We began at 7AM as is custom with a Jon Millet day. We ate breakfast and maintained casual conversation without understanding the blessings God had in store for us today. Today would end making sad farewells accompanied with tears of joy.
Prior to boarding the bus, we took delivery of one of four custom built round tables purchased by our sponsors for the benefit of the school for disabled children. Along with the tables, we arranged for the construction of 24 matching wooden chairs. In Tanzania, most furniture is custom built from wood. They do not have "Big Box" stores. This concludes our ministry to the school. We had the pleasure of not only furnishing the dining area but also painting the school and ministering to the families about how God loves their children and the importance of having a relationship with God.
We loaded the bus with approximately 600 pounds of food and headed back to the orphanage to provide them food and finish painting the exterior of the building. The orphanage is run by Mama Jane who asked God for children and was blessed when he provided her the vision of developing a home for orphans. Many of her children lost both parents to AIDS. Jane has developed a remarkable program which instills God's values in the children. They operate as a family which cares for each other and their guests.
During our visit Jane informed us that she trusts God to provide for their needs. She is industrious and intelligent. She runs a farm to grow produce for the kids but this isn't enough. As it turns out., she ran out of food yesterday! Again through the generosity of our sponsors, we provided her "just in time" food. By God directing us to Tanzania, we were able to meet this need.
We had fun taking individual portraits and printing pictures of the children. It is rare for them to have a photograph. We also had a fun time teaching them Vacation Bible School. They responded enthusiastically to the program.
While all of this was fun, we were blessed beyond words. We can't begin to capture the raw emotion we experienced after being fed dinner by them. They sang and danced for us. We joined them in the celebration. Then, we began an hour long series of good bye's which involved prayer, song, gift exchanges and MANY TEARS from girls, boys, students and adult leaders alike.It was simply one of the most blessed moments you could experience. We boarded the bus to head home and opened the windows to sing a farewell song. We were touched with God's love.
Then, we had to say goodbye to our six guides who hosted us during the trip. Again, we exchanged gifts, praises and tears for our newfound relationships as brothers and sisters in Christ. How much emotion can we take in one day! It was truly special seeing God's people in unison with each other.
We were honored when they informed us of their desire to implement some of our strategies in their local ministries. They were honored when we shared how much they impacted us in such a short time. God was honored because his work was done for the poor, the widows, the orphans and the children who could not help them selves.
Our prayer is for you to be honored as having been a big part of this important ministry.
Thank you!
Mike Fields on behalf of Team Tanzania
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