3.1.07

Thursday 3/1
(midnight)

My first full day in Liberia was a whirlwind. After a breakfast of a cold eggs and onion frittata and fried plantains, Pastor McCole and Moses arrived at the guesthouse. We all rode in the van up the road to a remarkably well-stocked grocery. We purchased 4 cases (48 liters) of Volvic water, OJ, soft drinks, and towels (Dr. Allison’s room was void of towels). We dropped our purchases off at the guesthouse, said goodbye to a 10-inch red headed lizard on the retaining wall (afraid of my camera, so no pics), and set off for downtown with touristy hats, cameras, and 1-liter water bottles in tow.

We dropped Pastor McCole off at DHL to pick up the books Dr. Allison sent, and Paulcy (our usual and exceptionally skilled driver by now) navigated us to the US Embassy. Dr. Allison and I were directed by friendly guards up a long road skirting the massive embassy compound. Having checked in, we filled out internet registration forms in a refreshingly air-conditioned room and walked back to meet our van. (No pics of our embassy or UN buildings – didn’t figure violating the “No Photography” signs was worth being shot!)
Pastor McCole was waiting empty-handed when we returned to pick him up –DHL demanded a form from us that neither he nor we could produce – so we proceeded to try and find a Christian bookstore someone had spotted and the Rx the team used last year. Getting there and anywhere else the rest of the day was no less than a white-knucle adventure. The street lines mean nothing, horns substitute for brakes, 6 inches or less is considered ample following/passing/cutting-in distance, teenagers are constantly confronting every car window with items for sale, and most of the tiny (think 1980’s Corolla) taxis carry a minimum of 8 passengers; vans – 25-35). We had dropped Paulcy off at a bank, and in the meantime our original driver managed to clip only one pedestrian with his mirror – no injuries, thankfully. We found the pharmacy and bookstore, poked around a little, and headed back to where Paulcy was standing with $3,000 cash – Liberian ($50 US).

Paulcy drove us back to the Guest House and the Liberian men left us to enjoy an odd dish of boiled spinach, chicken, fish and beef – we think. I had time to nap before the men returned and actually overslept, despite the heat and humidity.
When I made it out to the common room, our team, the Liberian men, and two Liberians I didn’t know were deep in conversation. Turns out the new pair had read of our visit on Dr. John McKnight’s website and had gotten details from him of our whereabouts. They were Pentecostal but wanted to get info on us – we’ll see what happens.

After they left (around 4:15pm), we finally got in contact with Chester’s brother-in-law, a Monrovia lawyer who agreed to help the church with incorporation. 15 minutes of scary traffic and one more futile DHL stop later, we met him on a street corner and followed him up a partially rebuilt high rise to his fan-cooled office. He and a paralegal/minister walked us through the initial constitution-writing and payments, and tomorrow we are to return to sign the initial incorporation docs. We left downtown and Paulcy skillfully hurled us through rush hour traffic to the Paynesville site of the FPC Mission Church of Liberia. A group of at least 40 met us and an MC backed by rock-blaring speakers formally greeted and introduced us to the crowd which had gathered in the open-sided pavilion. McCole gave us a tour of the various enclosed rooms including a possible location for the bookstore. They still need a generator of their own (they’re renting one for our visit), but really have a very adequate facility.

When we were finished there, McCole, Moses, Koah and Munger crammed into our tiny Renault with our team and the driver. We let him drive back in the dark – oops! We missed killing several pedestrians by mere inches and I don’t think we will let him drive anymore after dark, if at all.

Back at the Guest House, we shared a great spaghetti dinner plus lunch leftovers with our friends – they have very little food themselves and it was heartbreaking to watch their attempts to refrain their hungry eagerness. An extra and surprising guest was Rufus. After dinner he and Dr. Allison discussed quietly discussed some problems at the church while Paulcy, George McConnell and I talked through some details of the crusade with the others. The men presented us with several matters that demand discernment and prayer. They all left around 10pm, leaving Paulcy, Dr. Allison and me to discuss those issues plus the upcoming events of tomorrow and Saturday – already the schedule is packed.

The heat, humidity, odd food, and general fatigue are catching up with me, as is a feeling of homesickness for my family I have never experienced. Asher talked to me on the phone tonight and put me in tears. Both Isaiah and Asher are now very sick and my heart is torn between two vastly separated continents. I need rest, but I need grace more. I’m going to fall asleep praying for both.