Time is Flying

Originally posted on 1/30/09

I can't believe how quickly time here is going. Monday makes 1 month since arriving back in Africa. I'm glad everything is going so smoothly that time seems to fly but at the same time it's really hard to think that there is less than 4 months left. God has done so much in this 1 month that I can't wait to see what He does with the next 3-4.

Ithemba has been really good. We started teaching again in the classes this week. We used the first week to just see where the kids were at and I have lesson plans for the next 3 weeks after. I'm really excited because I have grades 5-9 and we have a lot of new students this semester. Our class almost doubled in size so we had to split the kids by grade/skill. I still have to give some of the students harder work than others because they've all been taught at many different levels.

We are beginning to go deeper with the bible lessons that we are teaching with them, which has been sweet. We started talking about creation and the fall. The kids asked a lot of good questions and I think they're really beginning to think about what we say and the scripture we are reading. It's sweet to see them questioning instead of just accepting and believing without thought. We were able to talk about sin and how we are all lied to by the devil and that influences the things that we do and say. We talked a lot about the sin that is evident in the community and their schools and asked what they thought about everything. I think God is going to really open up a lot more doors with the students. Continue to pray for the times we have with them and that God will just use that to open up doors and give the students questions that they can receive a deeper knowledge and love for God.

On house visits, we met Julia and a couple of her neighbors. This week we hung out at her house for almost 3 hours just playing cards and getting to know each other. I left even more excited about being here in Jeffreys and doing ministry. It may sound silly, that from just spending hours playing cards with a woman and her neighbors that God increased my excitement about what He is doing but it's so true. I'm realizing that I have had a hard time seeing God move before and just seeing the ways He shows up in our lives. I think this is something that we all struggle with. But God is evident and God is moving. He is evident in the crashing of the waves and the beauty of the ocean we see as we eat lunch between ministries. He is evident in the hug and smile of the children at Ithemba. He is evident in the laughter over playing cards and hanging out with one another. He is evident in the people that stop us for prayer as we walk down the street. He is evident in the lives of my teammates as they speak truth and encourage me and this community. He is all around, we just need to open our eyes long enough to see Him move. So over playing cards, we talked and just got to know each other better. At the end we all prayed together. I feel like God really used that time to encourage all of us. God allowed us to have a day of just getting to know one another to begin building relationships that I feel He is going to use in big ways. It's just cool that He starts big things from such little efforts and opportunities such as playing cards.

I feel like this is a random blog but sometimes that's how things in my head work. Thank you for your continual support and prayers, they are making an impact here among our team and all around Jeffreys. As you continue to pray for Jeffreys and the children here, I ask that you'll begin praying for what God has in store next for me. He is stirring up a lot of ideas and passions in my heart that I'm praying about but I would love a lot of people praying with me. Thank you guys. You all are amazing!