Outside the Camp #7

We're Back!

Hi Everyone. Although suffering from a bit of jet lag we have returned from Africa in great shape and excellent spirits. God indeed answered our prayers and gave us a wonderful time of visiting Cameroon and seeing how we can be involved in making His Great Name known and worshiped among the Fulbe people. We have posted a few of the 600 pictures we took on our Facebook page, "The Waite's Mission Progress".

Before we left for Cameroon, we had the sense that God was directing our hearts to the Fulbe people who live in the northern half of Cameroon. This was clearly confirmed to us by the Spirit of God as we spent time in Fulbe villages out in the bush and in the town of Banyo. The Fulbe people number about 1.5 million in Cameroon alone. Among this unreached Muslim people group there are only a handful of believers and not a single church. Yet, they are very open to hearing the Gospel and especially about Jesus Christ, whom they are quite curious about.

In two of the villages we visited, the people welcomed us with singing and dancing while they found a dwelling for us to stay in since we arrived after nightfall. As they sang, I asked our interpreter what they were saying and he told me that they were singing about Jesus and wanting to follow His way rather than the way of Islam. When I asked him what they knew about Jesus he replied that they knew very little about Jesus--only what their Islamic teachers had taught them from the Koran but that somehow they knew that Jesus was more than just a prophet and they wanted to follow Him rather than Mohammed. Once our dwelling (a mud hut) was made ready for us we unpacked our vehicle and were served a huge meal of rice, meat sauce, and meat pieces, which we found out later were stomach meat. Then we met with the people in their "prayer house", which was a large round structure made out of mud bricks where we joined with them in singing and more dancing. Then everyone became very quiet and sat down. One of the village elders then began speaking in Fulfulde while our translator relayed his words to us. He welcomed us and asked us to share who we were and why we were had come to visit them. As I explained to them that we had come to visit them because we wanted to tell them about the Jesus they were singing about and how to follow His Way--the people enthusiastically welcomed us and invited us to come back and live with them.

This was not a unique experience during out stay in Cameroon either. We were welcomed in every village we visited and invited to return to tell the people about Jesus and His Way. In fact, in one village that Nancy and I visited via a Chinese made 125cc motorcycle, in which while I was driving Nancy was riding behind me in a long skirt (so as not to offend the Muslim people) and sandles as we traversed creeks, rocky slopes, and a narrow winding footpath, the leaders were so impressed that we took the time and made the effort to visit them that they invited us to stay and live with them in their village again and teach them about Jesus and His Way.

In Banyo, we stayed with Bob and Joan Lokker and their two teenagers, Bethany and Tim. The Lokkers have been in Cameroon working among the Fulbe for about eight years. Now they have eleven believers among the Fulbe that they are discipling and meeting with on an almost daily basis. Their hope is that this group of believers will become the very first church among the Fulbe in Cameroon. These believers have many pressures they must bear up under as the result of following Christ in a Muslim culture. Unlike some of the villages, which welcome the message about Jesus, the people in Banyo and much of the rest of northern Cameroon are not so receptive. Some are even hostile as a few of these eleven believers have been persecuted to various degrees. Some of the men have had their cattle taken from them for following Jesus while a few have even lost their wives and children for deciding to follow Jesus.

Among this group of eleven believers are a small number of men who believe God has called them to reach their own people as future evangelists, church planters, and pastors. These men all have a vibrant testimony for Christ and love His Word but need to be taught and developed as spiritual leaders. This is the task that has been presented to us--that of helping to disciple, mentor, develop, and come alongside these men and their wives as they intentionally move out among the Fulbe in other villages and towns in order to reach their own people for Christ. Our vision is to see a church planting movement begin which envelops the thousands of Fulbe villages and towns in Cameroon so as to reach the 1.5 million Fulbe with the Gospel of Jesus Christ and ultimately the over 15 million Fulbe scattered throughout North Africa.

Our plan now is to continue working with our sending church in New Mexico, Covenant of Grace Bible Church, as we simeltaneously work at raising our prayer and finacial support to return to Cameroon full-time as missionaries. We are looking for individuals, small groups, and churches who have a passion for seeing Christ's Name made known among an unreached Muslim people group like the Fulbe so that God would receive the glory and we His people--the joy as they are brought to saving faith in Christ Jesus. Once our support is raised in full we will be able to return to Cameroon.

If you know of churches, church groups, and/or individuals who do have a passion for missions and especially reaching an unreached Muslim people group with the Gospel of Jesus Christ and who would be interested in hearing about our vision and future plans please feel free to let us know about them or them about us.

Thank you so much for your prayer support and finacial help in making our trip possible. It was exciting to see that God has not left Himself without a witness among this unreached people group. And it will be even more exciting to see how God draws these people to Himself for His glory and theirs and our eternal joy.

Merry Christmas from our family to yours and may we all come to better know and enjoy the reason for the season--Our Great Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Until next time......

In His Joy & For His Glory,

mark, nancy & the waite gang

Outside the Camp #6

Cameroon Update~got a chance to jump on a computer at a doctor's house here in Banyo. All of us are doing very well--tired but well. We have been on a whirlwind tour that has taken us from the jungle where the Orokolive to the rain forest where the Baka are. We spent Thanksgiving there among these people. Then we headed north for Banyo which took us 3 days over some of the worst roads you have ever seen. We spent the night in a Fulbe village and were welcomed with singing and much dancing. We slept in a mud hut with lots of huge spiders. Then the next night we made it to another village where again we were welcomed and invited to spend the night. We slept in separate mud huts this time--girls in one and Bob and I in the other. We ate their food and spent the night singing with them and dancing. These are two villages that have made the decision to leave Islam and want to follow Christ but have no one to teach them. The kids loved it and little Peter had more friends than he knew what to do with. The women braided the girls hair and they loved that. I was standing outside my hut in the morning and did not realize I had a scorpion (about 3 inches long) crawling on my sandle--this was a very poisonous scorpion. Anyway one of the men saw it and came up to me and crushed its tail before it stung me. Then finally we made it to Banyo where we have been made to feel very welcome by the 11 believers here--all who have been persecuted for their faith--some of the men have had their families taken away from them. Others have lost their cattle and jobs for following Christ. Bob and I were in the town a couple days ago and were called "Infidels". Anyway--the opportunities here are great and the opposition great too. I preached yesterday and my message was received well.

Well, we leave Banyo Friday morning to head back to Douala where we will fly out of Monday night around 11:30 pm. We should get back into Albuquerque Tuesday evening around 8:00 pm.

I better go--power is not dependable here. We are well and having the time of our lives--Nancy and I rode a dirtbike out to a village in the bush this morning on some winding, rough and overgrown paths and found a school-- under a hut with the kids all using slates. Then in the village we met the elders who invited us back to live among them. There are about 3 young men all believers who have asked me to come back and teach them how to be pastors so they can establish churches in their villlages. Bethany who was on another bike behind our guide--a young believer--saw a monkey on this trip.

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Outside the Camp #5

(More from Cameroon)

Got another chance to hop on the internet so thot we'd send another update. As we travel to the baka people tomorrow we will not have internet nor as much up in Fulbe country--so we'll make the most of while we can. It is very hot here and the humidity is hovering right at 95% so much of what we do is wet. No rain yet which is good because the path in here was full of ruts about 5' deep in places and filled with water. We are in a jungle setting which is beautiful. The kids have all been adopted by the village kids and are having a blast. They went hiking and swimming in the stream this morning. We have been eating fresh fruit, fish, and other things that I have no idea what they are. We have met some of the people and are learning much about the translation project the missionries are involved in. Tomorrow we go to church and then begin our journey to the east side of the country to Baka land. There it is much more remote and let me tell you--this is very remote right here. We'll stop in Yaounde for a day or two and then make it to the Baka around Tuesday I think.

We are having a great time although still recovering from jet lag--we sleep with mosquito nets and lots of bugs. Sleep is difficult because of the heat but we are making it. The food is very different here.

Whereas Joshua project has concluded many of these people groups in this area to be reached we are finding it just the otherwise. They have knowledge of Christinaity but are not followers of Christ. That is why the translation work is so important. They need to have God's Word in their own language. Many of the people we have had limited contact with are friendly and have embraced us warmly especially the kids. They just love Esther and Peter.

To give you a better idea of our setting--we are in a small village of about 15 dwellings. We are in the middle dweling. We are urrounded by huge trees, grass, mountains and cocoa plants, which the people raise for money. The kids run around all over the village and think nothing of coming by our windows and staring at us. When the kids walk by they call Esther and the girls "white man" but in a very friendly manner. Peter and a little boy named Joshua (adopted Cameroonian by the missionaries here) drew quite a crowd as they were sword fighting with sticks today at lunch--now all the little boys are running round (many naked) with sticks in their hands sword fighting. The language is difficult to pick up but between their limited English, some French, hand gestures, and much smiling we are getting by. All in all--great fun."

Outside the Camp #4

Quick Waite Update from Cameroon

(Here is an update my Dad wrote when they arrived in Cameroon.)

"just a quickie to let you know we are in cameroon. we made all our connections and arrived in doula--what an experience that was trying to get thru customs. then we spent the night in a guesthouse and traveled today to the rain forest where they work among the oroko. the kids are out playing with the village kids--we are actually in a house in the middle of the village."

Outside the Camp #3

The Waite Praise Update~November 17, 2009

Hi Everyone,

Just wanted to get a note out to all of you who have been and will be faithfully praying for us in our journey to Cameroon that we actually begin tomorrow. Yep, we are down to about 24 hours from our departure time of 11:30 am (MST).

So, somehow in the next 24 hours we have to get the piles of clothes, ministry supplies, Christmas gifts being sent to missionaries who are already there, supplies requested by the missionaries already there, and everything Peter (age 3) thinks he will need in Africa off the dining room table and into the suitcases and carry on bags that are strewn across our living room floor. Then it is off to Albuquerque International Airport to Houston to Paris and finally about 29 hours later to Douala, Cameroon where we will then attempt to convince the Customs' Officials who speak French why we (who speak English) needed to bring so much stuff to Cameroon. Did I mention that we are also bringing the fixings for Thanksgiving dinner. I think the main meat course is some sort of bush meat that tastes like--you guessed it--"chicken".

Once we are through Customs, we will be met by one of the missionaries who will then get us to a place to spend the night in Douala. The next day we will travel by Land Cruiser to Bekundo to spend a few days with missionaries to the Oroko people. Then on the 22nd we'll travel to Yaounde, the capital, and stay there until the 24th. Once in Yaounde we will meet up with missionaries to the Baka people and travel with them to The Mayos Camp where they are living among the Baka in the jungle. We will celebrate Thanksgiving with them in the jungle. Then its off to the Fulbe people up North on the 27th. It will take us a few days to get there via Land Cruiser, arriving sometime in Banyo on the 29th. Once in "Fulbe Land", we'll have ample opportunity to visit with and see the work missionaries are doing with the people in Banyo as well as opportunities to make survey trips to villages further North and East where no work has yet been started. At this point, this is where we are finding ourselves drawn--to these places where the Gospel has not yet gone. Finally, we'll begin making our way back to Douala on December 4 where we will catch our plane back home on the 7th, arriving back in Albuquerque on December 8.

We rejoice in having this great opportunity to go and survey the possible works God would have us be involved in. Please continue to pray for us as we make this unbelievable trip. Our desire is to be a blessing to all whom we have contact with as ambassadors of Jesus Christ for the sake of the Gospel. We desire to have our eyes opened to the needs that are there, which we can potentially meet for the sake of the Gospel. We also desire to see how we can offer up our lives, talents, gifts, resources, and imaginations for the sake of reaching the unreached and in many cases people who have never been engaged with the Gospel of Jesus Christ for the glory of His Name and their eternal joy. Please also pray for our health as we are all struggling with colds and even an inner ear infection. Finally, please pray for the missionaries we will be visiting and who are putting great effort into making our trip a success in seeing where God would have us serve in Cameroon.

Again--Thank You for your prayer on our behalf and on behalf of this survey/vision trip. Many of you also generously gave of your resources to help us make this trip. Thank you so much. Only in Heaven will the value of your prayers and gifts be realized.

So, until we return, may God's great mercy and grace be daily realized and experienced in each of your lives for His glory and your joy.

In His Service,

mark, nancy, & kids (bethany, rachael, esther, & peter)

Outside the Camp #2

The Waite Praise Update~October 20, 2009

Dear Praying Partners,

It is very obvious to us that you have been praying for us and God has been answering those prayers for His glory and our joy. And when I say "our joy", I have more people in mind than just my family as we experience great joy in preparing to make our Vision/Survey Trip to Cameroon in just a few weeks.

I also have in mind those people in Cameroon who are not only considered "unreached" because they have not responded to the Gospel of Jesus Christ but are also considered "unengaged" for the simple reason that right now at this moment there is no one among them or even reasonably close to them to engage them with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Because they have not been engaged with the Gospel they remain unreached and thus, they have not experienced the great joy of God's amazing grace. So, as God answers your prayers on our behalf so as to provide us with the means necessary to go to Cameroon and especially to the Fulbe people--it is so that one day they will experience the joy of knowing Jesus and their sins forgiven in Him.

There is another group of people I have in mind as well when I use the phrase "our joy" and its you. You see, those who involve themselves in missions, either as goers, senders, and/or supporters are involving themselves in an adventure and an endeavor that is aligned with God's passion to make Himself known among all the peoples of the earth for His glory and their joy (Num. 14:21; Ps. 96; 117; 72:18-19). According to passages such as Revelation 5:9 and 7:9, there will be people from every tribe, language, and ethnic group in Heaven standing before the throne of God worshipping Him. They will be worshipping Him because they heard and responded to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. They will have heard the Gospel and received it because God sent people like us to tell them and the reason people like us will get to go and share the Gospel is because of people like you--who for the great joy of seeing God glorified in all the earth involved yourselves in missions by praying for us.

So, thank you for your prayers and your support on our behalf as we engage ourselves in going to Cameroon.

God truly has blessed us in so many ways. We are on schedule to leave for Cameroon on November 18 and return to New Mexico December 8. Our trip can probably best be described as a whirlwind trip, traveling throughout the country to see World Team's works among the Baka people, the Oroko people, and finally the Fulbe in the north-central part of Cameroon. We will spend the bulk of our time in what is known as Fulbe-land with the Lokkers who have been ministering in the area of Banyo. They will take us on a trip into areas of Fulbe-land that have not been engaged with the Gospel as of yet. These areas, which are north and east of Banyo are of particular interest to us as they are where the vast majority of the Fulbe who have not been engaged with the Gospel live.

These areas are best described as "beyond reach" in that they are deep in the bush and are characterized as "hard-to-get-to" and "beyond the end of the trail" type places. Interestingly enough, we have heard that one of the issues that causes some to avoid missions in these kinds of places is lack of internet capability so as to keep in touch with family and friends back home. Well, ultimately we are headed to this kind of an area. Much of our travel "in country" will be on dirt roads that the State Department characterizes as "dangerously unsafe" at best--not so much because of the road condition as much as the drivers.

God graciously has provided for this trip's financial needs all in the course of one month. Through the generous gifts of people within our church and many outside of our church--some whom we have never met personally, God has provided the means for our whole family to make this trip. This will allow our children to also see where they will be living, how they will be living, and hear their new language once God moves us there permanently.

As to our progress, we purchased our airplane tickets last week, got our Yellow Fever shots yesterday, and are still waiting on the kid's passports. Once they arrive (hopefully this week) we will apply for our visas. Then we have some light packing to do as well as arranging for the care of our house and animals while we are gone. Two days before we leave New Mexico we will begin taking our Malaria meds. Then it is to the airport for a really long flight that will take us into Houston, Paris, and then Douala in Cameroon.

Well, this should bring you all up to date on our progress to Cameroon. We are so very thankful for each of you and praise the Lord that you are praying for us in this endeavor. God has been faithful and we can't wait to see Him continue to work on our behalf so as to use us and you in this great work of engaging the Fulbe people with His glorious gospel.

Please continue to pray for us. A big request right now is that we will get our visas in time for the trip. We would ask you to pray for our health, safety, and strength. We also desire prayer that God would open our eyes to see where He is at work and how we might be able to effectively join Him in His great harvest among the Fulbe. Please pray that we would be a blessing to all we meet. We also desire that perhaps God would allow us to be a blessing to you as well.

Ambassadors For Him (2 Cor. 5:20),

Mark for the Waite family, all

Outside the Camp #1

Here am I---Send Me

I am excited to share what the Lord has been doing in my families life over the past several months. My parents have always wanted to be involved in foreign missions, but up until recently God has always had other plans for them. The past year my parents and siblings have been praying about an opportunity to serve the Lord in missions, and as time has gone by God has directed my family to join World TEAM. World TEAM is a mission agency that focuses on church planting in unreached people groups around the globe. My family has been praying about an opportunity to serve the Lord with them in Cameroon, Africa. The Lord provided the money for my family to take a vision trip to see first hand the ministries going on in Cameroon and see where they would best fit. They had an awesome trip and are confident that God has called them to Cameroon. Now they are in the process of raising financial support.

A Treasure

Once a man in search for a treasure,
Set out, his heart filled with pleasure.
Eagerly he went to work,
A man with a mission, no one could jerk.

He searched far and wide, up and down
For a treasure, which seemed, could not be found.
He raked the ground, but to his dismay,
Found only leaves to be thrown away.

He sat himself down in quiet defeat.
So discouraged, humiliated and beat.
So down in his heart with all his failures,
He did not even notice a sudden stranger.

“Tell me my good man, whatever weighs your heart down?”
Said a kind looking gentleman to the man with a frown.
“I came to this land in search of a treasure,
But now I sit here discouraged beyond measure.”

The friendly man smiled and spoke,
“You’ve come to the right place don’t be so easily broke.
The treasure you seek cannot be found,
Unless you dig deep under the ground.”

“It will be hard work, yes indeed,
But work well worth doing if you don’t concede.
Give up not, nor lose heart,
If you continue on you’ll have your part.

So the man in search of treasure did do
What the stranger had instructed him to.
He dug down, deep into the ground,
And what his heart desired he found.

Christians, too, can learn from this lesson.
As they go along life’s procession.
The Bible is full of treasure, ‘tis laden,
For any who come by for the taking.

So dig deep in God’s Word to receive it’s treasure,
And you will come out with an abundant measure.
But if you only rake at the surface, don’t be surprised,
When leaves is all that you ever find.

No Turning Back

I love standing outside at the close of the day as the sun is setting behind the mountains. The sky comes alive with beautiful colors as the clouds reflect the sun's rays. Gold, pink, purple, blue, and all in various shades. The sight is breath taking and causes my heart to flip. The heavens above beckon my soul to join in something greater than myself...to join in with all creation glorifying and praising the Lord Almighty.

I also love hiking in the woods, watching squirrels and chipmunks scamper up and down the tall trees, and listening to a gurgling stream make its way down the mountain. Butterflies flutter by the wildflowers growing along the path and the bees buzz along as they collect pollen. All of creation is a constant reminder of the awesome Creator who brought it into being and who deserves all of our worship and adoration.

So here I stand, amazed by the God who saved me and made me His. My life is no longer mine but His and I want it to be completely spent making much of my Lord and Savior. He alone saved me from His Father's holy wrath against my sin and clothed me in His righteousness...to Him I owe everything. I am a follower of Jesus Christ and I will not turn back. Wherever He leads, I will go and whatever He says, I will do. My joy and delight is found in Christ alone---my greatest treasure in this whole world! No matter the cost, I will follow on in the strength the Lord provides. By His grace I will stay the course and fight the good fight. I will run the race and climb the path He has set me on---no matter the cost. People may misunderstand me and think I have lost my mind, but all that matters to me is Jesus. I must live for an audience of one---there is no other way to live completely and fully for Christ. So I fix my eyes on the Sovereign Lord of my soul, setting all my hope on Him, and trusting Him for direction and help as I travel down the path He has set me on.

The Hidden Hand of Providence

“And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those called according to His purpose.”
--
Romans 8:28

The Christ-centered life is not like a joy ride around a still and peaceful lake, but an extreme adventure down a winding river, full of rapids and plummeting waterfalls as the Savior of your soul, who is also the Captain of your raft, steers your life. Sound exciting? Well, that’s not all. Most of the times as you are plunging through angry rapid the light seems to disappear. Darkness envelopes you in a heart crushing force as fears, doubts, and questions fill your mind. What’s happening? Where’s God? Why isn’t He at work in my life? Why is Jesus putting me through this? Doesn’t He care? The once amazing adventure has turned into a horror story, right? But wait...

Behind the pain, confusion, frustration, struggle, suffering, blessing, joy, peace, and everything else you experience and go through in life is an invisible hand leading, directing, orchestrating, and unfolding a plan that was determined before the foundation of the world. The hand of God’s providence is never absent from the ones who love Him and are called according to His purpose. Perhaps at times you may feel as though the waves and rapids of life determine your direction, but really hidden from your eyes is a loving, heavenly Father who works everything together for your good and His glory. Do not rely upon sight for it will fail you; but, believe in God’s promises and look at life through the eyes of faith.

The situations God brings into your life may not make sense at the time, but do not doubt His love and care just because you cannot understand what He is doing. God uses suffering as refining fire. He crushes His children in order to make them into vessels He can use, He empties His people of earthly joy in order to fill them with true, heavenly joy, and He causes all things (suffering, sickness, joy, happiness, disappointment, death, life, sin, sadness, etc) to work together for GOOD…to those who love God…to those called according to His purpose.

Sometimes it is tough to sit back and enjoy the ride God is taking you on in life, but when it comes right down to it that is all you can do. Your life is in God’s hands, so love Him and enjoy life---the good and the bad. Trust in the Lord…rest in His love…wait upon Him. Sometimes the hardest thing to do is the very thing you need to do…Sit back and enjoy the ride. It may not be easy or fun, but remember that the Captain of your raft is completely in control and directing your life where it needs to go. He loves you and is doing what is best for you. So love God and enjoy life…it will be an amazing ride!