Welcome to "Bissaland," Burkina Faso

People of Bissaland:

• Chicken Men: men riding bicycles or motorcycles with 200-250 live chickens tied together and dangling down.
• Egg Men: young men riding bicycles balancing 8-10 flats of fresh eggs on their heads.
• Street Vendors: women carrying large trays of produce - carrots and strawberries are the most colorful, but they also sell avocados, bananas, and citrus. Men pushing flat carts with flip flops, clothes, small hardware, and other items.
• Rock Sorters: women who sweep up sand, gravel, and small rocks, which they sort into piles by size, then sell.
• Traffic light Vendors: young men who stand at intersections and sell phone cards, "Kleenex," gum, and magazines.
• Coffee Can Boys: young boys carrying red coffee cans, begging for money (usually from a local Muslim mosque).

Scenes from Bissaland:

• Potato Row: a long street where many vendors display their potatoes (stacked like pyramids) on flat bed carts.
• Laundry "Mat": women washing clothes and laying them on bushes and walls to dry.
• Wood Trucks: large trucks buying and selling long limbs, branches, and poles. They blow their horns to alert you as they come into your neighborhood.
• Boutiques: small (6x10 feet) straw or metal buildings on street corners where you can buy rice, sugar, salt, canned vegetables, bottled gas, matches, etc. There are 5-6 boutiques within walking distance of most houses.

As you can tell, West Africa is a very colorful and interesting place to serve. The Bissa people work hard and have long hours - often from sunup to sundown. As we see them each day, God reminds us that most of them do not know Christ personally.

In reaching out to the Bissa, we are engaging in a spiritual battle, and in this battle, we need a spiritual breakthrough that can only be accomplished through prayer. We are trusting God to release His power among the Bissa in response to the prayers of His people. Pray with us that they will come to know HIM.  http://www.ByHisGrace.cc/bisa - shaftojk@yahoo.com

Elsie McCall
BISSA (BEE-sah) Team