Skip to main content

Sunday on the base | The faces of Zimpeto.


Stepping into the large church hall which doubles as a dining room (blue benches for eating, cream benches for church), I was met by the sight of hundreds of children and some adults filling the many benches. All were dressed in their best as church is the main even of the week. I sat down next to some ladies on a bench. Friendly smiles and some hugs and kisses greeted me and it was clear to see that this was a day of joy that they had been looking forward to. Behind me a small lady with a huge smile and a worn face sat down with three little children. They're clothes were well-worn but made so very beautiful by the beautiful little persons wearing them.

As it neared the time of the church starting more and more people filed in. Children and staff from the base but also many many from the community nearby. I sat next to some teenage boys who look 11 but are 14-15 year old. Very sweet but also smart and they were constantly trying to fiddle with my pen and Bible and it brought back memories of taking streetboys to church in Brazil, where I sometimes found squiggles in my Bible at the end of a service. The church service was good and quite long, but good.

At the end of the service a young girl who looked maybe 14 started talking to me. She had been sitting behind me with her little 4 month old baby during the service and we had a nice little chat. I complemented her on her cute baby and she started talking about getting her baby baptised because she now had a job and a place to live. And then went on to say "and I have chosen you to be her god mother". It was one of those moments I was not prepared for and as a much as I would love to pour into every child and person I have met here, I knew that what she was asking probably meant a lot more then committing to pray for her little daughter. So as clearly as I could I told her I was only here for a short time and that unfortunately I couldn't be her daughter's god mother. She was fine with it and said she'd come back next Sunday and find someone. But it made me wonder what her life is like and if I was something that represented future for her little girl.

The rest of the day went by and everywhere I'd meet different people and see different faces; from those of other visitors and missionaries, to the smiling and joyful cooks in the kitchen and children forever wanting attention.

It was a good day.

Popular posts from this blog

Packing...again.

I just folded the last load of laundry and I’m almost packed. Off to the airport at 5am tomorrow morning, heading off to Amsterdam. I’m excited, a bit nervous, and wondering what it’ll be like. It’s been a good week at home with lots of quality time with family, especially the little nieces and nephew. I’m glad I’ll see them in April again. Well, not much to write and packing to be done and a bit of sleep would probably be a good idea too. Next time I write it’ll be from Amsterdam....
Read more

Single-tasking September: The art of single-tasking.

To change habits and ways of life, the motivation for change has to be strong, and the benefits outweigh the effort it takes to make the change.  For so long it’s seemed like the ability to multitask has been regarded as a great skill, but is it really a good thing? Recovering from burn-out, one of the effects I noticed was that it was harder to concentrate, and especially tricky trying to focus on many things at once. I’d try to multitask, only to realise that all tasks suffered from lack of capacity to complete any one of them. The challenge is that the habit of always doing many things at once goes deep, and when I tried to focus on just one thing, I found that it was actually really difficult.  As I did a little google search on the matter, I found it seems like multitasking isn’t as healthy as once thought, and that it doesn’t help productivity. Some even referred to it as “switch tasking”, in the sense that the brain isn’t doing many things at once, but shifting rapidly...
Read more

Walking through December: overcoming the challenge of language.

I just got done leading a Bible study in Spanish without a translation back-up, and it went really well. I am amazed at what we are actually able to do when we have no other option. It wasn’t a flawless flow of communication (that would have been a miracle), but together we figured out what I wanted to say. And I think it was good. I was blessed and they seemed blessed as well. The girls just left and I am sat here in my living room with the candles lit. It’s windy and rainy outside, and I am smiling. Happy. Not because I overcame the language challenge, but happy because of yet another beautiful time of bringing more of Jesus to the girls in our Bible study. I am thankful for the privilege of knowing them and standing with them in their journeys of knowing Jesus. And thankful that even when language is shaky, love is stronger and is communicated beyond mere words.
Read more