Missing Africa and The Holy Spirit Giving Me A Lesson

It’s been exactly a month and two days since my return home. My heart still misses Africa with a great passion! I miss the people, the culture, the love, the faith….I miss everything! I’ve told many people here already that I liked it better over there than I do living here and that couldn’t be more true. The way they live in Burundi, though very difficult at times, was more pleasing to me. I love being close to my family and friends, but I also miss the amazing families I was with and their passion for their work! God has blessed us so much with many things we have here in the U.S. We can drink water without fear, we have the tools to save lives, we can eat whatever we want and so much more. To be rather honest, and not everyone will admit it, we take everything we have for granted. Not just every once in a while but every single day. Look at this post. What are you viewing it on? A computer? A smartphone? An iPad? How many times have you stopped to thank God for that simple electronic in your hand? Just think, what can you do with that thing? Communicate with the ones you love, keep track of the weather, stay caught up on the latest news, see what your friends are up to on Facebook and/or Twitter, email people far away, play games, write stories, watch videos…the list goes on. What about where you’re at? Home, the store, sitting in your car, at a restaurant, the bathroom, the office, at a friend’s house, laying in the sun…and once again the list goes on. I just named two very simple things that have to do with everyday life but to name another, water. It’s that simple, we drink water everyday, we need it to survive. We use it to shower, to brush our teeth, to cook, to clean things and to wash our dishes that we eat off of. Your sink produces clean water, while half way across the world they are trying to find ways to purify their water so they don’t die. Yes you read that right…so they don’t DIE. Think of all these things, we use them every day and think nothing of it. Well what if you woke up one day in Africa and realized all of this was gone? Would you cry? Would you be confused? Or would you take the time to thank God through the trial and learn how people live like that every day in Burundi. This is what I missed the most, the challenge. The simplicity of waking up every day and being thankful no matter what that day brings. They almost NEVER take things for granted. Mostly because they don’t have enough things to be that way, but also because they are so thankful that even though they are poor and go through many heartaches God still provides! Oh, how I miss the rejoicing in church as they sang their hearts out to Christ! Not in anger, or sadness, or turmoil, but in hope and joy. How many times can we honestly say that we have rejoiced during our challenges? Even small ones! I miss the way the people have joy no matter what. I truly hope that someday America can be like that, maybe even someday soon. Where we can all just stand together as the body of Christ and rejoice in the Lord through everything! I guess I got a little off track, but when the Holy Spirit nudges at you to share something it’s best that you listen. I hope sometime in the near future that I can return to Kibuye and once again be united with this amazing faith centered village. Urakotze(thank you) Kibuye for your amazing lessons! I miss you more than words can describe! ((I got an update on the mother and her twins. Below is a picture of our beloved mama and both of the babies. I last heard that the babies were gaining weight and were to go home soon! Thank you so much for your prayers! Please continue to pray for the premies born at Kibuye Hospital and for their mothers. They recently received their first incubator there and are able to help with the smallest of the babies. They will hopefully get another one soon! Praise God!))

Crooked Cornerstone

So this is what the Sovereign Lord says: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation; the one who relies on it will never be stricken with panic. (Isaiah 28:16 NIV)

 

Today in Sunday School we talked about the cornerstone. Above is a verse that we went through together. Throughout the entire lesson I couldn't help but think of the cornerstone I had seen in Africa just last Sunday. (From my understanding the church in Kibuye is growing and so they are building another church building right next door!) After our Easter service we all went outside to go look at the cornerstone, only to find that it was pretty much crooked but that they still trusted it enough to continue building. 

      Throughout the Sunday school lesson today we pointed out the fact that in this imagery Christ is our cornerstone. Something to hold us up and to keep us grounded. As we discussed this we talked about how we were the church and how we needed that perfect cornerstone so we could be stacked upon each other like bricks. Well if you know me, you know that the wheels start turning in my head sometimes and I think a little outside the box. So I sat there and thought in depth about what they had said. Jesus is our perfect cornerstone but as bricks we will never be perfect. We will all be crooked, we may shift throughout the years, we will become cracked and start to decay. We should never think that without perfect bricks we can not be a perfect church. What makes us perfect is our cornerstone, Jesus. That is why no matter what shape we are in we will stack ourselves no matter what. We will have faith and know that though we may falter many times, our church will never fall because our cornerstone is the greatest thing to be built off of! Crooked bricks or not we must look to the cornerstone for support and He will provide it! Amen for that! 

Africa...**Sigh**

It has been two days since I arrived home, the memories of Africa are still fresh in my mind. I love being home, seeing my family every day, talking with friends, driving around places, but oh how I miss Africa...I truly fell in love with it while I was there. I constantly catch myself thinking about how different things would be if I were still there. I compare things daily, and though there are things here that I'm glad to come back to I miss the simplicity of living in Africa. No pressure to constantly have your phone, no buildings blocking gorgeous views, no cold weather, no selfishness, no distance from people. I find myself wanting to go back to habits I made while there. I want to walk up to everyone and shake their hand and say Amahoro, I want to eat some rice and beans, I want to go hang out with all the kids and put on a VBS with them, I want to hold Shiloh, I want to cut open a passion fruit, I want to walk around a village, I want to go visit the momma and her twins, I want to wake up to the sun shining and the birds singing. I think of things I want to do here but can't because the culture is just so different. I love the people here but have found that I love Africa more than America. My heart is longing to return already and I hope to someday! Until then I will continue to shine my light here and spend time with those who I love! It's been amazing being home and talking with my mom again as well as cuddling with my overjoyed sisters! I've entered back into my comfort zone and feel at peace! Thank you all for traveling prayers, everything went great! Thanks for listening to the yearning of a 17 year old girl who misses Africa! Goodnight all!

Goodbye Burundi....

Bonjour from Bujumbura, Burundi! I am here for tonight and tomorrow until I take flight tomorrow night! What an amazing trip it has been! So many people have told me not to fall in love while I'm here, but sorry guys, I already have. Not with anyone here but with Burundi itself. I've fallen for it's starry nights, it's sunshine, it's kids, it's people, it's friendliness and it's faith. I can honestly say that a part of me will be left here when I go. I've learned so much here and hope to one day come again for a visit! Until then, goodbye dear friend I've come to love you dearly. I shall miss you!

Today was a God-trusting day. I awoke and began my day with last minute packing. Our ride arrived early and a good thing too! We found that it did not have any seatbelts in it, and very little room for our luggage. With the hand of God on us we were able to access rope to tie down the carseats, fit everyone in a seat (no sharing needed till we picked up more passengers in Gitega,) and fit all our luggage in! We arrived in Bujumbura literally in time to unload the van then get into a car and drive off to lunch with another missionary family. After doing so we came home, relaxed for an hour or two, then joined the Bates, Willis and Fader families for a delicious dinner. We arrived home late and sent everyone to bed! We were exhausted! Bujumbura is so different then Kibuye, on more then one level.

Examples: It is hotter and way more humid here, even at night. There are tons more people and kids walking around. People constantly walk or run beside your vehicle trying to sell you things and men will whistle at you...a lot.

There are many more things to see here but I think I prefer Kibuye more. I felt so safe and at home there, where here I feel safe but it just doesn't feel like home to me. Tonight will be my last blog before I leave tomorrow night. I will fly from Bujumbura to Kenya, Kenya to Brussels, Brussels to Washington and Washington to Cleveland. Please pray for safe travels for all of us. We will all fly out together then we will say farewell to the Willis family in Brussels. I will then continue to Washington with the Baskin family then say goodbye to them as they fly back home. I will then have a 4 hour layover alone at Washington (so if you see a post on FB that I want to talk, or you get a text you will know why) and then fly to Cleveland! I don't get home until around midnight Monday night but am still excited to see my family! With that I bid you all goodnight as I climb under my mosquito net. I will also leave you with descriptions of the Baskin kids! Baskin kids: Jack: A funny 8 year old who likes to make you laugh. He loves telling jokes, catching lizards, riding bikes around the complex and holding his sister Shiloh. Hudson: A sweet 7 year old who loves animals. he loves catching lizards, frogs, grasshoppers...basically any bug! Seattle: A cute 5 year old who loves anything that makes her smile! She loves reading stories, playing on the Ipad, having people do her hair and smiling! Juliet: A spunky little 3 year old who has no problem in making herself heard! She loves climbing things, sining Frozen songs and giving random hugs out! Locksley: A quiet little 1 year old who only talks when she feels a need to. She loves eating...anything, running, swinging and following her siblings around! Shiloh: An adorable little 2 month old who caught my heart the second I saw her! She loves to be held facing out so she can see what's going on. She also loves when I sing her to sleep! She also loves saying 'Agoo"!

Crazy Weekend Here I Come!

To start off today's post I thought I would update you on the mother and twins I've been asking prayers for. Your prayers are working!! The mother is starting to produce more milk, it's still not enough, but it's more than what she originally was porducing. Everytime we've gone in there she has also had one baby skin to skin with her and the other skin to skin with her mother, so this is definitely good news! To add onto the good news we found out that both of their temps are much higher today! I almost cried I was so happy! Today was pretty calm, all the families have left for Bujumbura except for the Baskin family and me. It was a nice day and I got to cook with Becky which was a treat! This weekend will be a crazy one, I will wake up tomorrow and get ready for the day then at 9:30 a driver will pick us all up for our 2 and 1/2 hour trip down the mountain. When we arrive we will stay at The Cookie Cottage and hopefully go out to dinner with the Bond family as planned. We will then stay the night at the cottage. Sunday morning we will wake up and meet the Fader and Willis families at a local International church. Then go to a hotel on the beach for some lunch and swimming! Unfortunately I didn't bring a swim suit, but I will still be very thankful for the sand and the sun! Sunday afternoon the Faders will leave us to travel back to Kibuye and we will spend time with the Willis family. Then we will all head to the airport to start our journey home! So as you can see my weekend is crazy busy! A truely fun way to spend our last few days here though. Please pray for safe travels for all of us and that the kids do not get carsick on the winding roads! I hope to post one last blog tomorrow night but if I'm not able to I will see you all soon! I will end today's blog with descriptions of the Fader and Willis kids! Hopefully I'll get the ages right! If I don't I apologize ahead of time and please do not be afraid to post something in the comments to correct me! Goodnight all! Fader Kids: Anna: A motherly little 8 year old who loves watching out for others. She has a caring heart and a loving personality. She likes reading, cooking, gardening, and playing with Eika! She's a sweet thing who loves Miss Nina! Abi: A smiley 6 year old who is missing a few teeth! We call her the toothless wonder! She loves to talk, have people read stories to her, give hugs, hold hands, and giggle! Willis Kids: Eika: A sweet 10 year old who I've found a great friend in. She has a very friendly personality and I've loved hanging out with her! She loves watching movies, doing hair, having fun with Anna, making bracelets and helping her mom cook! Henry: A spunky 8 year old who has almost as much sass as I do! He may be sassy, but he's also sweet and helped with the younger kids when I needed him to! He loves candy, riding bikes, playing frisbee, making bracelets, handing out the bracelets, watching his dad work and pulling teeth! Eva: A cute little 4 year old who knows how to make you laugh! She loves movies, juice, cookies and having your attention! Jude: A tough little 3 year old who gives the greatest hugs! The first time I met Jude he was a bit shy but he has since warmed up to me! He loves playing with Henry, riding a bike, his mommy, sitting in peoples laps and giving Miss Nina hugs and telling her that he loves her!

A Challenging Day

Most of you are FB friends with me, but if you are not I posted something today that I would like you all to know about. My post read:

Hello everyone! I need your help today! I have some good news and some bad news that both include a lot of prayer involved. The good news is that: The mother of the twins who hasn't been producing a lot of milk is now starting to pump. With some help from Becky and I she is learning to properly care for her babies (pump, skin to skin contact for warmth etc...) Also another set of twins was sent home last night! This is great news and we rejoice that they were well enough to be cared for at home! The bad news is that: They lost two babies at the hospital last night. If you read my blog you remember the baby that I helped diagnose with Dr. Alyssa, the one with thrush. That one unfortunately did not make it. There was also another baby in that same room who did not last through the night. I ask that you pray and rejoice for the babies sent home and the babies still striving, but that you also keep the other mothers in your prayers as they mourn the loss of their newborns. I also ask that you continue to pray for the mother of the twins who is still left in the room. There is no one there with her and she seems lonely. I also ask that you pray for strength for Becky and I. We are trying our best to help this mother, but some things are not registering because the culture is so different here. It's also hard to be in that situation and saddens us, but we continue to trust in the Lord and know that His will, will be done! Thanks all! Love from Burundi !

So as you read above today was a big challenge for me. My heart broke for each family and rejoiced with them as well. We are helping as much as we can with the twins. They don't have incubators here so they've designed their own version of it. It's kind of scary for me to see because I fear even more for the health of the babies. Let me explain. An African incubator (that is what I've named it in my head) is a cardboard box with 3 or 4 blankets on the bottom, then the baby, then 3 or 4 more blankets, then the top is closed and another blanket on top. Now you can see where the fear comes from, the baby could sufficate! Unfortunately, this seems to be a very popular method here, but sometimes it works very well or so it seems since some babies were sent home. It is ideal that the babies maintain a normal temperature and not get to cold, which can be very hard to do with preemies, even in the states. We talked to the nurses today to find out what their temps were and we were shocked and a bit scared. The normal temperature for a preemie should be about 36.7-36.8 C (98.06-98.24 F.) These babies were both different temperatures, one worse than the other. One was 34 C (93.2 F) and the other was 35 C (95 F.) So as you can see we could not stress more that the babies should share skin to skin contact time with their momma, even while she was sleeping. The boxes might help a little bit but without their own body heat it won't do much. This skin to skin contact will help warm the baby as well as hopefully trigger the mother's body to produce more milk. We're trying to relay this message to her and so far she has been great at listening to our advice. We were able to visit twice today and also deliver some hard-boiled eggs. We're trying everything we can but the best thing we can do for her is pray and ask God to send this family some grace and hope. With that being said I leave you with lyrics to a song I sang last year with my touring choir! Goodnight all!

"Hope Is the Thing with Feathers" by Emily Dickinson written in the style of the song by Susan LaBarr Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul, And sings the tune without the words, And never stops at all. Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul, And sings the tune without the words, And never stops at all. And sweetest in the gale is heard; And sore must be the storm, That could abash the little bird That kept so many warm. I've heard it in the chillest land, And on the strangest sea. Yet never in extremity it asked a crumb of me. Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul. Hope never stops at all. Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul, And sings the tune without the words, And never stops, and never stops, And never stops at all.

Last day of VBS and some goodbyes

Todays post will be short but full of lessons learned! Today was our last day of VBS. We talked about Superheroes and contimplated if Jesus was a superhero! We all decided that He is the greatest superhero of them all! His greatest superhero act is a tie between dieing for our sins and rising from the grave! Everyone seemed to love this lesson, especially the boys, and were saddened when they learned today was going to be our last day. There spirits perked up a bit though when I handed four Lifesaver candies to each kid. They were all sent back to their moms with a lot of sugar and crafts we did throughout our VBS journey together. It was a bitter sweet ending but I enjoyed every time that I spent with them! Today was the last day for me to see the Mclaughlin and Cropsey kids as well as Alyssa since they will all leave for Bujumbura tomorrow in order to catch a flight to Greece on Friday. It was a little sad, I've really connected with these kids. I've had the privelege to get to know each kid, what makes them happy, what makes them tick, what makes them sad, what they love or don't love. I've learned things about each kid and so tonight after this short paragraph I will start with my descriptions of each kid from the Mclaughlin and Cropsey families. Later on this week I will do the other kids. My favorite part of the whole day was probably that my little friend from the village once again came to the fence to say hello! The same little girl who walked beside me up to Kibuye rock, who shouted my name one Sunday afternoon at the park and who shouted hello from the other side of the fence yesterday once again came calling. As I walked back to "my house" I heard from the fence "Nina! Nina! Amahoro!" It warmed my heart! What a faithful little friend I've found in this girl, I only wish we could talk more! I so badly want to thank her for being such a great friend no matter how different I may seem to her. That dear friends is true friendship and probably one of the things Jesus was insinutating when He said we must have childlike faith. So that sums up my day here, this weekend will be very eventful, but we'll go into that another time! I will end with a goodnight and a description of each of the Mclaughlin and Cropsey kids! Mclaughlin kids: Maggie: A sweet little 4 year old who has a musical talent just like her parents. She loves to sing and dance and will wow you with her love of music! She is very friendly and loves to give me hugs. She likes candy,reading stories, playing on the computer, watching The Incredibles (Mr. Incredible is her favorite) doing crafts and spending time with her family. Ben: A cute little 3 year old who has an active side. He loves to ride the tricycle around the complex, run around with the girls, play football with me and play around with the other boys. He loves books just like his sister and looks up to her more than people think. Toby: An adorable little 1 year old who loves to cuddle! Every time I came near him he lifted his hands towards me so I would hold him. He loves playing the piano, listening to people sing, wearing my necklace, playing with peoples hair and grabbing at their jewelry. Cropsey kids: Elise: A beautiful little 7 year old who is the sweetest little thing! She can brighten your day no matter what mood you're in with just one smile! She loves barbies, playing with her friends, the movie Frozen, sitting with me, giving hugs and smiling! Micah: A tough little 5 year old who loves anything boyish. He loves star wars, playing rough, playing with dragons, messing with his sister and little brother, and telling stories during VBS! He may be a tough cookie but he has a sweet side that comes out a lot and makes you smile! Sam: A wild little 2 year old who is definitely not afraid of anything. He loves to run around, chase chickens, wander around outside the fence, play football, play with the boys, beat up Micah and talk Kirundi. He is definitely a wild child with a sweet side though. I loved watching him and found it humorous when he started teaching me Kirundi!