Hello Mozambique

Written (9/14/12)

Well, I'm sitting on my bed in a church in Maputo, Mozambique. We have been traveling by bus for 2 days and still have 2 days of traveling left, but God is good and His favor and timing has been perfect. We got our visas in 3 hours, it normally takes at least 24. We crossed the border into Mozambique rather quickly and have had just the best possible experiences. Yes, we are definitely in Africa, that was made very evident today as we rushed the gates of customs to get in and as we got off our bus into a flatbed truck with all of our packs and teammates sitting together holding on to the truck frame as we drove thru the capital city. People took pictures of us as we drove, but not because of how packed in we were, that's normal, but that many Americans in one place at one time isn't a common occurrence. (PS, sorry mom for scaring you, but we're all just fine!)

As I have been thinking about Mozambique and praying about what God has for me specifically there, He gave me this verse. "But thanks be to God, who in Christ ALWAYS leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere." ~ 2 Corinthians 2:14. The country of Mozambique speaks primarily Portugese, I do not. The grannies we will be living with speak a mix of different tribal languages, I do not. No one here, other than government officials speak English well enough to have a conversation with us or help us out. Some of my teammates are nervous about not being able to communicate with the grannies, others are concerned that their non-verbal communication will give the wrong interpretation of what they are thinking. But as I read this verse, I was reminded that He is going before us always. He knew the plan of this trip and designed it perfectly for His glory and so the fragrance of the knowledge of him would be spread everywhere thru us. That reassurance, has brought immense peace to my heart and allowed me to see our lack of communication in a different light.

Sometimes, my words get me into trouble. Sometimes, I open my mouth before i think, or I open my mouth before I listen, or worse, I open my mouth before I pray. God tells us to "be still and know [he is] God." I can confess that I don't always operate that way. I don't take time to be still or silent and listen to what He has for me to say. But with my ability to speak taken away, I have no choice but to listen. And if I can't listen to my host family, I have exponential time to listen to my Father. I've heard it said to "preach the gospel every day and if necessary, use words." My actions will be my testimony, my life will paint the picture Jesus has for the people I am living with to learn. There have been days in the past, at home, that I have tried to spend completely silent. If I'm out and about running errands alone, or spending the day relaxing with nothing to do I try to listen and watch the people around me more than I ever have. It's incredible the things I have learned and been able to see jut from watching. I don't do this very often, because let's be honest, how many days can we spend completely silent, but I'm excited to see what God does with my minimal communication and how He challenges me and my heart. I know it's not going to be an easy 6 weeks, but I believe it will be the most meaningful 6 weeks on the trip and I know that I will look differently at communication and speaking because the more time I spend in missions, the more I learn about my mouth and the things I say. My desire in everything I do is that I must decrease so He may increase. If that means my words are fewer, and He has more ability to speak to and thru me, then so be it. I want nothing more.