What is trucker ministry? A question my team asked a lot before coming into our first month in Abidjan. We kind of had an idea, but we had no idea what we were getting ourselves into. After our first day of ministry and many to follow we were soon to find out. Every Friday we go out and meet new men, and on other days we go out and do follow ups with them. Our team, and a group of 5-6 members of the church go out to our port, to find truck drivers to talk too. We begin the conversation by getting to know them, talking about their job, family etc. After getting to know them, we transition into talking about religion. We ask if they are Muslim or Christian. From there we continue the conversation on, asking them about their faith why they believe what they believe etc. We then tell them about Christianity, what we believe and encourage them to ask questions.
Ministering to Muslim men, is not an easy task. Many who accept Christ, are shunned from their family, and if the man is an apprentice, their boss could fire them for being Christian. Many men are stubborn in their faith, and know how to defend their faith with verses from the Bible saying Jesus and God are one, saying their God Allah and Jesus are the same. It can be discouraging when men don’t want to listen, or don’t want to listen. But on average it takes someone 7 times to hear the Gospel before accepting Christ.
Even though ministering in tough, God has been shown in so many ways. Some men have been approaching us to talk. Others have been willing to translate French to Bumbara so their friends could understand and hear as well. We have been leaving many who will think about what we talk about and some even accept Christ!
The goal of Trucker ministry is to share the Gospel with the men and convert them to Christianity so they can carry the message with them to their countries, surrounding Cote d’Ivoire. Our goal on the race, is to help encourage the members of our congregation and ministry hosts to continue their ministry when we leave.
Please keep Abidjan, the congregation, and ministry hosts in your prayers as we go out to evangelize to the men.
Oh, and what’s in the tea? The men are so hospitable when we visit their trucks. They offer their chairs, mats, and beds to sit on, while they sit on buckets. Sometimes they will offer us tea when we are talking. What is in the tea? We have no idea. They boil the herbs, and then filter/mix it numerous times in their little kettle and shot glass. They then share it with us.
