Some say that some places
in the world are just too hard
00:01:09.16\00:01:12.28
to reach with the
Gospel. Guinea would probably
00:01:12.31\00:01:15.08
fit into the hardest
to reach of this group.
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Guinea is a land of paradoxes.
Unsurpassed natural beauty
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belies the grim fact that
it has one of the highest child
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mortality rates in the
world. It is known as the water
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source for West Africa
because of it's many large
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rivers. Yet, in the capital
and around the country, water
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faucets are dry. She is blessed
with riches of gold and iron,
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bauxite and oil, diamonds
and wood, yet her people
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struggle against grinding
poverty. This is truly a story,
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the story of the Gospel
going forward in Guinea,
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that only God could write.
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Marc and Cathy Coleman founded
the Susu Project of Adventist
00:01:52.69\00:01:56.23
Frontier Missions in Guinea
in the year 2000. And after
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several years of learning
the culture and language,
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launched into an active
ministry of medical missions,
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friendship evangelism,
and development work.
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As young people started to
convert, education later became
00:02:07.93\00:02:11.60
part of this program.
Now, many years later,
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a thriving church and
school, a lay training program,
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and local leaders fill
their places. God has shown once
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again that no place is
impenetrable, impermeable
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to the Gospel, because
God is bigger than all of
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the challenges.
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Hello, we are the Colemans.
My name is Marc. I'm Cathy.
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I'm Rebecca. And I'm Chelsea.
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Got a puzzle for you.
Here's a hard question.
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What do you do when you
are in a place and young people
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are starting to come into the
church by the 10s, soon maybe
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by the 100s, but because the
church is so small, there's no
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educational system for them.
If they stay in the national
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educational system,
they have persistent problems
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with the Sabbath. They're
not able to finish their school
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and their studies and
other problems with philosophies
00:03:04.69\00:03:07.90
of resistant religions.
What do these young people do?
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What do missionaries
do? Come with us again
00:03:11.15\00:03:13.33
and let us share with you
this exciting story of God's
00:03:13.36\00:03:16.09
wonderful providence.
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Young people in Guinea
face several real barriers to
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completing an education.
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Many young people come
from polygamist families.
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And what that means is
a lot of children, and not
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everybody can be educated.
A country like this where
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there is a lot of
political and social upheaval,
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that is another barrier.
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Now, for a young
person coming into the Church,
00:03:59.94\00:04:02.76
he may often have to
come to the Church against the
00:04:02.80\00:04:05.79
will of his family.
Now, suddenly added to all of
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these is the fact that Saturday
is a regular school day.
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So how do they attend
school and respect the Sabbath?
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So there was our challenge.
And it's for this reason that
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we felt a strong
burden to start a school.
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We were able to solve
one problem with the school.
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But now the national
exams are another problem.
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When kids finish school,
they have to take national exams
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to go on to the university.
And there's a national
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exam also from tenth grade,
which is the end of junior
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high here, to high school,
11th grade. And there is another
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national exam from
sixth grade to seventh grade,
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the end of primary
into secondary school.
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And you never know from year
to year whether one of these
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tests is going to
fall on the Sabbath.
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Usually, or many times,
they do. We had one particular
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young lady who twice
failed one of those exams in the
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high school level
because she kept the Sabbath.
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I used to be a Catholic.
00:05:04.77\00:05:06.83
One day, my mother's friend
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came and told us about an
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Adventist church
she was attending.
00:05:10.26\00:05:12.50
The next Saturday, my
mom asked me to go with her
00:05:17.09\00:05:20.21
to the church.
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I liked how everyone
had their own Bibles and
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read out of them.
So I said to myself,
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I really want
to know about this.
00:05:32.43\00:05:34.30
I had never read out
00:05:36.99\00:05:38.58
of a Bible before, and
I wanted to learn more.
00:05:38.62\00:05:42.37
I had the
ambition to know the Bible.
00:05:44.19\00:05:47.17
But I had a problem. It
was the Sabbath. In the Guinean
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school system,
students are required to attend
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classes on Sabbath. But
what I was learning at the
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church had an impression
on me. So I would skip
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classes to go to church.
My friend and I were also
00:06:05.37\00:06:10.25
going to Bible studies.
00:06:10.29\00:06:12.17
When I was ready, I was
baptized with my mother.
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It was an awesome day for me.
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When school started again,
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I didn't know how I could
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respect the Sabbath
and still get good grades.
00:06:30.31\00:06:33.91
I asked myself, "How
would my grades be if I went to
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church instead of school?"
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But I still made a
firm decision to not go to
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school anymore on Sabbath.
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When I took my 10th grade
national exams, I didn't go
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on Sabbath, and I failed.
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So I took it again and again,
and I failed the third time.
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My friends would ask me why
I didn't want to go to exams
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on Sabbath.
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Why would you
skip classes every day?
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I tried to explain why to
them, but they still didn't
00:07:17.73\00:07:22.75
understand.
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They told me that God
would understand and that one
00:07:26.95\00:07:30.95
day wouldn't ruin my
relationship with Christ.
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My friends started
to constantly bother me.
00:07:38.85\00:07:42.14
Even my family and professors
started to persecute me.
00:07:42.17\00:07:46.29
When that would
happen, I would cry and ask God
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"Why? Why me?" What
could I do so that they
00:07:53.38\00:07:57.69
they could understand
the truth? I thought that if
00:07:57.72\00:08:02.51
God didn't help me with
my situation, everyone would
00:08:02.55\00:08:07.31
think that they were right.
00:08:07.34\00:08:09.24
But I can say that I truly
saw the hand of God in my life.
00:08:12.85\00:08:17.20
The pastor of the church
and the director of the school
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came up with the BDIS test.
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I took the exams, and God
really opened doors for me.
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I passed the exams, and I
was accepted in the universiy.
00:08:31.34\00:08:35.85
When that
happened, I was so shocked.
00:08:35.88\00:08:39.86
I didn't know
whether to laugh or cry.
00:08:39.90\00:08:43.81
I didn't even know how
to thank Jesus for what
00:08:43.85\00:08:47.19
He has done for me.
When I started telling
00:08:47.22\00:08:50.50
people that I had
passed my exams, they asked me
00:08:50.53\00:08:54.00
questions. "How did you
pass your college entrance
00:08:54.04\00:08:57.82
exams when you didn't even
pass your 10th grade exams?
00:08:57.86\00:09:01.61
How did you pass?
What exam did you take?
00:09:01.65\00:09:05.88
Is it recognized
by the government?"
00:09:05.91\00:09:08.45
I told them that I took
an exam that was not only
00:09:08.48\00:09:11.31
recognized
nationally, but internationally.
00:09:11.34\00:09:14.58
They said, "We
don't understand."
00:09:14.62\00:09:17.53
I told them that I had been
trying to tell them, but still
00:09:17.56\00:09:21.15
they didn't believe
me. God has many ways to
00:09:21.19\00:09:25.33
provide for His children.
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The school then proposed
to have a graduation ceremony
00:09:29.94\00:09:34.75
for me. I invited a lot
of people, and I was able to
00:09:34.79\00:09:39.57
wear a robe and
receive my diploma.
00:09:39.60\00:09:42.45
I told my professors
that God had opened up all
00:09:46.80\00:09:50.03
these doors for me.
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He took away all my shame.
00:09:57.39\00:10:00.10
To all those who find
themselves in a similar
00:10:04.82\00:10:08.00
situation, let them
apply themselves and pray
00:10:08.03\00:10:11.14
continuously because
00:10:11.17\00:10:12.97
God always hears His children.
00:10:14.71\00:10:17.60
God showed me that
He didn't abandon me.
00:10:20.40\00:10:23.52
He's always with me.
00:10:23.56\00:10:25.14
I am now a teacher at
the Adventist school here in
00:10:25.18\00:10:28.95
Fria, Guinea. I
teach second grade.
00:10:28.99\00:10:32.22
The school is attracting
00:10:34.97\00:10:37.36
more than just Christians.
00:10:37.39\00:10:39.71
But we have also Muslim
00:10:39.75\00:10:42.04
students and non-Adventist
students. It is the only
00:10:42.07\00:10:45.14
Adventist school in
the country that has from
00:10:45.17\00:10:47.78
grade one to 13.
00:10:47.81\00:10:50.00
Every morning at 7:45,
we assemble the students
00:10:50.04\00:10:55.12
for devotion, both
Muslims and Christians, and they
00:10:55.15\00:10:59.69
love to sing praises to
God. And then after the devotion
00:10:59.73\00:11:03.07
they will go into their classes.
00:11:03.10\00:11:04.92
Since our school has been
attracting a lot of Muslims,
00:11:04.96\00:11:10.29
we have Bible classes
that are challenging and very
00:11:10.33\00:11:15.63
interesting to the
Bible teacher. Most of the
00:11:15.67\00:11:18.69
parents send their kids
to the school because they
00:11:18.72\00:11:21.98
are attracted with
English and computer classes
00:11:22.02\00:11:25.24
and some Christian
parents, Bible classes.
00:11:25.28\00:11:28.38
But at the end, you can find
the kids having more interest
00:11:28.41\00:11:32.75
in Bible. And most of
them will come walk into the
00:11:32.78\00:11:36.37
office and ask for
Bibles, and some would ask for
00:11:36.40\00:11:39.71
puzzles, Bible
puzzles, and some would ask for
00:11:39.75\00:11:43.40
little Bible stories,
segmented Bible stories.
00:11:43.44\00:11:47.06
There is one student
that I want to bring to your
00:11:50.85\00:11:53.60
notice. His father is one
of the highest ranking Muslim
00:11:53.64\00:11:57.90
officials in their
village, the chief imam.
00:11:57.93\00:12:00.32
He was going to
our neighbor school,
00:12:00.36\00:12:03.12
Franco-Arab. It's
purely Muslims. One day when we
00:12:03.16\00:12:06.74
first moved here, we
were clearing this courtyard,
00:12:06.77\00:12:10.23
and Sylla walked up to me
and asked me, "What are you
00:12:10.26\00:12:13.65
doing here?" And I told
him, "Well, our school has moved
00:12:13.69\00:12:16.39
to this building, and
we are preparing it for the
00:12:16.42\00:12:19.39
next school year. And so he
took the hoe from me, and he
00:12:19.43\00:12:22.18
started to work with me.
At the end of our work bee,
00:12:22.22\00:12:24.94
he came back to me and
expressed his desire to be in
00:12:24.97\00:12:28.47
our school. And then I
told him, "Ah, it's a Christian
00:12:28.50\00:12:31.96
school." He said to
me, "I'm interested. I want
00:12:32.00\00:12:33.83
to be in your school."
00:12:33.86\00:12:35.18
The reason that I
decided to come to this school,
00:12:36.02\00:12:40.22
everything started when I
went to work for Uncle Joshua,
00:12:40.26\00:12:45.79
a collegue of the missionaries.
00:12:45.82\00:12:48.07
One day I asked him,
"Uncle Joshua, I would like to
00:12:49.63\00:12:54.88
review all my past
studies so that next year I can
00:12:54.91\00:13:00.13
go to a new school
and to leave where I am
00:13:00.16\00:13:02.79
because I am starting
to have problems there."
00:13:02.82\00:13:05.94
And he said to me, "Would
you like to go to a new school?"
00:13:05.98\00:13:10.67
And I said, "Yes. That
is what I would like to do."
00:13:10.71\00:13:13.76
I then asked him,
"How would I take care
00:13:13.80\00:13:18.11
of my monthly needs
because I don't have the
00:13:18.15\00:13:21.92
financial means to
take care of myself?"
00:13:21.95\00:13:25.69
So he said to me,
"Don't worry about that. You're
00:13:27.27\00:13:31.34
going to our school.
You will continue studying
00:13:31.38\00:13:35.41
there until you
finish your studies."
00:13:35.45\00:13:38.15
Uncle Joshua is
really the one who helped me
00:13:39.80\00:13:42.45
get into the school.
00:13:42.49\00:13:45.27
Since his registration,
Sylla has been visiting the
00:13:46.66\00:13:50.66
church, most times in
the evening, and there are
00:13:50.70\00:13:54.09
times when he goes
for Sabbath worship, too.
00:13:54.12\00:13:57.44
And during one of his visits,
the church was doing foot
00:13:57.48\00:14:02.33
washing and having communion
service. And Sylla wanted to
00:14:02.37\00:14:07.16
participate. And
Pastor Coleman told him,
00:14:07.19\00:14:11.30
"You can't participate
00:14:11.33\00:14:13.74
because we don't know
if you have accepted Jesus
00:14:13.78\00:14:16.84
as your Savior."
And Sylla said, "I do."
00:14:16.88\00:14:20.13
And so he participated
in the foot washing.
00:14:20.17\00:14:23.38
The Bible helps me to
understand how to carry myself
00:14:24.47\00:14:28.77
and how to
understand the teachings of God.
00:14:28.80\00:14:33.66
It also helped me understand
about the day of ressurection.
00:14:33.69\00:14:38.31
The Bible helps me
unerstand all these things,
00:14:38.34\00:14:42.57
so I thank God for that.
00:14:42.61\00:14:45.52
So what have I
learned from the Bible?
00:14:45.55\00:14:49.85
Well, even before
coming to the Bible, I heard it
00:14:49.89\00:14:54.43
said from the Koran that
Jesus is the son of Mary.
00:14:54.46\00:14:59.57
So, now I come to the
Bible, and I see that Jesus is
00:14:59.60\00:15:04.68
the Son of God.
00:15:04.71\00:15:06.46
So He is sent of God
to take away our sins.
00:15:09.03\00:15:13.07
I learned that
Jesus is the Son of God.
00:15:13.10\00:15:17.10
I really believe that,
too. Because of all of His
00:15:18.98\00:15:23.51
suffering and
the miracles He did.
00:15:23.55\00:15:26.30
If He is not God, or
the Son of God, there is no
00:15:26.33\00:15:31.60
way that He could
have done those things.
00:15:31.63\00:15:35.54
There is only one thing
that I wish. I don't want
00:15:38.20\00:15:42.72
people to thank
me. I don't want money.
00:15:42.75\00:15:45.88
The only pleasure I
could ever gain from this is
00:15:45.92\00:15:50.51
if the student goes to
someone and tells them,
00:15:50.54\00:15:55.06
"Yves showed me something
that led me to know God."
00:15:55.09\00:15:59.95
That is good for me.
00:15:59.98\00:16:02.24
In conclusion, my
vision is that each student
00:16:02.28\00:16:07.84
comes to the knowledge
that they are precious to God.
00:16:07.87\00:16:11.90
They must also realize
that they have talents that
00:16:15.62\00:16:20.42
God gave to them.
These talents are to be used
00:16:20.46\00:16:25.23
to serve others. If
I teach and have not
00:16:25.26\00:16:29.97
reached this goal, I
know I am missing something.
00:16:30.01\00:16:34.03
The other point is
that the Bible is the basis
00:16:36.34\00:16:40.83
for everything.
00:16:40.87\00:16:42.77
The educational
component here is so important.
00:16:43.87\00:16:46.42
70 percent of the
church here is young people.
00:16:46.45\00:16:49.16
You can't run a strong
missionary work in a place
00:16:49.19\00:16:51.86
like Guinea without
taking into account the
00:16:51.90\00:16:54.19
edcuational component
of those who are coming
00:16:54.23\00:16:56.46
into the church and facing
real difficulties because of
00:16:56.49\00:17:00.25
the Sabbath and the
desire to serve and honor God
00:17:00.29\00:17:04.34
and His truth.
00:17:04.37\00:17:06.10
We had a little church
right in the neighborhood.
00:17:12.78\00:17:16.23
We rented a house as
our church right in our
00:17:16.27\00:17:19.05
neighborhood. And so we
said, what do we want to
00:17:19.08\00:17:21.79
do to reach all the young
people in this neighborhood?
00:17:21.83\00:17:26.46
So the team
decided, "Let's do a vacation
00:17:26.50\00:17:29.57
Bible school." As
we got started with the
00:17:29.60\00:17:32.60
planning, we realized
that a battle was going on.
00:17:32.64\00:17:37.56
Satan seemed to be in
all of the details. And it
00:17:37.59\00:17:42.39
seemed like no
matter what was going on,
00:17:42.42\00:17:44.33
things were falling
apart. And it was starting to
00:17:44.37\00:17:47.41
become discouraging for
all of us. But we decided
00:17:47.45\00:17:50.46
that we were going
to press forward anyway.
00:17:50.49\00:17:52.56
Well, I tell you,
vacation Bible schools here are
00:17:55.49\00:17:58.10
nothing like in the
United States. Here, you have
00:17:58.14\00:18:00.93
to do everything from
scratch. Say, for instance,
00:18:00.96\00:18:03.72
you wanted to teach
the children how to do a
00:18:03.75\00:18:05.48
sand sculpture. What we
have to do here - you have
00:18:05.52\00:18:09.28
to go and get dirty sand.
You have to clean it first
00:18:09.31\00:18:12.71
and sift it. Then you
have to set it out in the sun
00:18:12.75\00:18:15.98
and let it dry. Then you
have to go to the market and
00:18:16.02\00:18:19.08
get different colors, and
you have to color the sand.
00:18:19.12\00:18:22.14
Then you have to let
it dry. And then you have
00:18:22.18\00:18:24.60
to sift it again. And
then you have what is necessary
00:18:24.63\00:18:28.19
to do a sand
sculpture. All of our programs,
00:18:28.23\00:18:31.47
our stories, the play,
00:18:31.50\00:18:33.85
we had to create all ourselves.
00:18:33.88\00:18:38.26
Well, finally the day
came for the registration.
00:18:38.29\00:18:41.91
We set the table up outside,
and children started coming
00:18:41.94\00:18:44.96
from all over. They
said, "We want to be in this
00:18:44.99\00:18:48.08
program." So we
started signing them up, and
00:18:48.11\00:18:51.12
we said, "We can only
take 50. We only have manpower
00:18:51.16\00:18:54.25
for 50 children and
supplies for 50 children."
00:18:54.28\00:18:57.18
And we figured
maybe we would get 50.
00:18:57.21\00:18:59.66
Well, we reached the
50 mark within one hour of
00:18:59.70\00:19:02.71
registration. What
are we going to do now?
00:19:02.75\00:19:05.40
So many more
children are wanting to come.
00:19:05.43\00:19:08.01
We told them, "We're so
sorry. We've reached our
00:19:08.05\00:19:12.36
limit, and so you
have to come next year."
00:19:12.39\00:19:15.52
The children started
climbing the walls. They said,
00:19:15.56\00:19:18.95
"We want to be where
those kids are. We want
00:19:18.99\00:19:21.99
to be where -
whatever you are doing, we want
00:19:22.03\00:19:25.00
to be a part of
it." And we told them,
00:19:25.03\00:19:27.21
"We're really sorry,
but you have to get down
00:19:27.25\00:19:28.91
from that wall, and
we cannot let you in.
00:19:28.95\00:19:31.84
We're really
sorry." Well, even one man
00:19:31.88\00:19:34.45
knocked on our
door, and he begged us.
00:19:34.49\00:19:36.99
He said, "You have to
let my child in. I hear good
00:19:37.03\00:19:40.06
things are going on
in there. I hear you're
00:19:40.10\00:19:42.46
teaching the
children about kindness and
00:19:42.50\00:19:44.79
about how to treat
others. And I want my kid to be
00:19:44.83\00:19:47.71
a part of it."
00:19:47.74\00:19:49.13
When we started our
program, we decided that we were
00:19:49.16\00:19:52.56
going to do stories. So
the children would gather
00:19:52.59\00:19:55.89
around, and we would
teach them Bible stories.
00:19:55.92\00:19:59.65
They did arts and
crafts. Some of the children had
00:19:59.69\00:20:03.04
never even touched a
pair of scissors before. They
00:20:03.08\00:20:06.40
didn't even know
how to use crayons.
00:20:06.43\00:20:08.19
And so it was just such a
blessing to see these kids
00:20:08.23\00:20:10.62
maneuver the paper, cut out,
and color and draw. And every
00:20:10.65\00:20:15.82
day they came. We were
just having a wonderful
00:20:15.85\00:20:18.32
time together. We
would have recess with them.
00:20:18.35\00:20:21.75
They would play soccer.
By the end of the program,
00:20:21.79\00:20:25.61
we sent out invitations
to the parents, because we
00:20:25.64\00:20:28.87
were going to do a big
program at the end for them,
00:20:28.91\00:20:32.11
the grand finale, I
guess you could say.
00:20:32.14\00:20:34.16
The children were excited.
They had been working hard.
00:20:34.20\00:20:37.55
Because we decided
to do a play. And so the
00:20:37.59\00:20:40.64
children were all
dressed up in costumes. Some
00:20:40.68\00:20:43.66
were angels, some were
wise men, some were shepherds.
00:20:43.69\00:20:48.03
And they had
never done this before.
00:20:48.06\00:20:50.37
And I tell you, it was a
riot just trying to get these
00:20:50.40\00:20:54.08
kids to practice
every night. But in the end,
00:20:54.12\00:20:57.20
it was a
blessing. The parents came.
00:20:57.24\00:21:00.89
They saw their
children participate. We put out
00:21:00.93\00:21:05.07
an art and craft exhibit
to display all of the things
00:21:05.10\00:21:08.99
the children had made.
And it was just amazing.
00:21:09.02\00:21:13.17
The parents, as they looked,
said, "Did my child do this?
00:21:13.20\00:21:17.00
Wow! Can we get our
kids into your school?
00:21:17.04\00:21:22.09
We want our children to
be a part of your school."
00:21:22.12\00:21:26.17
Several years have
passed, and we can see that the
00:21:26.20\00:21:30.53
battle that was started
for these souls - actually it
00:21:30.57\00:21:34.86
was well worth
it. Because now we see
00:21:34.89\00:21:37.33
in our school some of those
same children there learning
00:21:37.37\00:21:42.10
about Jesus, learning about
God, praying to our heavenly
00:21:42.13\00:21:46.10
Father. And they are
receiving a Christian education.
00:21:46.14\00:21:49.49
If we had to do it all
over again, we would do it
00:21:49.52\00:21:52.84
all over again
because we know in the end
00:21:52.88\00:21:54.79
a soul is being won for Jesus.
00:21:54.82\00:21:58.49
When we first came
here to Guinea, we lived in
00:22:18.43\00:22:22.09
Conakry. And in the neighborhood
we would see children
00:22:22.13\00:22:26.75
who had little owies
and boo-boos and sores and
00:22:26.78\00:22:30.12
scrapes, and so we did a
small type band-aid clinic.
00:22:30.16\00:22:34.29
I would take my little
doctor's bag, as you would say,
00:22:34.32\00:22:38.42
and go around in the
neighborhood and treat
00:22:38.46\00:22:40.95
the little children.
00:22:40.99\00:22:42.40
But then we left Conakry,
and we moved here to Fria.
00:22:48.58\00:22:52.86
We knew no one
here, absolutely no one.
00:22:52.90\00:22:57.30
And so we started to
pray, what can we do to enter
00:22:57.34\00:23:02.63
into the lives of the people?
00:23:02.66\00:23:04.59
And the Lord just
kept impressing, impressing
00:23:07.19\00:23:09.81
upon our minds to
start a medical work there.
00:23:09.85\00:23:12.44
One day we were traveling
to a village where they
00:23:20.38\00:23:25.51
have a Sunday
market. On our way we were
00:23:25.55\00:23:29.38
behind this van-type vehicle
00:23:29.42\00:23:32.76
that was piled up inside
00:23:32.80\00:23:36.07
with people, people
were on top with all of
00:23:36.11\00:23:38.89
their wares, their loads
and everything. And they were
00:23:38.92\00:23:41.67
driving really fast
down the road, speeding.
00:23:41.71\00:23:45.77
And right before our
eyes, this thing tipped.
00:23:45.81\00:23:49.84
People from the top
fell off. So we took as many
00:23:49.87\00:23:54.22
people as we could to
the hospital and tried
00:23:54.26\00:23:58.53
to get them admitted.
And it was there, actually,
00:23:58.57\00:24:01.88
that the ministry
started because that was a way
00:24:01.91\00:24:05.19
we were able to get
into contact with people.
00:24:05.22\00:24:08.14
Before, we knew no one.
And so Isatta and myself,
00:24:08.18\00:24:11.26
we decided, you know
what, every evening we're going
00:24:11.29\00:24:14.23
to go to the hospital,
and we're going to pray for
00:24:14.26\00:24:17.12
these people. We're going
to spend time visiting them,
00:24:17.16\00:24:19.96
making sure they are okay.
After they were discharged,
00:24:19.99\00:24:23.94
we started visiting them
in their homes. And there
00:24:23.97\00:24:27.20
was one particular
lady named Fatumatu Kamera.
00:24:27.23\00:24:30.41
We visited her in her
village called Atamasuria,
00:24:30.45\00:24:34.71
and she just welcomed
us and her entire family
00:24:34.75\00:24:38.77
welcomed us. And the
Lord just kept impressing,
00:24:38.81\00:24:42.76
impressing on our minds,
start a medical work there.
00:24:42.80\00:24:46.54
And so we continued to
pray, and we made a request for
00:24:46.58\00:24:50.50
a nurse to come, a
student missionary. And once we
00:24:50.54\00:24:54.43
received a student
missionary, we knew it
00:24:54.46\00:24:55.83
was confirmation that we
needed to start the medical
00:24:55.86\00:24:58.95
missionary work. We
asked the chief of the village,
00:24:58.99\00:25:02.05
who happened to
be Fatumatu's father,
00:25:02.08\00:25:05.03
"Do you mind if we
come to the village and
00:25:05.07\00:25:10.11
treat people?" He just
welcomed us with open arms.
00:25:10.15\00:25:14.31
"Please come and help
us." We decided to not only do
00:25:14.34\00:25:18.47
it in Atamasuria, but
in another village, Tigae,
00:25:18.50\00:25:22.05
and also another village,
Tuba. Every Wednesday, we
00:25:22.09\00:25:25.60
would go to Atamasuria,
and on the other days
00:25:25.64\00:25:28.56
we would go to the other
villages. And what we would
00:25:28.59\00:25:31.84
do is we just get medicines,
and we would set it up
00:25:31.87\00:25:36.15
just on a porch, nothing
spectacular, just a plain
00:25:36.19\00:25:40.39
old porch with a rickety table
with a table cloth on it, and
00:25:40.43\00:25:44.60
there we would start treating
patients. Treat them for
00:25:44.64\00:25:47.97
skin infections,
malaria, diaheria, disentery,
00:25:48.00\00:25:51.84
lifestyle diseases,
which are creeping in today,
00:25:51.87\00:25:55.64
diabetes, high blood pressure.
Different things like that
00:25:55.67\00:26:00.08
we treat through lifestyle
changes. And most of the
00:26:00.12\00:26:03.82
time, people are
very receptive to change
00:26:03.85\00:26:07.21
because they are
hurting and they are suffering.
00:26:07.25\00:26:10.06
And they can't afford all
these pills and drugs like
00:26:10.09\00:26:12.87
we hand out in the
United States. And we see a
00:26:12.91\00:26:16.39
difference in
these people. Their blood
00:26:16.43\00:26:18.13
pressure gets lowered,
they are able to control
00:26:18.17\00:26:20.76
their weight better,
different things like that.
00:26:20.79\00:26:23.66
Here in Guinea when you
go to a normal hospital,
00:26:23.69\00:26:26.52
a government
hospital, the nurses and the
00:26:26.55\00:26:28.77
doctors holler at you.
"What are you here for?"
00:26:28.80\00:26:32.92
they say. "Sit down! Stop
crying!" What a difference
00:26:32.95\00:26:36.63
it is when they come to
our clinic, and they see the
00:26:36.66\00:26:40.31
love and compassion
that we have for them.
00:26:40.34\00:26:43.13
And they are
starting to see a difference.
00:26:43.16\00:26:45.88
What is happening here?
These people are different
00:26:45.91\00:26:48.50
than our people. One
of them had seen down
00:26:48.53\00:26:53.04
in the bush - he said
he saw a ghost. And when he
00:26:53.07\00:26:57.48
saw the ghost, he just
became completely afraid,
00:26:57.52\00:27:01.95
and all of his vital
signs went haywire. And he
00:27:01.99\00:27:06.35
was in the bed for several
days because he could not
00:27:06.39\00:27:09.77
function because of
fear. Well, we were able to go
00:27:09.81\00:27:13.29
in there. We asked the
father, who was the chief
00:27:13.33\00:27:16.47
of the village, "Is it
possible for us to go in
00:27:16.50\00:27:19.65
and pray with him so
that the chains of Satan and
00:27:19.69\00:27:22.95
the demons can be broken?"
He said, "Yes, please pray
00:27:22.98\00:27:26.43
for us." And so we went
in there, bowed on our knees,
00:27:26.46\00:27:30.11
and we just agonized with
the Lord in prayer so that
00:27:30.14\00:27:33.75
these bonds that
Satan has on these people
00:27:33.78\00:27:36.71
can be released.
And it was the next day
00:27:36.74\00:27:39.60
they came and told us,
they said, "He's been relieved.
00:27:39.64\00:27:44.23
His vital signs are back to
normal. He's up from the bed,
00:27:44.26\00:27:48.82
and he's walking around."
And they just thanked us
00:27:48.86\00:27:52.30
but, in turn, we thanked
God for the power to break
00:27:52.34\00:27:55.75
the chains of
Satan in that man's life.
00:27:55.78\00:27:58.08
It starts out with friendship
evangelism. And we have
00:28:01.56\00:28:04.79
found out that because the
only way that you can share
00:28:04.82\00:28:08.02
Jesus with somebody is
really if they know you
00:28:08.05\00:28:11.92
care about them. We
try to follow Jesus' method
00:28:11.95\00:28:15.75
in treating their sicknesses
and their diseases. And when
00:28:15.78\00:28:19.03
that happens, they are
more open. They trust us. They
00:28:19.07\00:28:22.29
know we care about
them, and they are more
00:28:22.32\00:28:24.32
open to the Gospel.
00:28:24.36\00:28:26.72