Thursday, April 05, 2007

Something Underfoot in Cameroon -- Day 38

French Word of the Day: pied (pronounced a little like "pee-eh"); means "foot." Maundy Thursday remembers and commemorates the actions that Jesus took in the upper room, when he washed the feet of the disciples and said, "Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your pieds, you also should wash one another's pieds."

Face of the Day: Jean-Daniel Ndo, pastor of Bethesda UMC, Sa'a: Pastor Ndo recently finished installing toilets at his church, a huge need for his fledgling congregation. He took over as the pastor of Sa'a last year, and has been working to build a wider visibility for the congregation.

Cameroon Fact: These are the most important exported products of Cameroon, in order from greatest to least: crude oil and petroleum products, lumber, cocoa beans, aluminum, coffee, cotton.

Mission Challenge: When you purchase something in a store, do you think about where it came from, who made it, and whether it has been fairly traded on the world market? These are the sorts of questions a Christian ought to be asking, whether buying a coffee at Starbucks, or purchasing gifts for someone's birthday. Ten Thousand Villages is an organization committed to helping get handicrafts from around the world fairly traded; browse their website to find out more about "fair trade." You'll also find crafts from Cameroon here.