EXHAUSTING WEEKEND

PRENOTE: I HAVE NOT HAD INTERNET FOR 36 HOURS AND AM NOW AT A PUBLIC FACILITY.

Dear ITEM Partner,

This has been an exhausting weekend, to say the least. I pulled out of the place I was staying in Mombasa at about 9am Saturday morning. I arrived at my room in Kinshasa, D R Congo maybe 8pm. That is 35 hours. I figured that out of those 35 hours, I spent 18  1/2  hours sitting in cars in traffic, in airports waiting, or on planes that were going nowhere because of delays.

The traffic through Kinshasa (population about 8 million) is as bad as it gets. As we were coming from the airport to the place I slept and met with the team, we sat for minutes at a time with the car engine off waiting for the next opportunity to move ahead. When we got to an intersection, the best way to describe it is to say it was people walking, or riding on motorcycles, in cars, or in big trucks coming from N, S, E, W and the in-between directions as well, ALL fighting for the same square foot on the street. Mayhem and Chaos! But we eventually made it.

The night was spent on a bed with a very thin mattress laying on wood slats. Not a good combination. Oh, my aching back (in the morning).

But the meeting today with the team leaders here in the DRC was very productive.

When we started, only 3 of the 5 were here. The one coming from the “other” Congo, from across the Congo River, had issues and didn’t get until we were done. Joel, the assistant coordinator, went to meet him early in the morning, never did, and got back after we had been meeting for an hour.

We started by sharing what was going on in our lives and ministries. Let me share it with you. I know you will be encouraged.

Benoit Mazunda, ITEM Coordinator:

Jean Claude Lendo

…………………. RAN OUT OF TIME. I’LL FINISH TOMORROW FROM NAIROBI.

By His grace,

Steve

Connection speed too slow to upload pictures. Check tomorrow for Kinshasa pictures.