Day 3

OCTOBER 25, 2009 – Day 3
Sunday morning – off to church. We broke up into three separate groups and visited three different churches. The music team and Marcia went to Yantala, where we got to sing for the congregation. Cindy, Kyle, Brian Moe, Maureen and Kaitlin wanted me to be sure to let you know that they too were asked to sing when then visited the Nouveau Marche Church. They sang two verses of “Amazing Grace” and were given a hearty round applause afterwards.
Our service at Yantala was awesome. This is Pastor Ali’s church. You may remember his wife Hadiza who sang with us on the worship team for one Sunday while they were visiting Grace about a year ago. The choir at the Yantala church sang a special song just for us. The main lyrics were “ We’re so happy you are here – happy, happy, happy.” Of course there was dancing and clapping involved as well!! They also sang another song in English about Moses, but it wasn’t until nearly the end of the song that I realized they were singing in English. Colette leaned in to me and said, “That’s probably how well they understand our French, too!” Marcia was the guest speaker at the church this morning, and she did her entire message in French. It was impressive, and honestly, we even understood what she was saying much of the time even though she was speaking beautifully in French!
After church (2.5 hours) we had lunch at a local Chinese restaurant. Walking through the gate at the restaurant was a feat for the eyes; palm trees, green plants, flowers and water gardens. Whoa, where are we? Inside, the restaurant was air-conditioned. It felt glorious. As an appetizer, we were served deep-friend grasshoppers. No – seriously! Jana, the consummate food aficionado immediately volunteered to try one, and then had to try another because she forgot to add sauce. Brave grasshopper eaters included both Brians, Shaun, Kaitlin, Carol, Cindy, Kyle, Perry, Cole (who ate several), Daniel (our trusted driver and new friend), and Marcia. The rest of us passed on the … um, delicacy. Maureen ate Pepto Bismal instead (go figure!)
And finally, the evening ended with our big concert night. I’d say there were approximately 500 people present, which included a couple hundred people who were in the program (not kidding). It was sort of like Battle of the Bands! It started at 4:30 and the last thundering song rang out at 8:15! Speaking of thundering, I know volume has been an issue at Grace Chapel for many years. In fact, it seems to be a universal church issue – or at least in the US of A. But Africa – volume not a problem! It’s just “ON” all the time. We need to come up with a new word for “loud”. Still, the gospel message was spoken and sung loud and clear throughout the evening. There was quite a diverse crowd there. Christians, Muslims, and those in-between, but they listened. And they heard the message that Jesus Christ has set us free through his great love for us, and sacrifice on the cross. May His saving power touch the hearts of those who came to with ears to hear.
Blessings, Teri