We had to change the travel plans at the last minute to accommodate the ordination service, as I was due to take Cath to Dar in order for her to fly to the USA for a Child Safety seminar. She managed to get onto a local new plane service that was heading to Dar thus reducing the five hour journey to 45 mins, and I was free to drive directly to Ifakara.
One can become a bit blasé passing vast mountain ranges and national parks just to get to church ! 'Udzungwa' http://www.tanzaniaparks.com/uzdungwa.html http://www.tanzaniaparks.com/mikumi.html
The sheer scale and variety of the country never ceases to amaze me. How often does one see a herd of elephant or giraffe, impala, zebra or a troop of Baboons on the way to Church? The roads can be bit of a challenge as the section from Mikumi to Ifakara is just gravel muram with lorries and cars throwing up a dust storm coating the local houses and people alike.
The accommodation was great, and they had spared no expense £8 in fact putting us up, the room even had air conditioning. The service started at 8am the following morning and went on till 2pm! The place was packed with around 400 people. Choirs, gifts for the pastor to set up home, including mattresses, plastic buckets, kitchen utensils as well as the promise that they will receive £6/month from various individuals and other churches to help cover their living expenses. The Bishop spoke excellently from Acts 20 and 1 Tim 4:16 on the need to 'watch your life and doctrine closely'. Expanding on the need to read and obey Scripture, to pray and do that which is in the will of God and thirdly, to place boundaries in ones life.
It all finished with a meal for 400 people. Amazing how it was catered for. Another 4 hours travel back to morogoro arriving without incident just as night was falling.
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