wait for it....wait for it....

By dictionary.com they describe the word (vision) as follows:

1.	The act or power of sensing with the eyes; sight.

2.	The act or power of anticipating that which will or may come to be: prophetic vision; the vision of an entrepreneur.

3.	An experience in which a personage, thing, or event appears vividly or credibly to the mind, although not actually present, often under the influence of a divine or other agency.

4.	Something seen or otherwise perceived during such an experience.

5.	A vivid, imaginative conception or anticipation.

6.	Something seen; an object of sight.

Vision what a beautiful thing! I really understand why it says in Proverbs 29:18, where there is no Revelation, (vision), divine guidance. The people cast of restraint, perish, run wild. (Quoting KJV, New KJV, and New living)

The crazy thing about a vision, dream, foresight, or whatever you want to call it, when given by the Lord, there are many times when he doesn’t seem to give the whole puzzle if you will, allowing you just to move with him piece by piece as he gives it to you. This of course is called living by faith. Having to just trust in him and what he says to do, when he says to do it and how he says to do it. I have pondered why it is that God does not always give the full picture right away. Of course one of the main things I can come up with is the building of our faith, learning to trust him in the leading of our lives. God also loves to test our hearts to see if we will in fact obey him in his leading. Obedience is a very important facture to him, more important than any of our sacrifices being made.

In my case I have found that the Lord has been spending a great deal of time testing me….A while ago when I was questioning the Lord on things that I was going through and the things that were going on around me and our ministry. He answered me through Deuteronomy 8: (2) Remember how the Lord your God lead you through the wilderness for forty years, humbling you and testing you to prove your character, and to find out whether or not you would really obey his commands.

A testing or shaping and molding to prepare for what he really has in mind for the future of those he knows will obey.

The whole chapter really spoke to me at that time but verse two jumped out and slapped my face! I have past that testing and the Lord has seen my heart, my character has been proven! It was a beautiful moment! The Lord then decided to let me in on a whole other level of his vision, I say his vision because it was never really mine in the first place he was just feeding it to me in bite size pieces so that it was easy to digest. During the digestion process I could enjoy it and therefore take ownership of it. God’s plan the whole time!

So now God decides to show me the big picture! On April 4^th 2008 God gives me a dream; you can read the whole story and watch the dream so to speak by clicking the link I have. It is on my Dec.19, 2008 posting entitled (Dreams/visions/tears…let there be God). This was a very overwhelming experience; in my looking back I did not handle it very well. My response was much like Peters in Matt 17 when up on the mountain with Jesus and watching him being transfigured before his eyes. Then sees Moses and Elijah show up and start talking to Jesus, Peter without really understanding the meaning of what is going on or waiting to find out is next, in his excitement blurts out “Lord it is good for us to be here”! (open mouth, insert foot) My take on how the story goes that he is then rebuked but none the less had a very serious encounter with God the father…

I like Peter did not have a full understanding of what God was showing me, nor did I spend time after seeking him on what was to follow next, or what to do with the info I received. No, in my excitement I ran and started blurting out with my big mouth to everyone what I saw and my interpretation of it. Not realizing at the time that God wanted to share more with me. At that time my vision was still a bit limited and I only saw what God wanted me to see. I am learning to be patient and allow the Lord to work things out in his time.

In the past I have written on what God is doing and wanting to do here in Africa, Rwanda, Burundi to be specific, known very well as the heart of Africa.

The Lord spoke to me through Habakkuk 2 (new living) then the Lord said to me, ”Write my answer in large, clear letters on a tablet, so that a runner can read it and tell everyone else. (v3) But these things I plan won’t happen right away. Slowly, steadily, surly, the time approaches when the vision will be fulfilled. If it seems slow, wait patiently, for it will surly take place. It will not delay.”

It will not delay!! It will show up exactly when the Lord intends for it to….

The truth is, there is something happening! There is a real stirring in many of the Africa Nations. There is going to be a Revival that is going to sweep through Africa! An out pouring of the glory of God has only been seen on small scales until now. The Lord is preparing his people all through this continent! When it hits, world watch out! Africa is not longer going to be known as the Dark Continent, but as a Continent of Light! The beauty of it all is I am not standing here on my soap box shouting these things. In the last 5 to 8 years there has been countless people that God has raised up from all over the nations to come here and proclaim, prophecy, and say the exact same things. God is getting ready are we?

I am more than privileged and honored that the Lord of host would ask me and my family to come and help prepare his heart for what he has planned for his people. The heart of Africa, the abandoned, the lost, the forgotten… Not any More!!! For the world will see the glory of the Lord shine from his African Heart!

Slowly, steadily, surly, it will be fulfilled!

Burundi & Brazil...

Last Sunday I had an opportunity that came my way that I could not refuse!
Some of the players from the former Football (Soccer) team of Brazil were here in Burundi to play against the national team. You know the former world cup champions...
They were traveling around different African nations playing some games, handing out foot balls, and raising some awareness on some issues. At least this was my understanding of what was happening. Now I understood why it was when we had taken are girls to the pool on Saturday that it was so busy and everybody was freaking out about these guys...

Let me, let you in on a little secret, I am not like most guys. Don't get me wrong I do like sports. But I am not the kind of guy that knows all the names of every team and who is playing on each team and where they played before they were on that team...etc... You wont find me doing what ever it takes to make sure that I get to see every super bowl or every world cup...

With that said, I do like the game though, I am just not what you would call a die hard. How was I suppose to know who I was saying hi to on that hot Saturday at the pool, or who Jasmin and Yaida were waving at as we walked past them on the beach. I did not know these were the guys that I would be watching play foot ball the next day against the Burundi National team.

Now that I look back at it, it's kind of funny. I got some nice photo's of the game. I guess this goes to show, you just never know who you might meet or who is that stranger you sat next to in the plane. The man or woman that smiles at you in the store or on the street.

All this made me think of something even deeper than that important person who we may have met or got to talk to. The celebrity that maybe shook our hand, etc...

I began to think, I wonder how many times that I have had an encounter with one of the Lords angels or messengers and didn't realize really who was helping me or directing me at that moment. One music artist says it best in one of his songs when he sings "maybe we are entertaining angels unaware"...

I know, you might think, Gosh Travis that is a far stretch from meeting some professional football players, how the hec did you get that one??
But that is how my mind works. One of my mentors once told me that to be a disciple, you should be able to go in to any conversation or situation and come out of it gaining something learning something. You see the word disciple means (learner)! So I guess to be a learner is to be a disciple, one that is always learning and always growing is one who is a disciple.
The question is what are you learning and what are you growing in??? I hope the answer is the ways of the Lord!

Anyways, enjoy the few good photo's that I got of the Brazil & Burundi game. It ended at Brazil 1 and Burundi 0, It was impressive to see that the Burundian's had control of the ball the majority of the time...This almost looks like a Christmas tree outside one of the stadium gates, I counted at least seven guys.

Jesus in a three year old...

The other day I saw Jesus, and he was only three years old!
Summer break has hit us, the kids are now having way more time on their hands than Mom & Dad would hope for. This means finding things to keep them from being on each other’s nerves, not an easy task in a place where the pool and beach are the only past times…
We have or I should say that Astrid has been very hard at work in the office, aka (our room) getting everything lined out for our registration and upcoming ministry events. Bless her heart; she is so good at admin and planning!
This means that I am on daughter duty… It is my job to try to keep the girls occupied long enough so that Astrid can focus on the work at hand. It is not so hard, Nani & Zoey are old enough that they come up with all sorts of things to play and keep themselves busy, only once in a while do I have to intervene and pull them out of boredom. Jasmin & Yaida are at that stage where they love to run around and play but also love to do stuff they should not be doing. This means that I am keeping a little closer eye on them. They have in turn become daddies little traveling buddies. Because I am the one to do most of the running around in town and take care of the majority of the shopping, Jasmin & Yaida are my side kicks, oh man do they love it! The car cannot start without them running out to join in the adventure, or at least that is what I believe it is to them…
As we live in Burundi, which is considered to be the third poorest Nation in the world, you can only imagine what we are surrounded by from day to day.
As me and my two traveling buddies are busing around town, I can help but to snicker and laugh a bit as I am picking up on the conversations that are taking place in the back seat between my two three year olds. I begin to ask myself what does this place look like through the eyes of a three year old? What does the poor, maimed, crippled, and blind, look like through their eyes?
I hear things like, “Oh my gosh yaya, (Yaida) look! This poor boy has no legs! He’s sitting in the dirt!” or “Jassy (Jasmin) Look this lady’s arm is weird! Every where they turn it is “look at this, oh my gosh that!” Yet with every statement there is compassion in their voice… Then the questions come… Daddy what happened to them? Why is he look like that? Why does she walk like that? I try my best to explain in a way that a three year old would somehow understand. All of a sudden the questions stop but the statements continue, always drawing one another’s attention to the next big sight. This happens day after day. The girls started asking me for money so that when they come to such poor people they can help them.
Jasmin has been growing in her compassion for the poor and the needy, every time we step out of the car and there is a crippled or someone with withered hand or deformity, she is there… One thumb in her mouth and with the other hand she is greeting them and touching their Ouchy… Yaida is usely right behind or beside her.
One day I had to go to the main market place…. The only way to explain this place is crazy city!!! If you don’t have a problem with Closter phobia then when you’re done you will… almost every beggar in the city is there, pick pockets galore, etc. etc. I usely send one of our local workers so that I don’t need to bother with the insanity. But I really needed to go myself for some reason that now escapes me, anyhow Jasmin and Yaida are with me and I am telling them how crazy it is and that they must hold on to Daddies hand the whole time. As we start in through the small, skinny, overcrowded isles I am having the girls hands and walking as fast as I can (I am focused on where I need to get to...) I feel that I am almost dragging the poor girls so I look down and I see little Jasmin in her own little world, walking as fast as she can to keep up with her fast pace daddy and trying to touch and see all the poor crippled people that are all around us. I tell her to stop touching everybody and just follow me. Ok daddy is her reply. The next thing I know I look over and I don’t have two kids any more but three…. Walking next to Jasmin as fast as he can go is this cute little boy about three or four years old. He doesn’t have any feet, only two little stubs that stop at the knee. He doesn’t have any hands earthier , his arms stop about at his wrist. Yet this little guy was keeping up with us, walking along side Jasmin and jassie had a hold of his little stumpy arm. I almost started crying right there in that crazy market.
A day or two later we are out and about in town again and I park somewhere outside a shop to wait for something. Of course as soon as the car stops the people start coming. (If you stop, they will come…) I see a young boy leading this older blind Muzee (old man), they approach the car asking for money and I try to ignore them. But what do you know jasmin’s window comes down and immediately she is telling Yaida about the poor man who has no eyeballs. The man approaches close enough that Jasmin reaches out to touch where his eyes should be. I stop her and tell her to sit down! Her reply is daddy this poor boy has no eyeballs, what happened? The Lord then spoke to me and said pray for him! I said “ Jassie do you want to pray for the man,to pray that Jesus will heal his eyes?” She was quite a bit with thumb in her mouth then said “yaya (Yaida) you pray for him…” Yaya response very quickly no thank you. Then Jasmin puts it back on me, You pray daddy! I refused that offer and after felt horrible. Did I grieve the spirit of God? Did the Lord want to do a miracle there? I guess I will never know!

All I can say is lately I have been seeing Jesus in a three year old!!
My prayer recently Is lord help me to be more like my three year old!