We had good flights all the way; GR-Detroit-Amsterdam-Abuja. On all the flights we sat on the window side, two seats together so we were not stuck in between other passengers. Abuja airport was a breeze. No hassle over anything nor was any luggage opened. The Baptist guesthouse was spartan, hot and it turned out full of mosquitoes. We both started to itch and Gremar said I think we have mosquitoes, I didn’t think so because we did not feel anything, the power was off so I found my flash light and sure enough, bug spay on the dresser, a sure indication we would need it. We arrived in Jos yesterday, a lot of burned out houses close to Jos. Sad. We are still under a 6 PM to 6 AM curfew. We are at a walled in compound, a wall 10 ft. toped with razor wire and guards at the gate. Six families live here and we are in the guest house, the generator has been on every evening until 11:00 pm. A second generator is run for the rest of the night to keep the security lights on.
Today we went shopping. We had to park a ways from the shop because the street was blocked by cars and trucks some unloading. After we bought some groceries and for other missionaries we hired a push cart to haul it to the pick up but he could not get through the congestion, so we paid two men to head load the stuff to the pick up which worked well- when in Rome do as the Romans do.
While we are here I have started to read two very different books, one is “The Year of Living Like Jesus -My journey of discovering What Jesus Would Really do” The second book is not a book but a unique kind of Bible: “The Story”- Read the Bible as One Seamless Story from Beginning to End. No verses, or divisions and only 31 chapters. The first book is by Ed Dobson the former Pastor of Calvary Church on the East Beltline and the freeway in GR. He is suffering from ALS disease. How does one pray for healing from a debilitating and incurable fatal disease, he asks? Do we need a huge amount of faith for that prayer or there will be no healing? Or do we pray for healing with the condition that it is according to Gods will? He has chosen to pray the prayer of Bartimaeus: “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me” P. 74/75. (Mark 10:47-48) This prayer implies healing; he was blind. It is also the pray of the tax collector: “God, have mercy on me, a sinner” (Luke 18:9-13). This prayer is requesting spiritual healing. Both prayers are appropriate for all of us; we often need physical healing and always spiritual healing. Both prayers stand in extreme contrast to the prayer of the Pharisee, who thanks God for what he is not and points out to God all the good things he does. The first chapter of The Story is: “The beginning of life as we know it.” It moves from perfection and harmony to disharmony and brokenness; the reality of sin shapes life as we know it today. The two books merge on that point; the brokenness of illness and the reality of sin. There is an answer to it all: Lord Jesus, have mercy on me, a sinner, mercy that is based on the Mother Promise: “And I will put enmity between you (Satan) and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head and you will strike his heel.” (Gen.3: 15) Praise God!
Heavenhigh 