- Medical clinic with the street boys (Talibe) in Dakar on the first Saturday. This was a wonderful opportunity for our team to love each of these boys who are created in the image and likeness of God. Many spiritual seeds were planted.
- Sunday provided a blessed time of worship in the village. What a joy to worship along with a youth choir that represents the second generation of Jesus followers in the village. Pastors and church planters from other villages also participated. I was blessed to be able to share a message from Ephesians 1:15-22. We gathered around the Lord's Table as well.
- Later that day we celebrated a time of gift giving with the 24 sponsored children in the village. They are blessed through this program with help to continue on with their schooling as well as being fed spiritually through regular Kids Clubs led by MIS.
- The afternoon ended with a presentation of the gift of many tons of rice and millet from our church to two villages. This gift will touch many families in the village. Our prayer is that they would come to know Jesus as the Bread of Life. The chief praised Jesus Christ and committed to maintaining an open door for future ministry in the village.
- During the week, God allowed our team to have extended visits with more than 25 families throughout the village. There were many prayers prayed for our old friends as well as new friendships that were established.
- This year God provided for the men and women on our team to teach God's Word in smaller groups. I was encouraged to see that they have many of the same struggles and desires that we do. They desire to grow to abide in Christ, to spend meaningful time in relationship with God through time in His Word and prayer, and they desire to shine the light and love of Jesus to those in their community.
- The women on our team had multiple opportunities to mentor a group of teenage girls in the village who have a growing love for Jesus. 4 of these 5 girls were baptized during our 2012 visit.
- On Wednesday, we helped the team from MIS to lead a Kids Club for almost 400 children. They sang songs, played games and heard the gospel in their Serer language.
- I was blessed to be able to break away from our team to visit my family's child that we sponsor through World Vision. This was my second visit in two years and the depth of sharing and openness was encouraging. The family and the village chief ended our time by asking me to pray for the family and the village.
- We learned of new areas of outreach within the village. There are areas that we have never visited and, Lord willing, we will begin to develop relationships in these "neighborhoods" next year. There is also another village that the church planters are beginning to reach out to that we will begin to pray for and ask the Lord to show us what our role may be in the coming years.
- Each member of our team grew in our relationship with the Lord as well as our relationship with each other. A number of team members were relatively new to our church and they felt much more connected as a result of this trip.
- Four people were baptized on the last day in the village. Two members of our team and a husband and wife from the village of Ngonine.
- God provided the funds this year to purchase many tons of rice and millet as well as to build a permanent storage area in a public location within the village. 165 New Testaments in the Serer language were given to the church. Funds were provided to train 2 bakers who will begin to utilize the bread oven that was constructed last year. Funds for two horses were provided as well which will directly impact outreach efforts to surrounding villages.
- While I was away, God was working at home with my wife and daughter who has been sick for some time. The week was hard for them yet they found strength in God through His children who provided meals and their physical presence.
In Christ,Pastor Mike
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