Glenn and Kathy Kendall Update #122, Thies, Senegal, Saturday, December 22, 2007, take two.
What a huge difference 40 years makes! It is amazing to see what people dedicated to improving the world can do given time and commitment. This is no silly Saturday. This is the real thing.
Glenn’s first experience including first meal and first night in Africa took place in Thies, Senegal now almost 40 years ago. He stopped there on his way to his year in Uganda. WorldVenture missionary, Don Penney, and his powerful presentation of the need in Africa, was a major force in getting us to Africa. Glenn wanted to visit the man he respected so much.
Little did he realize that even though Glenn wasn’t married or even engaged, he also met his future son-in-law, Dan Penney, then only five years old.
Several missionary families had been working in Thies for five years. They had a reading room in town and Penneys used their rented house located across the street from a local high school to have students in during class breaks to play games and talk. At other times they talked over tea and showed movies in their yard at night. Glenn saw it all happen. But not a single person believed their message for years to come.
In fact it would be many more years before the first church was organized. There were seven members.
If financial support and ministry effort in those days were determined based on visible results this ministry would have long ago been shut down.
But it wasn’t shut down and the results today are amazing.
Those early missionaries spent their time with educated people and educated people when reading the message of the Bible find truth and fulfillment in life. Those early believers were no exception. And because most were ostracized by their families missionaries helped them financially to continue their education, often with advanced degrees even beyond the basic university level. Now they are leaders in their communities.
The church slowly grew too. Some of the women were frustrated that their children as believers in Christ were not given the same opportunities for primary education as their neighbors. They not only prayed to God for help but they started gathering money.
Today the John Huffman School, named after the former chair of the board of World Vision which gave considerably for construction, has hundreds of students. In fact four children of Imams, person religious leaders, are welcomed in the school sent by parents who recognize the quality of education. Last year an Inspector of Schools from France proclaimed John Huffman School academically on a par with primary education in France but ahead of French schools in ability to help children with disabilities.
The church has a multi-story building in the center of town and the government recently gave land for an additional church building.
In fact the government also gave land for the church to build another school for the public because these government leaders who are person know the quality of education the church is sponsoring.
The church has started daughter churches in a number of surrounding villages.
One of those seven first church members became a dentist. He helped start a clinic that has become the equivalent of a major hospital in town. He was the reason Glenn was in Thies. Saturday, December 22nd, he married another long-time church member in a joyous celebration in a packed church (see attached picture).
As Glenn sat with Dan Penney, now WorldVenture field leader in Senegal, waiting for the service to begin, a man with another organization told how he is telling Bible stories in villages using Bible portions WorldVenture missionaries are translating. Most people agree that the stories are true but they cannot change their faith. That will be for their children to do…they actually say that.
As Glenn sat in the packed building and thought of all that has happened in 40 years through faithful and dedicated service of many, of people even today understanding truth in new ways, he couldn’t help but praise God for all the good things that are happening and the literally hundreds and hundreds impacted not only for a great future in heaven but even right now while still on this earth.
PRAISE God for the growth of ministry in Thies, Senegal.
We regularly pray that we will be in the right places at the right times. PRAISE God for bringing us to the States this week. Just before leaving Senegal or on the way to the States Glenn had significant deterioration in his eye resulting in emergency surgery in Denver on Thursday, December 27, to repair his separated and torn retina in his left eye.
One can’t beat the American medical system in speed and technical ability when needed. Through a series of events Glenn’s surgery was done by a noted retina specialist of eye specialists who does hundreds of retina repairs yearly for people coming from a multi-state area. Last Saturday we didn’t even know he existed.
May you have a wonderful New Year rejoicing in God’s blessings as we are.