Hi there! I just wanted to make a quick comment regarding the photos I posted yesterday. I noticed that every photo that I posted was taken on the same day - our one-day adventure to Livingston. I was in Zambia and South Africa for four weeks, but found it difficult, if not akward, to pull out my camera in most places that I went to. It's hard enough trying to minister to someone when my skin and hair mark me as distinctly non-Zambian; it would have made it impossible had I pulled out my expensive camera - nevermind that it was borrowed. :) So I missed out on capturing a lot of the faces that really touch your heart. I do have a few pictures of real life in Zambia though; and I want to post one now.

My friend was treated to a helicopter ride over Victoria Falls as a special treat, and while up in the sky she took the following photos. Can you imagine living in such places as these?

Click on the photo and expand to see detail.

"'But now take courage, Zerubbabel,' declares the LORD, 
'take courage also, Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest, 
and all you people of the land take courage,' declares the LORD, 
'and work; for I am with you,' declares the LORD of hosts.

As for the promise which I made you when you came out of Egypt, 
My Spirit is abiding in your midst; 
do not fear!"

(~Haggai 2:4, 5)

This is me at Victoria Falls! I love this picture... rainbows symbolize the unfading promises of God--so good to have this one forever captured over my shoulder. :) I finally got some photos back, and I will be posting more very soon. :) Victoria Falls was one of the most overpoweringly beautiful places I've ever been. I want to tell you about it! I've no time right now though, so a few pictures will have to do until I can write. :) 

love, Rita

A month is a very long time to put your every-day life on hold and go live in a Third World country, and now that it is concluded and I've more or less picked up where I've left off, I don't know where to begin writing. :) Play-by-play? Synopsis? Practical, spiritual, the humorus side, the tragic side? 

I traveled 21 hours total from my front door in Nottingham, Maryland to Atlanta, GA; across the Atlantic to Dakar, Senegal so the plane could refuel; then over the Continent to Johannesburg, South Africa. In Joburg I wandered around the airport for nearly an hour with my tremendous load of luggage before my ride arrived to rescue me from my growing panic. :) Pastor Manny and Molly treated me like a queen for three wonderful days, and I was amazed at the strange culture of SA. There were far more white-skinned people than I had imagined there could be in any African city; maybe as much as half the population was fair-skinned and many of them fair-haired to boot. The land had originally been settled by the Dutch and the Germans, and the language of Afrikaans reflected such history in the strong gutteral tones I had only before associated with Europe. Pretoria, the city where our church is located (nearly 40 minutes from Johannesburg), is just lovely with little shops and cafes that felt anything but African. I wasn't able to attend a church service because of my short stay in the country (only 2.5 days), but I greatly enjoyed sitting in on two Bible college classes with the South Africans. :) Pastor Manny played several joyful african melodies on his guitar and I tried to get the odd words to flow from my tongue as best I could. :) 

Molly took me to a restaurant named "Safari", which had grass-thatched roofs, waterfalls, flowerbeds laden with orange blooms and bright blue and yellow parrots that stretched their wings and cocked their heads at you. So much of SA was enchanting! Only in the back of my mind I felt as if I was missing something; or as if I was waiting for my first glimpse of the unflattering side of the country. The next day I discovered it when we went into a compound to meet a man and make arrangements to rent his building for our new church service. In the compound (called "Mamalodi") you saw the other side of life in SA. Dirt streets, dirty houses, dirty children, torn clothes hanging from the line, metal roofs on the houses. We have been evangelizing there and found the area to be quite open to the Gospel. Soon we will be having early morning services on Sundays in a local "basic" (primary) school. 

I could write more about SA - there's much more in my memory - but I want to skip ahead to Zambia, since that's where I spent the remaining 3.5 weeks of my trip. It was so, so good to come through the doors of the airport at last and be welcomed by Sophie and La Tascha! :) It had been nine months since I had last seen Sophie, and how good it was to lay eyes on her again. :) Both of them looked wonderful - thin, healthy and tanned by the sun. :) The first week and a half of my time in Zambia was spent with the two of them in their little home behind the wall, where I got my first true taste of living as a missionary. 

"Team schedule" began at 7am with a 7-minute walk to Pastor Renaldo's house a few streets away. We had to be escorted by Shadrach, who is a sweet older Zambian man who works as our night watchman. Being muzungu women, we needed a male escort even though the distance was short. It was this way wherever we went. My fair skin stood out like a beacon among the dark africans, and I received so many stares and pointing fingers! It made buying anything incredibly difficult, because it was painfully obvious that I was so fresh off the boat. :) The sale price for muzungus is usually more than twice the normal, so at first when I didn't know what things were worth I had to rely on Zambian friends to negotiate for me when I wanted to purchase something. :) 

The first week was the only time I had to spend with Sophie and La Tascha, and as the first guest for the Conference I received special attention. :) I was taken to a busy area called Kamwala, where La Tascha and I ducked in and out of several shops to find african fabric so that I could have skirts sewn. A man named Daniel sat on the side of the street with his sewing machine, and we dropped off the fabric along with instructions and my measurements. The going price was 10,000 kwatcha - which is about $2.50 American. :) I had several made, and if I lived there you can be sure that I'd have dozens upon dozens before long! It was so fun to go through the vibrant fabrics and design your own clothes. :) I was also taken to shop for hand-carved items in a place called Kabwatta, which was delightful for me - I've always been intrigued by carved things! I came home with a family of giraffes that stand so stately and graceful; two elephants with mysterious expressions, and a fat little rhinocerous for my office desk back home. :) 

My favorite part of the first week in Zambia was my introduction to evangelism. The team, as well as many of the Bible college students, goes out three times a week for about two hours at a time to share the Gospel of grace. We focused on two areas: the first was the community of Emmasdale, where our church had recently moved to. This was an area of dirt roads, buildings made of cement blocks and metal roofs, small stores without windows where you could buy a Fanta or an AppleMax (apple-flavored carbonated drink) if the sun got too hot for you. Nearly every house is surrounded by a wall with a large metal gate, which we would knock on to speak to whoever answered about the love of God and the forgiveness of His Son. 

The other area was in the city of Lusaka, in front of the Post Office. You weren't allowed to take pictures there because it was a government building; in fact if you did you would be arrested by the armed guard that stood at the door. It was those very guards, however, that made this a safe place for us to evangelize. Crowds and crowds of people are constantly walking by. This was my favorite place to share the Gospel, simply because of the sheer number of amazing conversations I had with so many Zambians. In order for my American accent to be understood I often caught myself speaking the way they spoke, with their accent and phrases. "Ah you bon again? No! Eh, why not? Do you know what it means, to be bon again?" And they would laugh and shake their beautiful heads with a shy smile no. That's what I loved - they were so direct with you. It was always either "yes" or "no". Maybe I can tell you what eet means to be bon again... can I tell you? God wants you to know for shua that you ah going to heaven. It was so enjoyable to explain the plan of God to redeem His people. I stood in the sun or beneath a tree and explained the grace of God and the gift of salvation to men, to women, to young people - over and over, and I could have done it all day long there. I've never enjoyed soul-winning so much. 

Well - that will have to be the end of "Part I", because I've got to "switch off" my computer now and head to class. :) I'll try to write more as soon as I can. God bless you all! Please forgive my grammar and spelling mistakes, I don't have time to edit this before posting. Have a great weekend!

with ♥,
Rita

Ah, what a whirlwind I've been through! Home again. So strange, after living third world for a month. I left Zambia at 7:30am Monday morning and finally dragged my suitecase through the door of my home in Baltimore yesterday at 3:30pm. I spent 35 hours traveling!! That includes a 9-hour layover in South Africa, a 17 hour flight to the States, and another 5 hour layover in Atlanta. I'm physically weary but spiritually shining. :) God is so kind to me in so many ways I can't put words to. He just keeps speaking awesome things. 

I couldn't afford to take any more time away from my job, so today was my first day back at work - I'm nearly dizzy with jetlagged exhaustion, but really enjoying being back with my coworkers again. :) I've described various aspects of my journey to a dozen different people, but even as I speak I know I can never paint a picture that they'd really understand. Not without eyes that have been opened by the Holy Spirit. :) 

I'll describe the last month as best I can when I've had a chance to rest - thank you all for being so very patient. :) I love you all ~

Rita

Hello from Zambia!

I am just now sitting in an internet cafe in Lusaka, where my sunburned arms are trying to hammer out as much greetings to my LJ friends as I can on a limited timetable! :) I've been here for two days and already I'm burned - the sun is brutal here! But it was my own fault, in my excitement to jump into "team schedule" I forgot my sunblock at home. :) Things have been wonderful so far - I've seen wildebeast grazing and lions playing with each other like kittens; I've eaten chicken curry wrapped in a pancake with chili marmelade and diced apples; I've walked through the dusty streets of Ngombe beneath walls overflowing with orange flowers as we knocked on doors, bringing the Gospel to the people in the community surrounding our new church property. :) I've got a million other details to share, but not time to share them all just yet - I'll write more as often as I am able to make it here. :) 

Thank you all so much for your prayers! Thus far I have stayed healthy, encouraged, loved and deeply blessed during every hour of my stay. :) My three days in South Africa were amazing, but at the same time felt more like a vacation than anything else... Zambia feels more solid beneath my feet. I stayed up late last night with Sophie, she was roasting groundnuts in the oven (peanuts... did you know they started off all soft & mushy? I didn't) to use as a filler in the Easter baskets for the children in our church. We drank tea and talked all night and the oven made the house smell like hot peanut butter. :) It is so wonderful to be here. I am so excited to get to know everyone.

Today is the team's day off so I have been running errands all morning. I looked at dozens and dozens of fabrics, trying to decide which ones I wanted to have made into skirts and tops by our tailor, Clive. He is in our church here and does exceptional work. :) The names of some of the people here are so interesting - I've met Shadrak, Vusumzi, Mulando, Levy, Moses, Frintz, and more that I can't remember yet. :)

Ok, my time is up! More to come, my friends. My love to you all. 

Rita

...In about nine hours I board my plane. :) Just wanted to wave goodbye to everyone! I don't expect to have much internet access over there. Please pray for me as I fly to Johannesburg, South Africa where I'll be spending three days with our church there, and then on to Lusaka, Zambia where I'll be the rest of my three week trip. I am so happy to go! :) All the packing and planning and purchasing and preparing has made my head spin, but at last that part is finally over, and my heart is set on what's ahead. :) I can't wait to feel the wheels lift from the runway... I've missed that feeling! 

My love to you all, dear friends. ♥
Rita

Hello world! Do you remember me?

It's been a VERY long time since I have last written, and what can I say but that apparently the Lord thought it good to dry up my pen for a while? I know, though, that even if this is the case, I have friends here to whom I owe some sort of communication. :) Please forgive me for my disappearance! I never meant to stay away so long. :)

Part of my silence is due to the very fact that I've no idea how to express all that God has been doing in my heart over the past 3.5 months! I've received a few concerned emails lately, though, and realized that some have taken my absence to be a sign that something is wrong. It's the opposite that's true - God has gloriously righted me, and given me a great story to tell. :) I hope that I can communicate it in such a way that your heart is also stirred. :) Only first, news!

I am on my way to AFRICA in eight days!!

I am still in delighted shock that the door opened for me to go--oh, I can't believe this is the first that most of you are hearing of this! For a whole year, I was so limited by finances that I wasn't able to travel at all. And now, suddenly and by the beautiful goodness of God, I find I am able to afford to go - I have a ticket for Lusaka, Zambia with my name on it, and an incredible job ahead of packing and preparing to live third world for 3 weeks. I will be gone for three weeks!!! Can you imagine? I've never been away, anywhere, for longer than two. And I'll get to see my 2 dear friends again - La Tascha and Sophia. Want to see pictures? Here's the link to their new website! www.zambianmissions.com.

My head has been spinning with the details of this trip for days, and time itself feels as if it is accellerating. Work also has been challenging, and school. Life has been so good. Hard, but good - God has been teaching me. :)

I am running out of time to write much more... please comment and say hello! I've missed you all and think about you often. :)

Take care!

Rita

I should be at work, but I'm sitting at Starbucks instead, posting an LJ entry from my PDA as I read my Bible and check the weather (how I love technology). I took the day off, as I've done the past few years, to treat myself to a long birthday weekend.

it's so nice to be alive. I am tremendously happy just being. The Lord, Who has delivered us, is delivering us, and will yet deliver us. :)

Ah! I would say so much more, dear friends, but I've got to go. :)

Enjoy the weekend!

“Do you believe that I am able to do this?”

[Mt. 9:28]

During my trip to Africa last year I found, to my surprise, that there was just as much materialism there as I had seen in the States. Not materials themselves (as there was very little to be had by anyone); but the desire to obtain them was present everywhere, making my fair skin an akward statement of my relative riches. And I hated it, because I knew so strongly in my own heart the emptiness behind all the simple things I owned.

But living in America can influence you unknowingly. The temperature has been dropping quickly here in Baltimore, and I need a winter coat. Only finding the right one has been a long, frustrating ordeal so far, and I am so weary of my own felt need for buying things. Shopping! I both enjoy it and abhor it--no; I abhor my desire for more that seems to strengthen when I am in the bright, alluring surroundings of the nearest department store. And in light of this inner war, God used my devotional this morning to bring me back to His side...

A man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.

A little that a righteous man hath is better than the riches of many wicked. — Better is little with the fear of the Lord than great treasure and trouble therewith. — Godliness with contentment is great gain. Having food and raiment let us be therewith content.

Give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food convenient for me: lest I be full, and deny thee, and say, Who is the Lord? or lest I be poor, and steal, and take the name of my God in vain. — Give us this day our daily bread.

Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? — When I sent you without purse, and scrip, and shoes, lacked ye any thing? And they said, Nothing. — Let your conversation be without covetousness: and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.

Luke 12:15. Psa. 37:16. Prov. 15:16. I Tim. 6:6,8. Prov. 30:8,9. Matt. 6:11. Matt. 6:25. Luke 22:35. Heb. 13:5.

Isn't the Bible an amazing gift? I never knew there were so many verses that spoke about contentment in this way. The first verse in bold from Luke 12 is one that I had never noticed before, but I am going to carry near to my heart in future days--especially this Christmas season, when the strategy of our enemy is in full swing against us. The natural man uses people and loves things. The spiritual man uses things and loves people. Lord, give me neither poverty nor riches. Amen.

I am sleepy though I slept long. The trees outside have mellowed into butter-yellow and I love to look at them when I am near a window. The time is going by so swiftly! Mid-October, already? My birthday is in ten short days, and though only a year has gone by I feel I am five years older. And younger. :) The Lord is teaching me to meditate, and I've found wonderful things in those deep waters. When you scratch behind the surface of so many common things, you find gold.

I developed a cold on Monday night, and I tossed & turned until 3am. So the next day was spent in bed instead of my little work cubicle, and the Lord met me and ministered to me for a full day - how amazing it was. The Bible is so rich and lovely. I read for hours; and then I read some more. :) And there was peace and solitude and prayer and me in my pajamas cooking scrambled eggs in the morning sunlight. I wish I could get sick like that more often. :) I felt bad, but not so bad that I was dead to the world. Just not bad enough to be among the living. :)

I have made a promise to the Lord (a response to His ability in me!) that I will go to bed on time in the evenings. It was pointed out to me by a close friend that, well, I have a hard time being Spirit-filled when I'm exhausted! And it's quite the truth. I thoroughly lose all concentration and coherency when I am not well-rested... and I was convicted by that. What good am I to God's kingdom in that kind of condition? How am I to minister to anyone, or even listen to the Word preached and be able to retain any of it? So my bedtime on weekdays (excepting Friday) is now 10:00pm, and my roomates have been instructed to send me off to my room if they discover me chatting away in the kitchen too late. :)

I have already begun enjoying the benefits of this - what a surprise, that I feel so well when I am rested! Of course, this new schedule is flexible to the leading of God if He chooses to override it. :) But on the whole I am very satisfied. I can think more clearly - that alone is a priceless blessing - and I've also found myself more productive than usual here at work. I've also taken to eating breakfast in the mornings, which I'm sure has helped. :)

I am on the schedule to share from the Bible tomorrow night at our prayer meeting. It will only be 10-15 minutes or so, but I have been in much thought about what I might share. I think I will speak on the Importance of Being Edified. "Edification" is a word that I never heard much of before the Lord led me to this ministry, but oh how useful a word it has become! It means to be encouraged, uplifted, strengthened... it is the result of being loved and accepted and approved of. :) But spiritual edification is a choice... you have to look for it, like following the sunshine as it moves across the field. And it produces a positive result: "Provoke one another unto good works." It relaxes you and engages you at the same time. But edification is not self-flattery or an optimistic attitude. It is the glow you feel when you recognize that Love has fixed it's gaze upon you, and has an indefeatable plan to win your heart - a plan that is already in motion.

"Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ..." (Jude 21) We look for mercy! Why? Surely it "will follow me all the days of my life"? But I think that we look for it because to understand mercy is to understand, with great gravity, that your heart is wicked and always has been. If we looked for grace before we understood the reality of all we have been forgiven, we would never catch our breath at the wonder and scope of the goodness of God. There is such edification, such joy in that!

I want to get out one thing more before I end. I've bought myself a copy of the One Year Bible. I suddenly can't put it down! Every day gives you a reading from the OT, a reading from the NT, a Psalm and a verse or two in Proverbs. And then you start over. It only takes between 20-30 minutes a day. :) I won't make any grand claims that I could live to regret, but I am very much enjoying this. I've been reading in Jeremiah, 1Timothy, Psalm 89 and Proverbs 25. Every day I get to hear a little more about each story line, but it always changes before it gets to be too much. It feels in a small way like watching a fast-paced movie, and how the scene changes to pick up with a different character every few minutes. It's very refreshing. :) And even more so because I have set no rules for myself - in fact, I tell myself every day that it is a miracle I want to read the Bible at all! So everything is a gift, and there is no guilt involved if I don't stay on track. :) I find that's the best way. :)

I know thy works:
behold, I have set before thee an open door,
and no man can shut it:
for thou hast a little strength,
and hast kept My word,
and hast not denied My name.

~ Revelation 3:8

~:~::~:~


I was very blessed by this verse this week, as my personal strength seemed very limited through all the responsibilities of living that I faced. :) But my Redeemer is faithful and true! Such an expectation of things ahead has taken hold of me. He has promised in this very verse to open a door unto me that no one on earth has they keys to lock shut. Where that door is to lead remains a beautiful mystery until I step across the threshold... which I will do, in His time. :) Riding on the arms of grace.

I went to Silver Spring again this weekend; for the first time on a Sunday morning. They are now having services in the small auditorium of an elementary school, and I found the large room with wooden stage very charming. :) I sang solo for the first time in a long while, but it came out very well (especially considering the guitarist only learned the song moments before - another miracle to praise Him for). :) Afterward I spent a very long time talking to various people, and on leaving I really felt a confirmation from the Lord leading me back more often to this place. My plan right now is to go up every other week, and possibly more often as God leads. It's a large commitment and I have been wary of making it unless I am sure of the will of God - because only if He has sent me will He supply me with the grace to follow through. :) Going to Silver Spring regularly means that I will be involved with music regularly again; so please pray for me that I might be able to find appropriate songs. :)

There is much more that I could write about but it is midnight and I'm tired. Goodnight, dear saints.

Working in a new building has helped me to change some things that needed changing; most notably my lunchtime habits. :) I used to eat at my desk every day, and very often spent the time browsing webpages or journaling or working... not that any of those things are bad, but I've found something better here. :) I've found a way to be alone. In my old building, there really was no place for solitude unless you wanted to walk a quarter-mile to reach your car. Here the parking is just outside the door, and there are nice trees for shade to park beneath where I can pretend I'm far away and free. :) I've started going out there at noon with a lunch bought from the cafeteria down the hall. Today I was considering driving over to the church for the lunch rap (a short message in the church restaurant to listen to while you eat), but I was too late to have arrived on time. So I sat in my car with the windows down, and called the church instead. If you ask, they will put you on hold and you can listen to the message over the phone. People do it all the time. :) So I got to hear a really great message about living by every personally spoken Word from God, and afterward I just sat in the sun with my headphones on, listening to guitars and voices and melodies. It was incredibly peaceful.

I've also discovered that I can read a book quite undisturbed at one of the quiet corner tables in the cafeteria. I've been doing that too, and finally am finding time to make progress in some of the books I've been reading. :) The spiritual refreshing from these times is so wonderful! God really met me today, and calmed me with several lovely verses from His Word. Let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord.