if my people will humbly pray and turn from sin and their wicked ways then i will hear them and heal their land and show my glory and power again
tell the people the blind will see the lame will walk and the slave is free shout the news that the lost are saved in the name of Jesus the dead are raised
hungry i come to you for i know you satisfy i am empty but i know your love will not run dry so i wait for you, so i wait for you i'm falling on my knees offering all of me Jesus you're all this heart is living for
This Sat my swahili class has organized an all-day street fest to celebrate swahili and african culture, language, food, studies, and more.
45 Willcocks street (spadina and one stop north of college) http://www.kiswahilitoronto.ca/
Starts @ 4pm -Enjoy $5 plates of East African food, courtesy of New Bilan and the Sultan of Samosa. -Check out fair trade, local vendors, and community organizations. -Kiswahili courses (no prior experience necessary!) taught by students.
7:00 Upigaji Muziki -Kenyan Women Singers- returning for the second year in a row!
8:00 War/Dance - This Oscar nominated documentary follows students from Patongo Primary School in Northern Uganda as they experience the healing power of performance through their journey to compete in Uganda’s national music and dance festival. The screening will be followed by a question and answer period with representatives from AMREF, one of the festival’s sponsors.
although a sinner does evil a hundred times and may lengthen his life, still I know that it will be well for those who fear God, who fear Him openly -ecclesiastes 8:12
So I was under the impression that I had told everyone this story but apparently that isn't the case so I shall write it here as a testimony for all: I am not lactose intolerant anymore.
"Anymore?", you ask.
Yeah, anymore.
I used to be, and pretty bad too. My stomach would cramp up something fierce, my muscles so tight I could not physically stand up. Couldn’t walk, couldn’t stand, the best I could do was shuffle slowly, clutching my stomach and trying to control my breathing. It’s really not an exaggeration. It was really that bad. I avoided dairy as best I could for about five or six years. When I would forget what it tasted like and what I would suffer, I would sample a little and then be plunged back to the painful reminder of why I avoided it in the first place.
While I was in Tanzania most people didn’t drink milk anyway so I was fine there eating rice and beans and drinking black tea. Near the end of my stay, I got really sick with malaria and other stuff. It didn’t get kicked out completely the first round of medication, so I had to go on the strongest stuff available, and was a little nervous about doing so.
After taking it, I was lying in my bed just talking to God. I was pretty scared, because the first round of meds had been real bad, and I wasn’t sure what was going to happen this time. When I first arrived in the country, I was praying and felt the Lord telling me He would take care of my health and I wasn’t to worry about it or make it one of my frontmost priorities. We had a talk then, of something like:
“Hey God, I just wanted to remind you that this country has some pretty serious diseases, okay, it’s not like Canada, there are some real strong stuff here and I don’t want to play around.”
“Zuzka, I’ll take care of your health”
“Okay I just really want to remind you once again Lord, that this country has malaria and typhoid and other kinds of stuff, I just want to tell you that there’s malaria here, okay? I just want to remind you, Lord, you know that, right?”
“Zuzka, I’ll take care of your health”
“Okay then”
Fast forward 10 months, and there I was lying in bed, the sickest I had ever been. With a shaky voice I whispered, “Lord, you said you would take care of my health”
I felt a soft presence around me and heard the most tender voice say, “I AM”
“Okay Lord, I trusted you then, and I will trust you now. I just wanted to tell you that I’m scared.”
Again the soft voice said, “Zuzka, I AM with you”
“Okay then”
I had peace. But God wasn't finished with our conversation
“Zuzka lay hands on your digestive system”
“What?”
“Pray for your digestive system”
“Um, okay, *lays hands*, Lord, I pray for my digestive system”
“Address the lactose intolerance”
“Okay, Lord, I ask you to heal me of lactose intolerance. If there are any demons existing by the name of lactose intolerance I command you to leave. Father, please heal my digestive system and make it whole in Jesus name”
“You’re healed”
“Okay then, thank you Lord, that was a little unexpected, but thank you for what you’re doing”
Believing and confident, I left it at that.
A few weeks later I finished my placement and left the country to visit some family in Europe. My first test was sitting down to a cheese pizza: the results? Passed with flying colours. No cramps, no pain, nothing, just normalcy!
Wow! Praise God.
And to this day I remain lactose tolerant, after five or six years of avoiding dairy. I’m still not convinced eating lots of dairy is a healthy choice, but I have a choice and it won’t debilitate me.
Do I have theological answers? No. Do I have a blueprint for others? No, though I wish I did. All I have hearing, believing, obeying, and receiving. And it wasn't what I had been asking for.
All I have is faith and trust in the One who is good – and good not because He gives me good stuff (although every good and perfect gift comes from the Father of Lights), but good because He IS. It doesn't give me more answers, but in another way, He is my answer. So,
"To you, O Lord, I offer my prayer; in you, my God, I trust" Psalm 25:1-2
