The Hour Cometh
It's now Saturday night before our Monday morning departure, which obviously means intense organizing and packing time (well except for Rod, who packs in an hour the night before), but it also means the arrival of the reality that we don't know what we are getting ourselves into.
This is not a bad thing. It really just means that even with all of the training, preparation, organizing, research, and readiness that we work so hard to equip ourselves with, we simply won't know what all is going to take place until we are in the ground and in the moment. There are always a thousand cultural things that slap you in the face when you land across the world and immediately start trying to work closely with the local people. And even as much as you try to prepare for those things as well, you never know enough and you just have to observe and adapt. And occasionally look like a complete fool. One obvious reality is that we will stand out as foreigners in Rwanda no matter what - something I already know we'll be reminded often of as we hear the word "muzungu" ("white person") used around us repeatedly.
There are a few facts that we do know, and that is that we will be reading (which is what our work is called) in two places all day from Wednesday through Saturday each week, with church and parties on Sundays and Monday and Tuesday off. One place is FAWE, which I believe is Forum for African Women Educationalists, where we'll be working Wednesday through Friday with teachers each day, 9am-4pm. After that we will read for two hours at the end of the day at Christ's Church Rwanda, which is the church we are partnering with throughout the project. On Saturdays we will read all day at the church building.
We will be living on the grounds of the Rwanda Outreach and Community Foundation, which is part of an effort established by the Rwandan government as part of the Vision 2020 plan. Vision 2020 has set out goals for the developmental progress of Rwanda by 2020, and the Vision 2020 area of Kigali, which encompasses the grounds of ROC and Christ's Chruch Rwanda, is essentially a prototype community for what the government would like all of Rwanda to aspire to. The ROC is also home to a school called Kigali International Community School (KICS).
So, despite the fact that we simply can't know what we will truly experience, despite the fact that we will be stragers in a strange land for six weeks, despite the fact that we'll be culturally ignorant muzungus, we still board the plane on Monday with high hopes and expectations. Why? Because we know that ultimately it is not us that is doing this work. We simply let ourselves be guided by the Spirit of God, and trust that that is sufficient for what God is wanting to do with us in the hearts of his people there. Six weeks will be both a long time and no time at all, but we trust that it will be what God needs to do whatever it is he has planned.
Please feel free to leave comments on this blog throughout the project. I cannot tell you how much it means to hear from people at home when you are living in a strange and unfamiliar place. Sometimes just a single line of encouragement can make the difference in a day!
As always, thanks for your continued prayers. God is good!
This is not a bad thing. It really just means that even with all of the training, preparation, organizing, research, and readiness that we work so hard to equip ourselves with, we simply won't know what all is going to take place until we are in the ground and in the moment. There are always a thousand cultural things that slap you in the face when you land across the world and immediately start trying to work closely with the local people. And even as much as you try to prepare for those things as well, you never know enough and you just have to observe and adapt. And occasionally look like a complete fool. One obvious reality is that we will stand out as foreigners in Rwanda no matter what - something I already know we'll be reminded often of as we hear the word "muzungu" ("white person") used around us repeatedly.
There are a few facts that we do know, and that is that we will be reading (which is what our work is called) in two places all day from Wednesday through Saturday each week, with church and parties on Sundays and Monday and Tuesday off. One place is FAWE, which I believe is Forum for African Women Educationalists, where we'll be working Wednesday through Friday with teachers each day, 9am-4pm. After that we will read for two hours at the end of the day at Christ's Church Rwanda, which is the church we are partnering with throughout the project. On Saturdays we will read all day at the church building.
We will be living on the grounds of the Rwanda Outreach and Community Foundation, which is part of an effort established by the Rwandan government as part of the Vision 2020 plan. Vision 2020 has set out goals for the developmental progress of Rwanda by 2020, and the Vision 2020 area of Kigali, which encompasses the grounds of ROC and Christ's Chruch Rwanda, is essentially a prototype community for what the government would like all of Rwanda to aspire to. The ROC is also home to a school called Kigali International Community School (KICS).
So, despite the fact that we simply can't know what we will truly experience, despite the fact that we will be stragers in a strange land for six weeks, despite the fact that we'll be culturally ignorant muzungus, we still board the plane on Monday with high hopes and expectations. Why? Because we know that ultimately it is not us that is doing this work. We simply let ourselves be guided by the Spirit of God, and trust that that is sufficient for what God is wanting to do with us in the hearts of his people there. Six weeks will be both a long time and no time at all, but we trust that it will be what God needs to do whatever it is he has planned.
Please feel free to leave comments on this blog throughout the project. I cannot tell you how much it means to hear from people at home when you are living in a strange and unfamiliar place. Sometimes just a single line of encouragement can make the difference in a day!
As always, thanks for your continued prayers. God is good!
posted by Cary | 7:15 PM
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