Long days, short weeks. That’s been the reality of our time here in Cape Town, South Africa. This is the first month that our departure date has snuck up on me and I’ll be sad to leave our beautiful beach town.
Beauty is something I’ve been learning more about as our team reads through the book Captivating. One thought I’ve been pondering is this:
Beauty is the essence of God.
The example they give is nature. Nature is not primarily functional, it’s primarily beautiful. I’m going to miss the beauty of South Africa.
I have asked one thing from the Lord;
It is what I desire: to dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life,
Gazing on the beauty of the Lord and seeking Him in his temple.
Psalm 27:4
Here’s some of God’s beauty we experiences this past month:
Family Force 6 atop Table Mountain.
Muizenberg-St.James Walkway.
Boulders Beach with Jackass Penguins.
Overlooking False Bay on a morning hike.
Sunset on Table Mountain.
Early morning on Muizenberg Beach.
I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my time this month but I’m looking forward to our next month in Mozambique. Here’s what the next few days look like for Family Force 6:
Monday- over night bus back to Johannesburg
Tuesday- arrive in JoBerg in afternoon, sleep in hostel
Wednesday- take overnight train to Maputo, Mozambique with squad
Thursday- take overnight bus to Chamba, Mozambique
Friday- arrive in Chamba (thoroughly exhausted and stinky)
We'll be serving 7 miles outside of Beira.
A few more details about our ministry location/vision:
The city of Chamba is 12km northeast of Beira, located in the middle of the country.
We will be serving at Kedesh Orphanage for the month. An American named John Wickes started Kedesh in 1994. He's a builder/carpenter by trade and initially came to Beira and started working with street children. He later taught them carpentry skills and established a centre for boys.
The name Kedesh means sanctuary and symbolizes the boys gaining sanctuary from the things pursuing them on the streets. John has continued to teach them all kinds of construction skills- from electric to plumbing, building to woodwork. Over the years Kedesh has transitioned from serving street kids to orphaned, abused and extremely poverished boys in the area.
Kedesh has 26 boys, ages of 9 to 18. They’re based in a high-density rural area, and have several local neighbor boys that frequently spend time at Kedesh during the day. Their vision continues to be training and equipping the boys in practical and life skills for the future alongside teaching and showing them the love of God. All the buildings at Kedesh, both bamboo and concrete buildings have been built by John and the boys with John training as the building has happened.
The boys themselves are responsible for cooking and cleaning tasks, which they do on a rotating basis. They also have an outreach to local widows, including some linked to the boys, through the giving out of basic food and other items. They have a long-term plan to build housing for some of them to move on site with the boys and become more of a family community.
Our ministry this month will consist of construction projects on site and mentoring the boys. They are on school holiday until the beginning of February, so they are excited to have teams serving during this time. We will be serving with one other team from our squad, which includes my fellow Wisconsinite Lauren Erb. So excited!
Housing is available on site but our contacts have said it will be so hot our tents might be a better option. A typical day will consist of rain, humidity and scorching temps in the 90’s…not to mention the mosquitoes! Bring on the malaria meds!
For the first time all Race, my internet will be little to none. Sadly, this may be my last blog for a while but fear not! I will continue to document my experiences in video and picture form and will upload them asap. Remember, no news is good news. Love you all and hope to be in touch soon- until then, think of me as I sweat profusely on African buses…
Mozambique. Month 7.
