Jason and I debated whether this was the right time. Should he take the dinghy up the river to look for the interested people about whom we have heard? Maybe we should figure out what to do with those interests before we start something. We are still new to this culture, after all. But our Gogodala friend Nasa was ready and willing—and how long had those precious people been waiting? It had been several years since anyone had visited the upriver villages. Yet, over the years, people from upriver occasionally stopped by the mission property and expressed a desire to learn what the Bible says about prophecy or the Sabbath. There just had not been time or resources to follow up on the interest.

Jason and Nasa talked it over. Aketa and Dogono villages seemed close enough to visit on a day trip. Piliwa, a church member, offered to call his relative in Dogono to tell him they were coming. All was ready.

Armed with rain gear, lunch, and plenty of fuel, Jason and Nasa loaded the dinghy and prayed for God’s guidance. Nasa didn’t remember how to get to Dogono, so their prayers were not just a formality.

In Aketa, they found a group of people eager for Bible studies, but that’s a story for another day. On the way back, after asking for directions a couple of times, Jason and Nasa arrived in Dogono. Immediately they met Amulato, the only Seventh-day Adventist in the village. She introduced them to the seekers who faithfully meet every Wednesday and Friday night and on Sabbath—led by a man who is not a Seventh-day Adventist member himself!

One of the seekers began talking rapidly to Amulato in Gogodala. Nasa later told Jason the story. On Sunday night, as she camped in the bush, she had a vivid dream that a white man and a Gogodala man came to Dogono Village. She feared this was a bad omen and pondered what it could mean. When she returned home, her husband announced that his cousin Piliwa had called to tell them a missionary from Kewa was coming. She was relieved to understand her dream and know it was being fulfilled.

Jason and I were amazed by the miracle. We could hardly believe that God had sent this woman a dream, confirming that we were heading in the right direction. Nobody ever had dreams about us while Jason pastored in the U.S. Surprisingly, as we talked with Nasa and our Gogodala friends, they seemed utterly unimpressed. Apparently, this happens often around here.

It makes me wonder. What have we been missing in our ministry? Are we Western Christians operating on a strictly human level because we do not expect or pray for more? What miracles does God want to do but refrains from because we think we do not need them? Maybe if we realized our need and asked for His help, we might see more signs and wonders attending our work. I do not know what to expect, but we will keep asking.

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