Resurrection Sunday.

And celebrate we did.

"The Choice", a play performed by our church. We had to explain to Shantel that it was all acting.

Our brown eggs. I searched through all the cartons at the grocery store to make my ideal dozen that were all the lightest ones.

We had to get a little creative.

Our Zambian Easter eggs! Beautifully unique.

Easter pudding!

Mexican Easter Dinner.

Cycling.

Well, against all odds it is true. Shantel learned how to ride a bike. In only an hour!

It was a rough start because our bikes are a little too big for her. Also, there is a big difference between teaching a small child and 12 year old child, who is unbalanced and throwing almost 100 pounds from side to side. But she did it, triumphantly so.

After one of her more severe wrecks I said, "Are you ok?"

And she said, "Yerrr. Strong women have to go through hard things, but they get up and put themselves back together."

missions.

Sophie and I wanted to take the opportunity to make a trip to the House of Moses while Shantel is here with us. It's our favorite place to freely give our spare time and it is also a good teaching opportunity. It's an chance to teach an orphan that the undesirable things she has endured in this life can be used by God for good.

Shantel has a choice, and when she chooses to be like Jesus, her focus will not be on herself but on others. That may seem like a lot to ask of a 12 year old. It's a lot to ask of myself for sure and I've had twice the amount of time for growth and maturity that Shantel has had. But, the Lord's hand is on Shantel unlike anything I've ever seen in a child. Who He is in her makes me stand back in awe and try to take it all in.

I still can't see the full picture, but I know enough to see the good deposit he has placed in her. And he has placed her in my life for a reason. I see that as more than something to be enjoyed, but a great and also fleeting opportunity to guard and increase the harvest that is now and will be brought out of the life she lives in Zambia. She will reach people that I never could, and I know she will.

Last night when she was skyping Auntie Nelly (Neely) I heard her say this when asked what she wanted to be when she grows up"

"I want to be a missionary. Anywhere."

friends.

Shantel is a leader, that is for certain. And since she's been staying with us, we have been frequently finding this little crew on our back porch in the evenings. Shantel invites them over to do flashcards and they love it! She makes friends wherever she goes.

day one.

Shantel is here! She is settling into our home just fine, not without a few bumps in the road, but nevertheless just fine. Here she is holding her new journal when she saw the room we had prepared for her. She has her own space and still plenty of quality Auntie time, a good balance.

We enrolled Shantel in a school just up the road from our house for what is called "extra lessons", meaning that she can be tutored in all her subjects while on break. That might sound dreadful to most 12 year olds, but Shantel was so excited that she couldn't sleep last night.

I walked her up the road at a very early hour to speak to the "sister in charge" at the Tionge Basic School. She informed me that since Shantel was not a student there, the fee for 2 weeks worth of lessons would be $8. In Zambia, school costs money for every student that attends. Shantel's family has never had the funds to send her to school over and beyond the usual three-term year. So, this opportunity kept her awake most of the night and woke me up to her intentionally noisy chores in the kitchen at around 6 am. She was so ready to go that we ended up arriving almost an hour early.

my girl.

Last year on Palm Sunday, I was privileged to delight in the joyful presence of a little girl named Shantel--an Easter gift from heaven.

Those of you who have been following my time in Zambia or my blog have a pretty good idea of the battle she has been through in her 12 short years.

Almost exactly a year ago, in spite of all she was struggling through as an orphan, she stood beside me in church on Easter with her hands raised. Shantel became a Christian before the church that Sunday, although she had been a believer for quite some time.

Since she popped into my life in February of last year, all that we've been through can best be described as a roller coaster--a thrilling ride with as many ups as downs. Through the many highs and lows, together we have not ceased moving forward towards a sweet victory. The victory is preceded by a vision held and the vision preceded by a promise:

"He defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow" Deuteronomy 10:18

"A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows is God in his holy dwelling" Psalm 68:5

There have been prayers for protection, open doors.

Prayers to sustain, prayers for strength, prayers to preserve.

Prayers for the vision to be upheld, prayers for justice, prayers for the lion of Judah to show himself.

And let it be known that God has answered them all, every one. As if that was not more than enough to show Him faithful there are more blessings falling on us, as abundant and as sure as rain.

I will be with Shantel again this Easter, and celebrate we will--

"When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable,

and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true:

'Death has been swallowed up in victory.'

But thanks be to God!

He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm.

Let nothing move you.

Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord,

because you know that

your labor in the Lord is not in vain."

1 Corinthians 15

With all He has done, it's as if I've seen him here walking among us once again, performing miracles and defeating death.

Her life is a testimony of His resurrection.

And to me it is a good and perfect gift.

Beauty.

There are many things in this life that I call beautiful.

Here is one of them:

Beauty is only 9 years old.

She lives in a house that burned down, but has two rooms still intact.

She has to worry when it rains.

She has to stay home from church with her sister at times to protect the little that they have from thieves.

Her surroundings are not quite beautiful.

But, Friday her mother told us a story.

Beauty is a member of a GEMS club here in Lusaka. Her mother is one of the counselors for this group of girls. Beauty asked her mother why one of the girls in the club wore the same outfit every Saturday to church. She asked if it was because she had no other clothes to put on. Her mother told her that this was probably the reason. So, Beauty went right home and gathered up a few articles of the precious little clothing she has and took it to club the following week. And now that little girl can wear clean clothes whenever she wants.

Our Father makes his daughters beautiful and He begins his work in places no one can see.

He works from the inside out.

And though few people could see this small soul giving so freely, He did.

He named her Beauty for a reason, even if just to teach me what it looks like.

little.

Falling asleep, listening to Norah Jones, and praying for Shantel.

Spinning, laughing, dancing, to her favorite song

A little girl with nothing wrong, is all alone.

Eyes wide open, always hoping for the sun

And she'll sing a song to anyone who comes along.

Fragile as a leaf in autumn

Just falling to the ground, without a sound.

Crooked little smile on her face,

Tells a tale of grace, that's all her own.

She's a little girl, with nothing wrong

And she's all alone.

"In faithfulness he will bring forth justice;

he will not falter or be discouraged

till he establishes justice on earth."

He has called her out in righteousness.

He takes hold of her hand.

He keeps her and will make her a light to the Gentiles.

Like Jesus, for Shantel I am steady and undiscouraged.

I hold a jewel of hope for her and she sings songs of grace to me.

I show her love and faithfulness and she shows me unwavering faith.

And she sings that song to anyone who comes along.

faithfulness.

This weekend I have the chance to go and visit my little angel, Shantel.

More than anyone else in Zambia, my greatest desire is to show her the love of Jesus.

I only want to display her Father's faithfulness to her "in the flesh".

The only hindrance to my 6 hour pursuit of her is that she currently refuses to speak to me.

Today is March 2nd and, for Shantel, the beginning of March marks an unfulfilled promise.

I told her with my own lips that I would return in February, which I did.

February came and I was in Zambia, but I was not with her.

At this point, my trip to the remotest parts hinges on her. If she will talk to me, I'll be there.

I'm praying that I will be given that chance. Today, this is my prayer over her:

"For this reason I kneel before the Father,
from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name.

I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power

through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.
And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge--that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God"

Ephesians 3:14-19

In all of my attempts and my failing to love her like Jesus loves her, I am driven into deeper intercession on her behalf. He makes up for all of my lacking.
He stands in the gap while I am on my knees.

There is no better place that I can be for her--away and on my knees.

different.

The first 5 days back in Zambia have been a whirlwind. It took a couple of days for me to get my brain all the way here (I think my body arrived a little faster).

The circumstances are different. Sophie and I are still working for GEMS, but even our role in that has changed. We are staying for a shorter time period (June), living in a different area, and find ourselves surrounded by a vastly different and diverse group of people.

One thing I very much lacked last year in Zambia was fellowship. It’s amazing how much a person can miss living in community, even when surrounded by people. We lived in the heart of a Zambian compound and our house was always full of Zambian women and children. How wonderful, right? But what I didn’t know that I would miss was a community of people who could enjoy a plate of spaghetti with me, or someone that I could talk fast to. I didn’t know I would wish for a group of people to laugh with me or to invite me over for the night. I didn’t know I would, but I did--I longed for familiarity.

This time around the setting has changed. We are living on the the campus of a seminary here in Lusaka. There are families scattered amongst the big shade trees and grassy lawns. We have mzungus (even American ones) inviting us over for dinner or to lunch every day. There are students and professors working and going to class. We even have access to the internet from the library. It is all so very different.

Every new thing takes a little getting used to. It is a very nice place, almost entirely free of the dust that always took over our previous home. It is shady and green. It is QUIET. There are absolutely zero knocks on our gate. There is community.

I’m realizing that while all of the people, the noise, the dust, the lack of privacy, and the constant harassment that comes with being a mzungu did wear me out and push me to the point of insanity (at times), I REALLY miss that. I miss the smelly, dirty, runny-nosed, no-pants, kids that would knock on our gate at all hours of the day until we answered-maybe for water, maybe for a sweet.

The fact of the matter is just that--it’s different. This change has also helped me realize that there are different types of community that I love to be a part of and usually cannot be experienced in the same place. If I want to hang out with North Americans, then I have to live where they live and live like they do. If I want to enjoy the children and be at the heart of the Zambian culture, then I have to struggle through the chaos of living right in the middle of a compound. Either way community is a part of my life and I’m getting to know people, they’re just different.

faithful.

Today has been the best.

I don't have many words to say other than the Lord has been faithful to Shantel, his little girl.

He has heard her cries and lifted her out of her situation into a loving home, that of her true guardian.

Of all the reasons I am here in Zambia, she is number one.
Of all the callings God has on my life to be here for this time, she is the greatest.
Of all the aspects of ministry I carry out, she is my favorite.

Ten months of my life given to save hers, far more than worth every hardship.
I never knew the hope and the future that the Lord, her lion, had in store.
I will say that today was the pinnacle of them all, every day that I have spent in Zambia so far.
The Lion won. The victory belongs to Him.
His timing and his plan placed her once again on our doorstep at the perfect time.
And she is safe.

fruit.

There is nothing like being fruitful in life.
In fact, all I want in life is fruit.

Lately, I've been a bit interested in and consumed by our garden outside.
Vegetables, flowers, spices, fruit trees, watermelon vines...I love it.

Flowers alone are not enough for me.
Flowers do not bring about satisfaction quite like a tomato plant.
They are beautiful and they smell nice, but I'm not really a person about looks.
I like the harvest.

Having a garden, tending it, and waiting for the ripening of my labor--that's what does it for me. My new interest in gardening has helped me see the parallels between reaping the fruit of the soil and the life that I love to live.

It's all about the fruit.
The fruit is why I'm in Zambia.
But instead of tomatoes and watermelons and green onions and cabbage, I get to see the fruit of my labor in changed lives for the Kingdom of God.
And it's the truth--nothing else would do it for me.
I live for the harvest.

Stones that Last.

The first time I came to Zambia in 2008, I never thought that just two years down the road I would be living here. I never thought that God would call me to more than just that week. And as my heart was swept away by my group of Zambian little girls, the last thought in my mind was that I would one day live within walking distance of them. I never knew my investment would be longterm.

Throughout the very few and insignificant years of ministry that I have had, there is one thing that the Lord has told me over and over--"Build in stones that last".

From what I knew of building His kingdom, I did just that. I tried to build what lasts for eternity, not on shifting sand.

It wasn't until He called me to Zambia and I spent time here that I understood what He had been engraving into my life...the stones that last.

I spent the better part of this Saturday with "my girls". I invited them over for a birthday party to celebrate each and every one of their birthdays. It was epic. Beautiful. Magical. A huge and fantastic blessing to me.

I cannot help but sit back and be in awe of the tapestry that God has woven in my life.

In all of the fun and happiness and playing, I just stepped back and watched all of these grown up girls running around my house, here in Zambia.

Then one would call to me, "Auntie Mary" and I returned to the moment.

The stones that last are mentioned in Revelation Chapter 21.

The walls of the Holy City, the New Jerusalem, will be built on 12 foundations made of precious stones, gems, jewels. These stones are of the highest value, the most astounding beauty, the greatest strength, with un-ending durability.

Memory, Grace, Fridah, Yvette, Elina, Yvonne, Mary, Beatrice, Christine, Elizabeth, Veronica, Sarah.

These 12 are the stones that last.

They are the beautiful gems in which I am building the things of eternity.

These girls were the first Zambian children I fell in love with.

These girls were the first call God placed on my life to be here.

These girls were my first taste of the ministry He had in store for me in Zambia.

All the way to Africa for these 12. And it's far more than worth it.

This good day is coming from Jesus. Yes it is.

School bags full of goodies from Lisa.

Here is a personal "THANK YOU!" to Uncle Arthur and Aunt Laurie for donating the money to make the party possible. All of the girls had one of the best days of their lives.