meet with Monrovia’s
mayor, The honorable Ophelia Huff-Saytumah then with Dr. Sam Reeves, senior
pastor of New Providence
Baptist Church
culminating with attending the kick off meeting of the Good Governance
Commission at 11:00am. Call all
the committee members and give then the time/place of the Monday
committees formation meeting. Speak for Pastor Carr at Anointing Ministries Church
at 5:00pm tonight. Also pursuing
an opportunity to speak with the Justice Minister, the honorable
Francis Johnson-Morris.
Actual- Met with Mayor Saytumah who agreed to
serve on the Business & Government Committee. Met with Dr. Reeves who agreed to
serve on the Pastors’ Committee.
Attended the Good Governance Commission kickoff meeting and
spoke briefly to the group about the STS – Crown conference in
November. Stopped and sent
email/updated website. Called all
the committee members about the Monday meeting arrangements. Preached
at Anointing Center Ministries (see sermon notes on the detail page).
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Saturday, August 19th
(click here for the full day’s journal):
Pray for today- That the business and
governmental committee will be filled with strong Christians who desire
to see their country served by leaders of integrity.
Planned- Attend (finally) the last day of Pastor
Wesley’s Leadership conference lead by Pastor Herndon from the United States. Prepare for Monday’s committees
meeting. Prepare for Sunday’s
sermon at Commission
Baptist Church.
Actual- So far today (it’s about noon here as I
write) we have attended a couple of hours of leadership training at Pastor
Wesley’s church in Sinkor. It
was good to spend time with the visiting American pastor, Bro. Hendon,
and to see Pastor Wesley again.
We are on our way back home for Shadrach to meet with some
teachers bound for the Children’s village. I plan to rest some and prepare for
tomorrow’s sermon at Commission
Baptist Church. The committees meeting is Monday,
11:00am at the Panache Restaurant in Sinkor.
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Sunday, August 20th (click
here for the full day’s journal):
Pray for today- That as I speak at Commission Baptist Church
this morning people will hear God and that I will be only a messenger.
Planned- Speak at Commission Baptist
Church on God’s
principals for Christian finances.
Prepare for Monday’s meeting with the two Crown committees.
Actual- Up at 5am and working on the Crown
committees tasks and budget in preparation for tomorrow’s meeting. Spent last night preparing for the
sermon today on God’s Financial Principals. It is straight from the Crown Pastor’s
Resource Kit and is well presented.
The service lasted from 11:15am
- 2pm and I preached for ONE HOUR. Sorry to all those pastors out there
who I criticized in the past.
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Monday, August 21st (click
here for the full day’s journal):
Pray for today- That the committees initial
meeting will be fruitful and that they will be prepared to accept
ownership of the balance of the preparation and promotion in Liberia.
Planned- Meet with the Pastors’ and Business/Governmental
Leaders’ committees at 11:00 for the initial formation and formal
handoff of work. Spend the
afternoon with Shadrach going over Children’s Village reporting
formats.
Actual- Thank you for your prayers. The meeting was wildly successful and
the two committees began organizing before the formation meeting was
even complete. Mr. J. Alphanso
D. Perkins, Administration Director – Office of the Vice President of
Liberia, was selected as the chairman of the Business &
Governmental committee. Dr. Sam
Reeves, Pastor – Providence
Baptist Church,
was selected as the chairman of the Pastors’ committee.
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Tuesday, August 22nd
(click here for the full day’s journal):
Pray for today- That the follow up work for the
Crown event will receive the proper level of attention by those who are
serving and that this will be an opportunity to build unity among the
different denominations that make up the Kingdom within Liberia. Pray also for the $20,000 in funding
that this event will require (soon).
This translates into $12.50 for each pastor trained and $0.19
each for the 100 people he will, in turn, train.
Planned- Spend the day with Shadrach working on
Children’s Village needs, budget items, forms for the new store and
other things to do with providing timely and complete information back
to those who support the ministry.
Actual- First thing I completed the Committees
info sheet of contact info. The
worked on the Sinoe store accounting sheets to allow Shadrach to
accurately report the operating results. Visited with Rhoda, Gertrude and
Philomena this morning while Shadrach checked on the transport truck
and readied it for a trip to the Children’s Village (the long way due
to the rainy season). Went to
town, met with Dr. Reeves at Providence
then secured my boarding pass for tomorrow’s flight. (See the
Presentation from yesterday’s committees formation meeting here.)
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Wednesday, August 23rd
(click here for the full day’s journal):
Pray for today- That, as I’m departing, God will
give me one or more contacts for the continuing work within Liberia.
Planned- Depart Monrovia at 6:50pm (1:50pm
central time) for an overnight flight to Brussels.
Actual- Spent the morning at the house waiting
for our noon start time. We left
for town to pick up a letter from Rev. Albert Stewart to mail in the U.S.
for him. Then we went to pick up
the Articles of Incorporation but they had not been signed by the
Foreign Minister yet (we’re registering as an International NGO). A few minuets of shopping for the
family and then off to the airport.
Departed about 45 minutes late for Brussels
(with a stop in Dakar).
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Thursday, August 24th:
Pray for today- That I will have the strength and
courage to share my faith with at least one person on the way home.
Planned- Arrive Brussels at 5:45am (11:45pm
yesterday central time). Depart for Washington/Dulles at 12:10pm
(6:10am central time). Arrive in
Washington
at 2:46pm (1:46pm central time).
Lay over in Washington for 7
hrs 24mins and then depart at 10:10pm for a 1hr 46 minute flight back
to Nashville.
Actual-
Arrived Dakar, Senegal as a stop into Brussels (didn’t deplane). An engine problem developed and we
stayed there an extra 3 hours causing us to miss the connection in Brussels. They had us on another flight that
made it in time to catch my connection in Washington (and I was complaining
about a 7 hour layover there!).
God’s timing is good even when I don’t understand it. Gayla and Elizabeth were there to
meet me and it is good to be home again. Thank you for your prayers. There is absolutely no doubt that God
heard and answered so many prayers during this trip. Continue to pray for the 2 committees
that now have responsibility for the Crown conference.
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Aftershock:
Pray for today-
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“Surrendered
to serving those on the mission field”
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