My journey back was much smoother than my journey there, and I actually had a bit of downtown in the airports in Johannesburg and New York City (JFK). On my longest flight (about 16 hours from South Africa to New York), I sat between two African young women my age, which was a blast! The one was an Angolan who worked for an oil company in Angola but who had spent many years of her life in Namibia and was traveling to the States for the first time for vacation with her sisters, and the other was from Burundi and was a college student in the U.S. They were both believers, and we had some great conversations about missions, ministry, cultural differences, etc. and we laughed alot:) The girl from Angola had actually worked with the Navigators earlier in her life, and had interacted with a number of Western missionaries in Namibia over the years, so it was really interesting and helpful to hear her perspective. I had trouble sleeping, so other than 2-3 hours of catnapping, I watched movies, listened to music and read (I'm in the middle of The Pursuit of God by A. W. Tozer and loving it!). Seems I don't have much time for movies these days, so I took advantage of the opportunity to get caught up:) I would highly recommend the movie "We Bought a Zoo," if you haven't already seen it!
My last two days in Arandis at the end of July were incredibly memorable! Lots of pictures were taken, videos recorded, and "see you soons" said:) I wanted to remember everyone's voices! I received a huge stack of handmade cards from the 1-3 graders, and they performed the song I taught them, called "Stop, Let Me Tell you!" (complete with the motions!) The lyrics go like this:
Stop, and let me tell you, what the Lord has done for me!
Stop, and let me tell you, what the Lord has done for me!
He forgave my sin and He cleansed my soul
He saved my heart and He made me whole
Stop, and let me tell you, what the Lord has done for me!
Such solid Biblical truth, right?! This is actually a favorite at my home church here in Columbia in the children's ministry as well, so I can't wait to show the kids this video! I was so moved by how the Lord gave them such a love for this song--it wasn't something that I pushed or forced at all, they just took it and ran with it :) I was so privileged and humbled to play a small role at Talitha-Kumi Christian Academy for a short time. It was life-changing and I will never forget the faces of all the children I worked with, or the teachers and staff:) My parting message to them was the words of the apostle Paul, which we see in Philippians 1:3-6:
"I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that He would began a good work in your will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."
The Lord gave me a creative idea about how to leave well. I believe He has given me the gift of encouragement, and I wanted to leave something concrete with each special person that He had allowed me to connect with and journey with while I was in Arandis. He allowed me to think ahead and plan and take an individual picture with each of them and get them printed in Swakopmund with a couple days to spare. Then, I wrote a message on the back of each photo, as well as a Bible verse. The Lord gave me specific words of encouragement for each person. I think I wrote on the back of close to 50 photos! I wanted the messages to be specific to each person, and I wanted them to know that they are significant and loved. Many of them don't have many pictures of themselves, and many people who come to volunteer tend to take lots of pictures on their cameras but then leave without printing and handing out any of the pictures:( I pray and trust that the Lord will use His words written by my hand to encourage His children in Arandis whenever they look at their photo and read the message on the back:)
I will never forget my last night in Arandis. My host family cooked a delicious meal for me (lasagna!) and we made chocolate peanut butter bars for dessert, which is quite a treat because chocolate and peanut butter are not cheap! They gave me a beautiful pair of earrings and two beautiful handmade cards that touched me deeply. Then, we all brought our mattresses into the living room and watched "The God Must Be Crazy." I can't believe I have never see that movie before! My brothers used to talk about it all the time, about how hysterical it was, and now I can agree! It was so fitting to watch it while in Namibia, because there are Bushmen here. Anyway, then we had an epic sleepover! I must admit, I slept terribly (Ashley, my 6 year old host sister, apparently swings her arms wildly in her sleep) but that just made it all the more memorable:)
After many "see you soons" rather than goodbyes and prayers at school and at the homes of each of the foster families and the other missionaries, I left for Windhoek, the capital, on Wednesday, July 31st in the afternoon. It was about a 3 hour bus ride. I only cried once in all of the goodbyes, when I was reading my letter to my host family. And it wasn't out of sadness, but out of profound thankfulness for what the Lord had done. I was beyond blessed to have been able to be a part of their family for those short 3 weeks. It was not something that I had expected or planned, and the Lord blessed me immensely through the experience, beyond words can really describe.
The very next day, August 1st, my dear friend from Zambia, Lindiwe, arrived in Windhoek to spend the next 4 days with me! She traveled almost a day by bus to come, and I was so touched and thankful! Her bus arrived 3 hours late (in typical African fashion), but she arrived in one piece, thank the Lord:) There are not enough words to describe how sweet of a time the Lord allowed us to have. I am beyond thankful that He allowed us to see each other again. He is SO good! We exchanged gifts. We were able to catch up on the past two years and our friends and families. We talked about missions, ministry, cultural differences, etc. We had devotional time together each morning and prayed alot together. We listened to music, we watched movies. We laughed, we told stories. We went shopping, we toured downtown, we crashed some rooftop five star hotel pools, we picnicked in the park, we got our exercise walking everywhere. We cooked Zambian food. We had coffee at a cafe. We got Lindiwe's ears pierced. We made new friends. We saw the Lord bless us and provide for us financially in multiple ways. We were able to encourage one another and carry each other's burdens. We also had the privilege of meeting Marco, a Namibian university student living at the missionary guesthouse where we stayed. He helped to run the guesthouse, and showed us all around the city! He was a wonderful host and took such great care of us. The Lord allowed us to be blessed by him and bless him in return, and we were so thankful for that privilege. On our last day together, Lindiwe, Marco and I went on a game drive at a lodge about 30 minutes outside of Windhoek. Neither one of them had every been on a game drive, and it was my pleasure to help them experience one for the first time! We saw lots of different types of animals, my favorite being the white rhino!
Leaving Namibia was different than Zambia. When I left Zambia in July of 2011, I really had no idea if I would ever return, if I would ever see my new Zambian friends and family again. However, leaving Namibia, I just have the sense that it won't be my last time seeing my new Namibian family and friends. Many of them only wanted to say "see you soon, Lord willing," as I did:) I don't know what lies ahead or if the Lord will call me to serve again specifically with Children of Promise Ministries or more generally in Namibia or another southern African country, but I do know this: God has given me His love for these people. I love this country, and the Lord has shown and confirmed to me that I have been used by Him in this place through the relationships He allowed me to form. I guess it's only human to wonder at the end of an experience like this if your presence has had any real, substantial, eternal impact. The Lord was so good to encourage and affirm me in various ways through the words of others I served alongside of, and through a number of different interactions I had. He has shown me that He has gifted me in teaching His word and in encouraging and connecting easily with others, across cultural barriers. And I don't say this pridefully, please believe me. I say this because I believe it is crucial for each believer to discover the ways in which the Lord has gifted them, so that they can further develop these giftings and serve in ways that they can be used most effectively by Him. I am truly humbled that my God would use me at all.
He has also confirmed that He has given me a passion for discipleship, for teaching His word, for equipping local believers to carry out this work. They are the ones who can best reach their own people. While I loved my time teaching the first and second graders at the school, my absolute favorite part of my time in Arandis (besides my host family) was my time with the teen girls and foster moms in the ministry, both in the bible study and just in everyday life. I loved journeying with them and coming alongside them. It's funny, because I said a long time ago that I would never work with youth. Kids, absolutely, but teens?! Yikes! They used to scare me, and the idea of say teaching in a middle or high school terrified me. Pathetic I know, but true. Hand me a screaming baby or toddler and I'm fine, but teens?! It's crazy how the Lord changes our heart and our desires to line up with His heart and His desires. He allowed me to connect with those girls, those moms, in ways that I never would have expected. And a huge part of the population in Namibia and the rest of southern Africa are young people. I did work with alot of young people in Zambia too, and maybe that's where it all started. Anyway, the Lord is up to something. Even since I have been back here in Columbia, He has opened the door for me to partner with a crisis pregnancy center downtown that goes into a low income housing community every week to teach life skills, the Word, and mentor the teen girls living there. I am excited about the opportunity to share Christ and invest and pour into these girls through teaching and mentoring. I know I will learn so much from them too:)
I doubt anyone has made it this far in my post, but if you have, hats off to you! This is what happens when you only blog four times in 6 weeks. Whoops! Thank you all for your love, support and prayers. I have experienced firsthand that they have made all the difference! I covet your prayers--please continue to remember me in your prayers as you are able, and I will do the same for you! Please also pray that the fruit the Lord allowed me to see in Namibia would be LASTING! I have been so humbled that the Lord would choose to use me at all in these various corners of His vineyard (Namibia, Columbia, etc.) for His glory. What an honor to co-labor with Him!
I will leave you with these lyrics (this song was at the top of my Africa playlist):
All the way my Savior leads me
Who have I to ask beside
How could I doubt His tender mercy
Who through life has been my guide
You lead me and keep me from falling
You carry me close to your heart
And surely your goodness and mercy will follow me
All the way my Savior leads me
O, the fullness of His love
O, the sureness of His promise
In the triumph of His blood
And when my spirit clothed immortal
Wings its flight to realms of day
This is my song through endless ages
Jesus led me all the way
Jesus led me all the way
All the way my Savior leads me
All the way my Savior leads me
He is worth it. He is worthy. He is my King, and I love Him. Hand and hand we will continue to journey together:)
For His Glory and in Response to His Love,
Steph
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