Jambo!

It’s been over a month since we arrived in Dodoma and we are settling in well into our new environment. We have completed four weeks of classes and it is such a joy and gift to interact with the students and faculty here in Msalato. Every day we try and understand and learn a little more about their context. On Friday afternoons we have lunch with the students and that is a gift because we get to experience more of who they are, away from the classroom setting.

On Sundays we get to chapel by 7 am and after that we go to our respective village churches with our assigned pastoral groups. Jo goes to St. Mark’s church which is in a village about 30 minutes by foot from our campus. What a privilege really to be part of a worship service so different from the ones we have attended! The existing church is a small mud structure and corrugated iron roofing. Colorful fabric pieces tied to strings on the ceiling replace colorful stained glass windows. Mud seats and floors replace wooden benches and floors. Singing involves a lot of dance and drums. Attached are a few pictures. They are in the process of building a new Church.

Ranjit goes to Msalato Secondary girls school, which abuts the college. It is amazing listening to the girls singing, and being a part of the worship experience there. They sing with such passion for God, and often times their voices bring tears to his eyes. He thinks of the millions of girls on the planet, who undergo such horrendous pain and hardship and believe that the Msalato girls are standing in solidarity with them.

On Thursday afternoons, we head into town with a fellow missionary friend, and we do our shopping. We look forward to this day because it gives us the chance to go into the “big city”, and experience a different setting for a few hours. These are the small luxuries that mean a lot. As you would expect, there are ups and downs. Some days we struggle for meaning and ask ourselves if we are indeed making a difference here; those days are tough, and we are glad that we have each other to lean on. Other days are wonderful - listening, learning and being transformed by the Tanzanian people.

For showers we boil our water, for there is no hot water. It makes us think of the luxury of water, and what privileges we’ve enjoyed. Most Tanzanians get by on next to nothing. It just makes you think, and also gets you angry at the inequality of life.

Where are our prophets, where is the justice?

Kwaheri for now.....