Settling in
We have completed our move and are settling into our house here. It is lusciously quiet. Over the past week, we’ve planted a number of flowers, bushes and trees in our yard. Joél putters around the yard as much as he can: planting, arranging, and making pathways. We’ve enjoyed being able to run errands that we would normally have scheduled a day to come to Chimoio and be home in time for lunch. The other evening we walked to friends’ house for supper.
Now the challenge is to find friends. We live close to a number of people from our Bible study. The other day, we discovered that our next door neighbor is one of the women in the CCM Women’s group. It’s nice to know we have good neighbors. We continue to pray that we will find places to be in relationship with Mozambicans. Perhaps church.
Yesterday we visited the Catholic Church. I have never seen a Catholic church so full. We arrived at 8:45, thinking it would begin at 9 AM, but the first service was still going and people were standing outside. We returned at 9:30 for the 10:00 service and the sanctuary was half full. A few minutes later, a nun stood up and talked with the people present about Lent, what it is, how it is 40 days of preparation for Easter, how it is a time of sacrifice and the role of fasting during Lent. The church continued to fill to the point that Joél whispered to me, “It’s like we’re in a chapa!” Suddenly the service began and people started singing. We didn’t recognize the songs but most people in the congregation knew them. It’s amazing to me every time I visit a Catholic church how people know all the liturgies and creeds to be able to repeat them along with the worship leaders. I also wonder if they think about what they say as they recite them together. There are some powerful truths in the creeds. The service ended close to 11:30 and we walked home.
I don’t remember the last time we were at home and got home from church at 12:00. The Mennonite church in Gondola usually didn’t start until 11 or 11:30 because that was when people showed up. It felt miraculous to have a whole Sunday afternoon to do Sunday afternoon things—nap, read, take a walk.
And so we begin our to settle in.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Starting over in Chimoio
A few months ago, a friend lent me Sheila Cassidy’s book Good Friday People. The book is stories of people who suffered because of their faith. It showed me that though, my life here in Mozambique has more often than not, been hard, that God is still working and all is not for naught. It showed me how people of faith, though we often waiver in our confidence and feel like life is bleak, still end up seeing God shining through the darkness. That God is working through us and in us to accomplish his will of alleviating oppression and pain, of bringing reconciliation to people, of rebuilding ancient walls.
Throughout the book, she quoted a poem that exemplifies the struggle that we have with our calling, with our faith in God and how we keep trudging on. When I read the poem in its entirety, it struck me how it shows the struggles and triumphs of life, particularly for those of us who because of our faith live overseas. I initially had scribbled one of the stanzas in my journal, because it so embodied Joél’s and my experience here in Mozambique.
We did not want it easy God
But we did not contemplate
That it would be quite this hard
This long, this lonely.
Like the author writes, we expected it to be hard, but not so hard and so lonely,. I think what strikes me the most about the poem is how its theme is that of Philippians 3: 13-14 “…forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”
Now as we “start over”, living in Chimoio, our prayer continues to invite God to work in and through us, to give us strength for the journey, for courage to step out of our comfort zones, to find places for new relationships (particularly with Mozambicans), and to learn how to see God in new ways. We feel hope as we settle into living in the city. Hope that we will continue to serve God and how he is leading, to be healthy and to find good relationships.
Starting Over, Fighting Back
And so we must begin to live again,
We of the damaged bodies
And assaulted minds.
Starting from scratch with the ruble of our lives
And picking up the dust
Of dreams once dreamt.
And we standing there, naked in our vulnerability,
Proud of starting over, fighting back,
But full of weak humility
At the awesomeness of the task.
We, without a future,
Safe, defined, delivered
Now salute you God.
Knowing that nothing is safe,
Secure, inviolable here.
Except you,
And even that eludes our minds at times.
And we hate you
As we love you,
And our anger is strong
As our pain
Our grief is deep as oceans
And our need as great as mountains.
So we take our first few steps forward
Into the abyss of the future,
We would pray for
Courage to go places for the first time
And just be there.
Courage to become what we have
Not been before
And accept it,
And bravery to look deep
Within our souls to find
New ways.
We did not want it easy God
But we did not contemplate
That it would be quite this hard
This long, this lonely.
So, if we are to be turned inside out,
And upside down,
With even our pockets shaken,
Just to check what’s rattling
And left behind,
We pray that you will keep faith with us.
And we with you,
Holding our hands as we weep,
Giving us strength to continue,
And showing us beacons
Along the way
To becoming new.
We are not fighting you, God,
Even if it feels like it,
But we need your help and company,
As we struggle on.
Fighting back
And starting over.
Anna McKenzie
A few months ago, a friend lent me Sheila Cassidy’s book Good Friday People. The book is stories of people who suffered because of their faith. It showed me that though, my life here in Mozambique has more often than not, been hard, that God is still working and all is not for naught. It showed me how people of faith, though we often waiver in our confidence and feel like life is bleak, still end up seeing God shining through the darkness. That God is working through us and in us to accomplish his will of alleviating oppression and pain, of bringing reconciliation to people, of rebuilding ancient walls.
Throughout the book, she quoted a poem that exemplifies the struggle that we have with our calling, with our faith in God and how we keep trudging on. When I read the poem in its entirety, it struck me how it shows the struggles and triumphs of life, particularly for those of us who because of our faith live overseas. I initially had scribbled one of the stanzas in my journal, because it so embodied Joél’s and my experience here in Mozambique.
We did not want it easy God
But we did not contemplate
That it would be quite this hard
This long, this lonely.
Like the author writes, we expected it to be hard, but not so hard and so lonely,. I think what strikes me the most about the poem is how its theme is that of Philippians 3: 13-14 “…forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”
Now as we “start over”, living in Chimoio, our prayer continues to invite God to work in and through us, to give us strength for the journey, for courage to step out of our comfort zones, to find places for new relationships (particularly with Mozambicans), and to learn how to see God in new ways. We feel hope as we settle into living in the city. Hope that we will continue to serve God and how he is leading, to be healthy and to find good relationships.
Starting Over, Fighting Back
And so we must begin to live again,
We of the damaged bodies
And assaulted minds.
Starting from scratch with the ruble of our lives
And picking up the dust
Of dreams once dreamt.
And we standing there, naked in our vulnerability,
Proud of starting over, fighting back,
But full of weak humility
At the awesomeness of the task.
We, without a future,
Safe, defined, delivered
Now salute you God.
Knowing that nothing is safe,
Secure, inviolable here.
Except you,
And even that eludes our minds at times.
And we hate you
As we love you,
And our anger is strong
As our pain
Our grief is deep as oceans
And our need as great as mountains.
So we take our first few steps forward
Into the abyss of the future,
We would pray for
Courage to go places for the first time
And just be there.
Courage to become what we have
Not been before
And accept it,
And bravery to look deep
Within our souls to find
New ways.
We did not want it easy God
But we did not contemplate
That it would be quite this hard
This long, this lonely.
So, if we are to be turned inside out,
And upside down,
With even our pockets shaken,
Just to check what’s rattling
And left behind,
We pray that you will keep faith with us.
And we with you,
Holding our hands as we weep,
Giving us strength to continue,
And showing us beacons
Along the way
To becoming new.
We are not fighting you, God,
Even if it feels like it,
But we need your help and company,
As we struggle on.
Fighting back
And starting over.
Anna McKenzie
Tuesday, March 03, 2009
Updates
It’s been a while since we updated our blog and have let people know what’s happening in our lives. There have been a few (major) advancements…
We have decided to extend our term for one more year. So instead of coming back to the States in October of this year, we will be here until October 2010. We feel like this is where God is leading us as we get more into our work. We are enjoying our work here, Joél being the liaison between our partners, MCC Moz and CFGB and me with my various projects of working with SALT, learning tours, savings groups and other CCM activities. By extending we gain more experience because we are realizing we really like this type of work. Extending allows us another year to improve our Portuguese. J
We are moving to Chimoio. As our work with CCM and other partners increase, we have been traveling to Chimoio with more frequency. Also, by being in Chimoio, as the primary MCC contact persons to the Mennonite church, we are better able to work with the two largest congregations without being mixed up in the local politics associated with attending one of the congregations. We are looking forward to just being able to go to a church to worship without having the expectations of being someone’s missionary on us. Chimoio is the provincial capital of Manica and we will be able to take walks without being so noticed because people are more accustomed to foreigners and it’s a city.
We are expecting a baby. The baby is due in late June. So far I have felt pretty good, except for minor nausea and increased headaches during the first trimester. We are planning to go to South Africa for the birth. I’ll leave for Johannesburg in mid-May, Joél will come at the beginning of June. In case you were wondering, we are not going to find out if it is a boy or a girl. It’s hard to know how life will change with a child. In some ways I anticipate that it will help us in making relationships with people because very few couples are childless. Our parents are excited though I’m sure that they wish we’d be closer. It’s the first grandchild on both sides.
It’s been a while since we updated our blog and have let people know what’s happening in our lives. There have been a few (major) advancements…
We have decided to extend our term for one more year. So instead of coming back to the States in October of this year, we will be here until October 2010. We feel like this is where God is leading us as we get more into our work. We are enjoying our work here, Joél being the liaison between our partners, MCC Moz and CFGB and me with my various projects of working with SALT, learning tours, savings groups and other CCM activities. By extending we gain more experience because we are realizing we really like this type of work. Extending allows us another year to improve our Portuguese. J
We are moving to Chimoio. As our work with CCM and other partners increase, we have been traveling to Chimoio with more frequency. Also, by being in Chimoio, as the primary MCC contact persons to the Mennonite church, we are better able to work with the two largest congregations without being mixed up in the local politics associated with attending one of the congregations. We are looking forward to just being able to go to a church to worship without having the expectations of being someone’s missionary on us. Chimoio is the provincial capital of Manica and we will be able to take walks without being so noticed because people are more accustomed to foreigners and it’s a city.
We are expecting a baby. The baby is due in late June. So far I have felt pretty good, except for minor nausea and increased headaches during the first trimester. We are planning to go to South Africa for the birth. I’ll leave for Johannesburg in mid-May, Joél will come at the beginning of June. In case you were wondering, we are not going to find out if it is a boy or a girl. It’s hard to know how life will change with a child. In some ways I anticipate that it will help us in making relationships with people because very few couples are childless. Our parents are excited though I’m sure that they wish we’d be closer. It’s the first grandchild on both sides.
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