....and the rain fell

Our arrival in Liberia was greeted by a heavy downpour of rain. Exiting Roberts Field International Airport is always a challenge - but now with 16 people, 32 bags of 50-pound luggage, no light outside, heavy rain falling and Liberians crowding around us eying our luggage and looking for spare change - ok well, welcome to Liberia. The best way to describe arrival is "in your face" culture shock. The bright spot, of which there are many, is the smiling face of our Liberian friend, Lillian. As usual, she was there with everything under control and quickly shuffled passengers and luggage into taxis that had just been chartered at the airport. I watched the taxis drive off with members of our team (and my daughters) with no cell phones or directions on where they were heading, and realized that God had brought us to this place where we were no longer in control - He is. That's part of this process of exercising faith and trusting God. The verse that we had shared as a team became real. "Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified, do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go." (Joshua 1:9). Ok, so it's time to exercise it and believe it.

We all made it to the house through literally torrent rains. Those of us expecting to drive through the front gate were surprised when we passed to the back of the house. As we walked through the house and made our way to the front door, it was obvious why the new entrance - there was now a lake in front of the house. In the middle of that lake sat a van that was to be our transportation for the next few weeks.

In all things, though, you can find joy and the girls quickly made their way outside to shower in the rain (it beats a bucket bath). The rain proved to be a valued commodity for bathing and washing clothes with clean water. When the rain fell, we would quickly run outside to catch it in our buckets.

So, the adventure began as the rain fell and as we learned about being strong and courageous - knowing God is with us.