Resting in Africa...

So, as Mom let you know, I've arrived in Africa. It turns out that Jackie cancelled all of this week's ministering so we could stay at home and help Annatjie recover... I also get to rest up quite a bit myself... 15 hours of flight time is a very long time, and no matter how many movies, episodes of House, or how much music you listen to, you can't really rest.

I've been here three days now, and slept most of one of them to recover from the plane... yesterday Jackie took me all over the countryside showing me Jo'burg, Pretoria, and a whole bunch of suburbs. For those of you who have been to Tijuanna, you'd find that many parts of South Africa are very much the same. The government built homes for the poor, who then built onto them or built up around them, or who knows what all.

The land here is very dry, and really does remind me of Southern California... that same kind of scrub brush... soft, gentle rolling hills (near Pretoria, not so much in Jo'burg).

My primary problem so far is that I don't know a lick of Afrikans. Everyone I've met so far can speak English, but they only do so for my benefit. Most seem to be more comfortable speaking Afrikans, or one of the African languages. I'm starting to pick up a few words here and there, and I can tell when I am supposed to laugh, but it's a bit odd sitting there listening to a whole conversation in a language I cannot speak.

Oddly, it reminds me of home a bit... how my family and I slip in and out of English and Spanish... but here, it's Afrikans, English, and one of 11 other languages.

Sunday I will be going to an English speaking church, where I will get to stand up and speak for a bit with one of the other ministers who will be going to Mauritius. I plan on speaking on Faith, in a condensed sort of way, so keep me in your prayers.