Snippets

I hear a tiny voice calling, “Em,” from somewhere outside. I walk down the stairs to see a 6-year-old girl standing in the doorway. Delighted to see her, I ask for a hug and she jumps in my arms without hesitation, sqeezing her arms around my neck. Adorable.
She informs me in that tiny voice that today is her birthday. We eat breakfast, read a story and I load her up with some clothes and vegetables to take home. Later, at church, her brothers and sisters compete for space on my lap and next to me on the bench. I love these kids!

I also enjoyed taking my neighbour to the zoo in Georgetown last month....
One of my favourite activities is doing Bible Club at our local public school. Children crowd inside the classroom while more peer in from the windows. I basically have to shout the entire time because it's so loud all around. My voice needs a break by the end but it's worth it.
Kids gather for Wednesday afternoon children's church.
"... for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these." -Jesus said. -Matthew 19:14b

PS.

The conference in Florida (a couple weeks ago) was great! I saw old friends from Jamaica and made new ones from other countries. It was like a taste of heaven to pray and praise God in unity with people from all over the globe who are serving with various ministries. A lot of love. And a few Baptist-Charismatic jokes, too. It was inspiring to see how major organizations are joining together to do what Jesus asked us to do..."go and make disciples of all nations..." and it reminded me that I'm part of something so much bigger than myself.

Fear and Choices

The night before I left for Florida, gunmen entered several random homes in the village of Luisignan (near Georgetown), and murdered 11 people including children. A ten-year-old hid under a bed while the rest of his family was shot to death.

The gang leader who admits to being the mastermind behind the senseless killings vows to strike again and says that the next time it will be worse -unless his estranged girlfriend is returned to him. Nobody seems to know her whereabouts.

Last week there was a shootout in the village of Buxton where the perpetrators are said to be hiding out and some of them were caught.

Then there was a kidnapping threat in Parika and everyone was frantic to get their kids out of school.

Meanwhile some soldiers and police have been wounded or killed in other recent clashes. It's no secret that the police force is crippled with corruption and now they are receiving increased criticism (to put it lightly) due to their response to the sudden violence -apparantly it took them 2 hours to get to Luisignan after residents called for help.

This is part of a conversation I had last night with a friend who is a policeman in the capital. I'm thankful for the handful of talks we've had about God and faith. The first one sprung from the symbol of courage tatooed on his hand.

Em: “It's not the best time to be a policeman right now. There's a lot of fear. How are you?”
Michael: “Me n'ah 'fraid, you know. Everybody gonna die someway an' if it's time for me to go it mean God ready for me. You no think so?”
Em: “Well, I think God made the world and put certain laws in order and the things we do have consequences... If someone decides to drive drunk and they hit me and I die, I don't believe that's how God would have me go, but He allows us to make choices, you know? And the choices we make affect the people around us. I don't think it was God's will for those 11 people to be killed but those gunmen had a choice to do good or evil. We also have opportunities to choose right or wrong and with the help of Jesus, we can choose what is right.”

Michael was pensive, we chatted a little more and he went home. He's got a lot ahead of him without many role models besides some corrupt officers and hopefully some honest ones. I believe Michael has the capacity to choose what is just and good whether he wears a unifrom or not. I pray that he will know Jesus and depend on Him for courage in times of decision.

Please pray for Guyana - people are fearful. And pray that those who lost loved ones will turn to God for comfort and healing as they grieve.

I believe that Jesus changes lives and that when we pray and walk rightly with God, nations change, too.
"He will swallow up death forever. The Sovereign LORD will wipe away the tears from all faces; He will remove the disgrace of his people from all the earth. The LORD has spoken." Isaiah 25:8