Surviving without (Opuwo Part 1)

It’s hard to even know where to start since the last two weeks tend to blur together. And once again, I’m sure it’ll take multiple posts to describe. When I first agreed to join the OM outreach with a team of 11 students from Palm Beach Atlantic University as an extra driver I figured it’d be a good opportunity to see more of Namibia and hang out with some fellow Americans. I should have known God would turn it into so much more than that.

Saturday we drove up to Outjo where we stayed with some full-time South African missionaries involved with Kunene for Christ (Kunene is the name of the northwest region). The next morning we taught two Sunday school classes at their church. Drew was the teams only musician and he’s a drummer, so I got drafted to play guitar, which worked out well because then I didn’t have to do all the silly motions for “Making Melodies”. :)

After church we left straight for an overnight in Etosha. I missed the part where we weren’t going back to the guesthouse before leaving, so I left behind my camera and the shorts I was going to change into. I tried going back for them but the place was locked up and the missionaries had left for a bush church. Needless to say, I was quite upset.

You all know how much I’ve enjoyed photography this trip, and now I would be heading to Etosha, the wildlife capitol of Namibia, without my camera. I spent the whole hours ride from Outjo to Etosha arguing with God about it, but like the Patriots in the Super Bowl, I knew there was nothing I could do to go back and change it now. If I really believe in the sovereignty of God in all things then I must believe that He allowed me to leave my camera behind, therefore my anger was really rebellion against God. That hour also gave me a long time to think about why I take pictures, if I’m really putting God’s glory on display or if I’m simply raping the experience for my own pleasure. I didn’t voice much during the drive, but by the time we got to the Etosha gate I had come to some peace with it.

Over the next 24 hours I saw some awesome wildlife that would’ve made for some great pics, and I was still torn inside wanting to capture that perfect shot, but I was reminded not to lose the joy of the experience in the distance of my focal length.