The children are so very precious here - as though Heaven opens for one breathtaking moment to pierce me with a timeless glimpse into Your heart for these dear little ones. And, oh, how I long so to share Your love with them! The love I have seen from You - in You -with You. It is unfailing in a failing world; it is faithful among faithless people; it is strong when we are weak; it is big when we are so small. It is everlasting and calls us to walk hand-in-hand with Eternity.
I love all the children at Gisimba . . . looking down into their dear brown faces, watching them dance with such abandon, hearing them sing and play the drums - but two especially have captured my heart. Afisa is a sweet little girl with a brilliant smile, and she runs up every morning to give me a hug, and then walks with me for a while, holding my hand. And then there is Karim. I think I may have told you about Karim before. He is extraordinary, naughty, hilarious - and you really should see him dance! It’s not that he’s so good at it - in fact, I think he’s one of the worst African dancers I know - he just looks so very pleased with himself for coming up with all these different, mostly robot-like moves. He led his team in some Egyptian actions today - not quite sure what to call it - it was the sort of thing you would do if you were singing, “Pharaoh, Pharaoh.” He follows me everywhere (sometimes even when he’s supposed to be with his team!) and keeps drawing hearts and the word “love” on his arm. I believe at one point he even asked me to marry him. It’s hard to tell; his English is not so good. He also engaged two little assistants to help him do up my hair this afternoon. After working quite diligently on two floofy pigtails that stood straight out, he shooed the others away, stepped back, and heartily exclaimed, “Beautiful!”
What can I do for these children, Lord? How can I spend my life for their sake? This is the new pursuit that has quite firmly wrapped up all of my heart. I am in awe of You for bringing me here - in awe of You for the love you have shown me and the love You have for these kids. As always, my Lord, lead me on.
