Kwaheri (good bye) Tanzania.....(part 1)

As the week closed,  it was time to say our good-byes to the pastors and evangelists, whom have come to be dear  friends and with whom we had shared our time, talents, and what little we could bring them.  It was somewhat bittersweet as we wondered how they would carry on.  But that is what we hoped in our hearts....that they would all be able to continue the work that had been planted on the many mission trips before.  The work is now theirs and they seemed full of hope and ambition that the work would continue.  After our last breakfast, we sang and prayed together, exchanged gifts, email addresses, and took photos.....

We were so thankful for the help with translation, spiritual support, and cultural understanding from our dear African co-workers, Esther and Peter.  How hard it was to say good-bye to them, too!

We packed the jeeps with fewer suitcases this time, having left many of them at the schools, churches, clinics, and the orphanage filled with supplies we had brought.......including mosquito nets!

It had been a full week, yet the work seemed almost like "a drop in the bucket".  There is so much more to be done, but as parents must let their children become more independent, the same is being realized by many church groups.....we need to let go and let them.  This is the new direction that our church is now taking and one that we embark with hope and anticipation. It seemed so timely that I read that morning the following from a devotional book by Robert Schuller:

"The problems in this world can seem overwhelming.  Everywhere you look, people are being affected by crime, poverty, sickness, loneliness, and grief.  At times, it can feel like we're swimming in an ocean of tears.  And then we turn on the evening news to hear the latest horror from Bosnia or Rwanda or wherever people have decided to slaughter and maim their neighbors and former friends.  The problems in this world just seem too big to face.

God doesn't expect you and me to solve all the world's problems.  He simply asks us to make a difference wherever and however we can - one person at a time.  Whenever we reach out to the less fortunate - one of the people Scripture calls 'the least of these' - it's like reaching out to Christ.  Touch the world - one step at a time."