without borders

"Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders

Let me walk upon the waters

Wherever You would call me

Take me deeper than my feet could ever wander

And my faith will be made stronger."

This song hits different now that we live overseas. I had a conversation with the teacher I go on village visits with about how I sometimes feel like I can't add much to certain village visit conversations just because of how different the cultures are (for example, a conversation on what disciplining children looks like). I'm not saying one culture is better or worse; they are just different. He gently reminded me that it's not about African culture, or about Canadian culture, it's about Christian culture. What is Biblical? We have to keep going back to that for guidance. It was a simple, yet profound reminder.

We are so grateful to be living without borders. Even a year in, some days it still feels a little surreal that this is where we get to serve. Obviously, being oceans away from home comes with its difficulties. Some days I long for the deep & easy relationships we've left behind. There are days where would just love to walk by the Veddar River with a coffee, a coat and a close friend. But despite these feelings, I have complete confidence that our time here is Spirit-led, and while the aches of what we left behind are still real and relevant, the Lord carries us through.

Jumping into our last months, I think I need to just sit and marvel at the fact that we are so near the close of another year! Christmas is just around the corner (hello Christmas music!!), we have visitors coming in 9 days (yaaay!!) and there is no doubt that we have entered the rainy season in full tilt over here. Last week it just poured and poured relentlessly, which made the Christmas lights we've strung up feel extra cozy. It's incredible to see how quickly the dry, trampled sports field is starting to come back to life all vibrant green! Everywhere you go there are locals walking around with hoes - working the fields by hand and preparing plots for the upcoming planting season! It makes line-drying or laundry a risky affair, but otherwise the rain & slightly cooler temperatures are a nice change.

Jon has had a month of travel and meetings! He first went to South Africa to meet with the solar company in person. Phone calls are wonderful, but there is nothing quite like meeting face to face to discuss as a group. There have been some technical problems that weren't getting addressed well, so flying to SA and being able to discuss and remedy these issues was extremely helpful! The lack of power supply in Zambia continues and is getting worse. Most places don't receive more than 3 hours of power a day, so we are beyond thankful for the solar system Living Hope has in place!

Days after returning from South Africa, we had the joy of welcoming some Living Hope board members & a donor from the USA. It was a group of men, and they were such an encouragement to have on site. I love how God uses specific timing and specific people to gently refresh and uplift us. We definitely felt that from this group. They were able to discuss lots about the direction and future of Living Hope, which made for a very fruitful week!

In the last month Living Hope hosted a girls soccer tournament! We didn't do the organizing of the event, but we were the hosts (which came with plenty of responsibility). Nine teams were able to be a part of the tournament, and the other teams slept at local churches. While our team is made up of ladies within walking distance, they still thought a team sleepover sounded fun, so we threw some mattresses on the ground and had the team sleep at our place. It made for a busy, but fun 3 days! We loved that the girls got to have something like this planned for them, too!

Another super special event in the last month was the baptisms of a number of the youth that live on site at Living Hope. Getting to know them over the last year, and now watching them commit themselves to the Lord, was beyond wonderful to witness, and the joy was palpable!

Other than the bigger events like this, there have been lots of little blessings, too. Like helping a mom that lives down the road bake a cake for her daughter's birthday. Trying our first papaya from the tree Jon planted shortly after moving here. Singing a song in church that we used to sing back at Pathway Church and feeling united despite the oceans in-between. Monday devotions with the sports teams, especially closing in circle prayers. Glorious sunsets. Calls with our support teachers back in Canada. All little in scale, but adding the to the pot of goodness!

There's something pretty special about daily reminders that life is so much more than accumulating stuff, especially in a super-commercialized Christmas season. I brought a boy to our home the other day, and his jaw dropped when he saw our carport. "Car.park.under?" he asked me. When he saw our Christmas tree his eyes lit up and his smile extended beyond his face. I couldn't help but marvel at how something so ordinary is actually so luxurious. I pray that your Christmas season isn't about shopping till you drop and buying all the latest things - but that you find rest, refreshment & joy in the birth of our Savior. If you are near your loved ones, squeeze them extra tight and let them know how much spending time with them warms your heart. If you are far from loved ones, I pray that you've found community with others that you can celebrate this special season with.

God be with you.

With love,

Renae