Everybody's Working for the Weekend
Trip Start
May 29, 2007
1
19
41
Trip End
Jul 18, 2007
Blantyre,
Malawi
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
I am not lying down and I am not sitting up. I'm somewhere in-between. My body vibrates. I rise and fall. I am riding a horse. A steady gallop takes me forward at a medium pace. At sporadic intervals I lift off the saddle when my horse leaps to conquer equestrian obstacles.
All of the sudden lightening strikes. The wind is fiercely blowing. I can hear the rain pelting the main deck as it falls full-force from the sky. The boat rocks with unbridled movement. I suddenly fly to the right. Physical nature tells me the boat is trying to oppose the overwhelming power of the sea. The boat regains its balance.
There is a moment spent in normalcy. We climb large waves and plunge downward. Up and down we go. The ocean roars with might as another massive wave collides with the port side of our boat. Again the vessel and its contents jolt to the right. The boat won't overcome this one.
My inner balance vanishes as I am thrown furiously to the right. We have capsized. Water rushes in from the deck above and instantly I am submerged. Darkness falls.
Suddenly the darkness disappears and whiteness blinds me. It feels warm and although my eyes are closed I can sense the brightness. Reluctantly, my eyes heed my brain and slowly open. I am looking directly into the sun.
My body is oddly oriented in a sitting/lying position and I am in the LifeNets Ambulance riding to church. The horse and boat come to mind. The waves and jumps I felt were the bumps of the road. Why were the waves only striking the left side of the ship, I thought?
While I came to I realized the reason. It was my arrangement in the ambulance. Every time Dr. C would slam on the brakes I was flying to the right towards the front of the vehicle.
I mixed the subconscious with reality through a dream. I guess anti-malarial meds will do that.
Church was excellent today. The brethren are wonderful. Each person wears a beautiful smile. These members travel from hours away to come to church. It has been a pleasure talking every person.
Most people are tickled when I greet them in Chichewa. Chichewa is the primary language spoken in Malawi. They are appreciative and honored that I have learned part of their language.
The Chilopora's and one other family are the only two parties that drive to church. The rest of the members either come by bus or on foot. That's commitment. The men of the church are dressed nicely in shirts and ties and the women wear stunning bright-colored dresses.
We saw a sermon video today. The speaker was a minister named Mr. Dave Johnson. The title of the sermon was something to the effect of, "What Would You Do If You Had the Power of God for a Day?"
I know many people spotlight the suffering in the world. I mean, what kind of just God would allow billions of people undergo such pain?
Most everyone has asked this question before. It's a great question to ask. This was the main point of the sermon. It focused on having faith in God.
Mr. Johnson posed the question, "Who would you help if you had the power of God?" He danced around the subject a bit then declared his specific purpose statement, as they call it in the industry.
Again he asked, "What would you do if you had the power of God?" Then, he answered his own question. "The answer is nothing."
How do you feel about that?
He justified his statement with a rather longwinded answer which I'll take the liberty of abridging. If you believe in God and the Bible than you know that God is perfect. If God is perfect than everything he does or chooses to not do is also perfect. The minister stated there must be specific reasons why God allows people to suffer. I find it difficult to grasp this concept.
I have no idea why God does what he does and allows things to happen, but that's where conviction comes in. To have faith in everything God does and recognize that it's perfect.
This sermon was awesome! It hit hard and inspired much thought. It wasn't a bible study like many sermons are. Many of us discussed it after services.
An hour of conversation followed church and then we began our trip. LifeNets visits were on the agenda. We would tour 5 separate places where LifeNets' funding has been directly allocated. We stopped at 3 different sewing shops, a corn flour processing mill, and a farm.
The farm we visited was picturesque. It was at the base of a mountain. This man labors everyday in an area more scenic than some of us will ever visit. I think between the three of us (Aaron, Jenn, and I) we must have taken 50 pictures.
LifeNets benefactors are so grateful for the assistance received. Without aid, many of these people would be suffering immensely. LifeNets grants funding to people to establish businesses so they may become self-reliant. Money is donated to buy necessary business materials like sewing machines, farm machinery, or grain processing equipment. The patrons are extremely appreciative.
Something hilarious came up in conversation today. We were talking about fear factor 'twin edition.' I have no idea how this came up in conversation nor why, but Jenn mentioned she had a twin. Jenn also mentioned that she knew a pair of twins that won the Fear Factor show. Aaron and I both were intrigued and inquired further.
Apparently, each year in Twinsburg, Ohio there is the National Twin Festival. Twinsburg is about 20 minutes from my hometown of Stow and I was interested to learn more. Even though I have never heard of this festival, according to Jenn people come for all over America and even travel from international locations.
You may be asking yourself, "What goes on at a twin festival," and I asked the very same question. They have twin look-alike competitions and least look-alike challenges. They even have a part of the festival which is designated for 'twinless twins' who have lost a twin in the past. Fraternal twins can also go, but Aaron and I figured they were like the red-headed stepchildren of the twin world.
With my newfound knowledge of the twin festival I may have to attend. I think it would be highly entertaining to see what goes on firsthand.
Well, I am going to go climb a mountain. The journey is still unfolding. More to come.
