Meet Suzanne (Pronounced Susanna)

Suzanne is the pastor’s wife who lives here at the LAC campus. She has been a very good friend to me since my arrival. She is one that has this continuous abundant joy as well as this urgency to see people come to know Jesus personally.

When we first arrived she was asked to help me around the house until we hired a full time person. Her wage for one day was 1000 CFA. This is equal to $2.00. She swept and mopped floors, dusted, cleaned bathrooms, did dishes, and then she did our laundry by hand. When I expressed how blessed I was and went to pay her, she was very reluctant to take the money. Her response was, I did not help you to receive a wage. I helped you because I am so happy your family is here to help us share Jesus in our village.”

Fast forward to the morning 2 days ago…..

This is graphic and disturbing…Caution….

I was on the way home from taking the boys to school. I was slowed down due to an accident in the lane I was traveling. Chris and I have seen an accident all but three of the days we have been here and most include a death. This particular accident was the most graphic I had seen and was very disturbing to me. Though the police were there, they do not guide the traffic, you have to make your own way through. As I was working my way through the madness, I naturally looked over to look at the accident. There was a man in his late 50’s or early 60’s that had been killed. He had been hit and was either on a bike or a moto. His body was lying on the ground with a black sack lying over his head. People were just walking up to the body and moving the sac to see who it was. As I drove past the accident, my thoughts immediately turned to the Lord in prayer. Lord, please comfort those who possibly lost a husband, father, grandfather, uncle, brother, or friend. May the pain that they experience through this loss be something that will draw them into a relationship with you.

Now that afternoon….

Suzanne came over to visit. She asked me if I had gotten enough sleep because I did not look well. I instantly burst into tears and told her how heavy my heart was about the accident that morning and all the deaths I have seen on a daily basis. She lovingly held my arms and said, “Connie, this is the life in Burkina. Many, many people die every day and not just in moto accidents. People die everyday due to starvation, not having clean water or no water at all, disease, lack of medical treatment or the funds to get what is needed, and many other things.” She then again said, “Connie, this is the life in Burkina.”

At that moment, it clicked with me…. Her urgency made total sense now. When they wake up each day, they really have many more reasons to not know if it will be there last. I am very American and still compare everything here to America. My next thought was how blessed I am to be American and to have so many things that provide an easier/safer life. In the same breath, I felt that urgency that Suzanne has about people here needing to know about Jesus and giving them the opportunity to know Him personally.

Conviction quickly came. Just because life is safer and easier in America, it does not mean that our days are not numbered. I saw this clear picture of how we have so much at our finger tips that it causes a lack of need for the things of God. How many times I have not shared because I was busy or even too worried about what they would think or if I would have offended them. I do think it is important to be sensitive to the leading of the Spirit, but how many times have I had an excuse??!!

Please pray for our safety. Please pray for Suzanne, her husband Pastor Agabus, their son Jaackdiel, and their daughters Zezania and Grace. Pray for the people of Burkina to come to know Jesus in a real and personal way!

This is Suzanne painting for the first time.  She knew we were painting our home and she asked if she could come and learn.  She thought this would be a great way to minister to people.... Going in to their homes and helping them paint.  Again, she has an amazing heart.

This is Suzanne's kitchen that is out side their three room home.