Tara's Iphone post July 6th 2010

Posted from Tara's Phone in Sierre Leone on July 6th
"Awesome!!! Team arrived safely... To wonderful Sierre leonean welcome of singing and dancing. Spent first day at the university of Freetown with students on campus and new campus ministry that started just 2 months ago. All is well

The fistula foundation

Below is a link to a video which explains more of what our medical team will be doing when on the ground in Sierra Leone.

Its quite inspirational ......

http://www.westafricafistulafoundation.org/

Our Medical team

Do you know that in Sierra Leone, 1 out of every 10 women who give birth with die in the process?

Yes 1 in 10.

Our group of nurses will with working to train traditional birth attendants as well provide medical care for pregnant women in the community..

46 days to go....

Freedom

Yesterday was independence day for Sierra Leone. She celebrated 49 years of Freedom. 49 years. The entire country is partying this week and trust me - those guys know how to really party!

It makes me think of those who fought for that freedom, those who risked their lives for a cause bigger than themselves.

I want to be brave enough to fight for the freedom of others, to fight for something bigger. It takes all of my courage to go year after year to make a difference in the lives of people. I choose to go because this is a cause worth fighting for.

FREEDOM!

Tara

It matters to this one....

As the trip approaches, so do some memories from my last trip to Sierra Leone. Some are filled with laughter (baby powder was a big white puff of laughter), as well, the big white guy showering in the rain trying to not stand out, ha Like that was possible ! Other memories are of the smiles on faces of those who have so little. It was hard at first to even think we could make an impact, after all we live in a country, city where so much is done for us, our needs are met. When you get there, you realize a nation is rebuilding, and your efforts do have a huge impact. When you drop a stone in the ocean, it hardly makes a splash, when you drop it in a small pond, the waves create major impact. It is similar for those who go, for those who make it possible for people to go, a few dollars in the ocean seems small, but in a small pond of need, it has huge impact.

I ponder the reality we have little experience with - where they are at - the average age of the country is 17 ! wow .... lots of young adults, very few mentors. For 70% of the population the average wage is $2/day, for 50% it is less than $1/day. Imagine a yearly wage of $365 - $730. May we be moved to compassion and never grow complacent with the "Stuff" we have. One latte Starbucks drink for about $4 that we take for granted ( a drop in our ocean), can there buy 4 acres of land ! Wow... have you heard the story about the boy who came across the beach where thousands of starfish had been washed ashore and dying ? The boy started throwing the starfish back into the ocean one at a time so they would not die. The father tried to reason with his boy, "son, there are thousands on the beach, your hearts in a good spot, but your really not going to make much of a difference, there are thousands here". The boy was not deterred, and as he kept flinging starfish, he responded, "it matters to this one".

What will one more trip accomplish ? how will a few days out of our life stack up against the overwhelming need ? I'm not sure yet, I'll answer that when we get back. But I do know the impact will be much larger than if we simply stayed and just did normal summer time here. God knows.... I don't need to out logic God i just need to obey.

For those who will can not go, but are able to sacrifice a few lattes in order for us to go, they share equally in the joy of dropping stones in small ponds, knowing that the waves will help be the changes to a nation, to a generation.

Danger of a Single Story

On a recent training night, we shared our stories, fears and expectations. It was clear from that night that we all had different sides to the full story of Sierra Leone and what is going on there. What is your picture of Sierra Leone? What images come to mind when you think of Africa? What is your story?

I encourage you to watch the video below, which outlines the danger of a single story and how each one of us are prone to do this...

As we prepare to go, we are choosing to empty our minds of the constructs that we have believed in about Sierra Leone. We will go open to learn, ready to learn many more stories about a nation whose stories are yet to be written.

Tara

healing

I believe that God has a healing heart. He hates to see his children suffering, and he calls us to ask in his name and he will HEAL. This is just something God has been revealing to me as the prep for this mission begins - and has continuously excited me with. In our home group last Wed., we were designated someone to write to, and i ended up with Ajack. It was a complete leap of faith, but God used me even when it felt like the exact opposite to me. In the end, Ajack and I prayed together for healing of a headache he had for 2 days straight - and God came through. We asked together in faith, and believed for the miracle, and God did not dissapoint. i believe that God wants to see healing in Sierra Leone, and that all we have to do is ask, and step out in faith. The rest is up to him. God doesn't care about how many hours we spent in prayer this week, or how long we volunteered; he wants our complete trust in him - our complete faith for the miraculous.

Psalm 77:14

You are the God who performs miracles; you display your power among the peoples.

-Amy