africa

Consultant Checking Progress Slows

We began consultant checking (the last phase before publishing) last Monday.

Unfortunately we were very disappointed to find out that the “back translator” was unable to help this time, so the team ended up with a replacement who has been rather frustrating in the past. We were hoping that someone else could be found, but here we are at the end of week one, and we are still trudging through the process with the replacement. Knowing that we’re stuck with this situation, we keep praying that God would open the eyes of understanding for this man as he back translates the book of Galatians from Dadjo into French so the consultant can ensure the translation is done well.

We are thankful that they have been making some progress, although very slow, and Art has been working every day via computer and phone to keep up with the comments and suggestions that the consultant has been making. After five days, they have finished up to the beginning of Galatians 4.

We were expecting that the team would have started with the book of Acts because there are only five more chapters left to complete the book, but the new consultant decided instead to begin with Galatians. Because of the time Galatians is taking to complete, we have little hope of making it through Acts next week before our time of checking is over.

As a result, we will likely have to wait another year before Acts can be finished.
This is very disappointing for us, but we trust that God knows what is going on and has chosen to allow it for His own purposes. So we try not to be discouraged, and keep on with the work as God gives it to us!

What the Chad Travel Ban Means for the Dadjo Ministry


Just when we thought things were getting cool in Chad because of rainy season, they are starting to heat up.

We got a big surprise this Sunday when we found out that Chad is now on the travel ban list for the US. We were dumbfounded when we first heard this, there being no reason for Chad to be on the list. As many of you know, Art is planning on traveling to Chad in less than a month. Although this doesn’t directly affect us, it may if things are not fixed soon.

It seems that this ban is a result of  a lack of security measures on Chad’s side for screening who leaves the country to the US. Chad is not a hotbed for terrorism, but it is surrounded by questionable countries. And now there are rumors that if Chad continues to stay on this ban list, Chad may wish to reciprocate the ban to US citizens traveling there. This would directly affect us as well as many friends in ministry there. Please pray that things get resolved quickly.

On another note, there have been two different incidents of missionaries being held up at gunpoint in the capital in the last two weeks. One of the incidents was an attempted robbery, but the other was a successful robbery. Although this has happened in rare cases in the past, the general consensus is that this is becoming more of the norm.

 

 

 

Chadians Migrate to Europe

We came across an article about needing to address the huge influx of Africans to Europe. We were surprised to read that the president of Chad was among the seven leaders from Europe and Africa who met together to better relations between the two sides. Africans seeking to escape poverty and/or war are crossing borders of Chad and Niger into Libya to reach a better life in Europe. “Idriss Déby Itno, the president of Chad, said ‘poverty and a lack of education’ were the main drivers of migration to Europe.”

Life in Chad is not easy. Please pray that God would provide healing to those who are hurting in Chad. Political clashes and lack of sufficient food and water are causing people to reevaluate where their shelter is from. Our hope is that the people of Chad will find their shelter in God.

To find out more about the Migration Crisis, read this article from The Guardian!

 

 

 

Bad News and Good News for Chad

Last April we wrote about a French citizen who was kidnapped in Chad. Unfortunately we find no updates on him. What we do know is that Boko Haram has been making a come-back. There are reports that 381 civilians died at their hands since last April, with the terrorists often using women and children to carry out their suicide bombings. This is mostly in Nigeria and Northern Cameroon, but it also has been impacting our beloved Chad.

“Across the Lake Chad region, millions of civilians are in need of urgent humanitarian assistance as a result of Boko Haram violence.” Here is a link to the article.

Art is planning another trip to Chad in the next couple of months. He has made great progress in translating more books, so at this point it’s time to test the translation. Testing helps Art’s team see if God’s Word is understood and sounds natural to local Dadjo speakers who have never heard it in their own language before. He will be gone for close to three weeks from the middle of October and into November.

There is much to be done before he leaves in order to prepare him for much that has to be done while in Chad. Please pray that his next trip will go smoothly and be fruitful!

A Time of Transition

The Africa we’ve grown to love.

Checking for the book of Acts starts this coming Monday. It goes for two weeks leading right up to Christmas. We were really hoping that Abdallah would be able to be the back-translator for this time, but once again, he said that he would not be able to go. This is a big disappointment to us because he has been the best back-translator we’ve had for checking. He is fluent in Dadjo, he knows French, and he caught on really fast as to what the consultant needed from him. The replacements that we’ve had to use the last few times have not worked that well, making the time for checking last a lot longer, along with increased frustrations of the team trying to help the back-translator through the meaning of the verses.

All this to say, another man was found that will hopefully/prayerfully work as the newest back-translator. We are leery about another man filling in because of the struggles we’ve had with past back-translators, but maybe this is all in God’s plan. There are some negatives in that he is from further North where they may understand some of the terminology differently than in the Mongo area. Also, because he has not done this before, will he be good at it or not???? On a positive note, he speaks his Dadjo like Izzo, he knows French, and he’s educated. Another note that may prove to be a big plus is that he apparently has some kind of background with the Catholic church. This is a big surprise to us as we’ve never heard of another Dadjo with anything but an Islamic background.

So we can pray not only that the next two weeks of checking go well, but also that this new back-translator will be touched to the core in hearing the Word of God in his own language.

 

 

 

What's Happening in Chad Right Now?

During Art’s time in Chad, he was able to visit friends in the village. One of these men owns a little boutique in the market. Art was surprised how empty his shelves were compared to all of the other times that he visited him in the past. It all has to do with the gov’t employees not getting paid. It had a trickle down affect that has hit even the small business men who are trying to sell cookies, soda, water, soap etc. Now his shelves are almost bare.  Some of the hospital personnel have been paid a month’s wage, but they are still behind 3 months, so it has not made much difference. The schools will likely stay closed the rest of the year at this point. Up till today, there still has been no change.

On another note, Izzo’s older son who went into Libya to stay with extended family was kidnapped in July. Libya is controlled by many different militia groups that war against each other. There are two that kind of work together to run eastern  Libya with it’s capital there, but it’s control even there is tenuous. So it has become a very unstable country. They demanded a ransom for his release which the extended family helped to pay, so Izzo is greatly indebted to them and now needs to figure how to repay them.

He made it!

Art arrived in Mongo last Friday, no problems. He said several times that it was hot. Mongo tends to be a bit hotter than the capital, and then living right up against the “mountain” is worse as more heat reflects off of the mountain that his Mongo housing backs up against.

Then Art had a meeting for Scripture Use that several people were a part of including a few past and present Chadian missionaries to the Dadjo. The discussion went very well among all in attendance.  Art is now starting the week going over Galations before testing it in nearby villages.

On a different note, the strikes that I mentioned about last week continue. It’s been four months that teachers and health workers have not been paid, so the strikes continue. There is a skeleton crew of health workers who have been put back on duty, but many of the hospitals have closed, and those that are open are way under staffed.

Not only is the lack of pay affecting teachers and healthcare workers, it is having a trickle down affect on much of the population. Because these people are not getting paid, they don’t have the money to buy in the markets, so the marketplace is fairly empty. And because there are not many buying in the market, the shop owners don’t have the money to feed their families AND keep their shelves full. It seems like some of them are on the brink of closing their doors. A friend that Art got to know pretty well used to have his shelves packed, but now the shelves are nearly empty.

Also, as far as the harvest of millet goes, apparently rainy season did not end very well. Several areas dried up too early in the Mongo region leaving much of the grain not ripe enough for harvesting. This is true for Izzo’s field and many around his. So it doesn’t sound like 2016 is ending up that well for many people in Chad. We can pray that they would find our heavenly Father to be the provider of all their needs.

"Please Fasten Your Seatbelts."

October 24th marks the date for Art to be back on a plane to Chad, Africa. Tickets have been purchased, we just received the Chadian Visa this morning, reservations for housing has been made, more work on Galatians and Colossians are being done for this trip, etc. There is still much to be done, including making sure that his vaccinations are up to date. He’ll also be missing our presidential election in November, so he’ll need to vote early:)

When Art arrives in Chad, it’ll be the end of rainy season. Even though the rains do a decent job of lowering the temperature for the rest of the year, the rains also leave behind a lot of humidity for the next couple of months. But the countryside is pretty in October with everything green, the low mountains, and the fields of millet ripening. The towns are a different story. Also, the roads around Mongo will be more easy to travel now that things are drying up.

Some good news we also received recently is that a door of two weeks opened up for more of the book of Acts to be consultant checked in December! We are so thankful for this slot of time. It is probably not enough time to finish Acts, but it will come close. And hopefully Abdallah will be available for the back translation. He is the best person for this, but has been unavailable for the last couple of checkings.

It's Almost That Time Again!

Art stands next to Bang Bang
The good old days, when people had to push our truck through the water. There’s a bridge there now.

With more progress on translation and with the year already half over, it’s time for Art to plan another trip to Chad! We were hoping to plan it for September, at the latest, October, so very soon we’ll have to change gears and put more focus on prepping for this. Normally, now would not be a good time for this kind of trip. With rainy season well under way, most village roads are not good to travel on, so we are thankful for the progress that has been made on the country’s infrastructure as well over recent years. I do admit, though, that I will miss needing our landcruiser pushed across the big wadi near Mongo after a good rain! Those were the good ol’ days.:)

Please pray that everything comes together for this trip in good time. Also pray that God would provide the finances for not only this trip, but also the monthly expenses we incur for us to continue this ministry. Our monthly support level has been very low for quite some time.

By the way, you can see more pictures of Chad Africa at chad.portfoliobox.net using the password “dadjo”!

Chad, Africa: What They Eat

Some Chadians transporting their goats in the most loving way possible.
Some Chadians transporting their goats in the most loving way possible.

Chad, Africa is a third world country. In fact, Chad is one of the poorest countries in the world. For this reason, Chadians are forced to live a lifestyle quite different from your average suburban household. One example is in what they eat.

On the average day, Chadians mostly eat a pasty substance called ‘boule’. It consists of a grain called millet, which is their staple crop. Boule, served in a dome form, is eaten with the hands, and dipped in different sauces before it is consumed. Why boule? It’s cheap. That’s the best reason I can come up with, because, honestly, it doesn’t taste so good… at all. Chadians almost always eat as a group, from the same platter. It is part of their culture. Even though eating from the same plate is – we can’t deny – unsanitary,  the average Chadians does it without exception.

Now, on special occasions, or if it’s affordable, Chadians often eat common dishes such as goat meat (which the Aviles kids love). The goat meat there is not what you’d find in the States or Europe either. That’s because it is always tough. The goats run around all they want. It isn’t like they are kept in some cage and taught to just eat all day. The same goes for chicken, which is not consumed as much as goat. Chadians like their meat spicy, so they often use different sauces, or a crushed red pepper mixed with salt. Another food is rice, but rice isn’t eaten even close to as much as millet is. Chadians get most of their other food, such as vegetables, from the outdoor market.