And the countdown has begun! December is here and in two and half weeks I will be setting foot on (cold!) Canadian soil, and will be home for Christmas! I'm excited to spend time with family and friends, enjoy the holidays, and experience some snow and hockey and winter! It's been too long since I've seen snow!
Due to the fact that I've been somewhat of a D+ missionary in the blogging department and haven't posted an update in nearly 2 months, I'm not quite sure where to start on updating! So much has happened yet it's hard to put it all into words. I'll start with cooking, since that was to be my primary responsibility in coming here. And it has been, but it has looked quite different that I expected. To begin with, I have been cooking only two days a week, instead of all meals as originally planned. I was slightly disappointed at first, but this has been a huge blessing! My first two days of cooking were a bit stressful, as I was still getting oriented and hadn't the slightest idea how to cook for nearly 80 people! However, it was a success and I made it through and avoided any major culinary disasters. On the other hand, though, cooking for such a large group is harder than I had envisioned, or perhaps I never really stopped to think what it would really be like. With cooking, planning, and shopping, a day spent cooking for the team is packed and tiring. Just two days a week is plenty for me! And I did experience what it would be like to cook constantly when the other cooks left for over a week. I cooked every meal for the team for 9 days in a row, and though it went off without too many problems, I was exhausted by the end of the week. So, cooking has gone well - quite stressful to begin with, but once I got that over with, it has been fine. While I can't say that I've loved it, or that I've never thrown things around in the kitchen when things haven't quite turned out ;) , it's been a good learning experience, and I hope that being able to give the students some familiar meals has blessed them.
Ministry other than to the team has been pretty hard to come by. I've only visited the Joshua Project twice, and one of the creches where I worked last year once. So my ministry has been cooking and ministering to the team in any way that I can. And hopefully I will get to see my kids from the JP one last time before I leave Jeffreys.
It's hard to believe that I have only 2 weeks left here in J-Bay, and then a few days of Debrief in a nearby town, and then it's on a plane once again! This experience has been hard on me at times, very stretching, but I'm glad God brought me here and He has been faithful to me. His plans and purposes are beyond my understanding and His glory is of utmost importance. And so now I will follow Him as He leads me through these next two weeks, and then home. HOME. I can't wait!
I've been here for three weeks now! Sometimes it feels like a short while, and sometimes it seems like the longest time of my life. The last 2 months have been such a roller coaster of emotions and events that I'm still recovering from it! I'm still getting settled and figuring out my role here in Jeffreys for the next two months. It's been a bit rough jumping in after things have been going for a while already, and things have not gone as I expected. Basically, all the things that have happened, combined with things not looking like I expected them too, and situations being harder than I felt ready for, all overwhelmed me and broke me down. In all honesty, it's been rough. I've been emotionally broken and physically depleted and overwhelmed. It's been hard! I've questioned alot... why am I here, what is my purpose, what is God doing, etc. I've cried more than I ever have in my life. I've delt with more anxiety than I've ever had in my life. And now I've come to this place of brokenness. I share this with you because I feel like God has spoken to me that this is even His will for me - to be an example of brokenness and vulnerability, which are both things I struggle with, but that He has now placed in my life. And I don't believe He ever teaches us things just for ourselves... He pours into us so that we might pour into others. He breaks us so that He can use us. So my prayer and the deepest cry of my heart is that God would be glorified in me. I pray that He would use me in my brokenness. In this hard time I know He has plan for amazing things! And I'm holding on to that. Even when I'm struggling, I choose to hold on to His promise that He WILL be faithful to His promises. And looking back over how He provided for me to come back here, it is such a testimony to His power! He has done some crazy awesome things! And I know He will continue to do so! So that's where my heart is at... it's not easy for me to share it for all the world to see, but I truly believe this is what God calls us to - transparency and complete vulnerability. It's something we shy away from, and we feel we have to keep things to ourselves, because it's not okay to be broken. But it IS okay! Life is a journey and so often God brings us to a place of brokenness and we need to embrace that! And it is so so hard, but the light at the end of the tunnel makes it all worth it. So I'm holding on to that promise, that God's plan goes far beyond me own, and that He has purposes I have not even an inkling of.
I don't know if this entirely made sense - my mind is pretty cluttered and I feel it's hard to get my thoughts out in order, but this is the best I could do today! Now that things are going to get into more of a routine here in J-bay, I'll hopefully be able to update more often without so much stuff happening and building up that it's hard to even begin to write it all down.
But tomorrow is going to be my first day of cooking! I'll only be cooking 2 days a week, which is different that I originally expected, but it's actually a blessing, since cooking for so many people is a bit overhwelming for me now that I actually see the reality of it. My other days will be filled with different leadership duties, of which I'll update more later. Pray that tomorrow and the next day go without disaster and that everyone gets enough food! I'll let you know how it goes.
God bless... may you rest in His sufficiency today.
On October 10th the entire team packed up and drove the three hours to Somerset East, a small town where we would spend the next nine days doing a program called Beat the Drum. Here's a short description of the program and town.
HISTORY OF BEAT THE DRUM
The horror of so many millions of
souls currently under the curse of AIDS has been seen. The movie "Beat
the Drum" was the catalyst for our response. A multi-faceted approach
was developed that continued with a massive campaign to train young
people in AIDS prevention, mobilizing people, volunteers from Africa
and the US to break up into teams to go into high schools to train the
learners in biblically-based AIDS prevention under a brand new project
called, Beat the Drum.
Why Somerset East?
In early 2008 George
and Michele Mwanza took a team to Somerset East for outreach. They
spent three days prayer walking through the community. Through this
prayer walk God introduced them to many influential leaders and opened
their eyes to the need for change and growth within this small
community. George knew that the town was ready for Beat the Drum it was
just getting influential leaders on board. On Friday May 23rd
six leaders from AIM along with George and Michele went to present Beat
the Drum to different representatives of schools, businesses, and
churches. The response was amazing. God was so evident in that room
that day. They are ready for Beat the Drum to happen tomorrow. God is
telling us that it's time to move in to Somerset East and open their
eyes and hearts to the ways of our Lord.
Mission
To serve the Somerset East
Community by bringing primarily the message of abstinence through Beat
the Drum project and giving hope through meeting felt needs in the
community.
Purpose
•To educate on HIV/AIDS
•To prevent and STOP HIV/AIDS in the community
•To care for our community
So, we carried out this program, or rather, God carried out this program through us, and amazing things happened as a result! There is so much to say, but I will try to condense it.
We divided up into teams to minister in different locations, which consisted of schools, farms, the community, and an orphanage. I was placed in a team that ministered in Johnson school, a Xhosa-speaking high school. The stories that flowed after the end of each day are too numerous to even count!
Basically, the first day we showed the movie, Beat the Drum. Then, on the following four days, we split into teams of two and taught for an hour in different classrooms about AIDS awareness and prevention and how God in our lives is the key to stopping the AIDS epidemic. Beat the Drum is different than other AIDS awareness programs in that God is an essential part of the program, and abstinence is preached as the only way to truly stop the spread of AIDS. I was paired with another leader and taught a class of 8th graders. I learned that I can teach a class of kids about uncomfortable and awkward subjects and really experienced God leading me and speaking through me! To hear how other people also became empowered by the Spirit and taught these kids and saw amazing results was such a blessing and privilege for me! Kids were getting saved and making commitments to abstinence, all because God chose to use us - a group of unexperienced young adults - and spoke the truth through us! To Him be the glory!
But along with the amazing stories, alot of pain was revealed. My heart breaks to hear of the broken families that so many of these kids come from, and the things that have happened to them. I don't understand it! My prayer is that our being there brought some healing, and that God will continue to do an awesome work of revolution in Somerset East! We are so privileged to have been a part of this!
Also, here is a link to the official blog page for the Africa Awakening. You can read more blogs of participants and leaders and find more about Beat the Drum and what is happening in J-bay!
Just a little update to say that yes, I made it safely back to Jeffreys and I'm now getting settled in here. I arrived on Wednesday night and so I've been here 3 days now. Oh and praise the Lord, I found my luggage!!!!!! So now I have a ridiculous amount of clothes but it's much better than not enough!
I'll write more when I have time... I'm feeling the jet lag today and don't have a whole lot of energy.
Please pray that things will fall into place here for me... the cooking situation is kind of complicated so I need to get that sorted out.
... to Jeffrey's Bay!
That's right... I'm heading back to South Africa on Monday (September 29th.)
God has been so good, and supporters have been so generous (some who've never
even met me) and it seems the way has been paved for me to return! I'm so
excited to finally get there and be reunited with the team and experience all
that J-Bay will hold for us this next few months. I can't wait to see the ocean
again, to walk the familiar streets, and to see my Joshua Project kids. I can't
believe I'm actually flying again so soon after this whole ordeal, but you can
be assured that I'm going to be pretty O.C.D. about keeping my passport right
on my person at absolutely all times! And God has protected me before and He'll
do so again.
I just want to say thank you once
again to everyone who has supported me to return to Africa... it really means
the world to me and I still can't believe how fast funds came in. It's pretty amazing
to see the hand of God at work, and the body of Christ working together. Thank
you for being so kind and generous. May God bless you so richly. I am also so
grateful for all the prayers on my behalf over the past two weeks or so... I
know I've said this several times, but it really has been a huge blessing and
it means so much to me.
My luggage still has not been
recovered, and the probability getting it back now is extremely slim. The
fact is that it has been sitting in an African airport for almost two weeks
now, and in all likelihood, someone else is now enjoying my clothes and
personal belongings. It can be pretty depressing to think of everything that
I've lost that was in those bags... almost all my clothes (many new, even unworn
clothes and many old favorites), my Bible and journals, books, shoes and other
things. But there's really nothing I can do about it except start over. So on
Monday before I fly out I'll be shopping for just enough clothes to get me
through the next 3 months. And there is the smallest hope that my luggage may
still be returned to me. Very small, but it would be so amazing if it did show
up at our house in J-Bay one day soon.
The past two weeks, though
one of the hardest times in my life so far, have certainly not been without
blessings and joys. One gift I was given was the opportunity to experience a
little taste of fall, something I have not had the pleasure of for a few years
now, and the autumn colors really are gorgeous here on the ranch at home. These
pictures were taken just a few days ago... God's creation really is so amazing!
God has definitely been close
to me during this time - another blessing. I've felt His presence in such a
sweet and tangible way, like never before. I could literally feel Him
protecting me in Johannesburg, and in these days at home He's given me His joy
and His strength to get through. This whole experience forced me to put my whole
being in His hands and trust Him implicitly, because I really had no other
choice! And He has proven Himself so faithful. When I was alone in Jo'burg, I
was so worried that I would have a panic attack and have no one to help me, and
I very nearly passed out one time due to stress and shock, but God gave me His
strength for that as well. He is so good! And I know that hard times only make
us stronger, and so my prayer is that God would use my testimony of this time
to speak to others, and to build my character stronger in Him.
This is getting rather long, but I want to end with a few words and the lyrics from the hymn, "It Is Well." I kept listening to this song over and over again each day at training camp, and it blessed me, but didn't understand the full impact of what it meant in my life until days later, when I really had to fight to believe it. If you don't know the story of the hymn, it was written by Horatio G. Spafford, just after he found out his daughters had been drowned at sea. In light of his story, mine pales in comparison. Yet, God was with me just as He was with H. G. Spafford, and in the same way, He is with each one of us, no matter how hard our circumstances may be. He is near us in the good times and the bad, and He is working no matter how hard or easy our situations are. He is sufficient. Always.
When
peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
when sorrows like sea billows roll;
whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say,
It is well, it is well with my soul.
It is well with my soul,
It is well, it is well with my soul.
Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
let this blest assurance control,
that Christ has regarded my helpless estate,
and hath shed his own blood for my soul.
My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole,
is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,
praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!
And, Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight,
the clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
the trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,
Well, I am still pretty busy trying to get stuff sorted out here. I need to get a new passport as soon as possible, and I'm working on getting a flight back, and I really really really would like my luggage to show up. There's still no word on it.
To try and coordinate everything is very difficult and complicated and stressful, so please pray that things will start to fall into place.
Also, I feel so strongly that God wants me back in South Africa, and so I am going to do everything I can to get back there. However, finances need to come in really quickly for this to be able to happen. It looks like a flight is going to be a lot more costly than I had anticipated, but God can do anything, right? And so I have not given up hope.
If you feel at all that you can help me out by supporting me, please do so either by clicking the Support Me button on the left, or by donating to me personally. My mailing address is Box 397, Leader SK, S0N 1H0. Please let me know if you are sending me anything in the mail by emailing me: sweetness_306@hotmail.com or by phone: (306) 967 - 2814. Again, this all needs to happen rather quickly, so if you feel God prompting you, please do this. If you know me, one of the hardest things in the world for me to do is to ask for money, but I have a need, and I know God can fill it, and I also know He uses His people to do His work.
Also, thank you to everyone who has supported me before this whole nightmare happened - it means so much and God will reward you for your generosity.
And to everyone who has covered me in prayer throughout this time, words are not enough to express my thankfulness to you. God had His hand of protection on me and knowing that I had so many of you of my family in Christ lifting me up to Him was what got me through and is still getting me through.
I miss my team like crazy and wish I was with them, but I'm staying positive and God truly has been faithful to me and He continues to give me an unexplainable peace and rest. If nothing else, this time is a testimony of the power of God in my life. He is good.
Well, the events of the past week are
proof that life cannot be predicted or planned out. Everything seemed to be
almost perfect when I was thrown into such unexpected circumstances that I am
still somewhat in shock. This is probably going to be the hardest blog I'll
ever have to write... bear with me, it may get rather long.
So where do I even begin? I'll get
right to the heart of matter and start by saying that on Sept. 15, I boarded
the plane in Atlanta with my fellow leaders and the participants of the Africa
Awakening, and we flew to Washington, D.C. Int'l airport. After a layover
there, we boarded the 14-hour flight to Johannesburg, South Africa with much
excitement and anticipation. We survived the plane ride and arrived in South
Africa at 3 pm on the 16th and made our way to customs and border
control. Waiting in line to go through passport control, we started getting out
passports and laughing at the pictures, and joking about knowing where your
passport was at is something that is helpful. (How painfully ironic now!)
Someone asked to see mine, so I went to get it out of my travel wallet, where I
keep all my important travel documents at all
times. I opened it up and felt my heart and stomach flutter as my passport was
not there. Taking a deep breath, I began to search through my backpack and
stared in disbelief as I realized I did not have my passport on my person at
all. Trying to stay calm, I left to go back to the plane and look for it, and
Matt came with me. After having a hard time finding someone to help us, we got
back to the plane, and the workers cleaning it checked my seat for my passport
(we were not allowed to go back on the plane and search for it ourselves.) They
said they found nothing and so I searched my backpack again, and again found
nothing.
At this point I was still holding up
ok, and trying not to panic. We went back to the border control and tried to
find out what to do, and were met with no information, and officials who seemed
to care less and were unwilling to help, except to inform us again and again
that without a passport, I could not cross the border. Really!?! Of course I
couldn't! But it seemed that finding out where to go from there was not an easy
situation. The next few hours are a bit of a blur in my memory, consisting of
being led all over the airport, into an extremely sketchy home affairs office,
waiting endlessly, being informed that my passport was found, waiting endlessly
again, finding out that it was not my passport but somebody elses, and breaking
down several times throughout these events. I was still in shock and couldn't
believe this was happening to me! I simply couldn't fathom what had happened to
my passport, and wanted to just cross over that border more than anything.
Then suddenly, an immigrations officer
who had not talked to us before heard about the situation and came up to Matt
and I and Amber, who had crossed back across the border to talk to us and find
out what was going on. Within a span of about one minute, she informed me that
I was being denied access into South Africa, that Matt and Amber needed to
cross to the other side of the border immediately and that I needed to follow
her. That was probably the hardest moment I've ever had to go through. Already
an emotional wreck and terrified of what was going to happen, I said goodbye to
Matt and Amber with many tears and followed the officer away from them and from
everyone I knew and into a foreign airport completely alone. I felt so sick and
in shock that I nearly passed out, but calling on God to hold me up, I managed
to hold it together. I was led back into the home affairs office and informed
that I was lucky I hadn't gotten arrested during the past few hours and that I
was about to be deported back to Canada. A man wrote up a document that I found
out later meant nothing, and gave me that and handed me over to South African
airlines to send me home. However, there was no flight back to Washington until
6:00 pm the next day, which means I had to spend over 24 hours in the
Johannesbug airport alone. And trust me, an airport in South Africa is not the
safe place it is here in North America. I made it through only by the grace of
God, and He truly surrounded me with His peace and comfort, and I could feel
His protection surrounding me. Knowing that I was covered in prayers by my team
and by family and friends back home meant more that words can say.
During this time my family back home
and the other leaders in Jeffreys Bay were making phone calls and doing
everything possible to get me into the country, but to no avail. Once I was
denied entry there was nothing anyone could do to get me across. So I survived the
24 hours in Jo'burg and finally got on the plane back to Washington D.C. after
some more stress and not being sure they would get me on the plane or not. When
that plane was taking off, I was so overcome with pain and sadness that I was
leaving Africa, and my heart felt like it was breaking for all that had
happened and the fact that things were going on in Jeffreys Bay that I was
supposed to be a part of. I was supposed to be running to see my kids at the
Joshua Project with them jumping into my arms. I was supposed to be introducing
the students to J-Bay and to ministry and to be watching them experience new
things and grow together in Christ. I couldn't understand why this was
happening.
I won't detail all the following
events, but suffice it to say that after many more small trials, I finally made
it back home, arriving late Thursday evening after 4 full days of airport and
airplane travel... over 40 hours on planes in total, and with no luggage except
for my backpack and pillow.
And
that brings us pretty much up to date on the situation. I'm at home now, and
getting all this passport stuff sorted out... it's more complicated than I would
have thought, and hopefully within not too long I will get a new passport.
After going over the events of my
passport going missing carefully, we have come to the conclusion that it must
have been stolen. The only time I could have misplaced it was while walking
onto the plane in Washington, and if that is the case and I did drop it,
someone picked it up and did not report it. Otherwise, it was taken while I was
on the plane, either by the passenger sitting next to me, or by the cleaning
crew in Jo'burg. The fact is, Canadian passports are extremely valuable in
South Africa, and theft is very common.
And now I'm left in a hard situation.
It's been hard not to get angry and question God. Why did this happen? It doesn't
make any sense! Everything had fallen into place so perfectly for this trip!
Support had come in just in time, and I was at a point where I was SO excited
for what was ahead. The team of 41 participants is absolutely amazing and I
couldn't wait to get to know them better and walk alongside them and pour into
them, and serve them by cooking for them and whatever else was needed. The
leadership team is also incredible, and the prospect of being surrounded by all
these amazing people for the next 3 months was breathtakingly wonderful. And
now here I am at home, and I feel like I left my heart in Africa. But God is
faithful, and I know He has a purpose in all of this, but in all honesty, I
cannot see it right now in even the smallest amount. But He has held me up and
sustained me, and I will continue to trust Him and I know He won't fail me.
So please continue to pray for
guidance and for the path to become clear for what to do now. Whether I'm
supposed to go back or if I'm supposed to stay home is very unclear right now,
and going back is going to take a miracle since the money I raised for this
trip was used for flights and I also had to pay for more flights to get home
once I got to Washington. However, on the plane ride back to Washington, God
spoke to me two things very clearly. This is what He said. "If I want you to go
back to Africa, I can get you there." (This was with almost a humorous quality,
as if getting me back to Africa is such an easy thing for our incredible God to
do.) And secondly, "Trust me." I felt it so strongly and clearly that there was
no doubt in my mind that it came straight from the heart of God to mine. And
so, I will trust Him! I don't know what His plan is now, but He is the God of
the impossible, and He has promised to do more than we can ever ask or imagine!
I will keep updating on the passport
situation and whatever happens next.
Just a verse God gave me this morning:
"But
you would be fed with the finest of wheat;
with honey from the rock I would satisfy you."
Psalm 81:16
God
can bring sweetness from the hard things. He is faithful. He is our everything. HE IS MY STRENGTH.
Ah, here we are once again... a chill is in the air, the grass has lost its verdant hue, the leaves are already beginning to trade in their green for splashes of yellow and red... summer is drawing to an end. And with the end of this season has arrived another season of change in my life, as I prepare to head back to South Africa once more.
I fly out from Calgary on Wednesday, Sept. 3 for Atlanta, Georgia, and will spend two weeks there at the AIM base near Gainesville, the first week being leader training/orientation, and the second week being when the students will arrive for training camp. We will all fly out together on Sept. 16th to make the long journey to Jeffreys Bay, South Africa.
To recap a bit on my summer, it was spent at home on the ranch, mostly working here at home, with a week spent counselling at camp, and various other short trips to spend time with family and friends. It was wonderful to have quite a laid-back summer to rest up from my time in Africa, and to prepare for leaving once again. When I first arrived home, I was so excited to go back this fall, and looked ahead in anticipation to this time. However, as the summer progressed, I began to get comfortable with the Canadian culture and my life here once again, and my excitement began to wane considerably. For a few weeks, I actually did not want to return to Africa at all! I wasn't even sure if God still wanted me there, and I was quite confused and stressed out for a time. However, God began to bring clarity, and I began to feel once again that He had definitely called me back to Jeffreys, and that I needed to go, whether my emotions decided to cooperate or not! And at that time, they were still leaning towards staying here in Canada. Part of the reason I felt uncertain was the fact that support was simply not coming in, and although I knew I could trust God to provide if I was supposed to go, the actual walking out of that is easier said than done. However, I decided to go ahead with the plan to return to SA regardless of the situation, surrendering my plans to God and trusting Him. Slowly, my excitement began to return, and I felt with increasing certainty that I was definitely walking down the right path. I finally took the final step and booked my plane ticket as well. With only a few weeks left before my departure date, I prepared and gave a presentation in my church about last year in Jeffreys, which marked the beginning of donations beginning to trickle in. Seemingly instantaneously, I suddenly had enough to cover half my plane ticket, and within the next couple of weeks, the amount had been met in full! God is SO good! He always provides... why do we doubt Him? He is always faithful, and I am so grateful to Him, and also to everyone who supported me - Thank you from the bottom of my heart. I couldn't have done this without you and may God bless you richly for your work for the Kingdom.
Lately I've really been burdened by the depravity and the lost and broken condition of humanity. Evil is all around us and is wreaking havoc on lost and unprotected souls. The extent of darkness and perversion that possesses literally most of the world is overwhelming and feels hopeless much of the time! Often I am so shocked at the events we hear about.... murders, suicides, bombing, abuse, etc. and my mind cannot fathom how a human being can actually come to commit such horrors. But the truth is that a person not surrendered to Christ is searching; every soul is searching to be filled... and if not filled by Christ, it is so easy for the devil to come in and take over and work his evil. If not for the Light and the Saving Grace of Christ, even the thought of it is enough to depress one eternally! The spiritual world is so real, and I think we really need to realize this and be aware of what we are fighting against. I just finished reading a book called 'Adam' by Ted Dekker, which shows the battle between good and evil so vividly, and brings to light the reality of demons and the spirit world. It's a frightening reality, but the amazing goodness and mind-blowing power of our God crushes the darkness and runs to aid of every soul that cries out to Him. I guess, in summary, the darkness in the world breaks and burdens my heart, but the light and sweetness of the Father is overpowering, and His Spirit whispers, "Press on.... keep fighting... you are my child... we have the victory!"
Hopefully these ramblings have made some sense... keep fighting and holding on to Jesus - rest in His everlasting arms! Thank you for joining me once again on this blogging journey as I head back to South Africa. God bless!
Well, the adventure that began in September 2007 has officially come to an end and I have been back in Canada for about 2 and a half weeks now. Firs of all, I'll update you a little bit on what happened in the last few days of my time in Africa. To close off our time at the Joshua Project, we had a farewell party. It was a bit different than the usual good-bye party, seeing as we, the ones saying 'farewell', were the ones who planned and organized the party! But of course it was for the kids... a chance to show them how much we love them, give them a good time, and say goodbye. We cooked hot dogs and gave each child a plate with a hot dog, chips, an apple, and a cookie. About 70 or 80 kids showed up, so we had to scramble to make the food go the distance, but we managed! We started off the afternoon with some games outside, followed by a dance party, which was absolutely crazy but fun. Then we took the kids upstairs to watch a slideshow starring themselves. It was SO cute to watch them as they saw themselves on the tv - they were pretty excited about the whole thing. I had a hard time keeping from crying at some points but managed to hold it together for the most part! We followed the slideshow with dinner, after which a bunch of the kids took turns standing on a chair and giving speeches, thanking us and telling us how much they were going to miss us. It was probably the sweetest thing I've ever seen. What an awesome way to end off the year! I miss all my kids so much, but I know that my time there was just for a season and now I need to move on. I am, however, very excited to see them again upon my return in September.
-with Boya and Bungani -with Bryton and Lorenzo
After finishing our time in ministry, the team headed off to Cape Town for our final debrief. Unfortunately, it rained pretty much the whole time, so weather was not on our side! Site-seeing definitely took a hit due to the inclement weather, but we still managed to see some pretty breathtaking sites! Here are a few samples:
-an African penguin
-this is where the Indian and Atlantic Oceans meet
-at the top of Table Mountain -Our last team picture!!!
So, after our time in Cape Town, we drove back to Jeffreys and spent 2 days packing and cleaning the house. Then, we flew out on May 15, headed for home. I encountered some flight trouble... delays caused me to miss a connecting flight, and so I ended up having to spend a night in Atlanta, but after 3 full days of travelling, I finally arrived home safely! It was so good to see friends and family again after so long, and it's good to be home. I do miss my team and the people and children I grew close to in Africa, but I'm adjusting to life in Canada once more. Well, this concludes my blogging for now... I'll resume again in September and update on how this next phase of time South Africa unravels. So, thank you for joining me on my journey, and I am grateful beyond words for your support and prayers. I certainly couldn't have done it without the prayers on my behalf, and I thank God for each one of you who did so. God certainly did a work in my heart, which I firmly believe is only the beginning of what He is going to do, and I encourage you all in your walks of faith, to keep pressing into the Father. He's the only constant! The only One who never changes and never fails! Unto Him be all the glory.
Well, to begin, I apologize for the lack of blogging lately on my part. Sometimes life goes on and I forget to blog, I suppose! But, here's a bit of what's been going on with me lately. First, it's May already? It seems to have snuck up on me and I think I'm a bit in shock! Less than two weeks till I board that airplane for the long plane ride home. I still have mixed emotions at this point - sadness for leaving my amazing team-mates, who are really more like family than anything, and my ministry, but also excited to go home and see my 'other' family ;) and friends. As we get down to the last days, I'm also feeling a bit tired and burned out, but I'm leaning on God and He is faithful. He's really been revealing Himself to me as my Sustainer in the past couple of weeks. I need Him to be my Strength, and the stream of Living Water that flows through me. He's brought me through alot and I can rest in knowing that no matter what happens in the future, He's always walking right beside me, and that's all I really need! I love my kids at the Joshua Project so much.... they really are sweethearts, despite their behavior at times! It's been amazing to really get to know them, and feel like, in some small way, our love and commitment to them has made a difference in their lives. They soak up the Bible stories and truths they are taught, because, even though they hide behind a tough exterior much of the time, they know all the information they've heard and get excited about during program time. Last week we gave an opportunity for the kids to receive Christ, and almost all of them responded! Very exciting. A week later, and Bongani is still talking about how happy he is to know that he has a white heart and that Jesus will always love him. It's pretty special. I also had a conversation with three girls this week that really touched my heart. I had been sitting and talking with them for about an hour, and their English was really very good, so we could have a decent conversation. When it came time for me to leave, I asked if there was anything I could pray for them about. All three of these girls, ages 9, 10, and 11, immediately asked me to pray for their mothers or fathers, because they drink and beat the girls. It just once again broke my heart to realize that this is a reality for so many of these kids. They grow up much too fast and go through things that no one should ever have to go through. It keeps me in continual prayer for the lives of these sweet children.
Also, I have felt God calling me to return to Jeffreys Bay next year, and so I've made the decision - I'm coming back! I'll be returning in the fall and cooking for next year's FYM team, as well as doing whatever else I'm needed for. I'll be on the other side of the equation this time, as leader rather than participant, and I'm both excited and nervous to see how it will turn out! I'm sure God has many new things to teach me and I hope to grow alot through this experience. I'm also really excited that I have the chance to come back and see my kids and be involved in ministry here for another short length of time. I'll be in South Africa for three months - September to December. So once again I will have to do some support raising, my least favorite part of the missionary lifestyle, but God will be faithful to provide as He always is.
