While we have so many mixed feelings this week transiting back to East Africa, we have been blown away by God’s goodness—
This is Rainbow #15 that we’ve seen in our few weeks here.
We have a new housing lead in Tanzania, in an area Cliff had prayed we could stay at but thought it was impossible
And then…this…
Since the dawn I saw dolphins at the coast by accident on my usual solo morning walk, I’ve been praying my kids would see them too.
This afternoon, as we built sandcastles, I told the kids my prayer, to which one of them said, “Mama, that’s not likely, you know!”
And minutes later, tears oozed out of my eyes when we saw this pod of dolphins swim by- they all disappeared in less than a minute. Had I not looked up at a bird, we would have missed the entire thing.
All week while I’ve been heavy hearted reflecting about the challenges of serving in the field, God keeps coming through.
Where we previously had reservations over an airbnb we had booked in our small town in Tanzania (because airbnbs in the area are dubious), a Norwegian missionary friend stepped in last week to offer her guest home to our family as a gift 😭
While I had apprehensions because we really value our privacy, it turns out that their family was mostly returning to Norway during that time and we’d be able to enjoy her guesthouse, without the stress of high airbnb fees, more unexpected events, and we’d also have a longer timeline to find a home to move into. 😭
While I feel a weight in my gut that the potential home highlighted there will be totally unfurnished, a new friend of mine in Perth is seeing if she can take some time off to go with me to shop for some home items here.
Believe it or not, many items that are accessible, convenient and affordable in the developed world can be extraordinarily expensive and difficult to buy in our small town because of how hard it is to import and transport items there.
I feel really daunted by the thought and extra financial expense of having to even buy curtains for a home I don’t even know will be ours yet, but my 8-yr old declared with unparalleled enthusiasm, “Mama, this means you can really do up the home from scratch, the way YOU want it, to reflect our family!”
Oh, to see the world through the eyes of a child. 🥹
All I can say is—
thank you for journeying with our family and witnessing His goodness with us. 💛