and again I say REJOICE.

I am sorry for those of you who have not had the opportunity to experience worshiping with our kids at The Covering.  It’s one of the most beautiful things you will ever participate in. I used to get caught up in the words…I lead worship for kids and wanted to make sure the songs were theologically correct and developmentally appropriate and all that…but now I don’t even know some of the words and I don’t worry one bit about it.  This morning we sang a song where the main word is Bellow or Mellow or something else that rhymes with low and I love it! You sing that word, whatever it is, over and over and over along with a little hip action and hand waving and then you sing “see what the Lord has done!” I just have to laugh and trust that the Lord is honored by the intention of our hearts to praise him!

Here, there are no lyrics on a screen, no guitars or “mood” lighting, no prescribed set or timing (except we sing Praise a.k.a. fun and fast with louder drums first, and worship a.k.a. slow and prayerful last), no arguments over hymns or choruses or whatever, and no quality controls or standards! The only thing is that you should sing as loudly as possible and dance or clap or play your harmonica if you have one. I didn’t do such a good job of the clapping and singing loudly today…I found out about 1 minute before the service that I was giving the message for the morning! I remember being told that a pastor should always have a message ready in case they are called on but I didn’t have anything ready; it’s hard to sing loud when you are trying to figure out what to say. I finally just gave up, picked a verse I’d underlined in Thessalonians and “winged” it and enjoyed some loud singing!

I hear them now, a block away, singing praises and I am sure that God is smiling with me.

This, for me today is joy: witnessing and participating in the praises of children being lifted up to the Lord!

Joy and Meaning

          The strangeness of all of this is that 6 months ago I never thought I would make it this far…to actually STAY and live in Freetown for more than another day was CRAZINESS to me. But just over 12 months ago I thought I might just be moving to stay here forever—the glamorous life of a missionary was calling my name. And now, just over 2 months away from the time when I’ll leave this not so glamorous but not torturous season of my life, I am amazed that I made it here…and I don’t really know where here is but it’s where I am and where God is meeting me these days.

I have been reading a book…okay, I know some of you can’t imagine me NOT reading a book so that statement is really unnecessary; I don’t think I’ve been without a book to read since I learned to read which I’m sure was when I was 3 or 4 judging as to how brilliant I am. HA! Anyway, I digressed big time…I was challenged in this book today to make a list of things that bring joy and meaning to my life and compare them with the things that I would say are my goals. I don’t really have a goal list right now save a hot, clean shower and a big glass of ICE COLD MILK but I am going to work on the joy and meaning list. So I started this morning and didn’t get very far; it’s harder than I thought! I decided that I will “study” my life over the next few weeks and months and see what really brings me joy and makes “my heart sing”, and to keep myself accountable I’ll share some of these things with you on a some-what regular basis. I’m also praying that God will reveal through these things what He might be calling me to do in the next season.

Day One: Today I threw peanuts at William and Joseph! They snuck in the office, whispering and nudging each other like there was something BIG going on. They sneak in nearly everyday and just stand quietly or hang on someone. Seriously, it’s got to be the most boring place…imagine a 11 year old boy wanting to stand and watch 5 adults type! So today, when they walked in I grabbed some boiled peanuts (which DO NOT bring me joy of any kind, YUCK!) and attempted to start a food fight. Yesterday and lunch I wanted so badly to fling a spoonful of cassava and rice at the older boys. Just for fun but I was afraid they’d make me clean up the mess which would not be fun! The boys looked at me like I was the crazy white lady (nothing new) and picked up the peanuts and ate them; then they sat down in the chair next to my desk, and stared at me while I typed. I was disappointed that they didn’t start chucking peanuts back at me or laughing or screaming in outrage…they acted like it was just another day. Hmm…must do something crazier next time!

I won’t be putting “throwing peanuts at 11 year olds” on the list! Instead I’m thinking…doing the unexpected or acting like a child once in a while or getting kids to smile or maybe all threeJ

Rejoice always! 1 Thessalonians 5:16                

a few pictures



New friends.

Enjoying some ice cream!!!

The day the sun was shinning...

Big Sunday smiles.



Enjoying the new play room and the TOYS!

A Birthday lunch.

More toys and fun!

Silly fun.

Happy Home-coming.

I turned my back for a minute and the girls painted the boys nails!

change, NOW please!

I was reading yesterday and came upon this phrase The slow and inefficientwork of God and what I heard in my spirit was the affirmation that often change doesn’t come in a moment. More often it comes through years, through decades, through lifetimes and it is slow and seemingly inefficient and irritating!

 Deep change sometimes happens in an instant—in a moment of joy or terror-and our circumstances change and our heart and soul change to. These moments can define us and nothing will ever be the same again. Some of us come to faith in Christ that way, or at least we think we do, that moment in which everything changes; if you look back before that moment, often in hindsight you’ll see a gradual drawing towards change.
And I began to think and I’m going to share my wild questions and thoughts with you!

God made the world in 6 days and rested on the 7^th but what did he do on the 8^th day? And how long was it, how many days were there between that 7^th day and the day that Eve ate that fruit and convinced Adam to go along with it. Days where nothing big or miraculous or amazing happened—except Adam and Eve WALKED with GOD in the garden!?! And then there were just several hundreds of years between Adam and Noah where all the Bible records is births and ages…not much movement on God’s part. And Noah spends 100 years building a boat…Abraham takes a couple of decades to make it to Canaan…Israel stays in slavery for 400 years and wanders for 40…there were hundreds of years of silence between the prophecies of the Old Testament and the fulfillment in the new…and 2000 years later we are still waiting for the 2^nd coming of Christ…children continue to die everyday in this country because of poverty and after hundreds of years of development and missionaries and scientific discovery they are still waiting for something to change…and me most days I feel like I’m still stuck in the same places and the same fears and the same issues as 10 or 20 years ago; the circumstances may be different but the inside, the patterns and choices are often the same…and GOD moves slow.

And I would say He can be a bit inefficient too…couldn’t HE have made the world in 1 day if HE wanted to? Why take six? Did Noah have to build that boat by hand…couldn’t God have just made one appear? Did the Israelites need 400 years of slavery? Couldn’t God have knocked down the walls of Jericho the first time or the first day they marched? One sweeping move and Sierra Leone could be a country with plenty of food and resources to share? And me, wouldn’t it be better for everyone if God just changed me now?!? Is it just me or is that a bit irritating?

BUT He is always moving, always working, always present, and always refining us. There is a shifting, a restoration, a building, and a changing that is always moving the world towards the promise of HIS KINGDOM now and coming. Often it is like water flowing—the waves of the ocean or a river’s current—the single wave’s impact is usually not felt. The waves come and go all day long on the beach just down the hill from here and no one notices. But over time the sharp edges of rock and stone are worn away and what is left is smooth and new. Go to sandgrains.com under a microscope and you’ll see the beauty that the waves create over time.

Sometimes the waves are big and destructive; the change is massive and quick. Mostly the waves of change are gentle, graceful, and slow. I want God to change things NOW; to make me and the circumstances around me new and complete NOW and He gently says, “No, child, it might be slow, it will seem inefficient and irritating, it will be painful at times; but I am the author and perfector and only I know what the result will be and when and how the promise will be fulfilled.” And the waves of grace and change come over me and slowly, inefficiently, daily, and sometimes irritatingly I become...

Today, I was harshly reminded of where I live. Children die
everyday…all over the world. In America, in England, and in Sierra
Leone; there is something different here, in Africa.

The news tells of THOUSANDS dying just east of here because of
famine, war, and injustice. And here, on the West Coast, children die
from things like malaria and typhoid…preventable and treatable, and
that most of us from the developed world take a pill or a shot for and
don't have to worry. Here children die from diarrhea and
malnourishment and COLDS. And it doesn't matter if it's a mother's
first child that she has waited and prayed for for years or the 13th
child of a father who has struggled to feed his children for
decades…IT HURTS.

Today I heard about a young mother of 2, who on Sunday went to church
and stayed afterwards to pray and fellowship and then she was gone.
Tomorrow I will call and find out if those children have a place to
go…if those babies have an aunty or a granny who will care for them
now. And if they are alone in this world? What will we do? The waiting
list is long and the needs are so great.

Today I went to the home of a man who has become a dear friend; one
whom I admire for his sacrifice to serve the children of his country.
In him I know the meaning of incarnational ministry…that "thing" that
they were always teaching us to strive for in Bible College—to be
Jesus…to "pitch a tent in the neighborhood" and live out the Gospel.
With his life He declares that Jesus loves the little children. This
man I have watched shed tears of sorrow over a home empty of children
and a longing to fill it; and then watched cry tears of JOY when God
blessed him with a son. A little boy, perfect in every way. And now,
just a few weeks later, before they even had time to hang pictures on
the wall, I heard him LAMENT and weep because that little blessing has
gone to live with his Heavenly Father.

And so we weep together, recognizing that we are not alone; that
David, Job, and Jesus—among many others—wept and lamented over the
suffering and the pain in this world. We weep and we pray—that God
would restore families; provide shelter, food and medicine for the
children and mothers and fathers of Sierra Leone; send to Africa the
things that we so take for granted…treatment for disease and doctors
who understand and food that brings life and strength; fill this house
and others like it with the laughter of children and bring back their
joy.

This from the Lord this morning...

"For the mountains may depart and the hills be removed, but my
steadfast love shall not depart from you, and my covenant of peace
shall not be removed, says the LORD, who has compassion on you."
Isaiah 54:10

"Therefore let those who suffer according to God's will entrust their
souls to a FAITHFUL Creator while doing good….And after you have
suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to
his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm,
strengthen, and establish you." 1 Peter 4:19 & 5:10

This from Him this night...
http://www.aholyexperience.com/

--
Cari Logan
adventuresinlistening.blogspot.com
therainingseason.org

25 things that have happened since I last wrote…

1.       I learned that if you smash a millipede/bug “you go piss”…from a 4 year old.

2.       I piled 10 pre-teen boys in my car for a ride from here to the center…I don’t think there has EVER been that much joy in one place…they declared that it was their 3^rd blessing from Jesus of the day. WOW!

3.       Sometimes having a whole group of men come to try to help you when your car doesn’t start is NOT helpful at all.

4.       I rediscovered that I don’t like being told how to drive.

5.       I LOVE fresh mango juice from Montana Garden.

6.       I’m going to miss Joseph’s birthday…and he already knows itL

7.       Mice don’t go away if you ignore them.

8.       Everyone has left the guest house…it is officially me and the security guard!

9.       Pinterest…I found it and I love it.

10.   I’m terrified of going home because I will be starting over in so many ways…I’ve been looking up versed for the kids about being strong and courageous and without fear…maybe they are really for me.

11.   I cannot go to the market without buying something…it’s as bad as Target.

12.  I lost the exhaust on the side of the road 2x but I learned don’t worry, just pick it up and put it in the boot…or let someone else do it for youJ

13.   I found out that the 2^nd time climbing the hill is much harder than the sixth.

14.   I sat on the beach and got a tan; which was great until I realized that I’d have a really strange tan line…but I can fix that by sitting on the beach again!

15.   2 snakes were spotted in the compound…one is dead (THANK YOU KELVIN) and the other is hopefully hiding far, far away.

16.   Pasta, potato, hotdogs and mayo do not really make a good cold salad…probably not warm either…but eating it for my hostess made her feel wonderful and that’s all that matters. (when she tries to open her own restaurant I’ll let her know she might not want to use that recipe again)

17.   I’m losing ground on being grateful. Time to focus on that list again.

18.   The rainy season is to blame for EVERYTHING in July and August. (the toilet doesn’t flush?…blame the rainy season!…the car doesn’t start?...it’s the rainy season!...no chocolate at the supermarket?...oh, the rain!...termites in the ceiling?...the RAIN!)

19.   I was reminded that a broken heart is not easily mended…but it can be restored.

20.   We discovered Crown Bakery Xpress…on this side of Freetown…and with it comes Honey Mustard Chicken Pasta Salad! YUM!

21.   I received a gift of a handmade rag rug from a sweet, sweet girl and I will treasure it FOREVER.

22.   I drove to Kissy! Through the middle of the craziness of downtown Freetown and the car made it over the worst road I have ever driven on.

23.   I got new sunglasses…2 pairs…for $2 each! Bonus!

24.   I was called Aunty Cari ½ a million times and it never gets old.

25.   Grace.