Tuesday morning in London--Reflections on Rwanda

We flew out of Rwanda on Monday afternoon. We took a jumbo 767 jammed packed with people with more seats crammed into a plane than I thought possible. My daughter's knees hit the seat in front of her so imagine my knees. My table tray actually hit me in the stomach, and I have virtually no stomach left at this point! Thankfully it was only an hour flight!

After 6 hours in the Nairobi airport we flew 8 hours to London. We arrived about 6 am local time. Alycia needed to close out a bank account from her school days so we headed into cold, rainy London for a few hours. I finally ate! Two fried eggs, toast, orange juice and hot chocolate. Then off to a coffee shop for more hot chocolate and a chocolate muffin. It will be good to get back to some real food tomorrow. :)

We have a few more hours here in London and then home.

Some reflections on this trip to Rwanda:

1) My reasons for going were both personal and missional:
a) After giving in to anxiety and not going to Rwanda last summer I have been praying for the chance to get back on the horse and try it again. This was a chance for me to practice my "overcoming anxiety" skills and conquer my "imagined" fears. I decided, when I turned 50, that I didn't want anxiety to control me anymore. So this was a big deal for me personally. Considering I was sick the week before, arrived in Rwanda with no voice, I'm feeling pretty good about the trip.
b) I wanted to spend some time with Alycia before she got married. We had a really good trip together. Sometimes, both being strong-headed control types, we can butt heads. But we really got along well. A great support for each other. And she continues to amaze me with her understanding of and passion for making a difference in the world.
c) I wanted to let God set the agenda for the trip. While initially I thought I would be more involved in the conference, the periods of down time to do some church work and hang out and up time to do the things mentioned in previous posts, was a good balance. It was a spiritually fulfilling trip and a good chance to get caught up on the missions we support. It's one thing to read about them via emails. It's another to personally see it and talk with those with whom we are partnering.

2) I'd been feeling a bit disconnected from Rwanda as of late. So many different missions have come into the country and I felt like perhaps we should go somewhere else. But after being in Nyamata, and particularly after meeting with John and seeing/hearing of this work in community development, my passion for our involvement with the Lutheran church was re-ignited. I'm hoping John and his wife Robin can join us in August for a weekend so Grace'rs can see/hear of the work being done, sponsored in part by Grace.

3) While I often wrestle with the cost of going to a place like Rwanda vs. simply sending the money over, there really is no substitute for going. And I think it makes me a better pastor. Certainly some of the missional things stirring in my soul that I referred to a few posts ago would not happen without a trip like this. I appreciate the chance to represent Grace in Rwanda.

In the next few days, once the dust settles, I'll get the Nyamata pics up for you to see.

Thanks for your prayers, support, comments, and interest during my trip. It was fun being able to keep you in the loop each day.