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| I have been back in America for a week, and I am feling fairly antsy and restless. I want to travel again, see the world, be in any country but this one, experiencing more places, cultures, people, foods, and whatnot. I got called to be a leader at the freshman orientation retreat, so that helps. It will be a lot of fun. I can't wait to go and chill with the new freshmen. Well, I am going to go now. Peace. | | |
| Good morning all. I have to say that I am very glad that God forced me to go on this trip. He has revealed Himself in a more real and more profound way than I could ever imagine, and it is not even about feelings. I know now that there is a God in Heaven, and He loves us all a lot. I also know that He is coming back to take us home. Man, it sucks that we have only three more sermons to give. Tonight I am talking about the Holy Spirit, and the unpardonable sin (which is rejecting the Holy Spirit). It is a good sermon, and is fairly short. Which is good, because if it is too long, everyone gets lost, including me. So, just pray that the people get a blessing. There were 8 baptisms last Sabbath, and there will be another 8-10 this Sabbath. Please, just pray for them, that they continue to learn and grow in Christ. Alright, Peace. | | |
| Hello all. It is amazing the wellspring of information that pours in once you open your eyes. Ever since yesterday, my mind has been almost constantly reflecing and pondering spiritual matters. I am now reading Steps to Christ for the first time, and I have to say that it is amazing. I can only read a small portion at a time, then I have to digest what I have read. It is deeply profound, deeply moving, and completely rooted in the Bible. I have to agree now that she was definately an inspired writer, if not a prophet. I am doing pretty good. Getting ready to speak on why there are many different denominations tonight (it is a LONG ONE-almost 130 slides with notes) but the information is GOOD. It is a nice sermon. Man, I can't beleive that in a few short days, I will be going back. Evangelism and speaking has become so natural to me that it is kind of weird. I guess my mom was right..."fake it till you make it". Well mom, I am not fakling it anymore. "Adam the Evangelist" is just as real a part of me as "Adam the Son of Steve and Marie" or "Adam the student" or "Adam the Missionary". I can't wait to get back and help my church with the series they will put on at the end of September. That will be cool. Well, I gotta go. Stay cool out there, and God Bless. | | |
| Wow. Today Manny's dad hada worship talk that was truly amazing. We were discussing the crucifixion of Christ, and His death for us. It is amazing what He truly suffered for us: Not just a physical, horribly painful death: He suffered the Second Death. In taking on our sins, He was separated from His Father and died a death more horrible than any I have ever heard of. I can imagine all of Heaven weeping at the sight of it. Yet the largest question I can think of, is "What manner of Love is this?" And, in looking at that immense love, my very being is pulled into an irresistable urge to love Him back. How can a person see this and not love Him with everything? You know what? When I try to comprehend and fathom all of it, and all of its meaning, I am at a loss. I believe that in my finite understanding, I am incapable of fully revealing its wondrous meaning. All I can do is this: "Behold what manner of love the father has given unto us, that we should be called the sons of God". All I can do is sit in wonder and awe, of the AWESOMENESS of the Most High God, and wish with all of my heart, mind and soul to follow Him forever. Wherever He may lead, I will go. What He says to do, I will. For I love my Lord Jesus, because He first loved me. He shouted with His actions on the cross, "I LOVE YOU TOO MUCH TO LET YOU GO!", and was willing to suffer eternal separation from God if it meant that we could enjoy the presence of the father. I tremble in awe, and I weep at His greatness in supposed lowness, His strength in supposed weakness. Praise God, everything that has breath. Praise Him. | | |
| Hello again. This last weekend has been a blast! First off, Saturday there were 9 baptisms at my site. Bwana Safiwe! (Praise the Lord!) It was really touching to sit there and sing in Swahili and watch people publicly announcing their new lives with Christ. Then, after the service, I went to the heald elders house for lunch. The food was good, but it was a little wierd because they had the television onduring the meal (on Sabbath- apparently that is not a big deal here). The funny thing is that it was a telenovella called "La mujer de Lorenzo", but the funniest thing was that it was dubbed in English, with british accents. I was trying to be a good Adventist and ignore it, but I couldn't help it. It was just too funny. Then, during the meal, my translator suprises me by telling me that the pastor of the district I am speaking in was taking myself, Lorena, and Eman to a reptile park and massai cultural museum. That was cool. My head elder was taking pictures for me so I didn't have to, and could enjoy the park. We saw some pretty nasty snakes there. I swear, they are seriously the sons of Satan. The black Mamba and the Boomslang especially. First off, the Black Mamba is the fastest moving snake. IT also has very potent poison. Here they call it the "seven step snake", because if it bites you enough, you will die in seven steps. (Anyone that saw Kill Bill II: Uma Thurman's character was nicknamed "Black Mamba", and at the end of the movie does that exploding heart technique on Bill that causes him to die in a matter of steps...I just thought that was a cool little fact). Anyway, the reason why the Black Mamba is truly evil is that it is usually 3-6 meters tall. Now, why that is important is that even though its prey is usually by the ground, when it attacks a person it will "stand up" to shoulder level and bite the shoulders, neck, and face of the victim about 5-7 times. And each time, it injects poison. Therefore, it gets a place in my "axis of evil". Now, why the Boomslang gets its place is the type of poison it has. When it bites you, the first symptoms don't start until 8 hours later. But, the first symptom is a type of hemophilia at the site of the wound. It won't stop bleeding. Now, if a person does not get this treated (in fact, at this point it might even be too late), in 24 hours they will start bleeding out of every (and I mean EVERY) orafice until they bleed to death. Pretty nasty, huh? Anyway, on with the story. After those monstrosities we saw some turtles, a vulture, a very noble looking goshawk who had just killed a chick (by the way, we saw Cobras killing chicks-it was sad), and then a lot of Nile crocodiles. After that, we had the experience of having a type of African garden snake wrapped around our necks like a tie (we were still in our suits from the morning). That was cool. After we left there, we stopped by the Massai musuem. There we learned about traditions of the Massai and whatnot (by the way, female circumcision is NOT COOL. Not cool at all). After that, Eman and I had the coolest experience. We got to ride on camels! That was so cool. It was a funny sight: Eman and myself, dressed up in suits, riding camels. We looked like crazy commuters. That was the end of that trip, after which I went back to my site and talked about Baptism for a second time that day. The next day was truly cool: We went to Ngorogoro crater on a Safari! It was totally awesome. WE saw a whole bunch of different animals, including a rare sight of hippos walking across the plain. WE went to a part with 8 lions, but they had killed and eaten a Zebra before we got there, so they were hiding in the grass, sleeping. But overall it was an awesome experience. IT is hard to describe it, because everything was so cool. After the safari, we stayed at a little three star hotel off a dirt road. I have to say: Three star here is incredible. I think it was the coolest hotel I have EVER stayed in. They had their own flamingoes and Crowned Cranes. And, since Eman, Miguel, and I wanted to stay together, they gave us the three person suite. IT was like an African place compared to the place we stay normally. IT was INCREDIBLE. I am considering that as a honeymoon destination (you know, when it comes time for that sort of thing). Also, the soap they had there was homemade, and was a crazy cool citrusy one-(I took both bars before I left...*sheepish grin*) The food was great, and the service was top notch. Then, earlier today, we left to come bc kto Arusha. Now I need to go and prepare my sermon for tonight. I am talking about the state of the dead. Interesting topic. So, my weekend was really, really cool. Since I have pretty much written a novel, and my translator is probably waiting for me, I will go. Peace, and God Bless Everyone. | | |
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