He met me!

I did not have access to the Internet while I was gone so I took the old fashioned pen and paper route to capture my thoughts. Now that I am home all of 24 hours, I have just begun to process all that happened; all that I was a part of; and everywhere we went. What speaks to me is that I hope that I ministered to those wonderful people as much as they ministered to me. God met me in the middle of Botswana in those outside villages of Mosojane and Tutume. He met me out on the dirt roads, in the smiling faces of the children and the tired faces of the men and women. He met me in the marketplace, in the schools and on the roads. I am so thankful that He met me because that means He is there for others too!

The beauty and simplicity of life in the villages captured my heart and convicted me in many ways too! These people have tough lives and work very hard for the little that they have yet they know about Jesus. Their children are granted first rate education at the expense of the government and Jesus is welcomed and not run off at these institutions. All people, both young and old, clamour to watch puppets, sing songs and hear the Word of God spoken in public forums. What got me most was the desire to receive a Bible and how those that received them, clutched the book to their chest like it was a precious gem. In converse, I have so many Bibles but do not treat them with the respect that is due.

I feel a change about my outlook on life and I pray that it doesn't calm in time with the "out-of-sight = out-of-mind" mentality that is so prevalent. I walked away not wanting to change those people or give them more material goods, yet I want to emulate their desire and hunger for the Word and pursuit of Jesus. I want to emulate their happiness with the little things in life like a hat or a piece of candy. The life I lead is not one in which I truly trust God in all that I do if I am honest. There is a certain expectation that I have for how my life should be and how it should look but in reality, I could do more with less. Not that I am saying I want to trade my life for anything in this world, I just want to incorporate more of Jesus and His spirit that met me on the dry, dusty roads of Botswana. Knowing that should I make this change, God will meet me here too right in the middle of the suburbs. How about you?? Are you ready to meet Jesus where you are?

I will try to decipher my handwriting from my journal and post day to day activities of my trip!! If nothing else, a synopsis and highlights from the trip and put them on line for all to read. Photos coming soon!