"Chicken Public"...

I went down to Dar a few weeks ago. Bill and I had to pick up a group of SM’s (Student Missionaries) from the Czech Republic. Hanka, Ratka, and Zuzka (Zuzi) had volunteered to come and preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the people of Tanzania. We hosted evangelistic meetings in the remote village of Madibira. The Czech girls each had their own site and translator and they were preaching and presenting Jesus for 17 nights…consecutively. Many tears of frustration were shed, many challenges faced, and by the grace of God…many obstacles were overcome. It was all worth it though… 47 Tanzanians accepted Jesus as their Savior. Many of us were in tears when we watched as they were baptized in the muddy river water. I thought that the muddy water was quite fitting. Jesus saves us from the mire…from our filthy sins. As they were baptized, one by one, Jesus was cleansing them of all unrighteousness…washing away all the “mud” from their lives. It was beautiful to behold.

 

I also gained something from the experience…3 loving friends. I have been teased about this many times already, and I am sure that I have not yet heard the end of it…but I really enjoyed Zuzka’s company. I won’t try and deny the fact that it was quite pleasant having a beautiful 20 year old, blue-eyed blonde girl around…but it was her heart that interested me.  We spent much time together in prayer, discussing God and how He leads us, how He loves us…and how often we do so little to return that love. I would go so far as to say that I have never met a more tender hearted person than Zuzka Havlová. After 8 months of being the only person in their 20’s, it was such a blessing to have some young people around, sharing with each other and encouraging each other to be all we can be for Christ. Zuzka, Hanka, Ratka, and the rest of the team faithfully supported me and my family in prayer. My mom has been in ICU for quite a few days now. I am hoping to fly to South Africa within the next 48 hours.

 

 

From left to right: Me (restraining myself from hugging them like teddy bears), Zuzka, Ratka, and Hanka

 

 

This post is dedicated to the three Czech ladies that gave me all the hugs I needed to make up for the 8 months I was away from my mom. You girls kept a smile on my face when things were difficult. Zuzka…all the prayers and sms’s, the encouragement…Thank you J I hope to visit you all in “Chicken Public” one day…soon.

 

“Miluji tě”

 

ryno