An update with no information about Africa

I'm not really sure how to keep this blog post short unless I don't post anything about South Africa. So, that's what I'm going to do. I realized that I haven't posted in a month, so that means I have some catching up to do.

I'll just clear up a few things right from the start. I am sitting in the YWAM base in Muizenberg, South Africa. That obviously means my passport and visa came through without any issues. I actually picked my visa up at 5pm on the 30th and left town to go to the airport around 9am on the 31st.

I've been fighting the urge to call God a procrastinator. I know He likes to answer our petitions at the last minute in order to build our faith and trust in him, but it gets frustrating sometimes! Having my visa come in at the last moment was a great testimony, but a little hard on the nerves.

Now, on to more difficult subjects.

The last month has felt like a year. My Brother was in a car accident on December 12th and was in the hospital for 2 1/2 weeks after that because of his injuries. I unexpectedly lost a close friend on Christmas night and went through two memorial services for him right before leaving for Africa. I had to deal with a cold, and an unordinary amount of empathy for a friend who lost two family members in a car accident. Along with all that, I had to pack, move, repack, say a bunch of ''see ya later's'' (because it's not goodbye, it's ''see ya later'') and then sit on an airplane for 25 hours. Like I said, it's been a rough couple of weeks.

However, God is so good and I've seen many miracles and answered prayers through every single burden that I listed. Even getting sick, God was telling me to rest for a few days.

And now some happy things! I had the pleasure of enjoying a 12 hour layover while in Dubai. The airline gave me a free hotel room along with a complimentary dinner and breakfast buffet. I decided to spend a bit of cash ($30) and go on a 2 hour tour around the city.

It was fantastic! (Note, all the dollar amounts listed above and below this are in United States Dollars)

I saw the tallest building in the world, drove around on an island shaped like a palm tree, saw a bunch of apartments that had a 99 year lease for only $400,000. I stuck my hand in the Persian Gulf, walked around a hotel with rooms that rented out for $36,000 per night. In every bathroom, next to the toilet, there is a little water sprayer (kind of like what we use on our dishes in fancier sinks). I never got the nerve to ask someone how it's used, but I can imagine. I found out that gasoline is cheaper than water in Dubai (mainly because water is expensive, not that oil is cheap) and heard about a shopping mall that is so big it has a ski park inside it!

I'll make another post in a few days and update you all on Muizenberg. It's so hard not to write anything now, but it can wait. I love you all!