Yesterday, I went to do some followup in a couple of villages on the literacy training.
Right now the literacy program is at a point where we have trained a number of individuals but we're just waiting on the harvest time to start winding down so that they and their students will have enough time to devote to getting these literacy centers started in their churches.
So I'm going to visit those whom I've trained to see if they and their congregations have set any goals, etc.
Well yesterday I was headed to Bavule and Wajele both of whom are on the other side of a river. I knew it was impassable at this time of year. But I thought I could just park on one side of the river, ford across and hike out the rest of the way to the villages.
I tried that. I parked the car on the east side of the river. I walked across on the rocks. There was actually a surprisingly beautiful little waterfall. I found a lady washing her clothes in the river and found that Zibar was gone to a funeral and that they hadn't yet talked about when to start the literacy center in their church.
So I tried to pull out and head on over to Wajele. I backed out to turn around and slipped into a slick black muddy pit. There was no one there, except that lady and three kids. I tried going back and forth and the lady and her kids tried to push the truck, but all of that and the 4-wheel drive did nothing but get me deeper stuck.
To get going again, we ended up calling in a lot more help. I ended up slipping and falling in the mud too, and we attempted several adaptations to the situation using sticks and rocks, etc. and eventually through everyone working together we got the truck out.
This made me think about the literacy program and missions in general. You always think you're going along at a great clip until you back into a slick black muddy pit. And just like I had to with these guys, you need help from unexpected sources and you need to listen to local people about what kind of adaptations you need to make to your situation, or you'll still just sit there spinning your wheels.
Have you ever found yourself spinning your wheels? How did you get unstuck?
