More Musings

Joy in the midst of struggle. We saw sobering poverty in the Congo - in malnourished children, in bare classrooms and inadequate medical facilities, in a lack of basic infrastructure. We heard heart-wrenching stories about war in the eastern part of the country and the brutality carried out against civilians. We know that life for our church partners is challenging in some ways that we have never had to face. And yet, the Congolese people are quick to smile. Laughter comes easily. And in worship, the joy is palpable. The three and a half hour service that we were in felt a little long, but not nearly as long as I would have thought, due largely to the sense of joy that came through, particularly in the music.