Through the Wardrobe

So, I apologize beforehand, but this is going to be a lengthy blogpost... hopefully you guys can bear with me! I am now writing from America, and it is hard to believe that last week at this time, I was in Africa. It already feels so far away.

So, my time at the beach was absolutely wonderful! I had an amazing time reading books, spending time in the Word, journaling, taking long walks on the beach with the Lord, swimming in the ocean, and eating really good food :) It was such a blessing to have that time with Him where I had nothing but time to soak in His presence.

One day, as I was walking along the shore, a guy approached me and asked what I was doing. I was rather annoyed (as this had been about the 10th man that had approached me... confessing his love for me or asking for my contact information), but I told him that I was talking with God. Curious, he said, "So you are a Christian?" I told him I was, and he proceeded to ask me to tell him more about Christianity. Before I came to the beach, I had prayed that I would have opportunities to share the Gospel, and our God is so faithful... what a perfect opportunity He gave me! I shared the Gospel with him, and he seemed intrigued. He didn't have a Bible, and I just so happened to have an English/Swahili Bible on me, so I gave it to him. He left me right away to go read it. Once again, it's such a reminder to me that missions is everywhere I go... it's all about having a heart that's ready and willing to be used by Him. It's a great thing to be reminded of as I was about to head back to the States :)


my little hut that I stayed in!

 



some of my favorite things: Bible, journaling, the beach, and a bottle of pop :)



SO beautiful!! What an incredible reminder that we serve a God who is faithful and who fulfills ALL His promises!



the moon one night... pictures do not do it justice!



the view right outside my beach hut!

 

so this is me and the Lord on one of our many walks on the beach :) Haha, there were definitely Africans laughing at me when I took this picture... I don't even want to know what they thought!



the resort... such a beautiful place!

While at the resort, I had a lot of time to look back on my journals and reflect on what the Lord has taught  me these past 4 months. I know that the Lord will continue to reveal to me more of what He's taught me in Africa throughout the next months/years... but here are some of the major things that I have already learned from experience:

• Humility- I am weak, but God is strong and I must depend on Him for His strength. 1 Corinth. 3:7 is my theme verse for the past months: "Neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who makes things grow." I must be faithful in planting and watering, but trust God to make things grow... and to give Him all the glory when things do grow!
• In order to love my neighbor as myself, I must give of my time, energy, and money.
• Hospitality is a means through which the Lord works powerfully.
• I need Christ to love through me. I need to see each person as a person for whom Christ died, and I am to love them as such.
• Loving Jesus comes first. Serving Him comes second and as a result of my love for Him.
• Missions is everywhere. All I need to do is have a heart that's willing and obedient to whatever He asks of me.
• In order to further the Gospel, I have to forfeit my "rights"... "rights" to a warm shower, to having clean clothes, to have my own personal space, etc.
• Overall, I have just fallen so much more in love with Jesus, and I am ever learning what it looks like to have a heart that is completely taken up with the realities of who He is and eyes that are captured by His majesty.

The plane ride back was long and tiring, but on the positive side, I had a 6-hour layover in Amsterdam, so I took a little boat tour of the city! Who knew that Amsterdam was a little Venice?! It was beautiful, but definitely a stark contrast to African culture. All of a sudden, people on the streets didn't ask me how my family, my home, and my life was. Actually, eye contact was completely avoided. And instead of paying the equivalent of 25 cents for a pop, I had to pay about $4.00 for a pop (Amsterdam is ridiculously expensive).

so charming, isn't it?

all the architecture reminded me of Orange City :) Our own little Dutch town in the middle of America!

It was such a happy moment to be met at the airport by my wonderful parents and to spend the weekend with some of my amazing friends. It's actually been a rather easy transition... I feel like I've been in America forever. But every once and a while, I am just overcome... with ache for Africa and the kids there, with the realization of how incredibly blessed I am, or with a disgust of some of the luxuries that we have in America. Last night, I was just hit with the fact that my bedroom is 3 times the size of a house that 4 people live in in Africa... not to mention that I have a bed, clothes in my closet, food in the refrigerator, and a car in my driveway. I am so grateful for these things, but sometimes I'm not sure what to do about the disparity I see between my life and theirs. I am fully confident that the people in Africa are happy and that the answer doesn't lie in putting carpeting in their house or putting an extension on their house. However, I do want to make sure that I'm not spending money on luxurious things for myself when some of my new friends can't afford to send their kids to school or feed their family. I'm definitely still processing things, and I hope to continue to struggle with these things and continue to be impacted by my time in Africa.

so happy to be back with these girls again! Thanks for coming up to visit!!



so good to be back with my sister again!

Thank you all so much for your prayers and encouragement these 4 months. I am SO thankful for it!