Equipped by God alone

June 20.

 Hebrews 13:20-21 Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant equip you with everything good that you may do his will, working in us that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.

Did you catch that? May the God of peace equip you with everything good that you may do HIS will through Jesus Christ. That’s been my prayer and thanks this week. There are times that I felt very equipped and others when I haven’t. But we serve a faithful God who helped me through when I didn’t know.

I’ll back up a little. Saturdays are our day off from the Havens. As much as we love these children, it’s good to refuel and rest. We (the girls and 4 other interns from ACU- Ashley, Brittany, Chris and Weston) walked into town, had lunch and went to the market. The walk was about 4.5 miles each way which provided a great opportunity to talk and know everyone a little better! The market was not very busy so 8 Americans walking together definitely stood out. We bought Zambia soccer (football) jerseys and chitangies. Zambia women wear this long piece of fabric as a skirt, to carry their babies, to cover their head/hair. Very useful. Once we made it back to Namwianga, we spent the rest of the day watching Zambia play Sudan in soccer, reading, showering and journaling.

Going to church on Sunday was so special. As previously mentioned, Zambians sing without holding back. So a whole auditorium with mostly secondary and college students was just magnificent. We had lunch at the Meritt’s house- what a treat! Mrs. Kathy is such a wonderful cook and even made biscuits. We were able to get a Sunday afternoon nap before evening service.

Monday began our full days at the Havens. We shadowed Meagan to learn part of her routine- it includes physical therapy and language class- before we split into our specific jobs on Tuesday. We will take a week at each haven and the fourth person is the floater. For the first week, I’ve been the floater. My job is to spend time with our youngest and littlest babies, take Busiku and Joel to therapy (or just stretch them if it’s not a therapy day) and help at group feeding times. Rotating between the houses still proved a challenge trying to figure out the different routines of each Haven. While many of the Aunties speak English, they speak to each other and the babies mostly in Tonga. I can barely greet them in Tonga. It’s been so long since I’ve gone to another country and had no idea what people were saying. This challenge is one of the many places the verse from Hebrews has been my prayer. I know how to hold and feed a baby. But I do not know how to speak Tonga. I didn’t know how to fold a nappy, until this week. I didn’t know all the Aunties, until I made a picture directory. Still, God gave people patience to sit and teach me this week when I didn’t know. We laughed many times, but every time I was thankful to be humbled and be learning. I’m also thankful that the writer of Hebrews had that prayer tucked inside his letter.

I’ll share more stories from physical therapy and language class over the next couple days. These children are perfect. Thank you for being patient with me as I figure out how to put these packed days into words! Love you Friends!