"When we see the differences of others, we may well be seeing more of God. He cannot be contained in or explained from only one cultural perspective. Thus, culture shock may be a means whereby we see God more clearly in all His glorious diversity."
(taken from Cross-Cultural Connections by Duane Elmer)
I read this quote in one of my required reading books on the plane ride here and it has been the perfect perspective for me as I try to take in this new culture we may be coming to live in.
I feel like my understanding of who God is is expanding as I am exposed to new aspects of His beauty in the different animal life, plant life, language, traditions, and people groups.
This morning, my Bible study teacher quoted during the lecture:
There are around 256 names for God in the Bible... He's infinitely beyond what one name can express.
Thank You, LORD, for revealing more of yourself to me. Please help us all to see you more clearly in all Your glorious diversity.
I am writing this post from the home of Michael's aunt and uncle at Rift Valley Academy (RVA) in Kijabe Kenya! They have been serving here at RVA for over 20 years! They are the ones who are largely responsible for us coming out to RVA, as they first started recruiting us when we were engaged 9 years ago!
And here I sit in their home in Kenya, checking out the campus (and the continent for that matter) as an appointed missionary with Africa Inland Mission (AIM) to come serve full-time at RVA! I can barely wrap my mind around it! (I just realized that I have ended every sentence so far with an exclamation mark :) )
Over a year ago, Michael and I talked to our former church in Raleigh, North Carolina, Providence Baptist Church, about our interest in serving in Africa and asked them if they would consider supporting us. The missions pastor strongly emphasized the importance of going to check out a place before moving there full-time and offered to buy my ticket! Too bad Michael had visited with his grandparents when he was 16, so he missed out on the free ticket deal! :)
Here is the progression of my thoughts and feelings about RVA to date:
1.) Pre-trip: I was feeling pretty confident that God was calling us to RVA and trusting Him and Michael's family members who had been to RVA and assured me that we'd be great here.
2.) Early into trip: I kept singing the song from "Annie"... "I think I'm gonna like it here." But I was also feeling a little apprehensive about the realities of living in Africa.
3.) Mid-trip: (present) We were made to be here... It would be really hard for me to stay in the states after seeing what God has for us out here, even knowing the challenges we will face.
4.) Post-trip: stay tuned...
