worship

The soft and steady shuffle begins. Knees bend and feet tap; bodies rock, right to left; arms and hands follow along setting the mood for what will follow. My heart is quiet in anticipation. A clear and pointed solitary voice carries through the air, causing my heart to quicken. She begins the song. The rest are signaled by some silent clue to join in -- their voices in perfect harmony, filling the space with the power of their song. The sound bounces from wall to wall and penetrates straight to the center. Bumps break out across my flesh and tears prick my eyes. This is African worship.

Now it’s my turn to join. My feet begin to keep time involuntarily. My hands follow along. Soon I am mimicking the movement of the choir, allowing my whole body to be involved in this experience of worship. My voice is often the last part of me to join. Somehow, moving as one with the friends and strangers around me seems more important than the words of the song. As the words become familiar I lift my voice as well. This is worship. African worship. Kingdom worship.

I almost forgot!

After about 4 months of waiting for the machine to be fixed I have reached the end of the driving license saga. Just in time, really. Might as well be legal for the last two months! Here's the proof- wow, that's exciting! :-D

And we're off!

You know you live in Malawi when....you are eating at a restaurant and a little baby roach scurries across the table and you casually brush it aside and contine eating. Such is life.

Spring break has come to a close. I have mixed emotions about that. I am excited to see my kids and teach the "continents" unit. I am anxious because I know how much needs to be accomplished between now and the end of the year. I am mournful, as I know that this is the beginning of the end. It's all downhill from here, as the saying goes. I have coveted opportunities to hang out with my Malawi family in the past week. From tea with Vicki, cuddles with Sarah Rose, "shopping" with LeAnne, cookout with the McDonalds, to watching and appreciating the sunset every night, I am learning to live in the moment and appreciate it for what it is. How great is the love that the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called His children? That he not only gives us the things that we need, but things that we don't need to bring us joy.

I have some specific ways that you can pray for me in the coming weeks. Here they come:

• That I would be profoundly effective, to the glory of God, in my classroom. This is it, the last weeks to make an impact on my kids. Not to mention making sure they are ready for second grade. Pray that I would speak love to them with my words and my actions.
• That my relationships in Malawi would be 1. honoring to God, 2. strengthened
• I need a job when I get home. It is an exercise of faith to not be worried about it, with the state of the economy and the shaky school budgets. Pray for opportunities to present themselves, as well as wisdom and discernment about where to look and apply.
  

Thank you for your prayers! I'll leave you with my favorite (do you ever get tired of these?)- a sunset picture!

Hakuna Matata

Here is the link for the rest of my Zanzibar pictures, if you're interested in looking at them!

Zanzibar Pictures

Now the rest of them. And I'm done, I promise. :-)

More Zanzibar Pictures!

Tropical Paradise

Hey everyone. I just got back from Zanzibar. That's an island off of the coast of Tanzania. The northern tip (where we stayed for the first part of our trip) is 5 degrees south of the equator. That means that it was HOT and humid. But so beautiful. Here are some highlights:

1. The Ocean. Just in general. I have never seen anything like it. Nor have I ever swam in salt water that warm.
2. Snorkeling. I saw fish with more colors that I've ever seen. I also got a nasty sunburn. Yes, I was wearing sunscreen. The sun is just too strong. It was worth it though.
3. Hanging out talking and enjoying the sky and the sea with friends.
4. Shrimp- heads and all.

The dock from prison island:

School girls enjoying lunch break on the beach.

Coke and the ocean. Ahh.

it's been a long time...

Sorry for all of you who routinely blogstalk me...I mean stay updated on my life via my blog. In the craziness of not having a computer, and then the business of the last few weeks of life, my blog has been pushed to the way back burner.

My visitors have come and gone in a whirlwind of a week. They were so kind to carry tons of stuff over for me and my fellow missionaries. Including my new computer which actually works. I'm so thankful! We made it to just about everything that is a must see in Malawi and even saw some monkeys while we were at it. It was really refreshing to see Malawi through their fresh eyes, rather than my "been there, done that eyes."

Tomorrow is our last day of school before Easter Holiday. A much needed, much deserved holiday, I would say. My kids are so done with school and with each other, and with me. And if we're being honest- so am I. I'm afraid I've turned into a broken record sometimes. I even get annoyed with myself, and I know they must be feeling it too. Like I said, a holiday is needed.

I am leaving on Saturday to go to Zanzibar with a couple friends. That is an island off the coast of Tanzania (the country that borders Malawi to the North). I'm really excited to rest and relax in on the tropical beaches. We'll be gone for a week, and then I have a week to catch up in my classroom. I'll post pictures when I get back!

Until then- Happy Easter!