When Things get Stolen in Africa

Last Wednesday my laptop and Kindle were stolen from our house. Ellie and I were home and Will had just left to go into town for a few hours. Our day guard was working, but was in the back of the house when the theft must have happened. We believe the thief must have hopped over the side of our gate, entered into the open front door, and grabbed the first things he saw within quick reach. I was in the back of the house and oblivious to what was happening.

I’m used to having to let go of “stuff”. My family had a house fire when I was 15 and it was my first introduction to learning to let go of things and cope with losses of items that are dear to you. Having everything we left in Mundri stolen was my next big reality check of how quickly things can be gone. I’ve learned to work through the heartache that comes with having your things sifted through and stolen. But with each loss, there is usually something deeper that gets triggered.

I am very bummed that my laptop and Kindle are gone. I use my laptop daily and it is the only way I keep up with work e-mail and blogs (did you notice the long delay in blogging recently?). Without it, I get very behind. However, it is still just “stuff”. In our technological world, most of us don’t only have one electronic device. I’ve just depending on my phone more frequently with the loss of the computer. What hurts deeper than the loss of these objects is the loss of security in our own home. I have been home a lot with Ellie as she is still so young and we are trying to get her on a good schedule. Having home feel a little less safe makes me feel even more unsettled here. We have been keeping our front door locked at all times now so we don’t have to be concerned about walking to the back of the house and not hearing what is happening in the front room. The locked door is constant reminder of my insecurity in my own home.

In all of this, like with any big event, I have to be on guard. I feel like Satan would love to use this to make me consumed with our safety at all times and feel chronically unsettled in our new home. He would love for me to respond to this situation with constant fear and with disgust towards the people here. However, he does not get the last word. God has reminded me this week that our only security is in Him. He is our safe place. He has also reminded me that our calling to a place is not dependent on how comfortable we feel once we get there. When He calls us, He goes with us. That doesn’t always mean we are ‘safe’ by the worlds terms. But it does mean that He is enough for us in whatever circumstance we find ourselves.

Will you join us in prayer? Please pray that Satan would not use this to make me bitter about being here. In a season where we are still adjusting and trying to find our footing, this feels like a major set-back. Please also pray for the heart of whoever took these items. Pray that they would feel convicted, but more than that, that they would know the love of Christ and seek God to meet their needs in every way. I pray that we would have the opportunity to show this person grace in person. Our hope would be that the person would confess and we would be able to forgive them in person. However, even if this does not happen in this manner, pray that we would extend grace in our hearts. Even with the items stolen and not in our possession, our hope is that grace would reign in our heartland bitterness would be far from us.