Yesterday we had a BRICC get-together to welcome some new members of the team.
The first to arrive was Josh, an accountant from the UK.  The word accountant produces all sorts of images but being out on the mission field is not one of them.  Josh is a Godsend.  He's making sense of the BRICC "accounts" and setting up a system that should keep us straight once he leaves in June.  He and his doctor wife Hannah have been highly welcome and extremely useful so don't despair if you're an accountant, God could have a place for you overseas bringing hope to poor missionaries who need hand-holding through financial systems.
Jeremy and Katie arrived in Jos from the US last week and will stay until July.  He's a musician who's also worked as a barista, she has experience in counselling so I'm hoping for a BRICC coffee shop with musical interludes.   One of the good things about BRICC is that there's a place for everyone, it's just a matter of identifying it.
Finally there was Esther, a Nigerian lady who's going to be the BRICC book-keeper, trained by Josh to keep us all in order.  I don't envy her at all!

Opportunities

In Nigeria any time can be church time. I think I've already mentioned the dedication of  the preachers near TCNN who switch on their loudspeakers at 4am to ensure that everyone has a holy start to the day. This morning an enterprising person spotted a gap in the market. He knew that what Bukuru really needed was a service that started at 1am and he was the man to provide it. How thankful I am that such people have easy access to microphones and amplifying equipment.

I'm truly thankful and humbled by the way that God is using Toby and me to spread the message of InReach. It's the original and basic message of the Bible - God is love and Jesus commands us to live out his love to others, pointing them towards him as we do so. Simple but not always easy. This week we finished our six weeks with the pastors, completed week five with a small group of Bible college students in Kagoro and were challenged and honoured to go through the whole thing in five hours for a group of Nigeria workers who are returning to the northern city of Kano this weekend.  I'm busy trying to get our InReach guidebook ready for printing. Every group has been asking for materials to help them start their own conversations. If every Christian was more concerned with showing God's love than condemning those who are different the world would be turned upside down as Jesus meant it to be.

Hallelujah, le keke est arrivé!

About a year ago BRICC was given a donation to buy a second keke.  After excuses, broken promises and finally police involvement we got our hands on it today.

Soon it'll be joining the swarm of kekes already buzzing round Jos, driven this time by a Muslim and bringing in much needed funds to BRICC's programmes.