Once again, it’s a period of blog drought followed by several blog entries all at once. Nothing can be done, such is the unpredictability of African life!
A week ago I made the final decision after a period of much soul-searching and prayer. Not long after coming back here from the UK I sensed once again a call from God to pursue ordination in the good old Church of England. I made a few enquiries here and there and it seems the best way to follow this call is to apply from the UK for selection (and all the other hoops to jump through on the way) and to return sooner rather than later.
And so it was that I was considering an earlier return to the UK. But then I started having doubts and, just like Jonah (the prophet, not the Young Zulu Warrior choir member) I set out in completely the opposite direction from Ninevah… But the strange thing about running away from God is that He makes you miserable and soon enough I was back in confusion-ville and heading to a ministry evening at church which proved very helpful for my thinking.
One of the people who prayed for me asked me what my 5-year plan was. Interesting question, easy answer (for me at least) – get married, have children, establish a speaking ministry with maybe a book published. Then he asked me what I’m doing about achieving that. It was a crucial moment.
I don’t think I’m coming back to the UK on a whim, I’ve taken advice from various wise people and everyone concurs on the fact that it’s time to come back to the UK (at least for the next few years). Just to confirm all of that, I received prophetic ministry a few days later. A lot of good stuff, nearly all of it linked in some way to leaving. Good, especially as those people praying knew pretty much nothing except my name.
And so I shall be returning to the UK in early February, enough time to finish up and hand over my projects from here and to see Christmas celebrated well and back to school up and running. My main focus is to get Ingcindezi preschool kitchen and new classroom all ready and finished off for the start of the new academic year in mid-January. Then I can leave.
When you make the right decision with God, He confirms it over and over, and the reaction from people I’ve told already has been fantastic. Everyone seems genuinely pleased that I’m coming back to the UK, probably Leamington again for the moment, whilst I do my application. People here, Zulus especially, are less pleased, but I’ll be back to visit, and in the meantime I’ll be speaking out for them wherever I go. You can’t come some place like this and make such good friends with people and not talk about them to others. I’m really at peace about coming back, I can now enjoy the last few months here with the children.
