Written on July 19th, 2016.
Livingstone, Zambia
Living with 25 other people is hard. Flat out. We have 22 mazungu’s and 4 hosts. That is 26 different kinds of personalities, backgrounds, passions, quirks, pet peeves, sleeping habits, and everything in between. Let me tell you...it isn’t easy.
In fact today, community is down right hard. We ran out of dinner last night, our home is completely filled with dirt (from us) after it’s been cleaned already, there is clothes thrown all around our bedroom and we have underwear going missing. I’ve not had toilet paper in the bathroom TWICE this week, and sometimes team times are like herding cats on a conveyer belt with a little bit of holy spirit thrown in. Also, PLEASE don’t get me started on the constant NOISE and frequent dance parties. (hey it's been a bad day, okay?) Community is hard.
(BIG space in journal...I was interrupted and came back to this entry.)
Well, jokes on me again...Thank you Jesus for pulling me away in my moment of frustration. Thank you for showing me the side of community you intend for us here in Zambia and in the church.
There were girls cheerfully serving the team by doing laundry, there was another group who had already started cutting vegetables for dinner together. I walked into the living room and there was a group laughing and enjoying stories of each other’s lives. I walked out onto the front porch and there were three people praying together. I looked out into the front of the house and there were a few teammates playing with neighbor kids. I walked around to the side of the house and a few more were gathered around the guitar. It was truly beautiful.
Community is hard, but it is necessary and beautiful. Contrary to my feelings a lot of the time, people can love well. God you make love possible and that is amazing. We are wretched, selfish, and broken people, but with your grace you command us to love one another and we can do it. We must love one another to demonstrate your love to the world.
So, with all that being said, thank you for the noise and the dance parties. Thank you for the dirty bedrooms, missing clothes, and rowdy team times. Thank you for the lack of toilet paper and running out of food. Most of all, thank you for these 21 mazungu hooligans and 4 awesome Africans.
Just don’t let them know that….
:)
Above all else, put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. Colossians 3:14
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