Burkina Faso (MNN) — New government leaders in Burkina Faso say
they want the unrest to end.
Calm has mostly returned across the country, with a new prime
minister in place, and the recently appointed army chief is promising to
address the issues behind Friday's revolt.
Soldiers' mutiny spread to two more towns, joined by
the police and eventually students. The
initial uprising was over the
government's delay in paying military housing
and food allowances.
It took a ministry team by surprise and disrupted a new
outreach. Christian World Outreach was
just getting a mobile clinic program off the ground when everything turned
upside down. CWO's Greg Yoder says, "It's not very mobile right now with some of
that unrest because people are staying inside, not travelling much; so it has
hindered this part of the ministry."
CWO is concerned about people in isolated areas who are difficult to reach right now. "This mobile clinic is going out into the
villages where there is very little healthcare. Some villages don't even have a
church or a school, so it could be a life or death situation as far as medical
care."
Right now, the program allows for one mobile clinic per
month. When the team rolls into a
village, Yoder says, "What they're
trying to do is partner with a local church–if the village has a church, giving them an opportunity to minister to the
community spiritually."
Yoder says their team takes medicines and other related
items to people who usually can't afford
to get them. When their converted van
arrives, people line up not just for the physical touch, but also the
spiritual.
In the most recent two clinics, the national doctor and
nurse team saw 300 patients in two days, but there's another component to their visits. "They
go out and do the mobile clinic, but while they're going, they take an
evangelistic team with them. These people are doing dramas, puppets, and sharing
the Gospel in different ways." At these
same two clinics, over 500 were presented with the Gospel.
There's always the risk of pocket unrest. However, the rural
areas are more insulated from the problems of the urban centers. Yoder says it's getting out town where
problems can crop up. "Pray for the
safety of the staff, that things will calm down so they can get back out on the
road. Pray that God will supply the workers, the evangelistic teams, the doctors,
and nurses that are needed."
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