A Future, Football, Floods and Feasting

As you walk the first few paces away from the primary school buildings along the narrow dirt trail to Luonyaker, the sound of the children playing in the school quickly starts to fade. The the conversations of the pupils who are escorting you home become the main distraction from the chatter of the scattered birds and the incidental noises of the forest. The red dust trail first leads from home to home and then on into the patchy forest. The pupils track the driest course with some paths still thigh high in water. In the passing homes, you see the harvest displayed to dry, laid out on the handmade mud platforms at the centres of the homesteads. Sorhgum's head of small, brown berries, the yellow of the maize and the small green circles of okra paints a hope-filled pattern beneath the sun. For now, food is more than enough to eat and storing this collection will sustain the family until this time next year. As we walk further, children donate the sugar cane to us that they've acquired along the way. It is too sweet to ask if it was scrumped.

Things To Pray For
A Future
Marol Academy Secondary School will open after the four month holidays on the 1st April 2013. For its pupils, this is the only opportunity for secondary education. Walking over three hours each way, each day, one of the few local church leaders is coming to Marol to gain his first post primary education. Pupils like him make the school worth growing. Yet, for the last two years, the secondary school has been reliant on the sacrificial nurturing of Gordon and Joyce. Please pray that God will provide the next leader(s) to direct the studies at this school at least for the first few months of the next academic year. Marol is a unique environment and not a predictable calling. Yet, God has provided again and again for this school. There is a real need to start asking God to provide once more. Please also ask God if you know anyone he might be asking to serve here.

Football
As the ground slightly slopes away to the school from the teachers' tukals (thatched huts) and you wander towards the hand pump, a clearer area of dry, hard earth marks the Marol Academy football pitch. All without shoes to prevent any unfair advantage, the pupils run for hours up and down the pitch chasing the ball of this worldwide game. Now, come Saturday afternoons, the volunteer Kenyan teachers also join the match. Having gathered the pupils and played the match, the afternoon ends with a Bible passage and some prayers. Through football the children of Marol are gaining a new taste of God's promises to them.

Floods

Having been drenched in torrents of water since the end of May and with land fully saturated, much of South Sudan is now submerged by floods. Although the land seems perfectly flat and without boundaries, rain seems to unpredictably focus its distribution on certain villages. This year Marol received more water than elders remember having fallen for twenty years. As you walk the 6km from the market in Luonyaker to Marol, the road slowly changes from sand to a knee-high swamp. Fields of groundnuts have been flooded to ruin and the road to Marol became impassable to all vehicles. Further south in Unity State, floods have displaced whole villages from their homes.

Feasting

With perfectly perpendicular postures, the young girls walk their routine path from home to the water pump. Yet, at this time of year, their journey too is accompanied by sugar cane. They tear off the skin and munch the sugar from the long canes as they walk along. Little children carry bundles of this sweet bounty. With the promise of the sorghum harvest close behind, the munching of the cane signals a happy time of year. Friend even donate handfuls of maize from their seemingly plentiful stocks. Thank God for the harvest that has come.

Journeys, Joy, Families and Funding

[Note from blog editor: Apologies for not posting this sooner, I was away in Africa myself!]

"Then I will heal you of your faithlessness; my love will know no bounds, for my anger will be gone forever. I will be to Israel like a refreshing dew from heaven. Israel will blossom like the lily; it will send roots deep into the soil like cedars in Lebanon". (Hosea 14 - a verse I've been pondering since May).

As I start to pack my bags to head back to South Sudan, I realise that I have not written for many weeks. After a summer holiday, I hope you will rejoin me in prayer for South Sudan and for our journey there.

Thank God for:
Family at Marol Academy
Again and again they amaze me with their fellowship and love for each other and the children they serve. Thank God for Gordon, Joyce and the Kenyan teachers (Loice, Floyd, Elkana, Lawrence and Thomas) who are living and teaching at Marol. Their compound has long been flooded and the nearest market is a few miles walk through water. The road is impassable by vehicle. Thank God for their resolve and faith to keep going despite it all.

South Sudanese Teachers
South Sudanese teachers who are willing and educated are so hard to find. They seem more scarce than riches. Please pray for the teachers who are serving Marol, often walking for hours to be there and for less than £50 per month salary (inflation is very high at the moment). Pray especially for Donato (one of our longest serving teachers), David (who lives next to the school and lost a child this year) and Adeng (our only female teacher).

Joyful Time With God
My years in South Sudan have seen ebbs and flows in my relationship with God. I know He has been with me in every season and on every step of my journey. Yet, sometimes I have seen him less clearly. I am really grateful for the chance to listen to Him again these last few months and know intimacy with Him. I am so grateful for that. Please pray that God would keep showing me His glory and His provision.

Family and Friends
God has given me a life of coming and going in this season. Family and friends have shown me such endless grace to put up with this season of my life. My mum and dad have been especially wonderful. Please thank God for them. Also thank God for the families of Gordon, Joyce and the Kenyan teachers. They must be missing them so much.

Ask God for:
Funding
Kenyan teachers, construction and daily running costs are all financial needs at the school. There are possible funding opportunities although it is unclear exactly how God will keep providing. Ever since I have known Marol, I have been overwhelmed by God's abundant provision. He must truly love the people of those villages. He has given lavishly and has allowed us to build more than we could ever imagine. Please pray for God's hand in this next season of seeking provision. Let it be an opportunity for God to show what he can do. Also pray for wisdom for those who decide exactly how its spent, from which bricks to buy to how much to pay teachers as inflation increases.

Richard
Richard is an experienced science teacher in the UK and has managed to get some time off work in order to spend three months with us in Marol. He travels to South Sudan in early September. Please pray that God will prepare his heart for the unique adventure ahead of him. Please also pray for Judy his wife who will remain behind in the UK.

Talking about South Sudan
By God's incredible provision, I have been asked to advise a few policy makers about conflict in the Greater Wunlit region of South Sudan (the region I visited in May and June). The dynamics of the conflict are complex. In the 1990s they saw an explosion of violence and the arming of teenage boys who look after the cattle. Armed violence has never ended. When I was there in May, a dozen or so young men were killed from the village I was in. Pockets of violence have killed hundreds across the region this year alone. It is a daunting privilege to talk to people who have enough money to possibly try to make a difference. Please pray that God gives me words to say that show mercy and bring justice and offer insights beyond our own wisdom. It is a comfort to know that even Moses, when he talked to Pharaoh about his own people's slavery, did not have the right words to say but needed God with him (Exodus 4).

My Journey to the Village and in the Next Season
Starting on Sunday, I have a long journey to the village in South Sudan with two overnight flights and a total of five flights in six days. It is an unusual route to Luonyaker as I have to call somewhere along the way. I fear that it might leave me a little exhausted. Please pray for God's incredible blessing and strength to ease the burden of these journeys and make them a gift. Please also pray for God's guidance as I make decisions in the months ahead about the shape of the next few years. I know my heart roughly but would really like to know God's heart with clarity. He seems to be offering me some amazing gifts and I would just like to know that they are good to accept. Pray that doors will stay open for the life journey ahead. Please also pray that I get my written work finished before I travel (that will be a miracle).

I hope to have many fresh tales from South Sudan in a couple of weeks time.

Happy Independence Day

Today (9th July 2012) South Sudan celebrates its first birthday. Last night the streets of Juba were already swarming with dancing people. Today will see even more people gather in thanks and to remember the heavy cost they paid for independence.

I am now safely home in England, sorting out details for my studies and writing a few things on South Sudan. Yet, fellowship in these weeks at home is very precious, so I would love to see you.

South Sudan is one year old, please pray for...


Peace This Year
Thank God for relative and sufficient peace for the country to reach its first anniversary. In the villages, war has not been people’s daily concern, even if it remains the popular topic over tea in the market.

In the first year of independence, however, there have been many whispers of war. Nearly a thousand people have been killed in internal unrest in Jonglei State since December, adding to others killed in local conflicts. On the border with the North, there has been heavy fighting over the oil rich area of Heglig that prompted a season of Nothern bombing into South Sudan. Yet, the real suffering remains north of the border in the regions of Blue Nile and the Nuba Mountains. Daily bombing raids and ground offensives mean that this land is deeply entrenched again in war and thousands upon thousands are being lost.

Hope This Year
Thank God for the continuing prevalence of hope in South Sudan. This is still a new land with new promise. People believe that things will get better. Pray that their hope will remain.

Having turned off the oil pipeline that allowed the South to sell its oil through the North, the South has now had many months without a substantial income. The oil money was over 90% of its national budget. Their money will soon run out. It is unclear what will happen when people no longer receive their government salaries, especially the soldiers and their leaders. There is much uncertainty.

Change This Year
South Sudan is developing fast. Some regions that used to be annually isolated by waist high swamps are now accessible all year round by (bumpy) gravel roads. Schools are appearing and clinics are being built. Yet, a lack of trained staff means that few services are delivered. Also, with the coming of exposure to the markets and the wider world, local values and customs are being challenged. Pray for leaders’ wisdom as they protect and discard various values and practices.

Children, Conflict, Thomas, Travel and Two Leopards

Beyond the villages that surround Rumbek and further through the thick leafed forest, the water-covered track led us to a series of some of the largest cattle camps of the Dinka Agaar. Arriving just as the cows were returning to be milked, the young boys rushed to tether their herds before the girls started milking. Fresh, warm milk was offered to us as guests as we sat on small, dung covered grass mats beneath the trees. The children happily slurped away as the milk started flowing. A scattering of guns still surrounded the camp. Despite attempts at disarmament, people's lack of confidence in security has made it hard for them to give up their armed protection. "We need our guns to survive", one man explained. As I listened to this familiar narrative again, I realised that soon I would be leaving these cattle camps of Lakes and Unity. My time of learning from these cattle keepers, for now, has come to an end.

Please pray for:
1) The Children of Cattle Camps
Lavishly fed on rich milk and entertained by the excitement of the gathered camp, childhood amongst the cattle can seem heavenly. Especially in seasons of rich pasture, it can seem that they want for nothing. Yet, these cattle camps can be violent. Two people had recently been shot at night and buried in a camp adjacent to where we sat. While the children are sent to the camps to access the goodness of the milk, they are left vulnerable to the violence of the raiding. Pray for their safety.


2) Conflict Mitigation
On Tuesday, in Juba, I have the opportunity to speak to a handful of influential international actors who work on conflict mitigation in South Sudan. I will share with them some of the messages from the cattle camps. Pray that I have wisdom and understanding to speak with justice and mercy. I still cannot quite think what I should say. Pray too that these actors might have some influence in mitigating conflict and brining peace. Sometimes it can appear a slow and impossible task.

3) Teacher Thomas
Thomas is one of the Kenyan teachers who volunteered to teach in Marol this year. As he is in the village in South Sudan, he missed his university graduation last week. He was the first to graduate from university in his family. Therefore, missing the ceremony was a great sacrifice for him and his parents. Pray that they know the blessings of this sacrifice and feel at peace with the decision.

4) Safe Travel
I am now starting my journey home to England for a little rest and to do a little academic work (presenting papers at a couple of conferences). I fly to Juba on Monday, Nairobi on Tuesday and England on the night of the 1st July. Please pray that my time in England is renewing and filled with wise decisions directed by God's whisper. There are decisions to be made.

PS. In a slightly more surreal moment, today I played with two baby leopards. Having been mistakenly taken from their mother by soldiers a few days ago and handed to wildlife official, today they were given to a Kenyan in Rumbek to look after. They are too young to survive without feeding. She let me spend a lazy Sunday afternoon assisting her. Sometimes, it is a pleasure to be distracted.

Of the Nuer Speaking Lands

Across the flat, tree-less swamps of southern Unity State and passed the hundreds of happily grazing cows, you stumble across the slight higher lands that allow the settlement of Ganyliel. Just two hours walk from a small port on the Nile, traders fill the market with goods from further afield. In the early evening, the market is also scattered with boys selling the fish they have just caught in the surrounding waters. At about this time of year and until November, when the rains start to pour down on South Sudan, the swamps rise and this higher settlement becomes an island of muddy clay in this vast swamp. They are a population only reached through the water and on boats that come up the Nile. Yet, taken early in the war by the SPLA and due to its proximity to the Nile, Ganyliel grew to be a strategic centre for various battles and populations during the war. Long a pastoralist community, the war-time armament and military training has left a new era of deadly cattle raiding with surrounding communities. Over two dozen people were killed during a raid into a neighbouring state in the couple of weeks I was there.


Pray For:
1) The Cattle-Keepers of Surrounding Ganyliel
Their lives are rich in milk, companionship and the beauty of their landscape and livestock. Yet, the encroaching changes of war-time and peace-time South Sudan seem a burden to them. Many are still dying. Pray for wisdom and understanding of the leaders amongst them and the leaders who have power over them.
2) People Working in Ganyliel During the 1990s and heavy years of fighting, charities and the UN poured into the county surrounding Ganyliel to support its people. They encouraged agriculture, provided basic education and health care. Yet, soon after the peace, with new demands on the charities, almost all of them left. It is a remote and difficult place to work. Yet, it is also an area with much need: there is no secondary school in the county; there is no functioning hospital in the county, with the only health clinics are few clinics; there are only a couple of cars in the county so people cannot access services outside. There is now one charity providing health care for the county, with two foreign workers (a Ugandan and a Kenyan). Pray that they are strong and compassionate for the work ahead.

Further north, as you travel along a more dusty road and through a familiar-looking, Southern Sudanese forest, the road suddenly becomes surrounded with a dense collection of palm trees. They only subside to make way for small homes, tidily fenced with the leaves of the palms. Nyal is another large village in this Nuer-speaking county. Adjacent to a large lake, fish, sugar cane, maize, sorghum, mangoes and groundnuts are eaten in season in this little oasis. It almost seems that God did not deny Nyal anything when he gave fruits to its soil. For the few nights I was there, I would swim in the lake with the children before retreating to the swept and organised home of a local lady for fresh, white, fried fish. Caught that afternoon, it could not have been sweeter. It was a truly beautiful place.

 Pray that one day South Sudan will have the infrastructure for villages like Nyal to share its abundance with surrounding villages and the rest of the land. When you see such an oasis, you wonder how any one in South Sudan can sleep hungry. Yet, to the nearest town is a ten hour drive in a Land Cruiser. There is no way out for the food.

As I Travel to Unity

This is just a quick note, as I travel through the urban sprawl of Rumbek on my way to Unity State. The week has been filled with adventures. There is so much prayer needed for this land and especially for those at the cattle camps who face violence and the fear of it on a daily basis. Yet, I have been grateful to sit with strangers, drink fresh milk, sip warm tea and listen to their stories. It is such a privilege. And I am grateful that I have been kept safe as I travel.

As I type, rain is pouring down and the compound's paths have long been flooded to resemble a large lake. Our long (five or six hour) journey to Unity State tomorrow promises to be full of mud. I would really appreciate your prayers. I am tempted to be tired, but am also aware that it is a true privilege to go to the grazing lands in Unity State and spend time with a people I may never have the chance to meet again. I am sure God can travel with me.

A few hundred miles away, the teachers have safely settled at Marol. Please pray that this new community grows to be a family as fast as it did last year.

Teachers and the Toic

As I write, four Kenyan teachers are waiting for the boarding call in Nairobi's international airport to send them to South Sudan and onto Marol Academy.  The rains have now started, so they will be welcomed by the growing green of the fields.  As the wet season appears, the cattle are starting to return from pasture and the numbers at school swell further as more people return to the drier lands near Marol.

New Teachers
Loice and three new Kenyan teachers (Thomas, Lawrence and Elkana) today fly from Nairobi to South Sudan.  All being well, they will spend their first night in the village tomorrow night (Monday) as the new member of the Marol Family.  Please pray for ease of travel, especially now the rains are heavy and they will be landing on a small airstrip.  Also pray for a strength of spirit as their faith to come is confronted with the challenges of daily life at Marol.  Pray that they quickly become a family and feel at home with Gordon, Joyce and Floyd who are already there.  Yet, most of all, pray that God will use their faith and sacrifice to come to do amazing things amongst that community.

Funding For New Teachers
The Marol Family now includes five volunteer Kenyan teachers.  All straight out of university, they have had little chance to save to fund this service.  Therefore, we are seeking to sponsor them to cover the cost of transport, visas, food and a small incentive to spend on living essentials.  It costs about 2,000 GBP to support a teacher for a year (or about 170 GBP per month).  Some already have sponsorship but we have stepped out in faith to invite the others to Marol, confident that it is God's plan and that he will provide.

The Lakes-Unity Toic
Tomorrow, for a week or so, I will travel to the village of Amok Piny in the toic (grazing lands) between Lakes and Unity States.  It has been the sight of heavy raiding in the past, but I will be there to spend time with the cattle keepers as they return from the furthest reaches of their pastures.  It is the most remote place I have ever spent time (I think) as it sounds a great distance from even one, grass-roofed market stall.  It is a daunting privilege to be able to travel there.  Pray for that my spirit will be strong when I am in this unfamiliar place.  Pray, also, for good weather - it sounds as if, in a few more rains the village will be permanently cut off by road from other settlements.