Jumping the Shiree River

“What if I said let’s have a contest to see who can jump over the Shiree River,” I said to the group. They all started laughing and saying no…except one man. He said, “Okay!”

Shocked, Brother Shadrick questioned him, “You’d try to jump across the River?”

“Yes, in faith!” he replied.

I told him that we wouldn’t be trying that. Because while they might make it a little further than I would, the river is very wide and we’d all just end up being crocodile food.

This man was the first to ever except my offer because everyone knows it is impossible.

Just as we can’t make it across the Shiree, we cannot get to heaven on our own as all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.

While this man talked a lot while I was witnessing, another man sat quietly, intently listening. As we were finishing talking with them, he pleaded with me to please tell him what he needed to do to be saved and he prayed to ask Christ as his Savior.

The weather has been beautiful lately, it’s been mostly low 80°s, but mornings can be cool. We’ve had a few days in the 70°s. You can feel the tension release from your body in the cooler season. We are enjoying these beautiful, cooler days.

One of my favorite things here is the constant singing of the birds. I’ve always loved the sound of birds! Here there are so many, and they are singing all day. It’s such a relaxing sound!

I have been struggling lately with body pains, but the Lord continues to give me the strength for each day. I have a little less teaching to do as I’ve stepped away from teaching here at this church as we transition it to national leadership. The teachers have grown so much and are leading it extremely well. I have started looking for ladies in Phokera who we can start training as well.

One of my greatest struggles is not feeling guilt over having something. My husband recently had a dress made for my birthday, and I tried convincing him not to as I feel like I have so much! This will be the first new outfit I’ve had in almost year and a half, besides a like new secondhand dress we found at the beginning of the year. This is completely my doing as my husband would love to be able to get me something, but the guilt overwhelms me! They have maybe one or two outfits, yet I already have so so much!

I feel guilty having a bed to sleep on or a chair, when many of them are sleeping on dirt floors – some without mats or blankets! How do you overcome this guilt? I haven’t figured it out yet. We try to do what we can, but the needs are endless.

Pray that the Lord gives your missionaries the wisdom of how to have a proper balance in this area and in the area of our time. Balance is such a difficult thing to have and keep!