Out of Africa

Recently my husband and I went to go hear a talk by a man from Africa. He told us how God had protected his life many times. It was amazing to hear his stories.

He worked for his country's zoo. Once he and some coworkers traveled to another big city to visit the zoo there. They traveled in the back of a big truck. As they were driving along, the driver saw a giant snake laying in the road. Everyone got out of the truck and were trying to decide what to do about the snake. Suddenly it attacked this man. He said he was very frightened because snakes in Africa are very dangerous and poisonous. Just when he feared it would kill him, a paid security guard who was travelling with them shot it.

They continued on their way and came to a river. They decided to camp there for the night and catch some fish for dinner. He said wading in the water was very difficult because the bottom of the river was very unstable, and there were drop offs that couldn't be seen. In addition, the water was murky so it was hard to see the fish. After some time of trying to catch fish, most of the people left the river and were watching him catch fish. He took his spear and jabbed it down in to the water. Suddenly a large Hippopotamus reared up and charged him with the spear in it's back. He said he started swimming as hard as he could, but he began to get tired, and as he neared shore, there was alot of mud. Just as he thought the hippo would get him, it turned and swam away. The people on the shore all thought they would find him dead in the water, and were shocked to see him alive.

Later in the journey they stopped and he and the security guard were looking for food in the forest. Suddenly they realized they were surrounded by a group of monkeys. They were scared when they saw how many there were, but none of the monkeys attacked them.

I can't remember the details on this part, but at one point he said something to the security guard who became angry with him. He threatened to kill him right there on the spot. Luckily, someone came along that persuaded the guard to leave him alone. Over the course of the trip, this man was able to win the security guard over as his friend.

After their trip to the city, when they were returning home, they hit a bad spot in the road, and the truck rolled over. All of the people in the back of the truck, including the security guard were killed, except for the man telling the story. He alone survived the accident.

This man came to the United States and was able to bring a few of his children over with him. It took him 4 years before he could bring his wife and more of his children. I was told that he still has one son living in Africa and is working to try to bring him over. They do not have many worldly posessions, but they have enough, and they are so happy to be together as a family.