Spiritual Ponderings-Day 7

Since being in Africa, there are a lot of things in Scripture that just make a whole lot more sense:

The Plagues in Exodus 8, 9.

Flies and Gnats feel like a daily plague. It just depends on what time of year it is. In the dry season, the flies are out in full force and with a vengeance. We joke that you can tell an African fly versus a non-African fly because African flies just DON’T GIVE UP. In rainy season, the gnats come in droves. Leave any body of water in the open for any amount of time, and it becomes a breeding ground. This includes cups of water, the leftovers in the kitchen sink, and the puddles you make with your feet when you get out of the shower.

Jesus washing the disciples’ feet. [John 13:12]

I would LOVE IT if someone would come and wash my feet at the end of the day. It’s a process that takes work. What a humble and beautiful Lord we serve.

The cool of the morning. [Gen. 3:8]

Okay, so this is a stretch because this verse speaks of God walking with Adam and Eve in the cool of the DAY. But, there really is a cool of the morning, at around 4 or 5am, right before the sun rises. Sometimes, it’s the only time in a restless night when you can feel the cool breeze coming through the windows. (By the way, what are you doing with your windows open? This is Malaria Country! Yeah well. It’s either get sick with malaria or die of suffocation. I haven’t had malaria yet (thank you Jesus), but I’ve come close to the suffocation part. So, I open the windows. Settle down. We sleep under mosquito nets. 

Esther: The year of beautification before she went before the king. [Esther 2:12]

This always seemed so ridiculous to me. How can you spend a YEAR in the spa? But Esther was a hard-working Jewish woman: Washing the clothes, scrubbing the house, de-feathering the chickens. I’ve seen these unbelievable Zambian women scrub a pot with dirt (it works!) until their hands are bleeding. They could definitely use a year at the spa (and I wish I could give it to them!)

In the Song of Solomon, when the woman says to her beloved, “I’ve already taken off my robe and washed my feet. Do you want me to come back out [and answer the door]? [Song of Sol. 5:3]

I feel your pain! Once you’re in bed, appropriately dressed in the coolest attire you can manage, with clean feet, and the mosquito net hung nicely down, you don’t want to get up for ANYTHING.

The innumerable stars. [Jer. 33:22]

I’m talking STARS. Like you’re never seen them before in your life. Like you’re going to get swallowed up in the Milky Way. Unbelievable.

Speaking of stars, why am I staring at my computer screen when the Milky Way is calling my name? Goodnight, and Happy Sunday!