Day 16.
I awoke in Africa for the last time, ate breakfast with the team, and then we headed to a church service at Kampala International Church, where the Livingstons attend.
A post-Sudan worship service was an overwhelming experience for me. Immediately upon entering the service, I could feel how much more powerful it was to worship Jesus after experiencing so much love and humility in Sudan. I was so humbled and awed by our God and Creator, and I couldn’t praise Him enough for all of the lessons He taught me in Sudan through my team and through the Sudanese. As we raised our praises to our Lord and Savior, I felt my eyes flood with tears as I allowed the whole experience to wash over me.
Kwoth goa elong!
Snapshot of Sunday:
-Up and at ’em early
-Packed, ate our last breakfast as a team, and headed out for church
-Church service in Kampala
-Lunch with the team at the Hendersons’, said our goodbyes, loaded up, and headed to Entebbe International
-Tight screening before entering the airport parking lot, security inside the airport, Immigrations, boarding, and leaving African soil
-Flying, flying, flying!
Sora!
I didn’t really take any pictures on Sunday, mostly because I was once again in live-in-the-moment mode, so I wanted to really just be completely present. Church was awesome, but saying goodbye was terrible! I get attached to people very quickly, so to know that I may never again see Jengmer, Angie, Buay, or Chris was hard, and knowing that it will be a while before I see Mandy again (she stayed in Kampala for a couple extra weeks) and it will be almost a year before I see the Hendersons, Livingstons, Peter, and Andrew again was way too hard!
The people on my team were tremendous examples of what it looks like to follow and live for Christ. I am SO honored to have met each of them, and I am deeply, deeply blessed by how much they each taught me. Before we left the Hendersons’ house, we took a few final team shots.
Buay and I…
Buay and Mandy…
Yeah, he is really tall!
I LOVE this picture…
Fun fact: The Nuer word buay means “light”. That is such a perfect name for him, because his spirit, energy, and faith truly are a light for those around him!
Whole-team photo!
Highs:
-Another beautiful day with our team
-Church service
-Buay informing us at the Entebbe airport (after Andrew asking how the duel wodora was) that duel wodora does NOT mean bathroom in Nuer…it means “poop house” or “house of poop”. Nice.
-Safe flights to Addis Ababa and Dubai
Lows:
-LEAVING AFRICA!!!!
Lessons God Taught Me:
-People are placed in our lives for very specific reasons. As I have said many times, I strongly dislike saying goodbye to people; however, I am so thankful to have met each person on my team and it was an honor to spend such a life-changing trip with them. God leads people into our lives purposely, sometimes for us to love, encourage, help, and/or heal them and sometimes for them to transform us. Whatever the purpose, God’s plan is grandly designed. As with the Sudanese, I think that I contributed nothing to my team in comparison to the ways they deeply humbled and blessed me. They are powerful witnesses to God’s transforming love and grace, and I hope that someday I can be a such a powerful example to others in my life.