Steadfast Love

So I ignorantly assumed I was immune to the possibility of the beast we call jet lag.....I was wrong. After waking up at 2, I finally gave in around 3:30 and got up to read and write. I sit here with soo many things I want to tell you but after only 2 days the task seems daunting! If you will permit me to ramble I will try to put a few random tidbits into writing:

* Apparently my feet swell up like balloons after long flights.
* It is culturally inappropriate to cry. They recommend if I need a "good cry" to volunteer to cut onions. If you know me at all this makes you laugh because you are already hoping that I keep up with how many tons of onions I will end up cutting.
* Eye contact with a man basically says that I would like to go to bed with him. This. is going to be incredibly challenging to stop because I took a stinking class on. interpersonal relationships where I was graded on things like making good eye contact. Ha
* Niger is 97% Muslim and 0.7% Christian.....the first missionary came here in 1924.
* Yesterday(8-3-10) was Niger's Independence day.....go plant a tree!
* In Niger, the average annual income is $200.
* I just ate a massive spoonful of peanut butter. Their normal stuff is in between our creamy and chunky and I like it!
* Meat doesn't really exist at meal time....thank you dad for the wonderful jerky! It is keeping me sane!
* We had a Hausa pastor give us his testimony today and teach us how to present the gospel specifically to a muslim. It was the clearest presentation I think I have ever heard. Praise God for our depravity and His divinity!!
* Purple is my color for this trip. I don't know why but again, if you know me, you know that I have been an avid purple hater for quite some time (my whole life)!
* I cannot quit thanking God for giving me such an incredible girl to partner with. Jess and I are complements of each other in so many ways. We are both excited to see God's power displayed as our weaknesses and strengths work together! Basically she is pretty amazing! Such an answer to prayer!
* Ice is going to be way harder to give up than I thought. Thankfully I still have access to it now.
* Oh and it is incredibly hard to remember to use only filtered water for everything....sometimes I wonder when I am going to get the ice from the tray that one of the girls forgot to use filtered water!
* I was shocked to see huts and lean-tos everywhere on the side of the road right next to the airport. I am shocked because I am in the capital city, meaning the "richest" and "most developed." This makes me somewhat aware of what lies ahead of me as I travel further in country.
* Niger is now the most under developed country in the world, even under Iraq! It is also one of the poorest!

One of many things God has showed me about myself:
Having no expectations started to become code for low expectations. I didn't realize it, and thankfully the Lord was quick to show me, but fear had started to creep in. Fear of what? Well, a fear of failure, fear of inadequacy, and maybe just a fear of not seeing fruit for my labors. Such a selfish, me-focused outlook on my time here! I was quickly taken back to the verses that God used to plant, water, and confirm my calling to serve in Africa. They embody what I know He has brought me here to do. So instead of having no expectations, I am challenged to have supernatural expectations that require a supernatural power to accomplish the task at hand. How convenient that I should have the Holy Spirit living inside of me who has equipped me for ever good work. How perfect that my God does not need me to do his biding but chooses to use weak little me so that the world will see His majesty and stand in awe of my Creator and my Sustainer!!!

Isaiah 61 is my calling and this is my prayer:
"The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn; to grant to those who mourn in Zion-- to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit; that they may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he may be glorified. They shall build up the ancient ruins; they shall raise up the former devastations; they shall repair the ruined cities, the devastations of many generations."
Vs. 1-4

"Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen."
Jude 24-25