Into Africa - The Trip Begins

As I write this first entry this morning, we are high over the South Atlantic, about 3 hours from a hopeful arrival in Cape Town. Departing last night at 9:10 PM, It is now 8AM in Atlanta, but we will soon be descending into a time zone 6 hours ahead, where it is now 2 PM in the early afternoon. Our airspeed is over 550/miles per hour, and the air outside at 35,000 ft is a balmy minus 60 degrees F. As a former novice pilot, the sheer technology of commercial air travel never ceases to amaze me. And our Atlanta -based carrier, Delta, has been doing this now for 100 years!

Why are we doing this trip? The reasons could fill up an entire book…… let’s begin with one of my favorite quotes from Denny Rydberg, former President of Young Life, who ( quoting his former Pastor Bruce Larson) reminded us at the outset of each one of our 7 Sea Cloud trips…..

“When God wants to teach you something, He takes you on a trip”.

Which is why Belle and I have loved travel with Young Life….. we go to a place we have never been to before, we go with mostly like-minded-Christ followers, we enjoy the fellowship of these new (and sometimes old) friends, we do the trip in relative comfort(sometimes more than others…), and we see and meet with our friends in Young Life International who are doing amazing things for the Kingdom. We see “Aslan on the move”.

Having spent much time in Sub-Saharan Africa in the years since our entire family first traveled to Tanzania, Ethiopia and Kenya in 2005 on another “Denny & Marilyn” trip, we observed our family trajectory forever change by the impact of the relationships established now 20 years ago. And the blessing these friends have been to us far exceeds any blessing we could be to them.

So this trip is a bit reunion( with Alexis, Stha and Sharon - all now senior National YLA staff and folks we have known for 2 decades) , a bit sight-seeing ( CapeTown has been called the most beautiful place in all of Africa), a bit fellowship ( with our local team, and our other hosts and former staff members - Pierre and Rentia DeJager) -and also a chance for us to introduce this special work of my wife Belle’s life long friend Betty , who herself was a Young Life kid in high school.

So as we descend into Africa, a lot of excitement , anticipation, and gratitude for what God “wants to teach us…” , what He has done , what He is doing, and what He will continue to do in this special part of the Planet.

- Bob Voyles