Letter written from Ron A of the Senegal Field Committee to the Miks and the Budiks after the Mik family determined they could not continue to board their children at Fanda, and were not permitted to live at the school. They were told they were in spiritual rebellion to the leadership and thus were dismissed from the field. This is right before they knew of their daughter’s abuse.
Today in 2009, Ron A of the FC says they made some mistakes and would have done things differently. Instead of allowing Miks to live on the boarding school base with their kids for 6 months they would be dismissed from the field immediately.
September 29, 1988
Dear John & Diane
The believers and others have been asking when you will be coining back to stay. At first we were able to say it would be by Christmas or that it wasn’t time yet. But now that we have sent your cupboards and other things out, people have really begun to say that for sure you are not coming back. We feel that we need to explain to the believers, at least, that you say that you have decided to not return to Chobo and why. What follows is what we are planning to tell the believers.
What we have to tell you today is hard for us to say. We wish that we didn’t have to say it. John has told us that he and Diane will not be coming back to Chobo to live and work. He said that he is not needed here in the work. He says that he needs to be with his children and that he can’t be here helping you and meeting the needs of his children both. He says that the Lord is leading him to do this, and that he is in fellowship with the Lord.
All of this is probably very hard for you to understand. The Lord used John in your salvation. Many of you first heard the Word of God through him. You probably feel he is really following the Lord. You love him as a friend and brother in the Lord.
We love him too. We feel that we need to explain something’s to you. John will not agree with what we are going to say. Even we whites who seem to be following the Lord can refuse to do what the Lord says. We feel that the Lord wants John and Diane here at Chobo with us. We want them here, too. John has the gifts and abilities to help you better in some areas than we can. We need all the parts of the body of Christ. We are all necessary.
We need and want John and Diane here even though they say that they are not needed at Chobo, Not only do we feel that John and Diane should be here, all of our field leadership feels this way as well. The field leadership talked and they all feel that John and Diane should be at Chobo with you Budiks. John and Diane refused to come back to Chobo. God leads through leadership. The field leadership feel that God’s place for John and Diane is with you. John says that God is not leading them back to Chobo. God does not lead in two different ways. He does not tell the leaders one thing and John and Diane something different.
John says that he can’t help you and meet his children’s needs both. The Lord expects us to take good care of our children and meet their needs. That is what God has said. He has also given us abilities to do His work here on earth, and with His help we can do both in a way that will bring honor and glory to Him. We believe that John’s own desires to be with his children and to do other things are keeping him from seeing and following what the Lord wants.
All of this could be very discouraging to you to see a believer you love not walking with the Lord. Each of you needs to decide that no matter what anyone else does you will follow the Lord. We love John and Diane and still want them to come back. Let’s pray that they’ll respond to the Lord’s leading and be willing to come and be used of God to build all of us up in the faith.
John and Diane we love you and you are needed here very much in the work. We are not in any way wanting to put you down by telling the believers these things. We feel that the believers need an honest answer as to why you are not coming back. We can’t tell them something that we don’t believe or not say anything at all.
Your Teammates
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