Been A While (sing along if you know the tune!)

Yeah, so I don’t think this will be the last time that I have to apologize for not updating in a long time.  So let me go ahead and ask for your forgiveness in advance.  Thanks.

In the past two weeks or so, things here in Jeffrey’s have been pretty crazy.  From the moment that our team stepped off the plane, the Lord has been bombarding them with challenges and experiences that have reminded them that all that they used to know and what they’re familiar with, including what they might have thought about God Himself, really don’t apply anymore.  For all of us, this is the first time living in a community like this, i.e., 15 people under one roof.  I must admit, living in such close proximity as a newlywed wouldn’t be something that I recommend, but then again, I think Christina and I have thrown the book “What Not to Do in Your First Year of Marriage” out the window. 

I think the thing that I miss the most is from the States – and I’m sorry to have to say this, but it’s true – is Starbucks.  That sounds very American, I know, but I haven’t yet found a place here where I can go in, order anything even resembling a grande, non-fat, light ice, caramel latte, pay for it right then, and then sit down and chill out.  Here, the places don’t open until 7:30am and ritually close about twelve hours later, if not earlier, and they all require you to sit down and be waited on.  I never realized how much I enjoyed the “coffee house” setting in America.  It’s different here.  I’m still able to build relationships here in my favorite coffee shop, and probably moreso, but it just isn’t the same.

Nonetheless, the Lord is teaching me (and us) some amazing things about Himself.  I love getting back into the discipleship arena, which is a key component of the life of an FYM.  And while I’ve always known that God is the God of the entire world, being on the other side of it brings that to an entirely different level. 

Hearing different languages is also pretty cool, as Afrikaans and Xhosa (a click language) are both prominently spoken in J-Bay.  Realizing that the Lord understands those as well – and not just understands, but created them – is amazing and broadens my understanding of His world even more. 

The next time we update it’ll probably be after the Currie Cup finals, which is kind of like the World Series for South African rugby.  The Blue Bulls are playing the Cheetahs, and everything stops here in SA when that happens.  So stay tuned for who takes home the trophy!