Five Points Blog
Chad Short-Term Trip
- Dave Houston
- May 24, 2012
May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face to shine upon us, Selah that your way may be known on earth, your saving power among all nations. Psalm 67:1-2 ESV
A recent study ranked the country of Chad as the second most disfunctional nation in Africa and some also say it is the most corrupt. A majority of it's 11.5 million people live without running water or electricity. For those who have access, it's availability is spotty at best. As a former French colony, many of it's people speak French. Arabic is also common along with roughly 120 different local tribal languages. Only 20% of these people groups have access to the Gospel.
The Redfords are working to learn the unwritten 'T' language and create a set of chronological Bible stories which can be spoken in that language. They have partnered with a non governmental organization to drill wells in the region, dramatically improving the quality of life for those near the well. Well drilling enables the Redfords to build relationships with the local people and share the stories they are translating.
This June a team from Five Points will be traveling to Chad for a short term missions trip with Dave and Alex Redford. Dave and Alex are members of Five Points commissioned in January of 2009. The team will leave June 6 and return June 22.
The trip's primary purpose is to encourage the Redfords and their teammates who are spread across eastern Chad. As you can imagine, life in Chad in quite difficult and communication within the country as well as to the outside world is unreliable. During this trip, the team will help host a conference in Abeche for the Redfords and other missionary families in Chad. The team includes Betty Dymond, Hannah Compeau, Marcella Compeau, Dave Houston, Greg Lappetito and Brent Nelson.
Here are a few ways you can pray for the trip:
- That the conference would be edifying to the missionaries
- That the team would encourage the Redfords more than they are a burden
- That God would keep the team healthy
- That all funds for the trip would be covered
Check out this video produced by Pioneers, the Redford's missions organization. It includes their team leader and shows the village where Dave and Alex live.