Nigeria-Ijaw Mission
|
January 2004 Trip
|
REPORT
|
|
|
I preached the New Year's Eve service at the headquarters church of High Impact
Christian Center and a follow up service the next night. Then Wilson and I
flew to Benin City and from there headed down to the Egbema Ijaw Kingdom in
the Niger River Delta. Through the next week we held crusades in all 4 villages
where HICC has planted churches. And on Sunday we held Dedication Services
for the 2 churches NIM built in Abere and Ajakurama.
Traveling…
Due to the fighting between the Ijaw and the Itshikiri, we were not able to take the 3-hour boat ride from Sapele to Ajakurama. That route takes us through the Warri Kingdom and would expose us to attack on the river by the fighters. Oddly enough, we were in danger from both the Ijaw, who would attack us because Wilson is Itshikiri; and then from the Itshikiri because we were working with the Ijaw. It's a touchy situation.
We chose instead to travel into Ijaw Land by the jungle road that leads from Benin City to Ajakurama. This 3 1/2 hour trip through mostly triple canopy jungle on a road that loggers wouldn't even consider, was in itself an adventure. I was fortunate to get the front seat of the Peugeot but felt great pity for my 3 African brothers and Wilson's sister-in-law who were all crammed into the back seat. They were unable to move, with the hot road dust blowing in and fumes from the gasoline we were carrying in the back filling the car. The road looked like an artillery range and was just wide enough for the car to squeak through the brush. Several days later we took the same road out but this time we left at 3am in the morning and drove in pitch black through the jungle. What an adventure. Several days later we took the same road out but this time we left at 3am in the morning and drove in pitch black through the jungle. What an adventure. We traveled by motor driven dugout boats between the villages once we were down into the Delta, since they were fairly short trips.
