As you can tell from the title of this post, the past couple of weeks have been filled with many emotions as life here in American Samoa and back in the states continues on.
Rejoicing: There has been much to rejoice about. In my last post, I talked about how God was teaching me to trust Him and see the relationships He has been building during the "waiting" time. That has continued to happen and to even begin to deepen. One day last week, I was able to have a conversation with a student of mine about the church he attends and what he believes about Jesus/God. Over the course of our conversation, it became very clear that this young man really did not know much of anything about Jesus and just attended the church he is at because of family and friends. We talked a bit about the importance of knowing who you personally believe Jesus to be and I told him that if he wanted to talk more about it, I would very much enjoy the opportunity to do that. Please pray for this young man that God will continue to reveal Himself to him and will continue to build our relationship of trust so that I may be used to help him along this journey.
Another great time of rejoicing took place this week, as Kim and I were able to accompany Pastor Elise and Ms. Lucy to the island of Western Samoa. We were there Monday and part of Tuesday and had a great time. The island is very beautiful and there are a few more "touristy" things to do than here in American Samoa. ha,ha One hitch though.....they drive on the left hand side of the road and of course, the steering wheel is on the right side of the car. Soooo, let's just say that Kim probably said "left, left" more times in those two days than she ever has in her life!!! lol It takes some getting used to after driving on the right all of your life!!! Quite the adventure!!! But the highlight of our trip was getting to meet with one of the church plants we have on the island. We drove high into the hills outside of Apia and came to where the church is currently meeting in a small wooden structure. They are trying to build a new block building beside of it, but it has been slow going. As I will comment on more in just a moment, these people have very little, yet had prepared a meal of fresh fruits and home baked bread for us when we arrived. As we sat out in the open to eat, the flies were kind of intense, so some of the children gathered around the table with small hand held fans and kept the flies away from us and our food. Talk about being humbled!!!!!!
Later that day, we met up with them again, as Pastor Elise and Ms. Lucy had rented a van and carried many of them from the mountains down to the ocean (about a 40 minute drive) for a baptismal service!! There were seven of their members being baptized. Each of the seven came dressed in all white and made their way to the water along with Pastor Elise and their pastor. Both pastors spoke and prayed and then each of the seven shared a word of testimony of what God had done in their lives and about being transformed. Then one at a time, they would walk out into the waters and meet both pastors there and prepare to be baptized. During the entire baptismal service, the seven, plus all the people watching, sang songs of praise to God in the Samoan language!! Although I didn't understand any of it, I knew that I was in the midst of one of the most beautiful times of worship I have ever experienced. Behind me, was a young 14 year old girl whose mother, father and sister were all being baptized that day. As they started singing, this young girl sang at the top of her lungs and from the deepest parts of her heart and spirit. She was indeed praising God for what was happening in her family!!!! All those being baptized kept lifting their hands to the sky and looking upward, giving thanks to God for what He had done in their lives. One man, as soon as he was lifted from the waters by the pastors, began to dance and jump around in the water, so excited over his salvation and relationship with God and with his step of obedience in baptism!!!!
As I watched him and the others, my heart and soul rejoiced, tears filled my eyes and I also found myself convicted. When was the last time I was so joyful over my salvation and shared so openly with the world about it. I get so excited over a package from home or finally getting to skype and see my parents' faces after being here 8 weeks.....but how excited am I about being a child of God?!!!! Lord, help me to love You like these men and women and children do!!!!
As I said, there have been times of rejoicing and being convicted, but there have also been times of weeping. I have wept for these same people that I rejoiced with as they were baptized upon hearing about the conditions in which they live. They do not have running water and must catch rainwater to drink, wash with, etc. If there are months of no or little rain, they have very few options for water. The children that were so precious, playing ball and fanning the flies away from our food and bodies are also doing without an education as most of them are not able to attend school. They also have very little clothes and shoes. Each time Pastor Elise and Ms. Lucy go there, she takes a suitcase full of clothes and shoes, hygiene items, etc. This time it was children's items. The day we were there, they were wearing the t-shirts she had taken to them the day before. They were already dirty from being worn for two days. She also took snacks and candies for the children and she said it was heartbreaking and heartwarming to see them take the snacks and begin to enjoy them in a rather quick manner!! :) Each trip she leaves the suitcase she brings with a family for them to use as storage for their everyday clothes as they have no closets or any other storage options. Please pray for these families who are so giving and loving and pray for laborers that God will call out to go and minister to them.
My heart has also wept this week for a friend from high school that has lost a 14 year old daughter in a car accident and has her husband in serious condition in ICU from the same accident. Please pray for Beth Hurley Madison and her family during this time. Her faith and trust is strong and she knows that the prayers of her family and friends and God's infinite love and mercy are what is getting her through. Life is so precious and so fragile. Let us not wastes time with petty things that do not matter, but let us show love to our family, our friends and to everyone we meet and above all else, let us show God shining through our lives!!!!
Once again, thank you for being my prayer warriors and encouragers as I travel this journey He has called me to. I love you all more than I could ever tell you and miss each of you very much!!! Listed below are some specific prayer requests that I would appreciate your lifting to the Father!!!!
Serving together,
Larry
Prayer Requests:
1. Pray continually for Beth Hurley Madison, her husband Bob and all their family during this tragic time!!
2. Pray for the people of Western Samoa...the people of the church plant there and those who need to come to know Christ.
3. Pray for the people of American Samoa that they, too, would discover the need for Christ in their lives.
4. Pray for my students, especially the young man I talked about in this blog.
5. Pray for me as there are still days of being homesick and finding my place here in a church congregation that is, for the most part, younger than me. (Still feeling a bit like the "new guy")
6. Pray for our upcoming fall festival, that God will use it to bring new famlies to Him and to our congregation.
