Dear Supporters and WR Blog Readers,
Last time I think I wrote about my journey was in Nepal or
maybe even the beginning of my first time in Swaziland. Well, I have journeyed
since then, and though I am in Swaziland again my world has changed and is
still changing so let me catch you up …
In Nepal I climb a few mountains, played with a few kids,
preached a few sermons (that is a questionable word to call what I did), and
hung out with quiet a few awesome people. Along with my mountainous adventures I river rafted, and hot spring-ed
(totally not a word and DEFFINETLY not what I would call what happened but oh
well). Though I preached to a few people and talked to and prayed over complete
strangers I still struggled with competence and performance issues, so basically
being immobilized by fear what abilities I did have functioning I still botched
up a lot of my ministry. BUT NONE THE LESS God uses everything, even a
fear-of-man fraidy-cat like me. We welcomed new people onto the team who really
amped up team-time, ministry, and really just called us all to a higher
standard, with chocolate donuts, fire pit, and hiking-stick team-time around
the raging river at the back of our house that month. And STILL we all, Justin
and Tiffany Hanes (the new couple on willow), Katy Gurly, Mark Norris, Rachel
Ritsima (Team-Leader), and Chealse Hughes (visiting Squeader aka Squad-Leader),
found time to choreograph, practice and dress rehearse a flash mob that DIDN’T
get preformed when the squad met for our LAST meeting in Aisa (boo.). Yes, we
are still a little upset at not being able to flash mob Steven Chun during our FAKE
team announcements, I think the crowd (U-squad) would have LOVED it. But God
had other plans that I am BLESSED we did before we flew out. May I NOT
forget, while in Nepal, after a bungee…
bungi… bungy … (that word is spelt MULTIPULE ways across the world) adventure,
I hit rock bottom in my walk with God, where I questioned EVERYTHING I EVER
thought I knew about God. To be honest, I feel like I let myself fall.
Flew on an AMAZING flight from Nepal to South Africa, and
got to hang out with T-squad (our sister/brother squad) before they finished
their last month in Africa and head BACK into Asia. That month we took on eleven
extra squad members as each team (except Willow) hosted two WR Exposure participants
(we like to call them interns). So WR added Kristen to team Willow. Every team
(Squeaders included) on the Squad were posted in Coffee Bay, South Africa,
hanging out at a surf and soccer (football) ministry WHILE team Willow and
Fruit of the Groom hung out in Swaziland (our fist time … obviously) and served
in a orphanage/school/church/farm/ …. While there we got to hang out with an
AWESOME Canadian, James, who hooked our teams up with work while we stayed at
the orphanage. The first two days we stayed there we didn’t have much to do
except hang-out in baby house and teach bible study. Then James showed up and we were climbing on
roofs, painting walls, cleaning garages, jumping into trash pits, digging
sewage holes, moving rocks and cinder blocks, fixing swings, cleaning yards,
chopping down trees, moving trailers(like shipping crates), start and put out
fires and so so SO much more. We celebrated THREE birthdays at this
mountain-top mission, Katy Gurley turned 22, Chelsea Brunts turned 23, and the
United States of America turned 235. ALL were great celebrations ESPECIALLY
Independence Day. Katy and Chelsea dressed up in a red and white striped shirt
and a solid blue shirt and burst out in “America the Beautiful” while most of
the team (until they became aware of it) held their hands to their hearts in
Honor of home. Instead of fire works we CUDDELED around our fire pit as we
FROZE in the African WINTER and roasted marshmallows (gross flavored ones)!!! The BEST part of Swazi 1, (aside from KFC, nearly
burning down the ministry, being extras in a documentary of Swaziland, a visit
from Swazi’s PM and a trip or two into the city for questionable internet) was
a night of 30hrs of prayer. Willow and Fruits were in Maylasia together where
we participated in an Easter 30hrs of prayer with Penang House of Prayer, PenHOP,
(an AMAZING event that I LOVE and RELISHED completely) and so we decided to do
our own from Friday night to Sunday night with a break for church (Mark
preached), it was like Christmas. We each had our own envelope for notes of
encouragement or prophecies, kind of like stockings and there were decorations
on the wall dedicated to prayer. One part of the wall was for past, present,
and future ministries, another was for family, and another was for those we
knew who needed Christ. We also had a table for art worship, a confession box
(which we immediately threw away after the night was over … NO ONE LOOKED) and
communion. Each person had an hour slot (twice) where they played music for
worship and places to crash when you couldn’t stay awake any longer. Other than
that awesomeness, there were a few more awesome instances: girls night in with
hamburgers, buttered door knobs and toilet seat, and zip-locked onions with mens-underwear.
Did I mention we almost burnt down the ministry (click here to read about that misadventure)?!?!?!?!
We parted ways with Fruit of the Groom at El Shaddai. The
Fruits headed back into SNOWY South Africa to meet up with most of the Squad
while we caught a ride with James into Mozambique a few days early. At the
border we were detained due to a “broken head light” (also know as a bribe). We
sat in the car and watched a few cars pass with a head light out coming from
Mozambique as Justin Hanes heroically preached our way into the Country, NOT A
DIME SPENT! Due to the AMAZING help and network of missionaries in Africa, we
were blessed and got to bless a Church of Nazarene Seminary by staying at their
guest house (an ACTUAL house, bathtub, washing machine, beds, hot water and
ALL!) while we waited to start our ministry at a street boys outreach further
into Maputo (the Capitol and an AWEFUL extortionist place to visit). Our
weekend vacation ended when Lauren, our contact, picked us up and drove us to
the ministry-site/ home for the month, Masana. And so I moved from a house into a MANSION. Maybe mansion is too
extravagant of a word but it was a beautiful home I was blessed to stay in,
with again, hot water, shower, western toilets, washing machine,
movie-watching/video-game-playing capability, and full size bed. I got to hang
out with a great group of loving, caring, boys from seven in the morning to
about four in the afternoon; twice a week we visited a rural care point to
feed, hang-out with, and teach (if the
students asked that day) English; and then for the rest of our days we would
hang out with the family (Lauren, Ian, Courtney, a few other visitors,
and the boys who stayed at the house with us Edson, Ned and Felix). The most
amazing parts of that month were: a few girls that I got to love on and be
loved on at the care-point, movie night with the boys, girls night at John and
Lanes, and our fair well week. At the
care point there were two girls who befriended me, and though we weren’t
cry-as-I-officially-left-to-probably-not- return-again friends, they still
taught me games and brushed me up on my basic Portuguese every time I visited.
After having hung out with Big Pae (Pie), Little Pae, Big Arrmande, Little
Arrmande (Messi/Mess), Es, Dumbo, Milton, Edson, Ned, Felix and a great number
of other street boys, we got o help host a movie night (the Italian Job) Ian
threw the boys complete with popcorn and
cordial. I sat in the back with Big Arrmande, Es, and Milton they all shared
their popcorn with me. Milton was so determined that he actually fed me a few
pieces. John and Lane,a missionary
family (they have an ADORIBAL six month daughter the age my new niece, Keira,
will be when I see her in November) we met through Ian and Lauren, were kind
enough to host a few dinners for us at their house in Mozambique. Lane is an
AWESOME cook and hostess. She hosted us a girls night. Chocolate was
EVERYWHERE! On our faces, on our feet, and in our hair. And while we pasted our
selves with ALL natural , edible chocolate beautification, we watched “Bride
Wars” and ate chicken salad, pasta salad, and salad salad, and drank for the
FIRST TIME since the race began … sweet ice tea. Our last week, we decided to
go big on our ministry. Our first day we prayed and prophesied (spoke life
into) over the boys and gave them bracelets to remember what was said. The LAST
day, which God TOTALLY CRUSHED me, we washed the boys feet (I cried and prayed
over them as I did it), and Mark talked about Jesus washing the disciples feet.
Naturally NOT all the boys were up for it but I believe we got them all to get
there feet cleaned by one of us. Es
cried when we said goodbye and Joan (Joe-ow which mean John in English, whom we
cal “the pit-bull” because he was an ALL muscle kid) cried when he said Goodbye
to Katy. God began to work on my heart
as a realized how much I let myself and my issues and fears get in my way of
letting God do big things with me on the race, I was ashamed and heart broken.
We returned to Swaziland for debrief, where the majority of
U-squad camped out on the lawn of a Lodge resort place, next to the zebra pin.
Yes I petted a zebra. At debrief our team finally sat down and confronted the
big pink elephant that kept our team from going deeper with each other in our
walks with God. Needless to say after a day filled with prayer the Squeaders
felt at peace and decided to move me from Willow to APEX. God is good. Though
when I got there I was a little miffed at the idea of camping at a debrief ( I
was TRULY spoiled in Cambodia at the PRUMBY(Proom-bee a.k.a. Prum Bayon Hotel
AMAZING place to stay) , I totally enjoyed the experience of my own space that
my tent gave me. By the end of that week I started to read the prophecies that
have been given to me over the race and I kept them in my pocket to chase away
the lies, fears, and ungodly thoughts that went through my head. I decided to
fight, to fight for myself and relationship with Christ, to fight for my
relationship with my new team, to fight for the experiences the race gives me …
And that updates you to this month.
Swaziland
Dos
So now I am the NEW kid on the team. One Squad (one church(
body of Christ)) MULTIPULE teams (multiple church families). So I switched
churches and again I am on the ALL GIRLS team. YAY!!! I actually am the SEVENTH
member (completion) of this all girls team and this is my ninth (babys are born
after nine months). So this is my team …
Brittani Dunlap (tea-
Leader)
Carrie H (team-Financier)
Hannah Bashor
Sarah Allgood Knapp
Alicia Jones
Jessie Kyarsgaard
This month we have been
working as “a small part of a big picture” along side Adventures in Missions
Swaziland. Basically, we are working with the teachers of a few care points in
Manzini, Swaziland. We are teachers aids, and when we are not working we are at
home sharpening pencils, organizing crayons and cutting our lament paper sealed
learning manipulative (if you don’t know what that is, like I didn’t until this
month, it is stuff like alphabet books and squares with number 1-20 stamped on
them so kids can hold it the learning tool in their hand). This month was
kicked off with an MK (Missionary Kids) day. We helped host the missionary kids
of Swaziland (at least those that we knew about) and had a fun day for them,
complete with bouncy castle, side walk chalk, bubbles, water games, balloon
animals, and face paint. We ended the day with movies and popcorn while parents
filed in to get their kid. This month I am in charge of “family fun night”,
obviously it is a night dedicated to us group of women having fun and so far we
have played a form of guess who and Telephone Pictonary. Almost every night
after feed back and the assigned event for the night, we end the day with a
bowl of popcorn and an episode or five of Grey’s Anatomy. The AIM guest house
we are staying in was the old house of a friend of our contact, Megan. This
house has been out to get us. Our first week here the oven outlet started spouting
sparks till we couldn’t use the oven any more. Luckily we found a George
Foreman, and had a percolator and microwave to cook food with. The next week we
found a leak that was dripping from a light socket (NEVER a good sign). From
then on any faucet, light switch, or the George Foreman, you touched would be
greeted with a nice muscle wrenching jolt that would unhappily shoot through
you. Men came into fix the jolt leak in the hall way one day while we went out
to work at AIM care-points, and came back to a house that was sporting THREE
leaks from light sockets (more than one) but a fixed oven, thank you fix-it
men. Come to find out though, the water heater is stored in the ceiling and
leaks on occasion (enough to freak us out for fear of electrical fire and only
one known way out of the house…). Now there is an oven that works for the most
part, NO shocking faucets nor leaking light sockets, but there is also NO hot
water, and now NO shower (Alica accidentally broke the shower head). So we are
back to bucket showers BUT we still have a percolator so they are HOT bucket
showers. This month we might again celebrate THREE birthdays again and NONE of
them one of my team members, two have been squad members that have been posted
close by and the other is of our contact, Megan. HAPPY BIRTHDAY EVERYONE!!! The
good news is that God is still doing a work in me. A work that I trust that
will be continued till completion (whatever completion looks like to God).
Though the changes might not seem really big to some they mostly include plans
for when I come home. Things like: getting a job to save up for a car and all
that goes with it, joining a (my) church and being apart of a community (though
I highly doubt will be EXACTLY alike and I will EXTREEMLY miss the one I am
apart of right now), learning to take care of finances, and rooting myself in
Christ and His standards of me and cares for me and not everyone else’s. I still
ask for prayers for spiritual and mental growth, for encounters with God and
ones He has planned for me, for preparation and provision for re-entry into the
United States, for my team and their walks with God and our community, for the
squad and our walks with God and our community with each other, for God’s plans
to be evident for when we come home, for community for us when we get there, a
community though BOUND to be different yet still striving for the same goal: to
sincerely love one another and uphold one another in love to the standard that
our Lord has set before us, to Love one another as Christ has loved us, to love
the Lord God with all our heart ,soul, and strength, and to love our neighbor
as ourselves- THAT kind of community. Also, continue to pray for the places and
ministries that we’ve been to and God’s hand, provision, and family to help
where it is needed.
Thank you for your
prayers and support.
Kim in Swaziland(twice)
