Being a red head, I have pretty fair skin, but I am also fortunate enough to be able to decently tan as long as I wear proper sunscreen. If I cover my whole body with SPF 30, I can spend an entire day at the beach, say, in southern Spain, and not end up with a serious sunburn. I might look a little pink that evening, but by the time I wake up the next morning, I’m fine. However, while I’m at the beach I can easily get a little nervous because I see my skin getting a bit red and I think, crap, I’m gonna burn.
But I’ve learned to trust the sunscreen.
Earlier this week (Monday), I moved from Spain/Sweden to Beirut, Lebanon. Towards the end of my first full day in my new apartment (Wednesday), I ran out of water. When I went to take a shower before heading out for dinner, there was barely more than a trickle and I was told that the government water hadn’t been replenished in several days (not an entirely unusual phenomenon apparently). Upon returning from dinner, Wael, my YFCL colleague, friend and fixer, had his guy at a private water company bring their truck and refill my tank. At 10:30 p.m.
Thank the Lord for friends who have contacts and are willing to wait an hour for the truck to arrive and give this damsel in distress a hand.
Just before flying out to Beirut, I spent the weekend in Switzerland. This was SUCH a gift. Not only because I got to spend time with two fantastic new friends in a country that I’ve been dying to visit for a long time, but I was able to reconnect with some people who have meant a lot to me in recent years. These individuals are the most unassuming, unpretentious people you will ever meet, yet they are, and regularly rub shoulders with, highly placed people within international governance and humanitarian work. Their warmth and generosity, their genuine interest in me as a person and their love for the Kingdom of God are beyond what I have words to express.
The fact that all of us are in this one picture is incredible in itself. With very little notice and a very narrow window of time, we all converged at Wilf’s house for a bbq in Berne. I still have no idea how that came together, other than the fact that Jesus freaking loves me.
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| My Swiss launching pad :) |
Although I’ve been preparing for this move for a full year, it’s still a big deal and a significant adjustment. But I feel like I have been generously slathered with SPF 30. I’ve been showered with so much love, prayer and support from friends and family all over the place, and I have no doubt in my mind that they are my protective factor. There’s no way for me to know all that will happen in the two years I’ll be living here, and I’m under no illusions that it will be smooth sailing the whole way, but I know that regardless, I’m covered. My skin might get a bit pink, but it won’t burn. I can trust the sunscreen.
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| The panoramic view from my balcony |
