Tena na Tena na Tena means Again and Again. Reflections of third trip to Tanzania

1) God will use what he can to teach you to be still. 7 hour church service in a foreign language? Yep even that. Sleeping infant growing heavy headed in your arms? For sure. Long bus rides on bumpy roads? Definitely. All times when I had NO other option but to be still, talk to God, experience the wonder of the world HE created. And if we are lucky, we get to be still along some pretty amazing people.

2) Sometimes taking us out of our comfort zone, is what God needs to calm all our fears. I had a lot of anxiety leaving on this trip … and honestly, I’m feeling it creeping back in. The unfamiliar is becoming more and more comforting. Putting your schedule and safety in someone else’s hands is freeing. Maybe that also goes along with being still. One of my favorite songs has this lyric that is so very powerful to me. “Sometimes I gotta stop and remember that You’re God and I am not.” At home I worry too much about what people think, defending myself, just being “on” all the time. Maybe more surrender and less strive is where I need to be.

3) My Tanzanian friends say “If God wishes” A LOT. They show such extreme trust in God’s will, whether it is in their families, their ministries, their travels or whether our paths will cross again. I have that phrase, in Swahili, tattooed on my foot. It is supposed to remind me that God has already ordered my steps. I’ve had some interesting things proposed to me the last few weeks. It’s time for me to pray and see what God wishes. His time is perfect.

4) Family and home are important, but they can both be created anywhere and can be different things at the same time. I have family at home in America and here in Tanzania … and have added to that family. Rory Payne really helped drive that home. She wanted to have family names for each of us! And you know people are family when it’s been years since you have seen them and can talk like it’s been no time, even with a language barrier!! Home is not just where you live, it is where you can go and feel comfortable again and again and again (Tena na Tena na Tena) Shinyanga is that for me!

Tutaonana Tanzania!! Nawapenda sana wote!