Plant life and animal life. That’s what I was all about when I was in elementary school. I would always get excited on Library Day to go check out another book on the animal kingdom in Africa. I would study the animals, draw them out on paper with my favorite mechanical pencil, and rush in front of the television when Discovery Channel was playing a special on lions or elephants or cheetahs or hyenas. So ever since childhood, I’ve had a fascination with Africa. Someday, I told myself, someday I’ll go there.
Well, I’m here. But not for the animals, though they are an exceptional display of God’s creativity in creation. No, for the next 3 months, I’m here for the people. So please allow me to paint a picture of the setting…
I walked into the airport of Nepal with a bit of a high. I had just spent 1 month in one of my top dream destinations. I camped out under the most spectacularly spotted sky I had ever seen, in clear view of the Himalayas each morning. The beauty of the land almost requires one to sit still in awe, pupils dilated and heart beating firmly with appreciation as you take in yet another breath of clear mountain air. Nonetheless, excitement built in the airport as I knew this day marked the end of my tour of Asia. Only later would I be able to sum up the religious health of the bits of Asia I experienced, which will come in the next blog post. The airport was quaint, and security was thorough at the least. Once I sat in the departure room with the squad, I began to prepare my heart for a new chapter.
After a short layover in Qatar (which deserves a good bit of description in itself… maybe later) we board the plane for Uganda. It was a good mix of international passengers, which for whatever reason brought comfort to the travel day. I felt merrily anxious to see this great land as I walked through the airport, waiting for my teammates to gather their luggage. Finally, we exited the airport and loaded up onto two buses. It was about a 4-hour drive sitting sandwiched between people and bags and guitars. I gazed out the window looking at the beautifully farmed land, boasting its red soil in magnificent display. I am clearly the minority now, as I saw perhaps 2 other white people out of the hundreds upon hundreds of black brothers and sisters. And finally, we arrive at our destination in Uganda: Adrift adventure and lodging company.
This place turned out to be a resort by my standards. What a joy to be here for a 5-day debrief before heading back to the mission field. Adrift’s property sits right on the Nile River. On the Nile! I can literally exit my tent and see the Nile in all its biblical splendor. The staff here are quite accommodating and seem to be genuinely interested in our presence. The place is an adventure outfitter with options for lodging like canvas tents and huts and a ground for tents. The squad took over the lawn with all of our tents. There is a bar with a deck that overlooks a grand stretch of the Nile, serving fine sodas and beers. For the duration of our 3-month ministry in Africa, alcohol consumption is off-limits, but it has been decided that enjoying a brew during debrief is acceptable. What a perfect place to experience a Nile Special beer, overlooking the grandeur of one of the most widely known river systems in the world. Monkeys run throughout the campground, especially if we are so careless as to leave food out.
After a trip to the local market, Aubrie and I picked up some food for the team. This would cover breakfast and lunch for 4 days, and dinner would be provided by our host resort. We picked up a bag of soya/millet powder to make porridge in the morning, along with sugar and butter to add flavor. Then we grabbed a dozen green apples, 4 loaves of wheat bread, 4 jars of g-nut (peanut) butter, and 2 jars of African honey. Turns out, bees will follow this sweet scent and cover a jar of honey or slice of honey+PB bread within a hot minute. I was reluctant to smack one of these bees dead for fear of them being Africanized bees, spurring a torrential downpour of raging bees upon myself after a release of ‘kill him’ pheromones. At least that’s what I imagined, which was strong enough to deter me.
So through this debrief (the least stressful of all so far) and all the meetings and worship sessions on the lawn, I admire the beauty of the Nile and language of the people. If you watch the Nile flow by, you see the abundance of life it supports. Birds swim in the water to catch fish while others hover over the surface and dive-bomb into the swirling water for a good catch. Monkeys scurry up and down the sheer ledges and track down our banana peels when they’re not grooming each other as they stare out over the water. Who knows how many fish lurk and wriggle under the surface of the water, gulping up smaller creatures for sustenance. We even spotted a 5-foot Nile Monitor lizard basking along the bank. This brings to mind a deep thought. These animals depend on the Nile for life giving food and drink. The plants that cover the surrounding soil with lush green growth depend on the Nile’s water for life. People have depended on both the animals and the plants that flourish here for centuries. But what if the plants aren’t rooted near the water? What if the birds only look at the water and don’t go fishing? What if the fish had no water to swim in? This life would be gone. Similarly, God’s word feeds our spirits and souls, and gives us life. If we avoid it, we neglect ourselves of that life and hasten our death. If we adhere to it, we flourish just like the life around the Nile. Food for thought.
Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose trust is in the LORD. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit.
Jeremiah 17:8
