I can't wait to come home and tell you of all the grand things I've seen God do throughout the Race.
This month we are working at the Anchor Center in Nsoko, Swaziland. The ministry provides food for hundreds of children, has playgrounds, gardens to provide food, and cares for the elderly. So I spend my days gardening and reenacting Bible stories for children. I have a new team to accommodate for womanistry month (they separate the boys from the girls), and together with other teams, there is a total of 21 girls living together. We work in the hot sun in skirts that must cover our knees and shirts that must cover our shoulders.
I could stop there in my update. After eight months of similar things, it seems that's all I have to say. Friends and family at home expect updates of grand adventures, but at the end of the day, 6 twelve hour work days a week, it seems hard for there to be room for much excitement…or so I thought.
This past week we were blessed by some fellow Pennsylvanians! I even met a woman who graduated from Elizabethtown! We worked alongside them, and while we seemed like the seasoned missionaries, they were the ones that taught us.
I watched them cry at nearly every interaction they had with the locals: playing with children or the vivacious church service. They were so touched and amazed at nearly everything they saw and approached every situation with wide eyes and smiles. And they shared that joy with us. It was a fresh awakening- to remember that the things I am experiencing on this trip are a once in a lifetime opportunity. The things that would seem so amazing to you all at home now are more like daily experiences for me (and in many ways the things you see daily are now amazing to me…you should have seen the look of awe on my face when my boyfriend took me on a virtual tour of the home he purchased and showed me the dryer, it was like I forgot they existed!)
So the other day, when a dozen children stood amongst our group, their bright white clothes contrasting the red African dirt and their dark chocolate skin, eyes closed as tight as possible to pray for us, I felt once again that I was a part of something wonderfully beautiful. I may have even teared as they sang 'Jesus Loves Me' in broken English. (I can't wait to share the video!)
It's not only reminded me of the things I miss from home- where even some of the most mundane things now seem special, but it also gives me an idea of how God sees us. I imagine He's watched billions of people do the same things, and still I'm certain, He experiences equally as much pain or joy as though it were His first time watching.
I encourage you to think about something in your life today that you so easily forget to appreciate.
Sorry for the lack of photos, there's not enough internet here to post them on here. Please check out my facebook page for some there.
