My apologies that I haven't blogged nearly as much this month as in previous months. I have so much running through my head, but I can't seem to get it down on paper or come up with much that makes any sense. Or at least I can't seem to make the time to write lately. Excuses aside, It's been an interesting month. After two months in Africa, and one to go, I can't figure out whether I really love Africa, or rather I really can't stand it.
There are certain things that I've had just about enough of; namely, the smells, the crowded matatus (public transportation=vans from the early 80's), the slow, inconsistent Internet, the lack of Western food, and some of the men being creepy.
But the children, oh the children. When I see their sweet faces and receive their warm embraces and hear their gut-wrenching stories, something in my heart stirs and I think to myself, in the way, way back of my head, "Now this is something I could dedicate my life to."
(These were some of the boys at my lunch table. They blew me away by the mass amounts of ugali they could eat. This was our last day, so they were treated to a special lunch of rice and lentils).
I was so blessed to have the opportunity to minister at the Challenge Farm in Kenya this month. If you've been keeping up with my trip, you know Kenya was not on our original route, but we were sent there after the deadly Ebola outbreak in Uganda. I know without a shadow of a doubt that this was God's plan for my team all along. The Challenge Farm was where I was meant to be this month. In a lot of ways it was a month of rest and freedom and building relationships. There was so much joy in my day to day routine, from morning runs to Bible class to cooking our own meals, to just playing with the children and sleeping in my tent under the starry sky.
(One of my favorite girls at Challenge Farm, Alice. We were hanging out one day and I made the mistake of playing a song for her on my iPod. She loved it so much she had me write out the lyrics for her and repeatedly sing it so she could learn it. God used my crappy voice to teach Alice a new song she was going to perform in church Sunday).
It was also a month of growth. More than any other month, I really cherished my time in the Word and I believe that God is placing in me a desire to know more about Him and to believe that the truths spoken in the Bible are so, so relevant to my life today. I stepped down as a team leader and a tremendous weight was lifted off my shoulders that I wasn't even fully aware I had been carrying. And I'm learning a lot about leadership by being a follower. My friendships on the squad grew deeper this month, and I am confident that these women will forever be in my life, keeping me accountable and calling me into greatness.
And here's where it gets weird.
"Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons." Matthew 10:8
I learned at training camp that this verse is something the World Race believes still happens today. And ever since I heard that, I've been a little, well, freaked out. Healings and demons and raising people from the dead, those just weren't things I was ever taught, and they certainly weren't things I'd ever seen.
But now, I can tell you that I have SEEN it with my own two eyes.
Here's a brief run-down of what happened:
Two of my friends, Erica and Helena, were in a counseling session with a few of the youth at Challenge Farm. There was one little 10 year old girl named Purity who told them stories, through the translator, of nightmares and visions of being choked by men while she was on the playground. They started to pray for her, and as soon as they said the name Jesus, she jumped back out of her chair and started acting completely unlike herself. They eventually recognized this as a demon. They tried to hold her down as she was somewhat violently thrashing around, telling them her name was NOT Purity and mocking them when they prayed for the evil spirit to come out, saying if it left, it would just come back at night while Purity was sleeping. Everything coming out of her mouth was in English, while moments earlier the girl spoke little to no English. At one point, her eyes were focused on the floor, and they watched her slowly lift her eyes, and point her finger to a spot on the wall behind her, where they saw a shadow fleeing from the room. Crazy stuff, right? I wouldn't believe it myself if it weren't for the first hand account from two of my closest friends who were previously also new to the whole spiritual realm and demon thing.
After about an hour and a half or so of praying, Erica ran to the restroom and told a few of us on her way what was going on, so we went to the counseling office to pray over Purity. It was somewhat scary for me, but it was mostly just sad. It was so evident that whatever it was that was inside of Purity was NOT of a sweet little innocent 10 year old girl, but of the enemy. Whenever we'd say the name of Jesus, she'd throw her hands to her ears and violently shake her head no.
After another hour of praying, singing, speaking out Scripture, and Mama Cheri, attempting to just speak life over Purity, reminding her that Jesus loves her and that her mom loved her and that she is safe and free from whatever is trying to hurt her, did Purity finally calm down. She softened and started crying at one point when her sister was brought up. (We actually found out the next night that her sister had died at childbirth, and her mom had blamed Purity, telling her she wished Purity had died instead, and the mom basically went off the deep end after that and Purity ended up on the streets).
Purity later said that she had no memory of what happened during those two to three hours, but that she felt as calm as she had felt in a long time, and she was actually sleeping through the night again. I'm still processing what all happened and what it means, and I'm so thankful for Mama Cheri who sat us all down and explained what she thought happened and what her experiences with demons has been.
(Mama Cheri is the director of Challenge Farm).
It was an eye-opening experience for me, and while I'm still not entirely sure what exactly happened or what it means, I do know this: Demons are real. Satan is real. Spiritual warfare is real.
(Purity is the girl on my left).
The past few days I've been in Nairobi, Kenya, for our Month 8 Debrief. I've been eating cheeseburgers, catching up on Skype dates, having amazing squad worship time, and sitting through sessions about the re-entry process. Crazy to think that re-entry and all that that entails is only three short months away. We found out some exciting news yesterday! Check out the video below with our squad's announcement of when we'll be stepping foot back on U.S. soil again.
