construction the African way

A couple of weeks ago we, along with the Miller family, went to the village of Kpangkulum.  There is a small group of believers there who came to know Christ when some people from the Sanda Te church shared their faith.  Now, these young Christians are studying with others in their community, and it is clear that the Spirit of God is moving in that place!

This small faith community has been meeting in the local school, but now has decided to build their own building.  They started on Sunday, and we got to watch and "help" them out.  There was no building committee, no mortgage, no contribution pledges, just a group of people laughing and working together, with tree branches, dried grass, machetes, and tree bark rope.

They use machetes to loosen the dirt and their hands to scoop it out to make holes for the posts.

Rope is made by stripping the bark from a tree, and then splitting it into long strands.

a young girl carry a bundle of dried grass for the roof

After getting the posts into place, they use the strips of tree bark to secure the rafters.

tying on a rafter

I love being out in the village among the Kabiye people.  I love seeing my girls play with kids there and finding simple ways of amusing themselves.  I love the sweet spirit of community that African villagers share.  I love the rolling hills, endless sky, and amazing boabab trees of the Togo landscape.  And I love witnessing people's lives being changed by the peace and joy that comes with knowing Christ!  Thank you, God, for bringing me here to participate in your work among the Kabiye!

I also took some great video, but I'm not quite patient enough to spend the time uploading it!