As we watch God's plan unfold for us and for Lake Grove Land, we feel both privileged to participate, and curious about the future.  Members of our congregation often ask "are we finished in Senegal yet?".  Even though the initial water projects are largely complete, we sense that God is leading us in new and exciting directions in our relationships there, and that he is far from through with us.  In fact, new opportunities are opening more quickly than older projects are being completed. 

As we consider this question, we must keep in mind the two core missions of Lake Grove Presbyterian Church in all of our mission work.  These are "to actively support evangelistic efforts to reach unbelieving people and people groups in our church, community, region, nation and world with the gospel of Jesus Christ, in a culturally sensitive way."  And, "to provide relief and ongoing support in the name of Christ to believers and non-believers."  As we continue in faithful obedience to provide relief and ongoing support to Lake Grove Land, the door is being opened bit by bit ('dank'n dank' in Wolof) for the gospel of Jesus Christ to enter.

We believe that this "both/and" proposition of faith and works is not only biblical, but that we are seeing it play out in Senegal even as we speak.  For the role God has assigned to us, thus far, is to build a relationship of trust with the inhabitants of Lake Grove Land.  Through the door that this relationship has opened, Senegalese Christians may now begin to enter. 

It seems clear that this is the role that God has so far chosen for us.  We can begin to see the outlines of his plan, or at least the pieces of a grand puzzle.  Consider the following, and consider also the implications of what is happening in Senegal:

PIECES OF A PUZZLE

• The three pillars of development are clean water, education, and health care
• Lake Grove Land now has clean water.  Perhaps 50% of their children are in school, and the oldest are about to enter High School.
• Lake Grove Land does not yet have a culture of medicine and regular health care.  We just completed our second medical mission trip, and our Christian partners there said "this had a huge impact, please do this again next year".
• The Barthimee Clinic, a Christian hospital in Thies, is available and accessible for the residents of Lake Grove Land.  They need this care--what are the implications if they begin to regularly seek it?
• Although Senegal is overwhelmingly Muslim, the government has passed a law allowing Christian boarding schools. 
• The John Huffman school is a Christian school in Thies, founded in part by the members of the Eglise Evangelique, where our friend Adama Diouf is pastor and where we worship while in Senegal.
• The dream of Adama, Leopold Diouf (our liaison to Lake Grove Land) and others is for John Huffman to add a dormitory and a High School.  What are the implications of students from Lake Grove Land attending John Huffman?
• Two marvelous young Christian evangelists, Apa and Albert, are soon to relocate to Baba Garage, only 7Km from Lake Grove Land.  They were a part of our medical team in Lake Grove Land.  Is the door now open for them, too?

This list goes on and on.  We can begin to see that God has a plan for us and for the Wolof, that transcends water, education, and health care.  We can see that he is not through with us there, not by a long shot.  We can see that when a church does rise among the Wolof, it will be Senegalese Christians who are the heart of planting it.  And we can see that by our faithful relationship with Lake Grove Land, by our return year after year, we are indeed provoking the question to which Jesus Christ is the answer.