Church in Senegal!

We stayed in Dakar last night which is the capital city of Senegal. It's home to Mamadou and his church family where we had the privilege of worshiping this morning. On our way to church, Mamadou drove us by their old church building, pictured on the right. It was torn down a week ago because the government decided to build a road right through it.  

We then headed to the new site they're so grateful to have received: a place where they could erect a tent just behind a home. We listened to them worshiping the God we all serve, but in a foreign tongue. We heard them read the same Scriptures we hear day in and day out, but in a language that is uniquely theirs and heard by God with the same clarity. Then we listened to the pastor share from the book of Acts through two different translators who represented the various groups gathered to worship. The pastor spoke about how wealthy they are  because they have mansions in heaven. He rejoiced over how rich they are because riches are found in relationship with Jesus. Most of them live in the village pictured below, and their church was just torn down a week ago, yet they are rejoicing with shouts and praises about how WEALTHY they are because of Jesus. It was mind boggling and humbling for our group to take it all in. 

After church we stopped by the school Mamadou's church oversees. It is a private school where about 150 children from the village attend, and their mission is to tell all of their families about Christ. We are praying about ways we can help raise money for their school since the children in the village captured our students' hearts.

We departed from Dakar and began the three hour bus ride out to the village we will stay in for the rest of our time here. It was incredible to hear the kids talking about how much we have to be grateful for back home. Adrienne said, "Man we so spoiled and we don't even realize it!" They initiated conversation about how we have air conditioning, fresh water, a free education they complain about, and so many other gifts they take for granted. Every single one of us was deeply impacted by the church's spirit of gratitude and it had us begging Jesus for a similar spirit by the end of the day. 




On our drive to the village we're staying in, we passed villages that we had never imagined existed. The houses were all made of clay and bamboo. It was difficult to see the dirt roads at times because there were piles of trash all over the place. Our kids were saying they had no idea people lived like that. They began brainstorming about ways we might be able to help them long term. The wheels were turning for each of them as they began to realize how privileged they are, and that "to whom much is given, much is required." They are continuing to think about ways they can help the people here in Africa, and specific ways they can take what they're learning here to serve our community in West Dallas. Listening to our kids processing is like a sonnet spoken softly in my ears. Absolutely BEAUTIFUL! 


We are staying at a gorgeous hotel right on the river so we spent the evening resting, sharing, and enjoying a three course meal with one another. We weren't about to complain about the dressing on our salads or other details we might have mentioned before the trip. An appreciation for the salad itself is already beginning to overshadow the little things that might have bothered us before. I'm praising God every moment for the opportunity to process through such enormous questions with these amazing young leaders.