My friend Andrea Levendusky is easily one of my favourite writers. She’s insightful without be assuming. She’s intelligent without being pretentious. She teaches as friend sitting beside you on a couch rather than an instructor standing above you. Keep an eye out for this woman’s work! I’ve included an excerpt from her most recent blog post below, but you can read the whole thing here.

“Wasn’t it just last summer, when we sat around the fire pit and our voices disappeared into the dark blue sky, along with the orange sparks that splashed into the star-lit ocean? Wasn’t it the Adirondack pines that sheltered us as we listened to music and he laughed, and she sighed, and they drew closer, and we let the flames simmer down until sleep called us? Wasn’t it the heat of August when we circled around and asked big questions, knocked sticks against the stone and pulled out some pieces of ourselves there under the arc of earth? Hasn’t it always been the fire we surround, the fire within us that draws us to each other, that burns us, that reveals us, that rings within us the fragile bells of need, love, fear and doubt with one another?”

I highly recommend reading the whole thing: Kinship with the Fire by Andrea Levendusky.

Here’s a little 3D flickergraph from the OR today.

Praise is the patient going under anesthesia in the photo. He’s an extremely smiley 9 year old boy who’s come to us here at CURE Zambia all the way from Zimbabwe! He had surgery to treat his hydrocephalus and is recovering in the ward now. If you so like, you can follow his time with us here.

If you’re more interested in the flickergraph (or 3D photograph – I think I might be the only person that calls them flickergraphs). It is just an animated GIF made from two, slightly displaced photos to give the perception of depth. It’s similar to the way our eyes work. We see depth because our two eyes are slightly displaced, giving us two slightly different images. Our brain then combines these two images and can, rather accurately, perceive distances and depth.

Sounds of CURE Zambia

Music is a powerful form of expression and always a popular part of our twice a week chapel gatherings here at CURE Zambia. You can listen to these four songs as a playlist here.

Fwaya ba Yaweh
Search for the Lord
language: bemba

Mwari wa Kanaka
God is Powerful
language: bemba

Yesu Mwamuna wa Mutanda
Jesus, Son of the Cross
language: nyanja

Alansunga Yaweh
God Takes Care of Me
language: bemba

This was recently posted on Red Letter Christians as part of an article titled “Beyond Liberal and Conservative” by Shawn Casselberry. While it is about the liberal – conservative divide in the Church, I think it applies to many debates we find ourselves in.

Here are some things we all can do to move beyond the conservative and liberal divide:

  • Stop demonizing those we disagree with. We need to unplug from the political shows that only fuel our fears, animosity, and suspicion of each other.
  • We need to welcome dialogue and honest conversation. We need to create spaces where we can tell our stories without judgment and really listen to each other.
  • Learn to laugh at our pettiness. There’s so much more that unites us than what divides us.
  • Stay at the table even when it’s uncomfortable.
  • Believe the best in each other. Realize we are all trying to have a faithful response to what we believe.
  • Look for truth and God in our opponents and their views.
  • Work together. Come together on the things we can agree on to bring about change in our communities (fighting poverty, ending violence against women, educating children, glorifying Christ by loving one another).
  • Stop selling out to political parties. We cannot sell our votes or faith for political power.
  • Be prophetic and not partisan. Don’t’ let anyone off the hook, challenge both conservatives and liberals.
  • Be more humble. Acknowledge the limitations of our viewpoints, the finiteness of our opinions, and the brokenness of our institutions. As Paul said, we all see through glass dimly.”
  • Think of each other as brothers and sisters rather than conservative and liberal.
  • Start dreaming about what we can do when we move beyond liberal and conservative.