LIBERIA LIFE IN THE SPIRIT MISSION TRIP 2010

Doug is Almost Home!

2010-05-27T08:05:00.000-07:00

I still haven't heard from Doug except for one text in Monrovia to pass on to his secretary - bulletin information on Sunday. He is preaching on Deut. 2 with the title of the sermon (you guessed it) "Out of Africa." I am sure he had a great time but was ready to board the plane on Wed. to Brussels en route to home. Here is an email update from the team leader, Peggi Billman, which I received for those who are keeping up with their travels:

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

On our way home!

Well, I can finally post something! We all arrived in Brussels this morning around 5:30 am their time. Doug Miller immediately headed to his gate as his plane left at 6:45 for the states. Everyone else went to two different terminals to catch their planes - some heading to Munich then to the States.

Frank, Jonathan, Lynn Norman and I are waiting for our flight at noon to DC then Jonathan, Frank & I head to Nashville and home!

The event was wonderful and very well received. There are too many highlights to mention in this short at time span but I will post more when I get home and can also add photos to show you the event!

This was Jonathan's first international event and I can say he was passionate in his sharing! And, the people were very engaged with him!

They loved the streamers we passed out.

Many responded to the forgiveness interaction where they were asked if they still held unforgiveness towards their enemies.

There were about 8 who never knew their fathers and responded very positively to a Father interaction where I had them stand if they never knew their father then had fathers over 40 go to them and repeat over and over (touching or hugging if appropirate) "you are loved". One woman was visibly touched by the interaction.

The translation was not a problem and flowed well.

Yesterday and today we had a tour of UM sites in Monrovia, visiting the campus of the UM University. We visited First UMC Liberia - which REALLY is the FIRST UMC of Liberia - a beautiful building with chandeliers, stained glass windows, etc. We visited JFK Hospital where our host, Roger Domah is administrative assistant to the Hospital administrator. It was a very clean facility. We had opportunity to pray over the bed of a patient who was a friend of Roger's. He was in surgery at the time. We prayed for the others in the room also. We visited an orphanage near the airport on our way to catch our plane where there are 63 orphans.

Please pray for Liberia as they had a long way to go still in repairing the infrastructure of the country. Much was destroyed during the war. There are 3.5 million people in Liberia and 1/3 of them live in Monrovia. Also, pray for Roger. His wife was to come to the school last Friday to meet us and she never showed up. The last he spoke to her was last Thursday then he couldn't reach her cell. As of the time we left he still had not heard from her. Family members of his were trying to find her. He continued to stay with us and care for us even though he didn't know her whereabouts. He's trusting the Lord - pray for Eunice's safe return to family!

That's it for now! I need to let others use this computer but will post more when I arrive home!

Posted by Peggi Billman at 11:24 PM 0 comments

AFRICAN TEXT MESSAGES

2010-05-24T07:59:00.000-07:00

This is Mary on the home front. Strange that Doug has very little internet access but is able to send brief text messages from a mobile phone. Not sure how he is able to do this, whose phone he is using, or how much this will cost in the end. But for those of you who are anxious to get any little word, here are the precious notes I am getting on my cell phone (edited of course). Wish we could get pictures but this is pretty impossible. Neither Doug and I text so this is a NEW thing for us. Yesterday I preached a sermon on Pentecost from 2 Cor 5:1-10 "we walk by faith not by sight." This gives a whole meaning on things for our family. (*Astericks are my comments). The team flies out of Munich on Wednesday and arrives in Charlotte on Thursday. Please keep them in your prayers for God's traveling mercies. Blessings, Mary

Thursday, May 20:
Sorry I sent two part texts. I am great and enjoying myself. We have no internet. - Doug

Friday, May 21:
Mary, we are well. My bag came today. Good think I packed 3 changes. Food is great and not too hot. Mid 80's. -Doug

Friday, May 21:
So glad to hear an update. Preach Sunday so pray for me. -Doug

Friday, May 21: (*I asked how Doug was able to communicate home)
No phone. Peggi uses school net each day. I have no access and hardly any electric. -Doug

Friday, May 21:
Check your email. I sent a letter that cost $4. It went to my church also.-Doug

Saturday, May 22: (*I asked what the time difference was and when he preached on Sunday)
Only 4 hours ahead. I preach at 11 on Sunday. -Doug

Sunday, May 23: (*I emailed him a prayer and encouragement for preaching on Pentecost Sunday to 16 different tribes/dialects - what a Pentecost he'll never forget!)
Thank you for your prayers. I am just having breakfast. Preach at Kuoo Henry UMC on Acts 2. A DS will translate. Pray for the DS and for God to work here. -Doug

Sunday, May 23:
Things went very well and prayers answered. The local pastor translated and the word was enthusiastically received. Many details to share by email on Mon. -Doug

Monday, May 24:
No chance for email. room is concrete with electric only from 7-7 for fans at night. No read wildlife except goat, chickens, lizards, and odd bird calls. No school w/out pay. I will deliver markers (Crayola) tomorrow (to the school).

Monday, May 24:
Bugs aren't bad. Less than NC. Very humid and hot. We are spent from 2.5 hours of prayer ministry. Many dear souls with great needs. Overwhelming requests for prayer and friendship. Leper colony, hospital and mission (visit) at Ganta was very cool. Hard trip of 60 miles (2 hours). We will finish at 11 and back to Monrovia. Kids at mission are at our feet to get loved.

Monday, May 24: (*Our youngest daughter is in a soccer game tonight)
Cheer for Chrissy for me today. I wish I was there for her. The kids here all want hugs now. Adults don't hug at all. The kids play soccer all the time.

Wednesday, May 26:
So many needs at leaving (Gbarnga Seminary) bu so much thanksgiving. They see a Methodist model for the Holy Spirit. Safe trip to Monrovia. The a.c. worked finally in the van but not at the 12th street mission. It is much more hot and humid - salt in the seaside air. Shopping today so pray for me. If I can get a bump in Germany I may take it.

Wednesday, May 26:
In Monrovia with safe but bumpy trip (from Gbarnga). You can't believe the crowds in the markets. We leave here at 8pm (or 4pm your time). Will spend the day shopping. You know how much I like that. No postcards and no tourist sights. This shopping trip is insane with humanity, beggars, cars, lepers, motorcycles and slums. Children working. See you soon.

First News of Gbanga School of Theology: Our Luggage Has Arrived!

2010-05-21T11:53:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone.

This is Doug. I have just a few minutes at a computer at a nearby Methodist High School to the Gbanga School of Theology. I escorted Peggi Billman, our lead communicator and blog updater so that means I can miss a bit of the afternoon session to let you know how I am doing.

We have completed the Lord Teach Us to Pray Seminar and are half way through "Worship in Spirit and Truth." These have been very heart warming sessions and I have mainly been an intercessor for the team. There have been multiple request to "be my friend" from pastors, theology students, and security guards. People mainly want to know an American. I have particularly enjoyed talking with the three Liberian DSs who have brought their pastors to these events. Some have walked 15 hours go get here and are pastors who mostly do it for free as LPs. So where are we?

We are 116 miles inland (north) of Monrovia (which is on the coast) in the county of Bong and the city of Gbonga (you don't pronounce the G). It took 6 hours to drive here due to troubles with our extra car we hired and the poor condition of the paved road into central Liberia. We are up in the hills and it is cooler here. Today is humid but only in the mid 80's. Most days have been in the low 90's. It doesn't get to cool at night but it is bearable.

Most of our team is staying in a guest house but Jonathan Dow and I are blessed to be staying off by ourselves in a guest room at the back of the Library. No one has running water due to the well being damaged during the civil war. (We need to send them our old equipment from Grays Chapel's disabled well.) But the staff fills a barell for us each day to have water to wash and flush the toilets.

The seminars are now being translated into two of three tribal languages that are present in the room since English is just the language from their early days in school. (There are 16 languages in this country the size of OH.) Every exercise we do is participated in but I feel that they aren't sure if they have the freedom to participate since there is a lot of hierarchy at these sessions between laity, ordained, LLP, male, female and different tribal languages. Pray for this that we might see a release of God's presence in our time here.

On Sunday I will preach at a church very near to the school of theology: Kuoo Henry UMC just behind this high school. So please keep me in your prayers as the DS, Rev. Benedict Green brings me there to share the message.

On the practical side of things: my luggage arrived today. We had a miracle that let us even be here on Monday, but it cost us our luggage in Frankfort, Germany. Our flight left Chicago two and a half hours late which meant our layover of the same time span was gone in Germany. The plane only made up a half hour on the flight over on Sunday night. Two men met us at the exit to the 747 and rushed us through customs and to our plane that waited on the runway for 25 minutes extra. This let us just make it to Brussells for the only flight into Liberia till Wednesday.

You see we were the only passengers to get this kind of treatment from the airline and I am not sure now if they weren't angels sent to guide us. They had said we would probably have to wait two hours for the next flight Brussells if we didn't make it. Flights only come to Liberia every two or three days. Fortunately I've had 3 days of clothes on my carry on with all my material, just enough to get to this morning. God is good.

I miss everyone but feel your prayers. We are being well cared for and have a church full of "friends" who are constantly looking out for us. The cooks are spoiling us with very healthy fruit (banana, mango, plantains, sor-sor, and avacodo all from campus trees), rice, chicken, and fish. We haven't walked off the hill into town, but I hope to have someone escort me around it on Saturday of Sunday. They are planning a special worship celebration on Saturday night for us and there is music on Sunday afternoon also. Beautiful people, music and voices.

Trusting in God,
Doug

Getting to know Liberia

2010-05-17T21:13:00.000-07:00

While praying and researching on people's lives in Liberia, we came across some information we did not know about this country:
There are about 3.6 million people living in Liberia (compared to 306 million living in the USA). The capital is Monrovia (named after USA President James Monroe. The official language is English, but there are other tribal languages still used.

The land area of Liberia is 111,400 square kilometers (69,220 square miles) or about the size of Oklahoma. The topography changes drastically from the seacoast to a mountainous rainforest. Many of the roads are not paved or graveled, which makes much of the country inaccessible to vehicles.

Liberia is known as the Grain Coast. It is located on the West Coast of Africa with Sierra Leon to the North (Gold Coast) and the Cote d Ivoire (Ivory Coast) to the south. The main income in Liberia is rubber (Firestone Tires), timber, and agricultural products. Rice farms are a staple here and green peppers. The per capita income of families is $110 (US) per year. However we learned that the Methodist clergy don't even make $1 (US) a day and can barely support their families. There are no pension plans (health or otherwise) for retiring clergy. Our UMCOR (United Methodist Committee on Relief) has a pension program, among other emergency aid, directed towards these efforts to support the clergy families there. In addition, the poverty is so severe there that a simple notebook, a t-shirt or a pair of shoes might be the first one a child has ever received in his/her lifetime.

Liberia is regarded as the least developed country in Africa. It was formed in the early 19th century by the American Colonization Society for liberated slaves (i.e. "Liberia") to return from the United States. However, even at the best attempts by President Monroe (i.e. "Monrovia") and others, the redistribution of the new population led up to a brutal civil war between the indigenous tribes (Mandingo and other groups) and the newly colonized freed slaves that lasted from 1989 to 2003. More than 200,000 people died in this war. Many people fled to neighboring countries (and we hosted the Liberian Boys Choir at Grays Chapel during this time in 2002-03) which caused further economic devastation.

The UN put in a transitional government in 2003 which ended the war. The first woman President of Liberia, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf was inaugrated in 2006. She is a member of the First United Methodist Church in Monrovia.

The seminary that we will be doing the Lay Witness Mission at is called the Gbarnga Theological School (a United Methodist Seminary). There are about 100 students. The school is still recovering from a massive damage from the civil war that ended in 2003.

Religion breakdown of Liberia is 43% African (tribal); 40% Christian (mainly Catholics, Anglicans, Methodist, Lutherans, and Baptists); 16% are Muslim.

The Journey of 1000 Miles Begins ....

2010-05-16T20:42:00.000-07:00

Here is the schedule of the Mission Trip to Liberia. Getting there is 1/2 the fun, right? For the most up-to-date information, you can also visit ARM Team Leader Rev. Frank and Peggi Billman's blogsite @ http://www.2010liberiaarm.blogspot.com. I understand that Liberia is on GMT time which is 5 hours ahead of us here in NC.

May 16th, 4:50 pm Depart Chicago O'Hare for Brussels
May 17th, 8:00 am Arrive Brussels
May 17th, 12:00 pm Depart for Monrovia, arriving 4:50 pm (overnight in Monrovia)
May 18th, 10:00 am Depart for Gbarnga, arriving 1:30 pm;
May 18th, 2:00 pm Lunch
May 18th, 3:30 pm Orientation with Rev. Young & Gbarnga School of Theology Staff
May 18th, 4:30 pm Tour Gbarnga Mission Campus
May 18th, 6:30 pm Supper
May 19th, 9-12:30 Lord, Teach Us to Pray seminar
May 19th, 12:30-2:00 Lunch
May 19th, 2:00-5:00 Lord, Teach Us to Pray seminar continues
May 20th, 9-12:30 Lord, Teach Us to Pray seminar
May 20th, 12:30-2:00 Lunch
May 20th, 2:00-5:00 Lord, Teach Us to Pray seminar concludes
May 21st, Special Worship Teaching (times to be determined)
May 22nd, 9:30 am Depart Gbarnga for Ganta Mission Station for guided tour of: Leprosarium, hospital, grade school, nursing school
May 23rd Team members speaking in local churches
May 24th, 9-12:30 Life in the Spirit Seminar
May 24th, 12:30-2:00 Lunch
May 24th, 2:00-5:00 Life in the Spirit seminar continues
May 25th, 9-11:30 Life in the Spirit Seminar concludes
May 25th, 12:00 Lunch
May 25th, 1:00 pm Depart Gbarnga for Monrovia (overnight at Monrovia)
May 26th Tour Monrovia & UMC ministries there
May 26th, 8:25 pm Depart Monrovia for Brussels
May 27th, 5:00 am arrive Brussels
May 27th at various times the team departs Brussels on different flights from 6:45 am through noon); some going directly to home airports, others going through Washington, DC.

Please keep our team in your prayers that God will do amazing things in us and through us in the next 10 days. If I am unable to post blogs in Liberia (Mary has started this blog while I am away), please know that I will post some pictures when I return in 10 days. -Doug

Frank Billman (TN), coordinator of the Life in the Spirit Seminar
Peggi Billman (TN), coordinator of the Lord, Teach Us to Pray
Jonathan Dow (TN), coordinator of the Worship in Spirit and Truth
Bob Denges (OH)
Lynn Denges (OH)
Gary Todd (OH), group treasurer and bookkeeper
Deb Todd (OH)
Rich Fetzer (PA)
Sue Fetzer (PA)
George Ditter (PA)
Maryanne Ditter (PA)
Lynn Norman (MD)
Doug Miller (NC)