À Bientôt: Our Fourth and Final (for now) Week in Côte d’Ivoire

Basilica of Our Lady of Peace

Our final week (for this trip) in CI was full of visits. We started the week by visiting the Basilica of Our Lady of Peace, the largest basilica in the world (bigger than the one at the Vatican, even). It’s located just 10 minutes from where our new home will be in Yamoussoukro. Moore enjoyed running all around although he was scared of the cracks in the stone on the terrace and the reflecting light through the stained-glass windows!

Stained glass window at the top center of the inside of the Basilica 

Jenny was also able to go with LeAnn to visit the home of a woman from the church who had a newborn baby. We all had the opportunity to also visit an older woman from the church who had lost her husband. We appreciated being able to see some of the ministry of visitation that is a common part of the culture.

Jackie making foutou

On Friday, we had a visit from Jackie, one of LeAnn’s friends, who came to the house to show us how to make foutou, a local staple made of yams and bananas. Jenny enjoyed chatting with Jackie and watching how the foutou was made. We all enjoyed eating it afterward!

On Saturday, we traveled back to Abidjan in preparation for our flight back to France early Monday morning. Over the weekend, we visited a maquis (local food restaurant), a local market and a few shops. We were able to try out our bargaining skills – quite a challenge!

Enjoying Ivorian food at the maquis

Sunday morning found us visiting the Deux Plateau Church of God in Abidjan where we met some very joyful people who warmly welcomed us. The congregation is made up of people from various countries and we enjoyed worshipping with them. Also…Moore may or may not have had a marriage proposal at this church!

Moore makes friends at the Deux Plateau CHOG

Several people have emailed or messaged us over the past few weeks and asked about the risk of ebola in CI. Although there have been outbreaks in nearby countries, there have not been any reports of ebola in CI. Please pray that the ebola virus is contained and does not spread any further. Pray for those who have been affected by this disease.

At the end of this fourth week, we said "À bientôt" (see you soon) to Côte d'Ivoire until January. Despite a bit of concern about possible hold-ups at the airport (predicted ash from a volcano eruption in Iceland, possible health checks at the airport due to ebola concerns, etc.), we had a smooth trip back to France and landed safely on Monday, August 25^th. Thanks for your prayers!

Language classes resume for us on September 2^nd. In the meantime, we are enjoying our long weekend here in France while those at home celebrate a long weekend, too. Happy Labor Day to our American friends!

New Roads: Our Third Week in Côte d'Ivoire

Our third week brought us down some new roads to new places and allowed us have some new experiences. Bobby had two opportunities to share from the pulpit. On Thursday, he spoke at the Bible Study in Yamoussoukro and this was his first time doing so in French (outside of the practice he had in France in front of our classmates).

On Friday, we headed to the north part of the country for the weekend to a city named Korhogo, which is about a four-hour drive from Yamoussoukro (where we’ve been staying). On this road that was new to us, we encountered goats, a boy chasing his cow that had gotten loose, many potholes and some beautiful scenery.

Korhogo is where Pastor Yeo, the head of the Church of God in CI, is pastor of the local church. We had first met Pastor Yeo when he was in the U.S. for the Global Gathering in 2012.

Under Construction: The new CHOG in Kolevogo

We had a busy day on Saturday traveling to Kolevogo, a village where a new Church of God is being built. We went with the Sellers, Pastor Yeo, and his wife, Ann. We met and prayed with the church leaders there. Then, we drove on to another recently built church in a nearby village before going to visit Pastor Josué. You may have seen our prayer requests for him in the past. He is a pastor who has become blind due to meningitis. Continue to pray with us for his complete healing.

Praying with the church leaders in Kolevogo

A message in three languages
(Korhogo CHOG)

  On Sunday, Bobby preached in the service at the Korhogo CHOG     in English, Larry (Sellers) translated into French and a congregant  from the church then translated the French into Senoufo (local language). Jenny and Moore joined the kids in children’s church. All three of us were given Senoufo names during the service, which was an honor. (Bobby: SILUE Kolotiologafolo, Jenny: SORO Tamagagnon, Moore: SILUE Zié) Moore’s name, “Zié”, means “first-born.” After the service, we greeted many people before heading back to Yamoussoukro.

Greeting people after the service at Korhogo CHOG

We’ve added a few more pictures this week to give you a glimpse of some of the “new roads” we’ve traveled.

Many Firsts: Our Second Week in Côte d'Ivoire

From our first time attending prayer meeting to our first time seeing the Atlantic Ocean from a new continent, we had an eventful second week here in Côte d’Ivoire.

Tuesday’s prayer meetings at church are a wonderful reminder of how God hears the prayers of his children all over the world at the same time. During the prayer meeting, the “dirigant” (director/leader of the meeting) will give different topics and needs and then everyone in the congregation prays aloud at once. This is similar to how congregations pray in Bobby’s home church in India. The prayer time is then followed by a meditation and ends with a time of greeting one another.

Moore sitting on a curb waiting for the parade

Thursday, August 7th, was Independence Day in Côte d’Ivoire and LeAnn took me (Jenny) and Moore down to the parade on one of the main streets in town. Moore enjoyed exploring the area and saying “hi” to many of the people gathered along the street. 

A woman walking by while we
waited for the parade

Over the weekend, we had the opportunity to travel back to Abidjan (the largest city in Côte d’Ivoire) to visit one of the Church of God congregations there and take Tyler (who completed a six-week internship here) to the airport so he could return to the U.S. We were able to go to one of the craft markets and visit the beach during our trip. On Sunday, we worshipped with the Yopougon Church of God, where Moore found some friends who helped him play an African drum for the first time (see video). Please pray for this church congregation who is waiting for the papers to go through on their purchase for land to build  a permanent church building, as you may have read about in our former newsletters.

To see a video of some highlights from our second week, click on this link: http://vimeo.com/103750141

We’re a bit behind in keeping you updated as we have already completed our third week here. It was a busy one. Stay tuned for another update soon !

Bon Arrivée: Our First Week in Côte d'Ivoire

After three train rides and two flights, we arrived late Monday night (or actually very early Tuesday morning, July 29th) into Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire. Missionary Larry (Sellers) met us at the airport and we spent the first day and a half in Abidjan resting and getting oriented to the city. In our first hours in our soon-to-be new home country, we were struck by several observations: the diversity in dress (from long-sleeved, angle-length traditional African dresses to mini-skirts and stilettos), the pleasant weather (as this is the cool season in Côte d’Ivoire) and the friendly nature of all the people, even in this large city.

On Wednesday, Larry drove us to Yamoussoukro (the capital city where we will live when we move here in January) on the new toll road, which made the trip only two hours as opposed to the two-and-a-half to four-hour trip it previously took travelers to make the journey on the old roads.  We were greeted in Yamoussoukro by LeAnn (Sellers) and Tyler Martin (an intern with Spread the Word) who were unable to make the trip to pick us up from Abidjan because they were in the middle of VBS at the Yamoussoukro Church of God. On Thursday morning, we visited the VBS and were warmly welcomed by many people who said “Bon Arrivée” (meaning “welcome”) to us and took turns holding Moore, waving to him and even some children who enjoyed touching his light, fine hair.

On Friday, I was asked to help with one of the activities at VBS – the limbo! I enjoyed being able to play with the children a bit and I found that there were some very tall yet flexible kids in the group!  It was fascinating to see the various facets of leadership development taking place within this one event. This VBS served as a training for teachers/VBS leaders from other CHOG congregations in the country. Several churches sent those who would be trained throughout the week as they watched and participated in carrying out the daily VBS activities in Yamoussoukro and then they returned to their churches at the end of the week and will hold VBS programs at their own churches throughout summer. These trainees taught the children, but the trainees themselves were then guided by experienced VBS leaders who gave them suggestions and encouragement during a daily meeting after the kids left each day. Tyler and I were both learning and contrasting our experiences with VBS in the U.S. while LeAnn, a veteran at VBS, offered words of advice and encouragement to all. (The photo here is of students at VBS coloring their color sheet after hearing the story of David and Goliath.)

Sunday brought our first experience in an African worship service. There was joyous singing, many more greetings of “Bon Arrivée” and an opportunity for us to greet the congregation in French and share the song “Blessed Be Your Name” – both the English and French versions – with Tyler on the keyboard, Bobby on guitar and me singing and trying to balance a squirmy one-year-old in one arm while holding up the sheet music in the other! Thankfully, Uncle Larry and Aunt LeAnn were there to help out. Larry brought the message and we also had a chance to hear the church chorale sing. Beginning their song outside the church doors and singing all the way in, they brought a dynamic element to the service. Bobby found their entrance particularly interesting as he first thought that the signing outside was coming from the Mormon church next door. Then it grew louder and louder and the chorale entered the sanctuary to lead the congregation!

We all took some time to rest on Sunday afternoon, which turned out to be very important because the “soirée” with the singles group on Sunday evening went into the wee hours of Monday morning! But it was so worth it! This event was the highlight of our first week here. After a traditional Ivoirian meal of rice and peanut sauce with beef (delicious!) and fried bananas (yum!), Tyler shared an encouraging testimony with the group and Bobby and I shared the testimony of how the Lord brought us together. This led to a rousing discussion about dating and marriage. This group is SO much fun! Just being a part of the evening gave us a new boost of motivation to continue learning French so we can fully understand everything that they say!

We’re looking forward to this second week here and are so thankful for all that the Sellers are teaching us!