At the end of last November, two church members and five HIV+ patients from the CMF mission clinic in Abengourou, Ivory Coast, died from meningitis. The local hospital reported about 10 cases during the same time period. Since it was just the beginning of the dry and dusty season when meningitis is most prevalent, Andy and Stephanie Gable and Christina Skelton, CMF missionaries in Ivory Coast, knew they had to act quickly to stem the tide of a possible epidemic.

So they turned to Facebook, and within a week had raised more than $7,500 through more than 100 online donations. They continued spreading the word through social media and word-of-mouth, and eventually surpassed the original goal of $10,000 to provide vaccinations for 3,000 people. Last week, Andy reported on his Facebook page that as of Feb. 29 they have vaccinated more than 5,000 people and have had no new cases of meningitis among their clinic patients and church members.

They began their vaccination campaign with the mission staff and families and most of the HIV+ patients who attend the CMF clinic, then expanded to include the churches they work with in community programs in Abengourou. Then it was on to the other communities where CMF currently has churches. “Almost all of these communities and churches were overwhelmed with gratitude for the assistance provided,” wrote Andy. “Many of them are still struggling with the aftermath of last year’s conflicts stemming from the election. Many felt as if they had been ignored or forgotten. This provided a renewed sense of rejuvenation and hope.”

The team was overwhelmed and incredibly blessed by the quick and generous response to their appeal for support for this campaign. “We say thank you to everyone who participated in the campaign with prayers, donations or by simply sharing about the need,” said Andy. “While cases in Abengourou have decreased, other regions have been reporting serious outbreaks. Public health officials have told us that our quick action made a huge impact in our area. Thanks for being a part of saving lives.”

Ivory Coast has endured months of turmoil recently, but things quickly began to improve in May after the resolution of the political crisis. Now God has once again opened the doors for the spread of the Gospel into the Beoumi region in central Ivory Coast, reports CMF missionary Andy Gable.

The Association of Christian Churches in Ivory Coast, in partnership with CMF, have been making plans for some time to plant four new churches in Beoumi. As the political situation improved, the Gables’ nearby teammates, Brian and Tabitha Hauser (Burkina Faso), returned to the country and accompanied several church leaders to Beoumi to encourage and share God’s Word with the people.

One group of listeners in Beoumi was particularly overjoyed to receive the church leaders and their message. This group is part of an unusual religious sect in Africa whose members worship and pray to the one “Creator God” and reject the traditional amulets, charms and statues that permeate African culture. However, they had no concept of salvation and had never heard the good news of Jesus Christ.

“Upon hearing the story of Jesus and the salvation that God has given through Him,” writes Andy, “they cheered and praised God for revealing the complete truth to them! Our national church leaders said they had never experienced a group of people so hungry and thirsty for God’s Word. On the final day of teaching, 58 people (everyone from the local sect who was present that day) stood up to say they wanted to be baptized into Christ.”

Next week, four church leaders, accompanied by team member Christina Skelton, will travel back to Beoumi and lead the group to a nearby lake for a celebration of baptism. Nestor, a national pastor, will stay and teach the new Beoumi believers.

“It is so exciting to see God’s Spirit leading us to harvest fields that He has been preparing well in advance,” says Andy. “We wait in great anticipation to see where God leads us and how the Holy Spirit will move in this new region.”

International Disaster Emergency Service (IDES), Kempton, Ind., will provide nearly $11,000 in relief aid through CMF’s Ivory Coast team for displaced families and People Living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) who are suffering additional problems due to the post-election crisis in that country.

The political upheaval and violence following last November’s elections led to severe economic repercussions. Most banks closed and many people were unable to plant crops. The situation for PLWHA became even graver. All financial partners other than CMF — including UNAIDS, the Elisabeth Glazer Pediatric AIDS Foundation, Johns Hopkins University and others — suspended their funding for various AIDS programs. Due to its stability, Abengourou has become the destination for thousands of families fleeing from areas of Ivorian confrontation. Many of these families are poor and have arrived without financial resources.

The political situation has now stabilized, and banks should open this week. This will be the first opportunity for CMF to send funds to assist the churches and the PIM HIV/AIDS Clinic in helping the communities they serve. The funds from IDES will provide material, financial and food support to 200 displaced families and 300 PLWHA who are under anti-retroviral treatment in the Department of Abengourou.

CMF missionaries Andy and Stephanie Gable and Christina Skelton are being forced to leave Ivory Coast once again due to the increasing violence and political tensions within the country. David Giles, CMF’s Director of Church Catalyst Ministries, spoke with Andy Gable on Monday, Feb. 28, as the missionaries were preparing to depart for Ghana. Christina will continue on to a temporary relocation in Burkina Faso while the Gables will take an early furlough and return to the U.S.

Ivory Coast has been unsettled since a civil war in 2004, but the most recent problems began in late November, when an election runoff between incumbent Laurent Gbagbo and rival Allasane Ouattara led to a victory by Ouattara. Gbagbo refused to step down from office, however, and fighting spread throughout the country. The CMF missionaries left the country at that point, but returned when the situation stabilized. An African Union team of five heads of states arrived to negotiate a settlement, but their efforts have been thwarted by Gbagbo’s recent purchase of attack helicopters from Belarus, which is a blatant violation of an arms embargo placed on Ivory Coast in 2004. Fresh gun battles erupted in the capital city of Abidjan this past weekend (February 26-27) and many neighborhoods have emptied of residents.

Please pray for the Gables and Christina, and the believers and churches in Ivory Coast. Many banks have been shut down and cash is in short supply. It will be difficult to move money into the country to fund the many ongoing ministry projects there so CMF and the missionaries will need to look for new ways to move forward in the midst of the turmoil.

Even though Andy and Stephanie Gable and the other members of the CMF team in Abengourou had to leave the country due to a dangerous political standoff (see “Political Upheaval in Ivory Coast,” Dec. 15, 2010), the ministry continues to go forward, thanks to the resolve of the key national leaders and the blessing of technology.

Andy Gable recently made a quick trip back to Ivory Coast to pick up some necessities left behind in his family’s quick departure. While there he also met with some national leaders, and was happy to hear that in spite of all the turmoil, their plans for the ministry have not changed.

“There were, of course, a few modifications and postponements (they are living under a 7 p.m. curfew, after all) but the task of planting churches, training leaders and impacting communities has not changed,” he wrote. Two national church planters will soon move to Beoumi in the central part of the country to start four new churches, and the clinic continues to operate and minister to hundreds of people every week. Community Health Evangelism work also continues in the Cocoterrain region of Abengourou. “Though the world around them is unstable, unclear and at times unfriendly, they continue to look to the Prince of Peace and serve Him as ministers of peace,” added Andy.

Technology has also enabled the Gables to stay in touch from their temporary home in Burkina Faso. They are continuing to translate materials, coordinate ministry activities and the nearly complete construction of the Kids Church/Djoula Worship Center, and do some planning for the future. Djoula language learning also continues with fewer distractions. “Rest assured that our time in Burkina is not just a long holiday. . . at least it sure doesn’t feel like one,” said Andy. “Though living in Burkina for the past month is not what we intended to do, there have been many surprise blessings.”

Andy Gable, leader of CMF’s West Africa team based in Abengourou, Ivory Coast, reports that all team members have moved to nearby Burkina Faso or returned to the U.S. in the wake of a protracted political standoff that may escalate into further violence.

Opposition leader Alassane Ouattara was recognized by the United Nations as the winner of November’s presidential poll, but incumbent leader Laurent Gbagbo claimed victory for himself and has refused to step down, rebuffing calls to resign from the U.S., the European Union, France and the African Union. Both men took oaths of office and set up rival governments in early December in the chaotic aftermath of the vote.

Ouattara raised the stakes on Monday, Dec. 13, by saying that he and his supporters will march on the government and state television buildings on Thursday (Dec. 16) in a high-risk bid to deprive Gbagbo of his presidential strongholds. Both the state television and government buildings are currently occupied by officials loyal to Gbagbo and are heavily guarded.

The announcement has intensified the standoff between the rival presidents. Security forces have killed at least 20 people since the Nov. 28 poll, according to Amnesty International. Rumors of Liberian mercenaries being brought into the country by both sides have been circulating for weeks.

The European Union said it would impose sanctions on Ivory Coast unless Gbagbo recognizes Ouattara as the winner, including the withholding of $349 million in EU development aid.

The November election was supposed to bring stability to the West African country, which was one of the most prosperous on the continent until poverty skyrocketed during a 2002-2003 civil war and the political standoff that followed. The country has been under a nightly curfew for more than two weeks amid fears of renewed violence.

Residents of Ivory Coast are in the midst of their long-postponed elections and a CMF missionary there, Andy Gable, has asked for prayers for peace during and following the political process.

The country has been in political upheaval for most of this decade. A civil war began in September 2002, and although most of the fighting ended by late 2004, the country remains split in two, with a rebel-held north and a government-held south. The people have suffered a great deal during the past eight years of fighting and instability. Elections have been promised and then postponed for the last five years, with the current president remaining in power. Now the elections are finally being held, but people are fearful that they will be “rigged,” or that violence will break out again.

As of this morning (Monday, 11-1-10), news reports indicate that the elections are proceeding. So for there are no reports of violence. Please continue to pray for the political process, the people, and the CMF team and other Christians in Ivory Coast.