The End is the Beginning

The return flight from Detroit to Dallas is in many ways the most difficult part of going to Tanzania. The small jet carries perhaps 40 people.

The flight is overbooked. On this night it bears the additional burden of a heavier than normal load of fuel. For these reasons the attendant at the gate calls for 17 people who will volunteer to take a later flight the next day.

There are no takers. So the airline simply denies service to 17 people who have paid their fare in good faith. Some have held their tickets for months.

The trip home from Tanzania requires three plane rides. Two back to back nine hour flights are behind us. Only a final three hour leg of the journey remains between us and loved ones. Add in the layovers and the time traveling totals around 30 hours.

Most of those in our group are scheduled to preach in their respective churches on the following morning. Tension mounts as the names of those who will not be making the trip are read. The process by which these unfortunates are selected is not revealed to us.

Another of the many doors we’ve seen opened for us swings on its hinges as all five of us are allowed to board. There is a sense of relief as engines begin to roar and we experience the weightless wonder of wheels leaving the ground.

Residual turbulence from a system of thunderstorms buffets the plane as we make our decent into the Dallas/Fort Worth airport. A flashing white light at the tip of the wing creates a strobe effect creating small pinpoints of light in the circle of its illumination. With each burst of brilliance raindrops are suspended in time and space. They disappear as the light winks out.

Patience is rewarded as the plane breaks through the thick layer of clouds. Millions of orange tinted lights spread across the landscape below defining the boundaries of the metroplex. An unexpected wave of emotion washes over me. This first sight of home brings a confusing mixture of unrestrained joy and unanticipated melancholy.

The source of the joy is clear. Days traveling abroad reaffirm the privileges and blessings enjoyed in this nation. A deep sense of gratitude grows within me for the many gifts that come with being a citizen in this land. The country of my nativity is far from perfect. In spite of this, every fiber of my being resonates that it is good to be home.

The source of the melancholy is traced to a statement made by a Tanzanian pastor serving as one of our translators. He comments on the safari through the Serengeti which comprises the last portion of our time in Tanzania. His words are formed with childlike innocence tinged with sadness.

“You will see a portion of my country which I have never seen.”

Those words leave a place within my heart which would be empty except for a profound sense of regret. Newly made Tanzanian friends lack the resources to experience the wonders of their own land. The likelihood of their sharing this first view of my home is even more remote.


In many ways ministry in Tanzania is an exercise in great contradictions. There is horrible poverty and yet the people freely offer us the best they possess. There is great hardship in daily life but terrific joy when they sing praise to their Creator.

There is a terrible lack of education yet the simplicity of their lives yields a wisdom that is often profound. Though you have come to teach, circumstances can reverse roles in an instant. You become the student instead.

There are moments when the fruits of your labor are amazingly and immediately apparent as you work among the people. At the same time you may never know the full impact of the time spent together. The greatness of the need often threatens to exhaust both your resources and hope.

You go with a desire to give of yourself only to find that what you receive makes using the term “sacrifice” impossible. You hope to enrich the lives of others only to find that your life has become incredibly full in the process. You long to do something noble but find that the people to whom you minister teach you the meaning of true nobility.

Our trip is a success in any way it can be measured. We encounter open doors and hearts everywhere we journey. Plans made before leaving the States are implemented without a hitch. Every goal articulated during our time of preparation is achieved. The bond fellowship shared between team members is of a depth rarely encountered. Bound by a unity of purpose, the actions of one complement the efforts of all.

Long before we leave Tanzania I cease thinking about the trip as having an ending. My hope is that the conclusion of our journey brings us to a place of new beginning. Rather than viewing our work as being completed I’m left with a sense that we have just started.

The dust of Africa still clings to my shoes. The people of Tanzania remain in my heart. My mind continues to drift off to that land 30 hours away where no “goodbyes” were expressed when parting.

“Till we meet again,” seemed somehow more appropriate.