A Tired, Jet Lagged Mess

I've been a tired, jet lagged mess these last couple of days.

Just home for three days.  This time last week I was logging about four hours a day
on a big green bus, traveling on dirt roads out in the very remote bush of Kenya.  

I couldn't have been happier.

Our 18 member team from NewSpring Church worked in a small village called
Mbogoini.   We were the very first team from 410 Bridge to go into this area.

That was pretty cool.

It was the most beautiful land I've ever seen.

Everything you might imagine when you think of Africa.

Flat plains bordered by Mount Kenya.

Herds of goats & cattle.    Zebras.  Gazelles.   Acacia trees.

And a HUGE sky.   So beautiful.

The people of Mbogoini couldn't have been more welcoming and more loving to us.
Although very few of them spoke English, we managed with the help of our young
interpreters.

Over the course of our trip, we took on several projects.

We started the construction of a new school.

We loved on children.

Okay.   We loved on lots of children.

We led services in area churches.

We assisted in the school feeding program.

We washed dishes.

We played soccer.

We taught in the local school.

We trekked out on foot paths.

And did home visits.

A special moment for me was when one of the Masai women of the village took off her traditional Masai beaded necklaces and put them around my neck.  Wow!

Mainly, we focused on building relationships.     With the people of Mbogoini.

And with the people on our team.

I've made four trips to Kenya now over the last five years.   Every time I go, God
shows me something else about myself.    For me, it's like shining a flashlight onto my
good, bad & ugly.    Okay....not so much my good.

It's going to take some time to think through what my lessons were from this trip.
Some I've already seen.    Others are going to take a while longer.

More than three days for sure.