Exhausted after three days of travel, yet I can't sleep.   It's 1:40 in the morning here in Zimbabwe  and I'm still running on adrenaline.  I'm fascinated by the culture and the graciousness of a marginalized people that have so little, but are willing to give so much.  I'm already wrestling with the thought that I came here to better understand how we could help, but I feel like they are helping me more by changing my paradigm as to how we see the world.

We spent the day driving through the city of Bulawayo and buying supplies for our trip to Tuloche later this morning.  We will leave early this morning as it will take us two and a half hours to arrive at a community with a hundred children that have stayed in this village since Sunday night once they heard of our coming.  These children of all ages have "slept in their clothes" as they call it to see us.  See, many of these orphans will travel a day by foot to worship with a church that provides a sponsorship through Horizon International for their education, food, clothing and clean water.  They have not returned to their caregivers in order to see us.  

Tonight may be the first time that a roster that has crowed all night long hasn't bothered me.  I found out today, as our host was showing us his garden, that the fifteen or so chickens that he is raising will be given to an orphan to have as their own food supply.  Each time I see how this community, even though separated by large distances, cares for one another it reminders me of Acts four as the church met one another's needs.  They are showing me how you can have a deep love for someone you may not meet for another few hours. It's truly humbling.

The joyous thing that I have had the privilege of seeing now on several different continents is that precious and impoverished people don't recognize their circumstances they way I see them.  They have a joy.  The smiles are abundant and the laughter can be heard so frequently that it's  contagious.  Their joy is not captured by the thought of more things or even more money.  They see life in a moment at a time.  Their not thinking about next month or even tomorrow for that matter, but they  have tremendous needs... Or do they?  

Lord help me this week to see through your eyes.  Help me to realize I'm not here to fix something or to solve a problem that only exists in my mind.  I want to better understand this joy unspeakable that wont go away when there's just enough time to live for today.  So I'll never have to worry what tomorrow will bring cause I'm counting on God.