DADDAB REFUGEE CAMP UPDATE
I did training on evangelism and discipleship last year at Ifo camp and over fifty refugees graduated at that time. Since that time the refugees have been making Telephone calls asking to be taken on Training of trainer level. They also mobilized other members that had not taken the training to do so. This kind of training is a very expensive venture and as you might know I am a Man of faith who doesn’t have material endowment and have to trust God on everything. The good thing is that My God doesn’t disappoint. So on 7th August, I set out to Daddab together with other six trainers to go and run the evangelism and discipleship programme. These programme is normally suppose to take three to six months depending on the amount of time you take daily. The refugees decided that they wanted to do the training in about ten days and that meant we had to start our lesson from morning to evening—thank God we had carried a generator. It was a tight programme but the refugees have gone through so much and they can cope with anything.
I decided to divide us in three groups---I was handling training of trainer. Three trainers (Cheres, Keith, Ambija) were taking new class in IFO camp while three others (Peter, Lawrence and Cecilia) were taking new class in DAGAHALE camp. The two camps are about ten kilometers apart. We were almost overwhelmed by the number that came for the training----33 for TOT and 80 in the new class. We however made sure that Quality was not compromised—this meant we had to spend extra ours coaching some that needed help.
One great thing about this training is that it was a training for the trainers I went with. I had insisted that we were going to eat the same food the refugees were taking and sleep in their houses. They were initially scared but later confessed to have liked it. Now, in refugee camp we just have beds made of mud---raised like a half a meter from the ground. Those are wonderful beds that kept our back straight—I guess it is a good thing for those with back problems. Many trainers I went with tasted some of the foods the refugees provided for the first time. It was strange hearing foodstuffs like Injera, shirowat, alichawat.
I am so excited that from the previous training, 19 refugees were won to the Lord and are actively involved in small group bible study. This time round, I am expecting much more. The “Jesus film’ was also screened at Dagahaale camp on Friday and two refugees received the Lord!
The generosity of the refugees is something that amazed all of us—it is a classic example reminding us of the church in Macedonia that gave so much out of its poverty. These people took care of all the meals we took while there.
The refugees kept giving me even a higher challenge—to take the training to their brothers and sisters back at home. We had a representation of different countries in the training: Sudan, Ethiopia, Congo (formerly Zaire), and Eritrea. By the way, according to a friend of mine who works with organization that help persecuted believers, they say that Eritrea has one of the highest persecution index and things are becoming worse with time.
One disappointment was that A (Somali believer) never attended TOT (training of trainer). He was one of the best students in the previous class—in fact during the last graduation he brought in another Somali he had won to the Lord during the training. This time round, he is changing camps because he is concerned about his security—Pease pray for him.
We will be having graduation ceremony on 9th September 2006. I hope to send lots of pictures then. Blessings
No comments:
Post a Comment