Many smartly painted taxis rushed by without stopping, until an old, rumbling, black Lada finally slowed down and curved into the pavement where I stood. The taxi driver spoke no English and I can speak no Arabic, but we managed to negotiate a price for him to take me to drink tea with friends in the middle of the city. As we rushed along the fast highways from the airport into Cairo, a strong smell of fuel lingered in the air of the car. The car's windows still had protective plastic on, having recently been replaced, but the door handle mechanism was held together with a thick piece of string. Yet, in his black Lada chariot, the grey haired, Egyptian taxi driver could have been king. He turned up the classical Egyptian music that had been just humming in the background. Waving his arms in dramatic gestures, he accompanied the singing voices. Unfazed by my Arabic incompetance, he made me repeat the lyrics. The half an hour's ride was quickly transformed into a lesson in Arabic language and Egyptian music. It was a perfect final step through Cairo as I made my way back to the familiar bustle of Juba (South Sudan).
The next few weeks will be a muddle of tasks and God's provision, starting with a flight to Warrap (where I usually live) tomorrow. With the dry season having sucked all the water from the earth, the cattle have long been shepherded to pasture. With this task comes the closing of the school for these long months until April or May bring rain. Yet, in the absence of school and with the roads as dry as dust, there is much to be done in South Sudan along side the preparations for Marol.
For Marol, Please Pray for:
1) Training Teachers
Incredible people have responded to the request to finance the training of teachers. We are now confident that we can send Dut, Donato and John to Yei to be trained for the next two years. John will be the first qualified teacher in Panyijar County and Dut and Donato will join Nhial as the only trained teachers in Gogrial East County. All this will be possible through your prayers and giving to Marol.
2) Recruiting Teachers
FOCUS (the Kenyan Christian Union) is starting to look for new teachers to be the 2013 Marol Family teaching in the Marol Academy Secondary School, helping with the primary school and growing the Christian witness in the village from the foundations laid over the last two years. Pray that God is already preparing these teachers. It's a tough year for them and they need hearts filled with faith. Pray too for finances to come flowing to fund them.
What Else I Will Be Up To
The first weeks will be spent with the chiefs of Warrap State talking about justice and mercy. In South Sudan, almost all the courts in the villages are presided over by the local chiefs who use the customary law to bring justice and resolve conflicts. With the coming of the new state of South Sudan, there are questions about how this type of justice can mix with a modern justice system written from the distant capital city. When I was a little girl, my late godmother gave me a book of Celtic Liturgy. Inside its cover, she scribbled Micah 6:8 (What does the Lord require of you but to seek justice, love mercy and walk humbly with your God). I hope I will spend those weeks listening to those chiefs about what it means to show justice in South Sudan. To have the chance to seek what justice is in this unique setting seems a perfect privilege. I hope, in time, I can share what I find with people who make policy in Juba and elsewhere. Please pray that God would let me seek to live these weeks as he commanded in Micah. And let me know Him close to me.
After that, many more things might happen. I look forward to sharing the stories with you.
Thank you
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