On my mind today

I'm home and it's Saturday morning.  I woke up - no surprises here - at 4 AM.  Jet lag takes a couple of days to dissipate.   So this is where I'll end my travelogue.  Already I'm back to regular pastor life.  I'd been in the house about 20 minutes when I got a call that one of our deacons had lost his father-in-law.  I left for the hospital immediately.  I knew my associate pastor could handle it, but that's not a job I wanted to give away.  Later today (I hope), I'll post some pictures from our adventure.  Thanks for reading this nonsense and for walking with me along this path.  The good news is our adventures don't end just because we're home.  My prayer for this moment in time is that I'll recognize the power of THIS moment as I did while I was traveling. 

It’s sunrise now and I’m sitting on the tarmac at Dublin International, awaiting them to complete refueling and cabin crew swaps.   It was a good flight up from Addis.   The ride was smooth and I slept about 5 hours – that’s pretty good for sleeping on a plane!   But we still have a long day ahead.   According to the map, we’re still some 3400 miles from DC.   It’s later now – at home, it’s 2:35 AM.   In 13 hours – I hope – I’ll be home.   My bed.   Fresh clothes.   My couch.   My TV.   Plenty of hot water and wifi.   I’m excited but this is a strange feeling – almost like culture shock coming home.   I’ve gotten so used to carefully managing my data usage (I was only allotted a certain amount for the trip) that I was an absolute miser with it.   Thus, I didn’t use my phone except for my Bible app and my journal.   When I could get Wifi, I called Julie and Josh.   I know – when I get ho...

We left early – 6:45 AM – to make our way to Karuga.   It means “he jumps.”   It used to be close to Thompson Falls.   The falls are still there but they’ve been renamed with a Swahili name.   The event was supposed to begin at 11.   It took us till 11:15 to get there.   We stopped only once – a quick potty stop.   The crazy thing is it’s only about 150 miles.   It Texas, we’d cover than in just over two hours.   But they have no interstate system and they have no means to build one now.   There are speed HUMPS not bumps, in every community to slow traffic.   Everytime traffic slows, here come the hawkers.   Water, fruit, chipatie (Kenyan tortillas), cookies, potato chips, SHOES – I’ve seen it all being hawked by the roadside with people running up to your window with them.   Esp if they see a white face.   I’ve never been ashamed of being white – it’s how God made me after all – but it’s no asset ...

Forgive the day error for the several days on my dating - I lost a day somewhere last week and didn't have to find it till today!   It’s been a long, rich and fruitful day!   After a wonderful and strong devotional led by Caleb Anderson and his dad Carl at 6:45 AM, Lazaro, Baraka and myself left for the college.   It was about an hour and half ride to get there.   On the way out, we saw a few warthogs and a few baboons.   Still a shocking site to my eyes.   We were supposed to start at a given time – 9 I think – and it was clear we weren’t going to make it on time.   Baraka asked me what time class was supposed to begin.   I told him, “When I get there!”   We all had a good laugh and went on. The class, as it had been, was exceptional.   Don't mind the looks on their faces in the picture - they were happy to be there and we had a lot of fun working together.   They were eager students and had ques...