Sunday was my day for the internet and after I finished posting my last blog Mandy, Johan and I walked to the Chicken Shack and ran into Esther, James, Chris, and John. The Chicken Shack is litterally a shack just outside of the Iris base that sells little cookies and soda and a few little lunch items. It shares one of it’s walls with the wall surrounding the Iris compound and the other three walls are made of chicken wire windows and bamboo. After ducking your head and stepping down into the little room with 3 wooden tables, a few tables, and one bare light bulb in the middle of the room, the man behind the counter greats you with a smile. He knows no English and so ordering anything consists of pointing, he then types the numbers into a calculator screen, and you pay accordingly.
The rest of the day I read my book, and then cleaned house. I have yet to explain my living quarters. I live in a house of 7 people. Anna and Andy, my house parents, are from England. Lisa is from Tanzania and Australia, Jess from Vancouver CA, and Krista from Cali are in one bedroom and Carrie from Cali and I are in a room that is about the size of my sister Robin’s walk in closet. We all share a common room with a table, a fridge, a stove, sink, and a cupboard for dishes and food. Living in community is fun, crazy, and I love my new little family, but we also step on each other’s toes as well.
Monday the birds sang good morning as I climbed out of bed just before 6am. It truly was a joy to discover we had running water this morning and that I could use the bathroom and avoid walking to the latrine. After rejoicing over the simple things in life I put on a pair of leggings to cover my knees, and then a pair of shorts overtop because the leggings are too tight on my butt and a tank top. (work out wear in this culture ends up being lots of layers) I grabbed my ipod, my yoga mat, and made my way to the side of the house that had shade. I made myself a cup of detox tea once I was finished and got dressed for the day. As I was sitting reading my bible Jess came out with a text message for me. It was mom and dad saying that they are trying to call me. I fought with the phone for more than 40 minutes but eventually got through. I was so desperate to hear from them for the fact that I read on face book yesterday that Robin had been hit by a bus and that was all I knew. The rest of the day not anything too exciting happened except for the discovery of a random tomato plant that is beside our house produced 4 juicy red tomatoes!
Tuesday was both Carrie and Esther’s birthday! We begin with craziness of singing and showering our birthday friends with love. Heidi spoke at school again today. I fully enjoyed what she had to say, and it all resonated with what the Lord was already speaking to me. Tuesday afternoon my house took a group of girls from the Iris base out for a soda at the Chicken Shack. We baked brownies ahead of time and went around saying names and ages but it is hard with the language barrier to develop relationship. I find myself wanting to do and say more than I can while I’m here but I just have to keep reminding myself that just loving on them and learning their name is significant. After we said good bye to our house full of girls we got together as a family again as our weekly Tuesday routine of having dinner together.
Wednesday afternoon I got to go to the internet for a short time and I was able to check my email. I so enjoy reading each and every one of your encouraging words, and info on life back in the glorious Montana. You will probably never know just how much they mean to me. In the evening we had a get-together planned with all of the Mozambiquan Bible School students. All of us Mission School students loaded onto a few camions and drove over to what is called Iris base one which is where a lot of the long term missionaries live. We unloaded once we got there and broke up into our already assigned teams. A team of Bible School students joined us and we ate chicken and rice, we played games, and were able to really be one family. Toward the end of the night all us Mission School students lined up to pray for all the Bible school students as they left. We blessed each one as they walked by and when everyone had passed through the line we all ended up dancing around to the Hillsong song “Take take take it all…” (I don’t know the title sorry) I will tell you from experience dance parties in Mozambique leave you dripping in sweat when they are over, but nevertheless they are so worth it. As my friends back home can testify I would not survive 3 months without dance parties.
Thursday afternoon was a much needed rest time for me. I didn’t take a nap… but I did just sit at the table, write, and listen to music. I even got maybe 30 minutes with the house to myself! This place has been great in the regards of relationship as well. I know I don’t mention the people here that often because then the blog posts would all end up being 3 times longer but each day I spend hours at a time just sitting and talking with people. Lisa and I have had many deep conversations. Jess I feel is always interested in my life and I get to share to her about all my loved ones back home. Alicia and Esther I feel are my sisters. And each day I connect on new levels with others as well. This evening I went to a Missionary couple’s house with a group of girls and we all sat around and had a question time in regards to marriage. It was interesting, but I tell you what the house we went to, man it was something else! It was a friend of the Missionary’s house right on the ocean. Us ladies sat in a circle with fresh fruit juice in hand, a beautiful gazebo overhead and the sound of the waves crashing on the shore just yards below us.
Friday I made myself stay in bed for a while and try to sleep in a bit, by 7 I had to get up. This morning I made myself oatmeal with apples and cinnamon and a splash of sweetened condensed milk. I am beginning to get a little creative with the food that you can purchase here in Pemba. You never know what might be in the grocery store and/or fruit market. I have to brag one more time, Monday night I took a can of coconut milk and mixed it with the thai spice I brought from home, fried up some onions and garlic and asked for rice only from the kitchen and made myself the best dinner I have had here on base.
Friday, November 20, 2009
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Week six summary:
Ok, I'm gonna be honest with you last week, and into this week I had been feeling pretty empty. I love being around people, I love the social jobs I had back in the Fish, but I also so enjoyed living alone for the last 2 years. I have always been a person that needs time alone just as much as I need to be social. There are little joys of home that after more than a month of not having them you begin to realize how wonderful they really are. The alone time is one of them for me. Here in Pemba I'm living in a house with seven other people and in a community with houses and people always around. It has been an interesting aspect since there is no glass on the windows, just screen and this means that no matter where you are someone can hear and/or see you at all times. If you go anywhere outside of the compound you have to have at least one other person with you wherever you go and therefore even going for a walk alone is out of the question. I say this to explain one little area in which was making it a bit hard for me. It took a few weeks but loosing all independence finally hit me hard. Even though my birthday last week was in fact wonderful it was also so busy that I was unable to even talk to my parents, and then once I made it back to Pemba Saturday night it took me till Wednesday of this last week to be able to check my emails. Internet here is a complicated process. All that to say that to explain that I really had lost my energy, joy, and patience for a little over a full week. However this story has a happy ending. Something snapped in me Wednesday and I woke up with my joy back! That morning I said to my roommate Lisa, "Lisa, I'm back!"
It is a good thing too, because I left again for outreach on Thursday. Going out to
the bush takes a lot of energy and it is important to go into it with a good attitude or else you
really are miserable. Thursday we arrived at the village of planned and by the end of the
many people that came on this particular village visit we totaled 55. Mozambiquan Bible
School students, Mission School students, visitors, Heidi and Roland and their people, the
cook crew, the translators, and a group of dentists. That evening went well because I had my
joy back. I felt at home grabbed a little girl and began dancing with her and others while
African music played drawing a crowd from all over the village.
Friday morning I awoke in the midst of our tent city to loud children shortly after
4am. Heidi brought Starbucks to share with everyone this morning and of course we were all
overjoyed. Those of you who know me might cringe at this next comment but I will also
admit I have been drinking instant coffee for the last couple of weeks. Yes its true, instant
coffee with lots of sugar and milk. So to have a taste of real coffee was quite a wonderful
moment.
I stayed at our little tent village and helped with the dentistry team while a group
went with Heidi to go dedicate a children's home. I passed out a napkin and paper cup to
each patient with a smile, and then held their hands saying peace in Makuah over and over
trying to insure them that they were going to be ok. Then I would move to hold their head
after the anesthetics set in and it was teeth pulling time. The dentist crew was wonderful. They
were all so happy and loving toward each patient and it all went quite smoothly.
The dentists packed up once no one else mustered the courage to come near, and rice and beans awaited for lunch. After lunch it is again so hot everyone just lays low for a while. Lisa, Desi and I sat in the cement hut church for it was a little bit cooler and read or laid on grass mats for a quick nap. Not long into our relaxation Lisa was interrupted with a large rock hitting her directly on the head from some kid who ran by and threw it into the church. The kids in this village were no typical bad children. They really were maniacs. Natalie was walking to the car a bit later with a few water bottles and was literally mobbed by children as they stole the water from her hand. These kids do not stop asking, do not stop pestering, and even once they have they only want more or then steal from each other. It was a mad house. To explain my point even further, last night Johan's tent was sliced open with a razor blade and out of his tent was stolen his camera, his head lamp, money, and even his shoes. Antoinette's tent also was cut into and her camera was stolen. Serious bad kids. There where about 3 out of more than 50 running around that I could see were genuinely good kids. That evening we went to a different village nearby to show the Jesus film and pray. That night 4 men were completely healed from back pain and mobility was granted back to all of them. Yeah, I have a good God! He loves us and wants the best for us.
The next morning there was no sleeping past 4am because of what sounded like a
fire truck siren right next to my tent. But no it was children with flutes participating in a
circumcision ceremony at the house right next to us. Apparently it is a village tradition but
really why did it have to be at 4am? The rest of the day was packing up, waiting around for
no one knows what and then piling on the camion for the trip home. We more than doubled
our time for no particular reason and more than 5 stops. Ha! Welcome to Africa! We have all
day to get home why not take it?
Tonight was something special though! There is a cafe here that is run by some of
the older Iris kids to help them develop skills needed for the future. The cafe just this last
week finished a wood fire pizza oven and now serves pizza, smoothies, soda, semossas, ice
coffee, and banana bread. But as I was saying tonight was special. They had for the first
time ever open mice night. 5 different groups from the Mission school signed up as well as 5
groups of Iris kids. I walked over to the cafe and located down in the garden along the
bamboo fence was a huge baobab tree with the African animals carved into the base and a
string of lights hanging from above, which was the backdrop for the stage. A cement patio
made a half circle around the tree, littered with tables and chairs. Marshal Mclean played in
the background as people ate their pizza, laughed and talked waiting for the show to begin.
The whole night was great. So many talented people got up shared one or two songs, did a
dance, or read a portion of the book they were writing. At this point I felt as if I was living
both the life of Montana and the life of Mozambique at the same time. The only thing that
would make it better would be to have you with me. But I lay my head on my pillow and my spirit visits you as I dream. While my body lays in a bed protected by a mosquito net, and a soft breeze occasionally makes its way through the window to relieve the heat for a second .
It is a good thing too, because I left again for outreach on Thursday. Going out to
the bush takes a lot of energy and it is important to go into it with a good attitude or else you
really are miserable. Thursday we arrived at the village of planned and by the end of the
many people that came on this particular village visit we totaled 55. Mozambiquan Bible
School students, Mission School students, visitors, Heidi and Roland and their people, the
cook crew, the translators, and a group of dentists. That evening went well because I had my
joy back. I felt at home grabbed a little girl and began dancing with her and others while
African music played drawing a crowd from all over the village.
Friday morning I awoke in the midst of our tent city to loud children shortly after
4am. Heidi brought Starbucks to share with everyone this morning and of course we were all
overjoyed. Those of you who know me might cringe at this next comment but I will also
admit I have been drinking instant coffee for the last couple of weeks. Yes its true, instant
coffee with lots of sugar and milk. So to have a taste of real coffee was quite a wonderful
moment.
I stayed at our little tent village and helped with the dentistry team while a group
went with Heidi to go dedicate a children's home. I passed out a napkin and paper cup to
each patient with a smile, and then held their hands saying peace in Makuah over and over
trying to insure them that they were going to be ok. Then I would move to hold their head
after the anesthetics set in and it was teeth pulling time. The dentist crew was wonderful. They
were all so happy and loving toward each patient and it all went quite smoothly.
The dentists packed up once no one else mustered the courage to come near, and rice and beans awaited for lunch. After lunch it is again so hot everyone just lays low for a while. Lisa, Desi and I sat in the cement hut church for it was a little bit cooler and read or laid on grass mats for a quick nap. Not long into our relaxation Lisa was interrupted with a large rock hitting her directly on the head from some kid who ran by and threw it into the church. The kids in this village were no typical bad children. They really were maniacs. Natalie was walking to the car a bit later with a few water bottles and was literally mobbed by children as they stole the water from her hand. These kids do not stop asking, do not stop pestering, and even once they have they only want more or then steal from each other. It was a mad house. To explain my point even further, last night Johan's tent was sliced open with a razor blade and out of his tent was stolen his camera, his head lamp, money, and even his shoes. Antoinette's tent also was cut into and her camera was stolen. Serious bad kids. There where about 3 out of more than 50 running around that I could see were genuinely good kids. That evening we went to a different village nearby to show the Jesus film and pray. That night 4 men were completely healed from back pain and mobility was granted back to all of them. Yeah, I have a good God! He loves us and wants the best for us.
The next morning there was no sleeping past 4am because of what sounded like a
fire truck siren right next to my tent. But no it was children with flutes participating in a
circumcision ceremony at the house right next to us. Apparently it is a village tradition but
really why did it have to be at 4am? The rest of the day was packing up, waiting around for
no one knows what and then piling on the camion for the trip home. We more than doubled
our time for no particular reason and more than 5 stops. Ha! Welcome to Africa! We have all
day to get home why not take it?
Tonight was something special though! There is a cafe here that is run by some of
the older Iris kids to help them develop skills needed for the future. The cafe just this last
week finished a wood fire pizza oven and now serves pizza, smoothies, soda, semossas, ice
coffee, and banana bread. But as I was saying tonight was special. They had for the first
time ever open mice night. 5 different groups from the Mission school signed up as well as 5
groups of Iris kids. I walked over to the cafe and located down in the garden along the
bamboo fence was a huge baobab tree with the African animals carved into the base and a
string of lights hanging from above, which was the backdrop for the stage. A cement patio
made a half circle around the tree, littered with tables and chairs. Marshal Mclean played in
the background as people ate their pizza, laughed and talked waiting for the show to begin.
The whole night was great. So many talented people got up shared one or two songs, did a
dance, or read a portion of the book they were writing. At this point I felt as if I was living
both the life of Montana and the life of Mozambique at the same time. The only thing that
would make it better would be to have you with me. But I lay my head on my pillow and my spirit visits you as I dream. While my body lays in a bed protected by a mosquito net, and a soft breeze occasionally makes its way through the window to relieve the heat for a second .
Sunday, November 8, 2009
October 30th - November 7th
Friday, October 30th
Today's village outreach was different than last week's and yet just as touching.The team meet at 2 and after waiting a good while we gave up on the translators and just headed out to the village north of the Iris base. Not too far into the village we stopped at a house exploding with children. Come to find out there are people living here that run a sponsorship program. The kids loved the attention and we just sat and let the girls play with our hair and played games with the boys. There was another small baby today that I was holding and playing with for a while. She had a washcloth that was pinned onto her as a cloth diaper so I was safe from being peed on this time. However she did end up spitting up all over me as do most babies. It is just different here though. There are no blankets handy or spit rags. So you just brush it off best you can and shrug your shoulders.
Next we went over to a woman who's husband works for Iris as a guard. She had such a gentle spirit and she asked that we pray for her. We prayed for protection and provision and as we were saying our good-byes she took the necklace off her neck and put it on me. My heart melted I couldn't stop saying "obregada, obregada.(thank you)" I'm so touched by her generosity. I can't wait to go and see Theresa again.
We moved onto a group of women playing a game similar to the board game "Sorry." I joined the ladies for a while and was really content to just stay there, until I got distracted by a young girl of about 9. She was playing with my hair which was fine but then she took off my necklace and would not giving it back. I had to walk away from the game I was playing and convince her I was serious about wanting the necklace back. Eventually she gave in and a group of us then moved on to another woman's house. We had found a translator by that point and so we just sat and got to know her a bit. We met her son and saw the house she was in the process of building. At this time we began to run out of daylight and so we started heading back home and she walked all the way back with us.
Our purpose for these village visits is purely to develop relationship with locals. There is no big plan when we go out. We simply love people where they are at, become a part of their lives even in a little way, assess their needs, and to continue visiting throughout the week. Once relationships are developed then we have opportunity to meet some of their needs as well, such as bring them a pair of flip flops, or sign them up for our roofing team to come and put a roof on their house. But it is important that we have relationship with them first and then can give out of love and not just to meet a need.
Saturday, October 31st
Happy Halloween. I'll give you one guess what I was this year... Yep a Missionary in Africa! Surprised? Well jokes aside I had quite an amazing day today. Esther came to my window at 5am to wake me up. I threw on some yoga wear and we headed to the beach with Alicia and E.B. The four of us did yoga together on the beach when people barley scattered the beach. After an hour or so rain began to kiss our faces every couple of seconds and we gave up the yoga and hit the internet at the Nautilus. Once finished with responding to the rest of the world we walked back down to the Nautilus's restaurant for breakfast. Sitting on the beach with coffee and toast what could be better?
After breakfast we walked back home and Esther, Alicia and I went into town for supplies, toilet paper, laundry soap, peanut butter, all really exciting things. It is 50 mets (close to $2) for a taxi ride into town and our Portuguese is good enough to get around town. Often we will go to the market for bananas or mangoes as well and do some bartering but today we went in for pure necessities.
Once back to the base there was the decision was made for the dolphin that tonight. The dolphin is a kinda cheap restaurant closet to the Nautilus Hotel we use for the internet. You can get a small pizza for 120 mets ($5ish) A full two tables of us walked the stretch in pursuit of food other than beans and rice. Sometimes it is worth a walk and 120 mets for a pizza over another RICErific meal here on base. After the full day of being out and about I finished off the evening sitting on Alicia's front porch with a cup of African red tea, friends and discussion of music and life.
Monday through Wednesday:
I will be honest with you Monday through Wednesday looked like school, projects, reading, meetings...
Thursday, November 5th, 2009!!!!!! 21st Birthday!!!!!!
Well I woke up this morning early and in a good mood. Praise God! I grabbed my ipod and listened to Andrew Bird's "The Happy Birthday Song" and then "21" by the Cranberries and finally "Melody" by Blond Redhead. All great happy birthday Melody songs. I then grabbed my breakfast roll and tea and left it on the table as I did yoga out in front of my house. Later as I began to get ready for the day Alicia came over and gave me a birthday present of carrot sticks and homemade in Africa hummus!!!! I'm not sure how I could possibly explain to you what a miracle gift this was! My house was wonderful to me as well and showered me with "happy birthday" wishes before heading up to class where they then sang happy birthday to me. A group of us are going on on outreach this weekend and so those who weren't all prayed for those who were. After I passed through the line of people praying for me I went and layed on the floor to just listen to the Lord. I layed down and Henk from South Africa came over and prayed for me. He prayed an incredible birthday blessing over my life and for the next hour or more God continued to give me visions and talk to me.
One vision I had, I was laying in a hammock with the refreshing Montana mountain air on a summer day kissing my face. Papa God was laying in the hammock next to me and as we layed side by side in the hammock with His arm under my head I could see that we were on the tippy top of a steep mountain. From this mountain God started showing me different cultures and villages. I peered down into the valley and could see African villages next to London, East Indian villages next to Paris, Arabic villages next to New York. I could see the world. The Lord then brought to memory the scripture I read on Tuesday Psalm 2:7-8 "He said to me 'You are My son; today I have become your Father. Ask of me and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession." Which to me is a reminder of the promise that God has called me to travel the ends of the earth with Him and I wont ever stop bringing His love to every corner of the world. He is my papa God and I am comfortable in His arms.
We had class and again a lot of good things happened. After class however was rush time. Time to inhale some rice and beans grab backpack, tent, sleeping bag, water for 3 days, and a pack of wet-wipes and head to the camion to leave for outreach. We left sometime after 3 and headed to a village about an hour away. We set up our tents and then began to set up for the Jesus film. The Jesus film is a simple short story of the life of Jesus in the Makua language. Heidi came on this outreach along with our guest speakers right now Paul and Sherrel Black. Heidi preached after the film and called up those who wanted prayer. We spread out and began praying for people. I know is "un taka tefu (come Holy Spirit) and so pretty much that is all I prayed. The chief of the village loves the Lord and the people in this particular village were happy and excited about us being there. So in this aspect I would say I felt as if I was living the "Always enough" book. It felt extremely natural because of reading stories just like this.
As I layed my back in the African dirt and looked into a sky that is clean of all light pollution, I began to analyze this years birthday in comparison to my last. Birthdays are significant days and therefore it is easy to go back to this day in particular. This is the first time I have realized that I am a different person than I was last year. I layed under a completely new sky of endless layers of stars and I cannot possibly understand the depths of the universe. Yet, the God who created it all, chose to transform the insecure, pushover person I was last year by bringing me to Africa. I now have realized that I don't even recognize the person I was and know without a shadow of a dout that I could never go back to that place again. I have a confidence in who I am now that I never had before and I only received that through spending time with the one who made me. He knows how I tick and tock, He knows my ins and outs, my ups and downs. And now I can say that I have found all I need in Him, and I no longer have to turn to people-pleasing to fulfill a need to be needed void inside of me.
Friday, November 6th:
I woke up sick this morning. It got so hot so fast in my opinion and there really was no escaping it. After packing up tent and gear I kept my yoga mat out and just layed out in a field while everyone else played with the kids for a while. I was overjoyed by the time we were ready to head out, because I knew there would be a breeze once riding in the back of the camion. Sure enough it was a big deal for me to be able to cool down. I tried to keep drinking water but there was no use, I couldn't keep anything down. After a few hours of driving and some really hard to bear stopping in the extreme heat of the day we made it to the village of Ungora. As we drove in the children came out from all around and began singing and dancing on the hills as they waved and then began to chase after the truck. By this time I was feeling much better and we sang and played with the kids for a few hours. Now that we are a significant distance from the ocean it is HOT. Even the Mozambiquanas take a nap at this time of day when it is this extreme. We are guessing it was around 120 degrees Fahrenheit. So we decided to take a break from kid time for a little while as we had lunch and set up camp. I skipped breakfast this morning but my 2 in the afternoon I was feeling pretty good so I decided to have some pasta that our cook crew made for lunch. Well this was not such a good idea in fact and I ended up going to bed for the rest of the day because of feeling sick once again. As I was laying down God brought to mind the rejoice always scripture and though I know God did not make me sick I began to praise Him because His goodness remains constant even when things don't go as I planned. Seven o'clock rolled around and I was woken up by my good friend Alicia, Courtney, and Shenea. They had come back from where the Jesus film was playing because God told Alicia to come and pray for me. I woke up and as I sat up my stomach was again in extreme want to fall over pain but I let them pray for me and the pain stopped and I received an energy I did not have before. I threw on my Chacos and we walked back to where the film was showing.
This evening was eventful in a different way and we never will understand what really goes on because of the fact that I know I will never see these people again and there is no way to tell what changes happen on an individual level but all you can do is hope that you made a positive impact by just holding babies and seeing the Holy Spirit heal those in pain.
Saturday, November 7th:
We packed up and went to church early this morning. They had church today because we were there and we sang and the Mozambiquan pastors preached and again there was a simple enjoyment of company this morning. After saying our good-byes we hopped back in the camion and headed for home. It is strange how truly "home" this has become. As my eyes saw the ocean for the first time my heart got giddy. Getting back to my family here was refreshing as well. All those who didn't go on outreach went to an optional class that was going on for anyone interested (not just Harvest School students) on marriage. It was a lot of male/female brain games that I know was really great information, however I'm happy on my decision to go on outreach instead. Those of us who did chose outreach we all then decided that it would again be fun to go out to eat tonight at the Dolphin once again. A pizza and a coke treated me well after a good long outreach and tonight I decided even to get a little dolled up. I put on makeup and did my hair for the first time in over a month. It was a fun dramatic change considering how dirty I was from 3 days in the bush.
Summery:
My apologizes this is so long but it has been over a week of not talking to you at all. As you have read there was a lot that went on this week and as I've told you before, you are a part of the adventure so I can't leave you out on the details. Life here in Pemba is really so so so incredibly privileged. We have electricity from 5am-8am and again from 5pm-10pm, I have a bed, I have running water, I have more than one set of clothing, I have a grocery store, and I know that I am intensely blessed.
Today's village outreach was different than last week's and yet just as touching.The team meet at 2 and after waiting a good while we gave up on the translators and just headed out to the village north of the Iris base. Not too far into the village we stopped at a house exploding with children. Come to find out there are people living here that run a sponsorship program. The kids loved the attention and we just sat and let the girls play with our hair and played games with the boys. There was another small baby today that I was holding and playing with for a while. She had a washcloth that was pinned onto her as a cloth diaper so I was safe from being peed on this time. However she did end up spitting up all over me as do most babies. It is just different here though. There are no blankets handy or spit rags. So you just brush it off best you can and shrug your shoulders.
Next we went over to a woman who's husband works for Iris as a guard. She had such a gentle spirit and she asked that we pray for her. We prayed for protection and provision and as we were saying our good-byes she took the necklace off her neck and put it on me. My heart melted I couldn't stop saying "obregada, obregada.(thank you)" I'm so touched by her generosity. I can't wait to go and see Theresa again.
We moved onto a group of women playing a game similar to the board game "Sorry." I joined the ladies for a while and was really content to just stay there, until I got distracted by a young girl of about 9. She was playing with my hair which was fine but then she took off my necklace and would not giving it back. I had to walk away from the game I was playing and convince her I was serious about wanting the necklace back. Eventually she gave in and a group of us then moved on to another woman's house. We had found a translator by that point and so we just sat and got to know her a bit. We met her son and saw the house she was in the process of building. At this time we began to run out of daylight and so we started heading back home and she walked all the way back with us.
Our purpose for these village visits is purely to develop relationship with locals. There is no big plan when we go out. We simply love people where they are at, become a part of their lives even in a little way, assess their needs, and to continue visiting throughout the week. Once relationships are developed then we have opportunity to meet some of their needs as well, such as bring them a pair of flip flops, or sign them up for our roofing team to come and put a roof on their house. But it is important that we have relationship with them first and then can give out of love and not just to meet a need.
Saturday, October 31st
Happy Halloween. I'll give you one guess what I was this year... Yep a Missionary in Africa! Surprised? Well jokes aside I had quite an amazing day today. Esther came to my window at 5am to wake me up. I threw on some yoga wear and we headed to the beach with Alicia and E.B. The four of us did yoga together on the beach when people barley scattered the beach. After an hour or so rain began to kiss our faces every couple of seconds and we gave up the yoga and hit the internet at the Nautilus. Once finished with responding to the rest of the world we walked back down to the Nautilus's restaurant for breakfast. Sitting on the beach with coffee and toast what could be better?
After breakfast we walked back home and Esther, Alicia and I went into town for supplies, toilet paper, laundry soap, peanut butter, all really exciting things. It is 50 mets (close to $2) for a taxi ride into town and our Portuguese is good enough to get around town. Often we will go to the market for bananas or mangoes as well and do some bartering but today we went in for pure necessities.
Once back to the base there was the decision was made for the dolphin that tonight. The dolphin is a kinda cheap restaurant closet to the Nautilus Hotel we use for the internet. You can get a small pizza for 120 mets ($5ish) A full two tables of us walked the stretch in pursuit of food other than beans and rice. Sometimes it is worth a walk and 120 mets for a pizza over another RICErific meal here on base. After the full day of being out and about I finished off the evening sitting on Alicia's front porch with a cup of African red tea, friends and discussion of music and life.
Monday through Wednesday:
I will be honest with you Monday through Wednesday looked like school, projects, reading, meetings...
Thursday, November 5th, 2009!!!!!! 21st Birthday!!!!!!
Well I woke up this morning early and in a good mood. Praise God! I grabbed my ipod and listened to Andrew Bird's "The Happy Birthday Song" and then "21" by the Cranberries and finally "Melody" by Blond Redhead. All great happy birthday Melody songs. I then grabbed my breakfast roll and tea and left it on the table as I did yoga out in front of my house. Later as I began to get ready for the day Alicia came over and gave me a birthday present of carrot sticks and homemade in Africa hummus!!!! I'm not sure how I could possibly explain to you what a miracle gift this was! My house was wonderful to me as well and showered me with "happy birthday" wishes before heading up to class where they then sang happy birthday to me. A group of us are going on on outreach this weekend and so those who weren't all prayed for those who were. After I passed through the line of people praying for me I went and layed on the floor to just listen to the Lord. I layed down and Henk from South Africa came over and prayed for me. He prayed an incredible birthday blessing over my life and for the next hour or more God continued to give me visions and talk to me.
One vision I had, I was laying in a hammock with the refreshing Montana mountain air on a summer day kissing my face. Papa God was laying in the hammock next to me and as we layed side by side in the hammock with His arm under my head I could see that we were on the tippy top of a steep mountain. From this mountain God started showing me different cultures and villages. I peered down into the valley and could see African villages next to London, East Indian villages next to Paris, Arabic villages next to New York. I could see the world. The Lord then brought to memory the scripture I read on Tuesday Psalm 2:7-8 "He said to me 'You are My son; today I have become your Father. Ask of me and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession." Which to me is a reminder of the promise that God has called me to travel the ends of the earth with Him and I wont ever stop bringing His love to every corner of the world. He is my papa God and I am comfortable in His arms.
We had class and again a lot of good things happened. After class however was rush time. Time to inhale some rice and beans grab backpack, tent, sleeping bag, water for 3 days, and a pack of wet-wipes and head to the camion to leave for outreach. We left sometime after 3 and headed to a village about an hour away. We set up our tents and then began to set up for the Jesus film. The Jesus film is a simple short story of the life of Jesus in the Makua language. Heidi came on this outreach along with our guest speakers right now Paul and Sherrel Black. Heidi preached after the film and called up those who wanted prayer. We spread out and began praying for people. I know is "un taka tefu (come Holy Spirit) and so pretty much that is all I prayed. The chief of the village loves the Lord and the people in this particular village were happy and excited about us being there. So in this aspect I would say I felt as if I was living the "Always enough" book. It felt extremely natural because of reading stories just like this.
As I layed my back in the African dirt and looked into a sky that is clean of all light pollution, I began to analyze this years birthday in comparison to my last. Birthdays are significant days and therefore it is easy to go back to this day in particular. This is the first time I have realized that I am a different person than I was last year. I layed under a completely new sky of endless layers of stars and I cannot possibly understand the depths of the universe. Yet, the God who created it all, chose to transform the insecure, pushover person I was last year by bringing me to Africa. I now have realized that I don't even recognize the person I was and know without a shadow of a dout that I could never go back to that place again. I have a confidence in who I am now that I never had before and I only received that through spending time with the one who made me. He knows how I tick and tock, He knows my ins and outs, my ups and downs. And now I can say that I have found all I need in Him, and I no longer have to turn to people-pleasing to fulfill a need to be needed void inside of me.
Friday, November 6th:
I woke up sick this morning. It got so hot so fast in my opinion and there really was no escaping it. After packing up tent and gear I kept my yoga mat out and just layed out in a field while everyone else played with the kids for a while. I was overjoyed by the time we were ready to head out, because I knew there would be a breeze once riding in the back of the camion. Sure enough it was a big deal for me to be able to cool down. I tried to keep drinking water but there was no use, I couldn't keep anything down. After a few hours of driving and some really hard to bear stopping in the extreme heat of the day we made it to the village of Ungora. As we drove in the children came out from all around and began singing and dancing on the hills as they waved and then began to chase after the truck. By this time I was feeling much better and we sang and played with the kids for a few hours. Now that we are a significant distance from the ocean it is HOT. Even the Mozambiquanas take a nap at this time of day when it is this extreme. We are guessing it was around 120 degrees Fahrenheit. So we decided to take a break from kid time for a little while as we had lunch and set up camp. I skipped breakfast this morning but my 2 in the afternoon I was feeling pretty good so I decided to have some pasta that our cook crew made for lunch. Well this was not such a good idea in fact and I ended up going to bed for the rest of the day because of feeling sick once again. As I was laying down God brought to mind the rejoice always scripture and though I know God did not make me sick I began to praise Him because His goodness remains constant even when things don't go as I planned. Seven o'clock rolled around and I was woken up by my good friend Alicia, Courtney, and Shenea. They had come back from where the Jesus film was playing because God told Alicia to come and pray for me. I woke up and as I sat up my stomach was again in extreme want to fall over pain but I let them pray for me and the pain stopped and I received an energy I did not have before. I threw on my Chacos and we walked back to where the film was showing.
This evening was eventful in a different way and we never will understand what really goes on because of the fact that I know I will never see these people again and there is no way to tell what changes happen on an individual level but all you can do is hope that you made a positive impact by just holding babies and seeing the Holy Spirit heal those in pain.
Saturday, November 7th:
We packed up and went to church early this morning. They had church today because we were there and we sang and the Mozambiquan pastors preached and again there was a simple enjoyment of company this morning. After saying our good-byes we hopped back in the camion and headed for home. It is strange how truly "home" this has become. As my eyes saw the ocean for the first time my heart got giddy. Getting back to my family here was refreshing as well. All those who didn't go on outreach went to an optional class that was going on for anyone interested (not just Harvest School students) on marriage. It was a lot of male/female brain games that I know was really great information, however I'm happy on my decision to go on outreach instead. Those of us who did chose outreach we all then decided that it would again be fun to go out to eat tonight at the Dolphin once again. A pizza and a coke treated me well after a good long outreach and tonight I decided even to get a little dolled up. I put on makeup and did my hair for the first time in over a month. It was a fun dramatic change considering how dirty I was from 3 days in the bush.
Summery:
My apologizes this is so long but it has been over a week of not talking to you at all. As you have read there was a lot that went on this week and as I've told you before, you are a part of the adventure so I can't leave you out on the details. Life here in Pemba is really so so so incredibly privileged. We have electricity from 5am-8am and again from 5pm-10pm, I have a bed, I have running water, I have more than one set of clothing, I have a grocery store, and I know that I am intensely blessed.
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Some everyday info
My family and friends, I am so grateful to have people like you in my life. Even though I am fully enjoying my African experiences here I still cannot help but be thinking and praying for all of you. When my head hits the pillow you are the ones that visit me in my dreams. When I am on my face in prayer, you are the ones that are on my heart. It is hard for me to not have as much communication with all of you as I would like, but just because I have no idea of what is going on with you, doesn't mean that you are any less on my mind.
So I have already told you the morning ritual of super sweet tea and a bread roll, but I have not told you about the other two meals of the day. Lunch is rice and beans everyday and dinner varies. Rice and some topping. My goal is just to keep my perspective in the right place and then I hope to not get sick of the routine.
Slowly but surely I'm getting out to you some of the basics of everyday life here. You know my every morning, you know my every meal, you know about the few and very speedy showers. Doing laundry is another great adventure. It is all hand wash in buckets and communal line drying. After only a few items the wash bucket is full of dead ants and the water looks as if you used it to mopped a floor for the first time in 3 months. It is important to do laundry before class however, in order for the sun to finish drying the clothes before they get unwillingly donated after sunset. This means laundry must start at 6:30 or so. I really don't mind doing the laundry though. It is kinda meditative.
A few other daily things besides yoga, laundry, prayer, reading, going to the beach, and all the other things that sometimes get me to thinking I'm on vacation, one of my favorite places to go is the baby house. I love hanging out with the toddlers because there is no hindrance with when it comes to the language. We just play!
For the kids here the idea of a TV is an outrageous thought, but they don't really even have toys. The boys are really good at making these toy cars out of old flip flops and sticks. They make balls out of old garbage bags and twine. The kids are perfectly content just sitting around. They don't have to be entertained at every moment. The culture is all based around community and relationship. Dancing, or singing or girls doing hair, or boys playing soccer, these are the things that make up fun.
This week we have been doing a 24/7 prayer week which has been fun. We have a gazebo here on base that has someone praying in it at all times. During the afternoon each day we have a spontaneous worship session. Singing with the Holy Spirit is so much fun. I was on the team that played on Tuesday.
I know this weeks blog isn't specifically what happened this week in my life but I wanted to give you a few more tid-bits of the everyday here.
So I have already told you the morning ritual of super sweet tea and a bread roll, but I have not told you about the other two meals of the day. Lunch is rice and beans everyday and dinner varies. Rice and some topping. My goal is just to keep my perspective in the right place and then I hope to not get sick of the routine.
Slowly but surely I'm getting out to you some of the basics of everyday life here. You know my every morning, you know my every meal, you know about the few and very speedy showers. Doing laundry is another great adventure. It is all hand wash in buckets and communal line drying. After only a few items the wash bucket is full of dead ants and the water looks as if you used it to mopped a floor for the first time in 3 months. It is important to do laundry before class however, in order for the sun to finish drying the clothes before they get unwillingly donated after sunset. This means laundry must start at 6:30 or so. I really don't mind doing the laundry though. It is kinda meditative.
A few other daily things besides yoga, laundry, prayer, reading, going to the beach, and all the other things that sometimes get me to thinking I'm on vacation, one of my favorite places to go is the baby house. I love hanging out with the toddlers because there is no hindrance with when it comes to the language. We just play!
For the kids here the idea of a TV is an outrageous thought, but they don't really even have toys. The boys are really good at making these toy cars out of old flip flops and sticks. They make balls out of old garbage bags and twine. The kids are perfectly content just sitting around. They don't have to be entertained at every moment. The culture is all based around community and relationship. Dancing, or singing or girls doing hair, or boys playing soccer, these are the things that make up fun.
This week we have been doing a 24/7 prayer week which has been fun. We have a gazebo here on base that has someone praying in it at all times. During the afternoon each day we have a spontaneous worship session. Singing with the Holy Spirit is so much fun. I was on the team that played on Tuesday.
I know this weeks blog isn't specifically what happened this week in my life but I wanted to give you a few more tid-bits of the everyday here.
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Time to Go Out
The rest of the week has proved to be yet another novel. Wednesday evening was another monumental experience in faith for me. I am once more a new person today than I was yesterday. One of the key words here for this school has been acceleration. I believe that word has proven true in my life already. This is a school not based on just learning a bunch of facts. This is a school based on changing a life to forever be wrecked for God. To be wrecked for seeing the things of God, hearing the voice of God, experiencing the presence of God, and to live in this reality for the entirety of life remaining on this earth is the goal of the instructors for the students.
Friday marked a new season of learning here however. Up until this point I have had God do so much for me internally that when Heidi Baker was speaking Friday morning, God warned me that today is the beginning of the hands on training. For two weeks I have had time to receive the internal transformation to get me to the point of being able to live the life. Every Friday I signed up to go with a group that is going to visit the village just outside the Iris base and just see what God wants to do. There is no agenda except loving people and letting Jesus show His love to them through us. It is important to wear a long skirt past the knee and a shirt that covers one's shoulders when going into the village out of respect to their culture.So here is the story of my village experience:
A group of us "Acunya" (white people) and two translators walked out of the gates at the top of the Iris base and walked into real poverty. Rows of houses made from bamboo, rocks and some clay created pathways of red dirt. Mamas sat on grass mats outside their houses with naked bottom babys sitting on their laps. We great them with "Salama," the Makua word for hello, as they respond with "Saloma mohavo?"
"Kehavo, Mohavo? I'm good. How are you?" we reply
"Kehavo!" echos which ends the extent our our knowledge of the language. This is frustrating and stirs within me the strong desire to learn more Makua. As I follow our group leader Mattheus we stop and sitt on grass mats with four women. One woman is sick and with very little energy, pulls out her breast to explain she has no milk to nurse her baby. We pray that God heals her body from all sickness and returns it to a healthy state. A few minutes of prayer and translation pass and she then asks her mother sitting on the other grass mat for her baby. She then begins nursing and has a new countenance and energy that she did not have previously. I am sitting on a grass mat next to a woman that looks to be the grandmother of the young woman and Matt, our group leader, is sitting on the other side of her. Matt knows a bit more Makua and tries to make conversation with the woman and she sits with no response. The oldest Mama's daughter gets up, puts her mouth to her ear and yells what Matt is trying to ask. At this the elderly woman response and we learn of her serious hearing loss. Through a translator it is then revealed that her vision is in poor health as well. She sees a blurry double of everything. So we ask her if we can pray? She agrees and I hold her hand with both of mine, while Matthaeus takes her other hand. The presence of the Holy Spirit showed up so thick that the three of us did not want to move from that moment. As we sat there enjoying the peace of God the translator standing about 3 feet away and speaking in a regular voice asked the woman if her hearing was improved. She then opened her eyes and responded to his question! He then put two fingers in front of her and asks how many? She responds speedily with the correct answer every time. He then points to a person walking in the distance and asks again how many? She responds, "one." The whole family and all the kids that had showed up during this process then began to all shout "Hallelujah, gracious Adaosh!" and we joined in the celebration as this woman's hearing and vision became totally restored!
As we continued on our way through the village more and more kids joined our parade. I picked up a precious little girl and I carried her though the town. The sweat of our bodies mixed on my t-shirt with the dirt in the air, as we walked and laughed through the village. We followed one of our translators which is a local pastor to his home and as we arrived I said goodbye to my new friend as she ran back with the other kids. I then picked up a new little baby and held her as I sat outside the pastor's home. A warm liquid then covered my skirt and I just smiled as I realized I was now covered in baby pee. We prayed for the pastor, his family, and his home and then began our way back though the village in the direction we had came.
We came to another small house and stopped as we greeted the three women sitting on their grass mats. One then informed us that her daughter was sick inside. We went into the small box made of clay and there was a table on one wall, and a bed on the other. On the bed was a gorgeous young woman sick with Malaria. I sat down at the head of her bed and began to rub her back realizing she was nothing but bones under a blanket. Tears began to stream down my face clearing trails of dirt as they poured from my eyes uncontrollably. The desperation of the poor came over me to the point in which praying with compassion was not a hard concept to have. The translator informed us after about 15 minutes of praying with her that she was feeling better. One by one we made our way out of the house. The peace of God was thick in the room and I just wanted to stay. I eventually got up and walked over to the young woman's mother and gave the good-bye gesture of shake hands and kiss each cheek. The nonverbal communication intensifies when it is all you have and she communicated her thanks for us coming. We all left the house with the door open and stood outside for another 20 or more minutes. I kept peering in the doorway gazing at the woman on the cot and she had a completely new glow about her. She sat up and stopped coughing and new energy was in her eyes.
During the walk home through the village my mind was wrapped up in all around me; babies in rags playing with knives, cardboard houses, visible diseases and infection. We had to continue walking at this point because the sun was beginning to set and it gets very dangerous to be in the village after sunset especially for white women. The group of us made it back into our safe gated community, thanked our translators, and went on to our separate houses. I reached my front porch and could only lay there by the door. I smelled of urine, I was covered with dust and dirt, sweat, and tears. Yet in knowing all this as I layer on the floor in front of my luxurious house, I almost didn't want to remove the filth from my body. Because in a way I felt just a little more connected to the people while in this condition.
Friday marked a new season of learning here however. Up until this point I have had God do so much for me internally that when Heidi Baker was speaking Friday morning, God warned me that today is the beginning of the hands on training. For two weeks I have had time to receive the internal transformation to get me to the point of being able to live the life. Every Friday I signed up to go with a group that is going to visit the village just outside the Iris base and just see what God wants to do. There is no agenda except loving people and letting Jesus show His love to them through us. It is important to wear a long skirt past the knee and a shirt that covers one's shoulders when going into the village out of respect to their culture.So here is the story of my village experience:
A group of us "Acunya" (white people) and two translators walked out of the gates at the top of the Iris base and walked into real poverty. Rows of houses made from bamboo, rocks and some clay created pathways of red dirt. Mamas sat on grass mats outside their houses with naked bottom babys sitting on their laps. We great them with "Salama," the Makua word for hello, as they respond with "Saloma mohavo?"
"Kehavo, Mohavo? I'm good. How are you?" we reply
"Kehavo!" echos which ends the extent our our knowledge of the language. This is frustrating and stirs within me the strong desire to learn more Makua. As I follow our group leader Mattheus we stop and sitt on grass mats with four women. One woman is sick and with very little energy, pulls out her breast to explain she has no milk to nurse her baby. We pray that God heals her body from all sickness and returns it to a healthy state. A few minutes of prayer and translation pass and she then asks her mother sitting on the other grass mat for her baby. She then begins nursing and has a new countenance and energy that she did not have previously. I am sitting on a grass mat next to a woman that looks to be the grandmother of the young woman and Matt, our group leader, is sitting on the other side of her. Matt knows a bit more Makua and tries to make conversation with the woman and she sits with no response. The oldest Mama's daughter gets up, puts her mouth to her ear and yells what Matt is trying to ask. At this the elderly woman response and we learn of her serious hearing loss. Through a translator it is then revealed that her vision is in poor health as well. She sees a blurry double of everything. So we ask her if we can pray? She agrees and I hold her hand with both of mine, while Matthaeus takes her other hand. The presence of the Holy Spirit showed up so thick that the three of us did not want to move from that moment. As we sat there enjoying the peace of God the translator standing about 3 feet away and speaking in a regular voice asked the woman if her hearing was improved. She then opened her eyes and responded to his question! He then put two fingers in front of her and asks how many? She responds speedily with the correct answer every time. He then points to a person walking in the distance and asks again how many? She responds, "one." The whole family and all the kids that had showed up during this process then began to all shout "Hallelujah, gracious Adaosh!" and we joined in the celebration as this woman's hearing and vision became totally restored!
As we continued on our way through the village more and more kids joined our parade. I picked up a precious little girl and I carried her though the town. The sweat of our bodies mixed on my t-shirt with the dirt in the air, as we walked and laughed through the village. We followed one of our translators which is a local pastor to his home and as we arrived I said goodbye to my new friend as she ran back with the other kids. I then picked up a new little baby and held her as I sat outside the pastor's home. A warm liquid then covered my skirt and I just smiled as I realized I was now covered in baby pee. We prayed for the pastor, his family, and his home and then began our way back though the village in the direction we had came.
We came to another small house and stopped as we greeted the three women sitting on their grass mats. One then informed us that her daughter was sick inside. We went into the small box made of clay and there was a table on one wall, and a bed on the other. On the bed was a gorgeous young woman sick with Malaria. I sat down at the head of her bed and began to rub her back realizing she was nothing but bones under a blanket. Tears began to stream down my face clearing trails of dirt as they poured from my eyes uncontrollably. The desperation of the poor came over me to the point in which praying with compassion was not a hard concept to have. The translator informed us after about 15 minutes of praying with her that she was feeling better. One by one we made our way out of the house. The peace of God was thick in the room and I just wanted to stay. I eventually got up and walked over to the young woman's mother and gave the good-bye gesture of shake hands and kiss each cheek. The nonverbal communication intensifies when it is all you have and she communicated her thanks for us coming. We all left the house with the door open and stood outside for another 20 or more minutes. I kept peering in the doorway gazing at the woman on the cot and she had a completely new glow about her. She sat up and stopped coughing and new energy was in her eyes.
During the walk home through the village my mind was wrapped up in all around me; babies in rags playing with knives, cardboard houses, visible diseases and infection. We had to continue walking at this point because the sun was beginning to set and it gets very dangerous to be in the village after sunset especially for white women. The group of us made it back into our safe gated community, thanked our translators, and went on to our separate houses. I reached my front porch and could only lay there by the door. I smelled of urine, I was covered with dust and dirt, sweat, and tears. Yet in knowing all this as I layer on the floor in front of my luxurious house, I almost didn't want to remove the filth from my body. Because in a way I felt just a little more connected to the people while in this condition.
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
October 19th - October 21st Sickness and Health
Monday, October 19, 2009
Today was spent in bed! First night of Africa I was welcomed by the bugs, they now are a constant companion that all of us are just getting used to. Today however I got visited by another African classic, sickness. In the middle of the night last nigh I was kinda feeling it, but I tried to press on and even got ready for the day. I was in class for not even 10 minutes before I knew it was not going to be possible for me to stay. I was having a hard time climbing up and down the ladder to my bed so my bunk mate Carri let me sleep on her bed for the day and I have been in constant contact with a fan or else my fevor takes over and I nearly fall over in a full body sweat. My house has been wonderful though. Jess went and got me a sprite and I am sitting up now which is a huge improvement. People are praying for me and I believe by tomorrow I will recieve new strength. I wasn't able to keep my milaria perscription down either so I really need to be better by tomorrow in order to try and take another one.
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
I awoke this morning not only totally well, but full of joy in abundance! Yes I took many vitamins and slept all day yesterday but there was tens of people praying for my health as well. I believe that God sometimes works with us on miracles. In some cases such as my ear, He heals instantly. In other cases as the flu that I had yesterday that I no longer have today He works with us through vitamins, and prayer, through rest and intercession. Yet in both cases I blame God for my healing. Ha! 'cause He is good in every circumstance and every situation. God did a lot of house work on my heart today as well. I cannot possibly tell you all that has occured within me, but it is all good. Each day I feel a new lightness in my step and a new wieghtiness of glory on my hands. Each day I chose to give up the dirt and sin in my life, and embrace the love and joy in return. Each day I become more of the person I've always desired to be. So tonight I took a shower and I stood in the big bucket we do our laundry in so in order to reuse the water that was rincing me. So the shower process looks like this: Turn on water get wet, turn off water, soap up and shampoo up, turn water on and rince. This way the running of water lasts not even two minutes and I am happy to get a shower every 2 days, its actually quite great. So as I was saying this time I stood in the bucket in order to be able to reuse the water that rinced off my body. Ha! so I sat and used that water to shave my legs and when I went to pour it out it was the thick red color of the earth here in Africa. I don't realize how physically dirty I really am, but hey its all good 'cause everyone here is in the same boat. We are all dirty and stinky together!
Wednesday, October 21st, 2009
Again I awoke with such an energy and joy today! I just loved it! I made a new morning playlist for myself and went out to do my morning yoga and prayer. I just love it! When I got here God told me to be on the worship team here. I argued but knew that He knows best for me, so I signed up. This morning my bunk mate Carri from California, this guy Chris from North Carolina, Rollo from the UK, and I all lead worship. Man it was fun! I so enjoyed just floating in God's presence this morning and we ended up leading for the second session as well. I didn't realize untill someone asked later on but, it has been 7 years since I have been an active part of a worship team. I might have sung once or twice within those 7 years but not really a member of a team. It is so refreshing to be right where God wants me to be. Another classmate came up to me when class was out and said that my voice made her want to drink coffee and listen to 50's music. I am still laughing at that comment 'cause I just think it is so funny. So here I am on Wednesday and I'm posting another blog but I just can't help it now. I'm so excited to share all that is going on with you. Please write me any questions you have, and just so you know the whole time I have been here I have been praying for you! You are the ones that come to me in my dreams, you are the ones I'm interceding for, I love you my home, my family, my friends, my people, and I believe God is doing big things in your life!
Today was spent in bed! First night of Africa I was welcomed by the bugs, they now are a constant companion that all of us are just getting used to. Today however I got visited by another African classic, sickness. In the middle of the night last nigh I was kinda feeling it, but I tried to press on and even got ready for the day. I was in class for not even 10 minutes before I knew it was not going to be possible for me to stay. I was having a hard time climbing up and down the ladder to my bed so my bunk mate Carri let me sleep on her bed for the day and I have been in constant contact with a fan or else my fevor takes over and I nearly fall over in a full body sweat. My house has been wonderful though. Jess went and got me a sprite and I am sitting up now which is a huge improvement. People are praying for me and I believe by tomorrow I will recieve new strength. I wasn't able to keep my milaria perscription down either so I really need to be better by tomorrow in order to try and take another one.
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
I awoke this morning not only totally well, but full of joy in abundance! Yes I took many vitamins and slept all day yesterday but there was tens of people praying for my health as well. I believe that God sometimes works with us on miracles. In some cases such as my ear, He heals instantly. In other cases as the flu that I had yesterday that I no longer have today He works with us through vitamins, and prayer, through rest and intercession. Yet in both cases I blame God for my healing. Ha! 'cause He is good in every circumstance and every situation. God did a lot of house work on my heart today as well. I cannot possibly tell you all that has occured within me, but it is all good. Each day I feel a new lightness in my step and a new wieghtiness of glory on my hands. Each day I chose to give up the dirt and sin in my life, and embrace the love and joy in return. Each day I become more of the person I've always desired to be. So tonight I took a shower and I stood in the big bucket we do our laundry in so in order to reuse the water that was rincing me. So the shower process looks like this: Turn on water get wet, turn off water, soap up and shampoo up, turn water on and rince. This way the running of water lasts not even two minutes and I am happy to get a shower every 2 days, its actually quite great. So as I was saying this time I stood in the bucket in order to be able to reuse the water that rinced off my body. Ha! so I sat and used that water to shave my legs and when I went to pour it out it was the thick red color of the earth here in Africa. I don't realize how physically dirty I really am, but hey its all good 'cause everyone here is in the same boat. We are all dirty and stinky together!
Wednesday, October 21st, 2009
Again I awoke with such an energy and joy today! I just loved it! I made a new morning playlist for myself and went out to do my morning yoga and prayer. I just love it! When I got here God told me to be on the worship team here. I argued but knew that He knows best for me, so I signed up. This morning my bunk mate Carri from California, this guy Chris from North Carolina, Rollo from the UK, and I all lead worship. Man it was fun! I so enjoyed just floating in God's presence this morning and we ended up leading for the second session as well. I didn't realize untill someone asked later on but, it has been 7 years since I have been an active part of a worship team. I might have sung once or twice within those 7 years but not really a member of a team. It is so refreshing to be right where God wants me to be. Another classmate came up to me when class was out and said that my voice made her want to drink coffee and listen to 50's music. I am still laughing at that comment 'cause I just think it is so funny. So here I am on Wednesday and I'm posting another blog but I just can't help it now. I'm so excited to share all that is going on with you. Please write me any questions you have, and just so you know the whole time I have been here I have been praying for you! You are the ones that come to me in my dreams, you are the ones I'm interceding for, I love you my home, my family, my friends, my people, and I believe God is doing big things in your life!
Sunday, October 18, 2009
A novel has occurred within just one week of school it is hard to give you a real taste of my new life here. The sun creeps up over the ocean at 4:30am with birds celebrating a new day. By 5:30 I join the celebration with my i pod, my bible, and yoga mat. Kim Walker sings "You wont Relent," as I stand in tree pose facing the ocean. Every morning my body and soul crave this one-on-one time for just me and my lover Jesus. After an hour or more I tear myself away to grab a roll and cup of super sweet tea from the kitchen. I sit on the front porch with a book and enjoy the simple food for another hour before grabbing my notebook, bible, and water bottle. I walk to class, a large gazebo located on a hill overlooking the compound, and utter "bom dia" to every person on the way. I stand with the ocean breeze whipping my skirt and my arms stretched out in worship. This is how each and everyday begins in paradise!
Even though each morning looks very similar, God does something new in me everyday. Sunday was my first African church service and it really was all I dreamed it could be. The kids and I danced in the front during worship. They have more dancers and kids on stage than they have musicians and all the music carries a strong drum beat you can't help move to. Papa Roland Baker spoke a few sentences in English then it was translated into Portuguese and then again into Makua. The message was a simple invitation to have more of the Holy Spirit. In response I made my way to the front of the church, and laid on grass mats among beautiful African women and children. Tears streamed down my cheeks as my mind raced with the miracle of me being in this moment.
On Monday the first day of school, my ear was really bothering me and it was hard for me to be in worship. Back when I was in 8th grade my right eardrum popped and it has given me problems since. In worship I placed my hand over my ear and my friend Alicia who was next to me, saw that my ear was hurting so she placed her hand on mine and prayed for a new eardrum. Instantly the pain left completely and my hearing was totally restored! Ha! God is so good!
On Friday the last day of school for the week, Heidi Baker spoke about our identity. Ephesians 1: 4 states that God chose us. Laying on grass mats I began to thank God for choosing me. What a humbling thought that the God of all time and space chose me. As I lay in His thick presence, I was taken away into a series of visions. After each one I asked God what it all meant and He would explain. I felt as if I was laying on the floor for maybe 20 minutes yet when I opened my eyes, the sun had set and when I moved, my body was sore. I was on the floor for more than 2 hours! My heart and my head now belong to the King of Kings who has the best in mind for me. He has given me dreams and He promises they will come true.
All I can tell you is what is happening to me. I can't explain. I can't argue. All I know is God is so real that I hear His voice clearly and have relationship with him,and His touch is so real that miracles happen. I am praying that you get to experience God like this. That He visits you in dreams and takes you on journeys and touches you in ways that every heart ache is healed and every pain flees.
Even though each morning looks very similar, God does something new in me everyday. Sunday was my first African church service and it really was all I dreamed it could be. The kids and I danced in the front during worship. They have more dancers and kids on stage than they have musicians and all the music carries a strong drum beat you can't help move to. Papa Roland Baker spoke a few sentences in English then it was translated into Portuguese and then again into Makua. The message was a simple invitation to have more of the Holy Spirit. In response I made my way to the front of the church, and laid on grass mats among beautiful African women and children. Tears streamed down my cheeks as my mind raced with the miracle of me being in this moment.
On Monday the first day of school, my ear was really bothering me and it was hard for me to be in worship. Back when I was in 8th grade my right eardrum popped and it has given me problems since. In worship I placed my hand over my ear and my friend Alicia who was next to me, saw that my ear was hurting so she placed her hand on mine and prayed for a new eardrum. Instantly the pain left completely and my hearing was totally restored! Ha! God is so good!
On Friday the last day of school for the week, Heidi Baker spoke about our identity. Ephesians 1: 4 states that God chose us. Laying on grass mats I began to thank God for choosing me. What a humbling thought that the God of all time and space chose me. As I lay in His thick presence, I was taken away into a series of visions. After each one I asked God what it all meant and He would explain. I felt as if I was laying on the floor for maybe 20 minutes yet when I opened my eyes, the sun had set and when I moved, my body was sore. I was on the floor for more than 2 hours! My heart and my head now belong to the King of Kings who has the best in mind for me. He has given me dreams and He promises they will come true.
All I can tell you is what is happening to me. I can't explain. I can't argue. All I know is God is so real that I hear His voice clearly and have relationship with him,and His touch is so real that miracles happen. I am praying that you get to experience God like this. That He visits you in dreams and takes you on journeys and touches you in ways that every heart ache is healed and every pain flees.
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