Zambia trip- June 2014

When I went to Zambia for the first time in 2011, I knew at that moment that I would be back in the years to come. This June (2014) I had the opportunity to return to Gripps Farm in Zambia. I have felt a calling for the village since I first laid eyes on it through pictures before my first trip and then again this summer when I stepped foot in the village. It is hard for me to put into words the feelings that I get when I am there and it is even harder to explain the reason behind those feelings, but I have realized that God has put this desire and this love in my heart and it will be my duty from now on to help in whatever way God leads me.

My friend Ellie from graduate school met me in Johannesburg so that our last flight to Zambia was together (she was coming from South Korea). This would be her first time to Africa and to Gripps, and I was so excited to be able to share this experience with such a close friend. I tried really hard to have no expectations for this trip but that was a struggle since I had experienced this place before. It was such a different experience from my first trip, but I fell in love with Gripps all over again.

Our first day there, Cosmas gave us a tour of the village. It was amazing to see the changes! There were so many more houses, and that made it much easier to get lost! I was very impressed with Cosmas and his obvious love for the people of Gripps. He talked to each person we passed and he encouraged the children to go to school if they were at their homes for whatever reason. We were able to see the old school building which is literally falling apart. We also saw the new school building which is much more suitable for the students. There is a second school building that needs to be finished and throughout our time there Cosmas continued to get estimates on the cost to finish the building. We were followed around by some little ones in the village and I loved seeing their faces.

We spent the next few days taking pictures of all the school children. My dad and I took their pictures for sponsors when we went three years ago. It was amazing to see how much the children have grown. The children came by class, and Cosmas and the teachers helped by writing down their information (age, family dynamics, aspirations). We had supplies to hand out to every child thanks to an amazingly generous woman that I have been blessed to meet. She donated ten boxes and a few bags of clothing, school supplies, toys, art activities, and hygiene packs. After the children had their pictures taken, they picked a few items. It was fun to see their excitement. Some of them put their clothing on immediately and were happy to pose for another picture.

We also spent time in the classrooms painting with the students. The generous woman had donated over 300 plaster figurines of safari animals along with paints and paint brushes. We were able to see pure joy on some of the kids’ faces as they painted their animals that they proudly named to their teachers. I loved their accents and it was so much fun to hear them shout, “Lion” or “Giraffe” out loud.

On Sunday, we went to youth group with Cosmas. The youth put on many plays and songs for us while we were there. It was encouraging to see their excitement about their futures. The youth know all of the things they need to make a better life for themselves. They know about the importance of education and about the real struggles they face with HIV, alcoholism, and abusive relationships. It is my prayer that they will put their words, songs, and plays into practice and will continue to see God’s will for their lives. 

One of the biggest blessings of the whole trip was spending time with Cosmas, Marijke, Liza, and Sophie. I cannot describe the love I have for their family or the impression they left on me. They are such great parents and they are teaching their girls to love God above all else. They love the people of Gripps and have their best interests at heart at all times. 

As I was trying to process everything that happened during the trip, I came across this passage from the book Dirty God by Johnnie Moore. The passage was in response to the questions we ask God about why things are the way they are. Why are the people in Gripps so poverty stricken and what is ever going to happen to change that for them? Why did God pick me to have such a burden for this place and why is Gripps Farm one of the places that makes me feel like I’m at home?

But what of the second typical response to these issues of human suffering? How do we deal with our tendency to accuse God of negligence when the world is in such dire shape?

Actually, I think when we look at the sky and ask God to do something, he says back to us, ‘I am doing something. I’m burdening your heart with this need. I’m allowing your life to collide with this crisis, and I’m giving you this burden for one reason—so that you can be my hands and feet to do something about it.’

I believe with all of my heart that we are often the answer to our own burdens. The causes that make us cry and work and complain and plead and raise money and raise awareness and take red-eyes to other countries and sleep in huts and risk disease and danger are the same causes that God has assigned to us. They have become our responsibility--and it’s our call, our turn, to make the difference that we’re expecting and hoping others will make.

Compassion means action. It’s not enough to just be moved by the fact that people are dying for the absolutely unnecessary reason of lack of food. It’s not enough to cry over the terrifying plight of child prostitution or forced labor. It’s not enough to look at the guy beaten on the side of the road and feel sorry for him. 

We have to do something about it. True compassion means that we care enough to effect change. When the Bible says Jesus was ‘moved with compassion,’ the word compassion in biblical Greek implies a movement from the inside out. You are physically pained by that you see, and you almost have to do something to change it.

We are the answers to the problems we’re most concerned about.

I don’t know what my future looks like with Gripps Farm, but I know that God has placed this love on my heart for a reason and I am excited to see what the future holds for Gripps. God is there with them and that is the most important thing. I am so thankful to everyone who supported this mission through prayer and/or financial decisions. I will be forever grateful!

Back to Zambia...Where feet may fail

It's been almost a full year since my last blog post on here...It's really hard to take the time to sit down and write about my little ol' life but here goes nothing.

I'm going back to Zambia. Yep. Back to Zambia. By myself (unless something changes). In less than five months. It's going to be scary. It's going to be emotional. It's going to be great!

God is working on this trip. He has been since the beginning. I just reread the post I wrote after I got back from Zambia the last time. You can read that post here. My prayer at that time was that I could get back there again, and now it's happening. 

There have been several answered prayers surrounding this trip. My first prayer was for God to start showing my signs that HE wanted me to go and not that I just wanted to go. I prayed for two things 1) Luther would be supportive and want me to go (you can't exactly leave your husband for a couple of weeks without him being on board), and 2) for a clear sign that God wants me to go. One day when Ellie was here, Luther agreed that I should go back. I thought, "Okay God, that's one...but you have to do more than that!" A few weeks later, we got some junk mail with a penny on it. I took the penny off, put it on the counter, and threw the mail away. A few weeks after that, I found the penny again and realized it said ZAMBIA on it. I've never even seen a Zambian penny. That's when God really got my attention. Maybe it was a coincidence but I'm choosing to believe that God was involved in that random junk mailing to be sent to my house with a Zambian penny on it instead of an American penny.

So then the planning started. My first idea was to have a yard sale. I didn't think it would be that hard and I didn't think I would raise a ton of money but it would be a good start. The first mistake was thinking it wouldn't be that hard. Oh. My. Word. So many people from work, church, and family donated items (like over 3,500 items) that I (for whatever reason) itemized and put on a spreadsheet. It was such a huge blessing that all of those items were donated because I could not have been as successful without them. Our guestroom and my parents basement were COMPLETELY packed for over a month. The more items I saw come in, the more I started praying that the weather would be nice and that people would come. What good is a yard sale if people don't come? I was hoping for around $300 from the sale. I jokingly started praying that I would raise at least half of the plane ticket. God wasn't joking- and I raised more than half:) The morning of, some good friends came over and stayed most of the day to help which was a good thing because it took nine adults two hours to get all of the items out (I told you it was a lot)! By lunch time, I had raised over $900. People steadily came to the sale from 7 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. I didn't raise the full cost of my plane ticket but I think the yard sale should go down as the most successful yard sale in history!

So here's the plan:
I'm leaving in June after I get out for summer break. I am going to be updating the pictures of all of the school children that my dad and I took three years ago for their sponsors. I'm also going to be working with the youth group some and helping the main contact we have. I'm probably going to be using my counseling skills with some of the youth and the women from the village. That's the plan we have made. Who knows what more God's plan will include but I'm excited to find out! I get a little nervous about going at times (mostly being on the plane for that long by myself) but I know that God is going to do something big. He hasn't brought me this far for nothing. I'm excited to see all that He has in store. I've raised about two thirds of the money so far and I'm trusting God that the rest will come in.

Oceans by Hillsong United is my new theme song for this trip. I have heard it a few times in the car and then we sang it in church on Sunday.  Here are some excerpts from the song:

You call me out upon the waters
The great unknown where feet may fail
And there I find You in the mystery
In oceans deep
My faith will stand

Your grace abounds in deepest waters
Your sovereign hand
Will be my guide
Where feet may fail and fear surrounds me
You've never failed and You won't start now

Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders
Let me walk upon the waters
Wherever You would call me
Take me deeper than my feet could ever wander
And my faith will be made stronger
In the presence of my Savior

Check out the whole song here