Grab a seat..and read about Mozambique!

Has it really been almost 90 days since I last wrote? Wow....time is flying!! I can't believe I have been here in South Africa for 4 months now. So many amazing things have happened, and I am so thankful to the Lord for the opportunities He is giving me. There have been hard days as well, but I'm thankful for His new mercies daily. I wanted to give you a glimpse into an incredible long weekend I recently had in Mozambique. When James and Ella asked me if I wanted to go along with them, I jumped at the chance of traveling to another country. I love going new places, and experiencing new adventures. Katie also went along. (a short-termer from Alaska) I'll save "her" for another post, but I sure am thankful she came along. We left the Embree kids with another missionary family, and took off the morning of June 18th. It was the four of us, along with Eric and his wife and son, and Derrick. Eric and Derrick are students at ICBM, the college James teaches at, and Eric is originally from Mozambique. His story is amazing..he was forced to be a child soldier at the age of 12, and escaped, finding Jesus and now pastoring a church. I'll also save that one for a later post. So, we arrive in Xai-Xai 17 hours later. What you need to realize is that there is no electricity, and the roads are narrow and dirt. We didn't really know where we were going, and at one point, James went in a complete circle. We were crackin' up...probably from a lack of sleep.


We finally arrived around 1 in the morning.....James and Ella had a little hut, and Katie and I were in a cement house. We didn't know what to expect, as we were never told where we would be staying.

Katie and I got to bed around 2, and not 2 hours later, we hear a man outside our door talking very loudly. "What in the world?" was our immediate thought. Was he praying? Was he talking to himself? We never did find out, but that went on for about an hour. We fell back asleep for another hour-and find ourselves awake again, only this time to the sounds of cows, goats, chickens, roosters, and turkeys. My goodness, they were right outside our window! Katie and I were cracking up...I think we were slap-happy from not enough sleep, but we couldn't control our laughter. At this point, it's around 6:30 I believe, and so we get up. We are asked if we want hot water for our bathing bucket. Katie declines, and I accept. And the toilets? Well, they were interesting as well. These pics will give you a glimpse! (btw....I LOVE toilet paper) :)



James and Ella had gone with Eric into town to buy food-they ended up feeding the entire village with fish and rice..it was amazing! We decide to mingle with the villagers...Latina was also with us, so we had someone to communicate with. We then went to the church (a building made of grass/sticks and a tin roof) It was full of people, and Derrick gave a message. James and Ella were still not back, so I pulled out my Bible and started talking. I didn't have anything prepared, and so it was going to be whatever words the Lord gave me. Well, I didn't have to talk much, as James and Ella finally made their way to us....the church was a good walk from where we were staying. We moved outside, and James gave a message. We were then seated for lunch....bread rolls and cassava. Cassava is like yuka, which I had in Venezuela. Yuka is like...well, I'm not sure. It's kind of like potato but firmer.



The villagers then took us down to where they fetch their water. We walked down the hill, and got to the hole. Although living in the village was amazing and I loved every minute of it, I don't know if I could live like that. For most of them, that is all they have ever known, so it's just life....a very different life from me.


It had started to rain very heavily, so we all moved back into the church. They made a makeshift covering outside for everyone of bamboo and tin in a short period of time...it was something to see!! We had dinner...fish-heads, chicken, rice, and pop. Pop is kind of like grits I would say. Anyway...I didn't eat all that much this evening. I did put the fish in my mouth, but that is the farthest it went!





We then started up the generator, and showed the Jesus film in Tsonga, their language. They had never seen a movie before, and it was neat to see their reactions at the different scenes.

We left the following morning, and the villagers gave us a nice farewell. It was hard to communicate because of the language barrier, but I would go back in a heart-beat. I really loved my time in the village!

We made a stop to get petrol, and the people surrounded our car, wanting us to buy from them. James summoned one, and they all came running. Mozambique is known for cashews, which they roast and sell. He got some, and we were on our way. (btw...they were delicious!)

We arrived in Palmeara, where James spoke again. There was a lot of singing and dancing here! When the service ended, we were asked to go with them to where they get away every other Saturday. They have a spot where they go to get away from the distractions of life so they can truly worship without anything to bother or hinder them. So we start walking, and walking, and walking. It seemed like forever, but we finally arrived...in the middle of a huge field, and began walking in circles singing. We did this for quite some time. It was quite an experience. I was given a baby (a big, solid boy) at one point, which I enjoyed. We prayed, and then made our way back to the church, and went into a home to have a meal. Ella found something interesting in her rice, but I won't bore you with those details now. :) (This is also where we think Elle picked up tick-bite fever)





We were then on our way to Maputo, a big city. James was speaking at a church the following morning, so we stayed at the pastors home. We had a wonderful meal with them, but quickly noticed how bad the mosquitos were. We were on malaria medicine at this point, and didn't really see too many out in the village. But man, were they present in the city! We loathed in deet and lotions, and tried our best not to get bit. I think I actually did well on this, as I didn't get a bite at all...neither did James. But Ella and Katie got several. We just prayed that the malaria wouldn't attack their bodies. (and they never got it...PTL!) Katie and I got into bed that night, and made sure the mosquito net was in place. Again, we were awoken to strange sounds at 2 am. We started cracking up!

Sunday morning, we did a short stint with the little kids, and Derrick shared with the youth. It was then time for the service. We were seated up on the platform, which must have been custom, because that happened at every place. The service was the longest I had ever attended....4 hours! There was singing and dancing, 2 messages, communion, membership certificates handed out....I didn't think it would ever end!!

Sunday afternoon, Eric took us to the Indian Ocean, and we stepped in. We then went to a market...oh man, I loved every minute of that, and wished we could have stayed longer. It was dirty and filled with people selling everything from fish and veggies, to shoes and wraps. Katie and I were both looking for wrap skirts to sport! At one point, Ella begins talking to a guy, and many more gather around and she just starts sharing Jesus. I loved watching her! We got back, and had a quiet evening, before retreating to bed early.












We left the following morning, and I can say that I am so thankful I was able to go to Mozambique. It truly was an incredible experience that I will never forget, and I hope that I'll be able to go back again someday.

(Here are a few more random pics from the trip....enjoy!)