Things I've learned in Africa!

Some Things Learned Since Coming to Africa in 1984!
Not all perfectly, of course!
Some (tech items) we all learned during this period, but we learned them while on the field, in Africa :-) 

·         French language

·         Bambara language

·         Pulaar - Fulani language

·         Salutations in Moor, Wolof, and Soninké

·         Raising kids to adults!

·         Diapers and discipline!

·         4-wheel driving off-road

·         Diesel engine maintenance

·         Riding a moto in the bush

·         Living in Africa and the importance of greetings

·         Eating w/ hands (giving a new meaning to eating together)

Oumar, a Fulani evangelist, and two of his kids

·         West African foods

·         Sleeping on hard mats

·         Mali bathrooms!

·         All computer and i-net stuff

·         Networking ministries

·         Reconciliation and dialogue

·         Construction Mali style

·         Well digging

·         Car & generator mechanics

·         Games: Quarto, Phase 10, dames, Trente Deux, Speed Uno, Pigs, etc.

·         Archaeology of Israel

·         Living w/ diabetes and depression

·         Living with shoulder and back pain

·         Mali & WA social and political life and issues

·         Travel in African transport (giving a new meaning to rubbing shoulders)

·         Sahel flowers, trees and trimming them

·         Reading the Quran and Hadiths

·         Reading the Maccabees and all the Apocrypha

·         Staying cool in a hot place!

·         Digital photography 

·         WA history and slave trade effects

·         WA tribes and social structure

·         TEE & BCC ministries

·         Read classics i.e. Augustine, Origin, Knox, Eusebius, Tolstoy, Dostoyevsky, Pascal, Brother Lawrence, Francis, Gill, Carey, Josephus, Jerome, Ignatius, Wesley, Kipling, Bunyan, Beza, Luther, De Sales, Hugo, M’Cheyne, Newton, Fenelon, Polo, Owen, etc.

·         Greek studies and exegesis

·         Liturgy appreciation

·         Church dependency issues

·         Eating healthy

·         College financing

Bala teaching about Abraham's sacrifice
after I showed him how to.

·         Stocks, bonds, mutuals, annuities, IRAs, etc.

·         Cross cultural teaching

·         Development work

·         Refugee help            

·         Mali business contracts & hiring and firing

·         Dealing w/ beggars and the poor

·         Storying of Bible for evangelism and discipleship

·         Sonlife (living with Jesus)

·         Training for Storying

·         Handling short-term teams of many kinds.

·         Digital audio ministry

·         Partnerships with 2/3^rd World churches

·         Partnership w/ WA churches and missions

·         Partnership w/ African Americans, Brazilians, and Chinese!

·         Math teaching and home schooling

·         Sending kids to boarding school

·         Fallacies of Islamic theology and practices

·         Witness to Muslims

·         Islam structure & different groups in WA

·         Bible school teaching

·         Animism theology in WA

·         Language learning techniques

·         Studio building and setup

·         French typing and letter form

·         Solar and battery living

·         Depending on God for support: always

·         Continued learning of Gods’ grace

·         Contextualization of the gospel

·         Teaching contextualization (in other languages even!)

·         Use of OT in SLM evangelism

·         Seeing Jesus in every part of OT

·         Audio recording and editing

·         Difference of  sheep and goats J

·         Navigate in bush w/ or w/o a GPS

·         Geocaching!

·         To terimelike (bartering) for everything you buy, except what has a fixed price, and knowing the difference!

·         Fine tune theo.: NCT & Unfulfilled Prophecy, but opposing Open Theo., Emergence, Preterism, & Prosperity Gospel, etc.

·         Abortion protests and support of prolife positions

·         Alphabetization (Literacy teaching) in Bambara and Fulani

·         Walking in intimacy w/ God

·         Flexibility in ministry opportunities.

·         Prison ministry

·         Christian schooling

·         Orienting new mis’ies to life and ministry in Africa

·         Walking and exercises for heart & back health

·         Christian ‘salat’ prayers to help Fulani believers

·         Field finances and spreadsheets

Pastor Moise getting ready to make a compressed dirt brick

·         Management objectives and vision

·         Casting vision & team leadership

·         Servant leadership

·         Foreign currency handling

·         Living thru a coup d’état

·         Moving family across borders

·         Understanding JWs and Mormons a bit better.

·         Losing parents & other mentors

·         Asking questions of people and scripture

·         Recognition of personal limits

·         Adaptability of media in ministry

·         Tolerance of limits in partnership

·         Allowing expression in delegation

·         Foreign language book sales

·         Film and projector operation

·         Recruiting and training new workers, 17 so far!

·         New 2012: compressed mud brick construction