On June 30th, we celebrated the graduation of 13 student pastors from our Bible Institute in Korhogo, Cote d'Ivoire! These are men and their wives who I’ve gotten to know over the past 20 months that I’ve lived here. They’ve become my brothers and sisters, making it a joyful day for me as well as the hundreds of friends and family members who came to participate.
The party wasn’t just to congratulate the new pastors, but also to rejoice in the fact that the previous pastor to church ratio(1:4) here in Cote d’Ivoire is now a little smaller. This means that more workers are now equipped for the harvest, and the gospel will be taken further - to those who have not yet heard. If that’s not a reason to celebrate, I’m not sure what is!
We started out the celebration with an
all-night party on Friday night. Around 2 am, I sat on a wooden bench at the edge of the swirling circle of people dancing to the balafone. If you’ve never experienced Senoufo culture, this is a difficult thing to explain. Imagine a crowd of people, about 5 layers deep, dancing around a wooden instrument that resembles a large xylophone, a woman singing, and a bright light. The song starts out simple enough. People walk in and start dancing little by little, and I would sit watching for someone whose footwork I could easily follow. However, all of a sudden, near the end of the song, their steps change and the circle resembles more of an organized mosh-pit than anything else.
I’ve been to a lot of these events (called “veilles“), and I’ve never seen Ivorians dance as passionately as they did that night. It was a celebration indeed.
Then it happened. Spontaneously, one of my teammates grabbed my hand and we ran into the circle, safely situating ourselves 4 layers in to avoid observers, and squarely behind an older woman whose footwork we could follow. It started out ok, but after about one minute, I could no longer play follow the leader with the women in front of me, and my friends weren’t in sight. I kept dancing to my own beat, while searching for a way out. Judging by the dancers in the 3 outer rows, it was safer to stay inside, though my surroundings felt like they were quickly becoming a hazard zone. Then, all of a sudden, it stopped, like a downpour that went from raining buckets to nothing in 2 seconds flat. I breathed a sigh of relief and darted through the crowd to my seat outside the circle. Ivorians party hard, and in Korhogo, that means dancing to the balafone like there’s no tomorrow.
After a few hours of sleep, we left for the
ceremony on Saturday morning. After intervals of guest speakers and singing (in French and Senoufo), the pastors and their wives lined up on stage. They received their diplomas and several gifts from the visiting speakers (including a sowing machine, John Piper book, and iPod), and one of the wives led a song in Senoufo. Though the ceremony was 3 hours long, to me, it didn’t feel longer than 5 minutes.
It was an incredibly joyful day.
The 13 pastors have by now left for their home churches, and are getting ready to go into their new placements in September. Two are staying in Korhogo (including my good friend Nanu), two are going to Bondoukou, at least one to Dabakala, one to a village near Ferke (Pekaly), and elsewhere.
A few days after the graduation, I sat talking to Pekaly’s wife -
Florence.
She shared with me her story of God’s provision and guidance. Ten years ago, she asked for a husband who knew scripture well, and then last year, she got married to a pastor. She told me stories of God’s financial provision for her to learn to be a hair dresser and tailor. We shared our hearts and discussed what God might be planning next. She and her husband are preparing to pastor in a village and to start planting a new church. This is something she never imagined herself doing a few years back, but God has prepared her for it all.
Her story was so simple yet so full of trust in God, in His provision, timing, and direction. I prayed for simple faith like hers. And you know what? God answers prayer pretty darn quickly. He used Florence’s testimony to strengthen my faith right when I needed it.
“Dieu est patient dê
h!” (God is patient!), she said over and over.
“You can’t be in a hurry with God.” Goodness, have I learned the depth of this truth repeatedly over the past 20 months.
Thank goodness that He is faithful, and we can say,
“God has the power to do what he has promised,” (Romans 4:21).
“Blessed is she who believes that what the Lord says to her will be accomplished,” (Luke 1:45).
May we believe in our own lives that He will both accomplish what He has promised in us and in our churches, by adding more workers to His harvest.
Pictures from Friday afternoon. The Bible school campus was full of the students' family members.
The Saturday morning ceremony! Korotum leading us in a Senoufo worship song.
Jonathan Finley was the main guest speaker of the ceremony.
The students' gift to Pastor Keo, the current Bible school director. With his wife and daughter, Prisca.
The students leading a Senoufo worship song.
Tricia and I
Lea and I
With Jonathan, Benjamin, and Tricia - sporting the pagne uniform for the graduation
With Pekaly and his wife, Florence.
All of the pastors and their wives.
With Nanu and his wife
