"Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Jesus Christ for you. !Thess. 5:16
We certainly were very thankful to God for the safe journey to and from the LCN Convention 2007in Uyo, Nigeria across the road from the seminary at Obot Idom. The church where the convention was held was built with funds from LWML in US. It was estimated that 14000 people attended. Can you imagine 14000 people and one bathroom? Nigerians have no problem with that. There were many huts set up in the area around the church with poles with sacks, sheets or bags used as tarps on 3 sides. Inside the hut were a table and benches. The food was cooked over open fires, rice and red stew, boiled or pounded yam and egusi soup (made with ground seeds and greens with maybe a little meat).There were flats on the ground with boiled eggs and minerals (pop) to drink. All of this was for sale. . At the service as the time came for the offering people danced up the aisles to put their offerings in the bowls on the tables. Nigerian money is all paper, no coins, beginning 5 Niara or about 3 cents. At the convention the missionaries and pastors sat on chairs on each side of the altar. The front row of pastors danced up to present their offerings and I saw one of them wearing a cross that Everett made. I was really surprised. So when we went up to give our offering I looked at the cross and asked him where he got it. He said that it was a gift given him by a former pres. of the seminary.
The trip was very long. It took us 2 days each way. The roads were mostly paved but the potholes are atrocious. You have to drive around them and dodge the traffic. There was a pothole as big as the car. We drove into it very carefully so we could take a picture. The depth of the hole was up to the hood on the car. The lories are something else. They pile them twice as tall as the lory itself and people are sitting or lying on top , sometimes sleeping. They are braver than I.We drove some at night against all warnings not to but, Ivan was leading us in his van. There were many check stops. they would lay logs across the road like an obstacle course and then they would have a board on a rope with nails in the board that they would pull out so you couldn't go.It was very hard to see because Africa is so very very dark at night especially on the road. The police officers only had flashlights. It was a very nerve wracking trip.
-- All along the way are people walking on the side of the road all times of the day and night. They are very hard to see unless they wear white. I would estimate that it would be like seeing 200 people walking on the side of the road from my house to Grand Island. It was very dangerous and a couple of times I couldn't believe we made it. The angels had to have been assigned special guard duty.
-- All along the way are people walking on the side of the road all times of the day and night. They are very hard to see unless they wear white. I would estimate that it would be like seeing 200 people walking on the side of the road from my house to Grand Island. It was very dangerous and a couple of times I couldn't believe we made it. The angels had to have been assigned special guard duty.
Work at Mashiah is going fine. I wish I could understand what they say when they tell stories and laugh so much but it is in Hausa and not English. They asked me if I wanted to learn Hausa and I told them I was too old. They laughed at that. So much for this letter. May God be with you all and bless you all. Love, Lois
Lois Watt.
Lois Watt.
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Lois Watt.
