I arrived in Kenya just a few days ago, and I feel like a five-year-old in a physics class. Everything is interesting and new; the cultures, so diverse. I wish that I could understand all the subtleties at once, but I suppose that would take the joy out of learning. But I get ahead of myself...
Unfolding myself from the square-foot seat that corresponded with my ticket from Amsterdam, I was eager to stand and stretch after two 9-hr flights. The scenery had been spectacular and diverse: craggy Rocky mountains, broad ice sheet of Hudson Bay, glaciers of Greenland, crimson morning above the Atlantic, Holland's waterways and fields, the stark dunes of the Sahara. My brain was foggy from lack of sleep and the 14-hour time zone differential. There was no problem obtaining a Kenyan visa, picking up my box, or going through customs. Then I stepped out into the pick-up area. People were everywhere holding signs for their corresponding travelers, families embraced with joyful exclamation, taxi drivers solicited service. An hour had passed since leaving the DC-10, and yet I saw nobody holding the SIM sign. Nobody to pick me up. Sweat beaded on my forehead and I suddenly became aware of the humidity.
Walking outside, I searched for the SIM taxi. No taxi. Ok, Julie, time to problem-solve. I had the info about transportation, phone numbers, and address. No cell coverage. Um, I'll get a taxi to the address listed. I tried unsuccessfully to take funds out of an ATM. Exhausted, hot, and feeling like I was alone on Mars, I felt tears starting to overflow.
Pray! The thought brought confidence as I knew that my God would supply all my need (Phil 4:19) and provide wisdom. Suddenly a man came up beside me and offered me his cell phone. I called several of the numbers that had been provided, but all contacts were unavailable. Again, I felt my helplessness acutely. This time, God encouraged me with: "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness," (2 Cor 12:9). Ok, Julie, surrender your need for control. Trust Jesus. I borrowed someone else's cell, no answers. More prayer. I made one last call. An answer!
Business at SIM headquarters had caused the pick-up to be overlooked, but I'm grateful for the lessons learned in that first hour on Kenyan soil. Complete surrender and trust in Christ is the foundation for all that I am to do as a believer and missionary nurse. How wonderful to see how God worked out transportation! Turns out that another missionary was at the airport at the same time, so we shared a ride into Nairobi. The missionary and his wife had spent their entire lives working on an Eritrean translation of the Bible for Wycliffe. They are two-years out from completion! What an amazing testimony to see the joy of a life lived for Jesus Christ!
A warm shower and peaceful sleep revived me, and I have spent the last few days orienting with the wonderful staff at SIM Kenya and Sudan office. I'm now living in the guest house and walk to the local markets for supplies that I will bring to Doro.
Psalm 103 shouts encouragement from the pages of the Bible before me. David writes, "As a father pities his children, so the Lord pities those who fear Him. For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust. Bless the Lord, all His works, in all places of His dominion. Bless the Lord, O my soul!" (vs. 13, 14, 22). This passage reminds me that He loves me and I am in His care. No matter where He leads, this world is not my home; it is the place for me to be surrendered to His will and share His love.
The driver at the airport chuckled when he picked me up. "This is your first time to Africa, yes? Well, welcome to Nairobi!"
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