Pushing back

Sunday seemed like a crazy day realizing how much this world needs Jesus. In the afternoon, we had a football game where our team that joined the town league back in April played against another team from the village. It was a much anticipated game because of having two local teams (who share the same home field) go at it with players who all know each other.

The game ended with us losing 2-0 and tempers flaring... not so much from the players but the coaches. There were so many drunk villagers wandering around the grounds making all kinds of noise and grown adults acting like rebel adolescents. When the game was finished men were all out pushing and fighting each other including our own coaches. At one point, I saw one of our house mothers doing her best to break up a women's brawl. It was disheartening.

I walked home from the game with kids from the children's home. A little girl named Maggie held my hand the whole way. She is 7 years old and is in 1st grade. As we were talking, I asked her about school and about her teacher. I asked if she liked him and she said no. I was kind of surprised but when I asked why she said that she doesn't like him because he beats. Now beating can carry a wide range of definitions from ear pulling to beating with sticks but regardless, a sweet 1st grader should never have to be fearful of her teacher. I think of the kids in the community where I grew up and elementary ages are ones where children absolutely love going to school and can't wait to have the teacher's attention and affection.

It's things like this that that seem discouraging and make our task seem impossible. But then again, that is why we are here and these are the places that Jesus would go. Just to push back against the devil a little bit and claim another square inch for Jesus' kingdom... that is what it's all about.

My Littles

I spend about 2 hours every morning walking from hut to hut in Singanga village trying to find my little ones that are learning to read. I absolutely love this part of the day. There's something different about meeting my students where they're at rather than counting on them to come find me every day.

After greeting parents, grandparents, aunties, uncles and whoever else might be around I find a place to sit outside with my kiddos to do a reading lesson. Sometimes it's extremely distracting to be sitting outside when grandmas might try and do the reading for the child or a mom starts yelling over us to her neighbor walking down the road. But there is something I find so beautiful about sitting with them at their home. I learn about their families this way. I see the dynamics of how parents interact, which neighbor kids are always hanging around, which kids are always home alone, and which granny wants to learn to read more than her grandchild.

Even though I can't always communicate well with my students they still understand praise. I love seeing their faces light up when they are able to read a sentence or small paragraph. Watching my students make progress is one of the most rewarding things. Especially after we just got their term 1 reports back and the majority are extremely disappointing. I know that teaching them to read will not disappoint. And whether or not it shows up on their term report, I've been watching them grow and develop into little readers and it's exciting!

Our Michigan church is partnering with us to build a reading room. We have been collecting books stateside and they will be shipped over here sometime later this year. My students are catching a glimpse of what it means to get lost in a book. They love it! And I can't wait until the reading room is up and running. I can't wait to spend hours sitting and reading books.

If you think of it, pray for these small ones. Pray that they would learn to read and that this would empower them. My prayer is that they would not only be growing as readers, but that they would be growing deeper in their relationship with Christ.

I Need a Wife

Last week I was walking home from tutoring my kids in the village, minding my own business, just thinking about how things went when all of a sudden someone was talking to me.

I had met this man the day prior and found out he was the headman of one of the local villages. He was very chatty, not to mention, very drunk. Needless to say, the next morning around 10AM he was still drunk.

Here's how the conversation went...

Headman... "Good morning madam. How are you?"

Me... "I'm fine, how are you?"

Headman... "I'm fine. But I'm thinking you could help me."

--> This is when my mind started racing thinking what in the world is he going to ask.

Headman... "I'm thinking you could bring me one of your white friends from America to be my wife."

Me... "No sir, I can't do that."

Headman... "Why? Because I'm black?"

Me... "No sir, not because you're black, but because I'm not about to marry off any of my friends to someone who is always drunk."

Headman... "Oh madam, I can change."

Me... "No sir. I can't do that. I need to go now, but have a good day."

---End of conversation.

Sometimes I walk away from things that happen thinking to myself..."did that really just happen?" And sometimes it just amazes me.
I thought I'd share it here to give you a laugh.