Lugajole is an isolated village with a growing congregation of Fulas who follow the Lord Jesus, living among only Fula people.  In 2009, the rainy season did not begin in May as usual.  People in the area around Lugajole were so concerned that the leaders decided to meet at the mosque in Beli to pray for rain on Friday.  The believers in Lugajole heard about this on Thursday and called those following Jesus to pray.  They prayed during the afternoon and into the evening.  The Lord sent a great downpour and the dry roads became so muddy that traffic could not pass.  The Muslim prayer meeting on Friday was called off.  The believers were delighted and boldly went out to tell everyone that their God had sent the needed rain.

During the rainy season a number of young adults, some families and many teenagers, after seeing the lifestyle and knowing those who followed Jesus for some years, decided that they too wanted this God who answered prayer, sent rain and gave a good harvest to those who worshipped Him.

After the rainy season had ended and the river subsided enough for the ferry to cross, the believers felt a real need for fellowship with others.  They met together and prayed for the Lord to send others.  About an hour later, a car with several believers arrived to see the reality of the Lord building His church in this isolated place and to hear from the brothers and sisters there the wonderful answer to prayer.

 Peace in the Lord, tribulation in the world

 "I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world." Jn 16:33

Evangelist Giro Gomes was deeply impacted by these words on the morning of August 8 and they continued to speak to him as he went about his morning activities.  He knew that the Lord was preparing him for something.  Mid morning he received a telephone call that his daughter had been taken to the hospital after a branch from a very high tree had fallen and hit her on the way to the local market.  Within 20 minutes, she was with theLord and her body was taken to the house (as is the custom here).

Paulina was only 25, not yet married, and involved in serving the Lord.  Paulina was walking with two friends who were completely untouched, physically, by the falling branch, but certainly troubled emotionally as to why Paulina's time here had ended so unexpectedly.  In accordance with the law, Paulina was buried next morning.  The church was filled and hundreds of believers were outside unable to enter.  Hundreds of not yet elievers, were also waiting outside the house for the burial.  A very clear Gospel was presented, the non believers were all challenged to consider their relationship with the Lord.

For several days after the burial, people kept coming to grieve and to console the family at their loss.  Giro was not one to miss an opportunity.  He showed people photographsof his daughter and talked about her being with the Lord and shared the Good News with those who have not yet repented and accepted the Lord Jesus.

Healing in the name of Jesus

Ansumane is a down to earth man.  When he was a boy and began school, the teacher was sick for most of the year so he only had a teacher  for two months of first year.  The next year there was no teacher.  Later, he heard the Gospel and received the Lord Jesus.  As a believer he had a hunger for theWord and learned to read from an elder in the church.  As the only believer in his village, he had a burden to share the Good News with his relatives who were lost.

It was a privilege to disciple him and he was keen to evangelize and disciple new belevers.  Slowly, he saw the Lord releasing people from captivity and the believers growing in number.  When the believers who were mostly children, teenagers with a few adults reached twenty, he had a vision to build a building in their village and he did.  The believers built it with their own labour and local resources.  In 2007 the church had over thirty beliievers.  Last week he came to visit and I asked about the church.  There were seventy believers, but some of them were visitors.

He was keen to share about the various people who had been saved in the past few months.  At Christmas 2008 he participated in the evangelistic campaign of the mother church and preached the Gospel on the local radio station.  At one point he felt burdened for the many peole suffering from sicknesses and said, "If you are sick or injured, put your hand an that place and I'll pray in the name of Jesus for healing."  One of the listeners was the local witch doctor who had recently been diagnosed with cancer and told that he would not have long to live.  Of course, he had tried both medical doctors and all the powers of darkness, but felt condemned.  Hearing the radio and knowing Ansumane, he put his hand on the place and was healed instantly.  When he told Ansumane, as did several people, Ansumane responded that he knew that only the Lord Jesus could heal him and now he had to repent of his sins and turn to the Lord becoming a follower of Him.  The witch doctor is not quite ready, but the Lord is obviously working in his life.  A number of people were healed and have become followers of Jesus.  Ansumane is discipling them.  He is meeting some problems and finding the Lord's solution.

The Lord is building His church.  What a privilege to be part of what He is doing!