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Today's phrase of the day was, "Wait, what day is it?" It's hard to believe that we have already been in Togo for three full days. So much has happened, yet it still feels like time is flying by. Our days have been full of questions, observations, laughs, and connections. It's evident that God is working in the hearts and minds of everyone on the team as they process what they are experiencing.
Sunday was our church day. We split into three groups to visit three different churches: The Solution, Grace, and The Way. Each location had it's own unique personality.
The Solution is the second brick and mortar church planted by 6 Degree. This church is VERY charismatic and full of energy. The session was filled with several worship songs and even a performance by the choir. Our team members even go to sing along in English as they sang "How Great Thou Art" and the ever so famous camp song - "I am a C....I am a C-H....I am a C-H-R-I-S-T-I-A-N." Peter even go the opportunity to encourage the congregation (as seen below)!
The Way Church is the newest church that currently consists of palms trees and benches. This property was recently purchased and construction will begin soon. This location is definitely the most rural as it is about 30 minutes out of town and down a dirt road. The commitment level of those who attend is inspiring as they bring their own benches to church, often carrying them on their heads. Our team members were humbled by the dedication the Togolese people had for attending church. Fun fact- there were over 60 kids at the church service and the young leaders leading them did an incredible job applying what we saw them get trained on a few days prior.
Grace church is warm and inviting. Our team members enjoyed the message they received about our gifts from God and the fruits of the Spirit. In the kid's ministry area, our team got to a little bit of the deaf ministry in action. Dosay is a young boy who lives in the village who was born deaf. Due to a lack of resources, he hasn't had much education or discipline. The church is the first place where people prioritized his learning. He is currently working to learn sign language with Azlyn, a member of the 6 Degree team. The sign language used in Togo is the English alphabet with french sentence structure and phrases. Join us in praying for him as he continues his journey of learning to communicate through sign language!
Following church, we went to a local Togolese restaurant with the 6 Degree team. Aneho, the city we are in, is right on the coast (as well as a lake) and the restaurant we went to was right on the beach. We enjoyed local fish and sides of plantains, yams, and potatoes to name a few! Following lunch, we went to the local supermarket to pick up a few things for dinner as well as ice-cream bars. :)
It was a very life giving day. We were reminded of how incredible it is that the same God we worship in Mesa, AZ is the same God they worship in Togo. Worshipping with others in multiple language is just a small glimpse into what Heaven will be like one day. We were inspired by the way churches have been planted in Togo- through the complete empowerment of the local people who are leaders raising leaders with a passion for sharing how God has changed their lives. What we witnessed today is greater than an international experience- it is a global mission and a gospel movement.
Today started out with a trip to the 6 Degree Vocational Training Center and guesthouse. In 2019 a team from One Life stood on that empty land and prayed over it before the team even purchased it- asking God for the land and to use it to advance his kingdom. 3 years later, the vocational training center is almost complete and the guest house is about halfway done. The guest house will be used to accommodate teams and trainers that visit. The vocational training center will be used to teach the Togolese people a specific skills or crafts that they can use to earn a living while advancing the gospel. Check out this blurb from the 6 Degree website as to the heart and purpose behind it:"We often have disciples who would gladly relocate to another people group for the sake of propelling the gospel forward, but they don’t have the financial means to do so. In working to plant churches among unreached people groups, we need to be able to send bi-vocational church planters and teams into other locations. This vocational training school will focus on discipleship, skills, marketing, and money management." The training center will truly allow development and empowerment of the local people to advance their life and the gospel.
Midmorning we went out to The Solution Church to help out some of the members of their church with a construction project. They recently expanded and needed to add more roofing as well as paint the new walls/beams. There were some delays in the morning with materials so we used that time to pick up trash and interact with the local kids on their lunch break. One of the kids spoke some english so we enjoyed our time asking basic questions and coming up with fun handshakes.
We went back in the afternoon where we worked on getting the first coat of the paint on the walls and continued to help with campus clean up. Once again the kids stopped by for a bit after school, bringing so much joy and laughter with them. Several of the women from the church cooked us a meal as a token of their gratitude- spaghetti and a boiled egg...our compliments and appreciation to the chef! Though painting a wall might not seem like a big deal, they will be using that wall to project videos that share the gospel with the community. We pray that it opens the door for incredible conversations and decisions for Christ.
In our down time today, the team spent a significant amount of time continuing to ask questions about the people, culture, and ministry here in Togo. They were challenged to think about what it would look like in their life to share the gospel as boldly and faithfully as the people here. What would it look like if everyone shared their faith story with one person? What would it look like to mentor someone in their faith and raise them up to be a leader? How do we take reaching "one more life for Jesus"personally? How does God want to use us and our specific skills to advance His kingdom?
As we continue on this week, please be praying that our team sees through God's eyes, hears the Holy Spirit, and commits to acting on what they hear from Him.