Jer. 12:5 Feb. 2008

Jeremiah 12:5 “If you have raced with men on foot and grown tired how can you compete with horses?
If you stumble in a safe country how will you manage in the thickets by the Jordan?”

Scripture doesn’t always encourage me the way my heart believes it must. Jeremiah was disturbed at the injustice he witnessed in the world around him. He brought his concerns before the Lord, and the Lord responded with the above words. Do these comfort a wounded and weary heart? Will they bring strength to me? Or you? Still, they must for God is good, all the time. Every life experience prepares a believer for what the Lord has for him… walking in faith is indeed life’s most challenging work.

Honestly, at times seeing the surrounding misery makes me long for the strength to work harder… and other times to crawl into a hole and watch Super Bowl re-runs and eat frozen yogurt. No frozen yogurt in the Sudan yet. Mmm, what I wouldn’t do for some frozen coffee flavored Yoplait.

Lately, the wind and dust have picked up considerably here in the Torit area. Wind is blowing through the streets like an old western movie, complete with swirling dirt and at times, the banging of a saloon door.
Seriously, my Harley Davidson boots and lengthening hair are adding to my developing cowboy persona with the local people.

Beside the sudden change in the weather, the past two months have seen other changes in my ministry work. I have become more and more ingrained into the social life here in Torit. With these friendships have come new opportunities for witnessing and ministry. Recently, several Arabic men approached me in the market and asked if I would be willing to teach them the English language. As I have been praying for open doors into this unreached and Arabic community I readily accepted. Will you remember this in your prayers: that the Lord would stir in the hearts and dreams of these Arabic men who may have never heard the Good News.

Almost daily I venture into the Arab section of the Torit city, meeting with the tradesmen, speaking Arabic and learning about their life and culture. The North African people are uniquely mystifying to me. Embracing and tender toward me, yet rigid and harsh in their own beliefs. Much of this of course directly ties to their suffocating religious convictions. Slowly, God is bringing in His light.