Every time Cru sends a team overseas, the team is taught to
expect an end to the initial euphoria of the Honeymoon Stage. Our honeymoon
came to an end this week. What’s really awesome, though, is the way the team is
handling the new stage we have entered.
One major contribution to the end of the honeymoon has been
health issues. Many people on the team have had sloshy stomachs. Even the kids
have had tummy issues. Our team has bonded over this shared experience, and we
celebrate small victories together. About half of the team has caught a bug
that’s going around, too. It seems to just be a serious cold, with the basic
throat and sinus symptoms. It slammed me hard last night; I had trouble
swallowing and speaking and was forced to go to bed early. Most of us feel
surprisingly great when we’re with the kids, but then the yucky feeling returns
on the way home. Please pray for our health! We want to make the most of every
moment here, and we’re fighting as hard as we can, but we need strength and
healing.
Several students have expressed a feeling of homesickness.
One girl has lost two loved ones since we arrived two weeks ago. One of the
guys got word that his family was in a serious accident, and his sister-in-law
was injured pretty seriously. We’re feeling the effects of spiritual warfare,
which dulls the once-shiny glean of ministry in Africa .
Then there’s the time issue. Everything takes longer here. Washing
clothes by hand in the bath tub takes sooo long! Our clothes are filthy, so we
have to wash and rinse everything repeatedly to get it sort-of-kind-of clean. The
water supply is limited, so we can’t wash clothes when someone is showering or
washing dishes. Wringing out our clothes is tiring, and our drip-drying method usually
takes at least a day. Some team members have hung their clothes in our outside
kitchen area. We ran out of room, though, so my clothesline zigzags across my
bedroom; I have to duck through clothes almost every day. Getting everyone into
the vans takes a long time. Gathering everyone for meetings takes a long time. Preparing
breakfast and hand washing dishes takes a long time. Grocery shopping takes a
long time, and those of us who shop for the team breakfast food have to go 2-3
times a week. Inching through the crowd of excited kids in Old Naledi takes a
long time. Sitting in rush hour traffic takes time. Waiting for water to shower
takes time. Loading a webpage takes time. Going through the appropriate greetings
before discussing business or even just asking a question takes time. I’ve seen
frustration on the faces of team members when when s/he’d prefer efficiency and
speed to our molasses-like team movements. I love that life is slower here, but
it even wears on me from time to time. I (we, really) miss the efficiency of
life in America .
We miss the convenience of time-savers like washing machines and high-speed
internet.
And the food. We eat well here, for sure. But lunch and
dinner in the dining hall has become predictable. There’s always rice and
pasta, a chicken dish, a beef or ox dish, and some sort of veggie (though the
veggies are often things like pickled beets and various forms of cabbage). The
only beverage available is super-sugary juice cocktail. We get excited when we
get rolls or French fries. I, personally, get really excited for mixed
vegetables. Some of the guys stopped at a pizza shop on the way home from
dinner tonight. It’s not even good pizza, but they slammed it. A special treat
last weekend was going to an American-style diner where the wait staff all wears
letterman’s jackets. We had burgers, fries, and milkshakes, and it was awesome!
Just about every plan we’ve made has changed… at least once.
We created a weekly schedule, knowing that it would change in-country. But it
changes All. The. Time. This little Myers-Briggs “J” heart of mine needs structure
and closure. It gets very little. We write the schedule on a white board
because changes are made each day. The changes are confusing and usually big
enough to create small earthquakes. The one consistent element of the schedule
is that it's really, really full. Because I disciple five girls and drive one of
the vans every time someone needs to go somewhere, I struggle to find time for
things like laundry and sleep.
The honeymoon with the kids in Old Naledi came to an abrupt
end on Monday, too, when we surpassed the 250 mark. The kids were rambunctious
and disobedient. We repeatedly broke up fights. Little boys ran around slapping
us for fun. The initial feelings of adoration that bred respect and obedience
from the kids were long gone. We couldn’t hand out any food or gifts because anarchy
had set in. It was rough. Some students looked shell-shocked as we fled that
evening. We have since received more helpers who (1) speak Setswana and (2) have
the magical skills needed to captivate and direct the children. We’re going to
be really sad to say goodbye tomorrow, but I think everyone is ready to be done
with VBS. We’re tired.
In the midst of all of these trials, I have seen the team rise
above our current reality. We have entered into battle together and fought for
one another. Our prayer lives are active, and we often stop what we’re doing to
pray. We have shared the ugly parts of our hearts and carried each other’s
burdens. I’ve seen students experience frustration, take it to the Lord, and
move on. It’s refreshing and encouraging to see our team walking in the power
of the Spirit.
And even in the middle of chaos, we have seen fruit in Old
Naledi. Nametso, a hard girl who I’ve tried to befriend, smiled for the first
time on Tuesday. She is a tough nut to crack. She’s the one who told me I smile
too much and has often gotten mad when I didn’t do what she wanted me to do. I think
she finally realized I was going to love her in spite of herself, and when she
heard that I brought her a Bible, she transformed before my very eyes. She
suddenly became playful, skipping around and holding my hand. A sparkle danced
in her eleven-year-old eyes. She posed for pictures. She laughed! When I gave her a Bible at
the end of the day, her eyes teared up. I explained how to read it and
encouraged her to discuss it with friends. She hugged me over and over again. I’m
crying now as I remember her joy. I gave Bibles to three other girls that day,
too. Faridah, NuNu, and Amantle come from Christian homes and know the Lord themselves.
They often quote Scripture to me, but they were still so excited to get Bibles.
They giggled and hugged their precious Bibles to their chests. We brought cases
of Bibles with us, and I own at least six Bibles myself. It’s so easy to forget
what a blessing it is to possess God’s Word. I hope I never forget their
excitement.
Another blessing from this week has been our time with the
BotsCru staff and students. They join us for lunch and ministry every day, so we
have gotten to know them pretty well. But we turned a corner on Monday night.
Two of the American STINTers who served here for the past year flew home on
Wednesday. We had the honor of hosting their farewell party at our lodge. Fifteen
Batswana, two Zimbabweans, and one American missionary pilot joined our team of
twenty-two for dinner and fun. We took time to toast Melissa and D2, which included a lot of tears. The love that has developed over the past year drew me in, and
I found myself crying every time someone else cried. Then, suddenly, the room
was filled with the beautifully sad chorus of a farewell song. As is the custom
here, one of the students led with calls and the rest filled in with rich
harmonies. During this sad song, we joined a slow circle dance, two by two. Then
the tone grew increasingly joyful, with women ululating and cheering. We ended
the party with Americans teaching the Africans dances like the Wobble and the
Cupid Shuffle and the Americans learning how to dance like Africans. Several of
the BotsCru students have seemed to open up more since that night. I am
especially enjoying my time with Ontlametse, who I call O because I can’t
quite get the clicking sounds in her name. She wants to be a missionary after
she graduates. She has shared several stories of the ways God has surprised her
in evangelism, and she has asked lots of questions about vocational ministry. I’m
looking forward to our campus ministry time!
And a prayer team from the U.S. arrived last night. It's fun to welcome them into "our" culture and show them around. They will be praying with and for us for the next ten days, and we're excited to see what God does.
Please pray for us as we travel to Gakuto, a village outside Gaborone , to show
the Jesus Film tomorrow night. We’ll return to that village on Saturday to go
door to door with local church members to follow up with people who come to see
the movie. And we’ll attend church there on Sunday.
We'll be going on our safari during the President's Day holiday next week before jumping into campus ministry during freshman orientation.
Thank you for praying for us!
