Rachel's Reflections

Thanksgiving is a time to be thankful for what we have, but for me it has also always been a time to be with family. This year I knew would be very different so I tried to plan ahead with my housemate Lauren.  We ended up going to another missionary families home with a few other Americans to celebrate Thanksgiving dinner. ( thankful for all the delicious food and everyone who contributed) I'm thankful we were able to have that time of fellowship. It meant a lot to me, being away from physical family, to have that spiritual family united with one purpose: to serve our Lord where He has called us. One of the other families there that night have been working with the Mwani people in another town for around six years. It was captivating listening to their stories, their knowledge, their experience, and their heart for these people. I was encouraged to hear how God has been working and is continuing to work in their hearts and lives. I'm thankful  for ...

Wednesday: Just a regular team meeting, or so I thought. Suddenly my heart tightened as Ana told me they had already sold everything and would be leaving in less than a week. My closest friend in Pemba, the one who always understands how I'm feeling, who has always been there for me whenever I needed someone. Her son Theo, my favourite little boy to play with, who calls me "auntie". Her husband, Jhonatan who changed my flat tire when I got stuck and protected me from creepy guys. Leaving. On Tuesday. I had been trying to process the news of their decision to leave for family reasons back home. But thought I had more time to spend together before saying goodbye. I tried to hold it together during the team meeting, but during prayer time I couldn't do it. Here I am, responsible for the remaining team members who are still new and adjusting to life in Pemba and all I could do was weep. After everyone else left I went to my room and cried out to God. I can't do t...

I called out to Mama R as I walked into her yard my first day back in Pemba. She responded from inside her house, asking if it was one of the neighbors. As she came out the door and spotted me she said "it is you!" and gave me a hug (which I've never seen her do before). (the view from my first week back in Pemba) When the church service ended several of my friends came over to greet me, welcoming me back, and giving me hugs. Mama S sat up with a big grin on her face,  despite having a cold and a headache,  as she saw me coming.  Mama J was bubbling with excitement as I stopped in to visit her with Lauren. These are the reasons why I love living in Pemba. What makes it worth coming back after being gone for a month. What I miss when I'm away. What makes difficulties or unexpected leadership responsibilities easier to deal with. Yes, I said unexpected leadership responsibilities... My team leader and family are now in the U.S. raising support until the...

My heart was racing. My head was pounding. Dashing down the hall, up the stairs, and into my room, I grabbed my backpack and started throwing essentials in. Passport, money, change of clothes, good shoes, vaccine history card, other important documents, snacks, water, toiletries. Less than 6 minutes later I was racing back down the stairs to meet up with the rest of the group. That was a drill during our safety and security session at the Africa Based Orientation training I have been attending the past three weeks. I succeeded in grabbing almost everything our security officer had on her list of important things needed in a To Go Bag in case of emergency or evacuation. (A ready dad during our security drill) I tucked my hair underneath the scarf covering my head and shoulders as we walked toward the imposing building to observe a typical, afternoon prayer time and listen to the leader explain about his religion. Part of learning about one of the major world religions prevale...

I used to run into the back yard, straight to the bushes, and find my chameleon friends. I would laugh as they tickled their way up my arm, to my shoulder, and into my hair. Today, I got to relive that memory a little bit (see it on my hand?). It's our day off from training and we had fun hiking near a crater, stretching our legs after three straight days of sitting in "class." Day one of training we each shared our story of how God brought us to where we are today, being His ambassadors of the Gospel in Africa. It was interesting reflecting on how God brought me from Kenya as a child (bottom left), to the experiences and training I received with Child Evangelism Fellowship and Word of Life (near top), back to Africa with my internship (center of R), to Mozambique full-time with Africa Inland Mission, and everything in between. One other special rewind to childhood was visiting the airplane hangar my dad used to work at in Nairobi. After 17 years I still reme...

Pemba, a place I have learned to call home. But yesterday I traveled to Kenya for a 3 week training. As the plane descended toward Nairobi I felt like I was coming home. I have called many places home, but Kenya holds a special place in my heart because of all my wonderful, childhood memories. I count it a huge blessing to be a Third Culture Kid. Caught between cultures, I often see the world differently through a unique set of lenses. I can flex back and forth to fit in or understand one culture or another. But at the same time, the feeling of never truly belonging hovers at the edge of the heart. Theo and Malu, my little traveling companions, children of my Brazilian teammates, are now experiencing the life of Third Culture Kids. They are really good friends and it's cute to see them together. Theo was excited to be traveling with "Tia Tachel" (Aunt Rachel as he pronounces it in Portuguese) and stuck with me most of the trip from Pemba to Nai...

"Do you understand why Jesus died on the cross?" I asked her after listening to the end of John and the beginning of Acts in Kimwani. "No," my house help answered as we finished cleaning the bedrooms. In my not-so-perfect Portuguese vocabulary I tried explaining that Jesus had died on the cross for us. We are sinners deserving of punishment, but Jesus, God-in-flesh, took our punishment for us. Three days later He came back to life again, and anyone who believes in Jesus, as God, for the forgiveness of their sins, is forgiven and has eternal life. She understood perfectly what I was trying to say and even helped fill in some of the important vocabulary words I had forgotten in Portuguese. I asked her if she knew what will happen when she dies, she responded no. I told her I know that when I die I will go to heaven because I believe in who Jesus is and what He did on the cross. I explained to her that this is the only real difference between her and I. If she bel...