The Water to Wine Project: Worship

After the trip to Morogoro, we spent one night in Arusha and then headed to Longido. Sunday morning we had the opportunity to attend a Maasai worship service. It was such an incredible experience to hear the beautiful Maasai people sing praises to our Lord in Swahili. I was struck by the fact that even though their lives are so drastically different from mine, they were singing to the same God.

That's the cool thing about the God we serve- He transcends time, space, and culture. He is faithful to the woman in Longido who cries out when she slices her finger while cutting wood in the bush, just like He is faithful to the girl in Wilmington who cries out when her heart aches.

The Maasai face a multitude of hardships in their daily lives, and they truly know what it means to depend on God. Because of this, they have a deeply intimate and personal relationship with their Creator. Despite their daily struggles, they are so joyful and genuinely grateful for what little they do have. They literally jump when they worship. It was refreshing to see people worship so honestly.

The next day we went to a small school that the Tanzanian Assemblies of God built for the Maasai children in that area.

When we arrived they were singing some songs in Maasai and having a time of worship.

Again, the jumping continued and we decided that you're not really worshiping until you're flipping benches and kicking up a good cloud of dust.

We did crafts and played soccer with the kids and then it was time for lunch. Lunch is a big deal because for most of these kids it is the only meal they get each day. Before they ate, they formed a big circle and sang a few more songs. To hear these kids say "I love you Jesus, you are my everything" really puts things in perspective. Again, it was such an authentic expression of faith.

They closed with prayer, but not just "God is great, God is good..." Simultaneously, each child started pouring out their hearts to God, thanking Him and praising His name. I still get chills when I think about the beauty of that moment.