Excitement and a Prayer Request

Well, things have been pretty exciting here since I last posted. No, no encounters with lions...

I mentioned in my last post that the lecturers at the university are on strike, and that the students like to riot. Well, last night we were having a birthday party for Chapo, the Navs campus director, and we discovered that the rioting had broken out and it was not safe for the students who were with us to return to campus. Apparently, the students feel the way to be heard by the government is to stone cars passing by on the main road near campus. So, they inflict a lot of damage on innocent drivers, and the police come out to try to contain things. But, apparently the police are the people who couldn't get into university, so there are some hard feelings, and they are willing to go to more extreme measures to try to keep the students in line. They use tear gas to subdue the students, and there has been a history of them going into dorms and beating students they deem suspicious. That hasn't happened this time (that I know of), but as we passed by the campus this morning, we watched as a group of policemen shot tear gas into a group of students, and the students all fled. The road is being patrolled by the police, who sit there with very large guns. I'm kind of shocked by the whole thing, but the Nav students who have been with us don't seem phased at all. Apparently, this happens every semester, and they seem to think it's exciting. From the looks of things this afternoon, it seems that things have calmed down, but several students are trying to get back on campus just to get their things and then leaving to stay with local family and friends off-campus. It is likely that unless the government and the lecturers can come to an agreement, the students will riot again tonight.

This has a huge affect on the ministry. We all had Bible studies planned for tonight, and now that won't be possible. Most of our time while here should be spent on campus, but as of right now, it's not safe for us to be there. Unfortunately, if the students riot for three days (we're at 2 now), the university will close for at least two months. If this happens, all the students will disperse and return home. This would change radically our time here, and stalls the process of reaching these students for the gospel. Also, there is a special training program later this month as well as the national conference which could not happen if the students are not around. A lot of planning has gone into both of these events, and I know Chapo would be greatly discouraged if the students have to leave. Please pray with us that the strike will be resolved, the students will stop rioting, and the school will stay open. Thank God that when things started yesterday, many students in the ministry were with us, and were able to spend the night in safety with us. Praise Him that we have already bonded with these students, and are looking forward to ministering to them as we can. I suppose I should mention that we are very safe. We are not going on campus until we get the okay from Chapo, and we are staying off of the main road, using only access streets.

We have gotten a chance to get to know some of the students, and I really enjoyed Forum on Saturday night. They sang several songs in different Zambian languages (there are 72), and though I couldn't understand it, it was so fun to worship God with them. Our team got a tour of the city today, since we couldn't be on campus, and we even drove through the crowded Lusaka market. It was an incredible sight. As we pulled onto the main street entering the market, I was thinking how many people and cars there were, and Chapo says, "Good. Right now it is not congested." I hate to think what congested would have been like... I hope to post some pictures when we get back, because I don't think I could accurately describe the crowds, the displays of goods, and the sheer magnitude of this market. It was overwhelming.

And, some parting thoughts:
I never thought I could sit so close to a stranger(especially one not wearing deodorant) as I did on a Zambian bus. Peanut M&Ms are divine. I don't understand God's sovereignty. It's harder to teach people how to shuffle cards than you'd think. I'm pretty sure if I had to carry my baby on my back with a piece of cloth the way Zambian women do, my baby would fall right out. Walking is good for me. Zambian rice is amazing, and can be a meal in and of itself. Women talking about men and marriage and singleness is universal. Janeen's hair can get to be twice the size of her head. When talking about what Arizona has to offer, it's hard to come up with things which don't come from Native Americans or Mexicans (especially when you're talking cuisine). AND...The female students think Stephanie, Meghan and I have good-looking brothers (of course, I have to agree when it comes to mine - Jesse's a stud).