Last night, it started to rain, which is something pretty unusual for this time of year in Africa! When it rains it POURS here - literally and in the pessimistic figurative sense. Anyway, Meg, Amanda, and I went out dancing in the rain, enjoying how cold it felt! Meg and I had just had a conversation before it started raining about how I was just beginning to take advantage of the video option on my camera and how I wanted to do MORE video because I think it's great. So, in light of that conversation, I ran inside and grabbed my camera and shot a lovely piece of cinematic art. We just watched The Sound of Music last weekend because of our upcoming trip to Germany and Austria for spring break, which is why the song that Meg and Amanda sang and danced to in the rain was fresh in their minds :-) It's the one that the girl and the guy sing in the gazebo. I love my housemates!
I also thought I would share some of what God has been teaching me these last few weeks! It's been a long, laborious, and sometimes painful process but here's what I've got so far :-) Instead of me trying to explain it all I'm just going to give you some verses that when read in order explain it better than I ever could...
We live by faith, not by sight. (2 Corinthians 5:7)
Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. (Hebrews 11:1)
And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. (Hebrews 11:6)
...you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. Those who doubt should not think they will receive anything from the Lord; they are double-minded and unstable in all they do. (James 1:6b-7)
So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. (2 Corinthians 4:18)
I can pray and read my Bible and listen to sermons and do all that I'm "supposed" to do but without faith - none of the rest of it matters. I have to have faith in God - faith that he'll meet me wherever I am - because He will! Hebrews says that He will and that I will be rewarded for earnestly seeking God. Yay! This might seem elementary to some of you but in my actions I have been doubting God - doubting that he'll be there with me when he asks me to do something. See, I can't explain it right :-)
Okay, what else is going on... OH. We got a "new" bridge. Every day on our walk to school we have to cross this bridge and just in the past few weeks they've put in a new gutter. Ghana = open sewage/gutter system. With a new gutter comes a new bridge...
Looks safe, huh? Good thing it's not too far off the ground. The bad part is that the water underneath - super disgusting. The official count of diseases you would get from the water if you fell in is 7 million.
This past Friday was International Day at school. The best part was that I didn't have to teach my classes and that every family in the school brought a food dish native to their home country to share for lunch. It was sooooooo yummy. Then, that night at Emily and Liz's (and Becky's now, too!) we had a mixer party! Emily, Liz and Becky provided the ice cream and the rest of us each brought a mix-in. My insides don't always agree with ice cream and it's not my favorite dessert but I eat it anyway - mostly for the toppings!
So much for all the working out I've been doing :-)Anyway, I hope everyone is doing amazing! Send me e-mail updates! elyse.lyle@hotmail.com
