Several days back, Pastor Al told us that the work on the soccer field was temporarily suspended. Though the owner of the land gave permission for the soccer field, the caretaker of the land had gone in and made a complaint that we had cleared out some banana trees that he had planted. The most frustrating part was that Pastor saw the caretaker watching us the very first day as we began clearing out the field, so we know that he is simply being difficult.
On Sunday morning, as we walked up to church, we unexpectedly encountered a newly built barb-wire fence, blocking the road to the church. We were able to squeeze around the end to make our way to church, but by the end of Sunday, the fence was extended up the mountain and made it impossible to pass by.
The short form of a long story is that the owner of the land was trying to force Pastor Al to buy the land from him for three times the value and blocked the part of the road that crossed his property. It seemed as though oppression to stop the ministry at hand was coming from all sides. The road was used daily to reach the ministry center and until a new road was built, we were forced to suspend the basketball tournament as well.
Even though many of us were infuriated regarding the situation, Pastor Al calmly told us all that was happening was good. As a result of the fence, Pastor Al and the ministry was receiving much sympathy from local leaders. He calmly told us that we needed to build a road up and around the mountain; not only would this benefit the ministry to have a road on their own land, but it would give access to people on the other side of the mountain in reaching the ministry center much easier.
The fence blocking the ministry center
So even though the work on the soccer field was stopped, it allowed us to focus our attention on a much greater and immediate need that arose. We have now cut our way through the thick forest and have built about half a kilometer worth of road. We will still be working a bit longer while we are here, but there is now access to the ministry center.
God is continuing to show me how my awareness of a situation is limited to His greater plan. He is always in control and I simply need to rely on Him in faith and trust in Him. Also, the response of Pastor Al and the people here when facing adversity has been an incredible encouragement and model for me in my life.
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The Road
