Last evening I put in ten hours of ministry! And that was after a morning of email, money, visitors, computer maintenance, and typing a bit! We held a further meeting about the radio possibility in the Kanyaga area, and so Klaus, Siggi, Levi, and I understand better what is possible and what is available in equipment and money. We might meet with Oumar and Mamadou Traoré this afternoon so that all actors will finally meet and know each other. 
After that I went to chat with Houseni and a friend for a while and then attended the ministerium’s once a month Friday night prayer meeting. Only five were present, not even the hosting pastor, and with two from outside Kayes, so we were a bit disappointed at attendance. I feel it was a good time of payer and worship led by David Sogoba anyway. Houseni has an ongoing leg problem which hurts quite a bit and limits his walking a working. He’s already bene to a guerisseur a couple years ago which probably did him more harm than good. One doc says there’s a crack in the femur bone that might need replacing. He’s getting cortisone shots regularly now, too. Perhaps a pin or screw would help? We prayed, but I want Him to know there’s no guarantee and also that he must obey the Lord and seek His face not just religion. I get very frustrated at these friends who turn to faith healers and not to the Lord first. May the Lord manifest His power and grace among my friends. 
His friend was Mamadou, Amadou Ba, who had helped me a couple years ago to translate the booklet ‘ElHadji’s Jouney to Faith’ into Pulaar. He’s a teacher living in Atesan, near Duduya, so we might go see him soon.
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I feel I’m sitting in the house of the devil! 
Idi’s Moor friend whom we are visiting is a renowned marabou healer, Mohammad Siby, in Yelimané where his son, Bassirou, has been staying for several months: he’s transformed and sane and calm! Idi says he was terribly violent last year, insulting, angry, suicidal, depressive, and for the first months here he was attached by chain to a log! You wouldn’t believe it for seeing and chatting with him now. There’s several here like this, near thirty, mostly healed or in process (none in view are chained). A man’s daughter wouldn’t talk for over a year and hardly ate: OK now! Another young man, a truck driver, violent and out of control now calm and friendly. Idi says the marabou, our host, gives each a ‘special secret only they know’ and this heals them. I’m sure it’s a combo of traditional medicine that affects them physiologically, as well as psychologically, and there are Islamic incantations of evil nature and compacts that affect them spiritually. It’s a success story! And people send cases from miles around, even from BKO, DKR, and France! May God give us wisdom in the face of such magic, and may he have mercy on these folk for believing such lies.
We arrived after a three hour trip, 175 kms from my house, after short stops in Medine for meat, a commission in Keresignané, and greetings to Brehima Konté in Djoni. BK had heads the transformed eye clinic now that Andrew and Cilla have retired and left back to England. Emma ‘Guindo’ also works there as an aide and evangelist. They said they can do most treatment that Andrew did except cataract operations. For that they save up a list of candidates and have the Kayes eye surgeon come every so months; just last week they did around forty. J Tito S, Salomon, A, Idi T, Benjie, and Idi’s youngest son, Brehima, are in the car which got us here smoothly with no tire or mechanical problems yet. I pulled out a Tape Talk Hassaniya mp3 player (recently supplied by LeRoy), and our host and two others are still listening to it two hours later. May the Gospel of Truth bring bright Light to this home! I was able to show them an SBC Bible Storying scarf and explain in Bambara the stories of Adam, Cain, Noah,...
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