Growin

Yes I am! Whole new world out here and whole new task like I've never done before. It's a strange feeling to go home at night and wonder what 'work' was like in comparison to anything else I'd be doing normally? Well I guess nothing I have done is very normal, but hey, this one is really up there.
Talking with Jeff the other day he really reminded me that I'm not only over here fighting a battle against this trafficking/hiv/sex industry, it's also Christian politics. Top it off with the devil getting under the skin. Man oh man it made me realize why this has been so trying. HOwever, if I wasn't growing and having pains in my life to learn, then I wouldn't want it. Right? What's the point? Perhaps whoever is reading this can remind me, I read somewhere in scripture the other day, and I cannot for the life of me find it now, but I read a part where it says if you love your life, you will lose it and if you hate your life you will live eternally. I think it was along those lines. I am confused what this meant. I mean does that mean if we love our life, like we're loving life living for God then we'll lose it because we're not really serving him? Or does it mean that if we're loving life because we have all the material things we need, which is not the point in this world, then we'll lose it because we're not living for what's important. For a true walk with Christ? I mean cause then there's the whole, if you love your life you'll lose it, and perhaps that means if you love your 'life' with the father, walking with Christ, then we 'lose' our human life. Which in the end is what we want. We're in unity so close with the father that we could be nailed to the cross and still so thankful that we have eternal life because he did it for us. We must serve one another here while on earth. We must focus on Him, because everything else will fail us.
Well yesterday was very interesting. People have seen me struggling internally and having a hard time, yet I feel the team of Cristian, Kenny, Iain and Suzie didn't see the true struggle it's been until last night.
So I spent all yesterday in Fishoek working on the website with Jeff. Which is what I did again today. Looking sharp, but man oh man hard to be there looking at screens and I'm trying to multitask because there is only so much I can say and write, and then he has to arrange for like 20 minutes that part. It's coming.
Anyways, I spent all exhausting day wtih him. It was great getting to know Jeff and his struggles and life as he's from Zimbabwe and parents died when he was young. He's basically a refuge just trying to make it work here to have money and life. No real job still and this learning he's doing with African Renewal is great, but not technically a school. Trying to promote him and grateful for his help!
Well after we walked back from Fishoek, I was home at like 6 and thought I'll go for run then shower. Literally there's Susan and Iain outside my gate like HEY we were hoping to catch you! They were going to construct tshirt concepts together at Kosies but it was closed. I was so grateful they were even together to work. I said oh please can I run quickly and shower then I'll be over to the base? So set them up and by the time I got there, the team of Daneeka and Cristian were there laughing and creating with them. So cool!
In the mix of it all, like I've been struggling with since the begining, we look at the acronym and say, ok, NOW what do we do with this information? The answer is to abstain from....
Yes like I"VE been saying, as followers of Christ, the truth is abstain from sex outside of marriage. Sex gone wrong is how most these problems arose. IT's not JUST faithfulness! What if you don't end up with that person forever? What if you don't have a partner? Faithful to who? Why do people desire a partner? All these things come down to a marriage partner. So that's the initial answer.
It finally clicked in the other's heads what I was struggling with. The POINT, is to have awareness of trafficking, prostitution and HIV here for/during WC2010. The 'how' to have prevention for abstain2010, goes to the root of the problem. Yes we don't want the campaign to focus soley on that topic of sex outside of marriage, but that's a message we can't leave out if we're saying that to abstain from porn, rape, prostitution, etc., sex outside of marriage is also in that. So we're not forcing anyone to commit, just encouraging to take in this information, and decide for themselves how they can be a solution/endorser.
Suzie is so German. That's what I'm finding I love about Germans. It's like they don't have 'soft' feelings. They're to the point and business. Factual and it's great! She was just wanting to go forward. Liek yada yada it's about stopping trafficking we don't have to say this or that and let's just have the list of porn, rape, etc. and have the sex outside of marriage at the bottom so at least the 'target group gets reached and can have something attainable. BUT, like Iain and I were already understanding, it's not about what's luke-warm and attainable. It's what's the truth. We spoke about the prostitute that Jesus spoke with at the well. He did chastise her, but he spoke truth. That's the point of my hurt is we want results, however we dont' want to water downt he message to see results, We must have truth of reality. IT's like reaching for the highest goal. Why not? They started to see and realize that if we watered it down to abstain from porn etc and be faithful, that it's not REALLY living up to what we believe in. So we don't have to say sex outside of marriage only, but it must be in there becasue that's what we push as what sex is designed for. It's beautiful for 2 people. God created it!
Suzie got it later, and basically from 7:30-11:30 the night turned into debate, thoughts, feelings, lots of prayer, (Iain asked everyone to come and pray over me and this vision God placed on my heart which was so so humbling) and even Roberia, the Brazilian was int he room and prayed and he felt God was saying to me that just like when Moses was called and Joshua he said, "fear not". I was grateful to be blessed with my surroudings.
In the end it was us saying, we find it important, maybe not everyone takes it 100%, but we raise the bar to encourage them, and hopefully in the end it's a ministering to them. Most people agree whether they even believe in Jesus to start that marriage is important. I mean would you rather your daughter had many partners or one? Sounds better with one right? Someone not only to be loyal but to take care of her.
Yes, so after they finally put themselves in the turmoil I've had in my head, the very core and sole of this campaign when it comes to the end/solution of it, that I've surmised, that is the answer.