Blogging. Still one of the things I can't get into. I am sorry for not writing them even when I don't want to. I know that some of you love reading my blog because I know it's a way to show how I have changed and what is going on with my life. So here we go.

                We are in Manila, Philippines for my final month with Y squad. That is an interesting thing to process. This is the first time in about 2 years I don't know what is coming next. Also the second time in 6 months I will be saying "see ya later" to a new family. I haven't let it sink in just yet. I am down to 12 days here. I will have a 13 hour flight home to deal with that. Also seeing how in these months as squad leader, the places I could have done more. I don't regret anything; just see that I COULD have loved my co-squad leader Sarah more. I could have sought more in some relationships. I am confident that we led this squad to the BEST of our abilities and that what I am seeing now, are things I will know to do next time I am in a role like that. Or how in raising up the 3 amazing new squad leaders, I could have been more intentional in the first 2 weeks. I am one to kind of hand things over and let them fly on their own and go from there. And they were waiting for us to show them things. So we found ourselves in a limbo area and 5 people were waiting for the others to get with it. That is all out on the table now and we are doing work with the time we have left. It just opens my eyes to the fact that I don't have it all figured out. Not that I EVER thought that, but it seems to be a place where I can end up without realizing it. Which I am glad God is showing me, because I don't want to be in a place like that. He is a genius.

                I am also finding out what it means to intercede for people even when I don't talk to them. I have found myself praying for some people more than ever before because I have hit a new level of love. A love that WANTS to do all I can for them, even being thousands of miles away. A place of patience and hope. Hoping in things, but also laying down my wants and expectations to God who knows what I need most. So that if things don't shape up to what I "want" I am not devastated. I put my all and expectations into God who will never fail me and knows what I need. It's grown me a lot. And I thank God for second chances.  

                Integrity. A word that I just recently really listened to what it's definition says. This is what Wikipedia says about it.

"Integrity is a concept of actions, values, methods, measures, principles, expectations, and outcomes. In ethics, integrity is regarded as the and or of one's actions. Integrity can be regarded as the opposite of , in that it regards internal consistency as a virtue, and suggests that parties holding apparently conflicting values should account for the discrepancy or alter their beliefs."

And I like how that sounds. I am striving to be a man of integrity. I fail daily, but I am ok with failing because all that means to me is that I failed in my eyes, but not in God's. We never fail God. It's just a place where we are growing and seeing where we can improve. I want to be a man that is the same when I am alone and when I am surrounded by people. My past life before the race was pretty much the opposite. And I see what that looks like and I will not be that again.

                Hope. Another word that has opened my eyes to seeing things differently. And I am going to use Wikipedia again, sorry to those who loathe it.

Hope is the  state which promotes the belief in a positive outcome related to events and life.It is the "feeling that what is wanted can be had or that events will turn out for the best" or the act of "look[ing] forward to with desire and reasonable confidence" or "feel[ing] that something desired may happen"

I think hope is something we all could use a lot more of. First that takes trust that God is FOR us in all things. He is always shaping us for our best. If we truly grasped that, I wonder if hope would even be a word. It would be called life. When I talk to God, which also has increased and happens quite a bit, I tell him what I would like, but the second after that, I lay that down at his feet. Trusting that if my wants aren't best for me, my hope in Him will outweigh my want.

                So. That is a VERY small piece of my life. I am hopeful, but at the same time nervous about coming home. This is where life starts to take shape. My life the past year and a half isn't typical. And I am wondering how my life is going to look. I am nowhere close to the same person I was just a short time ago. I can't stop pursuing God, but a lot of time I need people around me who will push me when I need to be pushed. To go deep and have conversations about their struggles instead of putting on a happy face to just get through the day. To see lies for what they truly are and FIGHT to call it out and not make it a part of my identity. Grace to be me and be messy as I grow. It sounds easy when you read it, but applying isn't always. I need to be challenged. I can't do "normal" life anymore. Better more, I WONT do "normal" life anymore. 

So someone very close to me, who happens to be quite wise, told me I needed to blog. So here we go.

So we are staying with 2 teams in Mbarara, Uganda at an orphanage/school on a mountain. There is only power when we buy petrol for the generators or if there is a special event that requires lights. Also the water doesn't always flow. It has been off for 2 days now and they have no idea when it will come back on. So we are pretty happy when rain comes, because that means we can shower and wash our clothes. There are also about 400 kids that go to school here. So every morning at 6:45 when I walk out, I get the same blank stare. I am the same person that came out yesterday and I do the same boring things like brushing my teeth or putting my shoes on to go running. I have been running every morning here. I think I average a little over a mile each morning. Of course there is no way to tell, but I am going to say a mileish. That has been real surprise that I have done it 5 days in a row. I know to some who run, that's child's play, but to someone who doesn't really ever run, I am rather proud. We eat breakfast between 9 and 10 am, lunch between 2-4 and dinner can be anywhere from 7-9. Things are a tad different as you can imagine. They don't use power tools. They were digging holes for better supports in the sanctuary and they used a stick with like a trowel on the end. And they just dug with that. No shovels. And when they needed more, they can't just run to Lowe's and get what they need. They brought in a small tree and made 2 more. The chopped it to the length they wanted with a machete, peeled the bark off and then attached the sharp end. I got to dig part of one of the holes and it was not the easiest. Even the guys there said the ground was hard where I was digging at. So I KNOW it wasn't all me!

Each night, all the kids get together and worship. On their own. Let me say that one more time. 350+ kids circle around in the pitch black of night with busted drums and sing and worship God. On their own. No adults are out there. It is something that they do because they WANT to. And the boys don't even live here. They have to walk about 3km to sleep. And walk back to be here around 530am for school things to start. Something about that just hits me. This will continue too. Since the older kids are leading and the younger ones see what they want to be in a few years. How many of our youth back home do things like that? Or even worship? Not singing in the choir or that, but worship? I know I don't do it enough.

                We go into town on the back of motorbikes called piki pikis. We usually get 2 people on each one and it costs 1500 Ugandan Shillings. The exchange rate here is about 2800 UGX to 1 USD. So it costs about .50 to get into town. And I wish I could describe to you the way traffic works here, but I don't understand it. No lights. No stop signs. Just vehicles coming and going as they please. It gets your blood pumping when riding on the back of a bike you can't control, but they seem to know what they are doing even when it doesn't feel like it. The other day we met a guy that has the only 1080p projector in town and I will risk saying probably one of very few in Uganda. His name is Bright and he had been all over including living in CA for about 3 years. Well he came back and opened a coffee shop and movie theatre here in Mbarara. He shows newer movies and has a pretty nice setup. He has the projector and a 5.1 surround system in a room that can seat about 40 or so people. We watched the Dark Knight and Blood Diamond the other night for $1. One of those things you never imagine getting on the race. Almost....ALMOST felt like I was home, but then we went outside and got heckled for rides back to where we live. lol

                I have been learning to play the guitar this week as well. I have learned a handful of chords and have gotten the calluses on the tips of my fingers on my left hand from practicing. I have gotten some tabs from the internet and have been picking away trying to learn some songs. Slowly.....very slowly but surely. So Uncle John, I will want to borrow your guitar again when I get home! 

                And this week I have been asking God what He has been trying to grow me. I got a few answers. Being a squad leader, your main focus is your team leaders and then the rest of the squad. So you are focusing on where your people are at. Making sure they are operating under the 4 pillars that the WR expects. High courage, high consideration, high safety and high preference. Seeing the things that they are struggling with and highlighting it and letting them know it's ok to be messy and weak. When I am in that place, I tend to not concentrate on myself as much. I am finding that when people ask me what God is teaching me, I come up empty. I know he is, but I haven't been listening or even asking for that matter. So I am working on that this week and will be as we continue this race. Another is one that I mentioned a few blogs ago. It's trusting God in things that are long term. Like what I am doing after the race or when God is going to give me that someone to do this thing called life with. I know I am not old, regardless of what some of you may say, but I am not young anymore either. So I would like God to let me in on things, but I know that trust in that is something that I need to work on. So he is going to give me the opportunity to trust him. And also in all this, I know that I am being refined to be that Man of God that my future wife will need me to be. So when I see it like that, where I am not quite where I need to be yet, I am up for that challenge. So here I go.

                I guess that about sums up this week. We head to Rwanda on Tuesday for our 3^rd month. I can't believe that we over half way done. Continue to pray for us as we finish out Africa. Health has been something that has been hard to keep up. Some getting Malaria. Some Typhoid. And then your everyday stomach things and colds. But we are all doing fine now. We got meds for those who needed them and aren't letting those things keep us down.  I haven't been 100% for a few days now so that would be a good prayer to throw my way.

                Also I NEVER would have guessed that Ugandans enjoy Dolly Parton, but they do. Hmph. Oh and we spent part of the day painting a Ugandan and Israeli flag on the side of the church. They are having a conference the next few days and they asked us if anyone could make that happen. Just so happens we could. So I helped sketch it on the church and we will finish painting it tomorrow. Other random things....let me share with you the awesomeness of street food. I stayed back the other day which meant I didn't get lunch. So when the teams got back, I asked Kevin if he wanted to go on an adventure into town. He of course was down so we headed into town with one thing on our minds. Food. Now one that I have to tell you about Africa is that it comes ALIVE at night. More people out and about, the clubs are poppin and the street food vendors are up and going. So we tried a place we have eaten but they were out of food. We hit the strip because I saw some meat grills that looked ridiculous. So we decide to grab a chicken leg which consists of a thigh and drumstick which had been sitting over an open grill for just the perfect amount of time. We each grabbed one for 3500 shillings, just over $1. The best chicken I have had in a long time. We ventured down around the corner and come across yet another hidden delight. We see eggs and chapatti, just think a flour tortilla but slightly thicker and a little more tasty. They take 2 eggs and mix them up with some cabbage, onions, tomatoes and carrots and then grill them then take a chapatti and roll them both up. If I could describe the taste in word form I would, but I can't so you'll just have to imagine it. Sorry. And if you could have noticed I got up half way through this to enjoy another leg of chicken, well then....you....would have ....noticed. 

                So that is about it for me in this last week. I hope you all back home or wherever you are, are having great times! Love you all! Next time you hear from me, I'll be in Rwanda. 

ps. we finished the flags today, but failed to get a picture for me to post on this blog. #tryhardernexttime

Well......it's September 15^th 2011 and I am in Bugiri, Uganda. It is 8:32 am, have been up for about 40 minutes and there has been a baby crying the entire time. And I am laughing about it for the first time as I am typing this out. For the past 39 minutes, not so much laughing. Go figure. I am with my second team this month with a couple more to go. They like to have personal time in the morning and that means they plug into their ipods and barely register if anyone comes into the room. So if you have met me at least once, you can imagine how I deal with that. I am lost! lol I don't need that much personal time in my life. And if I do, I watch a movie at night when everyone else is asleep.  It's been interesting for sure, but good because this team is awesome in its own way. 

 Yesterday we had a day off so we went back to Jinja where the squad stayed for a couple days as we came into Uganda. There was some bungee jumping and some rafting the Nile that occurred too. This off day was more about the food, electricity and internet. The food is phenom and where we are at has the most fickle power I've ever encountered. So most of our stuff was suffering from that. And the internet was ok I guess. Better than nothing.

Well I guess this blog is more to spread the love that God has been giving me. I recently have been prophesied over in some great ways and thought I would share it with more than the people around me. Well I guess it started a couple weeks ago when a fellow amazing P-squader wrote on my wall informing me that I was a prophetic activator. Now when I read that, I had to read it again to see what it really said. So I saw it and was like "I like that!" So I put it in the back of my head to store it cause it was legit. But it wasn't til a day later that it clicked. All the teams we, Sarah and I, had visited had come alive each when we arrived. We noticed it, but never really put any thought to it to what that really may be. I mean we are 2 awesome people and who wouldn't just beam from us being there!!.....but when it finally hit, it was certainly God's perfect timing. If I would have gotten that word before, I think I would have been too bent on living up to that word. But I didn't, so I went into it being me and not trying to do anything but love these people and call out the greatness that I see in them. God knew when to deliver that word and it was so good. And I still operate in the same way and nothing much has changed except maybe how I see the changes.

                Another word I got was a destroyer. One of our team leaders, Kevin Buzzie, told Sarah that he saw us as a team. I mean we ARE, but this was a little more than just the simple word "team". He saw me as a destroyer. Someone who comes in and sees walls that people put up and goes right for them.  I received that word openly. I love that. And it goes past walls too. I see things that people are working out and can help them out in many ways. I see things that people are doing that may not be for their best and can call it out and not allow it to continue. That is something some struggle with for the sole reason of not wanting to offend that person. Well if they are struggling with sin, why wouldn't you want to save them? Seems pretty selfish yeah? So I have been given a new voice and boldness to care more about them in the long run than being their best friend at that moment.

                And then another thing that I was called was the most stubborn life giver ever and I must say I loved that one too. I mean if you have ever met me, you would know that this has it's truths to it. And I know those things are true too. I know I can be a lot to take and that I can be invading at times, but that is simply how I love. I love to show people that I see them and if that means I poke at you or put my finger in your ear as I walk by, then so be it. I also go deep and talk about things that are important, but this is more about the everyday things. People at first don't know how to take it, but I think they soon see that it's just how I roll. I do the same thing to pretty much everyone. I don't just do it to annoy people to death, contrary to what some may believe!!

                Those are just a few things that God has been giving me to show me who I am and that it is because of him that I am these ways. That he has made me specific to that so I can love people in a different way. Maybe to catch them off guard or to be just what they needed. I love every second of it. Doesn't mean I have it all worked out. I have my days when I am down. The last 2 things that were spoken over me came after a morning of me feeling I didn't fit in with this team. I knew it was crap and just a feeble attempt from the enemy to mess with me. Doesn't mean it still doesn't work its way in just a little. Later that night during feedback is when God gave me some words to boost me right back to where I needed to be if not higher. 

                These are just a few examples to why our mouths hold the keys to freeing people from crap. When someone is feeling down, YOU have the words to lift them up. I hadn't told anyone I was feeling out of place. God knew and that's all it took. He used others to give me life and they were open to that. We must be willing to hear and obey God in all things. Especially when it comes to life giving words. That should be something we do all day regardless of hearing God or not. Why would we ever choose to keep silent when we see someone keeping silent? When we keep our mouths silent to speaking life, the enemy will come in and speak death over them in the absence of the life. So be careful the next time you think about NOT speaking life. In those cases you don't.......you're speaking death DIRECTLY to that person.   Something to chew on, cause I know I am.... 

So I have been reading a new book this month and it has been making the old wheels turn in my heart and head. It's called The Barbarian Way by Erwin Raphael McManus (Thanks Jimmy!!) . I recommend it to anyone who wants to see what living a life different from others may be like. He talks about just living your life for the One who made us and maybe He called us to something more than conforming to a safe and proper religion. 

He says, "This is the barbarian way: to give your heart to the only One who can make you fully alive. To love Him with simplicity and intensity. To be consumed by the presence of a passionate and compassionate God. To go where He sends you, no matter the cost."  

That has been making me think a lot about how I may not live in the full trust of God that I should be. I mean I am far more trusting that I was before I started my first race. I am more confident in who I am and the words I know I have inside me. I can confidently say I prophecy over people and myself all the time. I hear from God and he gives me signs and visions that I use to encourage others I consider family. He shows me how he sees them and trusts me to bring his word and love in a way that will bring him glory. I pray in tongues when I have no words to speak. I am developing that as the months go by. I used to wonder about all that, but once I felt the feeling I get when I am in the spirit praying and speaking in a different language that God gave me, I knew I was not imagining things. I get chills at times when I am talking about something that God wants me to remember or something that I am hitting right on point. I have been finding out more and more about this God whom we may contain in something that he shouldn't be. He is more alive than the typical church cares to talk about. He holds us to a higher standard than the rest of the world. He gave us gifts that he WANTS us to use.  He called us to go out and fight the enemy head on with a confidence that he is more powerful. To LOVE those who are lost and not judge.

1 Peter 2:1-5

Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy and all evil speaking, as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word that you may grow thereby. If indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious. Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious, you also as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

Erwin also quotes 1 Peter 2:9-10

"But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation. His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light: who once were not a people but are now the people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy."

He then goes on to say " He went on to describe us as aliens and strangers in the world; all of us different, but a part or the same tribe; all of walking in the same direction, but on a unique path; all of us becoming what we could not without the One who created us. When barbarians travel together, they do not march in single file. There is no forced conformity. They are not required or expected to keep in step. They walk together as free individuals joined not by standardization, but by spirit."

If that doesn't hit you in a different way and make you think about how you live, then I don't know what will. I feel I am a part of a similar tribe in the World Race. There is a freedom to experience God in your own way and not be judged. If you shout and dance in worship, Amen. If you speak in tongues, Amen. If you draw prophetic drawings, Amen. There is no judgment and if there is we talk about it and are open with our feelings. We don't let things get in the way of us calling people out. We live a community of feedback where we speak life all the time and we call people out when they are stuck in sin. We want to call them into greatness and not allow them to be stuck in the things they are battling.   We are fighting to avoid the tragedy that civilized society falls into which is that is it appropriate to mind your own business. Being a barbarian, you choose AGAINST that and take on the responsibility for those who need that life which we all swore to......the day we accepted Jesus into our lives.

All this to say that I have been convicted in the part of my life where I trust God with all things. I know that He has the best out there waiting for me. That doesn't mean it is riches and glory. It could be the very opposite and I need to learn to take that with love and continue to seek him.  Our part in this is to follow and His is to lead. Am I willing to let go of the things I want and love for more in God's plan? I have been obedient for a few years to go where I feel him calling me and he has been faithful. I am coming up in another cross road in my walk. I have been asking God if I can go to Denver to take some time in a different place with some people who could possibly grow me into the next level for me. I have been praying for God to guide me and I am wondering when that time comes, will I go and trust.....?

Will I go wherever he sends me......no matter the cost?

This is the last thing I will leave you with. It is still from The Barbarian Way. It is part of the whole thing of following God that can scare the more timid away. "This is the sticky part of the barbarian call. It's not fair or equitable. When you hear the call, when you follow the call, you must recognize that it is a life-and-death proposition. When you understand what Jesus means when He says that you must follow Him, you finally realize that this is not a cattle call. He is not calling you to the same life that everyone else will live. He's not even calling you to the same path that every follower of Christ will walk. Your life is unique before God, and your path is yours and yours alone. Where God will choose to lead and how God chooses to use your life cannot be predicted by how God has worked in the lives of others before you. Jesus' response to Peter was as straight-forward as it could possibly get: "If I want John to live and you to die, what is that to you? Your part is to follow Me. My part is to lead the way." (John 21:22) 

So here we are in our final team for the month. We have traveled to 4 teams and traveled across most of the country of Kenya. We started in Narobi and then traveled to Siaya, then Kakamega and now we are on the border of Uganda in the town of Busia. And one thing has been constant with all these places. Well really many things have been, but most in my eyes in the hospitality that just pours out from the people here in Kenya. There is something about Africa that is different from the rest of the world. They love harder than anyone else. They are amazing stewards of things that God gives them. Such as food, clothes and even their own homes. A couple of the pastors that we met and even stayed in their houses, also have children that they have adopted and they now raise them live they were their own. It amazes me for some reason. I mean it shouldn't, but when I think about how most of America is with their possessions, I can see why it is foreign to me. I even become far too attached to my things or my space. There is no place for that here in Africa. They fully trust in God and know that it actually isn't theirs, but something that God has entrusted them with. I would live to see more of us back home seek God's counsel in how that can be brought into our lives.  Food for thought.      

                Also something that I have fallen in love with is calling people into the greatness that I see in them, but they may not. Whether they have been lied to for many years or have been put down for so long that they don't have the confidence to see themselves for who God sees them as. It is fun to do and that even comes along with their frustration in those moments. Some don't even know what being loved that way is even all about. I love it and is further affirmation that I am right where I am supposed to be.

                So you can kind of see what our ministry as Squad Leaders differs from the races. We are their spiritual authority and God has given us his eyes to see his beautiful children for who they truly are. And to have the confidence and boldness to call the crap out and point them in a way that will end up with them finding God in more things, especially their own lives and their view of themselves.

                We are closing on their first month out in the world. We have seen many breakthroughs, struggles, and victories. We welcome every inch of the race into our lives. Ups, downs, lefts and rights. But we strive to let go of our ACTUAL rights since we don't actually have any. We gave those up before we launched.  I can't believe we are a week away from month 2. Crazy how fast this goes on this side of things.

                Thank you for all your prayers. I couldn't do this without them. I have faced some of my own struggles and have learned so much from these first 3 weeks and I can't wait to learn so much more in the next 3 months. I also need to mention my support side too. I still need some help in that department. I am about $2000 away from being funded for this race. I want to ask you if you can take some time to ask God if you can be a part of this with me.  I know that God has called me to this and I rest in that knowing he will provide all I need. Thank you for even taking the time to read this. I love you all and would NOT be here if it wasn't for you all. 

lovelovelovelove

I am sitting here in my room that I sleep in wondering what I should blog about. I am in Siaya, Kenya and I have my friend Eugene sitting next to me. He is 15 and has been wanting me to show him how to do the 4x4 rubix cube. The kids here love that thing. I have tried to show him, but it can be kind of complicating especially if you have never played with one before.  Earlier tonight some of us got to play in a hail storm and you may not believe this, but it was FREEZING! The water was rushing down the street and it was the same color as the mud. The hail littered the ground as if has snowed. So as we were out there, we thought it would be a great time to take a shower. So we grabbed my shampoo and I washed my hair out in the Kenyan rain. I can say that it was quite an experience and one that I never expected to have. I mean first, I never thought it got this cold in Kenya and even that storm was rare to the our friends here. That is something that I find "normal" in my life. That and meeting our president's grandmother today was yet another thing I can say I never thought I would do.

                I am going to see what this last week has looked like and try to portray my version of "normal". While at launch, God gave me a vision for Y squad. He showed me an octopus. But it wasn't your "normal" octopus. This one didn't blend in with the surroundings. It stood out and wasn't afraid to be seen for what it was.  Then the next day, Sean Smith gave a nice twist to that. I had originally said that Y squad wasn't your "normal" squad. That we were going to stand out and shine. Sean said that he heard someone put it that it wasn't that we weren't "normal", it was that OUR "normal" had shifted. I liked the ring to that.

                So we were off to Nairobi, but first we had some ground to cover. We left DC at about 10:50pm on August 5^th. We were all in line to get our boarding passes, but God has other plans. My partner in crime, Sarah Schrack, had a small problem. Her passport didn't have enough pages to get a Kenyan Visa. So on Friday at about 6pm, we found out she would not be allowed in the air until she got more pages. Let me give you some info about that. Well the office isn't open on the weekends and you must have an appointment to get in. lol  I also want to note Sarah's reaction to these words coming across the counter. She laughed. I however did NOT. I was a little more like, "false. What can we do?" and they proceeded yet again to inform us that there was nothing that they could do. They could let her on the plane, and get fined, but she would be enjoying the same 19 hours on the plane to come back and probably hear an "I told you so". So we started calling people back at AIM to see what we were to do. They say that she'll just have to stay until Monday to get pages and be on her way solo. So with no other choice, we round up the troops and say see you in a few and do some praying. I think it is worth saying that she prayed a few days before that she get some alone time with Jesus. Make a mental note to be careful what you ask for and how vague your wants are. He WILL answer, but it may NOT be in the way you expect. Here's to no expectations.

                So I am solo with the squad, which I am good with, since this is such a God thing that Sarah is staying. We make it to Doha, Qatar around like 6pm the next day after your  "normal" 14 hour flight across the Atlantic. Our flight leaves around 1am. We have some time to kill.  Some of us grab some free food that you get if you simply show your boarding pass to some lady who gives you a voucher. Bonus oil monies. I then find a nice bench to crawl under, yes I'm serious, to take a nap. I am randomly woken up by some singing  and then applause. I awake some time later to find that a random, I will call them Czech because I love the Czech, group who can sing AND dance their butts off. They were drawn to us because someone had their guitar out. They asked to play it and the rest was history.  Many people walked by giving looks of many different kinds. Some enjoyment. Some confusion. Some annoyance. But all those were because our "normal" has shifted. It is "normal" to sing worship songs and have dance-offs in airports with strangers. It's also normal to sleep under benches because the chairs have armrests and you can't lay flat on them.

                Our plane comes, we board and do that whole flying thing. We land at about 6am in Nairobi and make our way to customs to get our visas and luggage. One of our logistical peeps and I go through ahead to find our ride to the Milimani backpackers lodge to rest our jet lagged bodies for a day or 2. We go out and make a call to see where we should expect our ride to be. Well after a call or 2 we find out that they had no idea we were coming. So we were temporarily stranded at an African airport. Insert "normal" here. God guided us right to the perfect lady for our situation. She just happened to have the owners number of the place we were to be staying. She calls and talks to her and things get worked out to have some buses come get us. Sitting with a random lady and my logistics person in a tiny office in the Nairobi airport. "Normal".

                They come get us and we are good to go. So the 45 of us are now in route to our place of rest for 2 days. Which is a place that many racers had been before so they knew of us which was comfort since we can be something of a different thing to get used to. We can be loud and not realize how many we are. We get there and get settled in. They somehow find us all beds even though they had no clue we were coming. Another thing God smiled upon us on. So good when you can look back and see how God guides you when you are lost. Love it. I gather the team leaders together to talk with them about things they need to get done had how to go about them. First we got SIM cards for our phones. We all sat around and get each other's numbers for the month. When you are working on maybe 3 hours of sleep in 2 days even things like that become overwhelming. Then I talk to them about budget and how much money to take out and why. Our food budget was 1083 shillings for the amount of days we had. So depending on the number of people on each team that would vary on their total budget. So I just told them to each take out 10000 shillings so that they could have extra on them. I tend to forget that taking out multiple thousands of foreign currency is....wait for it......"normal".  And that whole lack of sleep thing got me and I at first forgot to explain to them why that is a good idea. So I had to round them up again and calm them down. Lol So I got a couple guys together to make a money run. We headed to the local bank to make a rather large withdraw.  Mission accomplished. But wait, what's this we see, the Java House? A local coffee place that all racers rave about? Done. We peek in to see what this place has to offer in the form of food and beverages. We find that they offer just that. We order and I get the avocado and bacon omelet. I mean nothing has sounded so good. I may have also ordered a double Mocha which I can say was up there on the delicious chart.

                So we make it back to the backpackers place and people get some food and we all find out that going to bed at 9 is an actual thing. We get up and get the next day rolling. We have a cultural debrief that morning to inform all people new to Africa about what things we may do at home could offend people here. Then team leaders head off and get their bus tickets to be scattered about western Kenya. That day went way smoother considering we were operating on some decent sleep. That day nothing out of the ordinary happened that I can recall. So onto the next.

                All the teams get going by 730am and I left with team Tuna moto, which means team on fire in Swahili. We meet their contact later that day and we are on our way to where they would be staying for the next month. We are greeted with tea, snacks and very open and hospitable people. As you will find in most of Africa. The rest of that day was spent seeing some of Nairobi including part of the world's now largest slum. To be honest I can't really recall what that day was all about. Seeing as I have done this for almost a year, days spent roaming around cities around the world has become "normal".  

                Sarah and I will be in yet another city at the beginning of next week. We should be going to the city of Kakamega and staying a week then going to another city, Busia, to see another team. That should conclude this month and we are gathering all the teams together for a day then traveling to Uganda.  I know that I will have more things occur in my day that I will find as "normal" but some may consider crazy. Like we have a chicken that lives in this house all day every day. Or I tried to trade shirts with some guy on the street. He said we could tomorrow so I am hoping for that to happen! Lol We are having a crusade with the local church and we went out the spread the word. When we started I saw a hospital so I requested that our team start there and do some healing prayer. We pray over some people and come across 2 guys. One with Malaria and one with a broken leg. Neither are believers but they are attending church regularly. I talk to them for a minute letting them know that all we simply have to do is let go and Jesus will come in and take place in our hearts and he will do the work. The nodded and agreed but weren't quite ready for that.  So I prayed healing and for God to continue to work on them so that day where they desire more will come. We go down the row and on the way out, they stop the girl I was with, Sarah Ball, and asked for a bible. "The conviction is hitting already" our translator Ezekiel said. I nodded in agreement and then asked if they had any or a way we could get one. He said they didn't have any, but that there was a store right next to where we were having the open air event. SCORE! So when we were done walking around the village we made our way to the place and I found the store, bought a Good News Bible complete with Old and New Testament for 550 shillings, which is about $6 USD. We immediately took it back to him where we found him sleeping, so I laid it on his bed side table and left. Before leaving it, I underlined and marked basically all of John 6 where Jesus is talking about his is the bread. I specifically marked John 6:32-40

                ³² Then Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but My Father gives you the true bread from heaven. ³³ For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." 
³⁴ Then they said to Him, "Lord, give us this bread always." 
³⁵ And Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst. ³⁶ But I said to you that you have seen Me and yet do not believe. ³⁷ All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out. ³⁸ For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. ³⁹ This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that of all He has given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day. ⁴⁰ And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day."

                All that to say I love my life. I love that it is not necessarily "normal" to some. I love that I get to love on those who may never hear or feel God's love. I love that I get to make friends all over the world. I love that I get to be broken to become more and a stronger man of God. I love that God found me special enough to use me in his way. I challenge you to become less "normal". Ask God what that may mean. Ask him to guide you to that place. I promise you will not regret it. You will find God in that place and most likely many others who will welcome you home....and it will become your "normal".