On Something Different

Zambia is a small country in the southern middle region of a very large continent named Africa.  Zambia is one of the few democracies in Africa.  They are a third world country, but one of the most stable countries in Africa.  Zambia is a horseshoe shaped country that is broken up into the northern province, eastern province, western province, an southern province.

The eastern province is at the center of the horseshoe.  In the eastern province is the capital city of Zambia:  Lusaka.  This is also the largest city in Zambia.  With a population of about one point five million, it is much smaller than our home city of Phoenix.  Lusaka is a financially stable city with a lot of the new world's technology and mind set.  Lusaka is not known for tourism, but Zambia does have one of the world's most amazing wonders of the world.


About a six hour drive down to the southern province is a small city named Livingstone.  The city of Livingstone is named after the world famous traveler and explore David Livingstone.  David Livingstone is the most famous explorer in Africa.  From England, Livingstone was charting out new ground for his country.  He walked from the eastern coast and the Indian Ocean all through Africa to the west coast and the Atlantic Ocean.  On this journey, David Livingstone founded the city of Livingstone and discovered one of the world's most astonishing marvels.

On one of his explorations, David Livingstone discovered the beautifully powerful Victoria Falls.  He named them after Queen Victoria who was Queen of England at that time in history.  In the native language of Tonga, they refer to the falls as Mosi-oa-Tunya which means the smoke that thunders.  Before you can even visibly see the falls, you can see a cloud of mist that seems to just rise from the ground.  

Mosi-oa-Tunya rises over 300 feet from the bottom river (the Zambezi) and stretches over a mile and a half wide.  After the initial sight of the falls from an ariel view, you can see the river winding in and out like a snake.  For miles it winds around and has level six rapids which are the highest level and most dangerous rapids in the world.  This all makes Mosi-oa-Tunya one of the seven natural wonders of the world.

Zambia, a third world African nation that is covered in poverty much like every other African country, is dirty like everywhere else, and is even smelly like every other country.  But Zambia is different, Lusaka is different, Livingstone is different, and Mosi-oa-Tunya is like no other.  This, this place, is my home and there will always be a piece of me still here.  Mosi-oa-Tunya, Livingstone, southern province, Zambia, Africa, Southern Hemisphere, Earth, the Milkyway galaxy, the Universe, the Mind of God.

~ Jaden Jenkins, class of 2013


[Photos c/o Eric McArthur]

Bittersweet Thoughts about a Sweet Experience

Friday Night Worship--March 29, 2013

After a long day of excitement at Victoria Falls, the Mission Team members were pretty tired.  Chaplain Rob's worship focused on the emotions they were experiencing as the trip was coming to a close.  "Trips like this come to an end inevitably," he said.  "You must miss your families.  It's kind of different for us.  I don't know that we feel quite like that about Zambia.  But we will miss what we've done here and who we've done it with.  It's been just about two weeks that hopefully are the beginning of something different in your life.  Ellen White talks about it . . . how the disciples reviewed different stories after Jesus died and then left them.  It's kind of bitter sweet.

"I want to add some sweetness to that.  The Bible tells us, 'Lo I am with you always even unto the ends of the earth.' Maybe this is the end of our mission trip in a few hours, but this should be the beginning of a lifetime of service.  A life worth living.  A life that's fun and enjoyable and peaceful.  Some of the most peaceful moments were just being here working with you guys.  A life with Jesus can be peaceful and enjoyable.  Think about it as a turning point to a new beginning in your life.  The people here need what you have here.  Jesus died and rose from the grave and it was the beginning.  Changed the world."

Cool Experiences

Alejandra/Narce--bungee jumping

Alex--someone in town asked me if I was SDA.  Said he had seen me hanging around with kids at the Maramba Church

Jaden--I was desperately trying to find soccer jersies and couldn't find them.  Then I came to a third place and there were a bunch of them.

Mrs. Maloon--last night during worship I had a long heart-to-heart talk with one of the girls who works here.  We had a great opportunity to share.  We prayed together.

Jacob--I got my wallet back.  It was an answer to prayer.  I'm really happy about that.

Chaplain Rob--We saw an awesome force of nature.  We got here at at prime time for the force of water to show itself

Ms. Aastrup--I'm really proud of our kids.  They have been so good--haven't complained much, have done what they needed and what they were asked to do.  It's been a blessing to spend this time with them.

Mrs. Pearson--I loved all the cool rainbows...especially the full circle one

Johann--I got to talk with some of the Zambian soldiers (Ms. Aastrup did too)

Jaden--I enjoyed the safari yesterday.   Had the best jeep people

Grant--the baboons were really funny

Eric--it's kind of sad because we've met so many nice new people on this trip.  We created this mission trip family and I'm sad it's ending

Cook Christi--this morning when we were doing all the money changing...you are only allowed to change $1000 and he let me change $2000 and wrote a receipt for $1000 and said "You'd do the same for me in your country."

Chaplain Rob--there's a lot of that in this country.  It's all about community.

Dr. Muncy--on the combo event today with the lions, we actually got to walk the lionesses down these trails with no leashes.  We could hold on to their tails and follow them wherever they would go.  It reminded me of what heaven will be like.

Flexibility Awards

Jaden--Christi--because she did a lot to make it happen for me to get my jersies; Mr. Maloon because I could only go because of him; Robbie because he didn't let it bother him

Eric--got bitten by a lion cub

Narce--Chaplain Rob, Mr. Maloon, Ms. Aastrup and everyone who did something to help me go bungee jumping

Jacob--Mr. Maloon and Ms. Aastrup the way they helped my sister and me out

Mr. Maloon--Cook Christi

Alex--Pastor Ralph

Nightly Reading:  Matthew 5:13-16

[Photos c/o Eric McArthur from his helicopter ride over the Zambezi River and Victoria Falls.  He went with Keaton, the Warrens, and the Maloons.]

Walls of Protection

Friday Morning worship--March 29, 2013

Pastor Jay opened the Friday worship with a question:  "How many of you were at the construction site and saw the Morada family making that wall?  The whole family was working at the one spot, each one doing their part."  He went on with a Bible story:

"There's a similar story in Nehemiah where Nebuchadnezzer had blasted down the walls and they were going home to rebuild.  Chapter 3 there's a whole list of people who were working on the walls.  There was a man and all of his daughters working.  That was different enough to list the fact that his daughters were working.  The city walls had been pushed over and each family took a section of the wall to rebuild.  It's kind of interesting because when you go in the OT and look at why the wall was broken down in the first place, you see that it was because of the breakdown of the family in the first place.  When society is going south, it's because families are going south.  When the family broke down that's when the enemies could break down the wall.  But the families worked together and were able to rebuild the walls.

"When you have a strong Christian Jesus-loving family, then you are a building block in the walls of society.  Some walls are good.  But there are also bad walls--like the wall of separation that Jesus broke down.  In Jerusalem there was a wall in the sanctuary and a foreigner could not cross it for fear of your life.  Archeologists have found the plaque that warned people not to cross the walls.  That's why in Galatians Pauls says good news:  God has broken own the wall of separation.

"In the next several years when you get married, you are going to need to build a wall around your family.  You will have gates, and choices about what you will allow to affect your family.  Keep out bad and let in good.  Here we are...a little family.  We have built some walls.  Those are good walls.  Those are walls that will keep people in a relationship with Jesus for years to come and surround us as a family of God.

"There are bad walls that make us feel like we're better than anyone else, then there's the good kind of wall that keeps the devil out and will keep us safe and strong.  Be building those walls in your own life so that when you are married and have children you can build the good walls and tear down the bad ones.

Let's work together in rebuilding the walls--the walls of protection."

We then sang the "Maranatha Song" before going on our way to work for the day:

"Good Morning, it's God's morning whether it's sunny or gray

Good Morning, it's God's morning, I hope you have a wonderful day."

 

6 Ways to an Adrenaline Rush

"We were chased by zebras, challenged by elephants, and chewed on by lions," Mrs. Maloon said to me after Thursday and Friday's African animal encounters.  Indeed, Friday was all about adrenaline.  The majority of the TAA Mission team experienced a series of serious adrenaline rushes throughout the day--if not one way, then another, and another, and another.

1.  The day began early in the morning with the "Lion Walk" adventure where they literally walked the lions--on and off a leash--fed the baby lions, and rode elephants.  The lion cubs did, indeed chew on a few of arms and legs, and the zebras at the lodge did chase a few Thunderbird students once or twice when they got too close for the zebras' comfort.  The challenging elephants came the day before in Botswana (see previous entry for that story).

2.  From there, they moved over to Victoria Falls where they met up with the group members who had chosen more extreme ways of increasing their adrenaline flow:  the zip line/slide, the swing, and the bungee jump over the Zambezi River.

3.  Meanwhile, the action-adventure group had started with the zip line (or slide as it is called in Zambia) over the Zambezi River into Zimbabwe at the far side of the bridge.  Some in the group went solo, others in tandem.  All said it wasn't as scary as they thought it would be and that it was slower than they hoped--although they had time to actually look at what they were soaring over instead of zipping by everything in a blur.

4.  At that point, most were done with the activities, but Jacob moved on to the swing down from the bridge and out across the river.  From this observer's perspective, this was the most terrifying event to watch.  It's hard to explain when you can't see it, but  I am still scared to think of it!  Adrian and Ahilyn did this same swing event in tandem--and it was just as scary watching two do it as it was watching one.

5.  The last of the big three events was the bungee jump.  Narce, Alejandra, and Jacob braved this adventure, making all wonder what could top this.

6.  Once done at the bridge, all parties met at Victoria Falls for a walking tour of the area above and along the falls.  We were warned it would be wet, but most had no idea that in this case "wet" meant "wet to the bone."  The wet came not just from the heavy mist and spray from the falls, but from a downright deluge whenever the wind gusted in our direction as we walked down slick moss-covered steps and slid across the moss-covered Knife-Edge Bridge that crossed a portion of the falls.  There were screams of laughter and surprise as we gingerly navigated (speaking for myself at least) the slippery sidewalk.  For some (including yours truly) this was the best shower of the week (a trickle of cold water hardly constitutes a real shower, but it's all we had to work with).

In addition to all these adrenaline-releasing activities, the group enjoyed dickering and bartering with the natives in their small, dark "shops."  It was fun to reunite on the busses at the end of the day to see what treasures a t-shirt, a toothbrush, or a 4-color pen plus a few dollars or kwacha purchased.  By the time we returned to Kaazmein Lodge, everyone was exhausted with all the energy expended in various ways.  Even those who just watched were worn out.  It was an excellent day--even a "best day ever" kind of day :)

Full Day at the Falls

Good Morning and Happy Sabbath!

Yesterday was such a full day I had no chance to blog.  Sorry!  Truth is, there will be very little time from here on out.  I will catch up once we return to Arizona, so you won't miss out on any part of the trip, but it may take awhile as we have Alumni Weekend next weekend.  Our media team will be busy assembling some presentations to share over the weekend, so be sure to come for that--probably during church in the TAA gym.

Anyway, yesterday was rather amazing.  We spent the day at Victoria Falls--doing everything from bungee jumping to shopping.  We all had a great time with the beautiful views, the adrenalin rushes, the serious dousing of Falls water and spray, and the bartering with the local merchants.  I will post more pictures later, but here are a few to whet your appetite.
[Photos c/o Eric McArthur]

Putting this Mission Trip on the Map

The following maps put into perspective the location of the Zambia mission project:

13 days to go . . .

Victoria Falls:  A panoramic view from the Zambian side near the Knife-edge bridge (from Wikipedia) 

Less than two weeks, now, before the Thunderbird group embarks on the first leg of a long journey to Livingstone, Zambia.  Students and adults are looking forward to the experience and the opportunity to make a difference in another part of the world.  Please keep the project in your prayers.