Half the Staff and Halfway Around the World

In just a few days(11 to be exact), a group of 11 people from Franklin will be heading across the Atlantic Ocean to a country about the size of Colorado: Burkina Faso. This African country is one of the poorest in the world, with more than 50% of the population living on less than $1 a day. Two from the group include myself (Susan) and Rob Ricotta (our weekend personality).

Our hearts have been drawn toward the world, and we have the opportunity to reach outside of our normal borders to see the work that God is doing, and change the way we view the world that God loves so much. The average age in Burkina is 16.5 years, with a life expectancy of only 49 years. (For context that is 35 and 79 in America, respectively). We work for a Christian radio station in a country that has over 12,000 radio stations. Burkina Faso has only 23. Bound by local customs and spiritual forces, Islam permeates this West African nation.

Our group of 11 are taking a leap of faith on this mission trip where we will follow God's call to minister to these people for a week, experiencing their culture and expressing the love of God to a people that have very little. We ask prayer for our safety, for our ministry, and for our health. We are expectant that God will do great things that impact Africa, and maybe more importantly impact where we live now in Franklin.

We are excited and nervous, anticipating God to do great things. We appreciate your prayers and support as we go.

susan<><

Thoughts from JMack

I'm grateful for the opportunity to host the Rise & Praise Morning Show here at 1480 the Dove. After the butterflies settled down in my stomach (and my throat!) things went pretty well the first day behind the mic. My goal is to help each of us start our day out with local information, an encouraging word from the Scriptures, and your favorite Christian music. A conviction I have as a Christian is that we, above all people, should enjoy the life God has given us. We should be able to laugh and have a good time without the world's influence on our sense of humor. In other words, I feel that Christians should be able to show the world that you can be a Christian and still have fun.

Therefore, I hope to use humor throughout the show to help everyone start their day off. I hope all of Macon and surrounding counties will enjoy the benefits of a live local show that is not syndicated from somewhere else in the country. At WPFJ 1480 the Dove we are proud to be Franklin's Christian Voice, as well as Franklin's only locally owned and operated radio station. If you promise to keep listening I promise to keep bringing you the quality Christian programming you've come to expect from WPFJ. Give me a call at the station anytime and let us know how we can better serve our community. Thanks for listening and God Bless!

JMack