From the second we arrived in Africa, my expectations were destroyed. I had been mentally preparing myself for the worst. On the 4 plane flights and 2 bus rides from Cambodia to Kenya I had several spouts of anxiety and did NOT want to go to Africa. All of the previous blogs I had read talked about squatty pottys, ugali (a flavorless corn meal mush eaten at every meal), malaria, broken down buses and just rough living. GREAT. Cambodia had certainly spoiled me and turned me into a diva after frequent visits to coffee shops, shopping at the awesome markets, delicious food and other "normal" life things. I JUST WANTED NORMALCY! After 7 months of traveling the world, sleeping here, there and everywhere, can't a girl get something normal?! I wanted to be clean, comfortable and rested. I didn't want to adapt to a new culture. I didn't want to meet more people. I didn't want to see more kids. I had absolutely loved Cambodia and didn't want to leave.
I had hit a wall. The giant "we're over half way through the race, but still have 4 months to go" wall. I had started questioning my purpose on the race, if I was even making a difference and thinking about life after the race.
Then we arrived in… Ireland 1864? ….or Kenya?
We pulled up to our ministry site for the month, Channels of Grace school and children's home, which looked as if we had been transported to a completely different continent. This did not look like the dry, dusty Africa I had imagined. Our van drove through the secret garden like hedge gate and stopped in front of a quaint stone cottage. A beautiful older Kenyan lady, Mama Catherine, was standing on the front steps with a huge smile and waving excitedly.
THIS IS AFRICA?!
She took us inside and showed us to our comfortable rooms- complete with beds, closets and a bathroom with a normal toilet! What a blessing!!! Instantly my preconceived notions and fears about Africa melted away. Isn't it funny that sometimes God knows exactly what we need when we need it?! Whether that is a comfortable place physically so that we are able to give our best spiritually. Or a place that completely and totally exceeds our expectations so that we can lay down ours and take up His.
