Long has been the silence from us. God has been flipping this world upside down so His people can shine in darkness, but that does not make life easy. Such witness involves suffering and difficulty, and it is the path that your Ivorian Christian brothers have been walking lately.
Our last update requested prayer for the peace of Abidjan and the nation. Things get darkest before the light breaks, and that may well be the case here. Three months ago, Verlin visited churches on weekends to preach and teach. Such travel has not been prudent since late November as a contested election drags out. What began with great hope has degenerated into base fears. If the startling images and changes of North Africa did not dominate news coverage, we're certain you'd hear more of renewed light arms conflict in western Cote d'Ivoire, the tire necklacing of certain protesters being accused of one side, and the firing of tank rounds upon a crowd of unarmed women by the other side. Human life here remains cheap, the price of sustaining strongmen in whom people place their hopes rather than God. As some of our Christians have recognized, if they had no hope in God, they would have little or no hope in the current situation for good.
Be in Peace on thinking of us. God continuously demonstrates Himself faithful to provide for our understanding, insight, and travel. Psalm 68:19-20, recently commended to us by Cara (our daughter), proves a correct description of our experience and that of others here. Some missionaries and agencies go; others return or engage in new ways. The same is true for various humanitarian organizations. Taking advantage of a prudent self-imposed travel restriction, the last half of December and all of January saw our family in Ghana. More than 20 broken or worn parts were changed and correctly installed on our aging 4x4. We now travel with less swaying and bouncing, doors that seal closed, restored 4 wheel drive capacity that avoids our getting mud-stuck (happened 4 times in Oct/Nov), and repaired brake lines to hopefully avoid experiencing any more complete brake failures besides December's two.
During that time we helped our ministry partner, Alice Smith, leave a couple of weeks earlier than planned as she shifts into retirement and accepted the responsibilities to close her affairs here. We spent February in Cote d'Ivoire peaceably, freely traveling when necessary. Verlin's trip to Abidjan for mission business there was accomplished with much freer travel than we lived through in 2001 and 2004-2006. God provided human informants to warn us of the current unrest with plenty of time to position ourselves and warn brethren to be home before it happened on the ground.
He does the same today. Being out of Cote d'Ivoire at the New Year eased Verlin's ability to travel in January to the U.S. for ten days to celebrate the godly life lived by his father. Earl D. Anderson left behind his empty shell for a new body January 16th, survived by a loving wife and family (more at http://www.verlindeb.org/Family/familyprofilesverlin.htm if you like).
Now Debbie and Corbin anticipate leaving for the U.S. from Accra, Ghana, on Thursday, March 10. The initial cause is Debbie's increasing pelvic pain that cannot reasonably wait until after Cason's May 7th wedding and cannot safely be treated in Abidjan these days. It's probably a resumption of complications not totally resolved by surgeries in 2006 and 2007. If so, it would take too much time to completely treat in Ghana. As all banking institutions have no current ability to transact international exchanges, or are closed, the current situation in Cote d'Ivoire may significantly worsen soon. However, both news reports and personal testimonies indicate that most government employed workers and teachers were paid last week, an amazing organizational feat of the sitting government considering the banks started closing February 18. Given this, it will be best that Debbie and Corbin travel to the U.S. as Verlin continues here for a while. However, the situation is such that could also turn toward peace in a brief time. The trip to Accra grants a respite to share ideas with some who have left already and check in with some who remain on Ivorian soil.
Pray for our brethren. Last week was a discouraging week. Greater than 50 people were killed. The lives of six women at a demonstration were ended by a tank round. Rebel forces in the west have regularly skirmished with militia, and took a town this weekend. One of the FWB churches in Abidjan had their service interrupted and stopped by local protesting youth last week. We do not know if they were able to meet today but hope to know tomorrow. In the quarter of Abidjan being most contested, from which 200,000 people fled beginning 9 days ago, another meeting FWB church canceled services both last week and this week. The pastor moved his young family to his home town and hopes to resume services next week. The third work in Abidjan, located geographically between the first two, met last week, as congregants heard gunfire in the distance. This week, that church, and a fourth work recently started, met with no reported problem. Things in the north are also disturbing. Local ethnic groups of another religion threaten to shut out those with whom we work from the market should their candidate prove victorious. There seems little relief in sight, politically, but the darkest hours are always before dawn (-- or is that when the electricity gets cut? :)).
Our city, the towns and villages in our area remain very calm at present. Nearly every phone call and porch conversation Verlin has reportedly gives reassurance of God's hand in the affair, sometimes giving new found courage to the hearer, such as tonight's conversations with pastors and leaders in Abidjan. In the past two weeks we've seen God heal a fractious church division, place a pastor in a region that has been without a pastor for years, and great freedom in multiple opportunities to give witness of God's Grace in Christ offering hope to mechanics, government workers, officials, and others who often do not have time to hear from God. Now they listen.
Pray that all our eyes will be opened to the sins holding back this people and that they can confess and repent from them together and so escape the very real effects of God's corrective wrath still active in this age.
Pray also for the ladies group that Debbie has been training from Community Health Evangelism principles. They will take on the challenge of shifting to teaching themselves during the next two months and so test their ability to operate apart from us. The Goumere men have also recommitted to their outreach efforts, being encouraged by the changes being seen in the lives of their ladies.
With our love and prayers for Peace and good will to all in 2011,
Verlin & Debbie & Corbin Anderson
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