Posts Tagged ‘Teams’
Numbers
Sunday, February 21st, 2010Fun & games in Siaya
Tuesday, December 1st, 2009
All is well
Wednesday, October 21st, 2009Written on Tuesday:
It’s hard to believe how quickly the time is flying. A friend just emailed me the other day talking about what her kids want to dress up as for Halloween. It seems so far removed from where I am right now: sitting in a gazebo inside our hotel grounds, watching the birds flutter and chirp to each other in the tall green trees. Flowers blossom beside the rich red dirt road into the compound. It’s a beautiful morning in Siaya.
We’ve been in Kenya for a full week now. After leaving Noah’s Ark, we spent two nights and one fun-filled day with our friend Kimi who is living in Jinja, Uganda. We got a chance to get out and meet some of the kids she works with there. It was great to actually get out into a community and interact with the locals. Plus it was nice for me and Justin to not have the pressure of needing to make sure we ask the right questions, gather the right information and take the best photos. We were simply there to enjoy the day, and it was pleasant indeed. Kimi is an incredible servant of God, and to see what she is doing there because God called her just swelled my heart.
So, she drove us to the Kenyan border and we had no problems meeting up with our Kenyan project partner Edgar. That was a big praise item for me as I was worried we might be at the border all day trying to find each other. It was much less confusing there than I had anticipated!
It has been a full week with Edgar, traveling to Siaya, seeing some of the project sites, meeting with those impacted and getting a good sense of what is happening on the ground here. We also got to spend a couple nights at Edgar’s home in Kisumu, which was very enjoyable. We had a great time getting to know his family and even learning how to make a few authentic Kenyan dishes!
On Sunday, we picked up a team from Kisumu Airport. They come from Coquitlam’s Hillside Community Church, and we are with them until next Tuesday. Not only is it fun to meet a new team, they also brought some much-appreciated treats from home including cookies and instant Starbucks coffee which they graciously have shared with us!
This afternoon we get to spend time with the kids from the Siaya Children’s Home, playing soccer (the team) and doing some interviews (me and Justin). This morning some of the team went to see Obama’s grandmother’s home, which is just a little ways outside of Siaya.
We’ve been feeling healthy for the most part, getting rest and are feeling blessed by our time in Kenya. As our new friend Pastor Richard says, “All is well.” Indeed, all has been well here in Kenya. I hope to start sharing soon on the blog some of the stories we’ve been hearing and of course some of the visual imagery to show you just how beautiful this land and its people are.
Sprints and marathons
Monday, July 27th, 2009I was once a runner. I loved the feeling of finishing a race. I never much cared that I wasn’t first, and even when I was in the best shape of my life I knew my body type wasn’t one that would win races. But I was a finisher, and that for me was always an accomplishment worth celebrating.
From my experience, there are two categories of runs: sprints and marathons. OK, technically a marathon is a set race of 42 km. But in my mind, there are the short races and the long hauls. And you run the races very differently depending on the length.
Sprints are all-out, pump the legs and arms as fast as you can, pound the feet against the track, end goal in sight type of deals. You basically go like stink until you reach the finish.
Marathon length races are run much differently. They require persistence and an ability to push through a more aching pain as you consistently pound the pavement. Mentally your focus needs to be on the end goal though you cannot see it for miles in between you and the finish line. Pacing is important, and having a strong support team providing water, food, encouragement and arms to fall into at the end of the race are crucial.
Our entire Mexico trip we were with a team from Coquitlam Alliance Church (CAC) and as we worked with them, I really saw the difference between a sprint and a marathon when it comes to a short term trip. The people on this trip worked like stink, hiking and digging and dry-walling and pipe laying and concrete making and running VBS and encouraging and praying and driving – lots of driving – for two weeks straight.
And we pretty much followed along the team schedule set up for the CAC group. For 14 of the 15 days we ran the rapid pace that is a short term missions sprint: limited time, much to do, many places to get to in such a short time that every hour counts.
We must be crazy
Tuesday, June 30th, 2009Well people, this is it. This might quite possibly be the last time you ever hear from me.
Tomorrow, I go into the canyon.
And I’m very, very scared.
We are hiking into the Copper Canyon to go to a village called Guacaivo. This is where the Coquitlam Alliance team is partnered and we’ll be going in to interview people about how they’ve been impacted by the work of these short term missions groups and the long term partnership with Pastor Tomas.
It is an estimated six hour hike all the way down the canyon, across a river and halfway up the other side. We have to pack in enough for four nights and five days, so our bags are H-E-A-V-Y.
Please pray for us, specifically on Wednesday and on Sunday as we travel in and out of the canyon. Pray for safety in walking and the energy needed to hike for such a long time.
Hopefully, you’ll hear from me again. Otherwise, look for me somewhere on the canyon walk, praying for the Lord to just take me home.
