Servant

If anyone knows me at all, they probably know that I can probably relate a conversation topic to a song- whether I learned it when I was 3, or if it was on Y100 yesterday. This very rarely comes in handy except to annoy people who want to just have a conversation without me breaking into a diddy.

I've been thinking about what I will do in the future a lot lately. I have committed to a second year here at ABC, but am looking for what I will do after that. Perhaps still in Africa. Teaching, I've realized, is not very self gratifying. There is always something I could have done better, and always something I still need to do. I have thought about working with street kids. I know they need help, but am still not quite sure how. I’ve thought about creating my own ministries to start something new.
So, I was listening to my Kids Music playlist on Itunes the other day to find a song to teach my students, and a Doughnut Man song came on. Gotta love good ol' Doughnut Man:-) His song "I Wanna Be Great" came on and it struck me.

I wanna be great,
I wanna be super, absolutely wonderfully great!
James and John were hangin’ around, fightin’ over who was the best, but Jesus said you want a crown on your head? Well this will be the test, listen carefully: ‘if you want to be made great by the Lord well then you've got to be the servant of all!’

This is what I've been missing. I've been trying to think of what I can start or do that is new and that they don't have in Africa that is needed. Jesus says, just be a servant. Sometimes those aren't the jobs that are in the spotlight or make you feel good, but they have to do with your love. Tim Keller said:

“It ain’t ministry unless it is being dictated to you by someone else.”

When it comes to my future, I can do all I want to make a "difference" in Africa, but it’s not right if we’re doing it on our own terms. Only when you do it as a servant, is it pleasing to God. I cannot be a disciple of God if I don't execute what God wants me to do.
This song has been stuck in my head all day long so I finally decided to write it on my blog.

The greatest among you will be your servant, For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted. Matthew 23:11-12

Victoria Falls

I DID IT! That’s right, I laughed at the face of danger, I defied gravity, I purposefully did one of the dumbest things I have ever dared to do, I BUNGI JUMPED 111 meters (364 feet) off of Victoria Falls in Zambia! The video wont work so here are some pictures. I'll work on getting the video up.

5,4,3,2,1, BUNGI! (push)

Notice my dirty little foot slipping through

I wouldn't have been able to do it without Vicki

Was it fun? Umm… No. Will I recommend it to a friend? Ummm… NO. Will I do it again? Ummm NO! But I’m so happy I got it out of my system. The girl before me tore her ACL and couldn't walk off by herself. My head felt like it was going to burst open any second and I knew it might when my arm started to go numb. You can see in some close up pictures that my left foot was beginning to slip through the rope. I have the bruise to prove it!
I also was able to stay with my beloved friend from college who lives in Lusaka, Zambia. What a blessing to meet up with that wonderful girl!
I got there by bus. 12 hours of bumpy, stinky, bus travel. Don’t get me wrong, it was worth it!

This was the "bathroom" that costs 1,000 Zambian Kwacha to use.

After arriving in Lusaka and eating at SUBWAY (one of the highlights of the trip), we took a 7 hour bus trip to the falls in Livingstone. It is the rainy season so it was impossible to see the falls anywhere but this one point from the side.

Before we were soaked

The rest was like walking through the waterfall, even though it was only mist creating the monsoon.

After we walked beside the falls

The next day we drove about an hour to Botswana to go on a river/land safari. We saw SO many elephants and giraffe. It was awesome!

I had the Toys R Us song stuck in my head after I saw these guys

There had to have been at least 50 elephants

The next day we went back to Lusaka and saw a movie and saw what other types of ministries in Africa can look like. We returned back on another 12 hour bus trip making that 41 hours in all on a stanky bus. I don't miss it.

Now as I prepare to finish up my year with 9 weeks left of school, I can rejoice! He has made me glad!

“The heavens declare you are God and the mountains rejoice!
The Oceans cry Hallelujah as we worship you Lord!”

Jesus is in Heaven!

I have so much to blog because I haven’t in so long!
The staff at ABC wanted to make Easter week a memorable one for the students. Easter is why we do what we do. It is why we sing songs in chapel, it is why we learn scripture, it is why we love Jesus. We love him because he first loved us. Each day of the last week before Easter break was made special by an ABC college student teaching our Bible lesson. This was followed by a craft. I am not patient enough to do a fun craft everyday of the week so this was a special treat. The teachers thought it would be fun to get balloons and helium for the last day before Easter break. The plan was to let them go up to heaven to remind us that Jesus not only died for us, but he also rose again and ascended into heaven. As the day approached, we realized it would be much harder to get helium then we thought. We sent out a flyer to all of the parents asking if they had any idea where we could find it. Thank goodness, a parent knew where to find some helium. As we handed out the balloons to the anxious children, I realized from their amazed faces that this treat was more special then I thought. Only 2 children from my class had ever seen a balloon float before. Sure they’ve seen balloons before, but none that they had to hold on too to keep it from flying away. I was struck by their kindness when a preschooler didn’t have a balloon and most of my students volunteered to share theirs. They were told to keep quiet because the big kids were having their chapel not too far away, but they couldn’t contain their enthusiasm for very long. They watched the balloons ascend into the clouds, and, up to God just like Jesus did.

During Easter week I had my students write about why it is important that Jesus rose from the dead. They all had answers that said it is important because it saves me from my sins. But these two were my favorite:

Why is important that Jesus rose? It is important because he will
save us and he can't save us wen he is dead thats why. ~Johanna

It is important because he wanted to save our sins and he also wanted to save the bag guys.~ Alicia

Alicia failed to remember our discussion that sin makes us all bad guys, but I love the fact that she understands that Christ came for the ungodly. Something we have talked about alot.

Let them know that you, whose name is the Lord- that you alone are the most high over all the earth. Psalm 83:18