So, for someone who struggles with the long, dark, rainy
grey days of Belgian winter, it should came as no surprise that I was quite
happy to go to Malaga, Spain, to attend an important gathering of people who
care for refugees and asylum seekers across Europe. Mediterranean sunshine was what I went looking for….which I
found in abundance, but don’t be fooled that we had really warm temperatures
every day. I took a photo to prove
this to Steve, just in case he wondered if I had really gone to this meeting or
if I had spent 5 days sunbathing. For the record, the only time I got close to
the “beach” was when we boarded the ferry to visit Ceuta.
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| Temperature as we crossed the Mediterranean Sea....just for the record! |
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| Getting ready to cross the Mediterranean Sea with our AIPC intern, Jan |
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| We had to find something to entertain ourselves...after all, we left the hotel at 5am! |
Before I left on this journey, I asked God to break my
heart, to make me squirm in the comfort of my ministry world among refugees in
Belgium, to feel the pain of the refugees who are trying to find a safe place
to call home. All it took was one
quick ferry ride from mainland Europe, across the Mediterranean Sea, where at
one point there were 3 very important countries (and continents) in my visual
field: Europe (Algecira, the port
city where we boarded the ferry), Africa (Morocco on the horizon), and England
(the rock of Gibraltar, which was fascinating!).
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| Welcome to Ceuta, as seen from above, almost on the Moroccan side of the border |
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| Kitchen clean-up in the sun....are we in Africa yet? |
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| On the border |
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| So many lose their lives trying to swim here to safety and Europe |
When we left the European continent behind us, going on over
to yet another piece of Europe (Spain), in visiting Ceuta, I was also excited
to be putting my feet on the African continent yet again….though, technically
in Ceuta, you’re in Spain.
Make
sure you go consult a map just now to see where it was that we landed.! We
heard about the ministries there via our fellow RHP colleague, ate a simple
meal together, washed up the dishes together with refugees from different corners
of Africa, then set out to visit with others who are struggling to find a place
to call home, a chance to build a future, or the gift of a friend.
As we huddled around on the beach with
young African guys, (even in the sun, it was cold by the water!), serving tea
and samosas, chatting, laughing, hearing their stories, crying as they shared
how they couldn’t talk about crossing the Sea because it was so painful, God
was with us.
We talked about
dreams, how God speaks to us in our dreams, the dream of a homeland in Europe
(one young guy even told me that he had a brother up in Belgium, and was
dreaming of getting to Belgium to live there).
At one
point, several in our group were just standing on the beach, because they didn’t
have a common language to share with the guys.
They were our prayer partners, covering us with prayer as we
continued our conversations.
Those
of us who could speak French or another common language with these young guys
just continued on, and it came to a point where we offered to pray for
them.
So, there we were:
5 foreigners working among refugees,
praying in 5 different languages for the 5 refugees who were standing in our
midst.
The smiles and hand shakes
and slaps on the back (guys to guys, that is!) sent us all on our way.
God continues to break my heart for the world that is
lost. Sometimes it is amongst
refugees and those who are seeking asylum and a safe place to call home. Sometimes it is in the midst of our
church back in Belgium, as He keeps bringing people to faith who are able to
lay down their burdens at the cross.
And sometimes, God even chooses to break my heart about myself. I’m just so thankful that He’s the God
who takes all the broken pieces of our lives and can put them back together.
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| I love my RHP prayer partner! |
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| Most of the RHP roundtable participants...can you find me? |
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| RHP Europe....trying to make a difference....for Jesus! |
