Third Wave 2007 Wrap Up
by Simone Finney
WEDNESDAY: One Story
In Africa, January is summertime. The grass is a dying green, the dirt a warm red, the air cool. It’s a country of open spaces, a season primed for volleyball matches and summer storms.
By dinnertime, there are around 220 Young People and Youth leaders here from every world Region. They sort of converged on the Good News Convention Center en masse, either arriving or returning from pre-event safaris around the country. There’s a sense of excitement in the air.
Collectively, the group represents about 55 countries: Nicaragua, Brazil, Jamaica, Mozambique, Nepal, Kenya, Thailand, East Timor, Jordan, Denmark, Italy, Australia, the United States, Argentina. For many, this is their first time outside their home country.
Some simply purchased tickets and boarded planes to get here. For others, it was slightly more complicated. Some spent several hours driving overland, some waited months for visas to come through. One participant spent 20 days away from home, waiting for the national embassy to process his passport. He missed Christmas with his family so he could be here with us.
People are shy today. We room with participants from other regions, forcing some of us to dig up fossilized language skills and attempt new brands of communication. We are, for now, comfortable with those we know. This will change.
At out opening service and cultural celebration, it becomes apparent just how diverse we are. We represent all five major languages of the church (English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Korean), and several dozen more. It’s almost overwhelming to face the vastness of grace that has brought us all together.
Tonight, we talk about story, and ours––the story of God––is beginning to look much wider than it once did.
