This morning we had the great joy of worshipping at Equa Seminary Church that is located at a seminary called JETS. We enjoyed singing some loud (by American standards) praise songs. We got to hear from a Nigerian missionary to the country of Niger (just to the North).

I was impressed by the beauty of missions being carried out by peoples and nations all over the world. It was a powerful reminder that should the Lord tarry, He does not need American efforts to build His Kingdom. Rather, we are graciously employed by our Master to join Him in His work.

Rachel's pastor preached a message from Habakkuk 2:2-3. I was so encouraged to hear him faithfully exegete the passage and seek to apply it to his congregation. It was interesting to observe how principles of truth can have unique implications when applied to other cultural contexts.

Following a light lunch, we traveled to spend the afternoon with a family that Rachel calls her "Nigerian family." They hosted her in their home during her internship. The mother's name was Florence. Evan thrilled her little boys when he gave them a soccer ball as a gift. Florence's husband Yohanna was away on a trip to Abuja. We are going to meet him this week.

It was so encouraging to talk with Florence about the Lord. She was clearly a woman of faith and a woman of prayer. Evan asked her about how she came to be married to her husband and this led to a number of stories where the Lord had proven His loving kindness to her. One story in particular was when He changed her heart towards Yohanna who had pursued her, but unsuccessfully. That was before she started to pray about it. She shared about how grateful she was that God had changed her heart, because Yohanna has been such a good man and husband to her.

This evening we relaxed with Rachel while she made soup for us. Evan has been doing a great job of asking questions about missions and about ministry in general. It is encouraging to see God teaching him about these things.

Right before dinner, a tailor came over to take our measurements so that we might have a suit ready to take with us to Kabucha (We are hoping to wear these suits to church on Sunday). The man was a believer, and he shared that his mother had passed from cancer just this morning. God really used Evan to minister to this man and pray for him. Our time with Gideon, the tailor, led us (Rachel, Evan, and I) to a discussion about how death often seems so far away from our minds in America. Yet it is something that people in Nigeria are confronted with on a daily basis.

The end of our evening- even as I write- we hanging out with Rachel's former roommate Bridget and her new husband. They spoiled us with chocolate chip cookies and some great conversation. Everyone but me (Jimmy) is playing Mario Cart. Don't worry. I'm not jealous. I'm not that much of a video game person!

-Jimmy