Jan. 13, I love serving my God who is concerned about the smallest things in my life.

 Ministry Partners,

II Cor. 5:18-20 “All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. ²⁰ We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God.”

This was a sad morning for me since it is my last morning to wake up in Africa                                 

 

Last night I was able to present to the Commissioner of Prisons the Report Alfred did and Juliette, who own the hotel here also came by. It was nice to say “Thank you” to them and tell them I appreciated all they did to make this mission trip a success. Juliette told me to let her know when we made the decision for the next trip because she will need time to have air conditioning put in for me. She really spoils me when I am here.

Alfred and Aaron had a special time of prayer over me and our time together that left all three of us in tears. Saying goodbye gets harder each year. Before getting to the airport, we stopped and Alfred bought eats for us. We were going to stop and have breakfast but we were running late.

When we got to the airport Alfred went inside with me since there was no one with a wheelchair at the entrance, he was able to go through security and get me booked in before leaving. That was really a gift because for some reason they had trouble getting me booked in so they could print my boarding passes. When he left he was asked how he got inside and he texted me saying…….. “You should have seen the lady at the exist asking me how did you get in? I told her, “I have finished what brought me and I am going back - How I came in, I don’t know.“ But we both know it was a Savior who loves me who sees that I am in need of some help. Thank you Jesus for your love and care in even the smallest things.

I usually fly from Portland to Amsterdam to Entebbe but this trip had me going from Amsterdam to Nairobi to Entebbe. On the return flight I was to go from Entebbe to Amsterdam to Atlanta and finally Portland. I was not overly happy with going to Atlanta as I have never been in that airport and there can be delaying weather but for the first time ever due to two generous friends, I was gifted the opportunity to fly first class and and I knew with wheel chair assistance I would be fine.

But two day ago I began to see God’s care again because Kenya Airways sent me an email and said my return flight had been changed. Instead of flying out at 11:50 pm like I have for all the years I can remember I would be flying out at 2:45 pm.. All of us were bummed because on fly out day we usually start late and then drive to an area close to the airport in the late afternoon and have the best Tilapia (right from the lake) dinner at the edge of Lake Victoria. It has always been a wonderful time to just enjoy God’s creation and each other before we all travel home. Otherwise, we work so hard that we really do not have time to just enjoy each other’s company.

While on the way to the airport Alfred said, “Look at how clear the roads are. People are getting ready for the election tonight and want to be preparing for the celebration that’s why most stores are even closed so they can be campaigning. In a couple of hours, the roads will be packed with people and lots of police and military to keep down any rioting that could occur all night. That’s when the “lightbulb” went off. I asked Alfred if he thought perhaps that is why God allowed my ticket to be changed so we would not be caught in that may-lay while trying to get me to the plane on time. We all agreed that again, it was God’s care for this weary soldier.

Originally, I would be going from Entebbe to direct to Amsterdam, so I was concerned about the additional Nairobi stop but when Alfred went to sign me in on line, we discovered that the Atlanta stop was no longer there but the Nairobi layover is 6 hours. Again, I am thankful for being able to relax and rest in the very nice lounge and with all the food here, I sure won’t have to worry about being hungry at dinner time and not finding something good to eat.

I love serving my God who is concerned about the smallest things in my life.  

That is all for today, I will try to get some rest before my flight.

That none would be lost,

Arlene