Good Friday in Zambia

Today we remember that our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ died on the cross to redeem from sin those who believe in Him. As in Canada Good Friday is a holiday in Zambia but it is not observed as much as in Canada. We felt a little lost this morning since there was no church service at the church that we usually attend. As a result, it felt a bit strange not being able to have fellowship and partake in the Lord's Supper to remember His incredible sacrifice.

We stayed home and towards the end of the morning Kevin and Drew from the Esther School dropped by to bring Lindsey who will stay over with Lucinda for a sleepover. It is nice that both young ladies get along so well and they enjoy each other's company. They also play both guitar so right now they are "jamming" together and have a lot of fun.

This past week did not start out great with Machteld not feeling well. She stayed home for two days with the signs of a cold and Lucinda looked after her while she was home. Fortunately she was able to go to the office again on Wednesday. At the office it was a busy week for Gert with the delivery of the chickens to the abattoir. There were some challenges with transportation, mortality of chickens during transport, not delivering enough chickens, etc. But in the end is looks like it will all work out and we thank God for His provision in all we stand in need of. Where we sometimes don't see a way out and doors that are closed He always comes through and opens doors and provides new opportunities.

This afternoon Lucinda and Lindsey went together to the orphan homes in Lusaka and spent some time there with the children. They were welcomed with open arms and big smiles and they played all kinds of games with the kids. It was fun to hear how the kids have opened up to Lucinda and that they love to have her around and do things with them. It is also amazing to see how the kids with simple things can have a lot of fun. No high-tech or video games but real play with each other. Whether it is a word game or rope jumping with funny actions while jumping, the kids always find a way to have fun. I believe that these children have more fun playing together than many kids in North America have playing their video games.

On Sunday we will visit some people from the Lusaka Community Church that we have been attending more frequently lately. It is a German/Dutch couple with two daughters here in Zambia and their eldest son is studying in The Netherlands. It is nice to slowly get connected here with a church family. The church is going through some difficult times with the pastor just resigning and now there is a lot of prayer put into the visioning for the future of the church. We'll see what will happen and what decision will be made by the elders but it is certainly not easy to make these far-reaching decisions but we trust that God will guide the elders in this process.

On Monday we have another holiday for Easter Monday so next week will be another short week of only four days. Next we also have to check up on our work permits and probably have to get our visas extended. Hopefully they will give us another 60 days so that we don't have to come back every month. It's hard to believe that it has been almost three months that we arrived here in Zambia. You wonder where the time went.

We wish everyone a blessed Easter weekend and that we may rejoice on Easter Sunday with our risen Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ and be thankful for our salvation through His blood. HE IS RISEN!