ISB Mali, December 2011

Report on Mali ISB 2nd-9th December 2011.

Chris Axelby, Doncaster Gideon and member of the National Office Recruitment team has just returned from the Capital City of Bamako in Mali. He has taken part in one intensive week at the Mali International Scripture Blitz.

The target for Chris along with 6 other International Gideons (3 USA, 2 Australian & 1 Swedish) was to help the Bamako Camps to distribute 50,000 scriptures in 5 days Monday to Friday.

This ISB was under girded by prayer from Gideons and Auxiliaries worldwide, home churches, (1 USA church committed to  pray 24/7), family and friends. 

Right from the briefing meeting on Saturday morning the team were reminded by team leader, Kevin Fuller of their responsibility to scatter seed, God's word throughout Bamako.

Buoyed on by the promises of Joshua 1:1-11, this ISB team were aware that in this 87% Muslim, 1% Christian land, the distribution of scriptures would bring light to the country of Mali, starting in Bamako.

Sunday morning was spent sharing in the local churches what we were about to do. We asked for help; cars, drivers, interpreters, people to pray for their land, Christians to give to buy more scriptures for their country.

On Monday morning local Gideons arrived and so did Dan Hayes a USA missionary to Mali with 16 years experience, a reliable pick-up truck and a full load of the scriptures. Dan and his wife Marsha had recently had to move away from Tombouctou in the troubled north of the country. They had heard that the Gideons were about to blitz their adopted country with scriptures. Dan's father and grandfather had been Gideons in the USA.

We had heard the public school's teachers were on strike. We therefore set out to the private schools, of which there are many. In one of the Monday schools a young teacher followed the group around 3 classrooms listening to the Gideons. He said he wanted to be a Christian and accepted Christ there in that school. Please pray for "Simon", who later attended the Pastors Banquet and was introduced to a pastor in his neighbourhood. God will supply all his needs, but Simon may now have a difficult existence.

In Mali it is said "The visitor is king". We soon learned that scriptures should
only be given from the right hand, the left hand is regarded as bad, the students would not accept the Holy book offered from the left hand.

We visited schools, colleges, hospitals, police stations, hotels, prisons, army and air force bases and the presidential palace where the President of Mali accepted a Bible from Kevin Fuller and local founder Gideon Daniel.

Each day started with the International team and up to 11 Bamako Gideons in prayer at 5:30am. No breakfast and out to the local schools to meet the students at their school gates between 6am and 7am. We returned to the hotel to report on the day's successes at 7pm.

The result: 60,005 copies of the New Testament and Psalms invested into Mali. We have done the scattering by God's enabling and now we await the harvest of a huge number of souls like "Simon".

The local Bamako Gideons and Auxiliaries aided by local church members worked tirelessly for their country in spreading the word. The conditions were hot, arid, heavily polluted and so, so dusty working in this red earth, intensely poor country, but now there is hope for the nation of Mali.

All the team members left a part of their heart in Africa and the satisfaction of a job well done. We praise God and thank you for your prayers.

Chris Axelby 12.12.11.