Day 4

Today was a work day. Heidi helped with some administrative filing/moving duties at the Bible School (sidenote: she has yet to remove her fanny pack.. she evens bathes and sleeps with it.. jk). I went with Bro. Riddick to check-in/over-see a village church building project in the village of Mayuka. It is in the foundation stage which should be complete in a couple days. They will have it ready for church in under a month. They can build a 30'×60' concrete slab/block church, like this one, in 4 weeks +/-. What does it cost to build one like this you may ask?.. $10,000(US dollars).

This evening we went to the Grace of God Orphanage in the village of Bonduma. There we sang and had activities and snacks for the children and Heidi told a bible story/lesson. We were also so blessed to be able to give each of them their very own new bible (many adults don't have the luxury of owning a bible, much-less the children). I wish I could adequately express their reactions.. they were happy happy happy. It is through the giving of some of you, our family (TOP family included) and friends, that this was possible. Thank you again! There are some little children in Bonduma that say thank you! The word of God will change their lives!

Goodnight. Love you.. miss you..

  Mayuka village church build.. true Kingdom servants.

 Grace of God Orphanage in Bonduma. 

 Click on video to view (smartphones).

Day 3

Today we went to Douala.. a big city in the valley with a population of 4-5 million. It has 1 UPCI affiliated church. There we ran errands.. buying supplies/groceries etc. We also ate at a great Chinese restaurant!.. sorry Todd & Ryan (they stayed in Buea for schooling). We also went to the local wood carving market.. amazing. We ended the day back home in Buea grilling chicken under a huge moon.

Tomorrow is a work day. We will be working on building a village church and also the Bible School remodeling project.. they have many projects working at this time. Tomorrow evening, Heidi is teaching at the orphanage.

Wednesday is another work day and we will be ministering at our headquarters church that evening. Thursday we leave for a 4 day trip to Bemenda.. a 6 hour drive towards Nigeria. We will be staying in a Baptist Mission guest house. Love you.. miss you.. - Jeff

Day 2

Our second day has come to a close. Already in 2 days, the things we have witnessed and experienced are amazing.. some are unexplainable, felt only by the Spirit. We will come home changed and with many many stories and testimonies.. and we've only been here 2 days!

This morning we ministered in the village of Mile 16. The beautiful people are so kind, reverent, sincere, and hungry for God. I have no idea of today's attendance.. maybe around 75. There were 5 first time visitors and 3 known received the Holy Ghost! To God be the glory.

Tonight, we traveled a little farther down the mountain to another village for a village church sing-spiration.. they love to sing and dance.. they have very talented musicians also.. it all comes natural. This white boy is learning some new dance moves no doubt!

The Riddicks are pure, passionate, kind, and fun people. They make us feel at home. Tomorrow we will drive 1.5 hours to the city of Douala.. population 4-5 million. We love you.. miss you.. - Jeff

 Butchering a pig over the village stream. They wash in this stream.

Day 1

I type this blog (to be posted later), lying in bed, windows open, listening to long rolls of thunder as a storm moves across this mountain. This is a beautiful place. We did indeed arrive safely (obviously) here in Cameroon. We flew into Douala, a city of 4-5 million, at 3 am. We were greeted by our very gracious host Missionaries Rusty and Adriane Riddick. We are staying here on their beautiful property in Buea.. in their lovely guest house. We feel safe and very much at home.

Buea is a city of 400k, set on Mount Cameroon looking over the Atlantic ocean. Buea is also headquarters of the UPCI of Cameroon. Today, we visited headquarters.. the church and bible college are in a remodeling stage but are beautiful and will be even more so when complete. Also, today we drove and took in some of the many many beautiful people, sights, sounds, and smells in some of the villages along this region. My fav was lunch by the ocean in Limbe, a fishing village on the Atlantic.. different, wonderful food. The water is clear, the sand is black.. due to Mount Cameroon being a volcano.

The Riddicks and their 3 sons Todd, Ryan, and lil' Gentry are wonderful host and we are having a wonderful time. It's 3am as I type this and there is a rooster crowing up the mountain.. dumb rooster. I am to preach this morning in the village of Mile 16.. yep.. the village is located at mile marker 16 along a route. I know Jesus will be there. We will keep you updated as we can. Love you.. miss you.. - Jeff

 Heidi and the Riddicks in Limbe.

 The Bible College.

   Buea, Cameroon

 

The Atlantic Ocean in Limbe.

The Riddicks home.

The guest house (our crib).

 

Headquarters church.

Bye.. we love you!

Bye.. we love you! Thank you for your prayers (keep em comin!), support, kindness, and love. We will miss you all.

Today's itinerary is: Raleigh to Chicago (2 hour flight), Chicago to Istanbul (11 hour flight), Istanbul to Douala (9 hour flight).. for a total of 22 hours in flight time.

Follow our flight plans at Flight Aware: Chicago to Istanbul: http://flightaware.com/live/flight/THY6, Istanbul to Douala, Cameroon: http://flightaware.com/live/flight/THY669

We'll be home for Christmas! - Jeff & Heidi

Yikes.. tomorrow we leave!

Yikes.. tomorrow we leave! Today was our last day on our jobs. We have finally started our packing process.. we haven't procrastinated.. just haven't had the time!

I will pack enough clothes and items for 10 days, seeing that there is a washer and dryer in the Riddicks home.. providing they have water and power (resource availability can be sporadic). As for Heidi, I think she plans to pack the whole house! We will pack in 4 rubbermaid footlockers.. they are strong and hopefully secure enough to protect our belongings. They will be padlocked, ziptied, and ducktaped! I will pack in 1, Heidi in 2, and 1 for Missionary supplies. They each must be under 50lbs. Each of us will also have two carry-ons.. with our most important items in case our luggage is "misplaced".. which sometimes happens. 

Tonight, we are reminded that we are so so blessed with such wonderful family (church family included) and friends! Such kindness, support, and love for us.. to you all, we love you! I will post tomorrow before we board.. as for now, back to packing. - Jeff

Cameroon prep

Sent off our applications for our visa's... also, all but one more vaccinations are complete. - Jeff