It’s Wednesday night as I write this, and the rest of my family should arrive in Dar es Salaam tomorrow morning! Brittany and I are already at the hotel where all of us are staying, and we’re ready for them to get here.
Lately we’ve been helping with a Christian leadership conference called Change Your Destiny. At first, we went to college campuses and talked to people about registering and got them signed up. With our sweet Swahili skills, we normally didn’t do the talking. Our main job was to attract people by simply being both present and white. They told us we did this well, saying that more people came and registered when we were there than when they went without us. We also entered data into the computer about who had registered. In Africa I am a computer whiz because I can type fast, so Brittany and I were able to help in this way quite well. Then on Monday, the conference began with check-in, and again, Brittany and I helped. Since then, we have been pseudo attendees, because we did not register ourselves and were only able to be there through today, Wednesday. It has been a good conference so far, aimed at developing Christian leaders for Africa, and specifically Tanzania.
The best part of the conference was getting to meet and work with some awesome people. There’s Mr. Limo, who drove us around in the crazy Dar es Salaam traffic jams. Or Yusuph, another guy who drove us and simultaneously, patiently taught us some Swahili. There are the Shekalaghas, Mr. Dismas and Mrs. Ann, who are some of the kindest and most joyous people you could ever ask to work with. There is also Richard, the MC for the conference, who warmly showed us around, always keeping us (and others) laughing and happy with his great sense of humor. And also Vincent, the easy-going, super cool, and really friendly Kenyan. We also had great conversations with Americans Mr. Winks and Mrs. Hunt, both speaking at the conference, and Samuel, our new friend from New Mexico. Sometimes, when I lose perspective, I get focused on all that I think is wrong, and I forget how awesome these people are. And beyond that, I forget about individuals in general, even though they are all around me. Either a person has a beautiful heart, made new by the grace of Jesus Christ, or they are in need of His redemption and life. In both cases, a person should receive our attention, whether it be in mutual edification or compassionate evangelism.
Speaking of awesome people, you guys should check out my friend, Jimmy’s, blog. Jimmy is the guy that took me around the Kibera slums in Nairobi. He would so appreciate your prayers and support as he pursues his passions in service to God, one of which being ministry in the slums. Check it out… http://jimmy-manofthepeople.blogspot.com/
Well it’s “tomorrow” and my family just got here! It is so good to see them all. As I write, they are all trying to rest after a crazy but good trip. It’s about midday on Thursday, and they haven’t slept in a bed since Monday night. I truly am blessed by them. And beyond that, I have been blessed by the stories of prayer that they have brought. We have so many people praying for us this summer. The faithfulness of our friends and family in the Body is flooring, and I feel so loved, humbled, and grateful. Asante sana to everyone!
We leave for Iringa very early tomorrow morning, Scottie’s birthday!
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