The Vibrant team heads home

From Vibrant 08 Trip

It's humid here in Dar Es Salaam as I sit in our hotel lobby. Four of the members of the team left this afternoon for the long journey back to the United States. A group of us said goodbye to Erin, Adam, Liz, and Kam. Trina and Lindsay will be here a couple more days - and Leisha, Edwin, and I will wake up early to travel to Kenya by bus.

After Bible camping with the Tanzanian kids, we headed back for a couple of nights in Dodoma. We had a tearful farewell with the staff - and also completed a short hike up a prominent rock that dominates the Dodoma landscape.


Early on Sunday, we piled into the Shabiby Express to drive back to Dar Es Salaam. The landscape is really breathtaking, and the long hours allowed us to think through our experiences and reflect on what we've just plowed through.

Living among our brothers and sisters here is always life-changing. Pastor Amos is a deep thinker and a visionary. His wife Esther is incredibly compassionate, dedicated, and cheerful. They are a wonderful team in a region with many needs.

We learn many things while here. We learn that the African church has great depth and wisdom to share with the world. We also learn of the hospitality, generosity, and kindness of our East African family. We see, touch, and understand the reality that the lack of resources for the poorest of the poor devastates lives. We realize that whether we are aware of it or not - we impact this region with our choices in our own communities. And our understanding of God and the nature of our creator & friend is challenged and enlarged.

Thank you for your prayers and partnership as we've traveled. We are so grateful for your interest and participation.

For Edwin, Leisha, and I - we'll continue to travel for the next month. We'll be visiting our partners in Uganda, Sudan, and Kenya!

If you'd like to see the whole Vibrant '08 trip photo gallery - you can click below:

Vibrant 08 Gallery