Ramadan Routine

It’s 4:30 am and the kids are running through the streets banging pots and pans (I’m not sure I even knew what that was until someone asked me yesterday “Do the kids bang with pots and pans at your gate?”). It’s Ramadan so this is the start of my day. Just in case, I am able to sleep through the pots routine the loud speakers at the little mosque next door are set extra loud for this month of fasting and they will begin to blare in about half an hour. I am a morning person so I wouldn’t find this too bad except for the fact that the mosque has had extra preaching at night to coincide with this (think blaring loud speakers for at least an hour at 11pm usually in Arabic). Unlike my neighbours, I haven’t been able to have the afternoon nap that allows most of them to keep these hours. It has just been too busy a week, but maybe this weekend.

I have been trying to see the call to prayer that is extra loud right now as a reminder to pray that God would reveal Himself to those that are genuinely seeking Him during this month of fasting from sun up to sun down. Will you pray for that with me? Pray that the Holy Spirit will be at work in dreams and visions and divine appointments, especially through this month that is set aside to focus on God for the Muslim people. Pray that despite the lack of sleep the love of Jesus would shine through us in all that we do. Please also pray for a friend that I am meeting with on a regular basis to talk about Jesus. She is hungry to know about Jesus and has lots of questions. My struggle is that she speaks French and Hausa and I know limited French and limited Zarma. I just trust that God is at work filling in the gaps and leading the discussion.

Please also pray for the boys school. The math teacher has been delayed because of finances and is waiting for his visa from the embassy in the US. Dave has been trying to cover 3 classes for him, but will have to give it up at the end of this week because it is interfering too much with what we are here to do. There is also a problem with the music teacher getting enough finances to return this year and needs for a book keeper and a P.E. teacher.

Oh here goes the loud speakers…