Fish, fish and more fish!

Life in Brigitte Village is simple. There are no televisions. No internet. No running water or electricity in most homes. There's maybe an occasional cell phone signal. 


Unlike in the city (Freetown), there is an obvious lack of resources and organizations that offer handouts. The people here, they have historically taken care of one another. "The people in the village, they work hard because if you don't work hard, you don't eat," said Paula Miller, missionary with Lifegate International.


Unemployment is high. Very high. Those who do work probably don't earn a living wage. They might be happy with the equivalent of one American dollar per day. That, of course, leads to other challenges -- including lack of transportation, inability to pay the small fee to send children to school and absence of general healthcare. 


It's not for lack of trying. There is certainly the bustle of business activity here. 


Some women walk miles alongside the main highway that divides Brigitte Village, selling homemade items or more than likely fish, to neighboring villages that are scattered every few miles on this modern road where motorcycles offer inexpensive rides and an occasional truck or car passes by. Some women spend all day walking and selling, leaving their children behind in the village to attend school or be cared for by neighbors. 


Fish is the main commodity in Brigitte Village. It's the sole income provider for numerous families. Men go out daily in fishing boats, many without motors, and bring in their catches to the beach where other men and women negotiate for their purchase. The fish are then often smoked and resold or simply resold in neighboring villages.

Fish drying out on the side of the highway.

Fish laid out in a smoke house.

A woman with a few fish in her tub is waiting for another boat of fishermen to come ashore so she can buy more fish.

Young men mend nets on the beach.

Oftentimes, the fishing boats have no motor. 

But there's also the concern for overfishing, something that is of great concern to the village chief, as more fishermen have smaller and smaller catches. Not only would the depletion of fish be bad for the local economy, it could have social and nutritional consequences, too. 


Like the deforestation occurring in this area, there doesn't seem to be a solution. "Even though the government tries to stop these woodcutters, they turn a blind eye on it because it's their way of life," noted Pastor Justus Koroma. 


That's why Lifegate is working alongside the village chief to create more opportunities for other types of reliable income, for more jobs for Brigitte. Will you pray that the Bible Telling School can offer HOPE in this way? Will you pray about the issue of overfishing in Brigitte Village? 

Women in Action: Rooted in Jesus

It's time for me to brag! What luck that the Sunday I visited Sierra Leone was "Women in Action" day -- a service planned by and led by women. And girls. (Grace and Faith even got in on the action.)


Today I want to write about Paula, though. She is amazing, patient, kind, intelligent, loving, obedient and humble. She might not like that this post is about her, but today -- as I had a very long talk with another Christian sister -- I was reminded that women NEED one another. 


At least in American culture, society tells us other women are our competitors, our rivals. Co-workers are conspiring to take our jobs, neighbors are conspiring to take our husbands and other women are generally "the enemy."


These messages are not of God. God doesn't even want us to tear down our enemies.


This morning, I heard my children saying they "felt sorry" for a girl in drama camp who can't snap or whistle and has stage fright. It was time for a chat! We talked about how a little encouragement can go a long way, and maybe she'd only been given criticism instead of positive support. And we all know what that does to a person!


Let's be honest, we need to feed each other -- not just our sister Christians, but especially our sister Christians -- with encouragement. We need to offer them love and support. We need to hold them up and hold them accountable. 


I love the analogy in Paula Miller's message to the women in Brigitte Village, where tall palm trees welcome visitors from the hill side and stand proud above this small community. 


We could all do well to compare our own faith to that of a tree. We must pay close attention to our roots if we want to stand tall as Christian women! 


Please listen in to Paula's encouraging words and leave her a note in the comments! Encourage your sister Christian!

Meet Isatu

This is Isatu Bangura.

She is not from Brigitte Village but moved here when she got married and her husband brought her here. They were both Muslim at that time. 


Not long ago, Isatu's father passed away. Pastor Justus Koroma heard about her suffering. He counseled her in her grief and offered her encouragement. She accepted Christ and began attending the church in Brigitte Village about six months ago. It's a decision her husband is still struggling with. 


Please pray for Isatu...that her faith would grow and that her husband will see God through her and that he would also accept Christ. 

The Bible Telling School

The Bible Telling School in and around Brigette village is not new. In fact, this method of evangelizing isn't even new. 


What is new is the completion of the structure where the school can now grow and flourish. The Bible Telling School method as brought to Sierra Leone by Rick and Paula Miller officially began in 2011. They train the three teachers in the method, and those three teachers take the stories and train people who are reaching more than 25 villages -- in the tribal languages. The classrooms for the accompanying trade school are nearly completed. In the trade classes, people will learn a trade so they can support themselves. These trade classes are specifically for the people going through the Bible Telling School, so they can support themselves. 


"It is our hope that we will have folks come from surrounding villages, be trained in this comprehensive program and go back to their villages and be missionaries there -- carriers of the God story, while able to sustain themselves through their trade," said Rick Miller. 


The vision for the campus is that the two classrooms will expand to include more classrooms, plus workshops and a dormitory for those who cannot afford the money or time required to travel to Brigette for school. 


Research shows that people receive a superior education if it includes listening and learning to tell stories. Bible telling is the rebirth of an ancient craft in Africa, which is one of many reasons it's already been so successful in Sierra Leone. Additionally, not everyone can afford a Bible. And Bibles aren't even printed in most of the tribal languages. Much of the population is illiterate. Because so many are Muslim, there's also a fear of being seen going inside the Christian Church. Taking Bible stories out into homes in the communities is working to reach those people, and the Gospel is spreading in West Africa!


Do you have a heart for this project? Click HERE for information on how you can help!


Here are some photos of the school under construction. 

Bricks are made from the red earth around the village and sealed into place with cement mortar. 

This is how the bricks are transported up the school to the classroom site. 

Rick Miller and Frank J. Williams, director of Lifegate's Children's Redemption Orphanage Home, check out the progress at the Bible Telling School. 

The view is breath-taking from the site of the Bible Telling School. It is constructed into the hill overlooking Brigitte Village. 

Please pray for the school, the teachers, the students, the expansion of the campus and vision.