A day in the life...

Look at this!! Two blog posts in the same month! I am on fire!....don't get used to it! =) 

Had a lovely day and thought I would share it with you. :) 

I slept in a bit..been having insomnia again so was up pretty late the night before. Then I spent a couple of hours finishing preparations on my teaching for the prison. Then much to my chagrin (love that word) I had to make a trip to the bank...which doesn't sound too bad, but it's not quite like going to the bank at home. Going to the bank entails; being hounded by pouse-pouse (and when it is rainy [like today] they push even harder), being hasseled by men on the streets, trying to keep a lookout for my bus whilst being surrounded by street vendors and beggars. But I finally made it on to my bus and what should happen?? My trusty purse that has served me so well these past 8 months...bit the dust. Here's what happened...the bus, I guess, was in some what of a hurry and so did not stop to let me on but merely slowed down. As I was jumping onto the bus one side of my purse snagged on a piece of metal that was jutting out...which yanked me back (almost off the bus) and then it gave way. As nonchalantly as possible I picked up my dismembered satchel and made my way to my seat to assess the damage. Sadly it was a fatal blow. Rest in peace my trusty compadre. On the bright side however, I was just saying to my friend Bailey that I had never gone this long without buying a new purse, and now I have the perfect excuse! =) 

Man Down!! =(

I finally made it to the bank, got theneeded funds and had an uneventful boarding of bus #11 heading home. I did however slam my head quite hard into the doorframe of the bus as I was dismounting. Not my day bus wise I guess.

I then had a very fun encounter. I turned down the alley leading to my home and three adorable little children, dirty from head to toe, dressed in rags came bounding up to me. They naturally asked me for money, I appolgized and said I couldn't give them anything. But they were so darn cute! One of them gave me a playful tap on the rear and soon the others followed suit. Then they wrapped their arms around me as we walked gigggling and chatting with each-other. I didn't want to send them away empty handed, so I told them I couldn't give them money, but would they like some candy? They squealed in delight part at the prospect of candy and in amusment of the fact that I spoke to them in Malagasy. So they walked the rest of the way back to my place. I went in and brought out some starbursts for them, and they ran off with smiles on their beautiful faces. 

And then to my great joy I received a skype call from my baby bro Isaac A.K.A Pookey! Was such a joy to talk with him and hear how things are going for him! Love you so much bro!

Finally it was time to head to the prison! I geared up against the rain and headed out the door!

This is the best raincoat ever! 

After a little bartering I found a acceptable pouse-pouse and was on my way. I got to the prison a little early, so I just sat outside thinking and praying about what I was going to say. I must say I drew quite a bit of attention. I guess not a lot of 'vazahs' spend there afternoons sitting outside the prison. Finally the other lady from the team showed up and we went into the prison. 

Love this book!

First we sang a few songs, then my partner (whose name I can not remember!) prayed for us and invited me to share. I found myself to be much less nervous this time and really excited to be there! Been reading(and greatly enjoying) the book 'Jesus with Dirty Feet' and felt like it would be helpful for the women at the prison if we spent some time studying verses that talk about who Jesus is (i.e. the bread, the good shepherd etc). So  I took about 20 mintues talking about the character of Jesus, and how it influences our relationship with Him. I think it went well and the translation was very smooth. The women seemed blessed by it, and excitedly asked me if I would be coming back next week. So blessed by this incredible opportunity to minister to these women. Thanks to everyone who was praying,

On my way home from the prison.

Got home around 4:30 and realized I hadnt eaten all day, so I went to work and whipped a delicous meal!! Thanks so much for the recipe Nina!

Delicous pancakes with home-made syrup, scrambled eggs with
bacon crumble on top and crisp apple slices! Yummy!

Sorry that was such a long post, hopefully it wasn't too boring! =) 

Blessings to you all and thank you for yorur continued prayers!

Prison Ministry Update =)

Okay...before I get into the meat of this post I think something needs to be said. It my intention to never again make a proclamation regarding the regularity of my posts. Such as "going to try and post 3 times a month" or "how about song fest Friday." I think it's time we all aknowledged that at this point in my life I am simply not consistnet enough to keep up my end of the bargain. Although in my defense I think Facebook is partially to blame. I mean, I frequently post short little updates. prayer requests etc so I don't always feel the need to blog. But enough about that on to bigger and better things! =)


Today I had the awesome privelege of joing a small team that ministers to the prisoners in the women's prison here in Antsirabe every Sunday. I was really excited/nervous! Especially about speaking with an interpreter. I spent all Sunday morning praying for God's assistance, listening to worship music, listening to Matt Chandler, John Piper, and Francis Chan in sermon jams, and going over what I would share with the women.

I decided to share my testimony and through that, clearly (to the best of my ability) lay out the Gospel and how it has changed me and continues to change me. I decided to also share how, about two years ago I really became distracted by the world. Trying to find satisfaction and joy in things other than God and coming up empty. I felt compelled to share how God has created us to be in relationship with Him. And only He can satisfy our souls. And how once He graciously called me back into His presence my joy was restored. There is no greater pleasure than being in the prsence of the Lord and enjoying his fellowship! When I actually shared at the prison I went into more detail and shared some verses but this is the gist of it.


I decided not to bring any notes as I felt it would feel awkward as I would just be standing in a courtyard with no podium or anything to set them on. However once I got to the prison I became incredibly nervous that I was going to forget everything I had planned on saying and I was going to speed talk making it impossible for my translator. So I quickly bowed my head and asked God to use my words to speak to these women regardless of my 'performance'. And he graciously answered that prayer. I was able to remember everything I wanted to share with great clarity, and to my surprise, found speaking with a translator easy as can be. I actually really enjoyed that aspect! I felt confident and excited about the message I had to share and Power my translator did a wonderful job communicating it in Malagasy and the women were all so receptive and grateful to me for coming. All in all a fabulous afternonon. And then Power asked the women if they would like me to come again, and they all responded very positively that they would.

So once outside Power asked me when I could come and teach again and how often I could come. I asked him how often he would like me to come and he grinned sheepishly and said...every week?? I enthusiastically agreed. What an awesome opportunity. And it was so exciting to finally be able to share my faith in a real and tangible way. It is slightly daunting to think that I will need come up with a short message to share every week with these women but a task well worth my time and effort.

So thank you so much to everyone who was praying for me and for the ladies in this prison. All praise goes to God! He was (and always is) faithful! I am excited to see how He will use me in these women's lives over the next four months. Please continue to keep me and these women in your prayers!