Greetings, the following is an update from Nathan Miller, a member here at LifePoint who just returned from many months abroad serving in missions. Nathan served first in Cameroon, and then moved to Chad to complete his time overseas. Here are a few highlights from his trip:
During my stay in Chad, I worked with the International Aid Services (IAS) drilling team. We completed four wells in small villages outside the cities of Abeche and Hadjer Hadeed in eastern Chad. The work was tedious and slow at times; the days were long and hot. However, the moment of striking water always induced a joyful celebration. One of my teammates would even bring a bar of soap to the drill site to take a quick bath as water sprayed from the borehole!
Evenings were especially slow, as sunset was around 6 pm, and my teammates would quiet down for the night around 7:30. This was a much different pace of life than what I was accustomed to in college, and the extra space for quiet contemplation and prayer led to some sweet time of communion with God, especially in praying through the Psalms. Yet it wasn’t all spiritual euphoria, as I constantly had to fight boredom and apathy in learning Arabic.
On the first drilling team, two of my three teammates spoke English, so I was never forced to wholly rely on Arabic. That was not the case with Abiner, the best friend I made while living in Chad. He was incredibly patient with me as we chatted in Arabic (with a good amount of messy French thrown in), even performing charades to ensure I was understanding his intended meaning. Abiner consistently exhibited amazing hospitality, inviting me to his home, showing me where to buy gifts for friends, and making sure I was staying relatively safe as we ventured around the city.
I finished up my last two weeks of work in Chad in Dourbali, about 60 miles outside of N’Djamena. Abiner accompanied me in a taxi, where I became great friends with our driver. In true African style, the driver called me three times later that week just to say hello and see how I was doing. The first week was spent with some American workers involved in education, teaching English, and well-drilling. I was blessed by hearing their experiences in Chad and bounced some ideas off them regarding my future plans. These families have several young kids, so my week was also filled with wrestling matches, coloring books, swings, and catching lizards. IAS has a massive slate of work scheduled in Dourbali for the next several years, and before I met up with their drilling team, I was able to stay with the Chadian pastor who is the regional liaison for the project. He owns a farm outside the city, complete with goats, ducks, and a very mean turkey, where he trains Chadians to share the Gospel in the surrounding villages in conjunction with the drilling projects. Sitting out under the stars on his farm, Moussa shared his incredible heart for the spread of the gospel and his joy in training others for effective work. You can read more about his story at https://neverthirstwater.org/blogs/news/the-unlikely-missionary-to-nomads.
Finally, I met up with the IAS drilling team in a village outside Dourbali. The highlight of the week was spending time with Amjad, one of the drillers. He speaks fantastic English, especially considering he learned from watching American TV shows, and was a huge help in my language learning. I was encouraged by his zeal for evangelism, as he engages lost villagers and teammates with the Gospel frequently. We would sit around sharing our favorite Bible stories, particularly Jesus’ claims to divinity, Amjad helping me understand Arabic, and I helping him in English. We also found a snake under his mattress! Fortunately, it was squished when he sat on it, so we tossed it out to the chickens.
Nearing my scheduled departure date, I received a message one evening from my country supervisor, Amanda. Armed rebel groups were massing in northern Chad in response to the recent presidential election in early April, and she thought it would be wise for me to head back to N’Djamena and get home to the US sooner rather than later. The next morning, I said goodbye to Moussa and the drilling team, got in a taxi, and sped back to the capital.
I left Chad on April 23rd. While I flew out unscathed, I left many friends behind, including Abiner, Amjad, Moussa, and their families. They are facing an uncertain future and still live in one of the poorest countries on earth, ranked 187 out of 189 by the United Nations development index. While things have been more stable in recent weeks, it remains to be seen what the future governance of Chad will look like. Please join me in prayer for this nation, where access to water, education, and the gospel remain unbearably low.
After some time in concentrated prayer, I have decided to forgo my previous plan of entering grad school this fall and instead pursue internships with some development-oriented missions organizations in the coming year. I am hoping to gain experience working on multinational projects, deepen my Biblical understanding, develop my language skills, and continue to pursue God’s call on my life to serve the unreached poor and bring them the gospel.
In 1 Corinthians 4:7, Paul reminds the church of the grace that has been shown to them, and the humble gratitude with which they ought to respond: “What do you have that you did not receive? If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it?” This verse has been consistently on my mind as I see all the advantages, support, and opportunities I have been given. I am grateful to the Lord for giving me an incredible, stretching experience that I hope will springboard me into future work. I owe so much to my family, to World Team and their leadership, and to IAS. I think fondly of the many new friends I was able to make along the way, and I am humbled by the encouragement I received from so many in the US, whose prayers and financial support provided for my needs. I, like the Corinthain church, have received so much, and I am undeserving of it all.