Called, Part 1

Africa.

Wow, I still can't believe God sent me to Africa.

This year has been one surprise after another.  It's as if meeting the author of the books I've been reading to the girls and boys in Loma, or hosting her in my Dominican house, or witnessing the fulfillment of a God-given vision of a ceremony weren't enough!

Jennie Bishop with Princesa Rosaura

I had a feeling 2015 would be an exciting year full of fulfillment of visions and prayers...

But I certainly wasn't expecting Africa.

Africa has never even been on my radar.  Some people receive a passion for or calling to a nation or people group, but that's never been the case for me.  There has never been anything special about the Dominican Republic to me, either... although, the beaches and tropical climate are quite nice.

God said, "Go."  So, I went.

And when God said "go" again, this time He knew I'd need some encouragement in the form of a dream, an invitation, and a paid ticket.  As it was when I went to India and the DR the first time, I took a huge leap of faith and trusted God had a purpose and reason for which He was calling me.  Nothing could have prepared me for what all He had in store as a result of obeying His call before...

So, when God called me to Africa, I went with no expectations other than the thrilling anticipation that God was going to reveal something to me.

Well, I lie.  

I went with one more expectation... that my mad skills at squatty-potty-ing in India might come in handy... 

...and they sure did.

And really, it wasn't that bad.  Many nights of bonding time were spent here as we girls alternated who held the flashlight over the door, who chose the song we'd sing, and who squatted.  I'm certain the Masai families around us thought we Americans are some of the most peculiar human beings.  For starters, we use toilet paper... add in that we were singing, for those of us who have "stage fright," and well, you get the picture.  The worship song "Holy Spirit" will never be the same again...

But let's get back on track, shall we?

The plane rides were long but we finally landed in the Mt. Kilamanjaro airport a day later. 

Our first two days were spent in the cities of Moshi and Arusha as we acclimated ourselves to the culture.  We played "The Price is Right" at the market, brushing up on our bartering skills.  I felt like a fish out of water as I no longer knew the language or currency... Spanish and pesos, sure, but Swahili and shillings? I lost the game on a few items and overpaid... such is life!

 At a cultural heritage center in Arusha

 At the market place in Arusha

   My flip flop broke, but Heather is a genius!                            Looks like a Dominican gua-gua, eh?

Ultimately, it was an experience of a lifetime... how often can you say you bought a traditional Masai headdress made by Masai woman right before your eyes?  

I can't wait to share this piece with my princesses here.  This Masai headdress is what their fellow princesses in Tanzania wear on special occasions much like their tiaras for their ceremony!

Among our other excursions, we hiked Mt. Kilamanjaro, too. Well, at least 8 km of it.  What goes up, must come down... that's 16 km total for anyone who's counting.  It was strenuous but worth the climb.

As we scaled the mountain, a few of us were talking about how cool it would be if we saw monkeys.  In that moment, John 14:13-14 popped in my head...

"Whatever you ask in My name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.  If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it." 

So, we prayed and asked Jesus to see monkeys.  I kid you not, 20 minutes later there were at least 10 monkeys swinging around.  IT WAS THE COOLEST THING!  I love my God.

 Can you see them?

          This must have been in the beginning...                             Freddie, easily mistaken for a monkey

 We made it!

Sunday we went to church on the TPC Sugar Plantation before heading out to where we would be staying the rest of our trip.  It is always such a joy to experience the presence of God in corporate worship like we did that morning... I only was able to pick up on the words "God," "Jesus", and "I love you," in Swahili, but that's all I really needed.

There was such a sweet, pure presence there that morning as hearts were turned in repentance and desperately seeking the Lord.

Pastor Doug giving the message with Pastor Rogers

Service was followed by food and fellowship.  Tanzanians, like Dominicans, place importance on hospitality and are eager to serve their guests.  These brothers and sisters are living examples of what Paul wrote in Philippians 2:3 of counting others more significant than ourselves.

After lunch, we set out for Kiruani, our new home for the next 5 days.  We spent three days teaching vacation bible school in the morning and two of those days heading back out to the sugar plantation for another round of bible school in the afternoon.  During downtime we were encouraged to visit and play with the kids who would gather on the front porch from all over the countryside.

Their favorite song was "Allelu, Allelu, Allelu, Allelujah.... Si fue bwana!" in the loudest voice possible!

 Our last morning with the kids... all 180-some of them!

       

 Our third day's lesson was on Daniel and the Lion's Den with masks and a totally foreign game to them of "Danieli, Danieli, Simba!" (like "duck, duck, goose")

With some of the kids on the sugar plantation

Once more, we were shown what true hospitality looks like as Lucas, our host, literally gave us his home for the week.  

People... HE GAVE US HIS HOME.  

Who does that?

We slept in their beds, ate at their table, sat on their furniture.  Unlike the traditional Masai mud hut, Lucas had built this house two years ago for he and his family, having acquired money through his crops and cattle.

The women of the church had food on the table every morning, noon, and evening.  One of the women would come around with a bowl of warmed water before each meal for us to wash our hands and would pray a blessing over our food.  Breakfast was bread, fruit, and coffee/tea... some of us were even brave enough to drink the fresh cow milk. Both lunch and dinner everyday consisted of white rice, spaghetti noodles, potato and goat stew, cooked cabbage, fruit, and french fries (because, they know we Americans like our french fries...).  

Where our food was prepared and the sweet ladies who took care of us

And if that weren't enough, these sisters in Christ literally went the extra mile to fetch us buckets of water to bathe in from the well located about 3/4 of a mile from the house.  And not only would they retrieve the water, but they would heat it up for us on a wood fire which they kindled themselves.  We all were so grateful for this gesture as it is winter in Tanzania and the temperatures in the morning and evening were somewhere in the 60's.  

Heather trying her hand at pumping water

The boys showing us how it's done

I am telling you... we were treated as royalty and I have never been more humbled as my fellow brothers and sisters in Christ valued us above themselves.

And what's more is that we were out in what seemed like the middle of nowhere.

No electricity.  No running water.  No internet. 

Nothing.  

Yet, there is something to be said about the simplicity of life in Kiruani.  The peace that I experienced out among the stars at night and in the quiet of the day was unlike anything I've known.  There wasn't the constant checking of social media between breaks or corresponding in emails back home.  This was not a possibility for us.  When it's not available, your mind disassociates from the habit.  

I have to say, I miss this freedom.

Don't get me wrong, I love the internet.  10 days without it was a blessing, but I know this would get old real fast.  The whole no running water and no electricity would eventually get to me, too... but it makes me much more grateful when I encounter electrical and water problems here in the DR.

We take so much for granted.  You can't go on a mission trip without being smacked in the face with this truth.  Eating dinner over candle light at night, bathing with one bucket of water every few days, using a hole in the ground for a toilet....  I realized I can get by with so much less than I imagined.

However, this was just the beginning of what God revealed to me in Tanzania...

Stay tuned... there's more.