The Villages of Ziga

The tiny bike path we followed seemed to wind on forever, especially since the landscape didn’t vary. The rocky, sandy terrain, and especially the small knobby bushes were pretty hard on my little pickup’s tires and I worried since I had 400 presents in  the back weighing me down.  But we finally began to see kids pointing toward us calling out “nassara, nassara!” (white person) and we knew we were close. Sure enough, just a head we saw some of the houses: small mud-brick buildings, the metal roofs gleaming in the hot sun, and a bit further, the small school. This village is called Soubeira, and the population is 80% Muslim. As we pull up, we see the fathers and the village elders wearing the traditional Muslim clothes: the long “boo-boo” and the small woven cap. We setup, perform the Gospel drama and present the Good News about Jesus. For nearly everyone there, this is the first time they are hearing about Jesus in a way they can really understand. The children are in wonder at the drama and are nodding their heads during the Gospel message. When asked, nearly all raise their hands to receive Jesus as Lord. The Muslim parents look pensive, their eyebrows furrowed. We distribute the gifts to all the children amidst wild cheers and joy. We thank the school directors for receiving us and pack up our stuff. But before we leave, one of the elders approaches us and says, “We did not realize that this is what Christianity is. No one had ever told us. Since we have now seen and heard it for ourselves, we will no longer stop our children from receiving Jesus. They are now free to become Christian.”

Great work for reaching children for Jesus in Burkina Faso is still going on. For more information on this great ministry, visit www.hayslips.com.