God likes to show up in mysterious places. It’s one of the amazing ways God works.
This past week I have been reliving the days I first moved into my community in South Africa for my YAGM year. It’s hard to believe it was two years ago. It is also birthday month for my two best friends Natasha and Palesa, who were the first two people to take me out and show me the new world I was living in.
This month is full of memories, happy and sad from my time in South Africa. It is also filled with stress because it’s the halfway point in my semester and I am constantly in a state of “2 years ago I was there, 1 year ago I was here, and now...I’m waist deep in papers, exams, and Greek homework.”
The other day, I dragged myself to Compline prayer at 10:15pm in the Chapel. I normally go after class on Tuesday and Wednesday, but it was Thursday and I was just ready to head to Churchkey (our social drinking hour as a community on campus), but I decided to just suck it up and go.
As I was sitting with my friends in the Chapel, we were trying to decide what hymns to sing and I opened my book to a random page in the ELW Cranberry Worship Hymnal. I looked down on the page, and what did I see, but this:
(Sorry the picture is blurry, that’s how excited I was)
Thuma Mina, Wey Baba (are the words I learned) to my favorite song, translated to “Here I am Lord, Send Me”. If you followed along during my year, you might remember the video from all night Revival where we sang and danced to this song at 4 o’clock in the morning. Or you may have seen the video when my friends sang it in church and I jumped up dancing in the aisle, celebrating friendship and worshipping God.
This song, that I never truly learned the words to, was my favorite song that I learned there. I had no idea it was in the hymnal and had been under my nose the whole time. But here it was, right in front of me, at just the time I needed it.
Needless to say, I burst into speechless tears and no one knew what was going on and how happy this made me, but also how much I needed it.
A lot has changed in the year since I came home. It’s easier to be here and I’m loving life again, but I still long for my friends and family in South Africa. God knew what was on my heart and decided to gift me with this beautiful and happy memory.
God Moments are the best.
Thank you, God. I needed this.
