Sahara

We're back from the desert! Number one myth about the desert: it doesn't rain. Guess what, it rained on us twice! Not a lot, but it is dry season, and it hasn't even rained in Bamako since October. So, if anyone ever tells you it it doesn't rain in the desert, tell them nope, it does. There's a new project the IMB is starting called the Desert Triangle. It's a 2-3 year project for journeymen (or young singles). They will be strategically places in this desert triangle area and working with the people there in their local language. It's really important because

among the three people groups, there are about 45 known believers. This are literally millions of people with 45 known believers and little to no access to the gospel. One of the poeple groups has no believers and if anyone were to become one they would be heavily persecuted. We drove around the area for 6 days and met the people and came across no believers from the people groups. Anyways, this project is really important. The people who sign up for this job will be living with and working among the people and learning the language and creating an oral Bible for them (since the majority of them are uneducated and can't read). This will be the first access most of these people have to the gospel. One thing that you think over and over when you're out there is how will these people ever here?

They are in such remote places. It's hard to live there and hard to get to. Who would even go there? Someone has to. Do they not deserve to hear the gospel just because they live in a hard place? Who is to say that only the easily accessible people get the gospel? They do they need it less than we do? Please pray for these people, that someone will go tell them. Pray that they willl search for the True God and the only Way to Him.
P.S. I got to ride a camel! We stopped at a "village" (it belonged to a nomadic people group to it was mostly tents and camels and cattle) and Judy got out to take pictures. We were sitting in the truck and a man rode up on a camel and got off. The camel was just sitting there so I thought I should ride it. I asked them if I could (except I don't know how to say ride in Bambara so I really asked if I could sit on it and it would go) and they said no, I had to pay mil franc (about $2). No way!
I said, I have no money, and kept scooting toward the camel. We argued back and forth. A nice man said, no, she doesn't have to pay, but the owner continued to ask me to pay. The funny thing was he was helping me get on the camel as he was asking for money and I was telling him no. Ok, I was not bargaining for how hard it would be to get on that camel. He made a step with his hands and I was stepping on it's neck, but I was wearing a skirt and it was hard. It took a group effort to get me on and keep me on. Finally we got up and it took steps and sat down. So that was my big camel ride. I am not much of a camel rider, I have discovered. Oh well.