Alibi Baptisms

Yesterday there were 34 baptisms in the village of Alibi! I know that many people have been praying for this evangelism effort, and our prayers have been answered. The number baptized included 10 married couples, which is a huge praise! We are leaving to go to the beach for a few days here in about an hour, but I wanted to quickly share the news and post some pictures (you can see even more pics on my Facebook page). I will tell more of the story later, with video. Praise God with us today! Headed down to the river, singing and dancing all the way! The chief of the village and his wife were baptized! These 4 friends were so full of joy after being baptized, laughing, dancing and slapping each other on the back :) The entire group of 34, plus their children. First communion. We praise God as His Kingdom expands among the Kabiye!

Here's a short video!

Hearing & Doing - Making Disciples

Matthew 28:16-20 - "Then the 11 disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus told them to go. When they saw Him, they worshipped Him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, 'All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.'"

A response I have to this scripture is to climb a mountain this weekend and worship Jesus as the 11 disciples did when they first saw Him after the resurrection. He is my Lord, my Teacher, my Savior, and He is worthy of my praise. My life and work will flow out of my love for Him.

I will also respond to Jesus' teachings in these verses by daily studying the Gospels to find exactly what He meant by, "everything that I have commanded you." I want to know the commands of Jesus. I might even make a list! I also was given a good book by a friend: What Jesus Demands of the World by John Piper. I'm looking forward to digging into it!

Specific commands that Jesus gives to the 11 disciples/Apostles in this passage:

- "Go and make disciples of all nations."
- "Baptize them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit."
- "Teach them to obey everything I have commanded you."

I've been struggling lately with making the link between Jesus' clear commands to his 11 closest original disciples (the other one Jesus chose betrayed His very life), and those also being the direct commands to us today. If you have any thoughts or input about making this link, please post your comments here or send me a message on Skype/Twitter/FB/MySpace/my Yahoo email address, my Gmail email address, my other Gmail email address, my really old Hotmail email address, or just send some old fashioned snail mail to:

Brett Emerson
B.P. 802
Kara, Togo, West Africa

That should cover it. Grace & Peace!

Hearing & Doing - Shema Living

Our team is currently engaged in a season of seeking God's direction for our work. Much of what we are studying together stresses obedience to God and His commands, many of which were given through Jesus. What is obedience, exactly? From reading The Shema in Deuteronomy 6, my friend Matt came up with a great definition: Obedience is hearing and doing. I plan to blog some bits and pieces of our studies together, focusing on specific scriptures (hearing) as well as my response to that scripture in my daily life (doing). Today I'll start with Deuteronomy 6:3-9.

"Hear, O Israel, and be careful to obey so that it may go well with you and that you may increase greatly in a land flowing with milk and honey, just as the LORD, the God of your fathers, promised you.
Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates."

In response to this scripture, I will lead my family daily in reading God's Word. I will also search the accounts of Jesus' life to better understand how I can obey my Lord.

May we all not just hear God's Word but obey it as well!

Grilled Sweet Corn and Male Bonding

Some guys bond over beers, some over football, some over video games, the outdoors, etc. Here in our place we bond over grilled sweet corn...From left, Patrick, Eric, Akla (I hope that's a not a gang sign), and Horou. A small portion of our harvest of sweet corn, the seeds of which came from a small feed store near Montgomery, Alabama. The guys trying to prove who is the most manly among them by flipping the sweet corn on the grill with their bare hands....for me, I prefer my grilling tongs :) Eric, our day worker. A devoted Catholic with a mean corn eating face! Patrick, student at University of Kara and the best car detailer in the prefecture! Akla, my adopted son, rabbit guy, dog walker and high school student. Horou, a hard working, do everything kinda guy. This year he is beginning university! Jolie, our adorable little German Shepherd puppy. Our dogs love corn, a fact which is most easy to see when we clean up their poop in the yard :)

I thank God for the young Kabiye men in my life, these and so many others. May our relationships continue to glorify God and further His Kingdom!

Travel in Togo

Ever wonder why life here is so crazy? You can read about a recent travel day that I had in Togo here, well explained by my friend and colleague, Jesse Shanks. Thanks Jesse for taking the time to write the story and share the pics!

It's Harvest Day!

We harvested our sweet corn (seeds brought from America) a few weeks ago. The whole family got involved as did many of our neighbors. The man in the hat is our day guardian.


As we pulled the ears off the stalks, we threw them into trunks...

when we were finished, we had five full trunks!

After everyone had left, Daddy let Caden have a little of his own fun in a sand pile out front....and I was wondering why he came in with sand in his hair. ;)
We blanched quite a bit of the corn for ourselves and gave away even more. It was so fun to hand out plastic bags full of ears of corn. If you haven't shared any food with your neighbors lately, I encourage you to do so...you will both be blessed.

Something You Should Know

Eight years ago I married this handsome man 
(Brett....not the monkey!)And I love him for reasons too many to list.
He's still my best friend! 

Read HERE about how we celebrated and how Brett pulled off a huge surprise for me :)