Good Evening!
I am excited to share a bit about today’s awesome Sudanese experience!
After searching for weeks, I finally found a church within a day’s driving distance where a large number of Sudanese worship. This morning, Blaise and I got up early and drove down to Lousiville, Kentucky where we attended Resurrection Episcopal Church. The church is a little different from most in that a large number of their congregation are actually refugees…some from Burma and some from the Sudan. We attended the regular service and then hung out chatting with the priest and several other members of the church. The Sudanese then held a separate service at noon in which they conducted almost the entire service in Dinka (southern Sudan’s primary tribal language…the one in which I will experience while there).
The whole entire experience was completely amazing! First, the people in the church are phenomenal and truly know what it means to live for Christ. They are doing amazing work in the community through job placement, mentoring, and otherwise acclimating refugees to the United States. Everyone was so overwhelmingly welcoming and kind. We were complete strangers to not only their church, but to Louisville and the Episcopal church, but it didn’t matter. Instantly we were greeted, welcomed in, and made to feel at home. Several times during the first service, I had tears in my eyes because of the graciousness that the people showed each other and the love for God that they all share.
As the Sudanese began arriving, we were introduced to them and had the opportunity to share a little bit about my mission trip. Every single Sudanese person we met was so kind and so welcoming. I wasn’t sure what the service would be like, and I incorrectly assumed that other non-Sudanese would be there, too, just to share in the fellowship. I was wrong…aside from the priest, we were the only two white people amongst a crowd of [very] black Sudanese. So much for blending in! 🙂 It did not seem to matter at all, however, and a man named Deng invited us to come and sit with him for the service. He pointed in the program where we were several times when I was obviously lost in the Dinka language! When the readers got up to read Scripture in Dinka, they were each kind enough to tell us where we could find the verse and “follow along” in English. I was so mesmorized by their language, beautiful singing, and drumming that I didn’t even care that I had absolutely no clue what was happening! We simply stood and sat when everyone else did. As the priest said her short sermon in English, I had tears in my eyes as she related the story of Saul persecuting Christians to the persecution of the Sudanese, and the hope we should have for God to work on an end to persecution. I was also deeply humbled when she named me specifically as a vessel of Christ who will be taking God’s love and grace to the far reaches of the world.
Before the service had begun, one gentleman, John, had asked me if I would be willing to come up front and tell everyone who I am and why I had come to their service in particular. I was kind of freaking out because I really just wanted to observe while we were there and I was in no way, shape, or form prepared to get up in front of a congregation and talk! When they gave me my cue to come to the front, I walked up knees wobbling and heart thudding. However, as soon as I stepped in front of that beautiful Sudanese congregation, I felt at ease. I started to say, “Hi, I’m Cassandra…” and they all smiled and said hi back to me. As I told them, briefly, that I was going to Nimule, Sudan this summer and I just wanted to come down and meet them and enjoy their service, they all sat smiling back at me. I was warmed by the graciousness they showed me.
After the service was over, we were greeted by almost all of the Sudanese. I once read a quote that said if you put 100 of the world’s nicest people in a room, 99 of them would be Sudanese. I believe that wholeheartedly! Blaise and I stood still while they came to us. We shook hands, we filled them in on Aid Sudan and how I came to be on a mission trip to Sudan, and we listened as they each told us bits and pieces of their own stories. One man told me that he has only been to Sudan twice in 20 years. He has seen his family two times in twenty years…can you even imagine that? They had many questions for me, namely, “Are you going with someone else?” They seemed very concerned that I might be a crazy white woman flying to Sudan alone…but once I told them that I would be with an experienced team, they quickly seemed relieved and reassured me that I would be fine! I laughed with them when they told me that it would be “long days” for me because of the heat and the different food. They laughed when I told them that I don’t even like beans (half of the rice and beans diet) and I will be there just long enough to really miss my shower!
We’ve been asked to come back to Resurrection, and we will. Many of the Sudanese have asked me to bring back pictures and stories from Sudan (they have no idea the photog/blogger nut that I am!). John has an uncle that lives in Nimule, so he was especially interested in hearing about my travels. What amazed me so much about each of them was that although they are survivors of horrors I have only read about, they were all smiles and peaceful eyes. The entire time we were there, I kept reflecting on the memoirs of other Lost Boys I had read and thinking about how blessed I was to be sitting among them. Today, I felt love…only a glimpse of what I expect to feel in Sudan…but heart-swelling, tears-welling, soul-warming love.
I am about a thousand times more excited about going to Sudan now, and I am so thankful for today’s journey and the peace it gave me about my trip. With only 3 months to go, vaccinations this week, and an afternoon with Sudanese…it is all becoming REAL!!!