Thurs 9/11 - Roy drove Steph and I to the Zimbabwe
border. We are picking up her repaired truck in Harare. We took a taxi (a young
man’s car) from the Zim side of the border to the Mutare bus stop. On the way a
speeding van lost control on the gravel road and drove off the side of the hill
right in front of us. Trees limited the van’s plummet and the driver was alone and
uninjured, PTL! Our bus was supposed to leave at 10am, and we finally departed
at 11:15am – buses sit and won’t leave until they are full. I commented to
Stephanie how I wondered if they took the time and money to maintain the busses
since they looked and smelled neglected. At 1pm our bus broke down,
differential fluid pouring out from under the back end. We waited over 1 hour
for the bus they were sending to pick us up, but that bus was nearly full and
could only load a few passengers. This happened 4 more times – slowly reloading
passengers from our bus to another, a few at a time. The temperature gradually
climbed to 37C (97F), so we called Peter from Gatehouse to pick us up. As we
waited, we kept ourselves entertained w/an adorable toddler that sat alone for
long stretches at a time, eating dirt, while his mother sold carrots at the
intersection about 50 yards away. I guess kidnapping isn’t an issue here, since
very few have money to feed their own kids, let alone take another. Peter
picked us up and we arrived in time for a 7pm class on hearing the Holy Spirit.
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| On the broken down bus |
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| On the broken down bus |
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| Little boy at intersection while his mom sold carrots |
Fri 9/12 - Early am Peter gave me a tour of the
Gatehouse community and farm. He showed me an old apple tree with main branches
that are thin and full of holes from termites, and has split into 4 at the
truck. Every year he says he’ll cut it down, but every Spring it becomes alive
w/abundant beautiful blossoms, and then produces much fruit. He says it reminds
him of himself – that he is never too old to produce fruit! Steph went to pick
up her truck then go shopping. I spent most of the day fellowshipping w/Peter and
his wife Abigail, who run Gatehouse, and many that live at Gatehouse.
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| Peter & Abigail James w Chester the parrot – Gatehouse community in Zimbabwe |
The long
history of Gatehouse, and how God prepared and brought each person there, were
fascinating stories with all glory to God! Everyone eats all 3 meals together,
and many have been there for years – some over 20 yrs. It’s a beautiful place
w/beautiful people. But of course, I
wasn’t looking thru rose-colored glasses – I got to see the unfortunate side of
people irritating each other, even though they love each other dearly. No
matter where you go - Maforga, Gatehouse, TCA, Calvary Chapel - you always have
to deal w/each others’ weaknesses, loving and encouraging them along the way. I
always remember what Pastor Rick says…”Can’t we all just get along?...No, we
can’t, so deal with it!” The Lord has been working on my heart since I’ve been
in Moz in this area. It’s such a blessing of peace when, in Him, I can just let
things roll off my back that in the past would have irritated me. Oh, and
routine?! No such thing here! The absence of a schedule or routine was a big
adjustment for me here, but He has taught me that being free of those rigid
constraints really opens me up to being available and willing to serve more.
Sat 9/13 - Praise God we made it back to Maforga
safely. A couple hours after departing Gatehouse, the area around the center
counsel became really hot, but we couldn’t see or hear anything obviously wrong
in the cab or underneath, so we prayed over it. We made it to Mutare where we
stopped to shop and let it cool, then didn’t have any more trouble. After
leaving Mutare a cow popped up out of a ditch and stood on the road just 30ft
in front of us – there was no way for us to stop in time at our speed. Steph
slammed on the brakes which locked up so we skidded towards the cow, and there
was nowhere to go but straight into the cow since the ditch was on the side and
a car in the other lane. Then Jesus just stopped the truck w/only inches from
impact! The remainder of the trip from Chimoio to Maforga was in the dark,
since our delay in Mutare. There are no
streetlights, so the road is pitch black, and there’s numerous pedestrians and
bicycles on the side of the road. Twice we were run off the road by cars
passing head-on into us, and thank God we didn’t hit anyone on the side of the
road.
Mon 9/15 - I’m taking 3 days off to spend all my time
going deeper w/Lord and seeking Him. Love is the topic for today. Before Jesus
was crucified, He commanded His disciples not once, but twice:
John 13:34-35
- A
new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you,
that you also love one another.
John 15:12 - This is My commandment, that you love one
another as I have loved you.
Jesus tells us to love as He loves. Is this
possible? I mean, He is God after all, and I’m not. But He didn’t say try, or
do the best you can, or love only those that are easy to love. He said as He
loves. And He wouldn’t have commanded us to do something we aren’t capable
of doing! I need Jesus to pour His love into me, a love that I could never possess
on my own. I picture His huge heart above me, that my own heart is connected
to, so I have access to all that love; my own heart on its own could never
contain even a miniscule amount of that much love and would simply burst. But
His heart is an endless reservoir, and so as long as I am tapped into Him, I
will never lack the “room” to love as He commands me to love.
Tues 9/16 - Sarah Tanis at prayer this AM described
Maforga as dripping w/milk and honey, but not yet flowing. And the water
situation here is no secret – we pray for water every day. So as we prayed, the
“flow” that I perceived in yesterday’s studies continued into today, but as the
flow of living water. I pictured all of us having living water poured through
us from Jesus onto the people here, and that nourished the land and made the
milk and honey change from a drip to a flow. This is what I found with my
studies so far today:
Rev 22:1-2 - And he showed me a pure river of water of
life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb.
Rev 21:6 - And
He said to me, "It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning
and the End. I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who
thirsts.
John 4:13-14 -
Jesus answered and said to her, "Whoever drinks of this water will thirst
again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst.
But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water
springing up into everlasting life."
John 7:38 - He who believes in Me, as the Scripture
has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water."
Living water flows from the throne of God, and
Jesus, who causes the fountain to spring up in our hearts, and to then flow out
through us. We will be rivers of flowing living water, but only when we are
connected to our Source of that pure river of water of life.
Isa 58:11 - The Lord will guide you continually, And
satisfy your soul in drought, And strengthen your bones; You shall be like a
watered garden, And like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail.
Ezek 47:9 - And it shall be that every living thing that
moves, wherever the rivers go, will live.
The Lord keeps taking me back to Isaiah 58. In my
journal I see He initially took me there on 9/9, one week ago. I mentioned the
scripture in my blog update, but here’s the verses He keeps bringing back to me:
Isa 58:6-12
"Is this
not the fast that I have chosen: To loose the bonds of wickedness, To undo the
heavy burdens, To let the oppressed go free, And that you break every yoke? Is
it not to share your bread with the hungry, And that you bring to your house
the poor who are cast out; When you see the naked, that you cover him, And not
hide yourself from your own flesh? Then your light shall break forth like the
morning, Your healing shall spring forth speedily, And your righteousness shall
go before you; The glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard. Then you shall
call, and the Lord will answer; You shall cry, and He will say, 'Here I am.'
"If you take away the yoke from your midst, The pointing of the finger,
and speaking wickedness, If you extend your soul to the hungry And satisfy the
afflicted soul, Then your light shall dawn in the darkness, And your darkness
shall be as the noonday. The Lord will guide you continually, And satisfy your
soul in drought, And strengthen your bones; You shall be like a watered garden,
And like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail. Those from among you
Shall build the old waste places; You shall raise up the foundations of many
generations; And you shall be called the Repairer of the Breach, The Restorer
of Streets to Dwell In.
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| Mateo banged up at soccer game |
Wed 9/17 - I spent early AM with Sarah Tanis doctoring up
boys with different injuries and passing out meds. Her “clinic” is a backroom
of her house on the boys’ side of the orphanage. I researched 2 hard cases, a
fungal infection and a non-healing wound, on Google. The internet (when we have it!) is a wonderful
thing since I don’t have training yet on Tropical Medicine. I was able to round
up everything we needed between natural remedies found in her house and garden
and what I brought with me from the US.
We’ll see in one week if they are responding to the new treatments. Sarah
talked about how Stephanie opening the clinic soon is a huge blessing to the
area, and that Maforga still needs a nurse. She said aside from Steph’s
midwifery skills there is no one medical currently here and they all do the
best they can with the Holy Spirit’s guidance and much prayer. Nanna currently
isn’t able to work or even consult due to her fragile state and starting to
forgetfulness. Few local villagers also come to Sarah’s “clinic”: one woman with malaria needing treatment, one
woman seeking prayer and food for her son with a broken leg, and one woman with
AIDS seeking prayer and a ride to Sarah’s women’s bible study.
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| Boys waiting for services at Sarah's 'clinic' in her home |
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| Women's Bible study |
After clinic we went to Women’s Bible study, which
is in Portuguese and Shona, so I followed along as best I could with Sarah
translating parts of it. Wednesday evening Sarah visited me to pick up
treatment for the son of one of the women at bible study – I saw him there with
her; he has a fungal infection on his face. Lots of fungal infections here –
evidently they pick it up as spores in the dirt, but with poor hygiene they end
up with skin infections, progressing to wounds if not treated. We talked more
about my moving here next year, finding a place to live, life at Maforga – both
physical and spiritual. As we were talking she mentioned Isaiah 58! I just
loved performing the wound care today – this is what I know I’m supposed to do!
I’m still seeking Him as to whether I need to brush-up on some skills before I
move here, or if I will gain the skills just by the experience of jumping in
and working here, and being led by His Spirit. Sarah did explain the need for
suturing and I & D (incision and drainage of abscesses), a skill that I
would really need to be formerly taught. I’m sure the Lord will reveal a class
or mentor for those skills I need in His perfect time.
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