We had our first (and last) soccer match on Sunday - team USA vs. team Africa. We lost. We had lots of energy and even had an exciting team cheer before we took the field, but we got "flogged" as they say here. It was very fun and the kids from the orphan homes picked sides to cheer for - either USA!! or AFRICA!! They shouted and danced around as we attempted to play against their boys and staff.
We are praising God for a storm that came through and cooled things down a bit. This morning it rained again and all of us came out of our rooms with our hands spread wide saying, "Ahhhhhh." The kids here hate the rain, but we were so thankful.
We continue to press on with our projects. As I type, Kelly and some of the team are teaching fire safety in the school, Clint and the team are on the playset, Nich is taking pictures for COTN magazine story, and Chris and I are in the office installing anti-virus software on their computers and trying to connect them to a staff network. I am so amazed a the talents and skills that God pulled together for this team. Everyone has a place and is being used.
We continue to enjoy hearing our names called as we walk through the villages and the COTN property. "Aunty!!" and "Uncle!!" are our titles, followed by our African names. We spend our evenings walking back and forth to the different children's homes - COTN has a children's village of 10 homes in a circle. The kids call to us and we bounce around to tell stories, hear theirs, dance, sing...whatever they want to do. A few of us girls were particularly inspired by a little girl in House 4 who, as Sheela says, "Can drop it like it's hot!" :) Dan's magic tricks have been a HUGE hit with the kids and staff. We just enjoy being around them...
Yesterday was the Thanksgiving church service. It was supposed to start at 9am, which in African time actually meant 11:30, then went until after 1pm, including a procession in and out (which we were lined up in order of height). It is probably as different as you can get from EastLake, so we have learned to appreciate how people worship God differently.
COTN is doing amazing things here. There are 15 churches that have been planted in a predominantly Muslim cheifdom. God is light, and you can definitely see that here - in the eyes of the children and in the progress in the communities. Hearing stories like Kappri - a boy in our home who was orphaned, who now wants to be the President of Sierra Leone - encourage us and remind us that we are serving a big God, who redeems all situations and works for the good of those who love him and are called according to his purpose.
Thanks for your prayers and thoughts. We are set to work hard these next few days before heading back to Freetown on Thursday morning....
Monday, November 30, 2009
Friday, November 27, 2009
Update from Sierra Leone!
We are doing well here in Sierra Leone! Our time is going quickly, but every team member is excited about the work and is loving being with the COTN kids. It took us more than 50 hours to actually get here...needless to say, we were tired, but the anticipation for the work and the experience has carried us through.
I wish I would have been able to post on Thanksgiving, but I am now a day late. In honor of the day, I will tell you what we are thankful for:
- safe travel, even if it did take forever
- the opportunity to wake up to children singing praise songs and starting their day with devotions
- the chance to watch the teenage girls of house 9 giggle with glee as they braided Uncle Nich and Uncle Andrew's hair
- walking into Ngoala village and having the children RUN to us with delight. No team member was without child hanging on their arms for the entire visit
- watching Kelly share fire safety with villagers and having them understand the dangers and how to deal with them
- receiving African names and hearing the children call to us as we walk by
- most all of our playground supplies waiting for us
- the group of local villagers who are waiting for us each morning to help us build
- Aunty Christiana's food - every team member has commented about how they don't eat this well at home :)
- community - sharing life with each other, even if it does mean non flushing toilets
- bug nets
- water. a few of us have attempted to pump and carry water from the well and it is excruciatingly difficult. the kids do it with ease.
- Quami - our host. What an amazing man...I'm sure you will hear stories of him when we return.
- the chance to hear stories from these children. they have endured the worst you can imagine, and they smile and praise God everyday. if we can have faith like theirs at some point in our life, we will be blessed.
Things we are TRYING to be thankful for:
- The roosters that wake us at 4:45am. Aunty Christiana says "praise be to God for them...they let us know it is morning." I roll over and pray that they will be our dinner that night so we don't have to hear them anymore.
- No rain. Though it feels like we are sometimes building a playground in Hades, we are plugging away.
- Knowing that the bugs around us are not as dangerous as others we could run into. Waking up to a cockroach on my arm was not pleasant, nor seeing the lizard on my bed, but at least they don't bite.
- Bucket showers. Though we never feel clean, and the first cup makes us gasp, it feels great to be cool for the 5 minutes we have...before we get out, start sweating, and apply sunblock and bug spray again.
We will be eager to share photos with you when we return. Quami calls Tammy "Aunty Paparazzi", so there will be plenty to see.
I am amazed at this team. I have led others before and have not seen such hard workers. We are truly united and feel the prayers around us. We are the luckiest people from EastLake right now... Our time here is precious and I know we are appreciating every moment, every conversation and every lesson. God is good.
I wish I would have been able to post on Thanksgiving, but I am now a day late. In honor of the day, I will tell you what we are thankful for:
- safe travel, even if it did take forever
- the opportunity to wake up to children singing praise songs and starting their day with devotions
- the chance to watch the teenage girls of house 9 giggle with glee as they braided Uncle Nich and Uncle Andrew's hair
- walking into Ngoala village and having the children RUN to us with delight. No team member was without child hanging on their arms for the entire visit
- watching Kelly share fire safety with villagers and having them understand the dangers and how to deal with them
- receiving African names and hearing the children call to us as we walk by
- most all of our playground supplies waiting for us
- the group of local villagers who are waiting for us each morning to help us build
- Aunty Christiana's food - every team member has commented about how they don't eat this well at home :)
- community - sharing life with each other, even if it does mean non flushing toilets
- bug nets
- water. a few of us have attempted to pump and carry water from the well and it is excruciatingly difficult. the kids do it with ease.
- Quami - our host. What an amazing man...I'm sure you will hear stories of him when we return.
- the chance to hear stories from these children. they have endured the worst you can imagine, and they smile and praise God everyday. if we can have faith like theirs at some point in our life, we will be blessed.
Things we are TRYING to be thankful for:
- The roosters that wake us at 4:45am. Aunty Christiana says "praise be to God for them...they let us know it is morning." I roll over and pray that they will be our dinner that night so we don't have to hear them anymore.
- No rain. Though it feels like we are sometimes building a playground in Hades, we are plugging away.
- Knowing that the bugs around us are not as dangerous as others we could run into. Waking up to a cockroach on my arm was not pleasant, nor seeing the lizard on my bed, but at least they don't bite.
- Bucket showers. Though we never feel clean, and the first cup makes us gasp, it feels great to be cool for the 5 minutes we have...before we get out, start sweating, and apply sunblock and bug spray again.
We will be eager to share photos with you when we return. Quami calls Tammy "Aunty Paparazzi", so there will be plenty to see.
I am amazed at this team. I have led others before and have not seen such hard workers. We are truly united and feel the prayers around us. We are the luckiest people from EastLake right now... Our time here is precious and I know we are appreciating every moment, every conversation and every lesson. God is good.
Friday, November 20, 2009
T'was the night before...
Target is closed, which means there isn't much more we can do. We're either prepared or we're not. :)
From what I hear, the team is split about down the middle as to who is sleeping tonight and who is not. When you have to be at the airport at 4:30am, waking up can be almost harder than not sleeping at all. We shall see...
Our route is Seattle - Washington DC - London - Freetown. We arrive Sunday evening (Sierra Leone time) and will spend the evening in a hotel by the airport. The next day, we will take the ferry to Freetown, buy any additional supplies and then hit the road for Banta Mokelleh.
Preparation is an interesting thing. I can say that I believe our team is prepared...but the truth is that nothing can prepare people for an encounter like this.
So, we thank you for your prayers and look forward to hopefully updating you when we're there.
-Kristen
**NOTE** 3 people from our team were baptized tonight at the EastLake worship night. WOOHOO!
From what I hear, the team is split about down the middle as to who is sleeping tonight and who is not. When you have to be at the airport at 4:30am, waking up can be almost harder than not sleeping at all. We shall see...
Our route is Seattle - Washington DC - London - Freetown. We arrive Sunday evening (Sierra Leone time) and will spend the evening in a hotel by the airport. The next day, we will take the ferry to Freetown, buy any additional supplies and then hit the road for Banta Mokelleh.
Preparation is an interesting thing. I can say that I believe our team is prepared...but the truth is that nothing can prepare people for an encounter like this.
So, we thank you for your prayers and look forward to hopefully updating you when we're there.
-Kristen
**NOTE** 3 people from our team were baptized tonight at the EastLake worship night. WOOHOO!
Monday, November 16, 2009
Commissioning!
Last night, our team was "commissioned" by EastLake. I (Kristen) had the privilege of praying for the team as a representative of the church.
I really didn't plan my prayer because I wanted it to be authentic, even though sometimes when you're in front of that many people, it's better to have a "plan." :) I have been reading Psalm 139 about how well God knows us. I was struck when reading these verses and I know they somehow were a part of my prayer:
5: You hem me in - behind and before; you have laid your hand upon me.
7-10: Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, or settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.
We are, indeed, going to the far side of the sea. We are going to the poorest chiefdom in one of the poorest countries of the world. We are literally going to one of the POOREST PLACES ON EARTH. The best part about it is that we are not bringing God there - he has been there all along and is just waiting for us to show up!
What a privilege! We will be there serving for 2 weeks, and I think it's very fitting that we will be there over Thanksgiving. We will get to celebrate with these people the fact that we ALL have something to be thankful for...and I'm pretty sure it's not about anything we own.
I am counting down the days - cannot wait!
I really didn't plan my prayer because I wanted it to be authentic, even though sometimes when you're in front of that many people, it's better to have a "plan." :) I have been reading Psalm 139 about how well God knows us. I was struck when reading these verses and I know they somehow were a part of my prayer:
5: You hem me in - behind and before; you have laid your hand upon me.
7-10: Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, or settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.
We are, indeed, going to the far side of the sea. We are going to the poorest chiefdom in one of the poorest countries of the world. We are literally going to one of the POOREST PLACES ON EARTH. The best part about it is that we are not bringing God there - he has been there all along and is just waiting for us to show up!
What a privilege! We will be there serving for 2 weeks, and I think it's very fitting that we will be there over Thanksgiving. We will get to celebrate with these people the fact that we ALL have something to be thankful for...and I'm pretty sure it's not about anything we own.
I am counting down the days - cannot wait!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)