"Not in Kansas anymore"

I have a whole new appreciation for the movie Wizard of Oz when Dorothy starts wondering around a whole new world. I know she was feeling anxious and nervous as she had people come up to stare/touch her. How do I know? Because today I went to Market in Anyigba, Nigeria....it is a whole new world.

For those of you from Texas, imagine the flea market in Canton on steroids only it serves the purpose of meeting their daily needs such as tools, food, & fabrics instead of the "good junk" one would get in Canton. Goods are lined under rows and rows of small, tin or palm covered shelters. It is loud. People were yelling. Venders were very eager to coax you into their area to "push" you into buying something. At any moment, motorcycles, cars, or people carrying large bundles on their head could squeeze their way down the narrow alleys.

We had 12 Americans plus 1 Nigerian walking through the Market. The entire 3ish hours we were there (seemed much longer) we stopped [foot] traffic, literally. People would yell at us "ENEFU!" (White Person). A massive crowd formed everywhere we went (no lie). This was an odd experience. They had no shame stopping to stare at you for a looong time or coming up to touch your hair. Nigerians typically speak aggressively so what seems angry is normal speaking for them. It was a new experience on so many levels. I have videos and photos that will come later when I get back home.

After leaving, someone asked our Nigerian driver why they crowds formed all around us. He said "They will never again in their life see that many white people at one time." They would shout "ENEFU" so other people could come see.

All that to say, today was an adventure that was awesome. Filled with a new smells, new sights, new people, and new cultures. It is awesome to sit back and watch these people genuinely live by faith. Faith that He loves and He provides.

God is teaching. God is good.

Although I am learning tons and seeing tons, "There is no place like home. [Dorothy]"

Dev & Asa - Love you and miss you. I will see you soon!

Nigeria

Agba or Hello from Africa.

This is intense. I do not have the time I thought I would have to blog. I will give you a brief update.

- I have never seen smiles like this.

- We have now done 2 clinics which lasted two full days. One for kids at the orphanage and one for the village of Otutulu.

- Myself, Matt, Eric, & Doug took a journey to purchase a cow in a village we could not begin to pronounce. Myself & Doug had a brief run in with the law which is a long story for another day. The cow was slaughtered today and we used some of the meat for a picnic with all the kids tonight. I am so proud of the kids of Adventureland and the kids at Trinity for partnering together to help provide protein for these kids.

- I am learning kids names. It is very difficult to understand them. Their language is tonal which means I CANNOT SPEAK IT! You have to try to talk with an accent for them to understand you.

- God is good. God is good to these people. God provides for them in ways I have never experienced. I believe there are big implications based on what I have seen...not sure exactly what yet.

I have to go. Sorry this is short. Thank you for your support and prayers.

Continue to pray for us.

-pray for safety

-pray for remaining clinics

-pray for God sovereignty to reign over what we are doing

-pray for the children's activities (camp) we will do tomorrow

Nothing but love.
Stu

Christ Calls

(Nigerian Flag)

Well, it's 11:30pm and I am wide awake with my mind racing. On Friday, we leave for Nigeria and although my mind is racing about all the things left to be done, I am surprisingly content. I would expect to be a little nervous about such a big trip...but I'm not. What our team will be doing in Nigeria is so blatantly biblical and I think this is what calms my nerves. Christ calls us to go us to go make disciples. Christ calls us to care for the poor and the needy. Christ calls us to love kids. I pray God's name is glorified through this trip.

Recently, I was directed to a blog that highlights 10 pre-departure thoughts prior to going on a mission trip to Haiti. Most of the thoughts resonated with me and I have slightly modified them for you...

1. I am going to miss my family. Asa is learning more and more everyday and the thought that I will miss something kills me (He now says Donut or "No Nut"). Also, I hate leaving Dev for overnight trips. I love her company.
2. I am anxious (not nervous). I've never been on a trip like this. The unknown is coming quick.
3. I will be heartbroken. I’m going to come across some devastation and grief. I’m going to witness the ramifications of injustice, poverty and trauma. I am going to meet orphans. That alone will kill me.
4. I am going to get frustrated. I anticipate at times feeling like my hands are tied behind my back at what I will see and experience. I will want to help but will be very limited.
5. I will fall in love. I’m going to meet some wonderful and humble people. I’m a sucker for those who struggle and don’t or can’t hide it. I will fall in love with people remarkably free of much of our baggage.
6. I will see the depravity of my own life. This usually happens to people who come from more affluent societies. My complaints will fade in comparison to theirs, and my self-centeredness will become painfully obvious to me.
7. I will meet some amazing people. The underlying unity of the human race will impress itself upon me, and I will be driven deeper into my love for the world-wide community.
8. I will be changed. I feel like I’m going into surgery. It is not elective, but urgent. I have this gut-wrenching sense that something remarkable is going to happen to me that will transform me forever.
9. I will receive more than I give. I don’t feel at all like I am coming with something to offer. I guarantee the stories of faith I have been told about the kids in Otutulu that I now get to witness will fill me up.
10. I will be inspired. Not sure how yet but I know it will happen.

I will attempt to continue to update this blog and twitter while there. However, nothing is guaranteed.

You prayers will be greatly appreciated.

Prayer Requests

• Pray for quick travel recovery.
• Pray for safety.
• Pray for the Doctors going.
• Pray for energy.
• Pray for our interactions with the Fulani Tribe.
• Pray for our Boys Small Group Bible Study.
• Pray for our Children's Programs.
• Pray for our medical clinics

Nigeria

First off, thank you. Thanks for showering our team in prayer and for financially supporting me to travel to Nigeria.

We are in the final stage of preparing for our trip. There is one more team meeting on Monday and on Tuesday, we pack our luggage full of supplies to be distributed to folks in Nigeria. The time to leave is quickly approaching.

I have been told that we MAY have internet access while at the orphanage and if that is the case, there is a great chance that I will be able to update this blog. However, we will only have 3 hours of electricity in the evenings and it would need to take place in those three hours. This is assuming the generators are working.

Prayer Requests

1. Pray for safety during travel.
2. Pray for the young men's small group focusing on character.
3. Pray for the Children's Program that I will be leading.
4. Pray for a chance to safely purchase a cow or some other form of protein.

This is a video we made for Adventureland to show the kids what life is like at the Orphanage. Let me know if you have any questions.

Stuck in my head

I get songs stuck in my head. Usually it is one song for like a month. This jingle has been locked on my mind for a while.

Copper4Cows

The Copper4Cows Penny Drive has officially kicked off and we are well on our way to purchasing a cow for the kids in Otutulu. Adventureland's goal is to help the kids at the orphanage by bringing pennies that will be used to purchase protein (hopefully beef).

When the team travels to Nigeria this summer, we will scour the land in search of a herdsman. Sounds easy enough but they are nomadic. According to the folks who have traveled to Nigeria before, cows are not on fenced-in ranches. There are no promises that we will find any cows but we are hopeful.

To give the kids a glimpse of the orphanage, I threw this video together real quick.

Questionable Food

To say I am excited about traveling to Nigeria would be a gross understatement. The last couple days I have been working with videos taken by last years team in Nigeria. I am making a couple of promo videos for upcoming Adventureland events. By looking at these videos, I feel like I'm getting to take peak at a birthday present early. Working through the videos have been glorious. I wanted to share with you a quick clip from the orphanage.



On Monday, we had our first of five mission's team meetings to prepare for Nigeria. Each one of us had to answer three questions as an icebreaker. You are my supporters and think it is fair for me to answer these questions for you...

1. Why travel to Nigeria now on this trip? Maybe it is my generation or it is my stage of life, but I want to be apart of something bigger than me. While I am young and have the energy to contribute to a missions team, I want to go, do, serve, & love. The timing is right.

2. What am I most excited about? Mignon McLaughlin said "Only where children gather is there any real chance of fun." I am a big kid that loves fun. We are going to an orphanage where I've been told some of the happiest kids in the world live and "gather." The kids are what I am most excited about.

3. What is my biggest fear? The food. I have watched a lot of video of questionable food from Nigeria. It looks intimidating. At the meeting last night, they assured me we would not be eating the food I saw in the videos. I'm not sure if I believe them...