Tradition.

What do we think of tradition and how do we see it? Is it something to be treasured and held onto? Or maybe something that should be locked away and long forgotten?

'Tradition is beliefs or customs taught by one generation to the next.'

Wikipedia (2008)

Yesterday I visited a fishing town on the shores of Lake Victoria called Gerenge. I went with a team that were teaching Primary Health Care. This town is stuck in tradition and through what my eyes saw, this tradition would be better off forgotten.

This village isn't especially poor compared to other villages that we visited this week but the people, especially the men, spend their money poorly. I guess like many people in England do.

The men fish and spend their money on alcohol and prostitutes, leaving the women to work in order to provide shelter and food for their large families. The women told us that a small family consisted of at least 4-8 children. This would be a large family in England!!

The town is small and to be honest not much can be done to improve conditions unless peoples attitudes change. How do you change peoples attitudes though? You can encourage them and try to inspire them but at the end of the day all of that is nothing unless their heart is radically changed and sharpened. Only God can do this seemingly impossible task.

Looking at the village, it is so similar to England. Yes, we have sanitation. Yes, we don't live in rubbish tips...but we don't always have the right attitude towards money and towards family - whether we're Christian or not.

Will being saved changed these peoples hearts? Maybe but then maybe not. There is no point being saved if you are just going to live in the same routine and with the same mindset - you need a change of heart and attitude. Your thoughts have to be changed in order to change your behaviour, which is often hard in a society where change is minimal.

The good thing is that God can do all this and so much more. He promises us that He is able 'to do immeasureably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us,' Ephesians 3 v 20 NIV. What about The Message version, 'God can do anything, you know - far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams!' God CAN do this!! He CAN change Gerenge and He CAN change England - He CAN do MORE than we ask or imagine but it starts with us 'according to His power that is at work WITHIN US'. We can't be lazy on this, we have to try.

To end on a good note, the children were as beautiful and as vibrant as ever.

Much love to you all as always. Maybe think about your heart and whether it's in the right place or not. x