Category Archives: Desert Journal: Life in Chad, Lessons Learned

My Desert Journal: Life in the Sahara, Lessons LearnedCome sit with me as we read through my Desert Journal.

For half of my life, I’ve had the opportunity to serve in Chad, Africa.

It was the most wonderful time of my life.  I have lots of memories… mostly good, some bad.

I learned a lot there!  Although Chadians may not tell you about the latest app or trending YouTube video, they are masters of face-to-face networking and friendship-building. Their mind is clear enough to see a solution when most would give up and move on.

And Chadians fear no one, except God.

So, make a cup of tea, heavy on the sugar. Join me, as we learn some of those lessons together.

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3 Reasons Why I Bought a Camel

and why you should, too...

While in Chad, I often got lost in the Sahara desert.  The GPS I used there would only point me in the right direction to my destination, as the roads I was following weren’t on any map.

I'm so thankful for "99", my camel! Here is a picture of him.This led me, more than once, to cross dry river beds and thorn-bush forests with “Twila”, our Speed the Light vehicle.

I often got all disoriented from following a cow trail, with very few options but to turn around and start back where I left the main road.

And each time I did, I prayed that God would provide the money for me to buy a camel…

Here are three of the best reasons I can think of, why everyone should own one of these “ships of the desert”.

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My struggle to return to the Sahara

The story of this Bible translation began with a struggle I was facing in Chad, in 2007.

Just two of the reasons why we willing struggle to serve in the Sahara DesertWe had just joined a new mission agency.

The budget I was asked to raise from churches was double what it had been.

Our previous supporters easily got on board to support us.

However, I was having a difficult time asking new churches of New England to support us as well. They were already supporting as many missionaries as their budget could afford.

And these pastors were struggling to make ends meet themselves.

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The Road System Across Chad: The Good and The Bad

The Road Across Chad: Not as bad as before

During my last term in Chad, my boss asked me to explain why our vehicle in Chad had so many expensive repairs.  Here is what I said about the roads across Chad:

This bus hit something standing on the road on the way to its destination“I could easily speak of the inconveniences of Chadian driving. It is very easy to get lost without a GPS along the way. My vehicle would often get stuck in soft sand. However, I will limit my comments here to the conditions that are hazardous to vehicles.”
“The roads in Chad have improved since I started serving in Chad in 1992. Back then, there were only 80 miles of paved tarmac, and we spent most of our time driving around the pits that had been dug in by the big transport trucks. Thankfully in our day, there is a paved highway from N’Djaména to Andoum and beyond to the Cameroon border, and all but 160 miles of highway from N’Djaména to Abéché.”

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