August 1st, 2008

Yesterday afternoon we went to the river. Along with the children, some played king of the mountain, did back flips off the branches that were out over the water and jumped off the cliff. In the shallower waters the children had created a world of inflatable toys, splashing and laughing.

We started off this morning with a trip to the open air market to attempt to purchase one weeks worth of food (Five pounds each of rice, beans and sugar, 1 litter of oil, and a bar of soap) for a family of five. Our translators were informing us that we were only able to purchase approximately one third of the items for the same amount of money this year compared to last year due to inflation.

In the afternoon we accompanied the Verbo Ministry to the local jail. It is hard to put into words what each of us experienced while there. We had a time of praise and worship singing, prayer and an invitation to salvation was offered. James, Pastor Tom and Pastor John shared moving testimonies with the inmates. Blanche distributed Gideon Bibles to all the inmates who seemed to really receive the message and the outreach with open hearts. We then helped the Verbo Ministry distribute food.