June 2004 MNK Update

07 Dec 2007

  June 2004

Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life.  He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die.  Do you believe this?” – John 11:25

This little boy lost his mother on Friday, May 28, 2004.  His mother died following complications of a stillborn delivery of his baby sister.  He has two older sisters, and a father, many aunts and uncles, many cousins, and a grandmother.  But his mother is gone. 

This June Update was to focus on the male side of MNK society; instead, we will look at the grieving and funeral process MNK men, women and children endure throughout life.

Thursday morning, Fatou didn’t go to work.  She believed she was in the early stages of labor and stayed close to home; this was her 5th pregnancy; she had 3 living children.  She told very few people of her condition on Thursday; she told her husband…he wanted to know why she didn’t go to work.  She told her sisters and her mother…they would generally keep an eye on her throughout the day.  She had recently started taking medication for high blood pressure.  Still she cooked breakfast and lunch, washed clothes, swept the house, and maintained herself as an MNK woman.

Friday morning, around 4:30AM, Fatou delivered a stillborn daughter, and collapsed.  She appeared dead.  She was taken to the local hospital (clinic) by her husband and admitted.  Sometime before 11:00AM, a doctor came to check on her, but no immediate care was given.  Fatou was dehydrated as well as having lost much blood in the delivery.  She died around 1:00 PM. 

God will wipe every tear from their eyes.  There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away. – Revelation 21:4

The MNK way to grieve a death is to wail and scream…it doesn’t matter if you are an adult or a child or a man or a woman.  Fatou’s husband was wailing; Fatou’s sisters and brothers were wailing; Fatou’s mother was wailing.  Her oldest daughter was throwing her arms around and punching herself, exclaiming, “Where’s my mother?  Where’s my mother?”  Every woman who walked into that compound Friday afternoon literally threw herself onto the floor of Fatou’s house at her husband’s feet and began screaming.  As one woman threw herself down with a baby on her back, another woman came in and threw herself on top of the baby.  It was a chaotic, desperate sight to be sure.   

As the day moved on, literally hundreds of people came in and out of the compound.  Women came in droves, and after the initial emotional outburst, most sat quietly sobbing, waiting.  Soon, some women began the process of pounding rice into a powder, adding sugar and a small amount of water to make muunkoo, the traditional gift given to those who attend funerals, weddings, and naming ceremonies.  At least, 100 men were on hand to pray for Fatou and see her properly buried in the Islamic tradition.

Grief?  Absolutely.  Sadness?  Indisputable. Fear?  Unquestionably!  Abject hopelessness?  Of course.  Dealing with untimely death is difficult at best, even for believers.  But for MNK men and women, who live in a world without spiritual hope, it is nearly unbearable.  Their uninhibited expressions of grief, their unabashed show of emotions, allow them to express their personal fears through the guise of grief.  They are truly sad, and they are truly hounded by insecurity.

As I sat with these women, dealing with my own grief and the loss of my friend, I was reminded at how similar we are as women on earth, and yet how separated we will be in eternity.  I had prayed at Fatou’s bedside just a few short hours earlier as she lay dying in the hospital.  I prayed with her mother and her sisters and her daughter as they screamed and wailed in my arms.  I prayed for her husband as my husband sat with one arm around this Muslim man’s shoulder and another on his knee…he had lost not only a daughter that day, but his wife as well.  What words of comfort are there?   

Jesus said, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” – Matthew 11:28  Now those are words of comfort!

Fatou was not raised as a Muslim.  Her father was a Catholic and raised his children in the Catholic faith.  But when she married her husband, she was required to repent and become a Muslim.  But what did she really believe?  She would never say.  Fatou heard the Gospel many times, in many different forms.  She had listened to all 100 chronological Bible stories on tape…she heard the Gospel related to her during informal times of chatting…she heard Scripture read to her every week.  Did she ever find the rest Jesus spoke of in Matthew’s gospel?  I don’t know. 

From all appearances, the words of Joel describe the MNK…Surely the joy of mankind is withered away. – Joel 1:12  But just a few short verses later God reveals His deepest desire for all mankind…Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. – Joel 2:32   

Pray for MNK men and women to call on the name of the Living God and find hope!

 

1.  Tuesday:  Thank God for those serving among the MNK who have birthdays this month! 

2.  Wednesday:  Ask God to bless the airing of Lesson 14 of the chronological Bible story radio lessons; this is the 2nd lesson about Noah, and it is entitled, God’s Judgment.  

3.  Thursday:  Thank God that He is the God of Comfort, even in times of tremendous grief.  May your unfailing love be my comfort. – Psalm 119:76

4.  Friday:  Ask God to give MNK men and women ears to hear about the God of Comfort and hearts to accept His love.

5.  Saturday:  Thank God that He is the God of Peace.  And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. – Philippians 4:7

6.  Sunday:  Ask God to give MNK women opportunities of seeing the peace of God lived out among them by believers.

7.  Monday:  Thank God for the assurance of salvation, for the assurance that His love is unchanging.  Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith. – Hebrews 10:22

8.  Tuesday:  Ask God to give MNK men and women a glimpse of the unchanging and faithful nature of God Himself, the God of all Creation.

9.  Wednesday:  Thank God for His faithfulness and His promises as the MNK listen to Lesson 15 of the radio broadcasts entitled, Noah and the Faithfulness of God.

10.  Thursday:  Ask God to strengthen those of us working among the MNK as we deal with pain, sorrow and death daily, associated with the loss of friends as well as their eternal separation from God.

11.  Friday:  Thank God that every believer may approach God personally!  In Him (Jesus) and through faith in Him we may approach God in freedom and confidence. – Ephesians 3:12 

12.  Saturday:  Ask God to clarify for the MNK the difference between true freedom and the freedoms espoused by man; ask Him to enable the MNK to experience the freedom found in knowing the One, True God.

13.  Sunday:  Thank God for the privilege we have of sharing the Gospel day in and day out!

14.  Monday:  Ask God to keep believers who live among the MNK aware of every occasion He orchestrates for us to tell the Good News!  Ask Him to burn this desire into the heart of every believer who lives in MNK Land.

15.   Tuesday:  Thank God for more laborers among the MNK; thank God for their willingness and desire to be obedient to His call to live in less than perfect situations.

16.  Wednesday:  Ask God to keep the rainstorms from affecting tonight’s radio broadcast, Lesson 16:  The Tower of Babel.  Ask God to reveal to individual MNK men and women the need to lift up only the name of God, not their own or some religious leader.

17.  Thursday:  Thank God that through faith in the Savior, death becomes joyful.  You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy. – Psalm 30:11

18.  Friday:  Ask God to heal the hurts associated with death by revealing Himself to the MNK on a daily basis.

19.  Saturday:  Thank God for those who pray diligently for the salvation of the MNK and the strength of those who serve among them.  Night and day we pray most earnestly that we may…supply what is lacking in your faith. – 1 Thessalonians 3:10

20.  Sunday:  Ask God to enable MNK men to see the difference a personal relationship with God makes in a man’s life; ask Him to open their eyes to the Father’s love.

21.  Monday:  Thank God for the gift of salvation available to every man, woman and child God has created.  I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation. – Psalm 13:5 

22.  Tuesday:  Ask God to open the ears of MNK men and women to the power of prayer.

23.  Wednesday:  Thank God for the book of Genesis.  Thank Him that tonight’s radio broadcast, Lesson 17, is a review of the first 11 chapters of the first book of the Bible.

24.  Thursday:  Ask God to make us His light, shining even in desperate situations.  You are the light of the world.  A city on a hill cannot be hidden. – Matthew 5:14 

25.  Friday:  Thank God for believing men and women of other ethnic groups who are seeing the need, and making the sacrifice, for a consistent witness among the MNK.

26.  Saturday:  Ask God to enable Fatou's friends as they remember her death one month ago, to case their fears on Him and accept His assurances.  Jesus said, "Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?" -- Matthew 6:27

27.  Sunday:  Thank God for the ability to legally worship God in MNK land.

28.  Monday:  Ask God to cause the MNK to desire to see God, spiritually.  “Lord, we want our sight.”  Jesus had compassion on them and touched their eyes.  Immediately they received their sight and followed him. – Matthew 20:33-34 

29.  Tuesday:  Thank God for the work of Bible translation in Mandinka which continues; ask God to bless and encourage those in this ministry who are under serious attack of the evil one.

30.  Wednesday:  Ask God to impress upon MNKs the need to listen to Lesson 18 tonight.  This is the first lesson on Abraham, and is very important as it discusses Why God Called Abraham, father of both Isaac and Ishmael.