Zambia 2/13/24 - Experiencing Love From Community, Culture, and God’s Creation
Greetings from Zambia!
After a long journey of multiple flights over two days, we finally arrived at Lusaka, Zambia! We were enthusiastically greeted at the airport by several Zambian church members. Then, as our first introduction to Zambia, we went to a mall with an outdoor market selling various Zambian goods and souvenirs. We were excited to immerse ourselves in Zambia as we browsed through the market and talked to some local vendors. After shopping, the Zambian members generously treated us to a popular African fast-food restaurant called Hungry Lion. We gained a sense of the serving hearts of the local Zambian members, which helped us prepare our hearts of gratitude for the rest of our stay in Zambia. At the end of our first day in Zambia, we finally arrived at the center at Barlastone and rested after the long two days of travel.
The next day, we were able to experience Sunday Service in Zambia. We listened to a sermon about how we can unite with God and True Parents’ desires. This topic helped us center on why we are here in Zambia in the first place: to serve and to represent True Parents. After the sermon, we performed a dance and song for the Zambian church community. Even though it lasted only a few minutes, we wanted to make an offering to the community through our performance. After the service ended, we spent time talking with the local church members and playing soccer with the kids there. We could experience much joy through interacting with the locals and felt welcomed after just arriving the day before. We concluded the day by listening to a short guidance from the Zambian national church leader, Rev. Phiri. This was an excellent day for us. We introduced ourselves to the Zambian community and received a lot of love from them. “Going to Zambia broke a lot of concepts and opened my eyes.” - Mihyang Belmonte, 1st year participant.
The day after, we went on a safari outing. It sunk in that we were in Africa, seeing the different forms of wildlife and animals there. Our focus for the day was not only just to have fun but also to experience God’s love through creation. After the safari, we had a relaxing afternoon by swimming and enjoying lunch in nature. We tried some Zambian dishes, including nshima, pork chops, and tilapia. At the end of the day, we split into small groups to prepare for our time in Ndola for the next few days. We prepared different activities, skits, and games to present to students when visiting schools in Ndola. We will continue preparing as we embark on our journey to Ndola next!
Generation Peace Academy
Miki K.
Blogger, Zambia
