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| Praying for the Southern and Eastern Africa Area of Affairs |
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| Praying for Botswana |
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| Praying for the world |
The actual day was quite different from the Days of Prayer I have experienced in the United States. For one, we are the only staff team in the country; the nearest team is four hours away in South Africa. So, there were no new faces at the Day of Prayer, no old friends I haven't seen in a while. It brought a tinge of sadness as I missed those friends from West Virginia, Northwestern PA, and Southwestern PA. And it prompted me to pray harder for more laborers in Botswana. The structure of the day was new, too, and much more like that of the office staff in the U.S. We simply sat and prayed for most of the day. There weren't any crazy games or ridiculous, creative prayer times. And a highlight of the day wasn't going to a fun local restaurant and enjoying a meal while catching up with friends. Instead, we fasted all day. While I really, really missed the fun, food, and friends of past Days of Prayer, I had a chance to embrace this culture... to see the faith of Batswana and Zimbabweans and Zambians expressed through prayer. It is crazy that God calls people of varied backgrounds and cultures to be a part of His kingdom, and that we all read the same Bible and possess the same Spirit and serve the same Lord.
Another highlight was an evangelistic conversation I had with some guys in their dorm room. First, let me explain the dorm room thing. To address the issue of very low male involvement and even lower male qualification for leadership, our staff team decided to spend at least an hour a week in a hostel (dorm) for first year men. You may remember hearing about the outreach night we did a few weeks ago where all of Cru went into the dorm to meet guys. It was in this same hostel that my teammate, Mpho, and I found ourselves. The guy we talked to welcomed us into the room cheerfully. His friend was really engaged in the music videos he was watching on a laptop and kept his back to us for most of the conversation. As the conversation continued and they realized we weren't there to judge or condemn them, they opened up more. These guys liked to party, and their answers to my questions about life sounded eerily similar to nearly every conversation I had with my peers when I was a student at IUP (a school known for its out of control party culture). They bashfully answered truthfully about their drug use and shrugged off the horrors of the hook-up culture in which they find themselves. When we started to talk about their spiritual backgrounds and religious beliefs, they asked if they could show us a music video. It was well done, and I really like the honesty of the lyrics. The hip-hop artist said he was a Christian once and God had let him down. He was questioning whether heaven and hell even exist, and his conclusion was that he was going to live the best life he could while he could. (He could have been the poster child for the "Christian" prosperity gospel mentality that is permeating American and Batswana culture.) The guys relaxed when they saw me nodding along and chuckling at some of the lines instead of storming out every time the rapper dropped an F-bomb. The video led to an incredible, honest, candid conversation. We left the room trusting that it was a +1 conversation, a conversation that moved the guys one step closer to knowing Jesus.
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| This cat is tuckered-out. |
On Friday, we hosted a Ladies Night Out event in our flat. Forty-four women crowded into our small living room. With only one van, I spent HOURS transporting people from campus (in three trips) and then taking them back to campus and to off-campus housing all over the city. After working a full day, I then spent five hours behind the wheel. I was physically exhausted by the time I collapsed in my bed at 2am, but it was totally worth it!
Wave after wave of young women in Halloween costumes made their way up the stairs of our building, excitedly chatting and oohing and aahing at one another. The music was blasting, welcoming them to the party. Part of the group were actively involved in Cru, but we had never met most of them. Our girls had done a great job of inviting their classmates and hallmates! Several openly admitted to not being Christians (which is a kind of refreshing honesty not often found in this culture, where it is shameful to be honest about such things). One of those girls told us later that she had never been to a Christian event where she felt so welcomed and free to be herself. Praise God for gospel-centered (fun!) community that breaks stereotypes and draws people closer to Christ instead of pushing them farther away! We're praying those girls will continue to build relationships and get more involved in Cru, where they can hear and experience the Gospel.
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| Steph giving her talk |
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| Sarah sharing her testimony |
The dual themes of the night were comparison and contentment, issues women face all over the world regardless of the culture. I missed the body image activity, the dance party, and the games, but I heard they were really fun. The talk Steph gave was built upon a talk I gave on the the Ocean City, MD Summer Mission way back in 2011! I had no idea the resources I developed that summer had traveled so far, and it was encouraging to see the Lord still using it! She did an awesome job even though we were veeery far behind schedule by the time she spoke and the girls were hot and tired. I got to share my story of finding contentment, even as a single thirty-something who has had to watch friend after friend pair off, get married, and start families. My exhortation to find our identity in Jesus instead of circumstances or status and my reminder that a husband cannot provide joy, identity, or contentment were met with resounding "Amens." Oh, that the Lord would make these women complete in Him, that they would realize discontentment in any circumstance breeds discontentment in another, and that the world would be changed by women who are becoming more like Jesus every day.
Our friends from the World Race have been
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| Soooo excited for rain! |
praying fervently for rain all week. They were shocked to hear that it rained on campus during our weekly Cru meeting even though it completely missed our complex right next door. They kept praying, though, and the rains came on Saturday while we set up for church. As we unloaded the drapes and chairs that turn a classroom into a sanctuary, a slow and soaking rain came. We ran outside to dance in the rain. There are few things that bring more joy than seeing God answer your prayers - especially when
that answer brings rain to a desert land!
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| Our little helpers - neighborhood kids - celebrated the rain with us! |
Please join us in praying for rain. We desperately need it, as our dam is drying up. Please also pray for better communication on our team! And pray for patience for me as my J-type personality, full of details and lists and plans, is constantly being challenged in a P-type culture, on a team full of P-type people, who struggle to think through the details and value freedom over plans. Pray that I would trust the Lord with the details but also have wisdom in stepping in to offer help in my areas of strength. And pray that that help would be welcomed and well-received. *For more on J-type and P-type personalities, check out www.myersbriggs.org.
