Today I was informed about another agricultural project in another part of Nigeria that has become a field of weeds. This is like most capital-intensive ventures that start with pomp and circumstance in Africa. Europeans come and announce that they are going to invest thousands of Euro to create a self-sustaining work that will benefit the masses. After they foreigners leave, the funding is handed over to seemingly trustworthy people who are instantly pressurized by their local families. Before the grandiose plans can be actualized, all of the revenue has been exhausted to relieve immediate suffering bankrupting the program.
INTERCEP’s agricultural project at Maiduguri, Borno State in northeastern Nigeria is progressing because of committed personnel. Enough credit cannot be given to the INTERCEP executive agricultural administrator, Ebenezer Udofia, for handling himself with absolute integrity. When a leak emerged in our water reservoir, he immediately assumed full responsibility for the challenge and resolved to correct the problem from his work fund. Only when the problem became intolerable, did he come to the INTERCEP office in Maiduguri and request additional funding to permanently correct the leakage. He additionally handled a delicate conflict between a couple of believers with maximum grace to insure that the same conflict from a year ago did not re-emerge.
Justina Tsesar and her husband, Ephraim Tsesar, are 2 highly reliable farm maintenance assistants at the INTERCEP Maiduguri site. They arrive early in the morning to see that all crops are watered by 7:00AM and insure that the drip irrigation is functioning optimally. They build trellises for vine crops that enables their maximum growth so that each fruit gets adequate sunlight. They create additional space for compost fertilizer to supplement the plant beds so that crops receive the nutrition needed. Finally, they tenderly care for the young seedlings that are planted in the starter beds like a mother nursing her children so that transplantation is an effortless task.
Last year, INTERCEP requested the services of a caretaker that gave little effort and begged for large sums of money. This year, we have personnel that could make much more money working in other economic sectors but choose to work among fellow disciples. From September through November of last year, much money was wasted on crops that never grew, water that was never administered properly, and compost fertilizer that was never correctly applied. This year, we can go to sleep every night knowing that the principles in the Healing Hands food security manual are being followed to specifications. Investing in quality human capital is not a small investment and we’ve learned that human resources of integrity are absolutely priceless.
Altruism is a word not often used that carries the connotation of selflessness, sacrifice, and pursuit of a goal behind personal gain. These humble servants of the Almighty understand these concepts and are therefore able to actualize them on the farm because they are already at plan in their lives.
Please continue to pray that the One who grants harvest will raise up these type of workers to go out into the harvest fields to gather the abundant harvest awaiting us. In the meantime, we will continue to serve with these unselfish servants and spread the news that working for the benefit of others brings glory to the Creator of heaven and earth. This message resonates with those who seeking a religion of true monotheism not one that only recites His oneness but demonstrates that compassionate altruism.
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