During our years of service in the Susu Project, our home was like a place of refuge for many young people who had given their lives to Christ and some student missionaries who had left their parents for the very first time. To these young people, we were parents, guidance counselors, mentors and any other positive influence one can be to help strengthen young people with their faith in Christ. Our home was a chapel between 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 a.m. every morning from Monday to Friday and in the evenings from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. The worship songs were heavenly. In the afternoons, you would hear laughter and the sound of spoons against plates like an open restaurant. It was a very wonderful experience despite the roadblocks that Satan sent our way. Yet if this opportunity were to present itself again, I would gladly do it because it is to the glory of God.
Paul was one of the young Adventists that needed our help. Born in Ivory Coast, his parents moved to Guinea as Global Mission Pioneers to spread the Three Angels’ Messages in the Forest Region of Guinea. They later moved to Conakry, the capital, at the end of their contract. Paul Fidel grew up in Guinea, where he became a church member. Adventist children in Guinea struggle with faith and education. They go to school from Monday to Wednesday and rest on Thursday. Then, they continue on Friday and Saturday and rest on Sunday. Thus, the great controversy for these children starts at an early age. In Guinea, they schedule national exams on Saturdays. Most Adventist children will not pass these exams, and Paul Fidel was one of them.
When Pastor Marc Coleman introduced the BDAS (Bilan Des Acquis Scolaires) academic assessment test as an international exam to help the Adventist students attending the Susu Project school, the first student was Joanna Reynolds. She passed the exams, and the Ministry of Education validated her result. This initiative gave hope to the Adventist children in Guinea and even Mauritania. Many Adventist youth, including Paul Fidel, rushed to Fria (the home of the Susu Project) to take the exam. Like always, we welcomed Paul Fidel into our home. Pastor Leandro Monteiro introduced many of them to the Pathfinder Club, including him. Paul became very supportive of the work of evangelism in the Susu Project. The BDAS exams helped Paul and many others to attend university. He studied computer science and English. During this time, we moved to Ivory Coast to start the Kono Project.
There is only one Adventist church in Koidu, the capital of the Kono District. During our visit there, God opened our eyes to the needs of this church. God inspired us to get involved with the children and youth ministry. Knowing the intensity of the task, we began to ask God for a helper. We were very specific in our prayers. We asked God for a devoted young person to work with the youth. We were not thinking about anyone from Guinea. We decided to fast and pray about this since the work with the youth was taking up all our time, including our children’s. Patricia and Florence had started falling behind in their schoolwork. At the end of our prayer and fasting exercise, my wife had the impression to call Paul Fidel. She resisted the impression and kept it to herself for three days. On the fourth day, after our morning worship, I also had the same impression and shared it with my wife. She said, “I have kept this same impression to myself for four days. I think Paul Fidel is the answer to our prayers.”
During the ten days of prayer organized by the Adventist churches in Conakry, Guinea, Paul Fidel prayed for a job. On Monday, his prayers were, “Lord, as I go out, let me return with good news in the name of Jesus. Amen.”
I called Paul and asked him if he could work with us. I told him to pray about it and get back to us in three days.
We continued to pray, and on the fourth day, he called and said, “I have talked to my parents. How soon do you think I can come?” That very day, I sent him some money to travel to Kono. The next day, he called me from the park in Kono, asking me to pick him up. We told him in a meeting that he should observe for at least a month and see if it were something he would like to do. After a month of observation, he decided to stay.
Paul Fidel is currently the Pathfinder leader and significantly influences the youth here in the Koidu church. Through his effort and hard work, the Pathfinder Club has grown, and the youths are now leading in church services and programs.
