Welcome to Cairo!

As I prepare my ears for this familiar phrase, blogging is not exactly the first thing on my mind. I'll be away from home and blog (are they really different?) from tomorrow until the 23rd of March, a Saturday. I'll be participating in the third annual (I think) Arab League Model United Nations hosted by Cairo University in Giza. That's not really the point of the trip, though, and we're encouraged to skip parts of the week-long model for more relevent experiences, like going back to my old haunts in Trash City and the Sisters of Charity orphanage. I'm really psyched - I haven't been out of the Anglophone sphere for two years and a day exactly, and it seems like forever and nothing at the same time (I have poor depth perception when looking at the past).

If any of you are of the mind, here are a few specific prayer requests while I'm gone:

Safety for myself and the dozen or so other NU students I'll be travelling with.

An opportunity to explain the gospel to my host family/student and any others the Lord has planned.

The truly Christlike ministry of the Sisters of Charity in lower Muqattam, aka "Trash City", where they fulfill vows to not live at a higher standard than those around them.

My friends, who must remain nameless for security purposes, who have Christian unity and the foundation of a neighborhood Christian school as life goals, respectively.

My deep thanks to all those who do find the time to pray. It's not really a battleground; it's enemy territory with a few hidden partisans holed up in the depths of Africa's largest city.

Love to tout mes amis, leave a comment and have a rockin' spring break!

-- Salim