Tuesday April 26, 2011

After packing the the cars, we drove the bumpy, deeply rutted roads to the Village of Sitchalobe, in the African bush country. Bev's car kept stalling and we got stuck in ruts but we arrived safely. We were greeted by a group of children lying on the hot sand/dirt, with big smiles and sparkling eyes. Our campsite is adjacent to the village and next to the one room mud hut school. Our "bathroom" is a hole in the ground inside of a thatched hut. We used a chitange for the door. Aiming was difficult as the hole was not more that 8 inches square. The sand is reddish orange and very hot. It actually softened my toenail polish and sand then got imbedded in it. Flies are everywhere and the little ones get into our eyes. Very annoying! PB and J sandwiches for lunch and apples for dessert. I feel like a Queen. I have a tent to myself with a mattress.
Pastor Joseph and Paul are with us to act as interpretors and for our safety. Time to rest now as we have a 6 PM conference with the villagers. I miss talking to Fran more than anything. My back and leg are great !! I pray as much as I can for total healing. Dinner was rice and boiled chicken with potatoes and gravy. It is amazing how fast it gets dark here. By 6:15 it is pitch black. but the stars are amazing.
There was a funeral today so the women did not attend as planned but about 55 children came ! So, TIA and we changed gears as we have done so often on our trip.
The kids have beautiful voices and they love to sing. Their smiles are huge and their eyes are so big. It was lightening in the distance and when the rain came, we all moved into the school house. Benita told the story of Moses and Lori told them the story of David and Goliath. They are so attentive. We then prayed and asked iof anyone wanted us to pray especially for them. Some said yes, while others just smiled. There were two girls sitting next to me who kept giggling when they looked at me. The one closest to me touched my arm and then we were holding hands. I asked her what her name was and she replied "Mabel". I told her my middle name was Mae, named after my Aunt Maebel". She looked at me and said "Jan Mabel"? I said yes and we both laughed. I asked her if I could pray for her and she said yes. I place my hands on the heads of both the girls and I prayed for them. Then another girl came to me with her hand on her stomach. I asked her if it hurt and she nodded yes so I prayed her healing. Mariel brought another girl to me who said her head hurt. I layed hands on her aw well. Then Mabel brought her sister over to me for prayer. I told them we would be her again tomorrow to meet with the Moms. She said she had school but would come after school. This was all done in the dark with only one flashlight on. After the kids left, I started crying. I was so moved by what had just happened. Me, praying and laying on hands like I did ! That was a milestone for me. It was amazing how almost all had the same prayer request - headaches, nightmares, and stomach aches.
It was bedtime and we were exhausted. I put on my IPOD and fell asleep. At 4 AM the roosters decided it was daylight and started crowing. Every rooster in the area joined in! GO BACK TO SLEEP ROOSTERS ! No such luck, but I did rest to my music.