I feel like we are on a roller coaster sometimes with the ups and downs that have plagued this strike. One day there is good news, the next falls apart, then we’re back up again.

Not long after I wrote yesterday we had a message on the radio saying that people were dancing in the streets in a neighborhood between us and town. Word was that a new prime minister had been named and it was someone that was approved of by the unions and the people in general. He was said to have been in the government in the past but was ousted when he tried to clean up corruption. You could almost hear the jubilation as news made its way down the street…first a ways away, then louder and louder. Soon cars were driving by honking their horns and people were laughing and shouting right outside. They all said that it’s finished, the strike is over, we have a new prime minister.

Could it be that easy? The news was definitely good and a huge step in the right direction, but would things just go that simply? We had to wonder. Still it was hard not to get wrapped up in the hope and joy that was evident on each face. Maybe our lives can be different? Maybe we can afford to eat again. And hour later the lights came on at what had to be the closest we’ve been to full force in weeks!! And it stayed on all night. Even if it wasn’t all right, life just felt really good. I think everyone’s stress level dropped about 10 notches.

I’m not going to speculate on where this is going. I wish that I could report that the strike is totally finished, we have a new prime minister that will change the country for the better and life is going to go on as before but better. Maybe I still just want to bask in the hope. Word has it now that the strike will not officially end until there is a new constitution in place. That makes sense as, like I said, so many promises have come and gone. People want to SEE a difference, not just hear it. So by all means, keep praying!! But for this morning, as I sit and listen to vehicles back out on the road (Tim even went out today to try and find some of his leaders) I’m thankful that in this crazy, sinful, and often evil world, there is a God who keeps ALL His promises. And just as I am a visitor here in Guinea, I am a visitor here on this earth, just passing through on my way to a much better place.