Tuesday, July 25, 2006

I'm satisfied..

For any of you that might have been checking my blog every week in anticipation of some sort of report on my Malawi trip, I apologize. You aren't getting on one here... There is just too much to say! (And if you have seen the magnitude of pictures, you know this too be true!)

Let me start off with some key things about Africa so you can feel somewhat informed.

1) I absolutely loved it.
2) I learned so much about God's faithfulness. He is faithful, even when I lose faith...
3) I felt at home. In Africa. It was hard to fathom that I was, actually, half a world away from where I live. I guess the song is true.. "anywhere is home, if Christ my Lord is there.."
4) I love Malawian children.. from the little ones I helped babysit during the women's morning devo, to the school-aged children I would sing and dance with before lunch, to the kids at the hospitals we cleaned, to the older children of the village we had devotionals with at night... I love them all. And I really miss them.
5) American Christianity is not the only one that has issues to deal with. We (the human race) really are a broken people.. the only thing that makes us (Christians) different is that we recognize who loves us in and save us from our brokenness.
6) God answers prayers. I watched Him answer MANY while I was there.
7) Tuna fish can be a luxury meal in another country.. and pizza... I have never been so excited in my life about pizza...
8) God is active. All over the world. In so many people. I am just a small part of a bigger effort... man, God is good.

There are just a few thoughts for now. If you want to see pictures, I am certainly more than willing to share them!
Now for the 2nd part of the blog... the part that goes along with the title.. I was not really excited about this summer. I had no idea what to expect. I hoped for some good things, but didn't really expect them. Well, this summer exceeded my expectations. And now that summer is drawing near to an end, I am sad to see it all close... but at the same time, I am satisfied.

Many adventures, many new friends.. basically, this has been a really good summer. And it is my last summer in "college-kid world." And I am satisfied. I have been able to do a lot of things... go to Massachusetts, the coast, London, South Africa (well, the airport), Malawi, another country beside Malawi that I can say but not spell (well, we stopped and used the restroom there)...

Pizza and subs, antique bookstores, crazy Boston traffic, fun with the Paces, crawfish on the pier, crazy video's with Laurel's youth group and an armless man harassing us, work in admissions, lunch bunch at Cornerstone cafe, car wash, a couple of days at the lake, suntans, sunburns, smoothies, hippos, spagetti that won't boil, best friends, airports, not showering, clothing sorting in warehouse, cooking chickens.. whole, card games and tennis, television and movies, clowns and birthdays, laundry and text messaging, late nights with Nikki..... I could go on with the random words that will only mean anything to me and the people that happen to connect with those random words..

So here is life's update: I am satisfied. :)

2 comments:

Sunny said...

Jenna, I am glad that your trip to Africa went so well. I know that you are treasuring all of your memories.

Jason said...

I echo what Sunny said. Glad to hear your summer was a good one. I know you prayed about it and thought about it quite a bit. I think your satisfaction stems, at least partially, from seeing the Lord answer your prayers to give you beyond what you even thought to ask or imagine. God bless.