John Smith Reports on CAR ‘By the Numbers’
Posted by Terry White on September 18, 2009
John F. Smith (blue shirt, teaching), senior pastor of Grace Church at Willow Valley, a Grace Brethren church in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, recently returned from a teaching trip in the Central African Republic. He and Ryan Aument, the elected Clerk of Courts of Lancaster County who also serves in leadership of Willow Valley’s young adult ministry, gave the following “by the numbers” report on their trip.
90 – the approximate number of pastors, government workers, professionals, chaplains trained
90 – the number of those trained who showed appreciation for our ministry
17 – the total number of days of our trip
9.5 – the number of hours we were late getting into Bangui due to being diverted due to fog
6.5 – the number of hours we were on the ground in Brazzaville, Congo, while waiting to fly to Bangui (the first time I have ever been south of the equator!)
12 – the number of consecutive days of teaching/training
8 – the number of V.I.P. visits we made (including the Prime Minister and Minister of Finance)
10,000 – the number of potholes we had to maneuver around while driving
1 – the number of times I drove while in Africa
100 – the number of meters I drove
3 – the number of shirts we each (Ryan and me) received as gifts from CIDEL
1 – the number of times either one of us got sick (it was Ryan)
100 – the number of kilometers that we traveled to visit the Mbaiki Bible Institute
0 – the number of giraffes sighted
40 – the approximate number of orphan children that we met at the Hand-in-Hand school
2 – the number of times Ryan and I went swimming at the U.S. Ambassador’s home
As you can see, some significant numbers! But the most significant numbers are 127:1. That’s Psalm 127:1 which reads, “Unless the LORD builds the house, its builders labor in vain.” Please pray with Ryan and me that the LORD will indeed bless our efforts with the result of fruit that will last for eternity!
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