It feels like I closed my eyes for a brief second and all of the sudden our time in Swaziland was over. Three weeks was much too short. But as our route changed a bit and we shifted our ministry time in Swaziland from November to December, our contact was not able to utilize us for the full month of December. So my team spent the first three weeks of this month in Manzini, Swaziland. And now our squad is back in South Africa (Pretoria to be exact) for a few days of ministry, resting and celebrating Christmas all together before heading to India!
Here are a few photos to help you envision our time in Swaziland:
Three teams totaling 22 people lived all together in one house in Manzini. We all slept on the floor and shared three bedrooms, one port-a-potty in the backyard, basins in the backyard to serve as sinks, and a tub to bucket shower in. Needless to say it was cozy! (Side note: This month was also the first that Colin and I were not to be able to share a living space together… that meant sleepovers for me & the girls and Colin & the boys all month! Wahoo!)
[our backyard, the outhouse… eek!, the five boys’ room, and our bucket shower tub 🙂 ]
Ministry during the month consisted of playing with kids and planting vegetables at different carepoints around Manzini. Carepoints are places for children to go to play, eat, and be cared for everyday after school.
[second, third, and fifth photos taken by the lovely and talented Marina Razumovsky]
We also went to Hope House, a hospice care center, in central Manzini to care for and love on the patients there. We even had the opportunity to put on a Christmas play for them!
[photos with some of the patients we fell in love with, and a photo of Colin and I playing Joseph and Mary in the Christmas play]
I’m very thankful for the time we had in Swaziland. Although it was short, I know God used the time to help bring joy to the children and patients we met and to penetrate my heart about the importance of putting Him first. By witnessing the simple lifestyles of the children at the carepoints and seeing the urgency of the gospel at Hope House, God deeply rooted the need for me to place Him on the throne of my heart. So many things of the world entangle me. Belongings, stability, what Colin and I will do in the future, even my family and friends… but none of those things or people should come before God in my heart.
I am thankful that God continues to use each place I have been to and person I have met on the race to point me back to Him. Its humbling knowing I come to serve but am impacted tenfold in return. And although it’s a challenge each day to choose Him unconditionally, I am thankful for the daily reminder and calling to pursue Him more.
