This month in Tanzania, our ministry was preaching. Two all-female teams came together, along with 3 girls who joined us for a month through AIM’s Exposure Program, and we brought the Word of God with power, conviction and passion. Four services were held each week and each time a mighty woman of God was called upon to feed the sheep. We each had our turn to speak what the Lord laid upon our heart, and I was the second one to preach, which meant I was left with a lot of free time the rest of the month. For a few days I wandered around aimlessly or watched movies, slept and read. Then one morning the Lord convicted me and I realized my ministry wasn’t over. There was still much kingdom to be brought.
I asked the Lord where my place was and what I was supposed to do, and the Lord replied, as He most often does, with a question: “Aisha, what’s in your hands?” At first I thought nothing, and then I realized what He meant. God has given me a variety of passions, gifts and talents for a reason: to bring glory to the King and to advance His Kingdom. So I started finding better ways to spend my “free time” and to use what the Lord put in my hands. And this is what I accomplished this month:
- I used my passion for people to build relationships with our ministry contacts, the cooks, and the security guards. I would spend my extra time singing with them and trying to learn how to say things in Swahili, messing up terribly and then laughing together with them at the way I butchered the language. We just did life together and I often sat and watched them do things the way they do and one day the cooks wanted to learn from me. So I taught them how to make pumpkin cake and it was so fun! We had no oven to cook it in, but that never stops the Africans. We put a giant pot over a pile of coals, put the cake pan inside the pot, covered the pot and then put more coals on the cover. The cake was delicious, and we were all so excited to have such a treat, but the sweetest part of it all was spending time with the ladies.
- I developed a new love language: gift giving!!!! Typically I show love through words of encouragement, but since language barriers are often a problem the Lord has been leading me to explore gift giving, and since I am creative I have been making gifts non-stop. I made a little African baby doll for Anna; a scarf for our guard who lays outside all night to keep us safe; a button necklace for Robin’s birthday; a purse for our new Tanzanian friend Sooma; and I painted a picture and had it framed for my new-found African family to hang in their new house.
- And then the best part is The Shoe Project that the Lord has placed on my heart. Shoes here in Tanzania are not that expensive, yet so many children go without a good pair of sturdy shoes and many have none at all. Shoes are something that are a necessity where I come from and if you ever saw a person walking around without shoes, you know they’ve most likely got it pretty bad. When the children here go without shoes, they end up getting parasitic worms in their feet and left unattended they can be very harmful and painful. Children also need shoes to go to school as part of their uniform and if you can’t afford a uniform then you don’t get an education. So through donations from some of our family members, we were able to buy 24 children a good sturdy pair of shoes and school supplies. We found out which children in the neighborhood were orphans and put them as priority. We didn’t reach them all but we reached 24 and made a difference for them. It was so beautiful to bring each one in and allow them to pick their own. We took their picture and wrote their names down to pray for them as well.
So that’s how I responded to the Lord’s question and used the gifts God has given me to make a difference. I give Him glory and all the credit—we love only because He first loved us! Today I am extended the same question to you: What’s in YOUR hands?
