Home Away From Home

Our team of 18 arrived safely in Zambia a little earlier than scheduled at 2:25pm/7:25am. The seven hour flight felt like a breeze after the previous 15 hour flight the day before. Some of our team members slept well last night in Dubai and others did not. Some had cold rooms and others did not.

You could see the excitement growing in everyone’s faces as we began the day knowing we would get to our destination. For the first-timers, you could see their curiosity for what the day would hold. And Zambia did not disappoint.

We arrived in Zambia with the other 60 plus Camp LIFE participants at 2:30pm and all of us needed to wade through the customs line. After customs, we hoped to retrieve our 13 checked bags. Thankfully our 13 bags arrived along with all of our team’s bags. No missing bags, which is an answer to prayer!

After accounting for all 80 plus participants and their bags, we headed to Family Legacy Conference Center where we arrived about 5pm. At that point, we were given the time to freshen up in the restrooms, get some snacks and refreshments, and then prepare to have a welcome by the Family Legacy staff.

Just like last year, as part of the welcome, we were greeted with amazing singing by some of the young men and women of the Tree of Life Children’s Village. Check out the pictures and videos attached to this post.

There is something very emotional about seeing these children, some you know by name and they know you, singing in such beautiful God-given voices. The grace of God produces an awe in us as we enjoy the singing that He has gifted in our Zambian brothers and sisters. It is also very emotional to see faces that you have longed to see since you last saw them a year before.

These children also greet you and love you with such abandoned affection that it completely undoes you. Those that know me know that being emotional is really the lowest thing on my to do list, yet thinking about this trip and seeing our Zambian children face-to-face is an incredible emotional experience.

So it really does feel like a home away from home. For our family, all five of us are experiencing this, and our biological children will, no doubt, be transformed as God uses our Zambian brothers and sisters as tools of His grace in our lives.

During our team meeting, some of our first-timers had the opportunity to explain why they chose to come. Meagan was one of those, and she did a great job articulating how God used events in the last year to bring her to the point of conviction to travel to Zambia.

We appreciate prayers toward that end, and we appreciate the prayers you have prayed on our behalf thus far. The praise of our God grows with your every prayer. Tomorrow we participate in church, some Zambian market culture, and meet our Zambian partners. It will prove to be another glorious day!

Enjoy Jesus Christ, who is our risen Savior that has inaugurated His kingdom to be established beginning at his resurrection and consummated at the new heavens and new earth. What a wonderful hope we have, which is the theme of this year’s Camp LIFE. Praise God for His amazing grace!