May 16, 2008
One language...
It is said that the Americans and the English are one people separated by the same language.
There are numerous humorous examples, as illustrated by the picture to the right* - taken by my good friend G-A, with whom I have been staying for the last few days. G-A and Jane are Brits, from my home church in Cardiff, now settled in Minnesota. When G-A told his friends at church he and the family were going home for their Sunday joint, it caused a certain amount of consternation...**
G-A and I went kayaking early one morning down the St Croix River, which was beautiful and calm. I managed not to fall in, and we got to see deer, bald eagles, beaver, osprey, a flock of nesting herons, and all sorts of unidentified small colourful birds.
My time in the US is mostly going well so far, with my visits to churches in Virginia, Wisconsin, and here in Minnesota. Today I fly to Charlotte, NC, where I will be meeting with friends from Burkina Faso and West Africa.
Thanks for your prayers
* "Dumping" in British slang means defecating.
** While a joint in English means a cut of meat, in American it implies smoking a certain illegal substance...
May 11, 2008
The Stupidity of Seeking Prosperity
Jesus told them this parable:
“This guy’s work did really well and he prospered. And he thought: ‘Now what do I do? This house is too small for me and all my stuff.’
So he decided: ‘I know – I’ll get out of here, and move to a bigger place. Then I’ll have plenty of room and can get all the stuff I want. I’ll take early retirement, and live off my pension and investments. Then I can take it easy, enjoy life, and do all those things I never had time for when I was working hard.’
But God said to him: ‘You fool! Tonight you’re going to die. Then all that you have hoarded for yourself will go to waste.’
In this way God will judge anyone who seeks his own prosperity and comfort, but does not give extravagantly to the poor and to God’s purposes.”
(Lk 12:16-21)
May 09, 2008
VA-WI
I have now left Richmond VA for Madison WI.
The banquet for Africa seemed to go well last night. Tomorrow I meet with the folk from High Point church, Madison.
Thanks for your prayers.
May 06, 2008
Banquet for Africa
I arrived in the USA yesterday, where I will be for the next month or so, speaking at different churches - see my itinerary here.
This Thursday (8th), I will be speaking at a Banquet for Africa, here in Richmond, VA, organised by World Horizons.
I will be sharing about the ministry in Burkina Faso, and particularly for the vision for the school we will be building in Gorom-Gorom. We also hope to raise funds on the evening for the school. Please pray for this event.
Thank you.
May 05, 2008
I was there!
The Baggies won 2-0 against QPR to win the Championship and seal their place in the Premiership next year.
I was there - but unfortunately in the QPR end... which meant I could only jump up and down with excitement inside. On the outside I was all Fulani calm and serenity.
Well done, Albion!
May 02, 2008
Acacia Partnership Trust
I am in the process of setting up a charity called the Acacia Partnership Trust, to help facilitate the work in Burkina Faso, and the church partnerships.
The website just has a holding page for the moment, but we are working on it...
April 30, 2008
Gorom-Gorom School Video
Here is a short (4 min) video about the school we are building in Gorom-Gorom, Burkina Faso.
Read more about the school HERE, and donate to help us build it HERE.
Tags: africa sahel burkina burkina faso gorom-gorom schools building video
April 26, 2008
Whatever Happened to Keith…? April 2008
Continue reading "Whatever Happened to Keith…? April 2008"
April 25, 2008
World Malaria Day
Today is World Malaria Day.
1 million people die of malaria each year - that's one person every 30 seconds. 90% of these deaths are in Africa.
Ban Ki-moon wants to eradicate malaria in Africa. The solutions are possible, if not always easy.
What do you think? Shall we do something about it?
I wrote a series of articles about this a couple of years ago - you can find them here
April 23, 2008
The World Food Crisis and Burkina Faso
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon arrived in Burkina Faso yesterday, at a time when the country is feeling the heat of the world crisis in food price rises.
According to the World Food Programme (WFP), the price of essential agricultural staples has gone up by more than 50% over the last six months. Seydou says a 50kg sack of rice in Gorom-Gorom now costs 18,000cfa (about £20).
The Effect on Poorer Nations
As Relief Web explains, when you are already spending between 50 and 80 percent of your income on food, you don't have much room for manoeuver. Poor nations like Burkina Faso have been feeling the effect worst, with price rises in many countries bringing hunger and sparking riots. Kofi Annan warns of increasing instability if the issue is not addressed: "The doubling and tripling of staple food prices in some countries has put many poor people in a desperate situation."
This month, a two-day national strike in Burkina Faso protesting high food prices remained peaceful, following criticism of violence during the protests earlier in the year. VOA reports: "Union leaders in Burkino (sic) Faso acknowledge that the government has taken measures to curb the high cost of living, including a continued suspension of import taxes and a reduction in water and electricity prices. But they say those measures are not enough." They are demanding a 25 percent increase in salaries and pensions backdated to January 2001. But the government says salaries had increased in 2005 and 2007 and increasing them again would fuel inflation.
Causes of the Food Crisis
Grain stocks are at their lowest in 30 years, and we are consuming more than we are producing. Causes of the food price rises have been identified as:
- Weather. Erratic weather and climate change, leading to crop failures.
- Population and Diet. The growth in middle-class population (especially in India and China), who then want a richer, meat-rich diet (as in the west), that uses more land. We probably need to eat less meat.
- Biofuel. An increased focus on biofuel is taking crops meant for poor people's food, and putting them in rich people's cars.
- Oil prices. High oil prices have increased production, fertiliser, and transport costs.
- Speculation in Commodities. Following the collapse of financial markets, dealers have been taking money out of equities and mortgage bonds and ploughing them into food and raw materials.
Nancy Roman of the UN World Food Program says: "In the near- and medium-term food prices will be going up, which will bring more hunger. It will be a different kind of hunger. Food shortages in developing countries used to be caused by drought or other similar factors. That’s why people had nothing to eat. Nowadays, most countries have enough food. But it’s so expensive that people cannot afford it."
Please pray for Burkina Faso and our friends there, especially as they try to make ends meet in the run-up to the hardest time of year before the next rainy season starts in July. Thank you.
Tags: africa sahel burkina burkina faso food crisis
April 21, 2008
Building a Primary School for Gorom-Gorom
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In partnership with the Burkinabe church, we are working to build and resource a primary school in Gorom-Gorom in Burkina Faso.
I have now uploaded pages about the school HERE, and you can DONATE to it HERE.
THE VISION
Pastor Daniel Kabore of the Gorom-Gorom church has a vision for a Christian primary school in the town - a school open to all, regardless of religion, race, or sex, and particularly aimed at helping provide quality education for the poorest and most vulnerable sector of society.Glenwood Church in Cardiff is committed to support the church in Burkina Faso in building this school, and is looking for partners and donors in this project.
EDUCATION NEEDS IN BURKINA FASO
Burkina Faso has one of the lowest literacy and school-enrolment ratios of any country, and the existing schools in Gorom-Gorom are not meeting the current need. Education is a key factor for Burkina Faso's development, and is central to achieving the Millennium Development Goals.BUILDING THE SCHOOL
The school will be built in two phases. We aim to build Phase 1 by October 2009 with 3 classrooms, a head teacher's house, a well, kitchen, and toilets. The estimated cost of Phase 1 is £40,000 ($80,000).Tags: africa sahel burkina burkina faso gorom-gorom schools building construction
