Tonight I found myself again setting up lawn chairs, camping chairs etc in a circle in the most shady place we could find in our side yard. I had the thought that it felt like we had just done this. That was a year ago. Tonight was our night of welcoming in our four youthworks staff for the summer. This is my fourth summer of doing so! The Youthworks arrival as well as the heat that usually joins them marks the beginning of summer for us. It is in times like tonight that I truly experience the passing of seasons remaining in a place. Tonight I saw this as a privelage.
We asked them their stories of how they came to be with us. I enjoy listening to their stories while they have no idea that each of their stories will become part of the larger Cairo story, with all the people that God has brought into this place, and then the Cairo story fits into the larger God story that we have probably only heard whispers of so far. Oh, if only the trees could talk and share what they’ve seen and heard over the years…
Tonight we also had another new guest. As of last Thursday night we had two young men, with the promise of others joining them, who bought a building on our main street in which they have decided to build a coffeeshop (They hope to have movie nights, bring music in with the connections they have, they are not into making a lot of money and they are vegetarians who hope to have heath food there as wells as records, books and internet. Yes, very interesting.). Yes, a coffeeshop in Cairo! This has brought nothing but amusement, excitement and intrigue to me since I found out on Friday. This has been a small prayer of mine since I arrived in Cairo four years ago, especially for a place to hang out. Now, they have bought a building that we had spent much time praying about last summer. Hmmm. They have come from Florida and this has been a dream of one of theirs for a while, to find a river town where they could open a place like this. His story is now added to the mix too.
We talked about dreams (in came about talking about the coffeeshop) in a place where so many have never been taught to dream, or perhaps the dreams that come so natural as children have been crushed. That has been on my mind because I know I used to day dream all the time as a child and I am ready to dream with God now! Even talking about dreams in Cairo brought hope to me.
Tonight I was thankful for the built in encouragement that God has arranged for us long term missionaries each summer with the arrival of Youthworks. Again, I sensed excitement, the promise of new things, new adventures and new people. I sensed that all is right because God is in charge and He is the one arranging everything. This is refreshing to this sometimes weary soul.
