it all works out just fine.
Thursday's afternoon walk down the steps of the plane will make weary travelers come alive with excitement and the line to get our passports checked will feel way too long. We'll move to the baggage area to retrieve 20 suitcases each filled to the 50lb limit of every thing we wanted to take and so many so generously gave. Clothing, shoes, toothpaste, toothbrushes, DVD's, books, and on and on. Pray we can count to 20 and
grab every bag
through travel-blurry eyes before we exit the airport. We'll look like pack animals with those 20 suitcases and then
balancing 10 backpacks with 10 carry-ons each bulging at the seams with our first-world necessities. Someone will sneak over to the currency exchange window at the airport to trade dollars for shillings and math skills get crazy from here on out with every dollar bringing 3,000 shillings and our driver asking for 150,000 for fuel. "Divide by three and drop zeros" will run through my head a thousand times over the next weeks as we try to keep from over-paying under the pressure and humidity of Uganda.
We'll meet our driver, Chris and Janet, our Ugandan director and house mom, outside the terminal doors and first hugs will make it all worth it...we'll feel that way until the
two hour drive to Jinja turns into 4 or 5
and then we will want to throw ourselves out the window and shout "NEVERMIND". All of our coping skills for being cooped up, will have been exhausted and no amount of leftover sticky candy in the bottom of a bag will help.
We are, at that point, sleep deprived and sweaty messes, but we'll be tempted to look at our "suffering" as some kind of holy offering, pat ourselves on the back and smile at our willingness to sacrifice on this long bus ride. Our self pity will last until we look out the window and realize once again that being given the opportunity to serve here is a gift TO US by God himself and perhaps the ones walking along this same road carry water might have a better perspective on this hardship.
Truth be told, we may even engage in some prayerful negotiations that look something like this..."we'll go to the ends of the earth for Him, but if He would just drop us there by helicopter or something instead, we'd be so much more grateful"...oh I kid.
We will be accompanied this trip by TWO boys, cousins by birth, who will forge a new bond together over the next two weeks. I dare say there is a very small number of cousins that can say "remember when we were 9 and 10 and went to Africa together?"
Pray for their hearts and minds and health
as they are asked to keep up with all that is required in a trip like this.
In addition to the boys and the regulars, we will be serving alongside four who have been called and have committed to following the Lord on this trip.
Our hearts are always touched by our love for Uganda, but often it feels like a weight too heavy to bear to experience the suffering of many. We are "fixers" here in our first world culture. To stand in the midst and not turn away is often difficult.
Jesus is the greatest need EVERYWHERE and we have an infinite amount of Him to share. It's overwhelming to talk to, pray for and then walk away from suffering, with shoes on and our own hunger satisfied. Burdened and overwhelmed and staying in the thing is faith-building-God-dependent stuff and is always more than we can humanly bare.
We need to know what He is asking of us in every situation and the courage and wisdom to move that way.
Please pray for health, strength, and against the plans our enemy has already laid out for us and that every heart, both theirs and ours will see Jesus, hear His love and that He will be glorified.
Steven Curtis Chapman..."When Love takes you in"
You can check our website for more information or to donate to the work of Chayah Ministries .
No comments:
Post a Comment