The Night Before School Starts

Just above my knee in height, in her red, dust covered dress, Nyandut has kept appearing at my side today. She was on the branch at the front of church when I introduced Joyce and Gordon to the gathered, Luonyaker crowd. She was at the borehole when I was pumping some water to wash my clothes. She had been sent to the market to fetch something and she walked with me, hand in hand, on the way home. She was excited to tell me how, tomorrow, she would be going to Marol for the start of the new school year. Her little legs alone would have to carry her the five or so miles. With all the hassles and competing logistics, it is lovely to have even one little person to remind me what it is all about. The more I know the children and young people of this community, the more I feel the weight of Marol. I have to trust God that he will not fail them.


Things To Pray For:
Joyce and Gordon
Them and their car are now happily resident at Marol. They are a real gift from heaven to Marol and to me. Pray for them as the routine of life, the pace of the school and the heat of South Sudan invade. The smothering South Sudanese sun seems at its hottest at the moment. I sleep beneath the stars and can hardly face work until the sun is sleeping. Pray that God keeps reminding them of the strength he has given them, the love he has for them and the people he has called them to.

Pupils of Marol
Tomorrow, their little feet will carry them for miles across the sliding sands to Marol Academy. Pray that God brings them with care and has a plan for each one of them. Pray too that God will really seep into the school this year and make himself seen.

Teachers For Marol
God has called Gordon and Joyce from England, but I am now really praying hard that he will gather some teachers from the local villages to teach at our primary school. I fear there is still such a vacuum and they are needed if we are to feed the children with education.