A Little Slice of Heaven but We're Not There Yet

Here in the Accra airport Team 2 (plus Todd and Vicki) count the hours until our 10pm flight tonight.  We are thankful for a restaurant with tasty Jollof Rice, some air conditioning, and 5 cedi /hour internet.  It's the little things.

Yesterday, we loved the sea breeze and the lemon Fanta (Pineapple Fanta has been scarce).  On the days previous, there has been the guest house with Stella's good cooking, fresh pineapple, and an air-conditioned common room.

the clinic at the Police Station in Ghana with the gracious people, the air-conditioning, and a flushing toilet,


the village with the smiles and hugs and joy on the children's faces.


There are little glimpses of heaven everywhere.

Yesterday, we spent a very sobering mid-day touring Elmina castle where the stark contrast between the church on the second floor directly over the slave dungeons below pierced our hearts.   Our host, Joseph, observed while the Dutch were singing "Hallelujah, Praise God" above the slaves were below crying out "God Rescue Us".   We have come a long way from the times of the slave trade from West Africa, but our earth is not heaven.  We hurt each other.  We mis-distribute resources.  We hurt.  We cry.

At Elmina we met a couple there from California.  She was a nurse, training to be a mid-wife, who interned in a birthing clinic in a village near Kumasi.   As it turns out, they were staying at the same hotel we were on the coast.  Jason & I enjoyed a long conversation with them.  She described a conversation with a friend, a Ghanaian  who also interned at the clinic as they were talking about heaven.  Her Ghanaian friend described heaven as a place where you could drink all you want without "fetching water" and would never be hungry.  You could eat fufu all you wanted and would never have to pound the cassava and plantain first.  I wonder how that compares to our view of heaven?  I wonder how our view compares to his?