Last night we got to take Abed out to the beach. He has committed to staying in the care of our friends here for a specified period of time and since he is under constant supervision due to the likely withdraw symptoms he will experience soon he usually spends his days indoors. Yesterday, in the late afternoon, a friend of ours suggested we take Abed and the whole lot of us down to the beach for some fresh air. I was expecting a flat, motionless lake. When we arrived there I got Florida's version of the Atlantic Ocean with a full-blown windswell, and yes, completely ridable surf! Waves were waist to chest high with larger sets on occasion. Um, yeah. The Mediterranean Sea should be named the Mediterranean Ocean because in my eyes it bares no resemblance of any sea I have ever had the privilege to visit.
Though I reluctantly denied the desires of my flesh to surf it was awesome to spend some time in the evening sun with my wife, our other team members and our new friends. The Lord has really done a work in my heart here in Beirut. Any feelings of fear or lack of comfort/familiarity in this place have been removed and entirely replaced with a passion for this beautiful Mediterranean community and its unique culture.
The week has been encouraging in the least! Now that we are getting over jet lag (its amazing how the sun affects/influences our sleep cycles) and have really had the opportunity to plug into believers and the organizations they are involved with in the area, we are receiving good discernment for God's plan around our time here. For the rest of the day and tomorrow we will be meeting with students near Beirut's colleges - American University of Beirut (AUB) & Lebanese American University (LAU) - to spend some time talking with them about Christ and inviting them to a night we will be holding at a local Christian Center to discuss problems with the world, etc. We are excited to help with a boy's home in the mountains this weekend and in the evenings to continue meeting with our friends to prepare dinner for them, have bible studies catered to the newer believers (most Muslim converts) that visit their home each eve and help with Abed however we can. The time is rapidly passing us by but we are thankful for each moment of it.
We appreciate your prayers and will post some more posts when posting time comes around again. LM
No comments:
Post a Comment